Don't ask me. First there are rules and then there are no rules and then there are rules that are not rules. The only rule that appears to always be in force - is that whatever each moderator may think the rules are to be imposes on others - none of these rules ever apply to them.   

Subject: RE: BS: why all the closed threads?
From: Joe Offer - PM
Date: 18 Apr 06 - 12:49 PM

Yes, there have been a number of threads closed or deleted lately. Things have been unusually nasty around here this last week. Somebody suggested it might be the full moon that made Mudcatters crazier than usual.

Mick did a pretty good summary of the way we do things. They aren't rules, but they are the general procedures we follow. The general principle is that moderators will use a variety of moderation techniques to keep the peace, but that moderation techniques are to be used sparingly. When things are in an uproar, we moderate more strictly. When things are calm, we moderate hardly at all.

Personal attacks, racism, and Spam are deleted when we find them, and we consider blank messages to be Spam. Multiples of ongoing threads are usually combined with the earlier thread by moving messages, or closed and redirected to the earlier thread. Here's what Mick said about our procedures:


All, with the exception of the trollers and flamers, have pretty well accepted that reasonable moderation is necessary. As I understand the rules, it goes something like this.

As a rule, if two threads are talking about essentially the same thing, the messages are transferred and one is closed.

If a thread is nothing more than a personal attack, it is generally closed.

If a post is an attempt to hijack a thread, it can be deleted.

Copycat threads are looked at carefully, and if they add nothing to the discussion, they can be deleted. This is generally the call of Joe and Jeff.