Mods Closing Threads for Personal Reasons

@DuskVamp said:

@AngelN7 said:

Those threads don't serve any porpuse other than entertaiment material, for every couple of "advices" from these so called 'socially adept' dudes , there are 10 "fake your own death/touch her shoulder" comments.

Usually from the mod in question..

I was about to say..

I don't get it. If they only want discussions about video games, why even have an off-topic forum?

The Giant Bomb moderators really need to start using their brains.

fight the system! i agree, and relationship threads are entertaining, if nothing else. not all of the talk on here has to be about video games.. GB is a relatively tight-knit community and for a lot of people here goes deeper than just talking about the latest assassin's creed.

@Cloudenvy said:

@DuskVamp said:

@AngelN7 said:

Those threads don't serve any porpuse other than entertaiment material, for every couple of "advices" from these so called 'socially adept' dudes , there are 10 "fake your own death/touch her shoulder" comments.

Usually from the mod in question..

I was about to say..

why didn't either of you use three dots at the end of your comment...

Sweep is a condescending, terrible excuse for a mod. Ever since his whole "I love calling people cunts, it's so edgy, deal with it" post, I struggle to understand why they let him get away with the shit he does.

@TheHumanDove said:

@Cloudenvy said:

@DuskVamp said:

@AngelN7 said:

Those threads don't serve any porpuse other than entertaiment material, for every couple of "advices" from these so called 'socially adept' dudes , there are 10 "fake your own death/touch her shoulder" comments.

Usually from the mod in question..

I was about to say..

why didn't either of you use three dots at the end of your comment...

Because we're fighting the system, obviously.

@Cloudenvy said:

@TheHumanDove said:

@Cloudenvy said:

@DuskVamp said:

@AngelN7 said:

Those threads don't serve any porpuse other than entertaiment material, for every couple of "advices" from these so called 'socially adept' dudes , there are 10 "fake your own death/touch her shoulder" comments.

Usually from the mod in question..

I was about to say..

why didn't either of you use three dots at the end of your comment...

Because we're fighting the system, obviously.

Up the revolution!

@Wrighteous86 said:

@AngelN7: Then why is there a sub-forum? My point is, everything has a purpose to specific people. And I actually like Jay, I was just commenting on how people take his threads, usually.

I'm not agaisnt those threads but also I'm aware that not everybody who make them are honest about it (some of them outright lie just to make something funny) and most of the time even if the person posting is genuine s/he just gets Ryan Girl Advice pic as the first response and a bunch of quotes saying "good job! , that was fast! , or where's the Ryan pic?" , those comments (touch shoulder ,fake bla bla) or many other witty/denigrating comments, I think is safer for that person to get his/her thread locked than recive such treatment.

I realize that sometimes they need to lock topics even though they dont violate the rules, but to post "It goes against my rules" or "Because I can" is just posted to piss people off.

@AngelN7 said:

@Wrighteous86 said:

@AngelN7: Then why is there a sub-forum? My point is, everything has a purpose to specific people. And I actually like Jay, I was just commenting on how people take his threads, usually.

I'm not agaisnt those threads but also I'm aware that not everybody who make them are honest about it (some of them outright lie just to make something funny) and most of the time even if the person posting is genuine s/he just gets Ryan Girl Advice pic as the first response and a bunch of quotes saying "good job! , that was fast! , or where's the Ryan pic?" , those comments (touch shoulder ,fake bla bla) or many other witty/denigrating comments, I think is safer for that person to get his/her thread locked than recive such treatment.

Why not just delete those replies as spam?

I'm actually not stunningly surprised that this thread was created. Here we go:

Firstly, while there is no rule against Relationship Threads, there is a rule against threads with no discussion value. We as moderators have been tasked with removing such threads at our own discretion and, as you can clearly see in the example (singluar) you provided, these threads are full of image spam, nonsensical replies, and sarcastic comments. They are not, and never have been, the type of discussion that has ever been encouraged on this site.

Secondly, that first thread which you quoted was left open. It's videogame related so it got a pass. I'm not really sure what point you are trying to make with that, other than pointing out that I fucking hate relationship advice threads, which is hardly a secret.

