Happy April Fools Day, Everyone [Moved to Thunderdome]

Yes. It was an early April Fools Day joke.

Special thanks to Liberal for being such a good sport and helping us get it off the ground. We were trying to set things up to launch at 7:00 PM Eastern time (00:00 BST), but sometimes once you light the fuse on something like this it goes off quicker than you expect it to. It's just as well, though. Nobody would have believed it even for a second had we done this tomorrow.

Anyways, we hope you enjoyed the show, and those of you sitting in the front rows, sorry if you got splattered.

Your pal (and still Thunderdome Moderator) I think

Winston Smith

P.S. I've asked if I can keep my "BANNED" title. Q's taken it under advisement.

This is Not Funny.

No, actually it is, when you think about it! You load of bastards!

It was a lot of fun! :) God sent Leander so that I could "flame out".

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Originally posted by Inner Stickler

This is Not Funny.

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You can't have possibly believed it all that time. Come on, seriously.

I believe it was meant as a joke (things being said in JJ that shouldn't have been allowed, such as the seborrheic ass cancer bit), but I also think it was just dumb.

Unveiling the new Domebo logo as something almost entirely copied from the SDMB ... THAT would have been funny. Having "Ed Zotti" come here and beg all of us to come back ... that would have been funny. Bring in a new forum for CRSP's new book would have been funny.

This was just dumb.

...
What?!?

I can't believe you let them off the hook so easily! I didn't even have a chance to drum up support for the Winston Smith sympathizer board (http://winsmibo.mooo.com/)!

Well, was I right about you hitting the packie tonight, Winston?

I agree with iampunha.

:lol:

Good one!

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Originally posted by Dudley Garrett

Well, was I right about you hitting the packie tonight, Winston?

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I wish. I'm working late, babysitting our critical systems through the final hours of Quarter Close.

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Originally posted by iampunha

Unveiling the new Domebo logo as something almost entirely copied from the SDMB ... THAT would have been funny. Having "Ed Zotti" come here and beg all of us to come back ... that would have been funny. Bring in a new forum for CRSP's new book would have been funny.

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Fuck the Dope. Let us have our own nonsense far removed from any of their nonsense.

Oh bullshit.

Worst fucking idea ever. And it cost you a poster.

Bye all.

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Originally posted by Liberal

It was a lot of fun! :) God sent Leander so that I could "flame out".

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So this time it was a joke? Then how do you explain the 400 other times? :lol:

That was a good one!

I think it was funny as hell and I'll never forgive you! :lol: :lol:

I've been punked.

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Originally posted by Oakminster

Oh bullshit.

Worst fucking idea ever. And it cost you a poster.

Bye all.

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Come on, it may have been a stupid joke, but why would you want to leave because of it?

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Originally posted by Oakminster

Oh bullshit.

Worst fucking idea ever. And it cost you a poster.

Bye all.

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Heh heh heh, cute

Thank God.

I'm just wondering if Excalibre was in on it.

yaaawn.

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Originally posted by Harlequin

Thank God.

I'm just wondering if Excalibre was in on it.

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Probably not. :lol: :twisted: :lol:

That was awesome, people! Kudos all around.

So how long was this in the planning?

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Originally posted by Oakminster

Oh bullshit.

Worst fucking idea ever. And it cost you a poster.

Bye all.

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Damn, there goes our $0.00 a year income from your contributions. How will we ever manage?

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Originally posted by Laughing Lagomorph

That was awesome, people! Kudos all around.

So how long was this in the planning?

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I didn't become aware of it until about 2:00. That's when Winston contacted me. He's a really good egg!

I just joined the Winston board just because it was there.

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Originally posted by jali

I just joined the Winston board just because it was there.

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You should totally ask to be a moderator.

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

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Originally posted by Oakminster

Oh bullshit.

Worst fucking idea ever. And it cost you a poster.

Bye all.

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Damn, there goes our $0.00 a year income from your contributions. How will we ever manage?

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Double the membership fees? :P

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Originally posted by Inner Stickler

I agree with iampunha.

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We heard you the first time.

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

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Originally posted by Oakminster

Oh bullshit.

Worst fucking idea ever. And it cost you a poster.

Bye all.

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Damn, there goes our $0.00 a year income from your contributions. How will we ever manage?

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Of course, there's always the possibility that Oakminster is himself pulling our legs.

Pretty good, guys...you totally had me until QED sent Winston BACK to 101.

And there I was, going, "Lib, didn't I TELL you not to do this" like a big doofus. :-D

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Originally posted by jali

I just joined the Winston board just because it was there.

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Now that's funny.

Heh-so whose idea was it?

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Originally posted by Laughing Lagomorph

That was awesome, people! Kudos all around.

So how long was this in the planning?

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A few days but the heavy planning happened about 6-9 hours ago. Excalibre was not in on it but figured it out very fast and started playing along. Every Mod and Tech plus Liberal was in on it. McNutty has some excellent props ready but the joke went too far, too fast. Winston did the heavy planning and lifting. Thus he is the King of Fools!



I apologize to those we offended. But hopefully it was fun for many of you.

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Originally posted by jali

I just joined the Winston board just because it was there.

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You're awesome.

I'm not going to claim I knew it all along. Nope. I did a lot of gaping at the screen. :D

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Originally posted by TheFlame

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

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Originally posted by Oakminster

Oh bullshit.

Worst fucking idea ever. And it cost you a poster.

Bye all.

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Damn, there goes our $0.00 a year income from your contributions. How will we ever manage?

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Of course, there's always the possibility that Oakminster is himself pulling our legs.

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I hope so. If not, he is not the only one pissed off by this.

Winston, I'm sorry for reporting you to the mods. :oops:

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Originally posted by TheFlame

Of course, there's always the possibility that Oakminster is himself pulling our legs.

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And it's also possible that if both of them are serious, QED's "Gosh darn, if only we cared about users" attitude is exactly what helped so many of us rid ourselves of the SDMB and we'd really like it if The Powers That Be here could at least fake giving a shit in public.

Or I'm being whooshed (highly likely, given the premise of this thread), in which case I hope there won't be need any time soon for anyone to say anything like this.

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Originally posted by jali

I just joined the Winston board just because it was there.

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I made your account a Global Moderator. Because it was there.

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Originally posted by iampunha

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Originally posted by TheFlame

Of course, there's always the possibility that Oakminster is himself pulling our legs.

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And it's also possible that if both of them are serious, QED's "Gosh darn, if only we cared about users" attitude is exactly what helped so many of us rid ourselves of the SDMB and we'd really like it if The Powers That Be here could at least fake giving a shit in public.

Or I'm being whooshed (highly likely, given the premise of this thread), in which case I hope there won't be need any time soon for anyone to say anything like this.

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We do care. At least I do. I have Pm'd featherlou and emailed Oakminster. I have apologized in this thread to those that did not like the prank. I hope nobody gets to upset by a little silliness.

iampunha & Inner Stickler, I hope you'll let this pass.

I'm just wondering how this joke doesn't constitute trolling.

If a group of posters had gotten together and pulled some sort of similar joke, like threatening to leave en masse due to some made-up petty dispute with a mod for example, would it have been taken lightheartedly by the mods or would it have been considered trolling and dealt with thusly?

In other words, do you enjoy jokes as much when you're on the receiving end as when you're the one playing the joke?

Oakminster responded to a PM I sent him, confirming that he is leaving. Hopefully What Exit?'s email will change his mind.

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Originally posted by Ivan

I'm just wondering how this joke doesn't constitute trolling.

If a group of posters had gotten together and pulled some sort of similar joke, like threatening to leave en masse due to some made-up petty dispute with a mod for example, would it have been taken lightheartedly by the mods or would it have been considered trolling and dealt with thusly?

In other words, do you enjoy jokes as much when you're on the receiving end as when you're the one playing the joke?

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We've been pretty light on trolling type jokes. I suspect Oakminster is having a joke on us right now, at least I hope so. We have that crazy Ferret hanging out.

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Originally posted by What Exit?

I hope so. If not, he is not the only one pissed off by this.

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I don't know that I'm pissed off, or offended, but that was not remotely funny.

:: glares at all with that Mommy look ::

I'm going to state this in all sincerity.

I didn't like it.

I've already come fairly close to walking away from this board several times in the last week over some of the bullshit playing out here. Very tired of a couple of posters who pretty much threadshit with impunity, who make no attempt at Civil Discourse, with no moderation.

Very tired of seeing Q.E.D. be a jerk to posters at every turn. He either needs to shut the fuck up and learn to play nice, or turn in his keys and get off the staff.

This is not turning out to be the board that I signed on for.

I gave it a fair shot at being some kind of bad joke, figured that it was amazingly stupid and in bad taste if it was, and perhaps the end of the board if it wasn't.

But on the other hand, I'll add that I've been running well below the point of mental and physical exhaustion over shit in my own life for quite some time now and I just don't have the time, energy or patience for more shit from other quarters.

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Originally posted by Vox Imperatoris

Oakminster responded to a PM I sent him, confirming that he is leaving. Hopefully What Exit?'s email will change his mind.

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Oh dear. I thought he and Q.E.D. were both joking around. :(

Edit: Put in quote since my post got buried several down.

Jeez, I go to work all day, and come back to find this. I had nothing to do with any of it!

It's not even April 1st here!

Shoulda gone with the random avatar idea....

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Originally posted by Ivan

I'm just wondering how this joke doesn't constitute trolling.

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It was trolling plain and simple. Everyone involved deserves a stern warning.

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Originally posted by PonderThis

Oh dear. I thought he and Q.E.D. were both joking around.

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I believe he is quite sincere.

Ok, now I *am* angry. This was very stupid. :evil:

A month after a harsh (and to some, painful) break from another board?

It was goddamned stupid.

I'm going to bed. I'll consider in the morning whether or not I want to come back.

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Originally posted by Chimera

I'm going to state this in all sincerity.

I didn't like it.

I've already come fairly close to walking away from this board several times in the last week over some of the bullshit playing out here. Very tired of a couple of posters who pretty much threadshit with impunity, who make no attempt at Civil Discourse, with no moderation.

Very tired of seeing Q.E.D. be a jerk to posters at every turn. He either needs to shut the fuck up and learn to play nice, or turn in his keys and get off the staff.

This is not turning out to be the board that I signed on for.

I gave it a fair shot at being some kind of bad joke, figured that it was amazingly stupid and in bad taste if it was, and perhaps the end of the board if it wasn't.

But on the other hand, I'll add that I've been running well below the point of mental and physical exhaustion over shit in my own life for quite some time now and I just don't have the time, energy or patience for more shit from other quarters.

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Ditto here. I damn near decided not to bother posting here any more this afternoon because of what I saw as a board/moderator meltdown and I have enough shit going on in my life right now to not want to subject myself to any more.

I still might.

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

I believe he is quite sincere.

Ok, now I *am* angry. This was very stupid. :evil:

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Well, that's weird. If you weren't angry before, why be angry now? Oakminister's reactions are his own, no one else is responsible for them.

Can someone explain to me what the outrage is? I understand Chimera saying that he has other issues with the board. But what's the problem with this joke in particular? And if you're going to say, "Well, we just left the other board because of this kind of thing!" then I'm going to disagree. Ed sure as fuck never flamed out as spectacularly as Winston pretended to do.

Wut'd I miss? Damn come late to da party and I missed the fight, the joke and people all leaving in a huff. Dare betta be sum damn beer left!

