Topic

Welcome to Enemaland! or, please make moderation in Glitch better

Yesterday, flask informed me on IM that she was muted in Global and Local chat, and the Forums, for repeated using the phrase "Buttfuck Enemaland", a nickname which she coined, to describe Asslandia (a.k.a. Shim Shiri) in a discussion about the aforementioned street [1].

Glitch prides itself on being a game for adults, and for having a community that is both mature and accommodating. To this end, even the most public areas like Global do not have filters, and only reactive moderation [2] is used. Before I continue I should state that I do not disagree with moderating public spaces per se - this is TS' server we're playing the game on, and TS' forum I'm writing this on. They have, of course, every right to censure anybody as they see fit. And when done right, moderation can indeed make for better communities - I say this as someone who has worked with moderators on other online communities, by making them more welcoming and removing unwanted content. The problem is that I think TS is failing, on three counts:

Proportionality - it should go without saying that the actions moderators take should be in proportion with the offence. The problem with reactive moderation is that usually, when the moderator take actions, the damage is already done. [3] Muting someone, therefore, should only be done if you believe this will prevent the user from doing further damage and where warnings for the user to stop is insufficient. Otherwise, muting is a punishment - a fairly harsh one, I might add, in a game that is ostensibly about social interactions.

Consistency - Again, as a result of reactive moderation, actions will necessarily be inconsistent, because not all offenders will be reported. To make things better, however, TS should make what is not acceptable in this game. The Community Guidelines are a good start, but they are insufficient. A player should never have to wonder if he would get censured for saying something. Players who have spend any time in Global should know that the discussion there can get fairly vulgar - "Buttfuck Enemaland" certainly isn't the worst you'd find in Global. Does repeating the phrase make it "excessively vulgar"? Does intentions matter? flask was worried that if she continues protesting about this case, he might be banned. It don't think any player should have to unduly worry about his or her ability to continue playing this game.

Transparency - TS has a policy of not sharing the results of moderation actions publicly. Although this is usually a good idea, when a player wishes to contest moderation actions in public, there's no reason for TS to not comment or provide the context for the case. Otherwise we'll only hear from one side of the case, and that is the side which is necessarily biased against TS. Being able to hear both sides and make up our own mind is always a good idea. Design, user interface, gameplay elements and music are all not above criticism in Glitch, and so neither should moderation and moderators.

In closing, I should mention that moderation is a thankless job, one which if successful the user should never see the effects of. They deserve all the praise they can for making both the public and private spaces welcoming and usable for all. However, TS has a history of being inconsistent and heavy handed with their moderation [4]. I think they can do better.

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[1]: Unfortunately that is all the context I can get from flask about the conversation. Human memory is fallible, and I suspect only TS has the full context of the conversation here. This should, at least in theory, give them the best means of judging this, which is also why you and I should think hard before making comments like this post. Unfortunately I think TS' action here deserves discussion.

[2]: Reactive moderation is when actions are only taken after somebody makes a report, as opposed to a moderator reviewing every post made in a space before or after it is posted.

[3]: In addition, as stated in the Community Guidelines TS expect public spaces to be community moderated. If I say something rude in Global, I fully expect to be called out for it. I also have the ability to block anyone whose words I find disagreeable, or leave the space entirely if I'm uncomfortable with the topic discussed. In short, players always have the ability to avoid things which offend their sensibilities. Reporting someone to escalate a problem should be a tool of last resort.

[4]: See: Lx and tis, Blue Waffle.

[Edited by staff to remove the cussin' from the subject line.]

Posted 32 days ago by Boom and Bust Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

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  • I've told you this before, but I agree wholeheartedly.
    I don't frequent global much anymore, but the only time I've heard of a person being banned from it was if the person was spamming or being rude and obnoxious to global's other participants. I'm appalled that the same punishment has been applied to a person who's reasonably well-known, and for something as petty (and, in my view, a complete non-issue) as this. I mean... c'mon. I've seen nose-picking porn linked to in global. Which I wasn't particularly offended by, but I didn't exactly like it either (no offense if it's your thing; different strokes and all that). Still, if that's approved material, I don't see why something like an alternative name for Asslandia should get someone the banhammer.
    Posted 32 days ago by Jus​tin Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Wow - I am surprised that some one would be muted for saying something like "buttfuck enemaland" even if it was repeated over and over again.

