Posts by Steven Ruiz

Quote : Nicholas King

Megan White4 said:Quote : Nicholas King

It isn't just me. If you dig through the photography forum, you'll see exactly how often her posts show up. This violates the rules. I’m going to have to issue a warning and lock this thread. 🙂"If someone doesn't start getting on your nerves after a while, you really have to hand it to them. Unfortunately, you can't just hit "ignore" on certain people.

Quote : Nicholas King

I actually know most of the people over on the photography sub-forum personally; we hang out quite a bit outside of these online threads. So, if anyone is looking to form an opinion about me, feel free to ask them directly. And despite how hard Steven Ruiz is working to twist the narrative and paint me as some kind of difficult forum regular... Trolls, spammers, and that whole crowd.I’ve been an active member of this forum since 2003. Up until very recently—specifically regarding the situation involving Steven Ruiz's posts and my subsequent permanent ban—I had never once been banned. That alone should debunk the narrative Steven Ruiz is trying to push about me being some sort of troll or spammer.

If I occasionally let a sharper word slip, there’s a reason for it. Besides, does anyone actually refrain from doing so? Who here is truly without sin? Be the first to throw a stone. ☕

Quote : Nicholas King

It’s true what they say: birds of a feather flock together. ☕

In what way am I failing to follow the rules? In the very post that started this whole mess, I specifically asked for an exception, rather than insisting that "rules must be followed" leading to the immediate removal of a photo. After all, exceptions are what define the rules.

All users are equal, but some users are more equal than others—Quote : Orwell: Animal Farm.

Exactly. Your logic is elementary; you seem to believe that in every situation, the consequence is at fault rather than the cause. 😂

Two wrongs don't make a right. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_wrongs_make_a_right

To use a comparison, it would be like setting a speed limit of 31 miles mph on a racetrack and 62 miles mph in a residential neighborhood just because nobody drives a race car in a suburb. ☕

That’s exactly what I’ve been saying all along.

For those who aren't particularly tech-savvy, two posts containing four images each actually consume more bandwidth than a single post with eight images. This is simply because the browser has to load a separate "header" for every individual post. Furthermore, if the images are hosted on an external server, it doesn't matter whether there are four, five, or twenty in a post; they pull bandwidth from the host server, not from this forum.

Some people simply lack the ability to make exceptions, even when the context of a post clearly justifies it. Exceptions are what give rules their meaning. If I recall correctly, Steven Ruiz mentioned she couldn't make an exception because she’d be flooded with messages asking why she allowed five images for me but not for others. It shouldn't be that difficult to just say, "I made an exception due to the specific context," which would be a perfectly reasonable explanation to anyone acting normally. She also could have easily converted the last photo into a link instead of deleting it entirely. But apparently, she isn't aware that you do that by simply swapping the IMG tag for a URL tag. ☕

Most people on this forum actually follow the rules and don't let things get under their skin at all... In fact, they’re usually the first ones to point out when someone breaks the guidelines, especially if we happen to miss a violation ourselves...
Furthermore, the rules on our PDF have always been developed in close collaboration with the community members here, so they aren't just my own personal set of regulations, but rather a collective effort that everyone helped shape... Everyone played a part in drafting them, really. So, the idea that you can just act like you're above the rules is a completely different matter entirely...

And honestly, if I happen to lash out with some sharper words every once in a while, there’s a very good reason for it... But really, does anyone actually stay perfectly composed all the time? Is there anyone here who truly hasn't let a bit of heat slip through? Because before anyone tries to cast the first stone, I'd love to see them do it without a single flaw themselves... ☕

You might be surprised to find out, but most people on this forum actually stay pretty civil and don't throw around heavy insults... It’s honestly quite refreshing, because that's exactly why the Governor earned his position in the first place... Not because he was busy dealing with spam or trolls, but because he stood firm against all that nasty verbal abuse...

Where on earth am I failing to follow the rules? I’m still looking at that very first post where I kicked this whole thing off and specifically asked if we could make an exception, but apparently, "rules are absolute" means my photo gets deleted immediately... and honestly, isn't the whole point of making exceptions to prove that the rules actually have some flexibility in them...