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Originally posted by Chimera

I've already come fairly close to walking away from this board several times in the last week over some of the bullshit playing out here. Very tired of a couple of posters who pretty much threadshit with impunity, who make no attempt at Civil Discourse, with no moderation.

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Did you report the posts? I haven't had much opportunity to report much, so I'm a little disappointed if you're reporting things and not hearing something.

I hope all the people who threatening to leave because of a prank lasting like two hours, do. I have gotten involved in various drama here and at the other place, but I don't think I've ever taken it seriously enough to stomp off in a huff over something dumb like this. Good riddance to people who take it so seriously that they freak out over a good-natured joke. All the people who think messageboards are SERIOUS BUSINESS should go away. It's not incumbent upon everyone else to constantly tiptoe around delicate sensibilities because a tiny number of people are going to throw a fit over any random thing they can find to get pissed about. No point in turning the whole board to shit for the sake of accommodating people like that.

What the fuck happened? When I joined the SDMB, it sure didn't cater to ninnies in this oppressive way. We have a new board, we can go back to what things were like back when a lot of us joined the SDMB, rather than emulating the dysfunctional, un-fun later years.

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Originally posted by Myrnalene

Well, that's weird. If you weren't angry before, why be angry now? Oakminister's reactions are his own, no one else is responsible for them.

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I'm angry because this stupid joke drove off a person whom I'd rather have around. Selfish, I know.

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Can someone explain to me what the outrage is?

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Some folks don't like to be jerked around like that.

It's like this kind of joke: A person is a new employee, and at lunch time someone offers them a sandwich or something which is spiked with hot peppers or something. The person has a reaction to the hot peppers, and the other employees laugh, and the person is supposed to laugh too. Some people get upset when you play jokes like that on them.

ETA: Exy, I don't think it's so much about the Serious Bidness as it is that some ppl don't like to be played for a fool. Yanno?

Wow! Just read the thread. That's some funny shit. O'course I went into it knowing it was a joke. If anyone should be mad it's Garygnu. I for one am glad to see that Lib can poke fun a himself. And the Lib baters (Leander) all showed true to form.

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

I'm angry because this stupid joke drove off a person whom I'd rather have around. Selfish, I know.

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It did not drive him off. He is (maybe) choosing to leave. He might have reasons that make sense to him, I don't know. But no one has exiled him. It's his choice.

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

It's like this kind of joke: A person is a new employee, and at lunch time someone offers them a sandwich or something which is spiked with hot peppers or something. The person has a reaction to the hot peppers, and the other employees laugh, and the person is supposed to laugh too. Some people get upset when you play jokes like that on them.

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I'm sorry, NinetyWt, but it was nothing like that. No one was physically injured or intimidated. No one was singled out or held up for humiliation. There was no malice intended. It was contained to a few threads over the course of a couple hours. No one's livelihood was at stake.

It's just not that deep.

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

ETA: Exy, I don't think it's so much about the Serious Bidness as it is that some ppl don't like to be played for a fool. Yanno?

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That's the point. It's fun being fucked around with a little. That's part of normal human interaction. It doesn't have to be all INTERNET IS SERIOUS BUSINESS, it can just be fun. The SDMB was like that once, I swear. It wasn't just a club of people hanging out on the internet because the real world was too scary. Back in the old days that was only like a third of the population.

Seriously, if this place has to spend all its time nurturing the fragility of the most emotionally impaired fraction of the population, it will be lame. And you know what? It's not doing people like Oakminster a favor if we tell them their melodramatic agonies are legitimate in order to mollify them.

Jesus, Liberal of all people was totally cool with it. Now everyone has to accommodate some tiny number of posters who are even more fragile than him? It's not doing those people any favors, either.

When people sit around and reassure each other that every impulse is valid and legitimate, that culminates in furrydom. No one wants that.

Hell, the sandwich thing causes real physical pain. I don't think that's really funny, unless it's someone you REALLY FOR SURE know will be cool with it (and even then it's risky.) This isn't like that at all. The most reaction a person who is emotionally together is gonna feel is some temporary worry. And it's worry about an internet message board which, frankly, shouldn't be that upsetting. Two hours of being worried because your kid is missing is awful. Two hours of being worried because your message board is all crazy is not.

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Originally posted by Myrnalene

It did not drive him off. He is (maybe) choosing to leave. He might have reasons that make sense to him, I don't know. But no one has exiled him. It's his choice.

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Surely, it was his choice, but his irritation at the joke was the cause, or so he said.

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I'm sorry, NinetyWt, but it was nothing like that. No one was physically injured or intimidated. No one was singled out or held up for humiliation. There was no malice intended. It was contained to a few threads over the course of a couple hours. No one's livelihood was at stake.

It's just not that deep.

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You will notice that I didn't leave. ;) It might not seem 'so deep' to Person A, but evidently it is for Person B. I'm just explaining it as I see it - I think it's a trust thing.

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

It's like this kind of joke: A person is a new employee, and at lunch time someone offers them a sandwich or something which is spiked with hot peppers or something. The person has a reaction to the hot peppers, and the other employees laugh, and the person is supposed to laugh too. Some people get upset when you play jokes like that on them.

ETA: Exy, I don't think it's so much about the Serious Bidness as it is that some ppl don't like to be played for a fool. Yanno?

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I hate jokes like the sandwich joke you outline above. I can't eat hot peppers, so it would be upsetting, and I would be the butt of the joke.

I don't have any objection to someone not liking the stunt here, but who was the butt of the joke? Do you feel you were?

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Originally posted by Excalibre?

That's the point. It's fun being fucked around with a little. That's part of normal human interaction.

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Like I said, some ppl enjoy that, and some ppl don't. Some people you can take a practical joke really really far with, and some people you better not even think about it.

Julie: I think some folks must have felt like they were, hence the pissed-off-ness.

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Originally posted by Julie

I don't have any objection to someone not liking the stunt here, but who was the butt of the joke? Do you feel you were?

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That's just it...it's not like one person was humiliated while a gang of others point and laugh. We all got sucked in (well, apparently except for Exy!). If Lib can take it in stride, I think the rest of us can, for heaven's sake.

Maybe people will feel differently about it in the morning, y'all.

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Originally posted by Myrnalene

It did not drive him off. He is (maybe) choosing to leave. He might have reasons that make sense to him, I don't know. But no one has exiled him. It's his choice.

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Yeah, and he'd probably be more convincing if he wasn't still logged in but invisible. And some might call my remark to him harsh, but I don't believe for a second it's anything more than blatant attention-seeking. You see, he pulled this exact same stunt over at the SDMB for the most ridiculous reason that no one wanted to play along with his childish attempts to start a board meme. Sorry, but it's bullshit.

To those who are genuinely upset over this, I am sorry you feel that way, but please try to lighten up a little. I personally didn't think it was all that funny, either, but it's nothing to get one's undies in a bunch over.

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Originally posted by Sarahfeena

That's just it...it's not like one person was humiliated while a gang of others point and laugh. We all got sucked in (well, apparently except for Exy!). If Lib can take it in stride, I think the rest of us can, for heaven's sake.

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I was totally sucked in for a good while, that's what makes it fun. It wasn't until QED put Winston Smith back in room 101 that I was sure. That just didn't make sense.

I just hope Jeff saw my morse code double entendre before the thread got dioleted.

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

You see, he pulled this exact same stunt over at the SDMB for the most ridiculous reason that no one wanted to play along with his childish attempts to start a board meme. Sorry, but it's bullshit.

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The only difference is that I don't think anyone at all claimed they would miss him last time.

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

it's nothing to get one's undies in a bunch over.

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That's right, just go commando then no worries !!!

:P

I don't got a dog in this fight, as I'm reading it after the fact and don't have a strong emotional attachment to what goes on here, but what "upsets" people about jokes like this is, if they're not in on the joke and they say assholish things because those in on the joke are saying assholish things... once the joke is revealed, so is their assholishness.

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

Yeah, and he'd probably be more convincing if he wasn't still logged in but invisible.

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That wasn't my business. Stop telling me things that aren't my business.

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Originally posted by Excalibre

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Originally posted by Sarahfeena

That's just it...it's not like one person was humiliated while a gang of others point and laugh. We all got sucked in (well, apparently except for Exy!). If Lib can take it in stride, I think the rest of us can, for heaven's sake.

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I was totally sucked in for a good while, that's what makes it fun. It wasn't until QED put Winston Smith back in room 101 that I was sure. That just didn't make sense.

I just hope Jeff saw my morse code double entendre before the thread got dioleted.

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You are quicker than me...I only started suspecting when QED put Winston back in 101. It was when they started disappearing threads that I was pretty sure.

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

Like I said, some ppl enjoy that, and some ppl don't.

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Not everyone has to enjoy it, but you know what? The rest of us don't all have to pretend that it's legitimate to be all horribly emotionally wounded by this. If that's someone's genuine, real reaction there is something really wrong with them. Encouraging someone to continue that is like finding a delusional schizophrenic and telling them you're a government spy and you're reading their thoughts. If anything, encouraging someone to become even more crazy is actively cruel.

And if you're not really and truly emotionally scarred about this, you shouldn't throw a fit to try to get a bunch of people to rush to your side and beg and beg and beg for you to come back. That's also fucked up.

There is no possible reason to indulge Oakminster in this.

I don't care for invisible theater. I dislike being misled like that. Especially so close on the heels of what happened in the mafia thread. I don't know if that was to create more drama or what but that was a big part of why it bothered me. I'm trying to learn a game that is very different from anything else I've played and it's very frustrating to have someone purposefully screwing around like that.

NinetyWt I think Oakminster is whooshing us. He has always seemed to have a thicker skin thin this.

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Originally posted by Glazer

NinetyWt I think Oakminster is whooshing us. He has always seemed to have a thicker skin thin this.

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You wouldn't say that if you read the PM he just sent me.

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Originally posted by Inner Stickler

I don't care for invisible theater. I dislike being misled like that. Especially so close on the heels of what happened in the mafia thread. I don't know if that was to create more drama or what but that was a big part of why it bothered me. I'm trying to learn a game that is very different from anything else I've played and it's very frustrating to have someone purposefully screwing around like that.

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What happened in the Mafia thread and how does it relate?

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Originally posted by Inner Stickler

I don't care for invisible theater. I dislike being misled like that. Especially so close on the heels of what happened in the mafia thread. I don't know if that was to create more drama or what but that was a big part of why it bothered me. I'm trying to learn a game that is very different from anything else I've played and it's very frustrating to have someone purposefully screwing around like that.

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That's what made me think it might be real.

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Originally posted by Inner Stickler

I don't care for invisible theater. I dislike being misled like that. Especially so close on the heels of what happened in the mafia thread. I don't know if that was to create more drama or what but that was a big part of why it bothered me. I'm trying to learn a game that is very different from anything else I've played and it's very frustrating to have someone purposefully screwing around like that.

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Ah. I stuck my head in the mafia thread and it seemed like there might be some weird shit going down in there, but since I don't play I just figured it was part of the game.

Q.E.D., keep your private correspondence private, please!

I think it's utterly inappropriate for people to use private correspondence and/or moderator tools in order to reveal private things about posters.

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Originally posted by Glazer

NinetyWt I think Oakminster is whooshing us. He has always seemed to have a thicker skin thin this.

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I reckon we will see, bubba.

