Posted by mair on March 14, 2005, at 17:44:32
In reply to Re: Is it worth changing? Yes » alexandra_k, posted by Toph on March 14, 2005, at 15:24:36
I've always found the current system to be extremely disruptive. Regardless of how cut and dried Bob tries to make the civility rules seem, they are not, and they are frequently applied subjectively and arbitrarily. If they weren't, we probably wouldn't even be having this discussion.
The system of escalating penalties causes harm in a number of different ways. 1) We lose valued posters - (does everyone appreciate how lucky we are to have Larry Hoover back here? - once not a given at all) 2) People who have been at the wrong side of arbitrary blocks take it with far more sensitivity than is probably appreciated. There's a huge difference between the poster who is out to stir up trouble (we've had a fair number of those), and posters who really intend no harm. Indeed many have been blocked in their attempts to defend others. I'm sure those who believe that their blocks were unfair, don't have the same confidence that this site is "safe" in the way this site is supposed to be safe. 3) Perhaps most importantly, some of the biggest admin fights I remember arose over blocks that seemed unfair either in their imposition or, maybe as frequently, in their length. Far from generating a healthy give and take, many admin discussions over blocks have deteriorated quickly into a miasma of hurt feelings and recriminations. Many people have left here not because they were sanctioned unfairly, but rather because they felt someone else was, or even, sometimes that someone else wasn't. The appearance of unequal and uneven treatment can be extemely upsetting.
I don't think capping blocks is necessarily the answer, but I do think it would help alot. People might still feel that either they or some others were treated unfairly, but if the consequences weren't so draconian, passions might not run as high.
IMHO of course
Mair
poster:mair
thread:458927
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20050219/msgs/471013.html