I was wondering how things would go after C.K. quit. Nice!!!
An absent individual is not the cause -- it's the decrease of timely moderation enforcing the rules, and as witnessed in the P&N, leniency and neglect of action permits the rabble to take over.
There, there is not a total lack of moderation, just due to work load of moderators running the entire forum hinders the ability to timely manage the Discussion Club. Entirely understandable and the display for a need of a another member or two to volunteer their time to almost daily respond to reports and quickly monitor in here and possibly the P&N. Or better yet, have the P&N fall under the enforced rules of the general forum, put to pasture the DC, and a create new and infamously labelled forum where the anti-social rabble can fester in and out of the way of appropriate levels of discussion for the rest of the site. Political and current affairs discussion should not be equated to a cesspool. It's only a few with the leashes removed who are permitted to fester such a forum in a losing way.
The P&N already has a rule against
excessive personal attacks - unfortunately that is not enforced, and the rabble have taken over with the fortitude of impunity to create an extremely toxic and repelling environment.
Of concerns in the Discussion Club rules are:
- the apparent permission to tolerate intentional offense and stirring of the pot (ie. an avatar equating all Muslims to bombing terrorists which is off topic and can be as offensive to members as a user presenting an avatar of Nazi propaganda of Jews as a rat or thieves, or a black man after the white women - hate speech becomes hate speech when it is beyond a validated topic and thrown forth to push a prejudicial agenda). There is no absolute freedom of speech or freedom to offend here, there are acceptable limits to maintain a respectable and on topic atmosphere.
- members who willfully ignore the course of a thread in their refusal cede or advance discussion with support for their repeated and already challenged points.
The rules and guidelines are present. Most of such can be quickly and objectively identified, but require moderators who have the interested time and care to jump onto issues before they get out of hand and lend to a culture of lowered expectations evolving in the society.
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...sorry.....knowingly off-topic, but done so out of an intent of care. 