Thread Closed
(05-18-2015, 05:06 PM)Bryn Wrote: The issue wasn't the language used, Osric. You were very friendly about it...etc.
Trouble is, that's still a warning. It's just not a formal one. It's a warning of a forthcoming warning unless something is acted on. And that feels pretty bad when it's for having good-natured fun with friends in your own thread.
The problem is context, and the reading thereof.
Are image macros, gifs, and other "meme" inserts without substance completely banned from the RPC? Past evidence and precedence points to the answer being "no". In addition, the rules do not explicitly ban the usage of image macros, gifs, memes, etc. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
Image macros and gif posts without substance are appropriate in certain situations. The "Describe your relationship with a gif" thread was cited as an environment in which low-effort posting--that is, the posting of images with minimal content--is appropriate.
Conversely, discussion threads and question topics are circumstances in which the same low-effort posting--posts that lack in content that fail to add to the topic or discussion--is inappropriate. Low-effort posts that do not contribute to the topic or derail the topic are not allowed, as per the rules. These are the posts that receive a warning. The post that was responsible for starting this thread is cited as an example of a post that did not meaningfully contribute in any fashion to the thread at hand, and was thus in breach of site rules regarding off-topic posts and images.
So, we've established three important facts:Â
(1) Image macros, .gifs, and memes without substance are not explicitly banned from the RPC.Â
(2) Image macros, .gifs, and memes without substance are permitted to be posted within the appropriate unambiguous contexts. Examples: joke threads, image threads.
(3) Image macros, .gifs, and memes without meaningful substance are not permitted in all other contexts except for those that are clearly defined by (2).
So what's the problem?
In Bryn's case above, her thread should have been read as being (2), that is, a lighthearted "fun" and "joke" thread in which image macros, .gifs, and memes should be considered appropriate and not in breach of the sites rules. The problem is that it wasn't. Bryn's thread was unambiguous in its intentions, tone, and environment, and thus, in accordance with (2), image macros, .gifs, and meme posts that lack in content should have been permitted. However, the context of the thread was misread, and thus a private warning was issued. The problem with the warning was not the action of warning itself, but what the action implied: "There are no longer any appropriate topics or situations in which image macros, .gifs, and meme posts without substance will be permitted . Thus, the rules are being incorrectly enforced, and as a result I am concerned about the possible abuse of enforcement in the future."
In summary:
By requesting more substance in a post that required none, a judgment that is considered inconsistent with the rules of the RPC was made. To resolve this, either the rules should be made completely unambiguous regarding low-effort posting and the banning thereof, with appropriate examples, or the judgment should be acknowledged as inconsistent with the rules it was intended to follow [edit] AND/OR the environments in which low-effort posting is permitted need to be clearly defined.