Because fighting about Catholics has gotten old April 14, 2010 4:19 PM   Subscribe

There's a whole lotta nasty in this thread.

Early thread shitting, trolling through past comments and lots of derail.
posted by nestor_makhno to Etiquette/Policy at 4:19 PM (46 comments total)

I think next year for April Fools Day the entire site (including all subsites) should go read-only, and all the mods will get a day off.

Or it can just happen on another day. Metafilter Day, we can call it.
posted by inigo2 at 4:23 PM on April 14, 2010 [5 favorites]


Same bullshit, different religion.

This is the kind of "I'm too lazy and comfortable in my opinions to even think about this issue" response that makes me walk away from the site for whole hours at a time.
posted by hermitosis at 4:24 PM on April 14, 2010 [13 favorites]


I got instantly exhausted when I saw this MetaTalk. I think we all need a vacation.
posted by Lutoslawski at 4:26 PM on April 14, 2010


Wasn't it like yesterday that someone said "hey, the entire front page of MetaTalk is friendly and reasonable stuff?"
posted by Tomorrowful at 4:30 PM on April 14, 2010


To the degree that it matters, I plead guilty to contributing to the thread getting derailed. I particularly regret allowing myself to be provoked into a few responses, that with a cooler head, I'd see was not necessary at all. In responding to derails, I contributed to the derail. Unconditional apology, and immediate self-sanction. I'm taking a short break from posting.
posted by VikingSword at 4:31 PM on April 14, 2010 [10 favorites]


Wasn't it like yesterday that someone said "hey, the entire front page of MetaTalk is friendly and reasonable stuff?"

This is why we can't have nice things.
posted by nestor_makhno at 4:32 PM on April 14, 2010 [2 favorites]


makes me walk away from the site for whole hours at a time.

Well in terms of one's mental well-being, being away from metafilter in particular, and the internet in general, and for much more than just a few hours at a time, is probably a good idea--regardless.
posted by HP LaserJet P10006 at 4:32 PM on April 14, 2010 [1 favorite]


I find VikingSword's assumption that they'll NEVER offer David Hasselhoff statuettes for enrollment applications unduly pessimistic.
posted by qvantamon at 4:33 PM on April 14, 2010


Wasn't it like yesterday that someone said "hey, the entire front page of MetaTalk is friendly and reasonable stuff?"

Maybe it would help if I derailed this thread with the new Janelle Monae video, "Tightrope"?
posted by hermitosis at 4:33 PM on April 14, 2010 [7 favorites]


There are some issues that just bring out an ugliness in people.

For me, it's Ke$ha.
posted by hellojed at 4:34 PM on April 14, 2010


I think next year for April Fools Day the entire site (including all subsites) should go read-only, and all the mods will get a day off.

Mod Day! When the site goes read-only and people gather together to wear their Favorite Mod Mask, sing the Halle-Hula, and go pester other sites.
posted by The Whelk at 4:34 PM on April 14, 2010 [3 favorites]




Looks like the first comment on that thread (the one by vikingsword) has now been deleted? Which is probably a good thing, but will also make the derail itself hard to follow.
posted by HP LaserJet P10006 at 4:38 PM on April 14, 2010


Unconditional apology, and immediate self-sanction. I'm taking a short break from posting.

Thanks. Please consider this a polite "we'd like to see this sort of thing not happen again" note from us as well.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 4:47 PM on April 14, 2010 [2 favorites]


The issue, the music, or the person?

There was a thread about her music a few weeks back. I was having a "bad day." I find any positive opinion on her music baffling. Put three and three together and... well...
posted by hellojed at 4:50 PM on April 14, 2010


Looks like the first comment on that thread (the one by vikingsword) has now been deleted?

hermitosis quotes it in its entirety in the very second comment of this thread.
posted by Zed at 4:52 PM on April 14, 2010


The Halle Hula makes me smile. :)
posted by zarq at 4:59 PM on April 14, 2010 [3 favorites]


I like the Janelle MonĂ¡e derail idea and would like to add this photoshoot.
posted by bewilderbeast at 5:09 PM on April 14, 2010


Note: Everyone needs a fug.
posted by ericb at 5:13 PM on April 14, 2010


hermitosis quotes it in its entirety in the very second comment of this thread.

