Stop being jerks, especially outside of politics threads

November 26, 2004 1:26 PM

Consistency in standards, and the lack thereof. Since the election, MeFi has gotten a lot calmer, and a lot more readable. Much of these is surely do to the deletion of highly partisan comments and threads, but it seems like some people aren't getting the message. Snarky FPPs like this provoke obnoxious replies like part 3 of this.

Is there a viable way to confine this crap to the political threads?
posted by mosch to Etiquette/Policy at 1:26 PM (20 comments total)

or better yet, to get rid of it altogether?
posted by mosch at 1:27 PM on November 26, 2004

I think the short answer to that is "no", the long answer is "no, sorry" and the snarky answer is "no, you effing redstater..."
posted by wendell at 1:49 PM on November 26, 2004

It will end when they learn to love humanity.
posted by jfuller at 3:12 PM on November 26, 2004

I thought the dig at "red" states was very tired and hackneyed.....it's just getting very old this kind of belittlement-because-you-didn't-vote-for-my-party.
posted by SpaceCadet at 3:26 PM on November 26, 2004

I'm tired of the political digs. And I'm tired of hearing about people being tired about the political digs on Metatalk.

In conclusion I should stop reading Metatalk.
posted by grouse at 4:14 PM on November 26, 2004

SpaceCadet: I disliked the dig at the red states as much as the asshole who blamed all non-GOP-supporting readers of his comment for the GOP victory.

In the run-up to the election I didn't mind, because hey, there's an election and there's a reason to discuss things (even if the discussions are going badly, to put it nicely). Now, it's just sore losers and bad winners, and I'm sick of both.

Maybe if I ignore the blue a little longer the crap will magically go away.
posted by mosch at 4:50 PM on November 26, 2004

Jesus Christ.

I posted the "obnoxious reply." It was short, tame, and harmless. Yet one fellow found it so offensive that he decided to bomb me with numerous, profane emails -- and when I blocked him, he apparently chose to whine here, publicly, on MetaTalk.

It occurs to me to ask, "Am I nuts? Was my comment really that offensive?" I've read posts from liberals, condemning Bush voters as stupid, evil sheep who have doomed the world. I've read equally vitriolic flames from conservatives, alleging that liberals are cowards who hate America. Was my remark truly so offensive that it warranted an email campaign and a MetaTalk discussion?

But I won't ask. I know the answer.

Instead, I'll ask, as a longtime MetaFilter reader who recently decided to join the discussion: Is mosch's behavior typical of MetaFilter? I've contributed to Slashdot, K5, usenet, etc. I've never had to resort to anonymity. Is everyone here so thin-skinned -- and when provoked, do they all respond with such petulant tantrums?
posted by cribcage at 5:10 PM on November 26, 2004

Cribcage's remark looks pretty harmless to me, less snarky than the remark he was calling out, which itself was not all that snarky.
posted by LarryC at 5:44 PM on November 26, 2004

You all lost, you poor dumb schmucks.

Also, mosch seems to be on drugs of some kind. Bad ones. On the other hand, cribcage was clearly being a shitmitten, too.

I'll call this one a tie. On to the next!
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:54 PM on November 26, 2004

Instead, I'll ask, as a longtime MetaFilter reader who recently decided to join the discussion: Is mosch's behavior typical of MetaFilter? I've contributed to Slashdot, K5, usenet, etc. I've never had to resort to anonymity. Is everyone here so thin-skinned -- and when provoked, do they all respond with such petulant tantrums?

Well, MeFi is a weird place on the web to be honest.....the irony is quite sweet: Metafilter really is like that backward inbred town in the middle of nowhere.....it's had a closed membership for so long.....now all you new folks have come in, some of the locals are gettin' restless.
posted by SpaceCadet at 5:56 PM on November 26, 2004

Mosch:

Cribcage's post was annoying, yeah. But, if you really did mailbomb him for it, you went above and beyond "annoying". That's borderline crazy. Please don't mailbomb me for saying so.

And cribcage, nah, it wasn't offensive, just annoying. Then again, so was the initial bit that you were replying to.
posted by Bugbread at 6:43 PM on November 26, 2004

Shitmitten?
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 7:08 PM on November 26, 2004

Smittens!
posted by homunculus at 8:38 PM on November 26, 2004

Personally, I don't believe that 'i have read more offensive things on the web' is a good reason for dragging additional low-level political divisiveness into threads about billboard-dating.

Regarding the emails, Cribcage is misrepresenting the situation.

I would prefer that issue die, but I sent him one admittedly rude email saying welcome to metafilter now please don't shit political stuff all over it. (if somebody goes low-level political attack on their first post... what will their 50th post be like?)

He responded in a curt and obnoxious manner, I escalated. Repeat twice.

This thread was posted before any email blocking went on (apparently we both blocked each other), contrary to cribcage's claim.


On the bright side, everybody loves pancakes.
posted by mosch at 10:12 PM on November 26, 2004

Also, I don't think this thread was a particularly harsh callout of cribcage. I specifically called out irrelevant partisan editorialism as a cause of similarly reactionary commentary.

In retrospect, I should've done a more thorough set of examples with a more varied set of FPP and comment authors, so no false assumptions would be made regarding my goal.

I just don't want MeFi to re-degrade into an unending partisan catfight. That is all.
posted by mosch at 10:26 PM on November 26, 2004

Mosch, I wouldn't be too worried about it. Red vs. Blue is slowly returning to its previous status as an awesome machinema site, instead of a fixture of Mefi. I think this was one of the last parting shots.
posted by Bugbread at 11:08 PM on November 26, 2004

Don't sweat it, cribcage: there's nothing wrong with the comment or the original post, for that matter. Liberals (myself included) *do* need to be called on the smug superiority front from time to time.

mosch, what are you talking about? Please, everybody! No comments that make reference to the world around us! It's fine if you, personally, don't like the post or the comment, but that doesn't make them "snarky" or "obnoxious".
posted by nthdegx at 2:55 AM on November 27, 2004

Smittens!
posted by homunculus at 8:38 PM PST on November 26

homunculus is a link master. That was nice, thanks!
posted by orange clock at 8:38 AM on November 27, 2004

Upon loading Slashdot today, I found a new message: Mosch has marked me as a "Foe." Unbelieveable. So I clicked back over to this thread, to see whether there had been follow-ups I'd missed.

In retrospect, I should've done a more thorough set of examples with a more varied set of FPP and comment authors, so no false assumptions would be made regarding my goal.

Jesus Christ, dude. Are you out of your mind? How about this: "In retrospect, I shouldn't have flown off the handle over some stranger's harmless remark." How about, "In retrospect, I should have taken my medication that day." Or even, "In retrospect, I need a hobby."

Count the number of emails you sent me. Add the time you spent posting in this thread. For God's sake, you dragged your little grudge over to an unrelated website. If the word "stalker" isn't flickering in your mind right now, at least consider this: Was this the best use of your time? Read that 14-word crack again and tell me, do you seriously believe your response was measured and proportionate?

Read a book. Go for a walk. Start a stamp collection. Do something offline. Because although you don't see them, two things are clear: (1) You're too thin-skinned and emotional for internet participation; and (2) You desperately need a life.
posted by cribcage at 2:52 PM on November 28, 2004

So, the choices are condescending and elitist, or gullible and ignorant.

gosh, that is a tough one...
posted by milovoo at 3:40 PM on November 28, 2004