Yeah, really. It's topical (during a very political time, where such issues are being widely discussed), interesting, well-written, and had never been posted before. I honestly don't see the problem. Or is NewsFilter the rule? Does the date on this really matter?
posted by Kickstart70 on Sep 1, 2008 - 23 comments

Poster asks: Does dating through craigslist actually work? I answered simply, "No." My answer's been deleted. This is not the first time my on-topic answers have been deleted from threads and I find it pretty annoying. Further, someone else posted "Yup" and there answer is still there. WTF? [more inside]
posted by dobbs on Aug 29, 2008 - 92 comments

Not sure why the "Militarization of Consumer Companies" thread by five fresh fish was killed? [more inside]
posted by ornate insect on May 19, 2008 - 81 comments

Why'd we go and kill this. Just because of this? (more inside) [more inside]
posted by es_de_bah on Sep 28, 2007 - 15 comments

How was the AskMe about "your favorite frugalities" chatfilter? Seemed like a legitimate question to me with some decent, interesting answers. Bad deletion.
posted by stupidsexyFlanders on Sep 7, 2007 - 80 comments

I'm not going to make any callouts, but could short comments like "that was ghey" or "boring" be deleted as policy? They seem way too... youtubey. I wouldn't want to see an end to criticism or snark, but grunts of dissent tend to damage my perception of the Metafilter brand.
posted by Citizen Premier on Sep 1, 2007 - 77 comments

Soooo...what happens when we get a much better post on the exact same topic just a few minutes later?
posted by allkindsoftime on Jul 19, 2007 - 38 comments

Getting the dog high? Why wasn't the whole thing deleted? Letting any comments ride on that one is a slippery slope, I should think. Especially ones condoning it or speaking of giving a dog something toxic.
posted by valentinepig on May 30, 2007 - 146 comments

What standards of consistency to moderators apply in redacting comments? Can anything give rise to standards? I ask not so much to seek the retention of my own comments; the world wouldn't be worse off if all of them were deleted. But I am flabbergasted at the inconsistency in treatment -- e.g., the comments on this thread -- and amazed that there's no attempt to explain or even to identify the party responsible.
posted by Clyde Mnestra on May 23, 2007 - 86 comments

Could someone direct me to specific policies that state why posts are removed? I had one removed today because someone chose to use inappropriate language in a comment. The language use was apparently blamed on the article I posted. That is very strange. I don't know where the policy is that states what can and can't be posted.
posted by scissorhand2 on Apr 20, 2007 - 226 comments

If I hadn't said that I had any connection in this posting would it still have been deleted?
posted by lannanh on Apr 6, 2007 - 60 comments

Often there are questions posted to Ask Metafilter that have a similar format. The poster will have a general health problem, and will also be fat. In 95% of the cases, losing weight is the first step to solving the problem. Yet, this answer is often immedietly removed. Is it really so terrible to point out the elephant in the room? And, more pointedly, are we doing others a diservice by not being frank?
posted by four panels on Apr 4, 2007 - 178 comments

What happened to the thread of photos off the p2p networks? Did that link get removed for any particular reason? Was it to make room for the Zelda/Golden Ratio thread? Hmm. I am kind of disappointed.
posted by kuatto on Mar 7, 2007 - 15 comments

OMFGAWWTDMTT: (Oh My F—kin' God Another 'Why Was This Deleted' Metatalk Thread). But, hopefully, a meta-OMFGAWWTDMTT thread. Jess, Matt, I like you guys, I really dig Metafilter, Ask Metafilter, Metatalk; I like the fact that there's good stuff here, healthy dollops of snark and cynicism, but overall what appear to be good people. But I'm having more and more difficulty discerning the criteria and rationales by which you guys delete threads, and I think that's a trend that's gonna bite the site's ass a little further down the road. More inside.
posted by WCityMike on Jan 31, 2007 - 118 comments

Isn't this post of mine not really an "XYZ sucks, amirite" question? Looking at the answers I think it's more asking about the lack of cultural awareness of him while he has such success in Britain. Could understand it being deleted for being open-ended, but not the 'amirite' part.
posted by conch soup on Jan 26, 2007 - 48 comments

