Posts by brightcrane56

slydrifter39 said:I honestly feel bad that we won't have those funny little jokes about joining the USA anymore just because someone hits on a Canadian woman.

It’s true, though—the whole idea of a "stranger" is definitely taking on a whole new meaning lately. 🙂

Since my hometown was always part of Europe, right up until some locksmith from a small town in the US like Woodstock, VT showed up and changed everything, I’ll just leave all the celebrating to you guys over in the North America. We Europeans prefer to celebrate with a bit more decency, keeping things modest and stylish.

We already have established terms like "radical feminism" and "militant feminism" floating around out there, so I really think you should lean into that direction when searching for the right label.
Maybe something like "hyper-feminism" or perhaps "extreme feminism" could work?

bluemason3 said:Actually, you are. First, you argued that it was illegal. Once it was proven otherwise, that explanation wasn't enough, so you pivoted to claiming it was incomprehensible. When it became clear that didn't hold water either, you moved the goalposts again—this time to something even more nonsensical and irrelevant, by the way. It’s pretty obvious that, for some personal reason, you’re either hell-bent on settling a score with Mexicans or just trolling the PŽK. Your "objective" arguments are clearly just tools to get your way, and you'll keep pushing your own agenda regardless of what the rest of the forum says. So, aside from whatever personal issues you're dealing with, there's nothing left to discuss here. This thread is ready to be locked.

Do you enjoy dressing up so fancy?

Nicholas King said:I honestly think it would be beneficial if you actually picked a specific 'debate strategy' regarding this whole situation.

Are we talking about the claim that permitting any language other than English constitutes a violation of the law, or is this more of a case of "I just don't want to understand Mexican"?

If it's the former, then go ahead and file a lawsuit—but if it's the latter, just put everyone you can't understand on ignore and call it a day. That's really all there is to it.

I’m really not the one who should be the center of attention here. 👋

Nicholas King said:That is a fascinating claim regarding your inability to grasp Mexican. In reality, if you had written your post in Mexican, it would look virtually identical—except you’d likely use 'razumeti' instead of your version of 'razumijeti,' which, by the way, was misspelled.

$50 + I find the added tax on translating that sentence just as entertaining.

And don't forget the whole argument that all foreign languages are on equal footing—none are more equal than others.

If Mexican is supposedly understood by everyone, then why on earth do we have 117 certified court interpreters for the Mexican language?
CLICK

lonebadger6 said:1. Correct.
2. Incorrect, and here is why...

The points that are looking pretty shaky are:

1. The idea that if I understand Language X, it’s fine to use it (but if someone else understands Language Y, they should get the same treatment).
2. The notion that this forum is a private playground where we can do whatever we want (just because everything in the US is private doesn't mean people are exempt from following the law).

It might be about time we started drafting some actual concrete rules for the forum.

1. This just doesn't track, because we aren't debating whether Flemish is allowed while Urdu is banned. Language X—in this case, Mexican—is understood by every single person on this forum, from start to finish. If anyone claims they don't understand it, let's be blunt... they're lying. That makes it incomparable to those languages that "someone out there" happens to understand. Everyone understands "some" language. It's nonsense to compare a language that every American here fully grasps with the fact that there might be one random user who understands Mongolian.
Your argument actually carries much more weight when you're talking about English, since there are certainly plenty of users here who don't speak it fluently.

2. Forum.hr isn't breaking any laws by allowing other languages, and a few people have already tried to explain that to you. You seem to have fundamentally misunderstood what "official language" actually means.
Besides, regardless of that, even in the United States, we have public media outlets that publish or broadcast in other languages—like minority newspapers or news segments in English or German—and they aren't breaking any laws either...

Look, I'm sorry, but I don't understand Mexican and I have absolutely no desire to learn it. So, all your arguments pretty much go right out the window.
Let's get back to the core idea: that all languages should be treated equally.

