Will you petition to reinstate Dibley/Sophief?

If she truly was not in violation of the terms of service and was obeying all the guidelines, then she shouldn’t have gone. I’d petition for her. This is coming from someone who has not always gotten along with the lass, too. It shouldn’t be personal.

What the hell happened to this site?

I’d like to see her here :)

I’m not sure what happened, but she never seemed like a troll to me.

I was not a fan of Sophief. However, if (and that is a big if in my mind) she was banned for little or no reason, I would want her reinstated.

That said, it is not like the moderators to ban someone for no reason.

I am also not sure that the rest of the membership is entitled to an explanation when someone has been banned. That individual’s privacy would possibly be an issue in not issuing an explanation to everyone.

Perhaps the best thing would be for you to contact Sophief outside of Fluther and ask her if she cares to share why she was banned.

She never personally attacked anyone, spammed or trolled the site, so yes, I’d like to see her come back. I honestly don’t think she wants to though. It’s sad that she got banned, but the users who constantly harassed her and her questions didn’t even get a slap on the wrist. I wouldn’t want to come back either after that.
If you didn’t like her questions, that’s fine, but ignoring them would have been a better option then treating her like shit.

I’ve never supported censorship. I’m not going to support it now. Bring her back.

I trust the moderators, and I think it verges on paranoia to imagine that they would ban someone with no good reason. I often do and say things that are offensive to the mods, and have had my account suspended, and I have always received a reasonable, thoughtful, polite explanation as to why my posts were in violation.

I am certain that @SophieF knows exactly why she has been suspended, and I am also certain that she was given more than one opportunity to change whatever the offending behavior was. Get over it.

Great answer @dpworkin. I completely agree with you.

I just read about Dibley. can anyone fill me in on what happened?

Yes, many people have been banned or suspended and I know from personal experience that it is not done without extensive discussion with the member and consideration.

I don’t know what occurred, but I doubt it was done for no reason. Of course I’m curious to know what happened..

Dibley and i have discussed some of her personal problems at length. she appears madly in love with her boyfriend and i hope this relationship has nothing to do with Fluther. still waiting for an update on Dibley.

I agree with @dpworkin et al.

After two years here, I have no reason not to trust the moderators’ decision.

“I am certain that @SophieF knows exactly why she has been suspended” – sums it up well for me.

Fuck no. @marinelife and @dpworkin have said everything I would’ve said about it.

@john65pennington I’ve posted everything I know. I don’t have a direct means of contacting her.I used to PM her frequently. I fear she may harm herself now.

If she’s done something wrong, management should come clean with it. As things are they’re making this matter look like some secret inquisition or purge. I’ve followed her postings and haven’t seen anything that warrants expulsion, but I have seen her treated in a condescending, bullying manner for the last several months.

The moderators lack of transparency on this is causing the concern. With this coming on the heels of the “new rules”, how are we to know what standards we’re being held to?

Surely my eyes deceive and this question was not asked because asking it is…well….ridiculous.

@dpworkin GA. Stop being paranoid, people.

I have asked a moderator if an explanation would be given by them to us. no response as of yet.

The people who should know the details of what happened already do. It is nobody else’s business. It would piss me off more if management started giving public explanations for suspensions. The only one making this look like anything other than a normal occurrence is you, @stranger_in_a_strange_land.

Not my business; Here’s what I wrote on an earlier question. I cannot improve on it.

“My take on Sophief aka Dibley was that she has some severe emotional problems, was obsessed with her boy friend to the point of suffocating him, and used cutting as a stress-reliever.

She asked versions of the same question repeatedly and got mad when many experienced people gave her useful and practical advice. She also admitted that she lied to her therapist. I flagged a few of the questions that rambled and were poorly written; I personally never suggested she be asked to leave; but I did have some serious concerns about her mental well-being and whether fluther simply distracted her from her reality and how to cope with it.

She seemed to want only approbation for her problems, which the collective was unable to provide. I don’t think anyone hated or abhorred her; at least, I didn’t.”