Alright, this is just lame -- I asked a very specific question related to the election and it got deleted. I wanted to find a capsule summary of how Rush and Hannity were playing post-election as Wednesday programming opened. If my post is considered too redundant or inflammatory, fine, but telling me to go listen to the radio is kind of callous and rude. I said I missed the coverage and as it is, out where I live I don't even know if we get the shows. You all don't have to repost it; but I'm just kind of teed off.
posted by stam_broker on Nov 8, 2006 - 54 comments

Matt, this is your playground, obviously. But the question was very seriously meant, and I find its deletion troublesome. First, it was as politely phrased as possible for those who are Bush fans; they were, in a very non-trollish and respectful way, warned away two paragraphs in. Second, the question most definitely was NOT an "xyz sucks amirite" question, and that's an inaccurate, hasty, and I even daresay somewhat insulting characterization of what the question was. Third, if that question as phrased isn't permitted on Ask MeFi, then what's the deal ... are politically charged questions, or questions speaking from an obvious demonstrable political bias, not allowed on Ask MeFi, even if they are legitimate and courteous questions? If they are, then by what guidelines can someone operate whether or not they're going to trigger a deletion (and it might be helpful to post those on the Ask a Question page)? Finally ... if someone's question is zapped, they still have to wait a week?
posted by WCityMike on Oct 23, 2006 - 44 comments

I was sorry to see this post on Dawkins get deleted becuase it was "yet another Dawkings post", when the one from three weeks earlier was deleted as well. I understand he's discussed alot, perhaps ad nauseum to some folks, but they can skip the post. I think the mistake being made here is that the same arguments will always be rehashed over and over. This disregards the fact that new people may have registered since the last time the topic was discussed.

In a very "meta" sense, the addition of new people to the discussion allows the argument to evolve, over the course of multiple debates. These kinds of topics - religion, rights, abortion, etc. - appear not to have objectively correct answers, however the passions on all sides and the articulation of arguments are a reflection of the community and our collective culture. By returning to the argument, with newer and older members we start to understand everyone's basis for their position, the forces that motivate the passions behind people's positions and give rise to the issue in the first place.
posted by Pastabagel on Oct 13, 2006 - 99 comments

My FPP was deleted (not complaining; I agree with the reasoning). Aren't I supposed to get an email about this? I didn't. Forgive me if that's not the policy. I thought it was.
posted by grumblebee on Sep 22, 2006 - 13 comments

This is the kind of borderline/gray area/marginally illegal question I love to see in AskMe.
posted by Rash on Aug 27, 2006 - 30 comments

25 answers, 3 users marked as favorite. Yet I get "please don't abuse ask me by asking 300 questions disguised as one" in my email. I didn't actually ask 300 questions, I asked for answers for the debunkable ones. The thread was doing quite well, and was quite informative before it was deleted.
posted by loquacious on Jun 18, 2006 - 90 comments

Just out of curiosity, how is it that some posts get deleted because the thread is full of the same animated gifs we always see, and some posts continue to live way past their prime? Is it the presence of ceiling cat?
I understand some of these are left in for humor value; such was the case with the infamous Mushroom post. But when the only thing that's different is the original post, and there are no actual responses anyhow, what's the criteria?
posted by hoborg on Jun 14, 2006 - 34 comments

So have we really reached the point where posting a direct quote from the President is considered too vile a slander to let stand (twice)?
posted by rkent on May 7, 2006 - 100 comments

Is this album release announcement a good FPP?
posted by ludwig_van on May 6, 2006 - 31 comments

This is why I despise comment deletion.
posted by Civil_Disobedient on Apr 17, 2006 - 231 comments

Downright rude.
Why was my thread on 03/12/05 on George Best's funeral deleted? If you're deleting threads then explain to the poster. I know Meta is primarily US-based but you have no idea who George Best represented. I'm really livid.
posted by movilla on Dec 3, 2005 - 51 comments

So why was the AskMe thread "must I eat the whole candy bar" deleted?
posted by Rash on Nov 16, 2005 - 19 comments

I really don't care to see a FPP about what you vaguely remember your friend told you today. The Wikipedia links don't help, thanks.
posted by rxrfrx on Nov 6, 2005 - 28 comments

Ah! The sting of deletion has pricked me for the first time. Without getting into boring specifics (I would assume my offense was off-topicness), I wonder if the policing in AskMe has become more stringent? Guidance from the deleters-on-high would be appreciated--I am all for making the site as useful as possible, and also for not wasting my own time.
posted by _sirmissalot_ on Oct 17, 2005 - 7 comments

makes no sense

What part of "Best of the Web" do you have a problem with?
posted by dayvin on Aug 27, 2005 - 84 comments

It should be pretty obvious that stuff like this should not fly in the blue. Using this site as a quarry for pyramid schemes is inappropriate and action should be taken accordingly.
posted by baphomet on Jun 26, 2005 - 47 comments

I, for one, Welcome our new Stark Fist of Removal overlords!
posted by Balisong on Jun 17, 2005 - 43 comments

Look, that deleted thread had an interesting Q&A about #mefi where I learned quite a bit. You'll certainly delete this one, but did you even read it before you bombed it?

