Meth Quokka

In Defense Of The Genre [Part II]

I'm happy for this thread to continue as a discussion rather than an argument, which it is threatening to turn into. Once again, I cannot comment on the events that happened because I wasn't there at the time.

However what I will say that intentionally insulting a member of the staff, especially if you're unfamiliar with them is not a great idea. Yes staff make mistakes just like any other user, but that is not an invitation to go open season on them.

To me, mistakes were made on every side and finding a path forward is gonna take some compromises from everyone.

In Defense Of The Genre [Part II]

From what I can see there is no storage centre of screenshots for anything to do with this beyond the publicly available evidence chest, though maybe I just haven't delved deep enough into the lair of evil.

My position on screenshots for the record is that if they demonstrate an intent to break the rules of the site, then yes they should be used as a source of evidence to justify a warning or ban. Therefore I suppose if you felt the screenshot of a private conversation constituted some sort of abuse of power it would be understandable why you did it but don't be surprised if the person involved in the discussion is less than receptive to having private conversations screenshotted.

If that view makes me a hypocrite then you have no idea the meaning of the word.

In Defense Of The Genre [Part II]

@Nytem4re

Again, I wasn't present for the events being discussued, I can only pass my judgement on the available information. Given that's from a deleted discord, most information is without context.

Discussions are freer between staff than they are between staff and users as we share a mutual task. It's simply a reality of the role but if you wish to provide me with more context, my inbox is available.

@Master

The issue we have with public announcing of bans is that it previously used to lead to celebration of bans and competitions to see who could 'trigger', for the lack of a better work, staff. In reality the system worked for around two years with bans not being openly discussed, but perhaps it has swung too far the other way.

Discussions are being had about this.

In Defense Of The Genre [Part II]

@POOHEAD189 How is being able to kick/ban anyone you dislike, and getting away with it at no costs to yourself, not a blatant social benefit?

I was banned for (not) breaking a rule which doesn't even exist on this site. And we still haven't seen the proof of Nyt or J8cob's wrongdoing. In fact the mods cannot even deign to tell them what they did wrong in the first place, instead making up bullshit about how they "know what they did wrong."

@pugbutter

From what I've seen of your ban, it was a little short on Nutts side which he admitted and lifted the ban. We're not perfect decision making machines, we make mistakes and I can only speak for myself in this context, but I will admit to them when I make them.

As for no cost to yourself, there has been an instance of a moderator being removed from their position and being banned for abusing their position about 2.5 years back. So I wouldn't say there was no costs whatsoever.

As towards the screenshots, I will publicly admit they don't reflect positively on the people involved, but whether it constitutes abuse of power is less clear cut. Furthermore it's not my position to pass an official ruling on that, it is down to the admins.

@Nytem4re

In regards to your concerns, we are a collection of individuals who try and cooperate together to pass a ruling on events. Some staff may want to be more open, others more closed. But if you have a genuine concern/request, bring it to me and I will pass it on to the mod forum. Or bring it to Hank and he will pass it on.

The process instituted when we first established the moderator positions was that we always made mutual decisions unless it was a situation that demanded an immediate response. I am happy to discuss what that kind of situation is if you want.

In Defense Of The Genre [Part II]

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@pugbutter

May I ask what perceived benefits you see to exist?

In Defense Of The Genre [Part II]

I have returned the the staffing fold for the guild, the RL commitments that were previosuly destroying my free time have freed up somewhat so after some discussions with Hank, I am taking up my old position as a moderator.

Now I have been absent for the last couple of months so I am still catching up on much of what happened after my resignation but if anyone has any direct questions for me, feel free to ask away either here or in a DM. On a side note, I do run notifications for discord on my phone, so if I don't reply in a reasonable amount of time, feel free to drop me a DM on discord and I'll find it much quicker.

I suppose to give my personal view on moderators on the guild; we're basically the janitors and receptionists of the guild. We're here to clean up a mess when it's reported and help out users when they need something. No privileges or benefits really exist.