Lastly, and this is important: I am a bit of a dick. That's unlikely to change.

So the real issue here is:

Are you annoyed that these threads are being locked because of the content, or are you annoyed because I acted like a twat when I locked them? Because those are very different complaints.

Feel free to debate this here, but I refuse to take any shit. From anyone. So if people decide to jump on the bandwagon and start senselessly hating on moderators then this thread is getting locked, too. If you want to submit an official complaint then please address it to Snide as instructed in the FAQ.

Thanks.

He locked one and I don't think it needed locked but he locked it even though they were chatting without any problem but he just locked it even though it was normal but

was locked.

Hitman would be proud

Sweep should ignore Off-Topic altogether like MB does.

@Video_Game_King said:

@AngelN7 said:

@Wrighteous86 said:

@AngelN7: Then why is there a sub-forum? My point is, everything has a purpose to specific people. And I actually like Jay, I was just commenting on how people take his threads, usually.

I'm not agaisnt those threads but also I'm aware that not everybody who make them are honest about it (some of them outright lie just to make something funny) and most of the time even if the person posting is genuine s/he just gets Ryan Girl Advice pic as the first response and a bunch of quotes saying "good job! , that was fast! , or where's the Ryan pic?" , those comments (touch shoulder ,fake bla bla) or many other witty/denigrating comments, I think is safer for that person to get his/her thread locked than recive such treatment.

Why not just delete those replies as spam?

I guess because it would mean that mods will have to 'participate' on each of those threads just looking at the comments? , is faster to just lock it before it gets to crazy?... I don't know.

Love you @Sweep, but this thread is dead on.

@Sweep said:

Firstly, while there is no rule against Relationship Threads, there is a rule against threads with no discussion value. We as moderators have been tasked with removing such threads at our own discretion and, as you can clearly see in the example (singluar) you provided, these threads are full of image spam, nonsensical replies, and sarcastic comments. They are not, and never have been, the type of discussion that has ever been encouraged on this site.

Then why not delete those posts as spam? I have an example that illustrates the type of thinking behind these actions, but it's incredibly controversial and I question its relevance. Instead, I'll just suggest that you punish those posts.

Occupy Sweep's profile page!

@Sweep said

Feel free to debate this here, but I refuse to take any shit. From anyone.

*Rolls eyes*

@Video_Game_King:

@AngelN7 said:

@Video_Game_King said:

@AngelN7 said:

@Wrighteous86 said:

@AngelN7: Then why is there a sub-forum? My point is, everything has a purpose to specific people. And I actually like Jay, I was just commenting on how people take his threads, usually.

I'm not agaisnt those threads but also I'm aware that not everybody who make them are honest about it (some of them outright lie just to make something funny) and most of the time even if the person posting is genuine s/he just gets Ryan Girl Advice pic as the first response and a bunch of quotes saying "good job! , that was fast! , or where's the Ryan pic?" , those comments (touch shoulder ,fake bla bla) or many other witty/denigrating comments, I think is safer for that person to get his/her thread locked than recive such treatment.

Why not just delete those replies as spam?

I guess because it would mean that mods will have to 'participate' on each of those threads just looking at the comments? , is faster to just lock it before it gets to crazy?... I don't know.

We don't just look at the thread title and then lock it so we can fuck off as soon as possible, we go through the thread and make an assesment. Is it worth deleting comments individually or is the thread beyond salvaging? In many cases it's easier to just scrap the thread completely, though we do try to leave them open whenever possible. Sometimes people are posting up junk faster than we can delete it. We make an informed decision before any moderation takes place.

@kmdrkul said:

@Sweep said

Feel free to debate this here, but I refuse to take any shit. From anyone.

*Rolls eyes*

I lol'd

I'd say the value of those threads are that it builds a community? Just an outsider's POV.

The mods here do a great job. If mods are chosen for GB the same way they are chosen for most enthusiast sites then they are allowed to lock threads that dont directly break rules within reason. Considering how often advice threads have been popping up and how much of those threads are full of "touch her shoulder" I cant blame him at all for locking them. I would have done it too back when I was doing the rounds on the old Transformers fan sites.

