Mod election

Peter Doyle2 said:I absolutely agree. I think I mentioned the exact same thing in another thread here once.

RiD has been in shambles for quite a while now; changes are necessary, and of course we support them!!

But there’s still a bitter taste in my mouth after everything that went down about a week ago...

Yeah, I know, you'll probably tell us we were warned via threads, which is technically true.

But, just so you know for the future—and for any other subforums where sudden purges might happen—a huge number of people don't read back through old posts. Sometimes they don't even see the last few posts in a thread.

That's why it would be way better to just put a notification in the top topic or an announcement specifically for that subforum letting everyone know the belt is tightening. 😁
It's a win-win: we're happy because we get warned in time, and you're happy because you don't have to leave bolded warnings in screaming colors across fifteen different threads that most people end up ignoring anyway.

That doesn't make it okay for anyone, though. Sorry, but the whole foundation of being decent online is, you know, actually reading the thread you're jumping into before you start typing.

granitecrane332 said:I’m asking everyone involved in this process to walk me through the logic used to select moderators. How is it even possible for someone to show up as a moderator on a PDF when they barely ever post? It’s impossible for them to actually understand the flow and dynamics of our discussions if they aren't even active here.

Look, if nobody else is going to step up and say it, I will: yeah, you really ought to be picking mods from the pool of people who actually hang out and talk in those specific subforums. 👍

But... (it’s always some kind of "but," isn't it? Not like Muhammad)

...there are certain subforums that are such absolute dumpster fires that there isn't a single sane user left to promote to moderator. 🥳

Frank Moore4 said:hollowtrucker77, since you’re asking for an example, check out this post from Gnothiseauton -

Honestly, you might want to take a look at your own post too -

It’s just not right when a mod or an Admin talks to a user like they're total trash, almost like they're just baiting a reaction so they can slap them with an infraction. I don't really care about getting an infraction myself, but the way they treat people on this forum is genuinely messed up.

1. Gnothiseauton isn't a mod over in the science fiction section.

2. Honestly, why don't you and Michael Collins just start your own thread titled "What to be SF?" and stop acting like paratroopers dropping into every single discussion just to scream, "THAT ISN'T SCIENCE FICTION!!!1111" at everyone. If you did that, the users (and the mods) would finally stop telling you to shut up. It could actually turn into a decent conversation, and more importantly, you'd stop getting on everyone's nerves by forcing your narrow definition of the genre onto every other topic. 🙂

Honestly, there's probably no need to start a whole new thread for things like this.
At this rate, you might end up having to reach out to everyone personally via DM for every single deleted post or moved and merged thread—since apparently, nobody has enough time to actually keep up with the forum or the PDFs.

Cleaning up threads is a big job, and it definitely needed to happen (and I say that just as an observer, not a participant).
And while we’re on the subject—why don't you take those RiD ads and put them in the clothing section of the PDF?
There's already a dedicated marketplace for phones, yet they aren't listed in the phone thread.
The same logic should apply to kids' clothes and gear; some people skip the specific forums entirely and head straight to the classifieds to search.

Please excuse any typos...

I don't mind a cleanup or even some new mods (I've seen some info on other PDFs)

but what really bothers me is how they actually went around being rude and downright obnoxious. On top of that, any single comment expressing dissatisfaction with the changes or the general vibe on the PDF was treated as if you were questioning moderator decisions—and that’s enough to get you banned..

I mean, WTFFFF? It makes it feel like you have to weigh every single word just so you don't accidentally mention a moderator's call and end up getting banned. And secondly—what are these mods, some kind of gods who can't be criticized? Give me a break..🙄

Anyway, do whatever you want; I've lost my appetite for that PDF and I won't be posting there anymore...😢
Honestly, I just don't feel like risking it, where every opinion I have turns into an interrogation of the "sacred" moderator decisions.👎

hollowtrucker77 said:Look, it’s because you all decided to start chatting at once, and honestly, not every single thread needs to serve as a dumping ground for whatever random thought happens to pop into your head at any given moment.
If you actually want to voice an opinion, just be a grown-up and move over to the appropriate topic or sub-forum, and we won't have any issues whatsoever.

To be perfectly specific, I haven't even been online for the last two or three weeks while everything was unfolding. Then, when I finally shared my perspective on a thread that seems to be getting under your skin, I got banned—simply because I was frustrated by the recent changes. In my view, that is entirely relevant to the discussion, since those changes have been bothering me ever since I became a parent. Before I had kids, I didn't even bother looking at that PDF.

