OK, we're gettng a little annoyed here!

[Raduin711]

I think Pro- and Anti- tags are probably not going to help much, and I doubt the moderators will take this strategy.

For one, I think most people who make threads want a civil discussion between both sides, and thus will opt for a "neither" tag. In any event, the problem usually isn't the original poster.

And what happens when a poster makes a Anti- thread, and a noted Pro- poster comes in with the full intention of bringing up a valid point? And this point leads toward is Pro- opinions? What then? Where is the line drawn? In the end, we haven't gotten anywhere.

 

[Oldtimer]

Thanks Wulf, a good response. It reminds me of a problem we see all too easily in our UK news broadcasts nowadays - there is almost a mantra which says "there are two sides to every argument" and even if one side is represented by 95% of scientific opinion, they still give equal airtime to whack-jobs who oppose the idea "to give a balanced view".

Really? We have a whole channel devoted to that!

We have a whole country devoted to that. :\

 

[Oldtimer]

EDIT: To put it another way, the possibility that you will be publicly shamed, and/or possibly get your teeth knocked in, justifiably so, works far better towards discouraging anti-social behavior than the knowledge that there is a forum where your wack-job opinions will be welcomed and officially protected.

Civilized men are more discourteous than savages because they know they can be impolite without having their skulls split, as a general thing.

It seems you share similar ideas...

 

[Wormwood]

I'll admit I may have fanned the flames a bit; but I've received it, too. In all that, I've never felt the need to complain to the mods.

And if all that 'flame-fanning' starts to interfere with the discussion, I have no problem reporting it to the mods.

They've got better things to do than babysit.

Not until we stop acting like babies.

 

[Doug McCrae]

Subdividing posts into pro- and anti- is a bad idea, because you need differing view points. The same with separate forums. Also, I doubt any purely anti- place would receive much traffic. Part of the problem is that some people think the best way to register discontent with WotC is to post here and it's highly unlikely WotC staff would read an anti- forum for long.

Subdivision into 'discussion' and 'opinion' is even worse - everyone thinks what they have to say is serious discussion and what the other fellow says is mere opinion.

The heat will probably die down over time as most of the anti- crowd leave. This is already happening as can be seen from the changing results in the 'Will you buy 4e?' polls.

The question is are we prepared to wait for that to happen? If not there is only one solution - tougher modding. More tempbans and permabans until we play nice.

 

[Doug McCrae]

Instead of saying "Well, if a dumbed-down approach appeals to you, you're welcome to it,"

a real troll would say, "I'm growing concerned that 4e is adopting a dumbed down approach to D&D designed to appeal to a generation of gamers raised on World of Warcraft."

Excellent analysis.

 

[WhatGravitas]

The question is are we prepared to wait for that to happen? If not there is only one solution - tougher modding. More tempbans and permabans until we play nice.

And longer tempbans. More warnings, a lot more. Or in general, more severe moderation.

Generally, I loath that, but then, ENWorld usually remained civil because the mods tried to keep the spirit of civility. I guess it's time to use actual rules of civility.

That's a bit sad and heavy-handed... but there are not many other options, that would feel even more awkward (like forum split, posting interval restriction, moving 4E discussion to CM).

Cheers, LT.

 

[helium3]

The heat will probably die down over time as most of the anti- crowd leave. This is already happening as can be seen from the changing results in the 'Will you buy 4e?' polls.

The question is are we prepared to wait for that to happen? If not there is only one solution - tougher modding. More tempbans and permabans until we play nice.

So the solution is to be so obstinate that one side gets fed up and leaves?

 

[Plane Sailing]

I have to admit the thin skin some have to the point of telling the mods really surprises me. From BOTH sides even. It's like Billy telling on Johnny at school when Johnny said Mary is ugly, and Billy thinks she pretty.

FWIW it is more often not a case of someone with thin skin telling the mods because they feel hurt, it is much more likely to be a bystander who can see something getting out of control

Regards,

 

[Hairfoot]

It all seems a bit Skub to me.