Moderators are deleting posts like crazy

Could we get an unbiased admin to take a look at what’s going on in this thread? I guess—maybe—things are getting a bit out of hand.

I guess there's more talk about another coronavirus study coming out in a major journal—maybe we'll actually learn something this time. Anyway, I saw what Charles Davis84 was saying earlier... just seems like the usual noise, honestly.

Someone’s out here scrubbing posts—not just mine, either—that clearly don't fit someone's specific worldview, I guess.

So, they're wiping out all sorts of posts—not just mine, mind you—including the ones that actually cite scientific studies. I guess.

People have been warned about this plenty of times in this thread—those posts were deleted too, though I guess you can still find traces of them if you dig around on Google:

https://tinyurl.com/y7amlxkx

Two posts that somehow managed to stay up:

dustymarlin10 said:Some guy was quoting a study claiming that wearing masks is actually harmful—I guess.
I’ve basically connected the dots between wearing masks, riding public transit, the summer heat, and how much absolute hell it is for anyone dealing with asthma.
I mentioned how hot it was—and honestly, how much of a struggle it was to get anything done yesterday—even though I wasn't wearing a mask.

If this thread is titled "Masks — yes or no" (which seems to be the case from what I've seen so far), then everyone should be able to share their take and lay out their arguments—without people getting deleted just because they happen to be "against" them, I guess.
It’s giving off some serious censorship vibes—not exactly a first for this forum or these specific threads, I guess.

Just remember how many times they wiped us out—labeled us "bioterrorists" and handed out punishments just for having an opinion, I guess.

Frank Martin2 said:The internet—and honestly, this forum too—used to be a place where you could actually hear a dissenting opinion. I mean, even this PDF is titled "Masks: YES or NO," yet after yesterday's censorship and the deletion of posts from people who aren't exactly sold on this whole "new normal" thing—those who were leaning toward the "NO"—it feels like the quality here has really taken a dive.

I was wondering—just out of curiosity—what kind of criteria or general rule forum guidelines actually trigger a deletion for posts like these?

I don't know—maybe we should just wait for the next big study to drop in some major journal before we decide anything, I guess.

Meanwhile, the admin can see all these posts that aren't getting deleted—and some members have already noticed that alongside the off-topic stuff, there's actually some threats of violence going on too.

zuzz said:That’s already happening—you can see how the mask enthusiasts on this thread are basically calling for violence and aggression.

Then again, posts like this one don't seem to be an issue:

Yet my post about that specific study got nuked, even though it just said:

Scientists Take Aim at Another Coronavirus Study in a Major Journal

A report on masks relied on unfounded assumptions, researchers charged, and the authors were permitted to choose their own reviewers.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/18/h...s-studies.html

FORMAL REQUEST FOR THE RETRACTION OF ZHANG ET AL., 2020

https://metrics.stanford.edu/PNAS%20...20LoE%20061820

I'm siding with my buddy here.

It’s honestly pretty pathetic and totally out of line to just wipe someone's posts just because they don't fit the "official" narrative.
Believe me, I've dealt with this before.

We aren't some mindless hive mind—though you might wonder if we are, given how much Andrej Plenković seems to be rewarding the media lately—so why on earth are people being censored for having a different take?
I wouldn't call them dissenters; I'd just say they're the ones actually using their brains.

I’ve been cleaning up some incredibly stupid posts, endless bickering, and pure spam. Honestly, maybe I should have been more aggressive—it feels like I might have missed a few.

hollowwalker24 is just a spammer at this point. Dropping 50 links followed by four massive posts in a row without actually engaging with them—well, it kills any decent discussion. Since I’ve been moderating the Covid threads since day one, I’ve seen this exact pattern cycle through every 10–15 days. It's nothing new.

P.S. The supermods and Nica can always see the deleted content, so they aren't lost—and they certainly don't need to be re-added.

So, Gerald Chavez7, did you seriously just delete all those arguments? I mean, what else are we supposed to expect on a forum when people are on totally different sides of an issue? You can't just slap a label like "bickering" on a debate and call it a day—real discussion is the whole damn point of this place, right?

