ALL MEMBERS: The Return of the Political Mud-Pit on AboveTopSecret.com

Good idea I only wish we could take the gloves off across all forums.

It does beg the question why is ats alowing this on one forum and not all?

reply to post by OtherSideOfTheCoin


Why do we allow people to beat the snot out of each other in the ring, but not everywhere else?

Good idea. Sad that it's necessary.

Might I suggest adding religious topics to the mud-slinger forum. Religion can get people worked up just as bad as politics.

I'm pretty sure this will get real ugly, real quick.
I may read occasionally, but I'm no fighter......
Well; maybe a small post every now and then.

sheepslayer247
Good idea. Sad that it's necessary.

Might I suggest adding religious topics to the mud-slinger forum. Religion can get people worked up just as bad as politics.

Hell yeah - 'scuse the pun.
Religion needs a forum like this.

Yay!!!!!

Glad to see the mud slinging be removed from areas where it does not belong!!!!

Equally glad however, that there IS a place for those who simply can not resist the urge to fling the poo to have a place where they can fling it!

Not that I'll be there however, even lurking. Already sick of the poo flinging as it is....

And like the phoenix; the tulipwalkers will rise and roam the land once again.

How is widespread civil unrest necessarily POLITICAL?!?

Sounds like dismissing civil apathy under Political Spin, to me.

The old mud pit, how can I forget, I got my first posting in that forum and also my first flag, yeah back in the days it was not warnings it was call "Flags".

While I am "pleased" about the decision to bring back the mud pit, I know that is not going to be the same, too much political correctness this days and ATS is not exempt from it, in order to maintain a fair for all board the guidelines in ATS has changed many times in the last 10+ years, I think that is not going to be as fun and it was before.

But I could be mistaken.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


I hope the experiment works.

Sounds like a worthy effort and strategy.

However . . . a caution . . . IIRC . . . experimental studies have demonstrated that most to all 'angry' expressions tend to wind up anger more vs dissipate it.

Therefore what, I'm not sure, in this context.

I still think it's a worthy experiment.

I think I'd suggest that staff ponder and discuss the issue of

SHOULD THERE BE AN UPPER LIMIT BEYOND THAT YOU'VE ARTICULATED IN THIS OP?

Should there be any textually verbal lengths that even within those boundaries will turn out to still be tooooooooooo over the top or below the belt to be tolerated?

I don't know. Drawing and enforcing such a line would be extremely problematic, I think. So probably your stated 2 boundaries are wise ones.

I'm just a bit wary . . . words can be extremely destructive . . . particularly for some individuals. Perhaps that's something for staff to keep an eye on. If someone appears to be getting tooooo overwhelmed by the vigorous sharp hostilities . . . PERHAPS THAT PERSON WILL NEED to be given a X Days break from the mud pit.

Just my stray thoughts on your plan.

Thx for all you do for all of us.

reply to post by BO XIAN


Perhaps "that person" should avoid getting dirty all together.

Those who don't enter the Mud Pit shouldn't get any mud on them at all. Those who do, do so of their own free will and should expect to get soiled in the process. They should also, absolutely, not expect that running to staff complaining about it will clean it off or have any benefit to them at all.

User beware and buck up...

bad asperger day...mud pit
good asperger day...general population
got it

i thinks its a great idea

LOL !

Just finished two days of House of Cards S2 -

Epicness prevails ...

reply to post by Springer


Sounds reasonable to me.

Perhaps we should have a smiley that's a "sugar tit" to click on in such cases.

And the one collecting the most "sugar tits" per month could be designated "cry-baby of the month?"

For those too . . . young or geographically out of the loop . . . a sugar tit was a spoonful of sugar put in the center of a hanky (handkerchief) and tied into a blob of sugar for a baby to suck on and be soothed thereby.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


So if you are not a yank does the ALL MEMBERS title of this thread really apply?

Or come election time do we who are not US have to put up with even more crap that dominates the front page with crap no one other than a select few cares about because nothing will change irrespective of the vehement diatribe spewed by both sides of your joke of a political system?

And lets not kid ourselves that this is not directly focused on Yank politics. Yes Yes its a predominantly yank site..........but not entirely.

Its gonna be a 404-fest...

TKDRL
I don't know if I should be happy this forum was created, or sad that it had to be created. Maybe a bit of both lol.

same for me, but without the "lol".

ATS demanded more of me if i wanted to participate. I took pride in rising to that occasion. I am somewhat saddened by this. Mostly because ATS feels the need to allow for it, or risk their survival.

I tend to wear the crown of A-hole of the day from time to time. But ATS demanded more from me. This site has helped me make myself a better person.

bigfatfurrytexan

TKDRL
I don't know if I should be happy this forum was created, or sad that it had to be created. Maybe a bit of both lol.

same for me, but without the "lol".

ATS demanded more of me if i wanted to participate. I took pride in rising to that occasion. I am somewhat saddened by this. Mostly because ATS feels the need to allow for it, or risk their survival.

I tend to wear the crown of A-hole of the day from time to time. But ATS demanded more from me. This site has helped me make myself a better person.

There must be a way to break through the code, like Codeman would do, and give you a star for that wonderful post.

reply to post by Strewth


The point of this is to keep the bickering and "passionate" displays of partisanship out of the forums where people seek to discuss things in a civil and enlightening way. As stated in the OP (you may want to read it again), any instances of this stuff overflowing into non mud pit forums or other topical forums will result in account privileges being suspended or worse.

To the above I would add that you only see/read what you decide to see and read. If you don't click on the thread title you won't be subject to its content, if just seeing the titles annoys you all I can say is welcome to the internet.

Looks like a lot of the political discussions have been relegated to the Mud Pit... I wonder, if a future discussion gets full of political mudslinging (as it undoubtedly will), will it be moved to the mud pit?

reply to post by Benevolent Heretic


Not if we get alerted to it or happen upon it soon enough to save it.

The members who attempt to derail a legitimate and civil discussion on the issues, candidates, etc... will end up with their accounts restricted (or worse). There is now a designated place to throw mud, there's no excuse for slinging it anywhere else.