I Suggest That The Usage Of Emoticons Should Be Restricted In Some Way In Debate Symposium

[Lord Valtasar 12,685]

what's next. ban typing altogether? it does enable people to be assholes after all... i stand by what i said, you blame the killer not the knife

[BornAgainBrony 2,395]

9 minutes ago, Lord Valtasar said:

what's next. ban typing altogether? it does enable people to be assholes after all... i stand by what i said, you blame the killer not the knife

After observing what has gone on there for months, it would take constant policing, even independent of reported posts, which seem to be disproportionately high. To actively regulate it (and/or respond to the number of reports) would be ridiculously unreasonable without it being at minimum, a part-time paid gig. That's very sad, given the relatively small number of users that typically frequent that part of the forum.

[Props Valroa 26,028]

1 minute ago, BornAgainBrony said:

After observing what has gone on there for months, it would take constant policing, even independent of reported posts, which seem to be disproportionately high. To actively regulate it (and/or respond to the number of reports) would be ridiculously unreasonable without it being at minimum, a part-time paid gig. That's very sad, given the relatively small number of users that typically frequent that part of the forum.

And for those reasons you have listed I believe it is best for the forum to remove the section all together. We have all seen the issues, as we partake in the debate pit itself and have been for a long time, it needs to be removed since it is just a constant problem.

[Lord Valtasar 12,685]

anyone who asks for it to be removed can have it so by staying away from it, removing it willl just result in those debates seeping into other places in the forum, making it worse for everyone

[Props Valroa 26,028]

5 minutes ago, Lord Valtasar said:

anyone who asks for it to be removed can have it so by staying away from it, removing it willl just result in those debates seeping into other places in the forum, making it worse for everyone

That is why you also ban all political discussion from the forums all together. 

[BornAgainBrony 2,395]

3 minutes ago, Lord Valtasar said:

anyone who asks for it to be removed can have it so by staying away from it, removing it willl just result in those debates seeping into other places in the forum, making it worse for everyone

You make it sound like its purpose is to serve as some kind of hornet-trap. If removal of political debates causes aggressive behavior to spread to other parts of the forums, those who are guilty of it would be better off questioning why they are part of this fandom in the first place.

[Goat-kun 2,498]

Look fam, here's the deal. There are only two emoticons native to Poniverse that I use. The rest cannot be blocked. Are you then gonna be asking staffers to restrict copy pasta too? Come on, man.

 

Just to be clear: I am against any such action. Deal with it.

[Lord Valtasar 12,685]

1 minute ago, BornAgainBrony said:

You make it sound like its purpose is to serve as some kind of hornet-trap.

first of all, not all debates are political, a debate could be about whether pinkie has horn hidden under her mane or not or any number of other stuff, the symposium has some special rules that help contain those debates in there because not everyone is in the mood for a debate all the time, you can go there when you are, while not seeing it otherwise

7 minutes ago, BornAgainBrony said:

If removal of political debates causes aggressive behavior to spread to other parts of the forums, those who are guilty of it would be better off questioning why they are part of this fandom in the first place.

and yes, maybe they should, but would they? it just makes it shittier for everyone, it's why i said above that it's not the tools we should blame, keep in mind that i don't blame any member in particular as i haven't been to the debate symposium in 2 years, it's the actions i condemn, not the people taking them

[Venomous 18,813]

This thread is being locked.

It appears that a civil discussion cannot be had about this without steering into a totally different topic and taking shots at each other. We’re better than this.

The Debate Symposium isn’t going to be removed. We understand that it is a sensitive area for some and that’s okay. However, it’s a very simple case of if you don’t like it, stay away from it. If it was taken away, debates would just arise in elsewhere (General Discussion, status updates, etc.) Just like it did here albeit not about a political topic...

Banning political topics altogether isn’t something we’re going to do either because not only would moderation be a total nightmare, but MLP Forums is a place where people can express themselves freely. What’s next after we disallow political topics? Prohibit topics about anything sensitive? No. We pride ourselves in one of the facts that we allow our members to convey their various views, assuming they do it respectfully. Yes, rude behavior is sometimes exhibited in debates but staff take care of it accordingly.

As far as the use of emoticons, Jeric made a topic similar to it here. Granted, it does discuss reactions rather than emoticons but the idea is there. In my opinion, I don’t see an issue with the use of them and I don’t believe any action should be taken. To remove a feature simply because it affects a small group just isn’t necessary.

We hear what you’re saying, @EpicEnergy and this could be looked into but as of right now, this thread has taken a turn for the worst so some patience is in order until we decide what to do if at all.

[Jeric 46,834]

This argument is really over before it began, because I can’t restrict emoticons or reactions at a forum level anyway. I mean it’s possible with modifications to the source code, but I have better things to do with my time than intervene technically in something that can just be ignored. 
 

For consistency sake, I’m not in favor of managing to the exception. A few people who annoy others with emotes doesn’t justify the hours it would take to research, develop, and implement a restrictive system. I mean, I’ll just tell people how I feel when I see over reliance for smugness. 
 

For clarification and transparency sake, and since I speak for myself, I have personally shown concern with how debate is currently moderated and how users have conducted themselves. Not all tools are being used as I feel that they should have. I have suggested a temporary closure of debate pit after another Administrator suggested that they might be on board with its permanent closure. Other staff have suggested specific topics be restricted (as we current do have a few banned topics). None of this has been fully vetted or discussed among Administrators or other Moderators. 
 

The situation is certainly more fluid. What would make this a non-issue would be taking a step back and everyone not taking every opinion as a personal attack. Schadenfreude is not a death threat, criticism of an organization is not in and of itself racist, and 80% of the reports I see are basically whining. That whining may actually cause several staffers to start reacting. 
 

I am not asking for peace and harmony. I’m far to pragmatic for that. But can you all in debate please stop using the report button like a tattle button?