Let’s go ahead and reiterate two fundamental axioms once more:

1. Every single language other than American is considered a foreign language (and yes, that includes Mexican).
2. All foreign languages deserve to be treated with complete equality.

Now, there are a couple of arguments floating around that I find incredibly shaky:

1. The idea that "I understand Language X, so it's fine to use" (which falls apart because if someone else understands Language Y, they should be entitled to that same equal treatment).
2. The claim that "this forum is a private matter, so we can do whatever we want" (but look, even in the US, private spaces aren't exempt from following the law).

Honestly, it might be high time we started putting together some concrete, formal rules for the forum.

Nicholas King said:So, what exactly are you suggesting we do in a situation like that?

I’d say we handle it exactly the same way we do with Mexican.

Since so many people pick up Turkish or Spanish just from binge-watching TV soaps, I honestly expect them to get the exact same treatment as those languages.

bluemason3 said:That’s just political correctness.

Mexican is a dialect of the Štokavian group, much like the American standard, which itself is based on the Štokavian dialect. Because of that, it isn't just Štokavian speakers; anyone who follows the media or finished at least half of elementary school and understands the American standard will also understand Mexican quite well. In fact, they'll likely understand Mexican better than other regional dialects. If you're from a region with a different dialect (but learned the standard in school, through the news, or in government offices), you'll find Mexican easier to grasp than if I started writing in a heavy regional dialect, even though that would still technically be the American language.

English belongs to a completely different language family and requires actual study. Mexican, however, is understood by almost everyone in the US without any effort. There’s really no need to argue about it unless you're doing so for nationalist, political, or other similar reasons.🙂

So, the real question is what the rules regarding language usage on this forum actually are. Is this a political issue, or is it a matter of communication—where we don't want to allow a language that isn't intelligible to all participants? If it's a political or "legal," administrative question, then your point makes sense, and in that case, it would actually be more "correct" to write in a difficult regional dialect rather than Mexican. But if the criterion is clarity and smooth communication, then Mexican is perfectly acceptable.

The Constitution defines which language is used in official government bodies. Personally, I could comfortably write in Klingon, start a Klingon forum, and publish a Klingon newspaper.🤦

Look, I could write in a hundred different languages, and you still wouldn't understand a single damn word.

Of course, at home you might say "pass me the fork," but when you're out at a nice restaurant, you'd say "may I please have a fork." The real question we are wrestling with here is where the line is drawn regarding this forum. If we stick to the idea that someone's online space is strictly their private property, we aren't going to get very far. After all, sites like the New York Times are also privately owned, yet they choose to use standard American English, just like almost every other major news portal out there. The argument that "it's private, so I can do whatever I want" clearly doesn't hold water.

Patrick Miller3 said:Yep!
I’ve been around this forum since 2006 under a handle I haven't used in ages—and even six years ago, Saturday nights at 9 PM saw about 1,000 "active" users, just like today.
It’s sad, really; Forum.us should be growing proportionally, but it isn't.
Something that is unhealthy simply doesn't grow—that's a rule in both medicine and horticulture.

So why attach the us suffix to the domain?!
I think it would be fair if the owner, Željko, just removed it—because us is the international designation for the United States in economics, politics, law, and the judiciary. That domain carries certain legal implications, one of which involves the use of official American English.

If this were called ForumExYugo, or Forum.world, Forum.biz, Forum.info, Forum.me, or any other type of domain, I wouldn't have a single complaint—because then it would be perfectly logical for users to write in whatever language they choose.

The Internet is a global heritage.

Maybe the user base would actually expand—maybe we’d see more users from places like Mexico or Canada—because quite a few people don't want to post here simply because the forum carries that us domain.

On this specific thread, I am standing firmly behind our old friend, brightcrane56. 😉

Well, you've given me a good laugh tonight.
Good answer. 😂

Right back at you! 😁

The internet isn't this wild frontier where you can just do whatever you want without facing consequences anymore. We are seeing more and more legal rulings coming down regarding online misconduct, so it really won't be long before we see heavy-handed regulation hitting niche corners of the web like Forum.hr.