@TheHumanDove said:

@kmdrkul said:

@Sweep said

Feel free to debate this here, but I refuse to take any shit. From anyone.

*Rolls eyes*

I lol'd

If you think that's funny then you should see some of our hatemail.

@Sweep: And then you post an insulting remark at the end just to get the last word or what?

Im just trying to understand why?

I agree with Sweep. Relationship threads are the worst.

Here's how all of them run

-Boy has problem with girl in someway, hey video game community I barely know give me advice!

-A couple of people ask questions or give advice

-The rest devolves into spam

I get it, you're worried about abuse of power.

Regardless, it would be funny if this thread were locked by a different mod.

@Sweep: I just wanted to say that even if my wording was a bit "accusatory" I was more just looking for an explanation or some kind of discussion on the topic, which you're being very graceful in providing. I do appreciate it, Sweep. And you're right, I hadn't noticed, but you did leave that first thread open, so I added that link to the OP.

@dudeglove said:

@Sweep said:

I am a bit of a dick. That's unlikely to change.

Thanks.

Responses like that don't do you any favours in trying to counter the OP's argument.

He doesn't really have anything to counter. He agrees he's a big ol' meanie, but he's trying to say that said meanie attitude isn't the reason behind threads being locked.

They're being locked because they're really dumb.

I too hate those threads. The ones that I've seen locked are usually filled with retarded comments like "touch her shoulder" or other non-serious, non-helpful comments. It turns into a giant mockery of the OP and active trolling. I stopped opening them a long time ago because of my distaste for them but moderators don't have that option since they are tasked with policing the content of every thread. I don't envy them.

Also, there are way better places to have those kinds of threads, but I guess that could probably apply to most everything that ends up in off-topic.

@Sweep said:

@Video_Game_King:

@AngelN7 said:

@Video_Game_King said:

@AngelN7 said:

@Wrighteous86 said:

@AngelN7: Then why is there a sub-forum? My point is, everything has a purpose to specific people. And I actually like Jay, I was just commenting on how people take his threads, usually.

I'm not agaisnt those threads but also I'm aware that not everybody who make them are honest about it (some of them outright lie just to make something funny) and most of the time even if the person posting is genuine s/he just gets Ryan Girl Advice pic as the first response and a bunch of quotes saying "good job! , that was fast! , or where's the Ryan pic?" , those comments (touch shoulder ,fake bla bla) or many other witty/denigrating comments, I think is safer for that person to get his/her thread locked than recive such treatment.

Why not just delete those replies as spam?

I guess because it would mean that mods will have to 'participate' on each of those threads just looking at the comments? , is faster to just lock it before it gets to crazy?... I don't know.

We don't just look at the thread title and then lock it so we can fuck off as soon as possible, we go through the thread and make an assesment. Is it worth deleting comments individually or is the thread beyond salvaging? In many cases it's easier to just scrap the thread completely, though we do try to leave them open whenever possible. Sometimes people are posting up junk faster than we can delete it. We make an informed decision before any moderation takes place.

I know and I agree with you is insane to ask the mods to look each thread and just delete the so many Ryan pic/silly comments on them , they serve little porpuse other than to mock the person who makes the thread, wich is a shame when the person is genuinely trying to look for help but I think that person would rather spare the shame (lock the thread as soon as it starts to derail) than having his thread being use as a mockery device for his/her situation.

Something I'd like to point out, from my more optimistic standpoint, that @Sweep hasn't brought up, but is totally prevalent, is the effect on those creating such threads. You have two types of people creating relationship advice friends - misguided and ironic. One side is just trolling for the sake of it. The other genuinely wants answers to a personal issue, and when such a thread devolves into awful responses and dickish sarcasticness, the dude will feel bad about an issue that's already stressing him out. The solution is never to post that here in the first place, because there is no positive outcome to making that thread. Nothing good will ever come of it. This is, unfortunately, a fact.