It doesn't matter; the PDF is incredibly dull now. Some truly vital and useful threads have been shut down, yet these murky, useless ones are still hanging around... there's no spontaneity left, and everyone is walking on eggshells, weighing every single word for fear of getting a strike or a ban...
Honestly, this isn't how a forum should work. This isn't a job where I need to meticulously monitor every syllable I utter. This is supposed to be entertainment—a way to unwind the brain—but that PDF just isn't providing that anymore...

And honestly, if we’re talking about all this chatting—half the threads feel more like a live chat room than anything else. Just take a look at the men's and women's sections...

If you find five actually intelligent, constructive topics in there, you're lucky. Everything else is just endless chatting, spinning the same few ideas over and over again in different ways...

If that's the case, why don't we just go ahead and shut down half these threads with a heavy hand? Why let them stay open?

Kate Cox2 said:And honestly, if we’re talking about all this chatting—half the threads feel more like a live chat room than anything else. Just take a look at the men's and women's sections...

If you find five actually intelligent, constructive topics in there, you're lucky. Everything else is just endless chatting, spinning the same few ideas over and over again in different ways...

If that's the case, why don't we just go ahead and shut down half these threads with a heavy hand? Why let them stay open?

Nobody should touch MK because that's where the best crowd hangs out. Honestly, who cares if you guys argue and bicker? You're probably just jealous because your subforums don't have any users.🙂

mellowraven22 said:That doesn't make it okay for anyone, though. Sorry, but the whole foundation of being decent online is, you know, actually reading the thread you're jumping into before you start typing.

Look, I'm with you on that.
But if we're looking at the facts, things were a bit different. Like you guys mentioned, a ton of threads on the RiD were just chaotic—about everything and anything. And honestly, about 90% of the users, after being away for a few hours or days, wouldn't bother catching up on all the missed posts when they finally returned to a thread.
So, they didn't see any warnings, because on the chat threads or those high-traffic topics, stuff like that gets buried pretty fast.
In situations like this—where a large part of the sub-forum is in total disarray and most members have no clue about certain rules because they walked into a mess once they opened the PDF—I think it would be reasonable to announce major changes in a separate, dedicated thread.

Specifically, back on the RiD—there was an open welcome thread for the new mods. So, why couldn't a warning about upcoming major changes have been dropped in there? 😕

And obviously, we don't need a whole new thread every single time someone's post gets deleted, just like Alexander Allen5 said.
But we're talking about massive shifts here. Huge changes. I still think the situation would have played out much differently if we'd just been told what to expect via a separate thread ahead of time. 😁

I didn't say there needs to be a dedicated thread; I just meant you'll eventually start asking the mods to send you a private message explaining exactly what happened to your post or thread.

The issue isn't really about the mods or the Admin; it’s actually on you guys too.
If a few of you were following the thread and saw exactly what the mod did to clean things up, is it really such a big deal to just shoot your colleague a quick DM and tell them to check out the official link?
It's as simple as just pointing someone toward a specific page—it shouldn't be a burden for anyone to do that.

It’s not a problem for any mod to clean up, merge, warn, or remove content. It’s easy enough—you just sit down, type, type, and type.
Yet, people will just casually pop into this thread or similar ones to complain and ask, "Why did I get hit with this?" or "Why was that removed?"
Well, it's because you aren't reading.

I clean up threads myself, and sometimes they're just like this one—but when the Admin makes a call, that’s the final word. Period.

I honestly wonder what kind of logic the Admin is using when making these choices.

🤔 I mean, are we even here as users just to act as deputies and police everyone else over some brand-new rules?😲

btw.
I have a feeling the mods would suddenly find themselves facing a massive power outage or just staying offline entirely if they had actually put out a top topic announcement about introducing such drastic changes in the first place.🤷
And let's not even get started on this whole business of warnings and strikes... basically, once you've been warned twice, the third strike hits and there's no more leeway, right? It seems like some of the mods just haven't gotten tired of handing out warnings yet.🤣
But now, all of a sudden, they've decided it's high time to enforce some order.🙄 Where on earth were you all a few months ago?😕

It feels like a waste of energy to even complain or vent... one group rushed into this headfirst (though they'll never admit it), while others—and there are definitely some—ignored the rules and are now catching heat on their third strike. Unfortunately, that's just how it goes.

hollowtrucker77 said:The forum rules and basic netiquette guidelines aren't going anywhere; they’re permanent fixtures here.
I highly doubt anyone is actually going to bother apologizing since the mods are the ones enforcing them anyway.
Let’s be real, this sub-forum has been looking pretty neglected lately, but honestly, maybe the users should take a good long look in the mirror and ask themselves why they can't manage to maintain even a shred of basic order.
And this is coming from the very people who love to parade around using titles like "mother" or "parent" as if those labels somehow grant them instant moral authority.
It really makes you wonder about the state of things...