Exy: I understand what you're saying, but I think that if jokes like this are played, the jokesters shouldn't be surprised if someone gets angry over it. That's all.

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

Yeah, and he'd probably be more convincing if he wasn't still logged in but invisible.

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This kinda pisses me off. You should not be using information the rest of us have no access to, things he specifically wanted to hide, in an argument. It makes you look like an asshole who's abusing his powers.

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Originally posted by Julie

I think it's utterly inappropriate for people to use private correspondence and/or moderator tools in order to reveal private things about posters.

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Yes, yes, yes it is. Q.E.D., please do not misuse your privileges here.

Is there any way that, for those of us who missed it, we can see the hive thread and the poll thread?

They were deleted, and can't be brought back.

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Originally posted by Julie

I don't have any objection to someone not liking the stunt here, but who was the butt of the joke? Do you feel you were?

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I guess he must.

I didn't think this was funny while it was going on. I was feeling actual sadness that this shit was happening in this young place that I like so much. Then I saw the "Are the moderators playing us?" thread and it started making sense. Then Winston Smith came clean and it was a relief. I had a little laugh and went on.

But Jesus, people. You don't have to like it. You don't have to laugh. But I'm the guy who's always told to lighten up, and I still don't get what there is to be upset about.

[quote=What Exit?]

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Originally posted by "Inner Stickler":2ural9qk

I don't care for invisible theater. I dislike being misled like that. Especially so close on the heels of what happened in the mafia thread. I don't know if that was to create more drama or what but that was a big part of why it bothered me. I'm trying to learn a game that is very different from anything else I've played and it's very frustrating to have someone purposefully screwing around like that.

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What happened in the Mafia thread and how does it relate?[/quote:2ural9qk]
Winston claimed to be the Seer and caused chaos for a while and then popped back in and said that he was just fooling, that he was just a vanilla townie, and that he had taken a bunch of prescription drugs and was completely loopy. He also made a sock account Lucifer. Then he explodes in a giant temper tantrum a little later on the main board? Was the earlier outburst just a setup to make the prank that much funnier? Be warned, neither yes or no are the correct answers here.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Harlequin

I guess he must.

I didn't think this was funny while it was going on. I was feeling actual sadness that this shit was happening in this young place that I like so much. Then I saw the "Are the moderators playing us?" thread and it started making sense. Then Winston Smith came clean and it was a relief. I had a little laugh and went on.

But Jesus, people. You don't have to like it. You don't have to laugh. But I'm the guy who's always told to lighten up, and I still don't get what there is to be upset about.

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This.

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Originally posted by Julie

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

Yeah, and he'd probably be more convincing if he wasn't still logged in but invisible.

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That wasn't my business. Stop telling me things that aren't my business.

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Me too.

I'm not in the right mind space to discuss all of this right now (writing while angry is a great way to just be angry and happen to have a target), but it would be absolutely swell if "Here is information you can't verify" were not used here. I think it's ugly on several levels, none of which we need to add to what's already here.

Let people say what they're going to say publicly. If they feel the need to say things privately, that's the business only of those to whom it is privy. That's why the messages are private, no? Private messages? So other people don't know what I've said to folks privately and I don't know what they've said to other parties privately?

This doesn't seem too tough to understand to me. Keep private stuff private.

Unless you're Janet Jackson.

(ETA: The private message stuff applies to a message in which QED discusses some element of a PM from Oakminster.)

Quote:

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Glazer

NinetyWt I think Oakminster is whooshing us. He has always seemed to have a thicker skin thin this.

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You wouldn't say that if you read the PM he just sent me.

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Well it wouldn't be a very good April's Fool on his part if he didn't lead you along for a bit. And if it's not an April Fool well fuck 'em.

FTR, no one has any legitimate right to expect someone they send a PM to to keep it secret. I mean, I assume people will if they're on friendly terms but I'm not about to start sending my credit card numbers to people who hate me.

The "logged in but invisible" kind of rubs me the wrong way a little, but people do way worse stuff than that at plenty of other web communities.

[quote=Inner Stickler][quote="What Exit?":2alonc5g]

Quote:

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Originally posted by "Inner Stickler":2alonc5g

I don't care for invisible theater. I dislike being misled like that. Especially so close on the heels of what happened in the mafia thread. I don't know if that was to create more drama or what but that was a big part of why it bothered me. I'm trying to learn a game that is very different from anything else I've played and it's very frustrating to have someone purposefully screwing around like that.

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What happened in the Mafia thread and how does it relate?[/quote:2alonc5g]
Winston claimed to be the Seer and caused chaos for a while and then popped back in and said that he was just fooling, that he was just a vanilla townie, and that he had taken a bunch of prescription drugs and was completely loopy. He also made a sock account Lucifer. Then he explodes in a giant temper tantrum a little later on the main board? Was the earlier outburst just a setup to make the prank that much funnier? Be warned, neither yes or no are the correct answers here.[/quote:2alonc5g]
I don't follow any of the Mafia threads. Well, as you can tell, I didn't know about that part. I don't think it was a setup for today as today was not planned until today. I didn't think today would cause much anguish as no one was the butt of the joke but Winston himself and myself and TheFlame to a lesser degree.

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Originally posted by Excalibre

Quote:

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

You see, he pulled this exact same stunt over at the SDMB for the most ridiculous reason that no one wanted to play along with his childish attempts to start a board meme. Sorry, but it's bullshit.

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The only difference is that I don't think anyone at all claimed they would miss him last time.

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Believe it or not, they did. Right after his farewell post.

To those of you complaining about my disclosure of his online status, perhaps you're right. However, were I in your shoes I'd want to know if some phony was trying to play me for a fool. Diff'rent strokes, I guess. I can't honestly apologize because I believe it was the right thing to do. I do, however, understand your concerns about privacy and I hope I can alleviate them by stating flatly that's about as far as I'd be willing to go with it.

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Originally posted by Excalibre

I'm not about to start sending my credit card numbers to people who hate me.

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Will you send them to those who like you? :: bats eyelashes ::

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

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Originally posted by Excalibre

I'm not about to start sending my credit card numbers to people who hate me.

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Will you send them to those who like you? :: bats eyelashes ::

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I'll give you the first four, okay? :lol:

[modhat:23w91dma]Just a reminder everyone. This is in About Domebo Forums and not the T'dome. Please cut out insults to other posters and dragging in old complaints from other boards. That should apply to all members, mods and techs included.[/modhat:23w91dma]

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

To those of you complaining about my disclosure of his online status, perhaps you're right.

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I was all set to jump on you but it turned out plenty of people had already brought it up. I think it was highly inappropriate.

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However, were I in your shoes I'd want to know if some phony was trying to play me for a fool.

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Irrelevant. I might want to know what's in someone's private email too, but that doesn't mean someone should tell me.

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I do, however, understand your concerns about privacy and I hope I can alleviate them by stating flatly that's about as far as I'd be willing to go with it.

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Uh, no, that's not doing anything to alleviate concerns. This basically means you'd do the same thing again. If you don't see the inappropriateness here, you have no business having access to private data.

I just got in from work.

:shock:

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Originally posted by McNutty

Uh, no, that's not doing anything to alleviate concerns. This basically means you'd do the same thing again. If you don't see the inappropriateness here, you have no business having access to private data.

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Unless you're planning on pretending to flounce off in a petty huff, you've got nothing whatsoever to worry about. FFS, you're acting like I posted his home address and Social Security number.

Come on people, the whole stunt was a dumb joke. Why on earth would anyone get in such a huff about it?

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

Unless you're planning on pretending to flounce off in a petty huff, you've got nothing whatsoever to worry about. FFS, you're acting like I posted his home address and Social Security number.

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Well, what the fuck do we have the "invisible" feature for if we're not going to honor it? If someone trusts that that works as advertised and it doesn't, how can they trust that their "private" messages are even private or that we're not going to reveal some other information just because one mod who doesn't understand privacy thinks "geez, what's the big deal about an IP address?"

Yeah, sure: online/offline status isn't exactly a big deal. But whether it's a big deal or not, the user is still supposed to have control over whether it's private, not you.

It's not like it's that damning that he stuck around and read after his flounce anyway. (I'm sure I would have.) Calling someone's online status "private data" is an overstatement. I don't think there's anything in the signup that says "if you are on invisible status we totally promise to respect that honest injun". And there's essentially zero possibility of it causing any significant harm if it's released.

We want this place to be well-run, unlike the other place. A staff that walks on eggshells over ridiculously petty shit like this is not a necessary component of that. Save the over-the-top outrage for sometime when it at least sort of matters.

Unless Crispy or someone says otherwise, we can all now be aware that we have to log out, and not just go invisible if we want to read truly invisibly. No harm was done.

Quote:

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Originally posted by leander

Come on people, the whole stunt was a dumb joke. Why on earth would anyone get in such a huff about it?

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Because they're nutty and they've gotten used to having their nutty emotional responses indulged?

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Originally posted by Caerie

I just got in from work.

:shock:

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I feel the same way. I got home around 9:45 pm (Eastern, in the US), and I'm still trying to sort it all out.

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Originally posted by What Exit?

[modhat:3j4gqajr]Just a reminder everyone. This is in About Domebo Forums and not the T'dome. Please cut out insults to other posters and dragging in old complaints from other boards. That should apply to all members, mods and techs included.[/modhat:3j4gqajr]

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I thought this was Room 101. That's where I linked into this thread at. I didn't know it was moved. So I retract my "So fuck 'em" statement. So sorry, please don't beat me.

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Originally posted by Excalibre

We want this place to be well-run, unlike the other place. A staff that walks on eggshells over ridiculously petty shit like this is not a necessary component of that. Save the over-the-top outrage for sometime when it at least sort of matters.

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Well, to be fair, the events of this evening appear to have rattled a few people. I don't pretend to understand it but I'm prepared to cut those folks a little slack and let them rail, if they feel the need to vent.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Glazer

I thought this was Room 101. That's where I linked into this thread at. I didn't know it was moved. So I retract my "So fuck 'em" statement. So sorry, please don't beat me.

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It's a global announcement, so it appears in all forums. A modicum of civility is probably appropriate, but considering the general state of things tonight, well, see above.

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Originally posted by Excalibre

Because they're nutty and they've gotten used to having their nutty emotional responses indulged?

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Yep, that sounds about right.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Excalibre

And there's essentially zero possibility of it causing any significant harm if it's released.

We want this place to be well-run, unlike the other place. A staff that walks on eggshells over ridiculously petty shit like this is not a necessary component of that. Save the over-the-top outrage for sometime when it at least sort of matters.

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I don't consider it over the top to expect mods and admins not to use mod and admin powers to belittle posters. I don't want a staff that walks on eggshells, but you know what? Better a staff that does than posters having to. But I'd bet you that it isn't something the staff, or most of the staff at least, would have to walk on eggshells about. Most people get the idea of private versus public information.

Don't you make me quote Uncle Ben (Spidey's uncle, not the rice dude).

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Originally posted by Julie

I don't consider it over the top to expect mods and admins not to use mod and admin powers to belittle posters. I don't want a staff that walks on eggshells, but you know what? Better a staff that does than posters having to. But I'd bet you that it isn't something the staff, or most of the staff at least, would have to walk on eggshells about. Most people get the idea of private versus public information.

Don't you make me quote Uncle Ben (Spidey's uncle, not the rice dude).

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I would rather be at a place where no one is walking on eggshells.

