Lounge standards and self policing

[Major Nikon]

Maybe this is too much drama for the Lounge, but I'm not going to post this in Meta where the rest of DU can whine incessantly about the Lounge and frankly I have no use for other DUer's opinions on the Lounge who never come here in the first place. If this is a bad choice, the admins can remove it and it won't hurt my feelings. It's not my intent to ratchet up the drama level in the Lounge and if the drama gets too high in this thread I will delete this post myself and put an end to it if the admins don't first, however I would like to point out some serious things which I feel need to be discussed here rather than someplace else.

Just for some background, the clip I posted that got removed was from Community Season 3 Bloopers. I'm not going to post the youtube link, but a quick search can find it and it's not even in the Mature section of youtube. The actress is Alison Brie (Trudy from Mad Men) who was cutting up with other cast members between takes. She and the other cast members were making fun of porn (which was my intent also). I'm not here to complain about the hide as it doesn't bother me. If that is indeed the expectations here, I have no problem complying. What I would like to do, is make some suggestions on how these matters are handled in the future. I'll point out one of the comments made by one of the jury members:

The Lounge makes DU suck.

I find this comment rather ironic because under the Main category, the Lounge is the place I feel sucks the least on DU. I'm not going to try to discourage anyone from alerting on a post they feel is alert worthy, however I would like to point out there are alternatives to doing this. I will personally pledge to all the other Lounge lizards that if they send me a PM saying they were offended by any of my posts in the Lounge, I will remove them myself no questions asked. It is not my intent to offend anyone in the Lounge and I have removed my posts previously this way. I hope that everyone else who frequents the Lounge will do the same and I would like to think the vast majority here would do the same. There is a net benefit to a person who might otherwise hit the alert button. Not only does the post get truly removed where it can never be seen again, but you don't have to take your chances with the contrary jury system.

If we don't police ourselves, we invite the rest of DU to do it for us and there are already alert trolls which never participate here yet still scour the Lounge for posts to alert on. We don't need to invite these people in.

Please don't use this thread to complain about the hidden post in question, to complain that the post did get hidden, or to complain about prudishness or anything of that nature as it will just get this thread shut down. I just want to open up dialog on my Lounge self-policing idea and see how many others are willing to participate.

[Scuba]

1. The Lounge makes DU a lot more fun.

[Curtland1015]

2. Eh... that sounds like a lot of work. By the time I go through all THAT trouble...

...I may no longer be offended!

That said, I know you say you aren't bothered by the reporting, so I'll say it for you... SERIOUSLY? Someone got the vapors because of a few dumb jokes? What the hell?

THAT SAID... not a bad idea, really.

[Kali]

3. this sounds reasonable and I would urge other hosts and Lounge residents

to NOT alert/lock this thread. It is meta but it is Lounge meta and I think it is OK for us to talk about the suggestions here in the lounge.

[taterguy]

9. Lounge resident? I don't actually live here

It just seems like it sometimes.

[Kali]

11. ok maybe participants would be a better word

but it didn't drop out of the word chute of my slow brain until just now

denizens would be even better - perhaps we need a poll!

[hunter]

14. Longe Meta is too good for Meta Meta, okay, I get it...

... and I agree!

[Major Nikon]

6. No

[Major Nikon]

15. I explained it in the OP

I'm not demanding anything. If you feel the best way to handle a post is to alert, by all means use that option.

What I'm proposing is a higher standard for the Lounge, because I feel the Lounge should be a place where people can go to keep from being offended, unlike most of the rest of DU. The alert system is a crap shoot. I think most would agree with this. And what I'm offering goes even one step farther than the alert system, even if you do chose that option. If you alert on a post and the jury tells you to pound sand, I'll still remove any of my Lounge posts upon request. How is this not fair and reasonable?

[MiddleFingerMom]

16. I'm completely missing that. Can you please show the part of the OP that is a "demand? Thank you,

[turtlerescue1]

5. Ya know one of the things I like about the Lounge is you can pick what you want to view

and if you don't want to view it, you don't have to. There is some great humor here, some human stuff, some of everything. Its a kinder place than others. AND it is comfortable.

So, I like your ideas about self-policing. For whatever that's worth.

[Iggo]

7. The Lounge is the BEST thing about DU.

It's where we act like human beings.

[A Simple Game]

10. Have you gotten a PM asking to have this deleted? n/t

[Major Nikon]

18. I can't make you believe me, but I will offer this

If you can find anyone who did send me a PM requests ever to remove a Lounge post that I didn't remove (assuming the thread wasn't already locked), I'll kiss your ass and give you till noon to draw a crowd.