Come on guys, keep it CIVIL

@stranger_in_a_strange_land I don’t think she was banned for mysterious reasons, the mods do not divulge this information to the rest of us so as not to embarrass other fluthers. You have kept this up for days now. If you are that enamored of her, please follow her to AnswerBag where she has slammed most of the fluther members without just cause. No one got her kicked off here but herself. We don’t know the reason, nor is it any of our business. She accused “3 Lesbians from Fluther” on answer bag for getting her kicked off. Is that the words of a “sweet” girl? She also came back here under the name SHIT and MEMBER and harrassed members here, one so much that she quit the site. Once again, it is not the “sweet” girl you think she is.

Hell no. I’d rather not do that, thank you.

No.

If I was banned from a site (and I have been) I would not want my privacy invaded and the reason made public.

We do not have a right to this private information. If the party in question wanted this information made public they would have divulged it.
I am also tired of seeing this issue derailing other questions.

Here a mod says her last question had an “underlying tone of flame bait”. Seems clear to me.

Got to give the girl credit: she did liven up the joint.

@chyna I am not “enamored” of her. Merely a friend who is very concerned about her condition.

well yeah she asked a million NSFW questions but there’s no rule against that and she was always nice. so i was wondering the same thing…what exactly was the reason? seems funky to me. i would either like to know the real reason or see her come back.

[Mod Says:] Here are some quips that address this:

http://www.fluther.com/84319/is-there-a-point-to-removing-or-editing-a-question-that/#quip1358501

http://www.fluther.com/84933/is-anyone-else-tired-of-answering-and-seeing-relationship-questions-just/#quip1368014

http://www.fluther.com/84933/is-anyone-else-tired-of-answering-and-seeing-relationship-questions-just/#quip1371121

Now that this has been said I will again state that we will NOT invade the privacy of this former member to satisfy the curiosity of other users. Nor will we divulge the numerous private interactions that the moderation staff had with the user leading up to the eventual ban.

If you have further issues with this please PM our community manager @augustlan your concerns. But please do not expect an “inside scoop” as this would be unethical.

I don’t care about Dibley. I don’t care about her suspension.. I’m just curious as to why you made “Hitler” a tag for this. Grow up.

I agree with @dpworkin et al who say they trust Andrew and Auggie. ‘Nuf said.

I am privy to the reasons she was banned and just let me say it was justified and leave it at that.

Dog, thanks. we needed to hear that from you. i asked and you responded. john

1) If you two are really friends, why do you not have any form of external contact? Perhaps you’ve misjudged your place with her.
2) Mods have never discussed why people are banned. That is an invasion of privacy. Sophief is not special.
3) You’re going to get the same answer here that you got in the 10 other places that you made a stink about her disappearance
4) Tagged as “hitler”? seriously bro? Hitler? Because somebody getting banned is totally like the Gestapo busting into your house and taking you away to concentration camp? Seriously?
5) Online petitions are worthless.
6) Fluther is not a popularity contest. There isn’t secret voting by members about whether or not they like somebody. Mods ban people because the person is a troublemaker, or continues to ask low-quality questions, or fails to be on-topic, etc. etc.
7) I’ve heard namedrops of these “Influential members” that you think got Sophief banned. Those people are not influential. if we want to talk about popularity contests….
8) You can see guidelines here.

@stranger_in_a_strange_land thank you…love a man that stands up for what he believes. Also, never saw Dibley be mean-spirited etc. Personally, got a lot of heat for standing up for her. That is okay…would do it again. My contention, if you did not like her questions, don’t answer them.

Having said that, they own this railroad and we just play on it. A given, the mods have a hard job with so much pay. People makes mistakes…made ONE once…loll. Never really cared for her questions, but that is her business. There is a such thing as freedom of speech!

Again, thank you Captain!

I didn’t ask out of curiosity. There is no assurance that justice has been done if the process is carried out in secret. I don’t blindly trust authority figures.

Removed by self

@stranger_in_a_strange_land Then you should PM the community manager, as @Dog suggests.

