May 31, 2016

Can we get more guidance about the rules applicable to "general election season"?

Some of the Clinton supporters have exhibited what I hope are wildly exaggerated ideas about the "crackdown" they long for. There is of course the mass expulsion of Sanders supporters. I assume you're too smart to cater to that fantasy, and it won't matter because the worst of the Clinton zealots won't be able to do anything about their disappointment except whine in their protected group.

More serious is the restriction on post content. Based on alerts, hides, and complaining posts that I've seen, some of them think that anything remotely negative about Hillary Clinton is utterly unacceptable. If they think it's a restrictive rule, and they're wrong, they'll be firing off bogus alerts left and right, and getting some unjustified hides. If the rest of us think it's a permissive rule, and we're wrong, we might trigger hides or even PPRs.

You gave some helpful indication in this thread with this comment:

"Thoughtful" and "club" are terms that are in the eye of the beholder. A post like "The new revelation about Pagliano's testimony shows that Clinton knew she was acting wrongfully" might come in either category, or for that matter both. Would you elaborate on where you draw the line?

Another category that occurs to me is polling. To some Clinton supporters, it's "Trump-humping" to post anything that's discouraging to Clinton or encouraging to Trump. It might help if you make clear that this isn't the case. If XYZ Polling's early-September poll result is that Clinton's unfavorability has gone from 47% to 55%, I think we should be able to post that and discuss it. If it's not OK, well, it's your site and I'll abide by your rules, as long as I know in advance what they are.

I know there are few bright-line tests in this area, but thanks for any guidance you can give.