Furthermore I've asked other posters to edit their posts and never had anyone refuse. Here's an example from just the other day.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=1145866

[A Simple Game]

30. This post was a mistake, sorry. n/t

Last edited Sun Aug 19, 2012, 08:58 PM - Edit history (1)

[Major Nikon]

17. No

I've gotten PM requests to delete posts before and I've deleted them. I would do the same for any Lounge lizard.

[A Simple Game]

33. I don't doubt that you would. Please realize my post was

a poor attempt to lighten the mood of the thread nothing else.

[Major Nikon]

36. Don't worry, I'm not wearing any pants

It's hard to be too series when you're not wearing pants.

[HopeHoops]

12. The lounge is our refuge. Thanks for the post.

[rrneck]

19. An alert should be the last resort.

I ran across a post here the other day that I thought might cause some problems. I sent what was probably my second or third unsolicited PM as a heads up to that poster warning him/her it might cause them to have to listen to a bunch of shit. S/he answered back to say don't sweat it. I have no idea if it ever got alerted on or hidden. The earth continued on its path around the sun.

It's a kind and generous offer. If people demand you delete too much stuff, feel free to ignore their demands.

[MiddleFingerMom]

20. The problem that is so blatantly obvious is that you're leaving yourself vulnerable to the...

.
.
.
... "sensitivities" of someone who simply dislikes YOU instead of the content of your post.
.
.
.
You also leave yourself vulnerable to (perhaps) the lowest common denominator -- some
folks just take offense for the most inexplicable and/or unreasonable of reasons.
.
.
.
(edit to add) I was TS'ed once and re-instated after I had a chance to explain AND apologize
for the misunderstanding that was at the heart of the problem... and believe it or not, I've
only had ONE post hidden (and that was over 1200 posts ago) -- that was also based on
a misunderstanding and if the alerter had instead PM'd me, I would have explained both to
the alerter AND edited my post to make sure that there was NO chance whatsoever that
anyone else would interpret it as something that is not in my nature whatsoever.
.
If I got a PM request to remove something, I would consider it seriously -- but I wouldn't
NECESSARILY agree and change or remove it.
.
.
.

[Tobin S.]

23. I looked at your journal the other day

I think you let that hide get under your skin too much. It would be one thing if someone was on an alert campaign against you, but it looks to me as if you rarely get a post hidden.

[Kali]

37. I have missed some of this but I can say I know she has been alert stalked A LOT

and has had a bunch of hides - several in the space of about 15 minutes all in an argument with a subsequently banned troll.

[Tobin S.]

38. Her transparency page says less than 5 in the last 90 days

[Tuesday Afternoon]

39. That is not the whole story and if you really are that interested you may PM me.

[Major Nikon]

22. I just don't see that level of unreasonableness

And I'm not extending this offer to anywhere else but the Lounge. I just don't think any one of my Lounge posts is worth pissing anyone off. They just don't mean that much to me.

[vanlassie]

24. Reminds me of a quote I heard once

"Beware of the Willing To Be Offended"

[tinymontgomery]

26. You'll never get a PM from me

I lmao and look just to see what your putting out there. Keep up the good work.

[Odd Won Out]

27. As a long time lurker since 2004

the Lounge seems to have an ebb and flow, and right now seems to be a bit dominated by a just a few posters.
Don't know if this will turn into a long term trend, but I hope not.

The lounge, IMHO, was much better years ago.

As far as scatological high school humor, the more the merrier. That era is being mined by South Park, King of the Hill, Family guy, American Dad, and before that Beevis and Butthead and Ren and Stimpy.

I have enjoyed all of those shows, even though I hated Junior High, I did appreciate the humor.

[Denninmi]

28. Good Lord, we're all adults here.

I get kind of sick of the self-righteous attitude on some of the DU forums by some posters.

The Lounge is just a place to let loose. It can be juvenile. Some of us haven't gotten past those stages of life.

Some people just need to accept that fact and move on.

If the content posted in the DU Lounge is the biggest thing they have to worry about, they need to get a life.

[rug]

29. In the interest of maintaining Lounge standards, I have but one remark to that juror.

[Aristus]

31. Thanks, Major.

I agree about self-policing the Lounge. We should all be a little less willing to be offended, and a little more willing to have fun, and live and let-live.

I'm a true Lounge Lizard; I've spent more time here in 10 (going on 11!) years than I have in all of the other Forums combined.

It was more fun in times past, and could be again...

[Baitball Blogger]

32. This is the only place that makes me laugh regularly.

Leave it as it is.

[GoneOffShore]

34. To the Lounge come I fun to find.

Find it I do and often from your posts.

The Sisters and Brothers of the Church of Our Lady of the Perpetually Offended and their friends cannot lighten up for a minute.

It looks like most of them couldn't get a "Funny" if it bit them on their posterior parts.

[snooper2]

35. Meta see all know all LOL