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  • A little hypersensitivity from the mods.

    I've noticed that a few threads have been shut down and people chasened (in the most polite way) for what I believe to be the most PC of reasons. I've not kept track of which mods or threads so I'll just speak of themes.

    People have been told to withold racial* identification if it isn't relevant. The good posts give the information needed for the reader to form a picture in his mind. The people involved in the transactions aren't restroom door silouhetes. They have physical traits which frequently can be conveyed in a single racial label.

    A similiar attitude seems to be taken towards religeon. Religion is a choice, and everyones choices about everything are up to criticism.

    Trying to enforce the ethnic label of the week. Specifically objecting to the term "oriental". It just means "eastern", as in people from the eastern edge of the eurasian land mass. "Asian" is too broad a term. Asia is huge. Nobody refers to Ghandi, or Stalin as "Asian" even though they were from Asia.

    And finally one that applies to me. I am one of those people who gets nasty with telemarketers. The people called by them are not customers. Customers seek out the business, telemarketers interrupt peoples lives with no indication that they are interrested and no concern about what they might be doing at the time. Because of this their complaints aren't relevant here.

    *This is where people usually put disclaimers that they aren't a racist, which is bullshit. We all are to a certain degree. We just have to be aware of that and monitor our selves when we know we might be jumping to inappropriate conclusions.
    Proud to be a Walmart virgin.

  • #2
    It's the way we choose to run the board.

    I don't want people logging on, hoping to enjoy sharing tales of their horrific day at the counter, when they come across a post saying that everyone of their particular ethnic origin smells funny or are generally thieves etc. I want the board open for all.

    Religion - and other controversial subjects - can go to Fratching where it won't pollute this board with the inevitable fights. When I took over here, I didn't truly believe how nasty it could get. I know better now. That's why I spent money on the license for the spare board at Fratching.

    Telemarketers - where does that involve customers sucking? The people receiving the calls are the ones who are the potential customers. That post was made in the sucky customers section - I'm very seriously considering moving it to off topic, because it is off topic. Some forum members do work as telemarketers, or have done. I don't know anyone who has done so as a career choice ("Hey, I've got a career as a director of a company, but I want to downsize into telesales - what a splendid idea!") - it's either that or not paying the rent. They do what they have to to survive. They're doing a job that someone is willing to pay them to do, and they have to follow a certain script or be written up.

    Hey, how about screaming at a cashier who has to ask you if you want a store card when you go to the register? Same difference. They'll get written up if they don't make enough signings in a certain time, but it's head office who make that decision to have them try to push it on you, not them. Of course, it's fine to scream at them on the same logic, isn't it?

    Sure, telesales people could get other jobs. Since you think them so low, what other jobs would they be suited for? Prostitution, perhaps? They work as telesales because there's frag all else available that won't degrade them more.

    Do you really want to tell some of your fellow forumers that they are scum because of the job they had to take? Just think about the customers who demean counter staff because they're working in retail before answering that one.

    Raspcallion

    Comment


    • #3
      My apologies to the original poster in the thread in question - I'd not re-read it to see that you'd taken a job in that field. If I was going to move the thread, it would be to general work chat instead of off topic.

      I suppose it just adds weight to my argument that we're not here to attack each other, considering the above. If you want to ban telemarketing, contact your senator or other relevant politician. Leave it off here.

      Rapscallion

      Comment


      • #4
        Quoth Mark Healey View Post
        Trying to enforce the ethnic label of the week. Specifically objecting to the term "oriental". It just means "eastern", as in people from the eastern edge of the eurasian land mass. "Asian" is too broad a term. Asia is huge. Nobody refers to Ghandi, or Stalin as "Asian" even though they were from Asia.
        I believe the thread in which that issue came up was from a person who deals with racial bias ALL DAY LONG!!!
        The context in which she used the term was to report what she knew was a racist comment, only to have people jump on her and argue whether that term was racist or not.

        You know what? In that case, I didn't care to hear arguments about whether PC had run amok.
        I saw someone venting about a sucky customer, only to be shot down by the very people who are supposed to be offering support.