    I am seeing signs of TS catering more and more towards children and this saddens me because as you said "Glitch prides itself for being a game for adults" - I am starting to feel more and more that this is not the case and I am fearing a drop on age restrictions and removal of adult content and the implementation of censorship.

    You are correct in stating that what flask said is TAME compared to what normally goes on in local and global chat - but maybe this is the start of some form of censorship - Either that or offence was taken because everything "Asslandia" related seams to be a very sore spot for TS at the moment.  
    Posted 32 days ago by Potian Dragoon Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I guess it depends how many times the term was repeated. It can get annoying, and can be really spamming. I'm not saying it was right to silence them, as a warning would have sufficed had they not had a warning in the past. 

    The username censorship kind of sucks, but what was heavy handed about Lx? Unless I read something wrong in that thread. The only staff reply I saw was that issues between TS and users account statuses are confidential, as they should be. Not trying to start trouble, just curious.
    Posted 32 days ago by Kurtie Subscriber! | Permalink
  • So, Lx's case. This is all from memory, and apologies if I get anything wrong, since Lx's statement on his website has already been taken down.

    Lx was deleted from the game for three violations of the Terms of Service of the game:

    1. Using an undocumented API function to view other player's inventory.
    2. Exploiting a bug to generate new Musicblock GNGs
    3. Using a bot to collect keys for the basement puzzle levels

    tis was a friend of his who had her currants zeroed for exploiting No. 2. This is from memory of Lx's statement, so it may not be entirely accurate. TS has, of course, never officially commented on this except to say that they have no comments.

    My view is that:

    1. is a pretty big mistake on TS' part, since viewing inventory usually requires at least READ scope permission ie. explicit consent from the player. Lx should have reported the bug, of course, but the fault lies with TS.
    2. is something which has happened before - when dolls were first reintroduced, a good number of them were gamed from the Rube befoee TS fixed it. Similarly, tis mentioned that a number of other players were using the same exploit but were not punished.
    3. is a biggie - TS takes botting and players benefiting from alts very seriously. How seriously? We don't know. That said, deletion is an incredibly harsh punishment. It's worth mentioning though that Lx has since rejoined the game as Lx (with an unprintable character in the middle). Why? Again, we have no idea.
    Posted 32 days ago by Boom and Bust Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Being able to hear both sides and make up our own mind is always a good idea. 

    Unless it's something that has nothing to do with you.  I don't expect the people running a website to engage in specific conversations about its dealings with players in the way you're suggesting. I think that would be wrong and unpleasant.  I've seen occasion when word has come down from on high about something that many in the community know is in relation to "what XXX did",  but there would be no mention of specifics in that. Quite rightly so.
    Posted 32 days ago by shhexy corin Subscriber! | Permalink
  • However, hearing both sides of an issue allows us to know what it is that someone did wrong (if they did) and avoid doing it ourselves. 
    Posted 32 days ago by Captain Daisy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • This is seriously a non-issue or at least one that has no place in these forums. The person in question here has a very long history of repeat offenses when it comes to being reported by other players for offensive and antisocial behavior which is often directed at other people.  My guess is that this is most likely the reason action was taken. It's not like this is some first time slip. This is a person who plays mostly to troll others and does so using mutliple accounts. It wouldn't even surprise me if some of the individuals posting her are just alts.

    You have to do some really messed up stuff to actually have TS come down on you. They give you plenty of warning.
    Posted 32 days ago by Melting Sky Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I think if you take advantage of the game in the ways you outlined that Lx did, B&B, that they deserve a deletion, no matter how harsh that might sound. TS works hard on this site, and has one of the best customer service for an online game that I have ever experienced in the many games I have played. To willingly take advantage of that proves you clearly don't care about the game or the people working hard behind the scenes. I don't see this as heavy handed at all and actually something that one should expect. I also, as a maintainer of online communities of various sorts, though nothing gaming, don't agree that we should be able to hear both sides. If someone really needs to be TOLD not to take advantage of glitches or bugs in a BETA game, they were most likely acting maliciously to begin with.

