The reason new posters have to wait before gaining the ability to start threads relates to spammers. In fact there is both a time threshold and a post threshold you have to hit (and we're not specific about the exact numbers in public also because of the spammer issue) before you can start your own thread. That said, the "start thread" button is visible when your viewing a forum (rather than a specific thread). It's a black rectangular button with white letters saying "Post New Thread" that's situated near the upper right corner of the forum.
I don't understand why I can't start a thread about a player who I think should be called up. I don't understand why you moderate content so closely. I would want a forum that ensures maximum participation. Sure a joke thread doesn't really fit on the site...ok. But if I want to talk about a soccer-related, USMNT-related topic, I should be able to. After all, it is the internet, right? Think of all the free time you'd have if you didn't police this so closely. And one more thing - you say to start threads of that nature "next door". I wouldn't be half as annoyed as I am if I knew where "next door" was. Is that a competing soccer website with less stringent posting guidelines?
See, THAT would be a good use of your time. Removing threads started by spammers, instead of preventing people from creating discussions. Do yourself a favor and don't tell people you moderate this website in job interviews. "We don't let people contribute to the website" isn't a big winner.
Next door is USA Men. Player-specific threads about people who are not yet in the USMNT mix are regularly moved there because the topic is so open-ended that the news/analysis threads for which this sub-forum is specifically dedicated would get pushed from the front page. The Adu threads alone, if we let them happen here, might be enough to do that. It's just an organizational/ease of use thing, rather like making sure books whose authors' names start with C don't get shelved in the T section.
Thanks for the advice. If I ever decide to move out my mom's basement and get a job, I'll keep that in mind.
I'm glad you guys bundled the "Trump's ban" threads. I'd be in favor of a permanent catch-all thread for political topics that have nothing to do with actual soccer.
Yeah, I'm wondering about the whole thing. Both MB and GB have confronted us with the fact that seeing soccer/sports as apolitical takes some work and perhaps a suspension of reality. And that's only the most recent version of it. That said, the current state of political discourse in the US today makes it hard to see any thread based on an overtly political topic fitting into the guidelines we have in the News and Analysis forum, since the brickbats start to fly almost from the get-go. The idea of moderating something like that is pretty daunting.
I see what you mean. I was just trying to figure a way to get politics away from the actual soccer stuff. Maybe in another forum altogether?
I have noticed users posting quite a bit of content from articles that I feel goes against the spirit of this rule/guideline. How much is too much content to quote? Seems like multiple paragraphs is too much to me. Post a few pertinent quotes(not paragraphs) and link the article. Seems shady to just link and post a good chunk of an article.
Yeah, it's been happening a fair amount lately. We've addressed it whenever we notice it (and tapped the poster on the shoulder) but it sounds like we're not seeing everything. Feel free to report the post. As DK says, it's not going to cause the poster a problem but it does give us a chance to reduce the amount of copied material.