Usually, people reach out to ask for an exception before they go ahead and start posting without following the rules, which is just how most other members on the forum handle things... It’s also important that we don't hand out too many exceptions, because if we do, everyone else will start blowing up the President's Office with messages asking why one person got a pass while they didn't!
Neither I nor any of the other moderators have the slightest desire to deal with a President like this on a regular basis...

cosmictinker21 said:Look, sorry, but if someone starts messing with you in the DMs—harassing you privately, being a total nuisance, weaponizing your personal info just to take verbal cheap shots whenever they feel like it, and worse, spreading blatant lies behind your back to other members who then join in on the stalking and bullying until you can't even pretend to be "cool" or indifferent anymore... what's actually left for you to do?

1. ping the mods

2. contact the admins

3. escalate to the site owners

4. if none of that works:

4.1. just keep taking whatever garbage gets sent to your inbox, while having zero clue who is actually sending it

4.2. go ahead and blast it out to everyone so they know there’s one idiot, or maybe a whole group of them, treating this kind of behavior like a hobby, and let everyone know exactly who they are...

I'd much rather be labeled rude, hysterical, or immoral than sit here and let myself be bullied indefinitely, sorry not sorry. People who get why I'm doing this will understand. As for those who don't... well, either they truly don't care, or they're actually enjoying the chaos themselves. 🤷

I am not playing games here.😍

Exactly.
The President announced that they aren't lobbying for Megan White4 to have access to the Photography section anymore. That's it. Nothing more.
If I were the President and had forwarded that to the administrator, the lobbying would still be happening because he’d still be seen as this perfect, exemplary user who simply can't do anything wrong...
It's actually pretty telling that not a single moderator over at Photography wants him there, though... after all, the mods usually have a much better grasp of the actual situation on the ground than the general users do...

Douglas Cook9 said:Honestly, you all really stepped in it together this time.
Look, we all know people say some pretty wild stuff during a heated argument just to get a reaction, but once the momentum starts, there’s no stopping it.
If high-ranking politicians can smirk and say, "Maybe it isn't fair, but it's legal," then we shouldn't be shocked when moderators cling to the letter of the law—even when those rules are ridiculous or things they basically made up themselves. This whole mess started over one single image (the fifth one in a row), and let's be real, it feels incredibly unfair to play stickler for the rules when that rule wouldn't even have been broken if things were handled differently on another sub-forum.
Speaking of photography, it’s pretty pathetic that in a place where visuals are everything—and honestly should be hosted in its own dedicated photo section—this specific shot was completely nuked.
It also felt totally shady how they aggressively enforced the rule against a fifth image, especially since the same moderator defending it would go write on a different part of the site that multiple images are perfectly fine. It's the same story with the resolution limits; they used to claim nothing could be larger than 640x480, only for us to find out certain sections allow 800x600, and even then, getting that rule updated in the photo guidelines was an uphill battle.
And honestly, leaking private messages is just tacky. It's bad taste, plain and simple, especially when that content was meant for one person only.
Since everyone involved has gone overboard here, the best move would be to bury the hatchet, make up after the PM drama 😁 and just lift the ban.
Why? Because Megan White4 actually wrote quality stuff that added real value to the site.

@Steven Ruiz, you’d really show what you're made of if you just stepped up in this thread, said "lift the ban," and settled this once and for all.

No moderator on the Photography board exists just to swoop in and undo Toco's suspension...
He had his chance to make things right after the initial ban was issued, but instead of taking it, he just kept up the provocation, and it’s incredibly obvious that he has no intention of actually settling down...
We simply don't need a user like that on this forum, regardless of whether some of you happen to hang out with him in real life...

No, you've got it all wrong. I wasn't saying it was okay, it's just that it isn't strictly forbidden... 😉
The President's post actually had a specific goal, which was to stop certain people on my PDF from constantly lobbying for Toco to be added back to the PDF list again...
Personally, offensive messages from the President don't really get under my skin, since I spent so much time as a moderator and have dealt with plenty of them before, so generally speaking, I just ignore those kinds of messages from the President and delete them...
As far as I'm concerned, I've already told the administrators that I am more than willing to take a warning or even a ban if this turns out to be something punishable... 🤷

On the other hand, it's honestly absurd that someone who abuses the President's messaging system just to harass someone over nothing—especially since they were banned months ago—and clearly shows such contempt for the rules by acting like they're above them, is also so incredibly ready to weaponize that exact same system and set of rules the moment they feel like they've been wronged in some way...