    Anyway, that has nothing to do with your main post here. I only recently started playing again and don't do much other than happily harvest gardens and host a few ghost tours, so I know nothing about the user in question, so I stand by what I said in my comment, about it depending on if the user purposefully spammed global with the phrase. I do agree that whatever moderation is going on should have consistency though. If they're going to be reactive rather than have an active mod in the chat, then they need to 1) look at context and 2) apply the same punishments across the board.
    Posted 32 days ago by Kurtie Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Captain Daisy, re "However, hearing both sides of an issue allows us to know what it is that someone did wrong (if they did) and avoid doing it ourselves."

    If there is any sense at all in which a reasonable person would have to wonder if their behavior is ok or not, they would always (a) be warned before any further action is taken, (b) given an explanation for the warning and (c) at least one chance to make things right (in almost every case, we're willing to give people multiple warnings and multiple chances).

    No-one has to live in fear, worrying that we'll just arbitrarily delete their account; anyone who has their account suspended or deleted knows exactly why (and had the option to play within the Community Guidelines/TOS).
    Posted 32 days ago by stoot barfield Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I agree with shhexy. If I did something (unintentionally, I hope) that would result in moderator action, I'd certainly hope it was kept between me and the moderators. I'm sure that if it was something that they'd think everyone should be told not to do, they could inform people, like shhexy said, without saying "So, everyone, you really, really, should not barble the warble. Do you know Not a Princess? Well, she barbled the warble, and it has brought her a ban. Do you want to end up like her? No? Then stop it with the barbling!"

    I don't think there should be "public trials" for this sort of thing. If the moderators were to be swayed be the community's reaction to their actions, that would not be a good thing IMO, and if they weren't, or if people agreed with them, what would be the point of discussing them? I've seen this sort of thing on other sites as well, and the "serious" ones don't discuss such decisions in public. What I think goes too far is what one forum I know does - people who talk about actions taken against their account in public will be further punished.

    But in general, I do think privacy in such cases is a good thing. Particularly as you will not find the community will agree over such issues - a case a few months ago came to mind when someone used the F-word several times in a somewhat emotional update to their own page, and someone else wandered in and got all offended and judgmental about it. I'm not sure if a person who has been disciplined by moderators on a divisive issue will be helped by a public argument.
    Posted 32 days ago by Not a Princess Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Proportionality and consistency are good principles but very hard to assess over the entire history of a player. As stoot says, one or more warnings may have been given in the past for other offenses which we know nothing about.

    If a player wants "full disclosure" they have the option of posting the history including the wording and frequency of warnings (here or in a place that TS does not moderate) but I have never seen anyone do that. I agree with TS' principle that it is not their place to publicly call out a player in that way.
    Posted 32 days ago by Vic Fontaine Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I've worked as a mod on quite a few games, with big and small playing populations and across a fairly broad range of ages/backgrounds.

    I don't have a lot of time to go into things, so let me just touch on one thing: this idea of transparency and the idea that for some reason, third-party people need to be involved in what is (generally speaking) pretty black-and-white stuff.

    I'll be blunt, and do bear in mind that I obviously don't represent TS. What happens between a player and the mod team is no-one else's business. It's not about transparency or accountability (and please believe me when I say that there are very strong regimes in place to ensure moderator accountability), it's about privacy. People generally don't want their dirty laundry aired, and while you can make the argument "they deserve it", you don't get to decide if someone else's privacy should be violated in that manner.

    Third-party involvement in someone else's case is, frankly, unnecessary. You may want to know what they did and sure, that person may tell you, and lie, and it may seem like the mod team are a bunch of power-hungry jackals with no sense of what is right or just and all that other junk. There are sites where mods are like that. There are sites where mods are not. Glitch is a 'not', and the easiest way to tell is this: scale. Where there is smoke, there is fire and one person feeling wronged by a decision is not smoke. If a player wants to pursue or overturn their ruling, they need to contact mods/admin through the appropriate channels, not in a public forum. It's how that stuff works.