Wonder about what, exactly?

Look, honestly, that sentence of yours is insulting—just totally garbage—and I have no clue why anyone would even make a statement like that...🤷
You guys don't seem to get that this is part of the problem. It’s not just about when things start with an eraser (regardless of how much you claim otherwise), it’s that everything always ends up being moderator condescension and subtle insults designed to belittle the person you're talking to.
And I also don't understand why every single purge on RID over the last year or two gets justified by claiming "that's just how the whole forum works," when nobody here is stupid enough to not check other PDFs and see that isn't even remotely true.

Changes were necessary, sure, you need some order, but no matter how "quality" these new moderators are supposed to be, when they actually go about closing or merging threads, it’s obvious they haven't spent any real time hanging out on RID.
If you really think none of the current forum regulars are up to the task, it wouldn't hurt if future moderators actually spent at least a month being active participants first, just to get a decent idea of what actually happens there besides constant arguing and mindless chatting...

Honestly, it’s like everyone expects forum users to have nothing better to do than sit around reading through all the rules, especially parents who barely have a second to breathe.
Just run a poll and you'll see—half the people here don't even realize they exist...
(from some random PDF)

It really makes a person pause and reconsider a lot of things...🙄
And yet, there isn't even an answer from a doctor... hm... how does that work? Maybe I've just become senile and dim-witted, but no, no, no, I only got worked up because I call my mother and parents, so thanks for noticing!
Yeah, sure, it just gives someone plenty of reason to wonder how "certain" people manage to do a job they clearly "don't know" how to do.🥳

Alexander Allen5 said:I didn't say there needs to be a dedicated thread; I just meant you'll eventually start asking the mods to send you a private message explaining exactly what happened to your post or thread.

The issue isn't really about the mods or the Admin; it’s actually on you guys too.
If a few of you were following the thread and saw exactly what the mod did to clean things up, is it really such a big deal to just shoot your colleague a quick DM and tell them to check out the official link?
It's as simple as just pointing someone toward a specific page—it shouldn't be a burden for anyone to do that.

It’s not a problem for any mod to clean up, merge, warn, or remove content. It’s easy enough—you just sit down, type, type, and type.
Yet, people will just casually pop into this thread or similar ones to complain and ask, "Why did I get hit with this?" or "Why was that removed?"
Well, it's because you aren't reading.

I clean up threads myself, and sometimes they're just like this one—but when the Admin makes a call, that’s the final word. Period.

If we follow that logic, moderators aren't even necessary—unless they're just there to hand out penalties. I guess if everyone on the forum took it upon themselves to keep their respective threads organized and sent a quick DM to anyone who wasn't online to call them out, the job would basically be done. 😕
How exactly is this any more logical or practical than just using a single top topic or an announcement—especially when we're talking about such drastic changes and a total overhaul? 😕
Nobody's claiming things were perfect before—and honestly, I guess we can all agree that changes were probably necessary.
But look, that situation didn't just pop up overnight—so I guess we shouldn't expect it to fix itself overnight either, especially if people start trying to force things through with brute strength.

Alexander Allen5 said:I didn't say there needs to be a dedicated thread; I just meant you'll eventually start asking the mods to send you a private message explaining exactly what happened to your post or thread.

The issue isn't really about the mods or the Admin; it’s actually on you guys too.
If a few of you were following the thread and saw exactly what the mod did to clean things up, is it really such a big deal to just shoot your colleague a quick DM and tell them to check out the official link?
It's as simple as just pointing someone toward a specific page—it shouldn't be a burden for anyone to do that.

It’s not a problem for any mod to clean up, merge, warn, or remove content. It’s easy enough—you just sit down, type, type, and type.
Yet, people will just casually pop into this thread or similar ones to complain and ask, "Why did I get hit with this?" or "Why was that removed?"
Well, it's because you aren't reading.

I clean up threads myself, and sometimes they're just like this one—but when the Admin makes a call, that’s the final word. Period.

I’m not going to be the first one to complain or push back—mostly because I haven't been penalized myself, and honestly, I’m actually all for bringing some order to the RiD and Pregnancy forums. Not that I'm against it or anything!

I just want to help!!
The rules are pretty clear to me—I’ve got quite a bit of experience both posting on forums and moderating them, so I guess you could say I have a decent grasp of how things work from both sides of the fence.