Gerald Chavez7 said:I’ve been cleaning up some incredibly stupid posts, endless bickering, and pure spam. Honestly, maybe I should have been more aggressive—it feels like I might have missed a few.

hollowwalker24 is just a spammer at this point. Dropping 50 links followed by four massive posts in a row without actually engaging with them—well, it kills any decent discussion. Since I’ve been moderating the Covid threads since day one, I’ve seen this exact pattern cycle through every 10–15 days. It's nothing new.

P.S. The supermods and Nica can always see the deleted content, so they aren't lost—and they certainly don't need to be re-added.

Maybe the guy just replies when he finds the time, and then suddenly responds to several things at once, which I don't think counts as spam.
He didn't break any general rule forum rules, and I think deleting those posts was unjustified.
I guess hollowwalker24 enriches the discussion with those long, periodic posts and isn't ruining anything.

Even though I'm new here and my word doesn't mean much, I'm asking the admin to be more tolerant toward our colleague hollowwalker24 in the future.

fadedtrucker said:So, Gerald Chavez7, did you seriously just delete all those arguments? I mean, what else are we supposed to expect on a forum when people are on totally different sides of an issue? You can't just slap a label like "bickering" on a debate and call it a day—real discussion is the whole damn point of this place, right?

Look, if someone drops thirty posts in a row—you and HHmishko included—just constantly jumping at each other, it kills the conversation. There are ten times more people reading than actually posting. Once you factor in the regulars, about 95% of the community has to scroll through three or four pages of your "duel."

Charles Davis84 said:Maybe the guy just replies when he finds the time, and then suddenly responds to several things at once, which I don't think counts as spam.
He didn't break any general rule forum rules, and I think deleting those posts was unjustified.
I guess hollowwalker24 enriches the discussion with those long, periodic posts and isn't ruining anything.

Even though I'm new here and my word doesn't mean much, I'm asking the admin to be more tolerant toward our colleague hollowwalker24 in the future.

It's not that I have an issue with him personally—it's just that if he repeats posts without actually engaging in the discussion... well, like I said, he's done this five or six times since March. It just doesn't make sense.

Gerald Chavez7 said:Look, if someone drops thirty posts in a row—you and HHmishko included—just constantly jumping at each other, it kills the conversation. There are ten times more people reading than actually posting. Once you factor in the regulars, about 95% of the community has to scroll through three or four pages of your "duel."

It's not that I have an issue with him personally—it's just that if he repeats posts without actually engaging in the discussion... well, like I said, he's done this five or six times since March. It just doesn't make sense.

It’s pretty debatable what you mean by "ruining the discussion." Neither me nor HHmishko planned to dump posts back-to-back like that. There just weren't many active users online at 1 AM, so nobody was really interrupted by this totally random streak you’re calling "jumping on each other." That's an unbelievable excuse to delete posts that didn't break a single rule, other than the fact they were posted close together. 🤣

I thought the forum wasn't some kind of mandatory job, where how much scrolling happens or how long it takes matters to someone who’s clearly just chilling when they log on. But hey, no point in me typing all this out since you're the moderator, and I'm sure you'll always be right while I'm always wrong.

P.S. Shoutout to Charles Davis84

I'm fully in favor of stopping the censorship being carried out by certain moderators just because someone expresses an opinion different from their own.

As long as a comment isn't insulting or discriminatory toward any individual or group, doesn't incite violence, is phrased civilly, and stays on topic without causing other issues, it shouldn't be deleted simply because a moderator disagrees with the sentiment.

In the specific case mentioned by hollowwalker24, the moderator gave a bizarre justification for deleting posts—essentially, they decided to categorize scientists, research teams, or studies as either "scientific" or "unscientific." They then proceeded to scrub any posts that pointed toward what they deemed "unscientific" sources.

Naturally, the "scientific" ones were the experts who happened to agree with the moderator's personal views, while the "unscientific" ones were anyone they disagreed with—even if those people are highly respected figures within the global academic community. If it weren't so pathetic, it would almost be funny.

That said, I think this particular moderator has softened their stance lately. I haven't noticed any more of this censoring on this sub-forum thread recently, which is a good thing. I hope it stays that way.