    Finally, do note that policies on mod-player confidentiality do differ from game to game but in most cases, what works is what works and most sites use the same sort of rules.
    Posted 32 days ago by Xiri Subscriber! | Permalink
  • [removed by staff]
    Posted 32 days ago by Kelti Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "Buttfuck Enemaland" is not that offensive of a term, really. It's not derogatory to a sexuality, a race or a skin color. It doesn't denigrate a religion or an illness. It's just crude.

    And considering half the stuff I've seen in this game...
    Posted 32 days ago by Panda Party Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Kelti, take a chill pill. Global chat is not the 'worst game community ever'. It's pretty fun sometimes! I remember once we had a long conversation with fish puns and it was the most hilarious thing. 

    I think everyone needs to settle down. 
    Posted 32 days ago by Sororia Rose Subscriber! | Permalink
  • (edited because I realised what Red Sauce said below made sense. There's no vacuum.)
    Posted 32 days ago by Cefeida Subscriber! | Permalink
  • With regards to the transparency, what I'm saying is that although it's a good idea to keep things private between moderators and players in general, if the player wants to bring something to the public (not entirely unprecedented, as my examples above show) then TS should respond publicly. Personally, I think it's fairer to all of us, and more importantly, to TS.

    @Kelti A++ Trolling, would Troll again
    Posted 32 days ago by Boom and Bust Subscriber! | Permalink
  •  if the player wants to bring something to the public (not entirely unprecedented, as my examples above show) then TS should respond publicly. Personally, I think it's fairer to all of us, and more importantly, to TS. 

    I don't think it would be appropriate to have TS engaging in conversations of this nature.   If someone's misbehaving and (as stoot said) they've probably had a warning or two before action is taken, then I don't imagine a public conversation at that point is going to do anything other than stick more pokey sticks into an already angry hornet's nest
    Posted 32 days ago by shhexy corin Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Also, there might be several people involved in a complaint/abuse report, and TS might not be able to comment on something, even if one person started to talk about it, without talking about others who would prefer not to be publicly exposed.
    Posted 32 days ago by Not a Princess Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Staff is made of people!  People are inconsistent and make lots of mistakes.  Sometimes staff curses, but players aren't supposed to curse, so this is confusing.  Sometimes staff doesn't explain what's going on in disciplinary cases, but usually they do.  Sometimes players report each other for what seems like a very small thing, and nothing happens, but when it gets to be twenty small things, or a hundred of them, it behooves staff to take some sort of action. 

    In this particular case, I saw what happened, and my guess is that a staff member did too, and muted the player of his/her own volition, because the repeated phrase was deemed to be "excessive obscenity."*  Personally, I was not offended by it, and I think some other players were laughing about it, but ultimately, it's the staff's company, not ours, and they don't have to explain their decisions to us.  (Obviously, if they make enough crappy decisions, they won't have anyone to play their game! so I'm not suggesting that we stop voicing our opinions... I'm just saying that sometimes, we're not going to understand what they're doing, especially when it comes to punishing the naughty or possibly-naughty, and sometimes that's okay.)

    * From the Community Guidelines: "Public areas in the game deserve the same sort of decorum, tact and consideration that public areas in your neighborhood do: excessive obscenity, vulgarity, or other kinds of generally offensive behavior are not welcome."
    Posted 32 days ago by glum pudding Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Most of the time people who want minor events drawn into the public arena are trying to either showboat, or undermine the integrity of the company. Both are a waste of time and result in a spectacle involving a whole pile of people who have no right to be involved in the first place and just make things worse. Players who feel wronged should always, always address these things privately through the appropriate channels, because that's how you get things done.

    As for the rest, Imma side with glum.
    Posted 32 days ago by Xiri Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The fact that flask is still around running a private war against TS is ample evidence that TS is not in the business of petty censorship. Let me just share one of the (apparently many) notes flask has been scattering around Ur telling his side of the story: imgur.com/RoZbO

    Just guessing at the other side of the story, surely this is not about somebody just happening to say a few rude words in Global but about somebody flooding Global with repeated rude words because said person was having an angry meltdown and abusing others who dared to disagree.

