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Culture War Roundup for the week of April 21, 2025

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It looks to me like you aren't getting the better end of this debate, and are looking for a way to make this my fault.

If you have an example of me using my mod powers in a debate, I'd certainly like to see it. If you think I'm lacking in morals, it'd be interesting to hear an elaboration of why.

You’ve banned many people who did not deserve it. Of all stripes. Censorship trespasses against your fellow man, and it harms you. I suppose it’s common enough in the new internet, people don’t have the right to express themselves anymore. But I still hold a grudge.

You‘ve even banned what you called a major influence, a friend. Then judas gave a tearful eulogy. It was the most craven, two-faced, pathetic display of regret I ever saw.

You’ve banned many people who did not deserve it.

If I've banned "many people who didn't deserve it", it should be pretty easy for you to point to examples. There's a search bar at the top of the page, syntax would be "author:FCfromSSC banned", feel free to provide examples.

You‘ve even banned what you called a major influence, a friend.

I presume this is a reference to HlynkaCG? Hlynka himself was quite clear that he understood that he was breaking the rules, and would not stop doing so. Leaving aside that I am not in fact the one who banned him; I certainly think it was the proper action for a mod to take, and would ask what you think we should have done, given a long and increasingly frequent history of him breaking the forum's rules?

Then judas gave a tearful eulogy. It was the most craven, two-faced, pathetic display of regret I ever saw.

Are you under the impression that Hlynka expected to not get banned, or that he resented his ban or considered it unfair or unwarranted?

You have invented a caricature in your own mind that has no relation to reality. I fundamentally believe that this forum is built on unsustainable contradictions. I see my job as a mod to be to try to help keep it running as long as possible. If you think I or the other mods are doing it wrong, we're open to arguments for how we can do it better. Sadly, most of the arguments we receive are based on the sorts of caricatures you're deploying here.

Dude, speak plainly. What are you on about?

He appears to be referring to HlynkaCG's ban, and to my comments following it. Hlynka is probably my all-time favorite poster in any of the versions of this forum, I argued with and then alongside him for years, I credit him for having by far the largest impact on my own thinking of anyone I've conversed with here. I think he was right about most things, and miss him dearly. I also maintain that he decided that he wasn't willing to follow the rules any more, and so the mod team was presented with the choice of either invalidating the rules or banning him. Banning him was the correct choice. I also would argue that inviting a ban was the correct choice for him; he did not seem to need what this place offers any more, would be the way I would put it, and I can respect that. I've been near to that point a few times myself.