How about a rule against campaigning

[Steve]

Originally Posted by jviehe

As I said, its in my sig. Thats what sigs are for. You can turn them off though. I do.

So what? You're still promoting a political ideal.

It just happens to be one you agree with, so it's okay, right?

[Traveler]

Originally Posted by Malvolio

It's still campaigning. And once we are down to two candidates, "don't vote for candidate A" is pretty much the same as "vote for candidate B", isn't it?

I'll put this in a different context, say during the Clinton impeachment years (or the equivellant today) someone had joined up and said "Sign this pettition to show your contempt of this abonimable President" would you let that slide? That would be the equivellant on the other side imo. Showing anger at one person doesn't mean any sort of solicitation like say telling people to vote for someone. Signing a petition in favor oragainst someone is solicitation imo, and the forum would already have some sort of a diclaimer barring that sort of behavior, no?

[Speakeasy]

Originally Posted by Traveler

I'll put this in a different context, say during the Clinton impeachment years (or the equivellant today) someone had joined up and said "Sign this pettition to show your contempt of this abonimable President" would you let that slide? That would be the equivellant on the other side imo. Showing anger at one person doesn't mean any sort of solicitation like say telling people to vote for someone. Signing a petition in favor oragainst someone is solicitation imo, and the forum would already have some sort of a diclaimer barring that sort of behavior, no?

That would be removed as spam. We usually consider spam to be:

• Someone attempting to sell a service or product
• Someone making an account for the sole purpose of getting people to visit another website.
• Someone copying and pasting the same message across multiple forums.

Of course, those are very general ways to recognizing spam. There are exceptions to the rule, as well. It's not considered spam if a regular user starts a thread saying "Hey, this site is pretty cool and might interest some of you...", especially if the poster is in no way connected with the site they're promoting.

[jviehe]

Originally Posted by Steve

So what? You're still promoting a political ideal.

It just happens to be one you agree with, so it's okay, right?

Have I ever suggested we should censor signatures? We are talking about two different things. Signatures are for whatever you want. Creating new threads is to spur a discussion.

[AjaxPress]

Originally Posted by jviehe

Have I ever suggested we should censor signatures? We are talking about two different things. Signatures are for whatever you want. Creating new threads is to spur a discussion.

I noticed that it's mostly neocons trying to squash free speech. Ron Paul wouldn't tolerate that.

Uh-oh now jviehe is going to campaign to have me banned

[RectusCapitus]

Kind of hard not to discuss politicians when discussing politics. And if you discuss politicians, you are most likely going to talk up your favorites while dissing the ones you don't like.

[jviehe]

Originally Posted by AjaxPress

I noticed that it's mostly neocons trying to squash free speech. Ron Paul wouldn't tolerate that.

Uh-oh now jviehe is going to campaign to have me banned

This is a private forum, there is no free speech here.

[jviehe]

Originally Posted by RectusCapitus

Kind of hard not to discuss politicians when discussing politics. And if you discuss politicians, you are most likely going to talk up your favorites while dissing the ones you don't like.

And I have no problem with that when it part of a debate. My only problem is when a post does not contribute to a discussion, but only says "Vote for Candidate X!"

example - Ron Paul Rocks

[Tethys]

Originally Posted by jviehe

And I have no problem with that when it part of a debate. My only problem is when a post does not contribute to a discussion, but only says "Vote for Candidate X!"

example - Ron Paul Rocks

Jviehe, why are you getting so worked up about this?

I know my views as an outsider might not count for much, and I join this discussion with some reservations. But I hope my thoughts will be taken as coming from a good sentiment.

I think the US elections are exciting. One of the aspects of US politics I find the most marvellous is the passion of Americans in campaigning for the candidate or party they support. Truly. You are over a year away from the 2008 Presidential elections, and already the citizenry is actively engaged in debates, rallies and other forms of activities to support the candidate of their choice.

In 2004, I watched, captivated, the coverage of the Republican and Democratic National Conventions, astonished by the energy of the speakers and the party faithfuls.

I have my favourite candidate for the US 2008 elections (and it’s not Ron Paul). But I find it just fascinating to observe the animated discussions on this board around all the candidates. And for me, the “Vote for Candidate x” campaigning threads, such as the one you cite, are very much part of my insight into how Americans engage in the political life of their country. It shows the US in a positive light by demonstrating democracy in action. It counteracts the perception that Americans are apathetic about politics. So what if the OP just kicks off with a campaign slogan? There’s an election on, and people are right into it. That’s what matters.

So, jviehe, please think over your proposal here. I think the forum rules already give enough leeway to the mods to deal with the kind of spam threads that can be expected to be posted in the election campaign period. I don’t feel it is necessary to extend these rules in the way you suggest.

Tethys

[AjaxPress]

Originally Posted by jviehe

This is a private forum, there is no free speech here.

Why do you think people who have opinions different from yours should be silenced?

[jviehe]

Originally Posted by AjaxPress

Why do you think people who have opinions different from yours should be silenced?

I dont.

[jviehe]

Originally Posted by Tethys

Jviehe, why are you getting so worked up about this?

I know my views as an outsider might not count for much, and I join this discussion with some reservations. But I hope my thoughts will be taken as coming from a good sentiment.

I think the US elections are exciting. One of the aspects of US politics I find the most marvellous is the passion of Americans in campaigning for the candidate or party they support. Truly. You are over a year away from the 2008 Presidential elections, and already the citizenry is actively engaged in debates, rallies and other forms of activities to support the candidate of their choice.

In 2004, I watched, captivated, the coverage of the Republican and Democratic National Conventions, astonished by the energy of the speakers and the party faithfuls.

I have my favourite candidate for the US 2008 elections (and it’s not Ron Paul). But I find it just fascinating to observe the animated discussions on this board around all the candidates. And for me, the “Vote for Candidate x” campaigning threads, such as the one you cite, are very much part of my insight into how Americans engage in the political life of their country. It shows the US in a positive light by demonstrating democracy in action. It counteracts the perception that Americans are apathetic about politics. So what if the OP just kicks off with a campaign slogan? There’s an election on, and people are right into it. That’s what matters.

So, jviehe, please think over your proposal here. I think the forum rules already give enough leeway to the mods to deal with the kind of spam threads that can be expected to be posted in the election campaign period. I don’t feel it is necessary to extend these rules in the way you suggest.

Tethys

Im not getting worked up. I simply made a request to eliminate spam posts. If the mods dont like it so, be it.

[moon]

jviehe;

Campaigning for votes is equivalent to spam to me.

I couldn't agree more. Actually supporting any of these persons is akin to flogging toothpaste and hair oil.