I guess I just really don't see why this matters. I don't think it makes Oakminster look any worse; and personally, I consider anything that the mods are privy to to be at best "private" but definitely not "secret". This place is small, the mods make up like ten percent of the population. So I guess for me this is a useful heads up anyway. And since this is at worst mildly embarrassing (and I can't really imagine any circumstances where it would be anything worse than that), I don't see the issue. I just don't see why invisible vs logged off is an issue at all, why people presume they have some right to have that be kept secret. Sure, if I have an email addy kept visible only to admins, I expect them to keep it secret or give it out only very advisedly, because that's a much bigger deal. This? Eh, nuthin'.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

You see, he pulled this exact same stunt over at the SDMB for the most ridiculous reason that no one wanted to play along with his childish attempts to start a board meme. Sorry, but it's bullshit.

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Whoa-when was this?

Excalibre, there is such a thing as "an excluded middle?" You don't have to walk on egg shells, but you don't have to stomp the shit out of them either.

First off, I can't believe that this whole thing went off and ended in the time that I was away from the computer. Sheesh guys, a little premature. :P We didn't even get to have mod army's picking sides and facing off against each other and starting splinter splinter boards!

I am sorry for anyone who was upset, I think it was pretty fucking funny myself.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Inner Stickler

Winston claimed to be the Seer and caused chaos for a while and then popped back in and said that he was just fooling, that he was just a vanilla townie, and that he had taken a bunch of prescription drugs and was completely loopy. He also made a sock account Lucifer. Then he explodes in a giant temper tantrum a little later on the main board? Was the earlier outburst just a setup to make the prank that much funnier? Be warned, neither yes or no are the correct answers here.

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I don't want to get too into it here, but what you are talking about there...that's just a mafia game. That isn't even an unusual or crazy happening in a mafia game, it's just a fun one. That kind of crap is why we play.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Guinastasia

Whoa-when was this?

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QED linked the post, it was when he left because enough people told him they weren't amused by his "pit rating" thing or his attempt to turn "fuckwit" into a meme that it finally clicked with him that, while he thought the whole deal would be his claim to SDMB fame, everyone else thought it was lame and annoying. I personally suspect he wasn't planning to leave, and was hoping people were going to spring up to beg him to stay.

Quote:

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Excalibre, there is such a thing as "an excluded middle?" You don't have to walk on egg shells, but you don't have to stomp the shit out of them either.

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I can tell my mileage varies here but I don't think this is an issue at all. It's not "excluded middle", it's just something I don't care about and I kind of think it's counterproductive to worry about it. I can see I'm basically alone here, and that's cool, but I'm still right and you're all still wrong. :)

I think I'm very glad I missed all this.

Guys, a piece of advice. An April Fool's prank on a message board is a lot like a fart joke. Some people will like it, others will be offended, and many will think it should never be publicly aired. So before you pull the trigger on something like this, really think it through. The Law of Unintended Consequences says that things will happen which you could never anticipate.

I remember a few years ago when Illiad, drawer of User Friendly, had an April's Fool joke that started about a week before, saying that Microsoft was going to sue him into oblivion. A lot of readers were really upset. Many offered to help with legal expenses or offered their own services as lawyers, others wrote some really nasty letters to Microsoft ... Illiad meant it as a joke, but a lot of people were genuinely upset because they thought it was real. Later, more readers were upset because they felt they'd been made fools of, and not in a way that let them laugh along with the joke.

I know you all meant it in fun, but the timing sucked. The wounds of the breakup from the SDMB are still too fresh.

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Originally posted by NAF1138

I don't want to get too into it here, but what you are talking about there...that's just a mafia game. That isn't even an unusual or crazy happening in a mafia game, it's just a fun one. That kind of crap is why we play.

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Really? Do players usually post nonsensical things and then claim to have been drinking often? I got the impression that he was either trying an odd strategy or having a bad reaction IRL to something that day and what happened just now made the second possibility seem more real. I don't appreciate being jerked around like that, even if it is a joke.

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Originally posted by Inner Stickler

Quote:

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Originally posted by NAF1138

I don't want to get too into it here, but what you are talking about there...that's just a mafia game. That isn't even an unusual or crazy happening in a mafia game, it's just a fun one. That kind of crap is why we play.

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Really? Do players usually post nonsensical things and then claim to have been drinking often? I got the impression that he was either trying an odd strategy or having a bad reaction IRL to something that day and what happened just now made the second possibility seem more real. I don't appreciate being jerked around like that, even if it is a joke.

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I haven't been following that game, but whatever that was, it wasn't this April Fool's joke. The idea didn't even pop up until Tuesday morning.

How was I supposed to know that?

Quote:

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Originally posted by Inner Stickler

How was I supposed to know that?

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I have no idea. I don't know why Winston did whatever he did in that thread, either. I was just pointing out that whatever reasoning there was, it wasn't related to this event.

But I didn't know that they weren't related until after the fact. Never mind. Apparently I am tuning to a different radio station than everyone else.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Excalibre

And since this is at worst mildly embarrassing (and I can't really imagine any circumstances where it would be anything worse than that), I don't see the issue.

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Honestly, the disclosure is very minor. If the response was "yeah, I guess technically I shouldn't be giving that information out. Oops," I probably wouldn't have bothered responding. But to dismiss it entirely is dumb. For me, it doesn't really matter how minor the offense is or how little it actually hurts; part of having integrity is doing the right thing even when it's really small. Q.E.D. and I apparently have different philosophies on this. The way I think about it, this board is more or less run on the honor system, and because of that, I feel like the people in positions that could be abused oughta make an extra effort to assure everyone else that they're not abusing anything, no matter how minor.

Man I hate living on another continent, I miss it and only got to read the remaining thread.

So, with the caveat that I didn't live it as it was unfolded, I found it pretty fricking funny, with Liberal going all over the top just after he had setting down.
I do think I would have believed it fully, since, as it's been pointed, Winston's behavior in the mafia game was strange, to be mild, and still recent, and we don't know how much of what he said there is true. So it would have been painful to read live.

I understand how it can upset people though.
On a forum of mine, a couple of folks pulled up a prank, creating a dummy account and posting "blog entries" of my life, including stuff very very few people could have known, using an ironic/strange/journalistic tone.
I was made aware of that by a friend calling me at the group I was hanging out, thinking it was a banned poster who had reappeared. So I dropped all activities and came home in a hurry to log to the internet and have a look at my forum. It's only by thinking about who was with me when the events took place that I figured it all out, and then gave a call to those persons to be sure.
But I received messages and a phone call from friends concerned about the whole affair, and being all WTF, since I then played along with the prank.
(The folks who did that ended up revealing themselves months later to be total assholes though, so I don't know if my little story is of much help haha)

I have updated the Mafia thread with the situation.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

Yeah, and he'd probably be more convincing if he wasn't still logged in but invisible.

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Q.E.D., don't reveal when users are browsing hidden again.

I am really, really glad I don't work in an office with some of you guys. If pranks don't make you feel frustrated and uncomfortable, they aren't pranks. And if you can't laugh at yourself for those feelings when you later find out you've been pranked... well... don't drink the coffee in my ER tonight. :)

Hmph, I missed all the hooplah. Thank fuck for that. To me, April Fools' jokes are generally a waste of time, and only very rarely funny. That said, lots of people seem to enjoy them, so I say let them.

I was stressed out while it was happening, but when I learned it was a joke, I thought it was great. I literally laughed so hard that my son came up to see what was so funny.

We were punked and the whole team did a good job

Quote:

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Originally posted by Excalibre

I hope all the people who threatening to leave because of a prank lasting like two hours, do. I have gotten involved in various drama here and at the other place, but I don't think I've ever taken it seriously enough to stomp off in a huff over something dumb like this. Good riddance to people who take it so seriously that they freak out over a good-natured joke. All the people who think messageboards are SERIOUS BUSINESS should go away. It's not incumbent upon everyone else to constantly tiptoe around delicate sensibilities because a tiny number of people are going to throw a fit over any random thing they can find to get pissed about. No point in turning the whole board to shit for the sake of accommodating people like that.

What the fuck happened? When I joined the SDMB, it sure didn't cater to ninnies in this oppressive way. We have a new board, we can go back to what things were like back when a lot of us joined the SDMB, rather than emulating the dysfunctional, un-fun later years.

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[...forwarding to What Exit?... ...removing Excalibre from ignore...]

Quote:

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Originally posted by jali

I was stressed out while it was happening, but when I learned it was a joke, I thought it was great. I literally laughed so hard that my son came up to see what was so funny.

We were punked and the whole team did a good job

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This was my reaction too. I like this place for the community but I also come here to be entertained and for a few hours yesterday evening, boy was I ever entertained!

I wish I could say I figured it out but that would be a lie. It was only at the very end that I said to myself "Hmm, March 31st, could this be...?"

I might be strange but I think it is a good sign that the entire staff, plus one prolific poster who has in the past been accused of attracting drama, were able to get together and demonstrate what could happen when people take message board drama a little too seriously.

It was like a dress rehearsal of what NOT to do, and the fact that everyone involved was down with it actually makes me feel more hopeful about this place going forward, not less.

It honestly would have been funnier if it had gone down as planned.

The original April Fool idea, as Winston explained it to me, was for him to jump into the McNutty thread about me in Jibba Jabba and begin attacking me as part of a meltdown. I was supposed to create drama as a distraction while the mods divided into factions and fought among one another. Winston was good enough to ask my permission, so if I had said no, it would not have happened. But I thought it was a great idea.

And then, suddenly, a majority of the mods who were supposed to participate went offline. No one realized this until the shit had fit the fan, and Leander had already fueled the snark board. So here we were with something like two mods available for a plan that had counted on half a dozen.

Unfortunately, one of the two mods was that great facilitator and peacemaker, What Exit? The other was The Flame. There was no way these two were going to break apart and start slinging insults at each other. They kept waiting for more mods to arrive. And inexplicably, no one had thought to inform QED.

But meanwhile, Winston and I were moving full speed ahead. I was sparring with Leander, at first doing Lib-2006 with him, and then moving into a bizarre sort of new wave psycho babble conversation that seemed to flip his lid. He brought up my slow death for the umpteenth time, but this time I responded with something like, "I hear you saying that you want to be my lover," or some such.

The only reason I picked up on Leander while Winston attacked me was to make things seem more ordinary. The tiff I'd had with Winston (which we've both put behind us) was not nearly as well known as the years of enmity that Leander has had for me (and frankly for all of us in general as his nonny personality on the snark board).

Well, as that all unfolded, Winston was doing his best to be batshit insane. At this point, there was supposed to be a mod fight, splitting into factions — those who defended me aganist Winston's attacks and those who took his side. I was supposed to dwindle to nothing as the mods took over — kind of like a human fading away as the gods of Olympus begin to wage war.

Failure to inform QED was an obvious fatal flaw, as was the inexplicable abandonment by several mods. I say "inexplicable", but it could have been the scheduling, which called for the McNutty thread to be closed at 7:00 and things were busting out about an hour early. It was a mistake in the strategy, really. Once shits starts on a message board, it moves very quickly.

Anyway, if it hadn't been for Chimera, Sarahfeena, Jali, and so many others in the McNutty thread, I probably wouldn't have participated. But it gave me a very timely opportunity to put into practice the advice I was being given. For the first time, I recognized what I was "doing wrong" even as I was doing it, like engaging Leander and demanding attention. That was a huge step for me, and will help me in the future.