So, why shouldn't Forum.hr be the very first target? 😉

Michelle Wells3 said:Just walk me through one more thing here. What exactly is missing from this logic:

- 99.99% of all posts are in English (or at least they try to be).
- 0.01% aren't.
- A moderator looks at that percentage and decides if it's okay based on the content and who's actually participating in the thread.
- If someone isn't happy about it, they can just come over here and start a new thread.

Or even better, maybe you could explain what actually changes in how the forum operates if you go and write your little manifesto somewhere?

Don't take this as an ad hominem attack or anything, but this whole bit about "official" use of a second language is just bizarre. I mean, the implications of what that even means, the actual procedures for introducing it, the scope of application... it’s just a mess for moderation and general forum culture. It's a headache, really.

Well, right off the bat, you’d be shutting down the use of language as a tool for provocation. Or are you going to try and tell me that isn't happening? Because I'd love to hear your percentage on that.

And we hand out penalties for using all caps too, don't we? 😉

Michelle Wells3 said:moderators.

Look, this isn't about settling scores. You brought up the issue of legality. You can't regulate the law with forum rules; something is either legal or it isn't. Period.

And even if we aren't talking about legality but just standard forum guidelines, I still don't agree that we need to constantly pile on new rules. It kills the whole purpose of a forum. If you keep the rules minimal, it gives freedom to both you and us when it comes to moderating and posting. Anything else just turns this into some dry, lifeless exchange, and the moderators end up acting like bureaucrats in some useless government office wasting everyone's time. What's next, are we opening a secret police department here too?

There are millions of posts on this forum, and only a tiny fraction are in a foreign language. If we need a written rule for such a minuscule amount of posts, then we might as well write a rule for everything.

Just in case anyone starts arguing that there's no freedom to write or moderate—well, anyone can look at their own post count versus how many have been moderated or deleted. They'll have to agree with me that freedom definitely exists here, and it's actually pretty substantial.

And screw you all with that commanding tone; I am not your secretary!

Telling off the moderators is perfectly fine discussion; I don't see any reason for anyone to get a warning card for it. Besides, that's basically why we're even here, right? 😁

I hear you, but the issue of which language or script to use often becomes a major stumbling block and leads to endless bickering. That's why I believe that specific part should be clearly defined in the rules.

Since I don't want to just be a critic without offering solutions, here is my concrete proposal:

Let's paraphrase Article 12 of the US Constitution, which essentially states:

In the United States, English is the official language used in official capacities, along with the Latin alphabet.

In certain local jurisdictions, alongside English and the Latin alphabet, another language or a different script may be introduced for official use, provided it meets the conditions prescribed by law.

We could incorporate it into the Forum.hr rules like this:

In discussions on Forum.hr, the official language is English using the Latin alphabet.

On specific sub-forums, alongside English and the Latin alphabet, another language or script may be introduced for official use, subject to the conditions set forth by law and the specific rules of those sub-forums.

Michelle Wells3 said:Alright, look, you've given us your little warnings on this topic plenty of times before. We just ignore you over in Politics while we apparently continue breaking US laws according to your logic.

Well, maybe now is the time to actually file a report against us. Because, as you probably know, if you become aware of a crime and don't do anything to stop it, you could end up facing legal consequences yourself. There’s definitely enough reason for some kind of regulatory inspection here.

Besides, I'm sure you wouldn't want us to start looking at you—after all these years of posting—as just another common troll throwing around pseudo-legal arguments that spread through the PŽK like kudzu.

My warnings are intended to help reshape and define the forum's rules, not to trigger criminal prosecutions. It’s honestly quite sad when moderators take criticism personally and try to turn a discussion into a private vendetta.

And please, do clarify who exactly you mean by "we from Politics."