Everything I write and suggest—I don't do it for my own sake, but for everyone else. Honestly, getting a warning and an explanation in the top topic wasn't really necessary for me.
But for others, it is. We’d just be looking at a massive wave of bans, a full-blown revolt from half the users here, and a million different questions asking, "Why was this specific thread closed?"
It wasn't just about one or two individual threads—we're talking about two entire sub-forums being affected here.

hollowtrucker77 said:The forum rules and basic netiquette guidelines aren't going anywhere; they’re permanent fixtures here.
I highly doubt anyone is actually going to bother apologizing since the mods are the ones enforcing them anyway.
Let’s be real, this sub-forum has been looking pretty neglected lately, but honestly, maybe the users should take a good long look in the mirror and ask themselves why they can't manage to maintain even a shred of basic order.
And this is coming from the very people who love to parade around using titles like "mother" or "parent" as if those labels somehow grant them instant moral authority.
It really makes you wonder about the state of things...

Excuse me? 🤔

What on earth are you talking about???

analogmarlin78 said:Honestly, it’s like everyone expects forum users to have nothing better to do than sit around reading through all the rules, especially parents who barely have a second to breathe.
Just run a poll and you'll see—half the people here don't even realize they exist...
(from some random PDF)

It really makes a person pause and reconsider a lot of things...🙄
And yet, there isn't even an answer from a doctor... hm... how does that work? Maybe I've just become senile and dim-witted, but no, no, no, I only got worked up because I call my mother and parents, so thanks for noticing!
Yeah, sure, it just gives someone plenty of reason to wonder how "certain" people manage to do a job they clearly "don't know" how to do.🥳

I mean, how long does it actually take to read the rules? A couple of minutes, maybe. Most of them apply to every sub-forum anyway, and one of those key points is that you aren't supposed to argue with moderator decisions right there in the thread—you're supposed to use PM or private chat for that. And nobody was just being aggressive for no reason. First came warnings, then yellow cards, then more warnings. Once the moderators saw it wasn't working, obviously, they moved on to red cards and bans.
And honestly, there were plenty of situations that couldn't be brushed off with "we didn't see the warning," because I personally saw plenty of posts that were nothing more than blatant defiance against moderator warnings that clearly stated not to comment on the thread itself.

After all that, I guess I like ŽK even more now. 😍

James Lee3 said:Wonder about what, exactly?

Look, honestly, that sentence of yours is insulting—just totally garbage—and I have no clue why anyone would even make a statement like that...🤷
You guys don't seem to get that this is part of the problem. It’s not just about when things start with an eraser (regardless of how much you claim otherwise), it’s that everything always ends up being moderator condescension and subtle insults designed to belittle the person you're talking to.
And I also don't understand why every single purge on RID over the last year or two gets justified by claiming "that's just how the whole forum works," when nobody here is stupid enough to not check other PDFs and see that isn't even remotely true.

Changes were necessary, sure, you need some order, but no matter how "quality" these new moderators are supposed to be, when they actually go about closing or merging threads, it’s obvious they haven't spent any real time hanging out on RID.
If you really think none of the current forum regulars are up to the task, it wouldn't hurt if future moderators actually spent at least a month being active participants first, just to get a decent idea of what actually happens there besides constant arguing and mindless chatting...

The truth!!! 🙂

And it doesn't even matter that the mods have never once posted on the RiD PDF (except for rustydrifter10, who followed the rules just as strictly as the rest of us 😉)—their decisions make it painfully obvious they aren't actually familiar with the situation on RiD, considering they’ve shut down a mountain of high-quality, genuinely necessary topics while leaving a heap of nonsense active...

Furthermore, as James Lee3 pointed out, there were plenty of high-quality female users right there on the RiD sub-forum who could have been appointed as moderators... instead of bringing in a crew that just hangs out in some random chat room on the ŽK 🙄

Kate Cox2 said:The truth!!! 🙂

And it doesn't even matter that the mods have never once posted on the RiD PDF (except for rustydrifter10, who followed the rules just as strictly as the rest of us 😉)—their decisions make it painfully obvious they aren't actually familiar with the situation on RiD, considering they’ve shut down a mountain of high-quality, genuinely necessary topics while leaving a heap of nonsense active...

Furthermore, as James Lee3 pointed out, there were plenty of high-quality female users right there on the RiD sub-forum who could have been appointed as moderators... instead of bringing in a crew that just hangs out in some random chat room on the ŽK 🙄

They’re chatting in the designated chat thread, while staying strictly on-topic everywhere else. I guess that shows they actually respect the rules by not starting unnecessary threads just to talk.