Quote:
Originally Posted by beppe
why should they? posts without reply or comments are not that exciting. If there is a pattern, lurkers and new comers are likely to discern it. On MR people tend to be intelligent and cultured.  |
This is to my mind an accurate statement, but in practical terms it requires not a tendency but for a unanimity that is not going to happen. It is along the lines of the Religion and Politics guideline - it is not a tendency for polite discussion that is being guarded against, but for the almost inevitable impolite posts outside any such tendency. There will be people compelled to post their response and offense at a comment they perceive to be offensive, and there is often, by definition, no way to be
certain that the offending comment is not a genuinely-held view rather than a trolling one. And once that kicks off...
Membership terms are often not good guides, seeing as we fairly regularly have legitimate, longterm members being accused of "trolling". It's why I personally don't think, in most cases, that "trolling" is a useful accusation to make in-thread. It's usually an obstruction to continued constructive discussion. This is not to say trolling is okay, but rather, like spamming, I think it's best reported via the "!" button (along with any extra info or supporting posts). It's no end of help in Star Chamber discussion.