Daniel Ward87 said:They haven't decided yet, and honestly, I don't think they will anytime soon. If you haven't noticed, even the site itself hasn't been translated into American English—so when you get a warning, you end up getting a greeting from the admins in English. It’s basically the same issue as someone posting in Canadian; it's just that people don't seem to complain about that quite as much.

Then just point out exactly which law is being broken regarding that Canadian writing and file a lawsuit. At the end of the day, a private forum is just that—it's owned by a private individual who has every right to set the rules. It’s all governed by the laws of the domain where it's hosted.

Daniel Ward87

No, the rules have to comply with the law and the US Constitution. You can't just invent rules that don't align with those standards.

And honestly, you can shove those commands up your ass; I am not your secretary!

* You better not give me a strike for this, because (as we've established so far) the only language used on this forum is informal. 🙂

Daniel Ward87 said:As far as I know, this is a private forum owned by Internet Monitor, not some national platform. Just because the domain ends in .us doesn't mean everyone is forced to write exclusively in American English. There was actually a huge debate once that shook up half the Politics section when Anderlon mentioned that posts could be written in English.

Since this is a private forum, the owner gets to call the shots on the house rules.

Daniel Ward87

But what does "private forum" even really imply? Are you suggesting the forum is used strictly for internal business, or that it's tucked away behind closed doors where nobody can see? If you're arguing that because a private individual owns the platform they aren't bound by any regulations, I have to disagree. Ownership doesn't grant immunity from the law.

Think about it this way: your car is privately owned, but you still have to follow all the traffic laws of the United States while you're driving it, right?

And I wasn't just talking about the web domain; I was referring to the specific guidelines laid out in the forum's own rules of conduct.

Language usage is one of those fundamental pillars of any nation, standing right alongside the judiciary, the school system, the police force, the military, and all the other core institutions. If we start applying a strict "understandability" rule to things like that, we'll find ourselves spiraling into total chaos before we know it.
I mean, sure, I can understand a Mexican traffic cop, but that doesn't give him any right to pull me over while I'm driving on the streets of America. And look, I might understand a Canadian tank driver just fine, too, but he certainly isn't allowed to go rolling his heavy armor around American territory.

When it comes to discussing which language should be used on this forum—which, by its very rules, is considered a specific corner of the American digital landscape—it’s an incredibly complex issue. It’s not really about debating specific topics where a certain language is being discussed; rather, it's about defining what the "official" language of the forum should actually be. In doing this, we have to be extremely careful to respect American laws while also avoiding the trap of accidentally sterilizing our discussions and killing the conversation entirely.

Ryan Vaughn7 said:In official capacities. I assume you understand what that means. Even the most incompetent lawyer wouldn't argue that a single post in a foreign language on this forum is unconstitutional.

What ad hominem attacks? What are you even talking about?

Oh, so we're using informal language on the forum now? That is just a brilliant argument right there.

Do you want to sit back and actually think about what you just said, or should I walk you through the implications of where this "informality" might lead us?

Ryan Vaughn7 said:I honestly have no idea.

I haven't the slightest clue what you're getting at, and besides, there isn't a single rule on this forum that forbids posting in a foreign language.

That’s just sad.

But look, here is the deal: the rules on Forum.hr state that violating US laws is strictly prohibited. Now, the highest law of the land—the US Constitution—clearly defines which language and script are used officially. Therefore, using any other language is technically a violation of US law, which makes it a violation of the forum rules too.

If you aren't happy with that, then maybe you should take some action to get the forum rules changed, but please leave those personal ad hominem attacks in that PDF-style political rhetoric for some other debate...

Ryan Vaughn7 said:Besides, nobody is stopping anyone from tossing in a word or a phrase—even a full sentence—in English if it just makes sense for the conversation.

Let’s not turn trivial matters into politics without any real reason. We even had a Vice President of Congress speaking Mexican during much tougher times, and we all managed to get through it together without any fallout.

So, am I supposed to be a lowlife and a drunk now too?
Are we actually going to discuss the rules of this forum, or are we just going to keep talking about rotten eggs?