        As for the rest of your post, I think all of those things are covered in the site rules.
        Have you read them?
        http://www.customerssuck.com/board/showthread.php?t=190

        Quoth Rapscallion View Post
        <snip>

        2. Free Speech
        This site is owned, operated, and maintained by Rapscallion. While we do allow members to speak their minds the only person that actually has complete freedom of speech on Customers Suck! is Rapscallion. For those interested in the First Amendment, it doesn't cover private arenas and it doesn't cover servers that are not in the US. Take the hint.
        <snip>

        B. Enforcement

        1. Staff authority
        Customers Suck! moderators have absolute authority, and are granted unequivocal discretion at editing or striking any post; or warning, restricting, and banning members as necessary if a member breaks any of the rules of the board. Furthermore, Rapscallion has the right to do whatever he wishes. Remember, ownership has its privileges!
        <snip>

        2. No Offensive or Controversial Content
        Offensive and controverial content on this board includes derogatory comments directed at any particular race, religion, or sex; excessive profanity; lewd or lascivious posts; plus anything that the moderators may deem offensive to a significant number of our members.
        <snip>We could put up an extensive list of what is acceptable or not, but you have common sense so use it. If a moderator tells you that you are going over the limit of what we consider acceptable, it's a learning experience.
        <snip>


        9. Respect Other Members
        Please remember that for every member there is a human being behind the screen name. Please respect them. It's fine to disagree with another member's opinions; but if you choose to debate them, stick to the issue and do not resort to flames, personal attacks, or even grammar flames. If you feel that you couldn't say something directly to a person's face, then it's probably not a good idea to post it as a message. Also, bear in mind that this site is visited by people worldwide. There are people here of many different nationalities, backgrounds, races, religions. Please treat them with the same courtesy you would expect for yourself.
        <snip>
        Too tired of living and too tired to end it. What a conundrum.

        Comment


        • #5
          Before anything else, I have to say this: Ree, Raps, I must remember to follow my first rule of survival: Never piss the two of you off

          Seriously, I think the two of you answered things pretty thoroughly, but I'm going to throw in my two cents as just a reader/poster, not a moderator.

          Quoth Mark Healey View Post
          People have been told to withold racial* identification if it isn't relevant. The good posts give the information needed for the reader to form a picture in his mind. The people involved in the transactions aren't restroom door silouhetes. They have physical traits which frequently can be conveyed in a single racial label.
          However, what does mentioning the race do for the story? Saying that somebody is a wanna-be gangbanger provides enough detail, and leaves the race out entirely. Person could be black, white, Asian, or pygmy (for anybody that reads, enjoy the mental image of a pygmy being the wanna-ba gangbanger).

          Unless there is something specific that gets added, why bother adding it? If the person's physical appearance matters, it can be described. If their race genuinely matters, it can be named. It almost never matters.

          What's the point of mentioning it, except to reinforce stereotypes? We're supposed to be adults. Thinking people. Capable of making decisions based on actions, as opposed to appearances. Yes, appearances matter. For the purposes of helping people vent, very rarely do they matter.

          Now, take my comments above, and substitute religion for racism. They apply equally as well.

          Calling this complaint specious would be a disservice to specious complaints, since they can usually have some inkling of merit, somewhere.

          Quoth Mark Healey View Post
          Trying to enforce the ethnic label of the week. Specifically objecting to the term "oriental". It just means "eastern", as in people from the eastern edge of the eurasian land mass. "Asian" is too broad a term. Asia is huge. Nobody refers to Ghandi, or Stalin as "Asian" even though they were from Asia.
          I haven't seen this, but can understand the desire for it. A perfect example would be the use of the term "spic" instead of "Latino", or something similar. I've known people who throw out racial slurs like they're going out of style. I've done it myself when no other word is capable of describing how upset I am at someone of a different ethnicity.

          That doesn't make it right. And I don't say it to the person. Now, try to guess my ethnicity. Good luck. And keep in mind that any of those terms can be used to describe any number of people. And whatever ethnicity you are, there are negative names for that one, too. If you doubt me, tell me, and I'll give you a list of (at least) 10 words which you will not like which could be used to name your ethnicity.

