Ad Hominem Attacks And You

By far the most common and destructive problems ATS moderators have to deal with are insults, epithets, name-calling and other forms of personal commentary, also known as ad hominem attacks.

Ad hominem attacks drive threads off topic, poison the atmosphere for discussion, discourage members from posting and, overall, represent an affront to everything ATS stands for.

Consequently, the overwhelming majority of warnings, post removals, post bans and account terminations that take place on ATS are in direct response to ad hominem attacks.

All members can help reduce the damage rude behavior causes to our community by doing two things:

1. Refrain from making ad hominem attacks. In other words, just be polite.

2. Report ad hominem attacks when you see them.

NEVER respond to insults by posting them in return. Doing so only compounds the problem and is subject to the same corrective action as any other insult.

Instead, ALERT ad hominem attacks and let us know about them. Please be patient and bear in mind that moderators tend to be busy, it can take a while to respond and we don't take action unless supported by the AboveTopSecret.com Terms And Conditions Of Use.

However, forums being what they are, the evidence is always there in writing for us to review, and though some members may get away with being jerks for a while, justice tends to catch up with them eventually.

Nobody's perfect, and everyone has a bad day now and then, but if we can remember our manners and treat one another with respect, the reward is a better ATS for everyone.

Please do your best.






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