Awoken by some skillful and persuasive rhetoric of Dancing Mustard, I have decided to post a thread outlining why I believe this moderator permaban culture policy is not only inherently wrong, but also grossly misused and lacking in practical neccesity.
Rather than being governed by "objective standards", as DM excellently puts it, which should be used to determine the appropriate penalty to match a specific crime, on a case-by-case basis, the moderation has used a grossly unjust system in which they simply dictate a sentence which depending on the extent to which such and such a has pissed them off, they will issue a sentence which is usually issued taking into account bans, and will have a longer time sentence and ends in a permaban. Hence just for expressing some mildly politically incorect views, a member can get permabanned!
But surely each crime ought to have a sentence, objectively just, which can be applied regardless of the person in question's history. People change over time, circumstances change, and only this sort of ban ensure justice is given in righteous proportion.
Why permaban? I see no real reason why you'd want to permaban. It's not as if there's any need to exterminate a class of dissidents from CC forums....is there...?
And yet this penalty is abused regularily. Look at Norse : He was told he was pushing the line repeatedly, and when he made some remarks of minor importance in the frame of civilized debate, which some erroneously interpreted as racist, he was banned! Did he even realise he had toed the proverbial line? Probably not! But because of this deeply flawed system, he was banned for something not even intended as a pushing of any boundary.
To summarize,
The moderators ought to exist to make these forums a happier, better place. But in some cases the flawed penal system used results in terribly unfair rulings lacking in popular support!
Who actually wanted Norse banned?
Polls indicate barely 18% say he is "no good".
So I say, in the best interests of the CC community, made so much more vibrant and diverse by Norse :
Moderators : FREE NORSE! THE PEOPLE WANT IT!
It's your job as moderators, and its the community's will. Norse was an indispensable part of life here. You usually do excellent work. So please, in light of this, re-consider this decision, very carefully.
The Forum Death Penalty cannot be taken lightly...