I do believe things would have been a lot funnier had they gone as planned. But a mistake here and an oops there, and soon most people knew. The only consolation, I suppose, is that the snarkers didn't know until the very end that I had been involved. They thought I was really having a meltdown, and were trying to speculate on how I would react when it was over.

So if we did nothing other than fool them, it wasn't a total loss.

Oh, well. Now you guys will know and be able to plan better for next year! :lol:

Quote:

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Originally posted by Boozahol Squid, P.I.

I am really, really glad I don't work in an office with some of you guys. If pranks don't make you feel frustrated and uncomfortable, they aren't pranks. And if you can't laugh at yourself for those feelings when you later find out you've been pranked... well... don't drink the coffee in my ER tonight. :)

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Not picking on you, BS, but here is part of the problem. Many people don't like feeling frustrated and uncomfortable. That's why they don't like pranks. That doesn't make them stuffy old librarians (not the fuckable kind as Exy pointed out). That just makes them people who don't like to be pranked.

Is that so hard to respect?

Lib: I also think the joke would have been far better recieved if it had actually occured on April Fool's Day.

Quote:

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

Not picking on you, BS, but here is part of the problem. Many people don't like feeling frustrated and uncomfortable. That's why they don't like pranks. That doesn't make them stuffy old librarians (not the fuckable kind as Exy pointed out). That just makes them people who don't like to be pranked.

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I hate office pranks. I hate being made to feel frustrated and uncomfortable. I don't like watching other people put in that position. I have little understanding and no appreciation for that sort of prank.

But this? No-one was singled out, it was all text on a message board, and no matter how much I squint I just can't see the harm anywhere.

Christ on a rocket, I wish this board can become a place where this sort of thing can be done occasionally and afterwards everyone will just laugh it off and go on with their lives.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Glazer

Quote:

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Originally posted by What Exit?

[modhat:1k2a9smv]Just a reminder everyone. This is in About Domebo Forums and not the T'dome. Please cut out insults to other posters and dragging in old complaints from other boards. That should apply to all members, mods and techs included.[/modhat:1k2a9smv]

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I thought this was Room 101. That's where I linked into this thread at. I didn't know it was moved. So I retract my "So fuck 'em" statement. So sorry, please don't beat me.

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No beatings, no notes, no members singled out. It was for me as much as anyone else. In fact it was for the staff more than the general membership if you'll believe me.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Harlequin

But this? No-one was singled out, it was all text on a message board, and no matter how much I squint I just can't see the harm anywhere.

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Sorry if I was miscommunicating there, I was talking about real-life pranks.

This, I think, was different (from real-life pranks). It still managed to upset some people's sense of order.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Liberal

Unfortunately, one of the two mods was that great facilitator and peacemaker, What Exit? The other was The Flame. There was no way these two were going to break apart and start slinging insults at each other. They kept waiting for more mods to arrive.

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When Winston made the first 'fool' posts in McNutty's thread, I was the only other mod online. At first I hung back, thinking "this isn't going to work with only 2 of us - I hope some others come online soon". All the while people were responding to Winston's posts and filing 'report post's.

The idea as Liberal describes was that the mods would divide into two factions: What Exit?'s and Winston's. With only 3 around it was inevitable that there'd be two on one side and one on the other.

Giggles. This was an amazing piece of April foolin', too bad some parts of it didn't come together, but complicated plans are, well, complicated.

I'm sorry not everyone thought it was funny, but, myself, I really like to be on a message board that's about having fun, instead of being on a mission from God.

Quote:

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

Lib: I also think the joke would have been far better recieved if it had actually occured on April Fool's Day.

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It really was suppose to, things kicked off too soon. 7pm EST was April 1st GMT. That was part of the joke.

I at least really am sorry we lost Oakminster over this. A few other might think he is too thin skinned but I liked having him around. He added to the message board and I still hope he is better at pranking then I am and will return to let me know I have been whooshed again.

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

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Originally posted by Harlequin

But this? No-one was singled out, it was all text on a message board, and no matter how much I squint I just can't see the harm anywhere.

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Sorry if I was miscommunicating there, I was talking about real-life pranks.

This, I think, was different (from real-life pranks). It still managed to upset some people's sense of order.

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That's what I mean. I hate real-life pranks and I can't see how this has any but the most shallow similarity with them.

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Originally posted by Harlequin

But this? No-one was singled out, it was all text on a message board, and no matter how much I squint I just can't see the harm anywhere.

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You're absolutely right. But I was singled out, and it was an honor I must say. It's the first time anywhere that I've really felt like an integral part of any online community. I owe great thanks to Winston especially, who contacted me and asked me if I'd like to play along. You can't imagine how therapeutic it was for me on so many levels.

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Originally posted by Harlequin

That's what I mean. I hate real-life pranks and I can't see how this has any but the most shallow similarity with them.

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Oh, okay, 'scuse me. More coffee for me, then.

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Originally posted by What Exit?

I at least really am sorry we lost Oakminster over this. A few other might think he is too thin skinned but I liked having him around. He added to the message board and I still hope he is better at pranking then I am and will return to let me know I have been whooshed again.

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See? That's why your being one of only two mods available for faction forming would never have worked. You're the facilitator, not the faction maker. And under 99% of circumstances, that's a wonderful thing. :)

Next year just make hatesfreedom an admin.

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Originally posted by Cluricaun

Next year just make hatesfreedom an admin.

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See, there you go. This is my fault. It was suggested to make him a moderator for the day and I thought that was too dangerous and offered up the rudiments of the idea we went with.

Well I thought it was a good joke. I know people don't like getting....gotten, but that's part of a successful joke. It's not much of one if nobody falls for it.

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Originally posted by Liberal

You can't imagine how therapeutic it was for me on so many levels.

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Actually, I think I can. Good for you.

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

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Originally posted by Boozahol Squid, P.I.

I am really, really glad I don't work in an office with some of you guys. If pranks don't make you feel frustrated and uncomfortable, they aren't pranks. And if you can't laugh at yourself for those feelings when you later find out you've been pranked... well... don't drink the coffee in my ER tonight. :)

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Not picking on you, BS, but here is part of the problem. Many people don't like feeling frustrated and uncomfortable. That's why they don't like pranks. That doesn't make them stuffy old librarians (not the fuckable kind as Exy pointed out). That just makes them people who don't like to be pranked.

Is that so hard to respect?

Lib: I also think the joke would have been far better recieved if it had actually occured on April Fool's Day.

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It's not hard to respect, most days of the year. But on April Fool's Day (or the hours leading up to it, depending on time zone), it's a cherished tradition. I mean, I hate giving candy to those obnoxious little porkers who live down the street and run through my rose bushes all the time, but I shell out on Halloween every year without complaint, don't I?

How can you call it an April Fool's joke if it doesn't happen on April 1st? That part makes no sense at all.

ETA: But now that I see that it is, I would hate to be a stick in the mud. I think I'll try and participate in the fun also! Hence my new sig.

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Originally posted by Boozahol Squid, P.I.

It's not hard to respect, most days of the year. But on April Fool's Day (or the hours leading up to it, depending on time zone), it's a cherished tradition. I mean, I hate giving candy to those obnoxious little porkers who live down the street and run through my rose bushes all the time, but I shell out on Halloween every year without complaint, don't I?

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I dunno, we don't get so many trick-or-treaters out where I live. :)

Some people won't make a fuss about pranks, but when you think they're 'laughing it off', in reality they're grudgingly putting up with it. That's where the rub comes in about 'having fun' ... not everyone has the same idea of what 'fun' is.

Of course, this board will come to have a certain 'flavor', and if folks find that they don't enjoy that, then that's part of it - part of the 'growing pains' of a social site.

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Originally posted by Truth and Beauty

How can you call it an April Fool's joke if it doesn't happen on April 1st? That part makes no sense at all.

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That depends where in the world you are. It was April 1 in the East, and almost April 1 in the UK & Europe when the joke began.

I'm getting into the spirit of it now. This is fun!

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Originally posted by TheFlame

That depends where in the world you are. It was April 1 in the East, and almost April 1 in the UK & Europe when the joke began.

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How many board posters do you have in The East? But duly noted. I plan on April fooling till the last second of April 1st anywhere in the world!

Guys, this troll (that's what it was, really) could have been so much better. Please, plan better next time. You have 364 days left.

Grading, on a scale of 1 to 10:

Originality: 1
Execution: 1
Humor Factor: 1
Cleverness: 2
Effect: 6

"...I'm offended as a comedian!" -- Jerry Seinfeld

Ok, I missed this whole thing, and apparently the threads involved have been deleted permanently. So WTF happened? Liberal gave a pretty good summary, but it seems like there was more, like mods being sent to Room 101 and a splinter board? Can someone sum this up for me?

Lib, I'm glad to hear that this was a positive experience for you.

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Originally posted by Liberal

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Originally posted by Harlequin

But this? No-one was singled out, it was all text on a message board, and no matter how much I squint I just can't see the harm anywhere.

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You're absolutely right. But I was singled out, and it was an honor I must say. It's the first time anywhere that I've really felt like an integral part of any online community. I owe great thanks to Winston especially, who contacted me and asked me if I'd like to play along. You can't imagine how therapeutic it was for me on so many levels.

---

That's why I think this prank is great, because it involved you two, precisely, at that time. It feels like community building to me.

I don't know.

This just didn't strike me as funny, and I feel like a wet blanket saying that.

I want very badly for this message board to be a success, and seeing all this in-fighting (when it was a "joke"), just made me worry a lot.

Kudos to all for having a sense of humor, but it kind of freaked me out.

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Originally posted by Q.E.D.

Unless you're planning on pretending to flounce off in a petty huff, you've got nothing whatsoever to worry about. FFS, you're acting like I posted his home address and Social Security number.

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Yeah, it's not at all like we're expected to entrust our privacy to the attitude of a guy who posted his own freakin' password hash on the SDMB once... You wagered that it was absolutely impossible to reconstruct your login data. You were cocksure that it was perfectly harmless to disclose this type of information.

You still owe me 100 bucks, by the way.

No matter how seemingly insignificant our hidden online status is to you, it's hidden. It's supposed to be our decision to disclose it to the public, not yours. I fully understand that sometimes, authorities can screw up and unintentionally do stupid things. If they learn from it, and things improve. However,

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Originally posted by McNutty

If you don't see the inappropriateness here, you have no business having access to private data.

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This.

If there's one thing I'm totally fed up with, it's giving power to authorities who keep insisting that there's "nothing whatsoever to worry about".

This wasn't funny, and I don't need to lighten up or unbunch my panties or grow a sense of humour. The Powers That Be here need to understand why people are saying this wasn't funny - this was a mis-step that is going to have lasting repercussions (like destroying trust). We are supposed to be running on the honour system here, and I just lost all my faith in The Powers That Be here - how could you not have known that this was a bad idea?

And Q.E.D. is still acting like a moderator.

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Originally posted by featherlou

This wasn't funny, and I don't need to lighten up or unbunch my panties or grow a sense of humour. The Powers That Be here need to understand why people are saying this wasn't funny - this was a mis-step that is going to have lasting repercussions (like destroying trust). We are supposed to be running on the honour system here, and I just lost all my faith in The Powers That Be here - how could you not have known that this was a bad idea?

And Q.E.D. is still acting like a moderator.

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I like you, Featherlou, and I hope you don't get mad and leave.