Well not anymore. Thanks a bunch.
posted by DU at 5:21 PM on April 14, 2010


VikingSword: “Unconditional apology, and immediate self-sanction. I'm taking a short break from posting.”

Er - look, I know we've really, really disagreed in the past, and I know we're not likely to see eye to eye in the near future, but honestly I don't want to see you leave Metafilter, and hope you'll be back soon. You've made a lot of really good posts, and you mean what you say, which is a hell of a lot more than I can say for a lot of people.

(Seriously, if my silly little snarking - really, that's all it was, and I know it was pretty stupid - made you feel unwelcome, I'm genuinely sorry for it.)
posted by koeselitz at 5:25 PM on April 14, 2010 [6 favorites]


Oh, THIS thread. Huh. I guess I don't see how the problem with that comment. It's precisely on point.
posted by DU at 5:26 PM on April 14, 2010


Au contraire, mon frere. It really was just the four words.

I'm currently reading a 1913 doctoral thesis that includes the following, verbatim:
The inclusion of tater would certainly warrant the inclusion of 'lasses.
posted by Zed at 5:26 PM on April 14, 2010 [2 favorites]


DU: “Well not anymore. Thanks a bunch.”

No, it's still there. The entire comment was:

Same bullshit, different religion.

Seriously, that was his whole comment. (I don't know what you mean, exactly, but it seems like you're worried it was deleted? In which case: it wasn't.)
posted by koeselitz at 5:27 PM on April 14, 2010


I am surprised to see shii's comments stand. Responding to legit criticism by calling the other person illiterate seems a little over the top. Not to mention going through someone's posting history to make a ridiculous point.
posted by nestor_makhno at 5:29 PM on April 14, 2010 [6 favorites]


I respect VikingSword for seeing that he needed some time away from Metafilter, but his healthy hiatus partly obscures shii's very personal and unjustified attack. Targeting comment histories doesn't exactly promote respectful dialogue, especially the bizaare claim that silence equals indifference.
posted by anotherpanacea at 5:33 PM on April 14, 2010 [2 favorites]


Oh is that the preview button?
posted by anotherpanacea at 5:39 PM on April 14, 2010 [5 favorites]


There should be a religion that expresses scorn for people who argue about religion. We could call it Boodhism.
posted by lukemeister at 5:39 PM on April 14, 2010 [4 favorites]


Maybe it would help if I derailed this thread with the new Janelle Monae video, "Tightrope"?

Oh man it really would. This video made me buy her first album and get really excited about her second.
posted by Tomorrowful at 5:41 PM on April 14, 2010


Note: Everyone needs a shrug.

No doubt. It totally tied the room together.
posted by Ufez Jones at 5:44 PM on April 14, 2010 [3 favorites]


Things are tough all over right now... hardly matters what country/continent you're on.. We're seeing the result of that in nearly every community...IRL and online.

Be thankful that online communities are not subject to suicide bombers, idiots on airplanes, and all the rest of the foolishness that is happening (not calling out anyone in these analogies)...

We see these explosions of emotion and anxiety in WAY too many threads here.

That said... Metafilter is unique, and important, perhaps more important that we realize....

We frequently spend a lot of time picking apart isolated events in this community... has there ever been any consideration of a thoughtful examination of how this all works, with a goal of establishing a manner of discourse that moves us/the community/the world forward, a model for other communities?
posted by HuronBob at 5:59 PM on April 14, 2010 [1 favorite]


Consider me a member of the secret order of Knights Who Say "Huh?"
posted by turgid dahlia at 6:24 PM on April 14, 2010 [2 favorites]


I am surprised to see shii's comments stand.

