Selectively ban members from certain threads to keep them open?

[Owen]

I've seen quite a few threads on here closed because a few individuals simply went off topic and started attacking each other ad hominem. Considering that this has happened to threads that contained worthy discussion, I can't help but wonder whether there is some way to ban those unruly members from posting in just that thread without suspending their general privileges. This would allow the thread to stay open and allow other members to comment on the topic without the interference of those disruptive posters.

[Swamp56]

That's not built into vBulletin, but there's probably an addon for it.

The problem is that it could be abused very easily.

[Steve712]

We just need to revamp the moderating system with organised procedures for warning, splitting and closing closing (for derails, ad homs and whatever else), etc.

[djt820]

Laissez-faire, mother fucker!

[Chip]

Generally speaking, the mod team doesn't close a thread unless it has mostly degenerated into a pissing contest. And by that, I mean multiple people, not just one or two, who are attacking each other rather than sticking to the topic.

Banning people from individual threads isn't the answer for more than one reason. First, it opens the door for people to feel unfairly singled out, or feeling their opinion isn't being respected. Secondly, it starts putting the mods in the position of taking positions on arguments and such, which we don't want to be doing.

The real solution is for posters to follow the code of conduct. If people stick to debating the issues instead of attacking each other, then generally, any thread can stay open because when one is debating the issues, it's pretty easy to stay civil. It's when it degenrates into attacking the person holding those views that the problems arise.

So when you see anyone attacking another member personally, rather than attacking a viewpoint or a position on something... report it, and hopefully the mods can encourage the poster to behave him or herself instead of having to close the thread.

[starfish]

Originally Posted by djt820

Laissez-faire, mother fucker!

Trust me you don't want that. I'm an old hand when it comes to Internet forums. Before that I used dialup BBS systems. When the moderation goes away things go downhill very quickly. With in a few months the signal to noise ratio will approach zero and those with useful things to say will disappear.

The moderation here is pretty tame. I've been on bords where saying "mother fucker" would get you a perma ban. Those places usually don't last very long either.

[djt820]

Originally Posted by starfish

Trust me you don't want that. I'm an old hand when it comes to Internet forums. Before that I used dialup BBS systems. When the moderation goes away things go downhill very quickly. With in a few months the signal to noise ratio will approach zero and those with useful things to say will disappear.

The moderation here is pretty tame. I've been on bords where saying "mother fucker" would get you a perma ban. Those places usually don't last very long either.

I lol'd. I've been banned from those types of forums so many times. There was a time where people on the internet trusted each other and moderation wasn't really needed. Maybe I was just lucky to have been to forums like that. But tame on moderation here? I wouldn't necessarily agree. But I get what you're saying.