    Glitch, a game that features an Ayn Rand doll, has a lot of caring, involved, and sometimes ribald staffers. I think we should give staff the benefit of the doubt here about whether or not they have suddenly all turned into a bunch of naughty-word-blushing-nervous-Nellie-oppressors-of-innocent-glitchen.

    ETA: Flask just IMed me in response to my saying in Global that I was sure he would soon be back, so apparently it is just talking in Global that has been disallowed. Flask also informed me that his repeated use of the phrase was not angry but simply a "measured response" of "Newtonian reaction" every time anybody in Global expressed the opinion that the new Asslandia was cute, funny, etc.
    Posted 32 days ago by Biff Rosbiff Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'll add to the "It's none of your mother-lovin' business" why TS decided to take disciplinary action against another player.  If you need to hear about why someone else got in trouble in order to make informed decisions about how to behave in-game, I have some advice: If you think it might be a bad idea, it's probably a bad idea.  I find it totally mystifying why folks would jump to the defense of people who have been warned repeatedly, taken advantage of other players (and taken their currants as well) rather than reporting exploitable bugs to TS or otherwise made crummy choices about their gameplay.  How TS decides to moderate and why is none of our damned business provided they publish clear guidelines for fair play.  Oh look!  They do! 
    Posted 31 days ago by Sloppy Ketchup Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Who feels the need to write something this long over someone getting silenced on Global chat?

    And I keep Global chat open sometimes to make things less boring, but wow, Ketli hit some nails right on the head. But apparently, whenever has a disagreeing opinion with you, they're trolling.
    Posted 31 days ago by Reirei Umezaki Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm guessing that repetition here is the key. It's pretty hard to claim that someone is making a point or being entertaining if they are saying things over and over.
    Posted 31 days ago by Janitch Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Looking again at the CG linked to by Sloppy, I am struck that the phrase Flask quotes in his note* "excessive obscenity, vulgarity, or other kinds of generally offensive behavior are not welcome" is actually making it clear that obscenity/vulgarity are NOT the only tests of whether or not your behavior to other players is generally offensive.

    Repeatedly posting the same somewhat-obscene phrase in Global when other players say they like something you don't like -- in my opinion, that would fall under the category of "generally offensive" rather than "excessive obscenity."

    *http://imgur.com/RoZbO
    Posted 31 days ago by Biff Rosbiff Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I can't believe you guys are taking this seriously.
    Posted 31 days ago by Reirei Umezaki Subscriber! | Permalink
  • There are few times I have heard of a company "publicly" airing their issues with players.  The first is League of Legends, where they had to crowdsource report reviewing to be able to keep up with the volume.  XBox Live has a forum somewhere where they will answer questions about bans, publicly.  I only know this because there is a website that reposts them as they tend to be hilarious.  Guild Wars 2 has a thread on reddit where you can ask about a ban or suspension and receive a public reply.  Again, all the answers there are hilarious: if there are any bans that were overturned, I haven't seen them. 

    If I walk down to my local grocery store and loudly attack a product whenever someone says they enjoy it, whether with nice words or naughty words, they're going to make sure I leave quickly, and they're not going to feel the need to justify themselves to the customers that missed the drama. 

    There also seems to be an implication here that these events occurred in a vacuum, that one day each person was just whistling along his or her merry way, decided to stray just a little bit, and then BOOM, BANHAMMER.  Here's what I see: a person with previous episodes of uncontrolled disgust and anger, known to push things rather far and refuse to let go, gets muted in public chat.  No shocker.  Two people that publicly told many that it was a right to take advantage of and not report exploits push the envelope until warnings turn into punishments turn into greater punishments.  No surprise there either.  And they got off light: in the other game I play, in most other games I've played, any instance of duping or botting and your account is banned permanently. 

    None of this seems unreasonable.  It does seem unreasonable, however, to expect a company to make a public spectacle of every "discipline" issue.  And none of these examples appear to be demanding their account history be made public so much as demanding others perceive them as "wronged" or demanding for the punishment to be reversed.  I'm betting none of them would be pleased if every single report by a player and notes by staff on their accounts were published here.  Besides, that would damage their abilities to deflect guilt and blame TS for their own decisions. 
    Posted 31 days ago by Red Sauce Subscriber! | Permalink
  • GOD introduced the new area as "Asslandia," so if we're going to point fingers in this case, you reap what you sow Mr. G.