Bad job. Totally unreasonable.
posted by breezeway on May 9, 2005 - 180 comments

Earlier today I posted a question about MeFi (how to turn off background color) in the main Ask MeFi area, which appeared for a few minutes then vanished. Did it likely get moved somewhere else, or just censored? for being in the wrong place? for expressing (in mild terms) dislike of a Mefi feature (I can't see text on colored background). Or did it just vanish into the ether?
posted by anadem on Mar 20, 2005 - 4 comments

YA plea for editorial discretion/benevolent neglect. [greater within]
posted by kenko on Feb 19, 2005 - 90 comments

When you're pruning the site and deleting comments, do you mind deleting followups that only make sense with the original comment?
posted by null terminated on Jan 31, 2005 - 45 comments

What's inappropriate?
Is there a guide for how racy a post can be? I posted a fairly racy (but funny, or at least I thought so) thing eariler and it was taken off. Did I step over the line?
posted by Shanachie on Jan 30, 2005 - 6 comments

In this post a number of comments that (at least in my opinion) were legitimately funny but a little tasteless were removed without notice. Two questions - (1) would it make sense to have a "comment deleted" notice so that meta-comments make a little more sense, and (2) why were they deleted if none of the guidelines were violated?
posted by thedevildancedlightly on Jan 24, 2005 - 53 comments

How do I find out why my FPP from today got deleted?
posted by alumshubby on Nov 7, 2004 - 47 comments

Is there a reason why my really innocuous comment in this thread was deleted? I think I said something like, "Ahhh, the benefits of the scientific method...", or some-such nonsense...

Just wondering if I did something wrong ... or did something go kablooie?
posted by jpburns on Sep 27, 2004 - 7 comments

What was wrong with the godly feeling thread that was on Ask Mefi? As an atheist, I thought the discussion, for the most part, was civilized and was more about people trying to come to terms with a certain consciousness. That an innocuous thread asking others to elucidate about an indescribable feeling, rather than inviting obdurate fundamentalism, is a pity. I thought Ask MeFi was about disseminating answers and people inferring their own individual understandings from the results. Explain.
posted by ed on Dec 23, 2003 - 108 comments

QuestionableSwami, meet QuestionablePost.
posted by The Michael The on Nov 2, 2003 - 31 comments

I haven't had my coffee yet this morning, but unless I'm mistaken, the CafePress/LGF thread from yesterday is gone. What happened?
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken on Jun 10, 2003 - 65 comments

mmm, new soviet-style pancakes.
posted by luser on Jan 21, 2003 - 16 comments

I posted a link on MeFi today to www.badassbuddy.com. It is a website that features tons of buddy icons for AOL IM. Matt took it down and I can't figure out why. Any ideas?
posted by wsfinkel on May 24, 2002 - 5 comments

I posted something on Mefi that was apparently inappropriate (OK, thinking back on it, it wasn't a good idea): a request for advice about a family member becoming part of an orthodox religious "cult" like organization. It was killed pretty quickly. Can anyone tell me a good place to ask questions like this, here on this site or somewhere similar? I was hoping for advice from the people here; after hanging around here for a few months, I'm continually impressed by the quality (and quantity) of comment posted here.
posted by luriete on Dec 13, 2001 - 21 comments

my last post now missing from metatalk...
It was about bad cia art.

Are there reasons for this?
Where has it gone?

Why? Why? for pities sake Why?

Spoon
posted by Spoon on Nov 19, 2001 - 56 comments

This thread sucks. The link doesn't jump down to the story, the subject matter isn't very funny or interesting, it's just stupid. The post is too long, the comments are pretty pointless. I would delete it, but it could create more trouble than it is worth. What should be done about sub-par links? Anything? Take the good with the bad?
posted by mathowie on Aug 29, 2001 - 25 comments