          Leaving it out where possible, and using something non-offensive, is simply good manners. If you don't wish to use them, then I think you're going to have multiple run ins with the mods here. Good luck with that.

          Quoth Mark Healey View Post
          And finally one that applies to me. I am one of those people who gets nasty with telemarketers. The people called by them are not customers. Customers seek out the business, telemarketers interrupt peoples lives with no indication that they are interrested and no concern about what they might be doing at the time. Because of this their complaints aren't relevant here.
          Look: I've tried to do telemarketing, because there was no other job I could find. It sucks. If telemarketers so bother you, take this tactic:

          "I'm sorry, I'm not interested. Please place me on your do not call list. I'm hanging up the phone now. Good bye."

          Hang up, and walk away from it. While it's not the most courteous thing in the world, it doesn't make their day suck worse, and at least it lets them off the hook for how to deal with you.

          Finally, I have to say this: This is the only online community I've stayed with for more than a month since I stopped MUD'ding about 13 years ago. Every place else has seemed more hostile, and more prone to drama, than I wanted to deal with. If the mods took your suggestions to heart, I'd leave. Sure, my contributions aren't huge, but I've already posted (in just a few months) about 1/3 of what I've posted over on Slashdot, where I've been an active reader for about 10 years. That community is not very inviting. This one is.

          That being said, I genuinely hope the mods do not take your suggestions. They would degrade the quality of the forums seriously.

          Oh, and on another note: If you have a post which might violate site rules, send it in a PM to one of the mods. I've sent two of them. They gave me the go ahead for one of them, and the other they asked me not to post. It's not that difficult, and keeps everybody happier.

          Any mods out there: Thank you. You do a great job of keeping this board a place that I enjoy coming to.

          Comment


          • #6
            Quoth Mark Healey View Post
            And finally one that applies to me. I am one of those people who gets nasty with telemarketers. The people called by them are not customers. Customers seek out the business, telemarketers interrupt peoples lives with no indication that they are interrested and no concern about what they might be doing at the time. Because of this their complaints aren't relevant here.
            I just wanted to respond to this comment, if I may. I am not a telemarketer, but I do work in a call center and have to make outbound calls. I occasionally get ahold of someone at an inoportune time, or reach someone who should no longer be listed as a contact, and I get upset when I am treated horribly or cussed out, as I am simply doing my job.

            I'm perfectly ok with hanging up on telemarketers, and having a good time messing with ones who do not take no for an answer or call repeatedly, but I try to keep in mind that they are simply doing their job. I know far too many people who've been forced into the industry because they *needed* money and could not find another job, and I've heard many a horror story from people who couldn't handle the heat, but had to keep calling so they didn't get fired and end up broke or evicted.

            I think it's perfectly fine to all have our own opinions, but I do think it's fair for telemarketer types to be able to post their stories here--some of them can be quite funny, especially if they wind up calling some of my friends.
            "In the end I was the mean girl/or somebody's in between girl"~Neko Case

            “You don't need many words if you already know what you're talking about.” ~William Stafford

            Comment


            • #7
              You know I've been posting my stories here for a very long time. I have found that to convey the suckiness of an individual I rarely need to mention race. The only time(s) I've needed to was when at some point in the story the person actually pulled the "Race Card" on me.

              Heck, many times I don't even mention if the person was male or female. Recently in a thread of mine someone assumed that the SC of my story was a woman when, in fact, it was a man. Ultimately, it DID NOT MATTER- which is why I didn't mention it.

              Example:
              SC: "I demand a refund!"
              Me: "I'm sorry but that's new, opened product and I cannot do that."
              SC: "I'LL HAVE YOUR JOB!"
              Me: "Go blow yourself."

              This exchange never happened (I wouldn't say that to even the worst of SC's). But PLEASE tell me how knowing the color, sex, age, etc. of the person in this all too familiar tale helps the story any?

              It doesn't.

              I won't personally be adopting Mr. Healey's suggestions and if I were asked to by Raps I'd quit.

