Why do you keep locking threads?

[J-Proof]

cant even keep count of all the religion threads that have been started or others that mutated into them.

Don't make me lock this thread.... j/k

[Tarantulas]

Specifically, the one about the new guest riffer up in the announcements folder. 15 pages of debate, strongly held beliefs but it was civil for the most part, then we have some bad impression of a Renaissance Fair town crier and the thread is locked. There was also a thread "should we bring back MST3K?" which wasn't brilliant but also was just puttering along nicely, that got locked for no real reason too (to be fair, it got re-opened when I asked torgosPizza about it).

Can anyone tell me what rules were broken in either of the threads I mentioned above?

I'm not so sure that...

1. T:Oh no not him, here is why I don't like him
2. Hater, <conjecture of other possible reasons for hate>
3 T:<reiteration of original reasons for dislike>
4. go to 2

..was much of a debate and more like an endless treadmill of bickering.

That is the very thing that made it drag out for 15 pages..

Making me explain things over and over after every little snipe about why I am "wrong".

"Rifftrax is NOT MST 2.0" being the famous one...  A modified version of my statement now lives on in the FAQ for the forum... but oh the arrows I weathered when I said that.

Not trying to start either of these threads in motion again.. just stating what has happened to me several times over the life of this board.

I'm loud, I'm opinionated, I'm a Midwesterner, deal with it

[sarcasm_made_Easy]

I'm loud, I'm opinionated, I'm a Midwesterner, deal with it

not to sterotype isnt that usually contradictory.

[Tarantulas]

I'm loud, I'm opinionated, I'm a Midwesterner, deal with it

not to sterotype isnt that usually contradictory.

Depends on exactly where in the Midwest you hail from...

[mrbasehart]

I'm loud, I'm opinionated, I'm a Midwesterner, deal with it

not to sterotype isnt that usually contradictory.

Depends on exactly where in the Midwest you hail from...

I'm from the Midwest.  Of England.  (Thanks Stan Laurel)

[Minnesota]

LOL at the title of this thread, should be more like "thanks for not locking threads" ... people have said in the past that a thread isn't truly successfull until it has gone completely off track

[torgosPizza]

LOL at the title of this thread, should be more like "thanks for not locking threads" ... people have said in the past that a thread isn't truly successfull until it has gone completely off track

Yeah no doubt. It's a shame when we do our jobs once in a while, ya know?

[Famous Mortimer]

Not that we need to explain ourselves...

How foolish of anyone to expect an explanation! You are aware we pay Mike's wages, right? I think as someone who's bought every single Rifftrax produced so far, and promoted it on other forums I'm a member of, I'm entitled to an explanation for something I disagree with and find this sort of attitude condescending in the extreme.

[sarcasm_made_Easy]

Thats cause your a git.


IM NAME CALLING QUICK LOCK THE TRHEAD QUICKLY NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[torgosPizza]

How foolish of anyone to expect an explanation! You are aware we pay Mike's wages, right? I think as someone who's bought every single Rifftrax produced so far, and promoted it on other forums I'm a member of, I'm entitled to an explanation for something I disagree with and find this sort of attitude condescending in the extreme.

Kinda funny, to rebut a condescending remark with more condescension. Well done.

Just out of curiosity, do these other forums you're on ever lock threads? If so, what is usually the cause of it? I think you'll find that, by and large, the reasoning behind locking any topic on any BBS is the same.

We all have our opinions on what "going too far" is, and that's where we disagree. You may think that these discussions could have gone on for longer, and in some cases maybe they could have. However when we start to see where a topic is headed and it doesn't look like it's constructive to us, we will stop it. You may not like it, and we don't like doing it, but unfortunately it comes with the territory.

I don't enjoy locking threads, but sometimes I have to, just like sometimes I have to move a thread to a different board because it has nothing to do with that topic, or fits better underneath a different one. Anal retentive? Maybe. But that's what forums are like.

Regarding your "we pay Mike's wages" comment, I think you're just being abrasive. Anyone who doesn't actually work with us has no idea what the numbers are, so for you to say something like that is quite childish.

If you really want an explanation, I locked the MST3K thread because it had been discussed to death already. I felt that, as a moderator, this was a topic that had long since been OVERDUE of locking - it hadn't been posted in that heavily and I didn't think anyone would miss it. But when you asked me about it, I considered your opinion and unlocked it because you had valid points.

However the latest one was locked because of one thing: animosity. And not by me - by Uncle Rufus who is our SysAdmin. You can discuss why Lowtax isn't funny, why he's a comedic genius, why his haircut is funny, sure, have at it. But do so with civility. That thread ended up being a one-sided debate, mainly between Tarantulas and everyone else, debating the validity of peoples opinions. Which is fine. But everyone deserves to be heard fairly, and I think with all of the "rage" and "anger" that was present, it was obvious to us that there was no way any civil discussion OR debate was going to come from it. Comments like "Yes, I still think this thread being open is not benefitting anything or anybody... " and "So much hate and anger, so sad to see" - point to the same conclusion: time to lock the thread. Even Lowtax felt compelled to register himself JUST TO POST IN THAT THREAD. You know you've gotten someone's attention when they take time from their own website to post on another.

