Permanently Banned from Rugby Forum for No Reason

MongotheBongo

I am a new user who has been posting for probably less than 3 weeks almost exclusive in the rugby forum.

When I first joined I was banned straight away then unbanned without explanation. I was then banned again for one post and when I enquired about it I was then unbanned again.

Today I was permanently banned by a user called awec stating that I 'trolling' and that he had had 'enough of it'

Here is the post that got me permanently banned

"What a performance!! Munster are now favourites to lift the cup in my opinion after such a dominant display (the bookies seem to agree). That Edinburgh said was a very good one despite what others will have you think and to beat them so convincingly while playing such (dare I say it) 'Joe Schmidt Style' rugby was simply fantastic!! Zebo is now a cert for the Irish jersey alongside Tommy O'Donnell who completely outperformed Chris Henry on the weekend that mattered.

Great to see Munster are back in the ascendency, it had been a tough few years but Heineken Cup glory once again beckons."

The post was in response to Munster qualifying for a home quarter for the Heineken Cup.

Now admitedly I can see how saying Tommy O'Donnell had outperformed Chris Henry (an Ulster player) may be considered offensive for Awec (an Ulster mod) but even then its a bit OTT.

Awec is a great contributer from what little I've seen and I don't want to insult him or the people who put him in charge but I just think in this instance he's getting a bit too emotional and I've been unfairly banned.

I would like someone from a neutral position to look at my posts in the rugby forum in the hope I will have this over turned.

Beasty

Firstly this thread is only to discuss your ban and whether it's warranted, and not for you to make comments about individual moderators or the way in which a particular forum is moderated

Secondly, have you discussed your ban with the mod who banned you, as set out in the chart above? That's the first step before starting a thread here. If you cannot resolve this between you then you can start an appeal thread which one of the Sports CMods will then look at

MongotheBongo

Yes, I am now starting an appeal.

Beasty

OK

I'm currently out of the country with limited access. I'll try and get onto this over the next day or so

MongotheBongo

Beasty wrote: »

OK

I'm currently out of the country with limited access. I'll try and get onto this over the next day or so

Hey,

any update?

Beasty

OK, I've been having a look at your posts since you joined the site 11 days ago

In total you have posted 19 times in the Rugby forum. Your first post set the tone - praising Munster in a way that implied some kind of superiority over the other provinces. That in itself alerted the local mods that you may have signed up to troll the forum. It's rare for someone to start posting in such a manner with such confidence (and indeed arrogance)

Every post thereafter was more of the same - claiming Munster had qualified from the "Group of Death", that Munster players should dominate the Irish team, and how superior Munster and its players were to the other provinces and their players. Essentially you took every opportunity to praise your team and raised the ire of other posters with your posting "style". That in itself led to mod interventions on a number of occasions. Essentially the mods had to keep an eye on every post you were making because of the reactions the style (and indeed content) of your posting was getting.

You will have seen from the in-thread warnings and indeed comments made directly to you that the mods were clearly of a view that your were trolling - ie looking to get a reaction with your posts that did not add very much to any "discussion". To be clear the whole mod team was behind your banning, and I have seen examples of 4 different mods stepping in to issue in-thread warnings or delete poste made by yourself or posters reacting to your posts

Now I do not know if you posted in this way deliberately to get reactions, but I do know that's exactly what happened. In a very short period you came across as an out and out troll and the mods had to act. If you wish to re-gain posting privileges it can only be on the basis that you provide assurances over your future posting within the forum. Basically it needs an acknowledgment over what was wrong with the way you posted, and an assurance that you will temper your style. There is nothing wrong in praising your team, but don't do it in a way that is in the face of supporters of other teams (it even wound up other Munster supporters). Contribute to discussions rather than simply make statements of praise for your team and its players to the detriment of others.

If you can provide such assurances, I will discuss with the mods if there is a way you can regain posting privileges. Even if we do agree to lift the ban though you will be on probation, and further posts of a similar nature to the ones that triggered this ban will result in it being immediately re-instated without further warning.

MongotheBongo

O.K fine I will not praise my team as much. I didn't think I broke any rules per se but if saying that my team was the strongest team in Ireland on the basis of it being top of the league table is considered trolling then I wont repeat it.

By the way, if an Arsenal fan said Arsenal are now the strongest team in England, would that be considered trolling and a bannable offence?????

Beasty

It wasn't the fact that you said that Munster are the best team, but that you repeated it (or words to that effect) with pretty much every post. Likewise, praising a player is fine (when warranted) but don't do it in a way to put down other players - it antagonises other posters and builds up inter-provincial rivalry which has been a curse within the Rugby forum

Ultimately this is a discussion site - we are here to have reasoned debates about things. Yes we can get excited when our team does well, but there needs to be a bit more substance to your own posting.

Do you see where I am coming from? Please shout up if you don't as I would not want you to make the same mistakes again

MongotheBongo

Beasty wrote: »

It wasn't the fact that you said that Munster are the best team, but that you repeated it (or words to that effect) with pretty much every post. Likewise, praising a player is fine (when warranted) but don't do it in a way to put down other players - it antagonises other posters and builds up inter-provincial rivalry which has been a curse within the Rugby forum

Ultimately this is a discussion site - we are here to have reasoned debates about things. Yes we can get excited when our team does well, but there needs to be a bit more substance to your own posting.

Do you see where I am coming from? Please shout up if you don't as I would not want you to make the same mistakes again

But I did add substance did I not? I explained why I thought Munster were the best (league and heineken cup position), I explained why Munster players should be ahead of other provinces (highest ranking Irish team so naturally the players should make up bulk of squad)

I don't think I put down any players? I mentioned my Irish lineup and had some Munster players ahead of other provinces players but then I explained why and if I can't discuss weaknesses in the games of other players in order to explain why I want another player pickled ahead of him then how do I add substance to my opinions which otherwise would be considered trolling????

Out of interest, do you think the banning was harsh?

Beasty

I'm not going to the trouble of going through all your posts again just to quote them here. There is a very common theme to them all, and if you check them out you will see in many cases mod responses to other posters who rose to the bait

Do I think your ban was harsh? - absolutely not. You came across as an out and out troll. I've explained fully in this thread to you why. I am not sure of the extent of your intention to do so though, which is the only reason I am considering giving you a second chance. So do you accept the terms I set out above (and to be clear this will be a lifting of the ban under probation - not an overturning of it)? If so, I can go ahead and do so. If not your ban remains in place and you can ask for an Admin review

MongotheBongo

O.K but to be clear does this mean I cannot post anything that praises Munster? Or do you mean I shouldn't make a pattern of praising Munster?

Beasty

Praise when it's due, and within reason, but not at every opportunity in a way that is likely to wind up other posters.

If I were you I would simply keep a lower profile for a while. Read some of the threads and how they evolve and get a better feel for the forum

I'll lift the ban now - any further clarification can be dealt with via PM