Most people are not that upset about this, though, and frankly, however angry you are at Tuba and Zotti and Bodoni, there was nothing outrageous about what the mods here did. There just isn't. It's actually a pretty old joke, in fact. You don't have to think it was funny, but it's not legitimate to claim that it was a violation of trust or whatever. And it's not going to somehow benefit this place to force everyone to accommodate the extraordinarily delicate sensibilities of some tiny percentage of posters -- that just ruins the place for everyone else.

Taking the place way too seriously is one of the things that ruined the SDMB. I don't think it's a healthy attitude on a personal level either. This is a great opportunity to decide we don't have to make that mistake again.

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Originally posted by Excalibre

You don't have to think it was funny, but it's not legitimate to claim that it was a violation of trust or whatever. And it's not going to somehow benefit this place to force everyone to accommodate the extraordinarily delicate sensibilities of some tiny percentage of posters -- that just ruins the place for everyone else.

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I think it is legitimate to say that it was a violation of trust. Maybe not for you, but for some. We, as posters, have a certain trust that what we see represented in the threads and posts of this board are legitimate to a certain degree - especially in forums like the Crucible. When we are misled, then a certain amount of that trust goes out the window.

It's also not going to benefit this place to force everyone to go along with being run over roughshod by silly pranks -- that just ruins the place for everyone else. ;)

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Taking the place way too seriously is one of the things that ruined the SDMB. I don't think it's a healthy attitude on a personal level either. This is a great opportunity to decide we don't have to make that mistake again.

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I don't disagree with you about that, but on the other extreme - having a board which is a free-for-all ... isn't what I want either.

How about some middle ground? :)

I can't even see where "trust" comes into anything. It's a message board. I don't "trust" the guy who runs it, because I don't actually know him. I only even vaguely recognize his SDMB handle. I don't have to "trust" him, beyond trusting him not to maliciously hand out my email address to spammers or something. Why would I care about "trusting" him?

These people aren't your freaking family, you guys. We're just users on a message board, theoretically just sort of here to have fun when we're bored. This place is not supposed to be a replacement for family and friends. It's nice that we all know each other and in many cases have for years, but it's not family. You don't have to "trust" people to hang out on the internet with them. You don't have some legitimate claim to hold them up to some "standard" like that. You don't have some right to "trust" Ed Zotti not to act like a dick, you don't have some right to "trust" Crispy to keep this place open if he decides it's a burden, and you definitely don't have any right to "trust" the staff not to goof around for a couple hours.

I'm sorry, but if watching mommy and daddy pretend to fight for two hours is that upsetting, that means you need to reconsider the amount of emotion you're investing in this place. It's a nice little community, but it's not a family.

Exy, I understand that this is your take on the matter. I'm OK with that, I understand your position. I'm just saying that it's not that way for everyone, and I wish you'd acknowledge that. It looks like we'll never agree. I'm OK with that too.

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

Exy, I understand that this is your take on the matter. I'm OK with that, I understand your position. I'm just saying that it's not that way for everyone, and I wish you'd acknowledge that. It looks like we'll never agree. I'm OK with that too.

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I understand perfectly well that there are some users who really feel this is a huge, devastating issue. What you seem to be missing is they should not feel that way. People can feel all sorts of ways about all sorts of things. But there's, well, there's something wrong with you if you find it so upsetting to see people you don't even know pretending to have a fight for a couple hours. That's just not how you should feel about things. And, I reiterate, it's not doing those people any favors to indulge them, either.

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Originally posted by Liberal

But meanwhile, Winston and I were moving full speed ahead. I was sparring with Leander, at first doing Lib-2006 with him, and then moving into a bizarre sort of new wave psycho babble conversation that seemed to flip his lid. He brought up my slow death for the umpteenth time, but this time I responded with something like, "I hear you saying that you want to be my lover," or some such.

The only reason I picked up on Leander while Winston attacked me was to make things seem more ordinary. The tiff I'd had with Winston (which we've both put behind us) was not nearly as well known as the years of enmity that Leander has had for me (and frankly for all of us in general as his nonny personality on the snark board).

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Lib, why are you making shit up about me? Are you really going to use this little prank to lie and score points?

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

Exy, I understand that this is your take on the matter. I'm OK with that, I understand your position. I'm just saying that it's not that way for everyone, and I wish you'd acknowledge that. It looks like we'll never agree. I'm OK with that too.

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I'll acknowledge it. Some people are upset. Will you acknowledge that some are amused? It is, after all, April 1st. Anytime you run into something that seems other-worldly and bizarre on or moments before April 1st, you should think first of April Fool.

First off, the fuckery didn't happen on April Fool's day; it happened the day before April Fool's day. You can split GMT hairs all you want, but the majority of poster were still on March 31st. Second, I'll thank everyone to not tell me what I can and can't feel. In my opinion, the people who perpetrated this prank showed bad judgement, and these are the people who are expected to use their judgement to make this board a good place to hang out.

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Originally posted by NinetyWt

It's also not going to benefit this place to force everyone to go along with being run over roughshod by silly pranks
...
having a board which is a free-for-all ... isn't what I want either.

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Sweetie. You know you're my favorite, right? Good. Well here it is: It's not a free-for-all. It's once a year. One day on which pranks are pretty much expected everywhere. News organizations make up fake stories. Google publishes bizarre research results with a straight face. In 1992, National Public Fucking Radio did a story where they claimed Richard Nixon was running for president again. Did they violate your trust? No, they participated in a well-established tradition of people fucking with each other.

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How about some middle ground? :)

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Yes, I propose the following middle ground: most of the year, the staff should not prank you. And we should synchronize our clocks a little better to avoid starting April Fool's day a couple hours early.

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Originally posted by featherlou

You can split GMT hairs all you want, but the majority of poster were still on March 31st.

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You do realize that the guy who started the board's timezone is GMT, right? And so are many of the people who were in on planning this? That isn't "splitting GMT hairs." GMT is not some sort of esoteric concept or nerd technicality: people actually set their clocks to it. I would have preferred the prank to start, oh, around 9am PST on April 1, but I am burdened with the knowledge that the world does not revolve around me.

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Originally posted by McNutty

... I am burdened with the knowledge that the world does not revolve around me.

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'course not, silly. It revolves around ME!

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Originally posted by Excalibre

I understand perfectly well that there are some users who really feel this is a huge, devastating issue. What you seem to be missing is they should not feel that way. People can feel all sorts of ways about all sorts of things. But there's, well, there's something wrong with you if you find it so upsetting to see people you don't even know pretending to have a fight for a couple hours. That's just not how you should feel about things. And, I reiterate, it's not doing those people any favors to indulge them, either.

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Thank you for being the arbiter of appropriate emotions. Perhaps you have a handbook or cheat sheet available so I don't get it wrong again next time?

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Originally posted by Fiveroptic

Thank you for being the arbiter of appropriate emotions. Perhaps you have a handbook or cheat sheet available so I don't get it wrong again next time?

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You can just ask me, I live to help others. :)

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Originally posted by McNutty

It's not a free-for-all. It's once a year. One day on which pranks are pretty much expected everywhere.

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Right, I was talking about extremes in that post. One prank does not equal an everyday thing, of course not.

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Yes, I propose the following middle ground: most of the year, the staff should not prank you. And we should synchronize our clocks a little better to avoid starting April Fool's day a couple hours early.

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Sounds good to me. I really do think that folks would have been less confused about what was going on, although you are right that it was already the 1st in some places.

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Originally posted by Liberal

Will you acknowledge that some are amused?

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Yes, yes, a thousand times yes!

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Originally posted by Excalibre

I understand perfectly well that there are some users who really feel this is a huge, devastating issue. What you seem to be missing is they should not feel that way. People can feel all sorts of ways about all sorts of things. But there's, well, there's something wrong with you if you find it so upsetting to see people you don't even know pretending to have a fight for a couple hours. That's just not how you should feel about things. And, I reiterate, it's not doing those people any favors to indulge them, either.

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Okay, I can get on board with part of this. Since we're not talking about something easily quantified here, there is obviously some kind of continuum of how people percieve message boards (or other similar social sites). On the one extreme we have folks who are totally wrapped up in it, per your example. And that is unhealthy or dysfunctional or whatever. Just plain stupid maybe.

I don't like to say "shouldn't feel that way" because feelings can't be helped, they just "are". It's a person's behaviour which can be changed. I don't mind saying that people shouldn't react as if their whole world is crashing down because of a kerfuffle on a message board, I agree with you there.

People who fall more towards the center of that continuum will have some lesser emotional investment in what happens on a message board than our hypothetical extremist, and might be irritated or feel some other negative emotion about a kerfuffle (not necessarily that it was a huge, devastating thing). I think that's OK.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Excalibre

I understand perfectly well that there are some users who really feel this is a huge, devastating issue. What you seem to be missing is they should not feel that way. People can feel all sorts of ways about all sorts of things. But there's, well, there's something wrong with you if you find it so upsetting to see people you don't even know pretending to have a fight for a couple hours. That's just not how you should feel about things. And, I reiterate, it's not doing those people any favors to indulge them, either.

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No. You cannot tell anyone else what they should or should not feel. I understand you don't agree with those feelings and even disapprove of them. That's YOU. I am not all worked up about this prank, but when I first saw it (or bits of it--I never did see the whole thing), my first thought was "oh shit--this can't even last a month?" You can say what you like about message boards and the internet, but it comes down (in the end) to people. People who have expectations and who join a community in good faith. When that faith is messed with, there is fallout. I'm not taking my toys and going home because I'm not. But I can understand if to someone else, this prank was the last straw. Whether we're pixels on a screen or live bodies in a coffee shop, people want a place they can come and talk and share. That's all this is. Fuck with that too much and you lose people.

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Originally posted by eleanorigby

I am not all worked up about this prank, but when I first saw it (or bits of it--I never did see the whole thing), my first thought was "oh shit--this can't even last a month?"

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And when you then saw it was a joke, why didn't you just go phew?

Can we just say that while some people enjoyed it, others for legit reason did not? The last thing I expected when I suggested the idea of this joke was that people would get this upset over it. I was ignorant not to think about that. We should have stuck to the other options. As I expected after the fallout last night there are users beside Oakminster leaving.

If people are upset by this, telling them they shouldn't be doesn't really help. I know what you're saying Excalibre but I do want to keep the posters around so could you please leave them be. We went through once before a long time ago, but some of the posters departing or thinking of departing really are very good posters. Even if you dislike Oakminster, it is not just him. Continuing to argue with others might push some posters to a decision I hope they do not make.

1) We did start this too early, that was a blow to the plan.
2) It moved too quickly. I thought a little would happen last night and then a lot more this morning.
3) GMT time was not a dodge, CRSP is on GMT, as are several Mods.
4) I never took into account that this would come off as a betrayal of trust. I do understand the idea of trusting others on the board. I do so myself. But I am still vague on why this prank was a betrayal of trust. If anyone can make me understand this, I would appreciate it.


All I can do is apologize for myself and hope everyone upset will move on to other threads and please forgive the Mods for this attempt at a joke. I don’t ask you to forget but I hope you can forgive. I really am sorry.

Apparently our joke was too Andy Kaufmann like for our own good. I am glad many enjoyed it but I at least deeply regret suggesting it.

Jim (I probably said too much, but I have to try at least.)