Actually, sending private messages isn't against the rules here (except on a few specific sub-forums), though sharing someone's private info like their full name or anything like that is definitely a no-go...
The DM mentioned above didn't actually contain any private details at all, unless you count the sender being a bit rude...

@observer, the sender hasn't been penalized, and the administrator hasn't been asked to take any action against them either...
That said, we have definitely handed out punishments before for people sending weird or offensive DMs on the forum...

What really gets to me is how the parents of those kids who were being mistreated actually went and complained to John's mother, telling her that things were just going to get worse... basically suggesting she should just walk away from the whole mess and stop bothering them... 🙂

I honestly feel like the principal has just turned a blind eye to the bullying happening at school... I was just watching the news and they mentioned he might actually be getting fired because he was part of the whole mess in the first place!

slydrifter39 used to be my sub-moderator back in the day when I was active with the Diaspora...
Actually, if my memory serves me right, that whole PDF initiative was actually sparked by our own efforts...
And it always seemed like those users over in Canada were the ones causing all the "trouble"... 😬 😍

Carl Smith92 said:Look, I honestly thought we could just handle this like adults one-on-one—all I ever wanted from you was some clarity and an objective perspective. There really wasn't any need to drag this whole thing out to the public eye. And maybe try to dial back the drama regarding those "Great Americans"... that term isn't even meant to be an insult unless you or certain people on this site decide it is. Besides, what people are saying here isn't some grand theory, it's mostly just good-natured teasing...

Nicole Morales3, I truly value you as a member of this community, and I really believe we can settle our differences privately...
You asked your question in that thread and you received an answer, but the issue seems to be that you didn't like the response you got. I simply can't ban someone just because their political or ideological views differ from the majority. I do agree that the detour into language issues was off-topic, which is why I issued a warning. After that, the discussion about regional dialects died down, and if it hadn't, posts would have been removed or users banned for staying off-topic...

I also specifically asked you to send any questions regarding moderation either to me via private message or by starting a thread over at the PZK section. Despite that, you went ahead and posted it in the Diaspora section instead. I honestly don't understand why you're being so stubborn and ignoring the basic rules of the road...

@ Nicole Morales3, you should honestly just be glad you didn't get slapped with a warning for breaking the sub-forum rules. It’s been made clear for a long time now that any discussions regarding the moderation team shouldn't be happening over on the PDF where you usually post, but rather over on the PZK...
Even after being warned, you just keep ignoring the guidelines and starting threads just to try and force things your way.
As for TT, there hasn't been a single post from her that actually warrants a strike, so she isn't getting one. When she finally does something deserving, then we'll deal with it.
Just because certain "Great Americans" don't LIKE her takes on the Belgrade thread, or because they aren't fans of her theories regarding American linguistic dialects, doesn't mean I'm going to hand out strikes left and right...

That's all I have to say about that...

No way. You’re just going to tease me... 🙂

Bob, what kind of messed up poll is this? You haven't given us enough choices... for instance... you could have added a) I don't really care or maybe.... b) I want Steven Ruiz to stay, or c) vote Bob for moderator.
The way you set this up, you basically just gave everyone option a), a), a), and a).... 🤣
It feels just like those old-school socialist era policies from back in the day...

Since there aren't enough actual options here, I'm just going to go ahead and pick option a) and hope they swap me out for Bob instead, because he would honestly make an amazing moderator... 🙏

It’s honestly kind of fascinating how our daily post count and thread volume just keep climbing higher while everyone else seems to be drifting away from this site...
So, tell me, what exactly are you complaining about here?
Is it about the points? You’ve already got seven credits sitting there under this account from me, and let’s not forget everything from your old handle—the one that actually got banned, if you bother to check this thread: ...and, just a heads-up, creating clone accounts to bypass a ban is strictly against the rules, but we decided to look the other way just this once, so I really need you to believe me when I say this isn't a personal vendetta...

On top of that, users seem to have something to say about you almost every single day, yet I haven't felt the need to start a formal poll to see if the community wants someone else in your position...

I’m asking the moderators to please just close this thread down, but please don't go ahead and ban him quite yet, because he hasn't truly earned it...

Megan White4 said:Yes, and clearly this is just one more thing that eludes your comprehension, highlighting your moderator (in)competence. If you were clever enough to realize those five images are intended to be viewed as a single cohesive unit, you could have easily turned them into links—simply by swapping the IMG tag for a URL tag. Unfortunately, my window for editing the post had already closed.