              Thank- You
              "I don't want any part of your crazy cult! I'm already a member of the public library and that's good enough for me, thanks!"

              ~TechSmith 314
              HellGate: London

              Comment


              • #8
                Quoth Mark Healey View Post

                Trying to enforce the ethnic label of the week. Specifically objecting to the term "oriental". It just means "eastern", as in people from the eastern edge of the eurasian land mass. "Asian" is too broad a term. Asia is huge. Nobody refers to Ghandi, or Stalin as "Asian" even though they were from Asia.

                *snippy*

                *This is where people usually put disclaimers that they aren't a racist, which is bullshit. We all are to a certain degree. We just have to be aware of that and monitor our selves when we know we might be jumping to inappropriate conclusions.
                This kind of hits a nerve to me. I'm sure it's not your intention, but the way this post was written sure could be taken as the "wink wink, nudge nudge, it's OK to be racist cause everyone does it" stuff that you tend to hear on certain kinds of talk radio programs. Anytime I see someone play the "PC" card my first impression is someone who's trying to justify some sort of racism.

                Also, the whole tone of "ethnic label of the week" smacks of intolerance as well. I've heard from more than one person of Asian descent that the term Oriental to describe a person is offensive. So it means "east", that doesn't matter. The N-word originates from the Spanish word for "black". You certainly wouldn't use that term would you?

                Besides, if you saw someone from the eastern regions of Russia or the former Soviet republics, you'd notice they do look ethnically similar to other Asians. Someone like Stalin who hails from the western side of Russia would be ethnically similar to other eastern Europeans. It's a straw man comparison if there ever was one.
                "You know, there are times when it's a source of personal pride not to be human." - Hobbes

                Comment


                • #9
                  Quoth Pedersen View Post
                  Before anything else, I have to say this: Ree, Raps, I must remember to follow my first rule of survival: Never piss the two of you off
                  Thanks, but I wasn't really "pissed off".

                  I just don't understand how a website that has lasted for close to 10 years and survived numerous hacks, maintaining the same basic philosophy throughout, can suddenly come under criticism for being hypersensitive.

                  The rules have been the same for as long as I can remember, with only very small tweaks and minor rewording of points to clarify issues or personalize them.

                  Many of those who complain about the philosophy joined this board already in progress, and should have known what to expect.
                  Reading of the rules is required in order to register, but as with many of the sucky customers we complain about, I suspect many just skim over them and blindly hit the "I accept" button, and then backtrack later to question the policies because they missed it the first time.

                  It's all very simple. You are free to dislike certain policies around here, but keep in mind that we don't adapt the board to suit the whims of a member just because they find it restricting. We expect the member to adapt their behaviour to suit the board.
                  Too tired of living and too tired to end it. What a conundrum.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    I like the rules and regs here. I agreed to them when I joined and do my utmost to follow them.
                    To complain about it after being a member for X amount of weeks, after reading the thousands of threads, and Mod comments - that's kinda sucky.
                    Let's face it - if this were a customer situation, where they agreed to something, lived with the agreement for a while, even had constant reminders about the contents of the agreement, and then they complain - everyone would be saying "what a SC!"
                    I like CS. I like that flame wars are not allowed. I like that people cannot slag off a certain race/religion/lifestyle choice etc. That is why I will stay here, and encourage other people to read and join.
                    That's my 2c.
                    The report button - not just for decoration

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      i just thought id pop in and let mr. healey know that not everyone is against him.

                      i agree on some points. i totally see the hypersensitivity he's referring to. but, as was pointed out, we're playing in Raps' backyard and have to follow his rules. because its only fun until someone loses an eye.
                      Kim: She's got one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel.

                      I'd like to exercise my constitutional right to not give a fuck.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        No site is perfect, personality conflicts and diagreements will always happen on a site this large. You cant make 100% of the people happy 100% of the time.
                        If I spent the time and money that Raps did on this site, I would run it differently but I dont, so I wont.
                        I applaud you for voicing your opinion though, not enough people stand up when they see something is wrong.
                        I wasnt put on this earth to make you feel like a man ~ Mary Bertone

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          As a side note, I do actually appreciate threads like this. There's an old adage saying that if people can't come to you with problems, you're not leading any more. I also follow a simple rule - I always listen to advice; I don't always take it, but I always listen to it.