Maybe it's just me, but the suggestion that anyone around here is in a position to be informing anyone else what they should or should not feel and whether or not those responses speak to some sort of psychological definciency strikes me as a level of arrogant assholishness way above and beyond the call of duty. Perhaps a discussion of the April Fool's prank might be better served without people telling each other what emotional responses are or are not acceptable? The success or failure of any prank is intrinsically tied to whether or not people thought it was funny -- a significant number of people seem to be saying very clearly that they thought this was not funny. I'd therefore call this a failure. Having the peanut gallery yelling, "hey, lighten up" to those who did not see the humour just makes the peanut gallery look like dicks and does nothing to move the discussion forward. YMMV.

P.S. A mod thinking that it is okay to reveal any level of private information is a Very Bad Thing. People send private messages on the assumption that that information will remain private. People set themselves to invisible on the assumption that they will be invisible. Disrespecting those boundaries, no matter how trivial the transgression, is, at best, setting a dangerous precedent and, at worst, a complete breach of the trust given to the people in positions of power around these parts. Frankly, I'm a lot less offended by the prank and a lot more offended that a mod thinks group privacy is not something worth respecting.

Let me give you an analogy so some of you might understand better - as an April Fool's Day prank, your boss fires you. You go home, have a screaming fight with your wife, she kicks you out, and your marriage is in serious trouble. Your boss calls the next day to tell you it was just a joke. Ha ha, right? Phew, it was just a joke - my wife will understand and it will be as if it never happened. Except as adults we know that bells can't be un-rung, and you just have to watch your step sometimes because there are no take-backs.

This stupid prank isn't the end of the world, but the bad judgement shown has lost a lot of credibility for the people involved in it for me. They didn't realize how the prank would affect people who are here because of actions very similar to the tricks played on us yesterday, and they didn't anticipate how it would affect their credibility in the future.

How did this prank affect people? What bells have been rung? That's what I'm not getting.

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Originally posted by eleanorigby

No. You cannot tell anyone else what they should or should not feel.

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I most certainly can. In fact, I did.

Anyone can feel anything at all. What you're missing is that the fact that I feel something doesn't mean it's incumbent upon you to give in to my whims in order to mollify me.

Quote:

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Originally posted by featherlou

Let me give you an analogy so some of you might understand better - as an April Fool's Day prank, your boss fires you. You go home, have a screaming fight with your wife, she kicks you out, and your marriage is in serious trouble. Your boss calls the next day to tell you it was just a joke. Ha ha, right? Phew, it was just a joke - my wife will understand and it will be as if it never happened. Except as adults we know that bells can't be un-rung, and you just have to watch your step sometimes because there are no take-backs.

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Right. That's a perfect analogy, because it involves things that are actually terrifying. You'd be absolutely right to be mad if your boss fake-fired you for April Fool's. But, uh, this place is not your fucking boss and it's certainly not your fucking marriage. This is a great illustration of exactly why all the people who are agonizing over something so trivial need to suck it up. Either it's a desperate ploy for attention, or else it's a sign that you're really screwed up.

All these references to "trust" and "credibility" and things that should not come into play on a message board are just illustrations of some people's total lack of perspective.

Quote:

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Originally posted by dread pirate jimbo

Perhaps a discussion of the April Fool's prank might be better served without people telling each other what emotional responses are or are not acceptable?

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It's not about what's "acceptable", it's about what everyone else is obligated to accommodate. I'm not obligated to indulge someone's melodramatic whining over something completely trivial. You can say I'm insensitive if you like. I say it sucks to be in a community where everyone has to walk on eggshells to avoid causing the most minimal, momentary emotional distress to everyone else, because it means you can't fucking talk about anything. And you know, I know some of you people have bitched about the tendency, on the SDMB, for every thread mentioning fat people to turn into an 8-page sobfest in which fatty after fatty whined about how mean it was to not be "sensitive" to their needs. Same exact thing here. The more we focus on making sure absolutely everyone is "sensitive", the less we can say. It's an oppressive atmosphere and I, for one, am doing my part to discourage continuing in that direction.

Quote:

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Originally posted by dread pirate jimbo

P.S. A mod thinking that it is okay to reveal any level of private information is a Very Bad Thing. People send private messages on the assumption that that information will remain private. People set themselves to invisible on the assumption that they will be invisible. Disrespecting those boundaries, no matter how trivial the transgression, is, at best, setting a dangerous precedent and, at worst, a complete breach of the trust given to the people in positions of power around these parts. Frankly, I'm a lot less offended by the prank and a lot more offended that a mod thinks group privacy is not something worth respecting.

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He's not a Mod and CRSP has specifically told him to no longer do such. If I or Q.E.D. or any other Mod does anything you think is wrong, PM the post in question to CRSP. If you don't mind the Mod in question seeing the report, just hit Report this post and explain the problem. Q.E.D. is a Tech with Admin rights. He is the primary or at least #2 coder for Domebo and has Admin rights to test, make needed changes and move posters to Room 101 as needed as the request of the Moderators.

To clarify further I am a Mod that has Admin rights as the #3 coder. McNutty is neither a Mod nor Admin and has nothing to do with the Mod and Admin operation of the board but does keep the board and database tuned and going and fixes mistakes like one I made last week applying a new modification.

The rest of the Mods are Moderators. Each of us have a Forum and cover ADF. The Global Moderators danceswithcats & sublight cover all forums and part of their job is to let the rest of know if we are going to far.

This is also the job of every member that cares to help. Let us know by post if it won't derail the thread, or PM or Report if you think we are screwing up. We're human and still new to the job. If you don't want to confront us or feel we'll ignore you or give you a hard time, PM the post and your concern to CRSP.

I hope this somehow helps.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Excalibre

All these references to "trust" and "credibility" and things that should not come into play on a message board are just illustrations of some people's total lack of perspective.

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I'm generally on the same side as you in this discussion, but this I disagree with. There is definitely trust and credibility here, a message board is a social thing to me, and if what had happened had actually mattered I'd be pissed too. But it didn't.

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Originally posted by Excalibre

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Originally posted by featherlou

Let me give you an analogy so some of you might understand better - as an April Fool's Day prank, your boss fires you. You go home, have a screaming fight with your wife, she kicks you out, and your marriage is in serious trouble. Your boss calls the next day to tell you it was just a joke. Ha ha, right? Phew, it was just a joke - my wife will understand and it will be as if it never happened. Except as adults we know that bells can't be un-rung, and you just have to watch your step sometimes because there are no take-backs.

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Right. That's a perfect analogy, because it involves things that are actually terrifying. You'd be absolutely right to be mad if your boss fake-fired you for April Fool's. But, uh, this place is not your fucking boss and it's certainly not your fucking marriage. This is a great illustration of exactly why all the people who are agonizing over something so trivial need to suck it up. Either it's a desperate ploy for attention, or else it's a sign that you're really screwed up.

All these references to "trust" and "credibility" and things that should not come into play on a message board are just illustrations of some people's total lack of perspective.<snip>

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My analogy was an illustration of how an April Fool's Day prank can have consequences that can't be undone even after the pranking person says, "Gotcha!" My point is that you have to think of consequences before you pull a prank; apologizing after the fact doesn't undo everything that happened as a result of your prank. And yes, trust and credibility do indeed come into play on a message board if you're doing it right.

I doubt that I can analyze it to any effective degree. I read a Thunderdome thread about "whoa, what was that thread that was just deleted?" and found out that Winston had (apparently) imploded in some way. I never could find the thread in question, so all I could go by were the comments by other posters-most of which were obscure.
There was a reference to the Mafia thread (I find that game incredibly confusing so I didn't even try to go there to figure things out). I jumped from thread to thread in T-Dome and "About domebo", trying to glean WTF was going on. I did discover it was joke--whatever "it" was. I kind of rolled my eyes, but I did feel relief--mostly because I have (finally) adjusted to being spread over 3 boards and I didn't want to go through all the shit and drama again.

What you don't realize (or maybe you do) is that on a message board, even if you're a bit player or an extra or even just an audience member for the Drama of the Day, it still affects you. You see people whom you like or respect or both (or can't stand and have contempt for, whatever) hurling insults and contentious displays of ill humor etc. Sometimes it's fun as hell, but mostly it's wearying. Having just been there, done that, got the fucking Tshirt, I'd say that for most of us, our capacity for Drama is smaller than usual. Add to that this being a new board, with it's "personality" still being formed and you have some gun-shy people.

What I don't understand is how this isn't obvious. I think those who have gone over it and say it all happened too quickly are correct. It happened so quickly that most people here never saw the whole thing and still don't have a complete picture of what the joke all entailed. It's like coming in on the last few words of the punchline of a long joke. You don't get quite why lots of people are laughing and you tend to think the joke couldn't have been all that funny--especially when no one can replay it for you or describe it in detail (no, really, I don't want to know--I'm just saying). And while I also understand that some mods and CRSP is on GMT, their main "audience" is not. Perhaps an American mod could have been roped in to plant this at a slightly different time frame? I hate to be America-centric, but this won't play in Peoria if Peoria can't even read the damned joke parts.

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Originally posted by featherlou

My analogy was an illustration of how an April Fool's Day prank can have consequences that can't be undone even after the pranking person says, "Gotcha!" My point is that you have to think of consequences before you pull a prank; apologizing after the fact doesn't undo everything that happened as a result of your prank. And yes, trust and credibility do indeed come into play on a message board if you're doing it right.

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I agree with all of the above, but I still don't understand how the prank we're discussing had such consequences or how it violated trust or credibility.

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Originally posted by Excalibre

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Originally posted by eleanorigby

No. You cannot tell anyone else what they should or should not feel.

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I most certainly can. In fact, I did.

Anyone can feel anything at all. What you're missing is that the fact that I feel something doesn't mean it's incumbent upon you to give in to my whims in order to mollify me.

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Excuse me. No, you CANNOT. Of course, you can say what you like and tell people what not to feel all you want. You cannot do so with any expectation that 1. they will follow your advice and 2. they will appreciate your "wisdom" in doing so. In fact, if you had read my very next sentence, you would have seen that I said as much to you. We get that you not only disapprove of these "whiners", but that you hold them in contempt. Right back atcha, babe.
You have already been asked by TPTB here to STFU about this. Believe me, I feel no inclination to "give in to you whims in order to mollify you." Why should I? My feelings are my own and they arise from my life experiences, just like yours do. Your feelings are no more important or valid than mine-your tone says that you think yours are. You are correct in one thing: you are insensitive.

Since you tout not walking on eggshell, may I say that it is attitudes like yours that are not only nonproductive but fucking retarded in that they drive people away, here and in real life. You can call those who left pussies or whiners or whatever you like--and you will soon be only talking to yourself. People have given reasons for their annoyance here. You are the only one saying they shouldn't feel those feelings. In short, you're a tool.


If you had bothered to read the rest of my post, you would have noted that I am not leaving and I am not one of those who is very upset. I am irritated by your complete lack of awareness regarding conventional human behavior. I am left wondering if you are prepubescent or just a case of arrested development. Since you are not "sensitive", I hope this is harsh enough for you.

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Originally posted by Excalibre

All these references to "trust" and "credibility" and things that should not come into play on a message board are just illustrations of some people's total lack of perspective.

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I disagree about this. There are issues of trust and credibility on a message board: we trust that CRSP isn't going to run this board like Ed Zotti does, because he's done things to build his credibility. His transparency in running stuff has given us the idea that we can trust him with a small amount of personal information, and that our time invested here isn't going to be wasted when he (and/or someone he chooses to help moderate) turns out to be a dick. It doesn't take a total lack of perspective to say that if they started posting things like "haw haw, check out this dumb post report that so and so submitted", they'd be destroying that trust they'd built.