My personal stance on the issue is highly misconstrewed by the sarcastic quote in the opening; there should never be a subforum for that. I'd love if we lived in a world where that was possible, and people could air their heart out to a tightly-knit community of likeminded people, and emotional problems are solved together - but this is the fucking internet, people. I hope none of those who have made these threads with a genuine desire for advice take it personally when they're locked with harsh comments, because regardless of your opinion on how he phrases it: Sweep has a point.

I think the idea of locking threads in off-topic forums defeats the purpose of those forums. It's like locking a thread discussing football in an NFL forum.

@Tylea002 said:

Something I'd like to point out, from my more optimistic standpoint, that @Sweep hasn't brought up, but is totally prevalent, is the effect on those creating such threads. You have two types of people creating relationship advice friends - misguided and ironic. One side is just trolling for the sake of it. The other genuinely wants answers to a personal issue, and when such a thread devolves into awful responses and dickish sarcasticness, the dude will feel bad about an issue that's already stressing him out. The solution is never to post that here in the first place, because there is no positive outcome to making that thread. Nothing good will ever come of it. This is, unfortunately, a fact.

My personal stance on the issue is highly misconstrewed by the sarcastic quote in the opening; there should never be a subforum for that. I'd love if we lived in a world where that was possible, and people could air their heart out to a tightly-knit community of likeminded people, and emotional problems are solved together - but this is the fucking internet, people. I hope none of those who have made these threads with a genuine desire for advice take it personally when they're locked with harsh comments, because regardless of your opinion on how he phrases it: Sweep has a point.

You realize you can say that about literally any subject, right? No matter what a thread's topic is, it will almost definitely get negative as well as positive responses.

@JasonR86 said:

I think the idea of locking threads in off-topic forums defeats the purpose of those forums. It's like locking a thread discussing football in an NFL forum.

Any thread in a NFL forum that isn't dedicated to discussing the animated robots in the NFL TV bumpers deserves to be locked.

@Wrighteous86: Fuck with Sweep and die. Best mod ever.

@TentPole: Uh... I have no problem with Sweep. I unfortunately focused on him as an example, because his was the most recent I noticed.

Also, what?

@spaghettitime said:

@dudeglove said:

@Sweep said:

I am a bit of a dick. That's unlikely to change.

Thanks.

Responses like that don't do you any favours in trying to counter the OP's argument.

He doesn't really have anything to counter. He agrees he's a big ol' meanie, but he's trying to say that said meanie attitude isn't the reason behind threads being locked.

They're being locked because they're really dumb.

Pretty much this.

@Dagbiker said:

@Sweep: And then you post an insulting remark at the end just to get the last word or what?

Im just trying to understand why?

Yeah, that's part of the whole "Me being a dick" thing.

Also, I think this is pretty unfair. I have to lock dozens of threads every week and for the most part I think I am polite, civil and helpful. I lock one thread where I jokingly point out that the OP shouldn't vent his sexual frustraion on a videogame website and suddenly there's a fucking witchunt? I'll admit I was a little harsh, but still, fuck you guys!

@DuskVamp said:

It's not just relationship threads, I was in a thread a while back and people mentioned The IT Crowd, Sweep locked it just because he didn't like The IT Crowd.

Now that is just unacceptable.

But on the subject of these girl advise threads, whether they have any place on the site or not they arent breaking any rules, and even though they can be pretty damn tedious it's not like anyone's being harassed or anything. Live and let live, freedom of speech and all that. This guy seems to think he's the vigilante of mods which is pretty damn sad ;p

You know, if someone made something like giantbombxtremegirladviceline.com or something, this could all be averted.

@AngelN7:

Then why not make a clear rule that these posts are spam and will be dealt with as though they were? If the mods were to make that clear, I'd stop posting Katawa Shoujo pics as direct responses to relationship threads. (However, I would continue to post them as responses to individual posts if relevant, since I very highly doubt that would qualify as spam.)

Again, I feel like I should address the people saying that if a thread is posted in offtopic then it can be about anything at all:

This is, to a certain extent, true. However we are instructed to lock any threads which lack meaningful or productive discussion value regardless of what forum they are in. So even if you post a wonderfully creative essay on gender roles within contemporary videogame design, if the first 3 pages of replies are nonsense, it's still getting locked. The fact of the matter is, relationship advice threads are breeding grounds for inane and unproductive discussion.

