Opinion on deleting threads

Threads are already moved to such a private forum.

Yep, sometimes you'll see them moved to electric ladyland. that's the forum.

Yes, we do have a private forum that questionable threads end up in while we debate whether or not to delete them or put them back into circulation. It is called Electric Ladyland. The thread in question never went to EL because the mods DID see the merit in the thread and wanted it to continue. It was a VERY interesting thread! So, it was left there in the hopes that members would "self moderate" and keep it civil. In this case, that didn't happen and, even though I, personally, didn't even see what the final posts were that caused it to be deleted, the mod who deleted it did so because he felt that it had gotten so far out of control that there was no saving it.

We very rarely delete ongoing threads. I think the last one was more than a year ago. Usually we only delete those posts using foul language, those that do not pertain to music, those that are political or religious or just plain mean or spam. When we do delete an ongoing thread, it's not just on a whim. The thread has been monitored, mods poke their heads in every once in a while just as a reminder to keep things civil, and members are given every chance to moderate themselves. When these things don't work anymore, then, and only then, is the thread deleted.

I hope this helps everyone to understand a bit more about what we do behind the scenes. We're not vindictive or spiteful people out to destroy threads or censor thoughts and ideas. We're just people trying to keep this the best forum on the web!

Well actually I am spiteful and vindictive, but not here on guitarnoise.

It was a VERY interesting thread! So, it was left there in the hopes that members would "self moderate" and keep it civil. In this case, that didn't happen...
I agree, it was very interesting, and I hope everybody knows how to "self moderate" his/her opinions and the way in which they are expressed. IMHO you always can express your opinions if you use the correct way and sometimes, I sadly agree, it does not occur here.

Well actually I am spiteful and vindictive, but not here on guitarnoise

:D LOL! :D

I don't think that is an accurate depiction of events....is it?

I have to disagree with you, Neztok. Rahul didn't "see" anything. Rahul made some offensive remarks that I deleted in a different thread, but I did not delete the thread. It is not up to Rahul (or anyone else) to tell other members what should or should not be discussed. If two people wish to discuss something, it is not up to Rahul (or anyone else) to decide whether or not it is a worthwhile topic. In typical Rahul fashion, he chose to, once again, stick his foot in his mouth and, when called on the carpet for it, he chose to "Sign off for some months now", as he has done in the past when called on the carpet and will most likely do again in the future when someone disagrees with his statements. This is just Rahul. We have come to know him and to expect that from him so it was no surprise when he did it yet again.

The only thing I saw in that thread that could be considered making fun of Rahul by a mod was the one that gave him 36 hours before he returned again. That is not belittling. It is what we have come to know and expect from Rahul over the past couple of years. It is his pattern, if you will. He threatens to go away for "months" and shows up again a few days later. And, that's all there was to that.

And, when he gets over being mad, he'll be back and he will be welcomed.

Rahul was criticizing the thread about music and gender, which was completly meritless. Everything was civil in that thread. And then, for reasons unbeknownst to the forum, he declared GN retirement for some period.

And, no one made fun or belittled - it was more like "Rahul, there is nothing wrong with this thread, take a chill pill homey." Personally, I took several chill pills; I usually do anyways.

Rahul was criticizing the thread about music and gender, which was completly meritless. Everything was civil in that thread.

I agree 100%

re: Maliciant's suggestion and the music you don't like thread:

I usually do either lock threads or move them to the holding bay. This time, however, I didn't but probably should have. There were issues with a couple of threads and I decided instead to delete the thread. There were a couple of inflammatory comments toward the end of the thread. It might well have been more prudent to remove the thread temporarily or to lock it, but given the potential for the topic to continue to invite quarreling for a small minority of the participants, I decided to delete it. But when some posters bait one another, it makes a lot of work for the mods. We really do work hard to keep the discussions friendly. Again, we intervene not because of the opinions expressed but because of the manner in which they are expressed. (Remembering, of course, that certain topics -- politics, religion, etc-- are off limits for O & P. It's a forum for opinions and polls about music).

Thanks for the suggestion. It's a good one.

You know, when I first saw that thread (gender thread) I didn't think it had a chance either.

But, what you (and Rahul, especially) need to know is that when a thread has no merit, i.e., no one really cares about it one way or the other, it tends to fade away into the background and is never seen again. It dies a very natural death. The thread that Rahul attempted to kill after the initial post has gone on and is up to 3 pages now. I have no doubt that it will eventually die it's own natural death, as do virtually all threads, but it piqued enough interest to carry it through 3 pages of responses, so he had no right to try to kill it out of hand, simply because he didn't like (or didn't understand) the topic. He should have ignored it and spent his time on posts that he DID find "worthy".

And, that's my last word on Rahul.

Oops, didn't mean for this to rehash all the issues of the thread I sadly missed, just thought because of what was said that the mods here weren't using another forum to stash posts vs deletion. I've run into at least one post that was shown as moved but then reported an error trying to click on so I assume that is it, the forum name that a post is moved to never seems to be shown.

It possibly was moved to Electric Ladyland. Members can't access those until they are placed back into a forum. If it has been moved just from one forum to another, then you shouldn't have a problem accessing it.