What I don't think is that an April Fool's prank does anything to destroy that trust. For those who say trust is violated, what is it you're actually worried about? Do you think the administration is going to go around giving phony mod warnings the rest of the year? Bashing people and saying "just kidding"? I just don't see it. Has a news organization which posts a fake story on April 1 actually changed the amount you trust them? I mean, they're supposed to provide the news and they've outright lied to you. Yet people take it in stride.

PS. I noticed today that Giraffe actually had the "fake mod fight" idea before we did, and opted not to do it because he didn't want to do something "predictable and wacky."

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Originally posted by McNutty

PS. I noticed today that Giraffe actually had the "fake mod fight" idea before we did, and opted not to do it because he didn't want to do something "predictable and wacky."

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Could you link to that? I know it wasn't original in anyway but I know I didn't see the idea there. In fact I had not seen the idea on a message board at all. I think I mined some memory of an old silly sitcom.

Featherlou, you know I hope you and others that are upset will eventually feel better, but I am also missing where this is like Ed Zotti's oddball antics. We purposely kept all the stuff between the participants. We didn't falsely ban anyone even as a joke. I don't recall any drama like this one on the Dope. This is a far cry from the Boss's joke you described above. At least I hope it is.

Good post, McNutty. I agree.

Harlequin--I did say phew, but I also said, "goddammit, why did they choose to do something like this now?" I posted my reaction in the Tdome thread about "this thread was deleted" (something like that).

I don't like pranks or practical jokes. YMMV.

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Originally posted by featherlou

Let me give you an analogy so some of you might understand better - as an April Fool's Day prank, your boss fires you. You go home, have a screaming fight with your wife, she kicks you out, and your marriage is in serious trouble. Your boss calls the next day to tell you it was just a joke. Ha ha, right? Phew, it was just a joke - my wife will understand and it will be as if it never happened. Except as adults we know that bells can't be un-rung, and you just have to watch your step sometimes because there are no take-backs.

This stupid prank isn't the end of the world, but the bad judgement shown has lost a lot of credibility for the people involved in it for me. They didn't realize how the prank would affect people who are here because of actions very similar to the tricks played on us yesterday, and they didn't anticipate how it would affect their credibility in the future.

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Well, if that's the case, I think the whole thing's a wash. It was mostly me making with the bad behavior, and I don't have any credibility anyways. Zero sum game.

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Originally posted by What Exit?

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Originally posted by McNutty

PS. I noticed today that Giraffe actually had the "fake mod fight" idea before we did, and opted not to do it because he didn't want to do something "predictable and wacky."

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Could you link to that?

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http://www.giraffeboards.com/showthread.php?t=1080

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Originally posted by McNutty

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Originally posted by What Exit?

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Originally posted by McNutty

PS. I noticed today that Giraffe actually had the "fake mod fight" idea before we did, and opted not to do it because he didn't want to do something "predictable and wacky."

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Could you link to that?

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http://www.giraffeboards.com/showthread.php?t=1080

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Damn, I really didn't see that. I spend very little time over there.

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Originally posted by Winston Smith

It was mostly me making with the bad behavior, and I don't have any credibility anyways. Zero sum game.

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Strangely enough, I actually saw it as an interesting insight into what the other mods might do if you actually did go nutty on us. Seems like it would work out OK.

You know what? Bottom line, the prank was pretty fun. Last night, I kind of ended up spending the whole evening on this, well, sort of flitting in and out because I was cooking and doing various household chores. I was actually intending to watch a movie but watching this whole thing unfold was more fun. First was trying to figure out what the fuck was going on, then just enjoying the drama unfold, and then figuring out that it was a joke, and playing along. Did you guys catch the brief Morse Code thread that popped up? See, it was fucking fun for a lot of us. And, well, watching the real drama unfold afterwards was pretty entertaining too.

See, I got to spend a fun evening on my favorite internet message board last night. No shocker that some people wouldn't find it fun (and conversely there's shit a lot of people here seem to enjoy that I don't, no problem there. We're all beautiful, unique snowflakes.)

And you know what? No one really did get hurt. Even Liberal played along, and uh that's not super totally typical of him.

Now afterwards a bunch of people didn't enjoy it (no surprise) but then there come the big dramatic claims that people were actually hurt by this. And here's the problem: if we conclude that this is the sort of terrible thing that tears communities apart, now this is yet another thing that we suddenly can't do, and that makes this community just that much less fun. Like I said in regards to the routine fat-people-shitstorms at the SDMB. And like I said, I remember other people from this thread lamenting that there were so many little personal issues that some small percentage of the SDMB community was sensitive about, which meant that you could basically not bring something up for fear of the shitstorm that would inevitably ensue. So then, as the months go by, the "topics that we can talk about" got gradually chipped away. The logical conclusion is when we limit ourselves to topics every single person agrees upon, because even the slightest discord is intolerable. So, then, we do nothing but post kitten pictures.

I'm sorry that a lot of you people have such delicate feelings, but I don't see why I and the many other people who enjoyed last night's action should have to give up something we thought was really fun because, despite it not actually hurting anyone, was so very, very distressing to some small contingent of people. Everybody's got things they're sensitive about -- we all have traits we're not proud of, or pet peeves, or whatever.

But we're not all entitled to insist that no one else ever pokes any of those things. And it really bespeaks a degree of entitlement if you do act that way. I'm not going to deliberately go up to individual posters and attack their sensitive points (unless they deserve it), but by the same token, if you are (to reuse the previous example) fat, you shouldn't complain about every single thread in which someone alludes to fatness. I'm sorry, I'm sure it's hard for fat people. But when we decide that the community's core tenet is never distressing anyone in any way, then suddenly we can't talk about anything.

There's probably a few people who would end up enjoying that logical end point, but I wouldn't, and I ended up eventually pretty unhappy at the SDMB before I left, because that place was sliding down that road pretty fast. I think we should make a decision not to operate by that standard here. Every one of us has something or other that they are oversensitive to, I'd imagine, but that shouldn't mean those people get to decide the rest of us can't talk about it.

It's like all those stories about how elementary schools are banning tag, because the unathletic kids can't handle the stress of not being the best. You know what? It's probably best that the unathletic kids DO deal with that stress a little bit, and besides that, in order to be fair, you have to do a calculation. You weigh the pleasure most kids get out of tag, versus the distress a few people feel because they're bad at it, and you decide that yes, tag is going to be allowed on the playground.

There was a pretty lamentable tendency at the SDMB to encourage everyone to coddle everyone else's sensitivities, culminating in an edict from above that swearwords were no longer allowed. I liked a lot of people there, I still like them now that we're over here, and I'm trying to do my part now to correct this one particular bad thing about the SDMB's culture.

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Originally posted by Excalibre

The logical conclusion is when we limit ourselves to topics every single person agrees upon, because even the slightest discord is intolerable. So, then, we do nothing but post kitten pictures.

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I hate kittens. And pictures.

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So, then, we do nothing but post kitten pictures.

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And buckeyes. Kittens and buckeyes.

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Originally posted by McNutty

http://www.giraffeboards.com/showthread.php?t=1080

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Hilarious idea. Let's steal it next year.

I might not have expressed it exactly the same way, but I think for the most part Exy is right. I think one thing we all wanted here was a little bit of lightheartedness...not taking everything so seriously, not worrying constantly about saying the wrong thing, not being able to state an opinion without a 20-poster pileup. I feel bad that some folks feel hurt or upset over this prank, but I hope that in the end, the fact that it was meant to be amusement for all of us will mitigate some of the bad feelings, and we won't lose any more posters over it.

Oh, the drama!

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Originally posted by Sarahfeena

I might not have expressed it exactly the same way, but I think for the most part Exy is right. I think one thing we all wanted here was a little bit of lightheartedness...not taking everything so seriously, not worrying constantly about saying the wrong thing, not being able to state an opinion without a 20-poster pileup. I feel bad that some folks feel hurt or upset over this prank, but I hope that in the end, the fact that it was meant to be amusement for all of us will mitigate some of the bad feelings, and we won't lose any more posters over it.

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Yes, perfect. Except you need to stretch it out another 2000 words with a bunch of pointless analogies, then it will be just like my post.

Seriously, succinct and exactly right.

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Originally posted by eleanorigby

<snip>I did discover it was joke--whatever "it" was. I kind of rolled my eyes, but I did feel relief--mostly because I have (finally) adjusted to being spread over 3 boards and I didn't want to go through all the shit and drama again.
<snip> Having just been there, done that, got the fucking Tshirt, I'd say that for most of us, our capacity for Drama is smaller than usual. Add to that this being a new board, with it's "personality" still being formed and you have some gun-shy people.<snip>

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That's definitely a big part of it.

This isn't about being too accommodating towards overly sensitive people; this is about having a little common sense that people who are refugees from message board drama might be tired of message board drama. As for credibility, all the mods and admins have lost credibility for me because they didn't see the obvious fallout for how this would go down. That's pretty short-sighted for people who are supposed to be steering our course here. On the other hand, it could just be that I was having higher than realistic expectations of them. I won't make that mistake again.

I have a strong feeling it will bite them in the ass in the future, too - I think they'll be surprised at the long-lasting repercussions of this little bit of "fun." As we all know, message board members have long memories.

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Originally posted by featherlou

the obvious fallout for how this would go down

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Except it didn't. You're trying so hard to define this as some catastrophe that struck the board, when the worst that happened was you and a couple other people were unamused, and one poster decided to leave in a big huffy flounce, like he does habitually. It is just not a catastrophe for the whole Dome community that a couple people had their feelings injured. You are not entitled to redefine what happened like that.

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Originally posted by featherlou

I have a strong feeling it will bite them in the ass in the future, too - I think they'll be surprised at the long-lasting repercussions of this little bit of "fun." As we all know, message board members have long memories.

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No-one appears willing to answer my questions, but that doesn't mean I'll stop asking. What exactly are you planning to do in the future to cause these repercussions?

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Originally posted by Harlequin

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Originally posted by featherlou

I have a strong feeling it will bite them in the ass in the future, too - I think they'll be surprised at the long-lasting repercussions of this little bit of "fun." As we all know, message board members have long memories.

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No-one appears willing to answer my questions, but that doesn't mean I'll stop asking. What exactly are you planning to do in the future to cause these repercussions?

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Why do you assume that I'll do anything to cause repercussions?

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Originally posted by Excalibre

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Originally posted by featherlou

the obvious fallout for how this would go down

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Except it didn't. You're trying so hard to define this as some catastrophe that struck the board, when the worst that happened was you and a couple other people were unamused, and one poster decided to leave in a big huffy flounce, like he does habitually. It is just not a catastrophe for the whole Dome community that a couple people had their feelings injured. You are not entitled to redefine what happened like that.

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The obvious fallout is exactly what I would have expected. It was obvious for me, anyway.

*I'm* not entitled to redefine what happened? What's the matter, am I stepping on your toes?

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Originally posted by featherlou

Why do you assume that I'll do anything to cause repercussions?

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Well, someone has to, or they won't happen. Since you're sure they will, I'm just assuming you would. If you won't, instead answer the question what you're expecting other people to do?

I still don't get why anyone would be all that upset by this. Seems rather odd.