Clarification needed concerning the new way DU rules will be handled.

[mmonk]

I probably need this part to be explained in clearest terms:

- Broadly suggesting that there is no difference between Barack Obama and George W. Bush, or that there is no difference between Democrats and Republicans. (Arguing that specific policies are the same would be permitted.)


Can someone who takes something posted in that manner which was not intended in that manner alert to try and get someone banned even if the poster may not have meant the message in that manner?

[MineralMan]

1. Seems pretty clear to me, but who knows. Someone who

wanted to post such a thing might be confused, I guess. It's pretty simple language, though. I'm sure the moderators will look closely at such a post and make a consensus decision. Since it takes just one moderator to prevent a deletion, I can't imagine that it will be a real problem.

Anyone may alert on anything. Once they do, it's up to the moderators.

[muriel_volestrangler]

2. People 'can' alert on anything at all

If the alert is groundless, the mods will take no action. They won't judge a post just on the interpretation an alerter puts on it, of course; they don't do that now. They read the post, and those around it, and discuss what they think it's saying.

It's worth pointing out that the particular rule you quote is not new; you can find plenty of threads that have been locked as inflammatory for saying "Obama is just like Dubya", or "Democrats are exactly the same as Republicans" - the latter has been seen here since 2003 when I joined, and I'd guess from 2001.

[lunatica]

3. The Mods will decide case by case since they're not automatic machines

[mmonk]

4. Thanks everyone for your opinion on it.