An Alternative To Locking?

[benltrain]

I have seen many great discussions go down the drain because somebody will make a post that is off topic, and the moderator will lock it because of this.

Can't we just delete the posts that went out on a tangent or have a moderators note to get back on topic before we lock it down?

In addition, many people who are ridiculed for their posts (when they express behavior embarrasing to railfans, when they accused of being a terrorist or trouble-maker when they are trying to find specs for a route, etc..) just go ahead and make a new topic to explain the last and to defend themselves...


Also, can it be allowed for a person to send the moderator a PM asking to unlock the topic so they can explain why they did/said what they did/said? Will the topic be unlocked to avoid these repetitive threads?

thanks,
benltrain


P.S. I am not trying to ridicule rr.net, the moderators, or the site administratprs, and am not trying to be like a patrolman or something. I just am trying to see if there is a solution to this annoying problem.

[MEC407]

I can't speak for the site owners or the other moderators, but I can speak for myself: the only time I lock down a thread is if it gets severely off-topic or abusive/slanderous/libelous and the people involved refuse to follow the rules.

As far as deleting off-topic posts is concerned, that can get messy because then you get accused of censorship. I only delete posts if they are abusive/slanderous/libelous. And even then, people get upset because they think this is their personal space and that they have the right to say whatever they want. That's not how it works, and they'd know that if they'd bothered to read the rules.

[Otto Vondrak]

benltrain, did you get the answers you were looking for?

-otto-

[benltrain]

Moderators have their own different styles, but I think that locking topics that have potential, albeit an easier alternative, may kill a great potential discussion

[GOLDEN-ARM]

As a co-moderator, and moderator, I haven't felt the need to lock a topic. A PM, to the person "offending", or an interjection myself, with a post that steers the topic in direction of original discussion seems to work fine, for me. Your results, may vary. Regards