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| Just kidding folks, here's the real rules by Lum the Mad 03/18/2014, 1:15pm PDT | ||||
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| OK. This is going to be disjointed and fractured and will no doubt piss off many people. If you decide after reading this Caltrops is no longer for you, *that's OK.*
This is also not about one person, though the advent (or re-advent) of one person did bring much of this to a head, it's been something percolating in my brain for a while. Caltrops has evolved into something very special. I wish I could take credit for it, but I really can't. It's a progressive and inclusive forum for the gaming community, and many of you really have no idea how rare and special that is. It is something I am proud of for my role in helping to foster, and I have learned much as have many others. Much of that has been due to a gestalt of accepting everyone for whom they are and what they represent, regardless of origin, age, creed, color, gender, or sexuality. This is the world I want to see, and I suspect it is the world many of you want to see as well. However, this forum is apart from that. It was designed by me as a free-fire zone where hope goes to die. I also have much of a libertarian streak in me, and I believe that there should be no such thing as thoughtcrime, forbidden thoughts, or verboten opinions. People who hold opinions which are wrong - even wildly, wildly wrong, should be confronted and challenged, not legislated out of existence. Yet, as a child of privilege, a wealthy straight cis (look it up if you don't know) white male who works in the technology industry, I am the most free to swing my fists in political discussions. It's what we wealthy straight cis white males have done since history started. And if people who aren't feel uncomfortable and unable to contribute thanks to the atmosphere here, *this concerns me*. And in many ways I have to defer to people who do not benefit from my own hyper-privileged base of free expression. If I can help expand that base for others, I will do so in a way that encourages all to contribute. So, why have a separate forum for swinging one's rhetorical fists if you put limits on it? Why not just roll everything up into Election Watch 2016, moderate the shit out of it, and devil take the hindmost? Well, after talking to many people, that split is helpful. It's the difference between a debate in a scholarly journal and a discussion in a bar. People want both, they enjoy both. But at the same time - they want to feel comfortable in both. No one wants to be punched in a bar ...that happens sometime, but then the bouncer gets to look at you uncomfortably. I guess I'm that bouncer. And as the bouncer, here's the new rules. - Much as the rest of the forum, you WILL treat others with respect. This is no longer negotiable. Everyone has a right to be here. - Arguments which are counter to the spirit of inclusion will no longer be tolerated in this forum. This includes racism, sexism, and homophobia. Espousing these make people feel as though they no longer have a right to be here. This is no longer acceptable. Yes, this does mean you can no longer be a "men's rights advocate". Yes, this means people to the far right of the political spectrum in the US will feel "oppressed". I have decided that I am OK with this, and that I choose to be inclusive over exclusive in the name of freedom of expression. Given that we have gay users, transgendered users, and *many* female users, arguing that they do not deserve the same rights that others enjoy goes against everything that Caltrops has come to represent. To be more specific (and this has been cribbed almost directly from rpg.net) the following, which essentially define gender-issue related trollling/derailing as a tactic, will no longer be tolerated here: - Stating that it's impossible to have a discussion of sexism without being branded sexist - Denying the experiences of female posters - Demanding to be educated on the subject - Concern trolling (such as "But I'm concerned discussion of sexism will drown out discussion of the good things about ?GAME? ") - Questioning the validity of sexism as a phenomena or a topic of discussion in this forum - Demanding that the debate be reframed (e.g. "This debate is too emotional"/"This should only be about solutions, not criticisms" etc.) - Accusing other posters of looking to be offended - Accusing male posters of "White-Knighting" or otherwise arguing against sexism solely for the approval of women The rules regarding arguing in good faith do not apply here. Use every silly argument tactic you want, strawman all up in this place, throw your rhetorical fists, go nuts! That part will stay, and keep Balance of Power a "rougher" alternative to Election Watch. The only difference is that the goalposts - the limits - have been moved in terms of how far one can go in that argument. However, one caveat: my tolerance for trolling for trolling's sake has come to an end. If you feel the need to stir up the hive mind or poke at sensitive people for lulz or whatever else reason you cleverly troll others to distract yourself from your sad wreckage of a life, you will find your privileges to post here revoked. The single arbiter of this, as always, is myself. I am tolerant but not infinitely so. And, as before: - Posts must remain worksafe (this rule applies, in general, to all of Caltrops) - Posters may not make realistic threats of violence, rape, or real world stalking to another poster. - Spam (posting repeatedly to try to derail a thread with little or no actual content) will result in a temp- or perma-ban. - Advocacy of felonies may result in a temp- or perma-ban depending on context. In general you probably shouldn't do this as I really don't want to explain to the US government why I run a forum. - Stupidity so utterly stupid and rancid that I don't want to spend the pennies on the hard drive space to store your drivel. This is included but not limited to advocacy of hatred of a given ethnic, social, or sexual orientation. Use of such stupidity to troll is no excuse. Really, what's happening is that I have dramatically redefined what is classified as stupidity. Generally, if you post something that would be comfortable on the MensRights reddit, you probably should go there instead of here, because there's plenty of places to argue about how your privilege is herping the derp and it's not really needed here as well. If you feel this makes you uncomfortable, I'm sorry. If you feel this will cause you to leave this forum, I'm sorry. I'm not sorry enough to change my mind, mind you, but I will regret losing your voice like any unique voice. However, I have had enough feedback from enough people I respect to convince me that in this particular case, a free-for-all libertarian fight-for-your-opinion forum without constraint is no longer appropriate. If you feel that you can no longer post given such constraints, there is about 99.9999% of the Internet that would be glad to have you. Respectfully, Scott "Lum" Jennings Janitor, caltrops.com |
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