Question.
Does this represent a specific change in policy or at least a change in the enforcement of this policy in regard to the Off-Topic forum?
I ask this because I have two pretty long running threads that are pretty liberal in content both of which have been in the Off-Topic forum for close to 6 months and each with over 500 replies.
It's been my impression that I have been allowed to keep these two threads running in this forum mainly because I've been able to keep the flaming to a minimum. I've been able to do this primarily because I simply blacklist those that from my point of view simply want to cause trouble as opposed to those that want to have an honest exchange of ideas.
I realize that how you define causing trouble and how you define an honest exchange of ideas may be different dependent on whether you are in the minority or the majority. Regretably when the shoe is on the other foot this often goes unrecognized.
I have long been on record as objecting to the Joe User site because it is intolerant of any opinion to the left of Ann Coulter. I have said this many times and each time it's been discounted by those whose opinion is to the right of Ann Coulter.
Regardless of opinion to the contrary there are only two ways to be acceptable on the Joe User site.
One is to be politically to the right of Ann Coulter in which case you will automatically get along just fine.
The second is to be politically to the left of Ann Coulter but also be an extreme masochist that enjoys being abused and is willing to lie down and be a doormat.
Anyone whose politics that are to the left of Ann Coulter that is unwilling to lie down and be a doormat will otherwise find themselves very unwelcome very quickly despite protestations by the majority to the contrary.
To me that makes Joe User a particularly unattractive site to visit.
I came to the GalCiv2 site close to 4 years ago and at that time it was a wonderful experience. Pretty much everyone was helpful and also most sites were pretty much in isolation which guaranteed that most folks on the site shared your same interests.
Over time interest in the game declined interest in the forums declined and the forums that existed got cross posted and slowly the GalCiv2 site has devolved into the Ott-topic/Impulse/Personal Computing forum.
So if you are really going to be insistent on enforcing this policy to the letter of the law as opposed to allowing threads that can manage to keep civility to a low roar then I gues I will have to say goodbye to the site. Perhaps things may change in the future with a GC3 but otherwise Joe User is an unacceptable alternative which as Aroddo mentions is Stardock's right. However don't delude yourself into believing that Joe User is a friendly place for non right wing non masochists to visit because it's most certainly not. Regardless of who says it is to the contrary.