a new forum topic suggestion

[rifak]

i just recently read a thread that got closed because someone posted a video that is based in politics and was wondering what the big deal is with not being able to talk politics? i understand that in certain forums (ie. Community Cafe, General Help, and all others that are strictly computer related) but why not just create a thread that we can talk about politics, religion, and anything that "you shouldn't talk about with your neighbors"?

i think it would be kind of cool to have something like that. it would be interesting to see the varying views of all us ubuntu/linux users out there. obviously they will all be different, just like any other community, but it would be interesting to have discussions like that in a place where computer people are gathered into one area. i don't know, i would like to see something like that come into play.

[subdivision]

Political discussion is a great way to get people wound up which is not what they want here.

[sideaway]

politics and religion fuel too many flamers.

[K.Mandla]

why not just create a thread that we can talk about politics, religion, and anything that "you shouldn't talk about with your neighbors"?
Because those threads never do anything except irritate and inflame.

Politics and religion (and if I had my way, anything not Linux- and/or technology-related) should be discussed elsewhere on the Internet ... in my opinion, of course.

[ynnhoj]

wasn't there, once upon a time, a forum serious discussions, debates, etc..? but some people couldn't keep it civil, so the forum went away..

[Hyporeal]

Intellectual discussions of politics and religion are culturally forbidden in the US. Otherwise thoughtful Americans adopt a tribal attitude when discussing these topics. It would be like having a discussion about who should win the Super Bowl based on philosophical principles. It is possible, but not to be expected. As I see it, closing such threads is a sound preemptive measure.

[Perfect Storm]

wasn't there, once upon a time, a forum serious discussions, debates, etc..? but some people couldn't keep it civil, so the forum went away..

yep.
We tried countless times and with many adjustment to get it to work. But in the end it was too time consuming to run it. It got abused and when moderated we had them in resolution center moaning about free speech.

[JDShu]

Intellectual discussions of politics and religion are culturally forbidden in the US.

I am reminded of Dave Chappelle's stand up on this topic. Great stuff.

[RabbitWho]

Politics always makes me stop liking or respecting people who are perfectly nice.

There are other places to argue about politics, I like the atmosphere here and the people, if people get a bad experience on one part of the board they might be more reluctant to help people on another.

I don't want to see someone who I can help and think "Oh no, that's the racist guy, I'm not helping him." Which is exactly what would happen.. I want to be nice to everyone.

[rifak]

I don't want to see someone who I can help and think "Oh no, that's the racist guy, I'm not helping him." Which is exactly what would happen.. I want to be nice to everyone.

that is a very good point...i actually am reconsidering my original post because of this.

[ladypcer]

No, because even people that work great as a team, will get hard feelings when politics or religion is discussed.

[Copernicus1234]

It will only make people angry. Lets keep a positive mood here in this forum.

[nothingspecial]

There`s people here who (cough cough :-\")can`t even have a civil discussion about other linux distros.

Never mind politics and religion.

[rifak]

There`s people here who (cough cough :-\")can`t even have a civil discussion about other linux distros.

Never mind politics and religion.

haha yes...very true

[Chronon]

There are already many forums that people can visit to partake in debate of this sort.

[Newuser1111]

I think there used to be one but it got closed.

[overdrank]

Moved to Forum Feedback & Help

[bapoumba]

We have been down that road before, and had a sub-forum for politics/religious/personal enlightenment related stuff. It rarely was a happy place and was a pain to moderate. Serious.

[schauerlich]

It rarely was a happy place

Clearly you aren't a fan of pink ponies. :)

[bapoumba]

Clearly you aren't a fan of pink ponies. :)
I was not indeed :)
Not because of the content, because discussions would often degenerate and spill over the help forums. It was bringing in more division than united spirit. Moderating the Ponies was time consuming, very much time consuming.

[schauerlich]

I was not indeed :)
Not because of the content, because discussions would often degenerate and spill over the help forums. It was bringing in more division than united spirit. Moderating the Ponies was time consuming, very much time consuming.

I meant the pretty miniature horses, hence the present tense. :)

[lisati]

As fascinating as religion and politics can be, passions already run high enough at times without adding to the workload the moderators and other admin staff already face.

[bapoumba]

I meant the pretty miniature horses, hence the present tense. :)
I was not too fond of girlie stuff, and now have 3 young boys at home, does not help, doe it :tongue:

In the email notification, it was the past tense, you are confusing me :)

[schauerlich]

I was not too fond of girlie stuff, and now have 3 young boys at home, does not help, doe it :tongue:

In the email notification, it was the past tense, you are confusing me :)

I realized the ambiguity and fixed it right after I posted. I'm a tricky one.

[rifak]

Except that these forums are the "meeting place" of the Ubuntu community. Not everyone is so obsessed with computers that they want to talk tech 24/7 :rolleyes:

your username is amazing...kudos to you my friend haha

[HappinessNow]

The numbers speak for themselves:


http://ubuntuforums.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=128200&d=1252658723http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1261068

[bapoumba]

The numbers speak for themselves: <snipped img>
We also speak for ourselves :)
You are welcome to open and maintain forums that fit your needs.