    It's a big leap from ass to buttfuck, and the latter is more offensive than the former, but I think this warrants a discussion about what is and is not acceptable when it comes to profanity in this game; at least in public settings - I'm going to assume we can curse as much as we want in IM's as long as its between consenting cursing adults.

    After reading Stoot's reply I'm going to venture that excessive use of vulgarity or obscenity entails repeating even after being warned to stop. So if Flask was warned to stop saying the phrase in question, but continued to do so, then Flask's punishment was fitting. If, however, Flask was not warned, then the muting is not fair. Which leads me to believe that it wasn't necessarily what was said but how often it was being said.

    So, again, what is and isn't obscene/vulgar? I know it when I see it, but we all have differing degrees of sensitivity.

    Personally, I didn't witness the conversation that led to Flask's muting, but if you're going to introduce a new area as Asslandia there are going to be butt jokes and they will most likely be crude. You can't implement a weather system and then mute people for talking about the rain.
    Posted 31 days ago by Godiva Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Dear Godiva, if everybody who made a rude joke in Global got muted, how very quiet Global would suddenly be! And I don't think even Flask is claiming that he was muted without any warning.

    What seems to have happened is that Flask was muted for repeatedly attacking other players who expressed their liking for the new Asslandia gameplay. Whether he did so using naughty words or nice ones is not really the issue.
    Posted 31 days ago by Biff Rosbiff Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Hmmm..

    I agree with Red Sauce and now regret posting anything else on the topic. 
    Posted 31 days ago by Cefeida Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I am seeing signs of TS catering more and more towards children

    "Asslandia" certainly proves that.
    Posted 31 days ago by WalruZ Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I´m not sure if it is okay to share experiences, so I will let the staff consider if they need to edit the following story:

    tl;dr:
    Agree with Boom and Bust, I´ve been silenced and suspended before and I feel that sometimes it was deserved and some others don´t, there is an inconsistency in the moderation that can lead to confusion. You can end like me:
    1. Explaining a new user why "bad word" is not okay to be used on Global. 
    2. Being reported by another player for using "bad word" on Global.
    3. Three day suspension for the use of "bad word" even if it was just used as an example, never intended as an insult or directed to anybody.

    I respect mods, but sometimes penalties are confusing to say the least in a game where you are ejected with a fart sound from the rear end of a dinosaurs colon... which I love, btw.

    *** *** ***

    Long Boring Ranty Addendum: +1 to Boom and Bust for this thread, I lack the adequate english skills to voice my opinions in the way she/he/it and I found myself wishing this thread was mine.

    In general terms I agree wholeheartedly both in the opinion that "TS has a history of being inconsistent and heavy handed with their moderation" and "They have, of course, every right to censure anybody as they see fit. And when done right, moderation can indeed make for better communities".

    Is worth mentioning that Global is the most fun feature on the game and I´ve had hours of fun on it, I love it, period. Most of the time I just open the game to see what´s going on there (approaching lvl 50 and not much to do ingame). Yes sometimes you encounter conversations about crochet and cats between what it seems to be soccer moms or bored housewives, and sometimes Global is composed only by nonsequiturs that makes your head hurts and think it is indeed full of teenagers with ADHD, but most of the time Global gives you a chance to speak you mind, say the first thing off the top of your head and have a good ol IRC time. Kids these days don´t even compute how fun IRC chat was. Global is that. So I´m not here to bash anyone or take sides, I´m here to share whith you my toughts about moderation on Global.

    I´ve been on the receiving end of the banhammer buisiness more than once here on Glitch, silenced more than once on Global and suspended a couple times for short periods of time no longer than 3 days. Is not the end of the world, is okay, sith happens, I´m not writing this waiting for any kind of approval or support from anybody, just sharing, please take it like it is.
    Posted 31 days ago by Mikah Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I need a link to the Xbox Live ban reposts!

    Please!

