Originally Posted by
BIRMANBOY
What a wonderful world that would be...one where you could rely on people to do the right thing all the time. As much as most of us try ..the reality is that people are imperfect beings and that shows up in the occasional flare up in even the politest of society's. Rules are useful in reminding those with short memories and fuses that certain behaviours are counter productive and will not be tolerated. 95% of posters are probably fine but why should the aberrant 5% be permitted to take undue advantage. This is why there needs to be someone moderating and acting as an impartial referee. Problem then of course is that in any dispute the "aggrieved" party questions the parentage and motives of the referee. So it is imperative that the rules are simple, accepted by all participants prior to engagement and simple and obvious for the referee and or umpire to get it right. Bad rules are almost as bad as no rules. I'm not saying the ST rules are bad ..what I'm saying is that when you get situations like this its crucial to look at underlying causes. If people understand the rules and transgress there is no comeback available so moderation is expected and accepted. When there is too much room for interpretation, then there is possible comeback and transgressors have themselves a platform.