Now that doesn't mean that we'll lock ANY thread regarding Lowtax. There has already been at least one and I'm sure there will be more, especially once the commentary is released. I'm sure we'll see a whole mess of "I hate Lowtax" and we probably will NOT lock those threads - as long as people don't degenerate into the same types of arguments as what occurred in the previous thread.

I know you may not like the explanation but, there it is. I can't think of a better one right now because it's early.

And finally, we really do appreciate everyone being here. We know there are other sites out there that you could spend your time with, but we pride ourselves on being one of the friendlier ones out there. Other message boards I have been on were nothing more than slapfests, and they got old very fast. So suffice it to say that, while we may have to lock a thread now and then, I think generally we have an awesome membership here. We haven't had to ban anyone yet and I'd like to keep it that way!

Thats cause your a git.

IM NAME CALLING QUICK LOCK THE TRHEAD QUICKLY NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow, you really DO make Sarcasm Easy! 

[sarcasm_made_Easy]

I do try

[sarcasm_made_Easy]

he really ought to lock this thread its pretty idiotic.  there is a total of three people going on here.  mort argguing that he is someone a "shareholder" or something of legend films because he buys the product, me making snide comments and a mod who is doing his best to be civil.

you'll find that, by and large, the reasoning behind locking any topic on any BBS is the same.

We all have our opinions on what "going too far" is, and that's where we disagree.

look closer and try to read.  It isnt a contradiction.  he said the "reasoning behind the locking" is the same from forum to forum.  It just varies where each board draws that line specifically.  The reason the line is drawn at all is the same.

[Famous Mortimer]

I think you'll find that, by and large, the reasoning behind locking any topic on any BBS is the same.

We all have our opinions on what "going too far" is, and that's where we disagree.

It seems like you're contradicting yourself here. It can't be the same if people disagree on it, surely? If a debate has run its course, it will slip down to page 2 because people don't post on it. If it hasn't, it won't. I don't see how this should present a problem to anyone. I've adminned phpBB boards with bigger memberships than this one, so I do know what I'm talking about.

Regarding your "we pay Mike's wages" comment, I think you're just being abrasive. Anyone who doesn't actually work with us has no idea what the numbers are, so for you to say something like that is quite childish.
...
And finally, we really do appreciate everyone being here.

Apart from those people who question decisions, evidently. I have paid for every Rifftrax produced up to Christmas. I think paying that amount of money gives me a right to not be told "not that we have to give an explanation..." How is telling you that I am a paying customer childish?

That thread ended up being a one-sided debate, mainly between Tarantulas and everyone else,

There were at least two other people in that thread who said they weren't fans of Lowtax's humour and weren't going to be buying the Rifftrax. And the entire debate took place in less than a day. What if someone had been away from their PC for more than 24 hours but wanted to take part in the debate?

mort argguing that he is someone a "shareholder" or something of legend films because he buys the product

Nothing like an exaggeration to help the debate along.

[torgosPizza]

I can't give you the exact reason for locking the topic, because the decision wasn't made by me.

And saying that because you buy our product, you have a right to know why we make the decisions we do, is a falsity. Saying to Wal-Mart that you've bought all of their soda from their soda machine outside, and they take [the machine] away one day for no apparent reason, does not mean you can complain up a storm to customer service because you are unhappy.

EDIT: It DOES mean you can complain, but you don't have a right to know why they removed it. Unless people got diarrhea from the sodas in there, in which case I'm sure they would explain it to you clearly.

You can question decisions but calm down a little. I think that because you have been admin of other boards, you have an expectation for everything to be justified for you. Too much "holier than thou" attitude, and it's not really helping any of us now, is it?

I'm sorry if the topic was locked before others could respond. And there may have been two other people who said they weren't going to buy the RiffTrax - that's not why the thread was locked. Go back and read our explanation in that post, it might help clear things up.

[Famous Mortimer]

You question my knowledge of why threads are locked on other boards then have a go at me when I tell you my experience of other boards. What chance do I have?

Are you comparing yourself to Walmart now? Is that the sort of corporate structure you're aiming for? You can't make a post about how much you welcome and think of every member here then compare yourself to Walmart. To answer your question, no, I wouldn't expect an explanation about a moved soda machine from Walmart but I expected more from Rifftrax. My mistake.

The explanation for why the thread was locked...I've gone back and read J-Proof's post and it doesn't explain in the slightest why the thread was locked. Perhaps you ought to go back and check it for yourself.