Frank Martin2 said:I'm fully in favor of stopping the censorship being carried out by certain moderators just because someone expresses an opinion different from their own.

As long as a comment isn't insulting or discriminatory toward any individual or group, doesn't incite violence, is phrased civilly, and stays on topic without causing other issues, it shouldn't be deleted simply because a moderator disagrees with the sentiment.

In the specific case mentioned by hollowwalker24, the moderator gave a bizarre justification for deleting posts—essentially, they decided to categorize scientists, research teams, or studies as either "scientific" or "unscientific." They then proceeded to scrub any posts that pointed toward what they deemed "unscientific" sources.

Naturally, the "scientific" ones were the experts who happened to agree with the moderator's personal views, while the "unscientific" ones were anyone they disagreed with—even if those people are highly respected figures within the global academic community. If it weren't so pathetic, it would almost be funny.

That said, I think this particular moderator has softened their stance lately. I haven't noticed any more of this censoring on this sub-forum thread recently, which is a good thing. I hope it stays that way.

Uh... just realized a moderator finally chimed in, and they clearly haven't changed their tune much 😁 as I had hoped in my previous post.
😛

I gotta say, the Covid threads over in Politics have been handled incredibly well from day one. It’s a night and day difference compared to that one thread in the women's corner. Honestly, I don't even dare post there because the moderator running that section is a total, die-hard believer in everything regarding the corona crisis. I feel like if you even slightly question the narrative, you aren't just getting banned—you're being sent straight to hell. 🤣The vibe there is so heavy with fear that only a handful of people actually post. A lot of the regulars who usually hang out in the women's corner end up staying quiet, only occasionally dropping a cautious critique of all the paranoia that just keeps flowing from one post to the next.

I’m jumping on board with the complaints I’ve seen above. This whole thing has devolved into nothing more than raw, unadulterated intellectual terror.

Isn't it enough that they’ve already turned the entire Politics subforum into a total wasteland of Pernarov nonsense? And all while the moderators sit there watching, ready to hand out a ban the second you dare to suggest that Covid is actually a real, tangible threat.

Now they’re trying to pull the same stunt over in the Covid thread. It simply won't fly.

@Gerald Chavez7, I am right there with you—total support. 👍

It really bugs me how certain users get special treatment just because they openly call for everyone else to be shut down or isolated. It’s supposedly "civilized," I guess? As far as I can tell, if both sides of a debate are pushing for the same thing, it isn't even a discussion anymore. Honestly, I’ve got a collection of five red cards and a few yellow ones myself, but I don't let it get to me. There will probably be more. But this favoritism is what gets under my skin. Especially when I'll have an argument with someone, their posts stay up while mine get wiped, even though I didn't say anything offensive.
Ps.
Kudos to the mods on the politics board.

Just saw Morgan Peterson's post. It seems like the second you disagree with the mainstream, you're labeled a conspiracy theorist or an anti-vaxxer...

I'm totally on board with the complaints I've been seeing above, and I really want to throw my support behind hollowwalker24, because honestly, I've never once felt like their posts were an issue or like they were "ruining the conversation."
Everyone just jumps in whenever they have a moment, and sometimes that means a string of replies comes in quick succession, or maybe you stumble upon a few really interesting data sources or news links all at once and end up dropping two or three posts back-to-back. To me, that’s really not a big deal at all.
At the end of the day, this forum exists specifically so we can chat, swap information, and share our different perspectives.

I haven't had any issues with Covid, but when it comes to politics, I’ve practically given up on commenting entirely. The current situation is just unacceptable, or maybe I just don't have the energy to play these games. So, I’m joining the complaints, because the bias on certain topics is quite obvious, which, of course, completely ruins the discussion.

This is what sits "at the top" of the general rule forum, in the very first post:

The shortest summary of the rules: please be polite and well-meaning toward other users on the Forum. If that is how you normally behave, you don't even need to read the more detailed rules.

I really like this. I think this should be the fundamental rule for any forum about anything, though I wouldn't say it's the beginning and end of it all here...

