Hey, so I'm going to stir the pot, kick the hornets' nest, and etcetera. Please note that from the start, I'm not here to make the troublez. Seriously, I do not want a fight because I don't want bad blood between myself and anyone, nor do I want to have to open a new account because of this. We're all (mostly) adults here (there may be some young'uns).
So I posted something and sort of slipped 90 degrees off course into politics (without thinking). Anyway, within minutes, I realized what I'd just posted publicly and I took the initiative and I redacted all the political stuff. All I left behind was philosophy and economics which I thought were acceptable subjects given that I was told by a moderator recently how "lenient" this forum is regarding someone spamming. I admit those subjects intersect with politics, but so does climate change. Nonethless my post's wording still probably had a political tone, which is why I was going to review and edit it at my PC (so I could see what I was typing) just to smooth out the language and writing style to reflect it not being political (I may have even redacted more). This is irrelevant, but I'm adding it because I wasn't given chance to clarify anything privately (explanation to follow). Anyway, I still respect the decision to delete my comment 100% because I'm the guest. What I don't respect is being told I can PM the staff member in question when they used an anonymous method to delete my post (as per screen shot). I mean don't tell me "we can talk" when you go out of your way to ensure we can't. See screenshot:
That's not how a moderator should act. With power comes responsibility. Actually, I have always believed it was the other way around: with responsibility comes power. I would have liked to discuss this matter it for no other reason than to straighten things up and clarify any misunderstandings, not to refute anything because while I 100% do not agree with deleting the post instead of just hiding it and requesting an edit or delete from me, I 100% respect other people's rights to have their own rules in their own spaces. The "Right of Admission Reserved" sign is still legal AFAIK. But when someone behaves disrespectfully, that is something I'm going to take up. Sadly I cannot do it privately via PM, since I don't know who to PM, even if clicking on the profile image worked. So, in advance, I apologize and admit that I am wrong in posting this here, but you are far more wrong for saying that communications were open when, as I explained and the picture shows, they were not.
If you're going to commit an action which is not open to discussion, then just say, "I don't like what you said, I'm in charge, this is not open to debate." (although I wouldn't have tried to debate about it, I'd have discussed it civilly to clear things up and gotten to exactly what the nuances were in that decision so that I had a better idea moving forward and so that I could hopefully explain to the other party the context, lest I be marked as a potential troublemaker, which I indubitably will be now).
Really, this post would not be happening if you'd been upfront (although I think channels of communication are essential, myself, I respect others may not share my opinion). While I'm rather insulted and exceedingly disappointed by this behaviour, I'm willing to forgive and once this post is deleted (and it will be or locked), I'll consider this all water under the bridge (just don't insult my intelligence). Nobody is perfect and even moderators make mistakes, I've been around long enough to see this in action. But just like how users are accountable for their mistakes, so should staff be.
On the off chance that I did miss something I could have clicked or a system I'm unaware of, I'm sorry. I apologize profusely. Then this is obviously ignorance and not malice. Misunderstandings happen and I take responsibility for being an asshat and ask that you don't ban me.
Thank you for your time and patience. I look forward to your response and shall consider any criticism a material for growth, given that this time the doors for communication will be open, or at least ajar.
Kind Regards.
So I posted something and sort of slipped 90 degrees off course into politics (without thinking). Anyway, within minutes, I realized what I'd just posted publicly and I took the initiative and I redacted all the political stuff. All I left behind was philosophy and economics which I thought were acceptable subjects given that I was told by a moderator recently how "lenient" this forum is regarding someone spamming. I admit those subjects intersect with politics, but so does climate change. Nonethless my post's wording still probably had a political tone, which is why I was going to review and edit it at my PC (so I could see what I was typing) just to smooth out the language and writing style to reflect it not being political (I may have even redacted more). This is irrelevant, but I'm adding it because I wasn't given chance to clarify anything privately (explanation to follow). Anyway, I still respect the decision to delete my comment 100% because I'm the guest. What I don't respect is being told I can PM the staff member in question when they used an anonymous method to delete my post (as per screen shot). I mean don't tell me "we can talk" when you go out of your way to ensure we can't. See screenshot:
That's not how a moderator should act. With power comes responsibility. Actually, I have always believed it was the other way around: with responsibility comes power. I would have liked to discuss this matter it for no other reason than to straighten things up and clarify any misunderstandings, not to refute anything because while I 100% do not agree with deleting the post instead of just hiding it and requesting an edit or delete from me, I 100% respect other people's rights to have their own rules in their own spaces. The "Right of Admission Reserved" sign is still legal AFAIK. But when someone behaves disrespectfully, that is something I'm going to take up. Sadly I cannot do it privately via PM, since I don't know who to PM, even if clicking on the profile image worked. So, in advance, I apologize and admit that I am wrong in posting this here, but you are far more wrong for saying that communications were open when, as I explained and the picture shows, they were not.
If you're going to commit an action which is not open to discussion, then just say, "I don't like what you said, I'm in charge, this is not open to debate." (although I wouldn't have tried to debate about it, I'd have discussed it civilly to clear things up and gotten to exactly what the nuances were in that decision so that I had a better idea moving forward and so that I could hopefully explain to the other party the context, lest I be marked as a potential troublemaker, which I indubitably will be now).
Really, this post would not be happening if you'd been upfront (although I think channels of communication are essential, myself, I respect others may not share my opinion). While I'm rather insulted and exceedingly disappointed by this behaviour, I'm willing to forgive and once this post is deleted (and it will be or locked), I'll consider this all water under the bridge (just don't insult my intelligence). Nobody is perfect and even moderators make mistakes, I've been around long enough to see this in action. But just like how users are accountable for their mistakes, so should staff be.
On the off chance that I did miss something I could have clicked or a system I'm unaware of, I'm sorry. I apologize profusely. Then this is obviously ignorance and not malice. Misunderstandings happen and I take responsibility for being an asshat and ask that you don't ban me.
Thank you for your time and patience. I look forward to your response and shall consider any criticism a material for growth, given that this time the doors for communication will be open, or at least ajar.
Kind Regards.