Once things wind up in MeTa we're a lot less likely to delete anything from the thread being discussed, noxious as the comments might be. Yes, shii needs to not do that anymore.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 6:31 PM on April 14, 2010 [1 favorite]


That said... Metafilter is unique, and important, perhaps more important that we realize....

We frequently spend a lot of time picking apart isolated events in this community... has there ever been any consideration of a thoughtful examination of how this all works, with a goal of establishing a manner of discourse that moves us/the community/the world forward, a model for other communities?


Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.
posted by Kirk Grim at 6:56 PM on April 14, 2010 [2 favorites]


Be thankful that online communities are not subject to suicide bombers

Bomb throwers on the other hand...
posted by telstar at 6:57 PM on April 14, 2010


Metafilter Day, we can call it.

The giant, inflatable Mathowie head floating down 42nd Street is gonna look cool.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 7:08 PM on April 14, 2010 [2 favorites]


Only if Mathowie jumps through it on his bicycle.
posted by The Whelk at 7:11 PM on April 14, 2010


Flames. There has to be flames. And Jazz Hands!
posted by Splunge at 7:17 PM on April 14, 2010


Post's Post's Post's
posted by Damn That Television at 7:21 PM on April 14, 2010


flames...on the side of my face...burning, heaving breathes
posted by The Whelk at 7:21 PM on April 14, 2010


jessamyn: Once things wind up in MeTa we're a lot less likely to delete anything from the thread being discussed

Why's that? Honestly curious.
posted by Doofus Magoo at 7:40 PM on April 14, 2010 [1 favorite]


Because people discuss the comments in the thread that's been called out and if we delete stuff, then people are all "what did you delete, what did it say?" and either we wind up requoting it over here [in which case people are all "who said that? did people favorite THAT?"] or talking more about the deletion than whatever inspired the original callout. Not to say it never happens, but usually once a thread has been called out in MeTa, the thread is usually done being fucked up [because there's a note and because people come over here] and so the sort of "hey let's remove the nasty derail to keep this on track" sort of action no longer needs to happen.

It's a little tough sometimes when people link to specifically very shitty comments because then we either need to explain why it wasn't deleted or go through the whole "what did they link to, what did it say?" back and forth. And sometimes people are just having some sort of appallingly bad day and really deleting one terrible comment with very little fanfare usually solves the overall problem better than a MetaTalk callout and a lot of people being all GRAR about it.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 7:47 PM on April 14, 2010


The giant, inflatable Mathowie head floating down 42nd Street is gonna look cool.

But nowhere near as cool as the Oolong balloon.
posted by y2karl at 11:07 AM on April 15, 2010


By the way, I am assuming that this comment over there--

Oops. Somebody missed a class when Venn diagrams were discussed. Never mind set theory though. Apparently school was missed entirely when logic was taught. Bad inferences, hobbled reasoning and insane conclusions. When would a silly person go back to school and learn the basics of reasoning? My guess: never.

--is what is referenced by this comment over here--

I particularly regret allowing myself to be provoked into a few responses, that with a cooler head, I'd see was not necessary at all.

Because one of the basics of reasoning regarding conversation ought to be that sneering condescension is never forgotten. In terms of social intelligence, that's not rocket science--that's plain and simple Are You Smarter than a Third Grader ? obvious.
posted by y2karl at 11:47 AM on April 15, 2010


Doofus: Why's that?

Because Metafilter is organized by the Niceness Requirement of different sections, which I understand to be (in descending order):

Projects => Ask => Music => Blue => MetaTalk

Metatalk is the Thunderdome, Mardi Gras, the Wild West. Anything goes. If you play too rough for here, the only place to go is Banhammerland.
posted by msalt at 10:28 PM on April 15, 2010


The giant, inflatable Mathowie head floating down 42nd Street is gonna look cool.

But nowhere near as cool as the Oolong balloon.


I see your Oolong and raise you a Maru balloon.
posted by Alnedra at 1:37 AM on April 16, 2010 [1 favorite]


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