    --Me
    Posted 31 days ago by SchWM Subscriber! | Permalink
  • whywasibanned.com/
    Posted 31 days ago by Red Sauce Subscriber! | Permalink
  • [removed by staff]
    Posted 31 days ago by Kelti Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I think this is not an issue of what is vulgar or obscene but what is generally offensive or disruptive to the daily operation of a business. 

    Any of the words in question are not themselves the issue.  It's the context and the perceived intent of the words. 
    Posted 31 days ago by Red Sauce Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "I lost it and swore at them. Apparently that was enough to send the fragile, trembling little orchids of Global chat into a reporting frenzy. "

    Swearing isn't banned on Global, but if you're being offensive, you'll get reported. 
    I don't know the context, but if you're frustrated at something, calm down, take a deep breath, say hi to your Butler, drink some bubble tea, reflect on an icon...

    Of course I need to learn to follow my own advice, but hey.
    Posted 31 days ago by Sororia Rose Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Kelti needs to calm down? What about the OP and flask huh?
    Posted 31 days ago by Reirei Umezaki Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The original post has a pretty measured tone, in my opinion.  Some of the comments here are a little more .... spittle flecked.  I didn't see Flask's comments so I won't comment (though I was actually under the impression Flask was a woman all this time).  I suspect as the players increase in numbers and change there'll be less room for the "global eccentrics" which for me would be a shame.  Personally I prefer some of the bizarre stuff that goes on there over some of the oversharing that also happens (and the knitting chat too), but whatever, for now it's never less than interesting and entertaining to me which contributes to me coming back more than harvesting the same virtual rubeweed over and over again does.
    Posted 31 days ago by Ms. Beagle Subscriber! | Permalink
  • In this forum thread, and a few times lately in other threads, I've seen casual complaints about players presumed to have Asperger's syndrome and/or other disparaging comments about folks with Asperger's.  I'm not OK with that and I don't think it adheres to our Community Guidelines (or Wheaton's Law).

    If someone is doing something you dislike, or many people are acting in a way which you dislike, you can call out that behavior without attributing it to folks who are neurologically atypical.
    Posted 31 days ago by Persephone Pear Subscriber! | Permalink
  • what Persephone pear said
    Posted 31 days ago by Arietty Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Agreed with Persephone, definitely. 
    Posted 31 days ago by Cefeida Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Yes folks, this:

    I've seen casual complaints about players presumed to have Asperger's syndrome and/or other disparaging comments about folks with Asperger's.  I'm not OK with that and I don't think it adheres to our Community Guidelines (or Wheaton's Law).

    We agree with this. There is no reason to take discussion to that level. Please do not go there; step away from the keyboard at that point.
    Posted 31 days ago by kevbob Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @RedSauce--

    Thanks for the link to WhyWasIBanned.com

    That site is priceless.

    --Me
    Posted 31 days ago by SchWM Subscriber! | Permalink
  • yeah, i lolled at whywasibanned.com too - and the thread of which games their behaviour led to the bans was also kind of interesting. Reminded me why i don't play those games...
    Posted 31 days ago by Arietty Subscriber! | Permalink
  • " Kids these days don´t even compute how fun IRC chat was. Global is that."

    That is all.
    Posted 31 days ago by Tonya Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Agreed that Boom and Bust's OP was a measured and kindly thoughtfulness by somebody whose heart was touched by what Flask said.
    Posted 31 days ago by Biff Rosbiff Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I think Flask is one of the more fun and interesting folks in global chat. I wasn't around for this particular incident though it sounds like Flask was deliberately pushing the boundaries of obscenity to make a point. I've certainly seen him push various boundaries before - it's one of the things I like about him, that he doesn't follow the herd. Unfortunately there is often some backlash against people who push on boundaries.

    I sincerely hope Tiny Speck and Flask can work this out. IMO it would be a major loss to the Glitch community if Flask were to have a permanent disciplinary action against his account.
    Posted 31 days ago by Lucille Ball Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Another +1 to RedSauce for that link. Bookmarked for whenever I need a laugh.

    Also, while I've seen unpleasant crap in Global, anyone calling it "the worst MMO community" is a fricking comedian, or has never ever played and/or seen another MMO community.
    Posted 31 days ago by ZenMonkey Subscriber! | Permalink
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