So are we allowed to make troll threads now?

[Kantor]

JayWood2010 said:

Kantor said:

Actually, it's in the rules. Rule 2 to be precise.

New Users. Because new users have not yet shown a commitment to civil discourse, moderators will look more harshly upon them (and upon prolific rule-breakers) than established users with relatively clear moderation histories. If you are a long-time member of the site, it is easy to tell the difference between a light-hearted, humorous post, and a genuine piece of flamebait. This distinction is far less clear when you are a new user, so we advise caution.

 

Trust me when I say that it is impossible to judge all people based on equal criteria because either you allow through every troll post and thread ever made, or you completely ban all forms of humour. Can you please explain what is wrong with this system without bringing in individual examples with which you are personally involved?

yes I can say what is wrong with this system.  Everybody should have the same rules applied to them regardless of how long they have been here.  It sets a bad example for new users and in my opinion makes this site looks bad at times.  so should i be able to speed in car in real life because cops have known me longer and that I haven't had a bad reputation?  No becuase it is still dangerous.  Same goes to this rule. If one person cant do it then why the others?  

You will certainly get a harsher sentence as somebody with a record of reckless driving.

But that's not the point. Posting threads is entirely about intent. There is no possible benign intent when you are driving a car.

Intent is a lot clearer for an established member with no record of trolling, both for us and for other users.

But more importantly in this case, the damage done by a thread is the flamewar that ensues from it, and the space it takes up that could be used for better threads. A thread which is genuinely amusing causes no flamewar and wastes no space.

Is that necessarily going to be one made by somebody accustomed to making those sorts of threads? No. But there's a very strong correlation.