Megan White4, why don't you tell me a few things... how long have you been hanging around the Photography forums? Are you actually familiar with the rules? And if you are—which we both know you are—why on earth would you break them on purpose and then turn around and call the moderators incompetent?...

Why didn't YOU just format them as links? Was I the one writing the post, or were you?...
Or if you just couldn't be bothered to deal with links, why not just split it into two separate posts?...
Then everyone would have been happy and the problem would have been solved effortlessly...
But no... you just have to be a rebel...

Fine then, go ahead and be a rebel...
Just not here on the Photography boards...
You could have just taken a three-day timeout and stopped with all the provocations and insults aimed at the moderation team...
Even a permanent ban doesn't have to stay forever if someone actually makes an effort to change...
But hey, if you don't care about contributing to the Photography community anymore, then I certainly don't either... 👋

@ silverpanther13, the rules aren't set in stone, you know? They’re actually evolving and being updated all the time based on what the community thinks, so I'm not quite sure why you feel like we can't have a discussion about them...
For instance, we're currently in the middle of tweaking the rule regarding image dimensions right now. There's a poll live, so go ahead and weigh in if you want to make your voice heard!

Everything mentioned above is just pure trolling. I don't get why...
Even if we ignore the trolling aspect, this was all written right after you were hit with a permanent ban. So, those intentions might be real, or they might not be, who knows...

Every single online community has its own set of rules; there are the general site guidelines and then the specific rules for each individual sub-forum.
You clearly seem to think you're somehow exempt from these regulations because you view my moderating as "idiocy." And sure, maybe we act like total sticklers for the rules sometimes, but there's actually a reason for it, rather than just trying to make someone's life miserable...
If I start making exceptions for you, then everyone else is going to come crawling back asking for their own special treatment.
You knew the rules before you even signed up, and you've been on this platform long enough to know exactly how things work here. But instead, you just break them, knowing full well you're breaking them, and then when your extra content gets deleted or you get called out for chatting in a thread where it doesn't belong, you have the nerve to complain about it...
If it was really that important to you that those five images stay together as one unit, you could have simply posted them in two consecutive posts.
I can't just give you a pass and then have to explain to everyone else why you're getting special treatment while they aren't.

Furthermore, you didn't get banned because of that specific issue, but because of the insults. To be honest, I wasn't even aiming to ban you, I was just going to issue a warning, but since you already had warnings from other moderators, it triggered an automatic permanent ban...

The fact that you kept insisting you were going to "get to the bottom of this" with me once you returned, combined with all that tactical maneuvering, is exactly what landed you in this mess—which is a partial permanent ban...

Look, based on your posts quoted below, it’s pretty clear you're cooking up some tactics with the intention to troll and just straight-up disrupt how this PDF operates. Honestly, if you're planning on being a troll, maybe don't announce it to the entire internet with such big fanfare, because then we might actually catch you... 😉

"I posted a poll over in the Photography sub-forum asking if people were down to replace Kim. Naturally, Kim moved it over to unknown immediately, and of course, people who aren't even active in photography started showing up, and then some unknown chimed in saying things like those kinds of polls don't even belong here. So much for this forum. My takeaway is that the hardline clique of admins and moderators clearly thinks we 'regular' users are only here because of them, rather than them existing because of us. It really brings up that old question, 'Who watches the watchmen?' But all I know is that once my ban expires, I'm switching up my strategy, just to see if Kim starts acting crazy again..."

"If I've got my dates right, my ban lasts until November 22nd at 3:00 PM. So, I just have to hang in there for a few more hours... And then it'll be time to start sipping Kim's blood through a straw. And I'll do it in a way where they won't even be able to claim I'm breaking any rules."

I feel like I’m doing a terrible job lately. I’ve been going around editing posts that don't strictly violate any clearly defined rules in the PDF, and then I end up warning people not to chat in threads where it doesn't belong...
Please, just relieve me of my duties. 🤦

Look, it’s already been made clear to you that not a single moderator from the expatriate community has banned any of your clones, so I’m really not sure why you’re slapping the expatriate community label on this when it has absolutely nothing to do with us...
I mean, weren't you the one constantly getting flagged over in the Politics subreddits and stuff like that? You should probably go ahead and ask them yourself... 🤷