                          We've got a set of rules that have been proven to work. I'm sure there are other styles that will work, but we're sticking with these for now, and I don't see us changing any time soon. I didn't have to tinker with the ones that Mr Slugger gave me very much to get what you see.

                          If you really want to break the rules down to something simpler - respect your fellow poster. I run another forum where that is the main rule, and it works, though it's very much a different place. Here, we have to be specific on many occasions. It's the nature of the place.

                          As another side note, as Ree said, I'm not angry. We try not to sweat the small stuff.

                          Rapscallion

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Quoth Mark Healey View Post
                            Trying to enforce the ethnic label of the week. Specifically objecting to the term "oriental". It just means "eastern", as in people from the eastern edge of the eurasian land mass. "Asian" is too broad a term. Asia is huge. Nobody refers to Ghandi, or Stalin as "Asian" even though they were from Asia.
                            If it ever became policy to *not* step in when people are posting racist comments, I wouldn't come back. You are referring to an incident that started in one of my stories, and I stand by what I said the first time. I am not dumb or hypersensitive, I am very well aware that many people (most of them baby boomers or older) don't realize that Oriental is impolite and truly don't mean any offense when they say it. I understand that. My friends and coworkers of Asian decent all understand it, and to their credit they are always gracious when someone accidentally uses it.

                            However, when someone who is already behaving like a douchebag positively *sneers* about the "Oriental" that examined him, what else are you supposed to think?

                            We have 5 doctors on staff right now. One Japanese female (an owner), one Laotian female, one Thai female, one Afghani male, one Caucasian male. (Also an owner.)

                            I also have a lot of coworkers, all of us female. Some are Caucasian, some aren't. I am mixed myself, although you'd never guess otherwise by looking at me.

                            That said, I've heard many, MANY more racist and/or sexist comments about the people I work with than I ever would have expected coming in to this place. I know that the idiots who frequent our office from day to day are just that, idiots, and for the most part I am forced to deal with them on a daily basis. I've always been able to log on to CS and laugh about it at the end of the day with people I care about, people who have been there and done that. We've ALL had to deal with a racists at one point or another, but up until recently I've never had trouble with my threads turning into off topic bitchfests by people who completely missed the whole point of the story to begin with. As it is, I have already resolved to not post anymore stories dealing with racism anymore (unless it's a REALLY good one) because frankly, if I want a headache I'll go back to work.

                            This is where people usually put disclaimers that they aren't a racist, which is bullshit. We all are to a certain degree.
                            Nope. I can honestly assure you that I am not the least bit racist. I judge behavior and behavior ONLY. If you are incapable of doing so yourself, that's unfortunate. Racists are douchebags. They ALL are, "to a certain degree."

                            We just have to be aware of that and monitor our selves when we know we might be jumping to inappropriate conclusions.
                            So, did you consider monitoring *yourself* before posting this thread, then? I'm guessing not.

                            And finally,

                            And finally one that applies to me. I am one of those people who gets nasty with telemarketers. The people called by them are not customers.... Because of this their complaints aren't relevant here.
                            Besides pointing out that Raps and his mods alone are the ones to decide what is and is not relevant here, I'd like to share the following link with you. This link can also be used by every other lame ass who has been rude to the telemarketing members of CS over the last few days.

                            https://www.donotcall.gov/default.aspx


                            THERE. Sign up and be flipping done with it, already. If *any* of you are too lazy to do so at this point, that is your failing and yours alone. Either way, if you still insist on bragging about your rude behavior, you would be wise to keep it to yourself. Only assholes would be impressed by it, and why would you even *want* their approval anyway?
                            "This is the first time I've seen you look ugly, and that makes me happy!"

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Wow JuniorMintz, ITA 100% Excellent post. I also like it here, and I think the rules are very fair. I love coming here and reading the stories and feeling that you can express opinions without a flame war starting

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