Poll: Thought on political and otherwise off topic chatter

[statler]

Hey guys,

This is just an informal poll. I'm not asking as a moderator and nothing will change as result of this poll. I'm honestly just curious what most people here think.

Does the political & off topic chatter in non-political threads bother you? Would moving posts or reprimanding posters bother you more? Is there a happy middle ground somewhere?

 

[Ron Newman]

I vote for quietly moving posts (as is done now from time to time). It avoids 'reprimanding' and keeps the discussion going for those who like that sort of thing.

This also works for any sort of off-topic disgression, for instance if a side discussion about Lowell starts to take over a thread about the Seaport District.

 

[datadyne007]

I vote for quietly moving posts (as is done now from time to time). It avoids 'reprimanding' and keeps the discussion going for those who like that sort of thing.

This also works for any sort of off-topic disgression, for instance if a side discussion about Lowell starts to take over a thread about the Seaport District.

Ron took the words out of my mouth. Architecture, urban planning and infrastructure go hand in hand with the political climate. The discussions just need to be moved out of threads. I'm more than willing to help (i notice these off topic discussions and report them all the time) if the current moderators feel this is too much of a burden on them. Ultimately it will make this forum even better than it already is.

 

[vanshnookenraggen]

I appreciate the organic nature of these discussions so I usually just move them to their own thread once they grow too big. It's just like gardening.

 

[BostonUrbEx]

Splitting topics/moving posts, and putting them to General is the best way to go. It's only natural that politics come into our discussions, especially in Boston/Massachusetts, where everyone is crooked and bribing to get things done (or not done).

The Occupy stuff is getting a bit old though, even if I have participated on occasion.

^ I like Van's post.

 

[statler]

The thing is, lately a lot of the chatter doesn't really doesn't even seem 'organic' It feels forced.

A few people have an axe to grind or bone to pick and godamnit they're going to shoehorn it into whatever conversation seems to be the most active.

That's what gets me.

 

[Beton Brut]

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS:

It's impossible to have an intelligent discussion about the built environment in Greater Boston if politics, public policy, socioeconomics, labor unions, and racial issues are off the table. Each issue is a facet of a larger object. The parameters of the discourse make us who we are, and sadly, anchor us in a cycle of bad decisions and worse reactions. You'll find this is the case from what we do about a vacant lot to what we fail to do about regional-level transportation planning.

For my money, the most frequent result of intellectual curiosity about what Greater Boston is, and what it could be, is bitterness.

HOUSEKEEPING:

Maybe this is a netiquette issue? For instance, if a poster has something valuable to offer in the Filene's thread, but the post is tangential to actual development (i.e. the Menino Administration's incompetence) start a new thread on that topic, and link to that new thread with a brief contextualizing post in the Filene's thread: "I think this is Da Mayahz fault; read more about what I think here."

Or maybe that's too much work...

 

[statler]