Suitable topics for discussion?

[Patler]

So, my thread about college football players being ruled to be employees has been closed because of a few posts that took a political angle.

I can only surmise that this means we can not discuss this issue at all except in the political thread, because:

The issue has come to a head because of a ruling from a government agency.
The agency has political appointees.
The agency has been notorious for controversial appointments.
Some will always disagree with the appointments, regardless of the party in power or the individual in office.

So, a topic that could be fundamental to the operation of college football, the one and only significant feeder system for the NFL can not be discussed on the football board just because a few will make political comments?

It can only be discussed in that vast waste-land of emotion known as "F.Y.I."???
...and here I thought it was an interesting football issue, albeit with political factors.

Just be aware of this when NFL issues come up. such as:

- The NFL complaint filed at the NLRB against the NFLPA during the last contract negotiation
- The complaint filed by the NFL refs at the NLRB during their last negotiations with the league.
- The long history of the league and all its unions pursuing court cases and NLRB reviews simultaneously.

I guess none of those will be suitable topics here either?

[denverYooper]

I think it was done out of consideration for the health of one particular poster who seems incapable of controlling his visceral reaction to certain anagrams.

[mraynrand]

It can only be discussed in that vast waste-land of emotion known as "F.Y.I."???

blow it out your bazooka!

[3irty1]

I think it was done out of consideration for the health of one particular poster who seems incapable of controlling his visceral reaction to certain anagrams.

You mean acronyms?

[denverYooper]

You mean acronyms?

You got it!

They sound alike coming from the mushmouthed voices in my head.

Though I wasn't sure why he disappeared down some Orwellian wormhole when I was talking about a Reader Deal.

[mraynrand]

The NLRB as it relates to the college game was an appropriate subject for discussion. Here's what I wrote in the the Wrong Thread:

The bottom line is there will never be an end to people flame throwing and to people who can't take it. And lost in that shuffle is the stuff that makes the subject interesting, namely the truth (facts) and carefully considered evaluation and opinion.

[Zool]

If the discussion stayed anywhere near the subject of football, then it would have definitely belonged here. It skewed quickly and became a short term political forum flame war. It would not have stopped so it was stopped.

[SkinBasket]

I think it was done out of consideration for the health of one particular poster who seems incapable of controlling his visceral reaction to certain anagrams.

Or maybe it was the overreaction to the overreaction?

This is the same problem we had with people like Partial before. You could have a discussion that might get heated or contentious or that deals with (gasp) political or social ramifications, but then you get one person, or two, who go all over the top, both those arguing politics and those screaming like a fucking girl scout seeing a video of ejaculation for the first time at the mention of politics, and asswipes like Zool end the discussion instead of dealing with any breaking of the mythological rules by a particular poster.

In this case, the fact is the NLRB, no matter who's appointees, is a highly politicized entity, which has only become more extreme in recent years, and as such, their decisions are mostly political theater and fiat policy advancement instead of judgements of fact, evidence, precedent, contract, or law. So either some folks need to put on their big boy pants and learn to discuss those aspects without acting angry or screechy or pouty, and our mod slave-masters will have to learn an iota of tolerance, or I would suggest waiting until the case in heard in a court (probably in front a politicized judge, but what are you going to do?) to begin an honest discussion based on judicial evidence, contracts, and law instead.

Some people here just can't act like adults, and our moderators have fostered their intolerant screeching over the years, so unfortunately I don't see other topics relating to the NLRB and unions turning out much different.

[ThunderDan]

I think the thread should be unlocked and continued in FYI for anyone who wishes to do so.

[Patler]

In FYI it will be a discussion of the NLRB, with little or no connection to the issue of college football.

[3irty1]

I generally like the practice of moving threads instead of censoring but I think the thread in question would have best been locked and left in the Packer forum. There should be a pretty generous gray area for talking about politics in the Packer area as they pertain to football. I also agree with Zool that it was clear that there was pretty much a Carl Lewis long jump over that generous gray area. The reason I think this thread is different is because it didn't strike me as an example of posters intentionally bending rules they have no respect for skinbasket style and instead an example of posters being oblivious to the nature of that gray area.

Leaving the thread locked in the Packer forum is both a warning to all and an invitation to try again. It should help the forum self-police, and may even provide the negative reenforcement necessary to teach basic social boundaries for those who refuse to comprehend. Moving it to FYI effectively deletes it. Most users will forget it even existed.

[Zool]

Leaving the thread locked in the Packer forum is both a warning to all and an invitation to try again. It should help the forum self-police, and may even provide the negative reenforcement necessary to teach basic social boundaries for those who refuse to comprehend. Moving it to FYI effectively deletes it. Most users will forget it even existed.

That was was my plan but it's impossible to keep everyone happy because everyone here is right 100% of the time. Trying to keep some semblance of order apparently makes me an asshole to some people and Hitler to others.

[3irty1]

That was was my plan but it's impossible to keep everyone happy because everyone here is right 100% of the time. Trying to keep some semblance of order apparently makes me an asshole to some people and Hitler to others.

You're definitely Hitler's asshole but that has little to do with your actions as a mod.

The fundamental problem here is that nobody likes being punished for the actions of a few and by moving the thread it feels like they are getting away with it and there is nothing to stop it from happening again.

[mraynrand]

In FYI it will be a discussion of the NLRB, with little or no connection to the issue of college football.

I disagree. I think both would be discussed, but there would be plenty of bald ideological pronouncements.

[Patler]

I think given a little bit of time, the thread would have recovered. Even among the politically motivated posts, people were responding to the football issues. After a few blew off steam about the nature of the NLRB, and others blew off steam about those who blew off steam, I think the college football issues would have prevailed.

But, now I know how to get a thread banished just for the heck of it....Hmmm, isn't there a rumor about Favre running for dog-catcher? Probably akin to the corruption in the ranks of county sheriffs. If I start that discussion in the Favre thread.......................................!!