Gerald Chavez7👍

-Stipe

Gerald Chavez7 said:I’ve been cleaning up some incredibly stupid posts, endless bickering, and pure spam. Honestly, maybe I should have been more aggressive—it feels like I might have missed a few.

hollowwalker24 is just a spammer at this point. Dropping 50 links followed by four massive posts in a row without actually engaging with them—well, it kills any decent discussion. Since I’ve been moderating the Covid threads since day one, I’ve seen this exact pattern cycle through every 10–15 days. It's nothing new.

P.S. The supermods and Nica can always see the deleted content, so they aren't lost—and they certainly don't need to be re-added.

You’ve been dropping some pretty mindless posts lately—just endless bickering, spam, and calls for aggression. Not that it's my place to judge, I guess—so I asked an unbiased admin to take a look at it (if such a thing actually exists).

Gerald Chavez7 said:hollowwalker24 is just a spammer—I guess.

So, scientific studies are just spam now? I guess maybe.

Like the guy on your avatar says—yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, your opinion, man.

So, I'm saying it again—this is exactly why I'm asking for a review from an unbiased admin.

I see you went ahead and deleted all those posts with the scientific studies and articles—stuff that actually belongs in this thread, I guess.

Gerald Chavez7 said:Dropping 50 links and four massive posts back-to-back—only to ghost everyone immediately—just kills the discussion. I've been moderating the Covid threads since day one, so I’ve seen this exact pattern repeat every couple of weeks since March.

Aside from the fact that most people clearly don't agree with you—not that I'm surprised—I can't exactly jump in to reply to everyone immediately. I'm not glued to this forum 24/7/365, I guess.

Just to give you an example—and I really don't have anything against digging up old threads—Anton went back and pulled posts from twelve years ago just to hit them with a bunch of massive replies in a row. I guess I didn't realize long posts were against the rules here.

I guess maybe we should just wait for the next big study to come out in some major journal—as if that’ll actually change anything.

I don't know—maybe it’s just me, but I feel like we’ve been through this whole cycle before—anyway, I guess we'll see what happens.

You moderate this subforum, and this is how you replied to those posts:

Gerald Chavez7 said:I have to admit, this is pretty impressive. It’s not every day you see someone bookmark a post just to come back twelve years later and say, "Actually, you were wrong"—I guess dedication is a thing. 😁

Why didn't you quote his posts from back in February or March of 2009? They’d be just as guilty... though maybe a bit more relevant.

So, yeah—here we have a textbook case of double standards.

Gerald Chavez7 said:P.S. The supermods and Nica always see deleted posts—they aren't lost, and they don't need to re-apply.

I asked for a review from an impartial admin, but apparently, nobody's checking in—or maybe they just haven't gotten around to it yet. If they have, and if certain subforums have basically turned into private playgrounds where mods just do whatever they want (and Gerald Chavez7, I'm not just pointing at you, I mean generally, so I'm not being rude), then fine. If that's the case, there's really no point in continuing this discussion.

Morgan Peterson said:Isn't it enough that they’ve already turned the entire Politics subforum into a total wasteland of Pernarov nonsense? And all while the moderators sit there watching, ready to hand out a ban the second you dare to suggest that Covid is actually a real, tangible threat.

Now they’re trying to pull the same stunt over in the Covid thread. It simply won't fly.

@Gerald Chavez7, I am right there with you—total support. 👍

As they say—you completely missed the mark.

None of that has anything to do with conspiracy theories or Pernarov's mess, and nobody is actually claiming that Covid doesn't exist or isn't dangerous.

briskjackal5 said:Gerald Chavez7👍

-Stipe

And finally, here comes briskjackal5, who basically trashed the whole thread with posts that make zero sense—posts that, according to Gerald Chavez7, are just "stupid bickering and spam"—yet somehow, those posts don't get deleted.

I’ve always got love for hollowwalker24; his posts are always a trip, especially when he starts tearing into Rimac on those car PDFs 😁

Saw those posts yesterday morning, but I didn't have a second to actually click the links and read them before they vanished into thin air.

Look, I don't care if a mod has their own biases in their personal opinion, but it's a total mess when they let that bias dictate how they moderate.

I mean, you can't really take a firm stand for or against something if you don't even have a clue what's actually going on, right? 😁

-briskjackal5

Here goes Joe, acting like he knows everything. At least you’re consistent about it.