Sweep's doing fine even though he is a little on the nose about his demeanor, but other than that he's not being bias on behalf of a community like what the NeoGAF mods were to Denis Dyack (though ol' Denny WAS asking for it *cough*rightfullyso*cough*). It's just that relationship threads have gone in the way of the FPS. Here we have a community that tears Call of Duty apart only because it's not doing anything different enough yet we expect the GB user to comment a snarky, sarcastic, gif. filled remark to whoever the OP is (which happens on a weekly basis [daily if the stars are aligned]). And you're annoyed that CoD gets put out on a yearly basis?

You see one relationship thread then you've seen them all (except for @Wrighteous86 's blogs, those turned out alright, no? lol). If I'm one to put relationship threads in the same vein as whatever topic that Sonic Hedgehog guy makes as well as those weird topics the guy has about his sister liking a certain set of clothes then by all means @Sweep you are doing your job. Well I may add.

@TheHumanDove said:

@Tylea002 said:

Something I'd like to point out, from my more optimistic standpoint, that @Sweep hasn't brought up, but is totally prevalent, is the effect on those creating such threads. You have two types of people creating relationship advice friends - misguided and ironic. One side is just trolling for the sake of it. The other genuinely wants answers to a personal issue, and when such a thread devolves into awful responses and dickish sarcasticness, the dude will feel bad about an issue that's already stressing him out. The solution is never to post that here in the first place, because there is no positive outcome to making that thread. Nothing good will ever come of it. This is, unfortunately, a fact.

My personal stance on the issue is highly misconstrewed by the sarcastic quote in the opening; there should never be a subforum for that. I'd love if we lived in a world where that was possible, and people could air their heart out to a tightly-knit community of likeminded people, and emotional problems are solved together - but this is the fucking internet, people. I hope none of those who have made these threads with a genuine desire for advice take it personally when they're locked with harsh comments, because regardless of your opinion on how he phrases it: Sweep has a point.

You realize you can say that about literally any subject, right? No matter what a thread's topic is, it will almost definitely get negative as well as positive responses.

I do, but a topic such as relationships is too emotional and personal. And Giant Bomb has grown to the point where such a thread will end up with the opening poster hurt on levels beyond someone disagreeing with their opinion on a video game. I'm currently going through a turbulent emotional time with relationships right now, and if I earnestly came for advice, and everyone said fake your own death and touch her shoulder, I'd be hurt. If I didn't come earnestly, I'd be wasting everyones time. So either way, these threads will end up with 0 positive outcome or true discussion value, because unfortunately, that's the level we're on.

@Sweep said:

I'll admit I was a little harsh, but still, fuck you guys!

Excuse me? You are clearly breaking rule one:

1. NO material of a pornographic, overtly sexual or macabre nature:

Includes but not limited to in-game images from pornographic games or hentai, as well as sexually explicit fan art. Additionally, users are to have usernames that are not obscene and are appropriate for all ages.

Please refrain from fucking me or any other forum member on these message boards. Thank you.

@Sweep: The mods need to come up with a standard for threads that have no discussion value, then. I am a bit miffed when I see a thread that is nothing but hatred and bile for an individual or game (Leigh Alexander threads come to mind immediately) last for dozens of replies before some mod decides, "Okay, people have had their fun being dicks long enough. Guess it's time to finally lock this."

Edit: Changed hundreds of replies to dozens, cause let's not kid ourselves -- GB's forums ain't that big.

@RPGee said:

You know, if someone made something like giantbombxtremegirladviceline.com or something, this could all be averted.

@DuskVamp and I are talking about making it a podcast.

GiantBombXGAL@gmail.com

@DuskVamp said:

It's not just relationship threads, I was in a thread a while back and people mentioned The IT Crowd, Sweep locked it just because he didn't like The IT Crowd.

Alright, if you are going to accuse me of this stuff then I think it's only fair that you at least link the thread in question. That's not unreasonable, right?