I hear she’s hanging out with @90s_Kid

@stranger_in_a_strange_land “Justice”? This is a website. I think you should let it go.

Yeah like that’ll work.Seems to me it’s a mutually beneficial excerise.The wheels keep turning.

Just because this is “only a website” doesn’t change basic principles of justice.

It also doesn’t change that Fluther mods =/= Nazis.

@stranger_in_a_strange_land Contact the mods, maybe they will be able to put you in touch with Sophief.

@BoBo1946 Excellent point. It is their railroad. If you disagree with the way they run it, don’t ride.

@AstroChuck you were privy to the reasons…umm..why would a member here be privy to that info and the rest of us were not?

@Adirondackwannabe ditto…personally, thinking about going on a long ride..loll Will express that in the comment section.

Water under the bridge.

@Cruiser ummm…if it had been you, would have stood up for you…well, my bridge is about washed away!

@BoBo1946: @AstroChuck is sleeping with all the mods – at the same time.

@cprevite ? well, if one knows, everyone should know!

@BoBo1946 Maybe Dibley told him?

@BoBo1946: Perhaps you too could offer your services to the mods.

More like….Astrorgy

@cprevite loll…well, justice is a terrible thing.

@chyna i’ve talked to her recently…not true!

@BoBo1946 Really? Then can you get @stranger_in_a_strange_land in touch with her? He hasn’t been able to get in touch with her and is concerned per his statement above.

It’s not required that we be given a play-by-play about what happened to her.. it’s certainly not owed to us. However, a blurry watercolor would be nice. It would be helpful to get general examples of things we’re not supposed to do to stay in good graces. I do trust the moderators, but they are people. That means they have free-will, impressionability, and emotions. Knowing generally what happened would give us an opportunity to voice our opinions on the matter and influence how the site is run. I agree that if you don’t like how the site is run, to find another place to play, but if you enjoy it, you can try to influence how it works. I don’t mean griping about everything and trying to overthrow the place, but at least vocalizing our wants can mean big progress. Part of what’s great about Fluther is that we can let our thoughts be known.

@chyna easy, she is a member of Answerbag! The Captain knows that…but, will leave him a message in the comment section.

I would hate it if people sought me out to ask me why I was banned. It would be uncomfortable. Why not just leave her alone and drop it?

So, to answer the original question, which was Will you petition to reinstate Dibley, it appears that out of 50 something answers, there is not an overwhelming response to reinstate her.

@stranger_in_a_strange_land “management should come clean with it” Seriously? Since when has the general public needed to be privy to a private conversation between management and an individual?

@syz AstroChuck knows….fair is fair..or, should be!

@BoBo1946 Um, no. I have no idea why AC knows (I don’t see that he has confirmed or denied that he discussed the matter with a moderator), but compounding a ‘leak’ (if that is what it was) does not make things better. That’s just prurient curiosity.

I’m dropping this. I’m an idealist when it comes to issues of justice and fair play. It doesn’t matter to me what the venue, website or street. My objective was to get this into the open, I’ve accomplished that and can do no more. I’m not trying to start a war or blow the place up. My apologies to anyone I’ve offended by my heated language, no one is coercing me to say this. Pax.

@stranger_in_a_strange_land Glad it’s being dropped.

@BoBo1946 I appreciate the kind support there and I would do the same for you. Dibs apparently had her chance to play nice here…made her own bed and and I will leave it at that.

To add, I would like to think that if she really wanted to come back, she could make a case to do so and the management would extend the opportunity to do so if she promised to color inside the lines.

[mod says:] I’ve removed the topics “Hitler” and “Stalin” from this question. Please don’t abuse the topic system; it powers the recommendation engine along with a bunch of other stuff, and gradual tag abuse just makes the recommendations worse for everyone. Thanks!

@syz got’cha..just thought the confidentially thing mentioned by Dog was interesting. And, Dog is a great GIRL..nothing to do with this conversation, but just thought i would mention it !

Well, in the scheme of things, the sun will come up tomorrow for Didley and everyone here…well, hopefully unless providentially hindered! Lord forbid!

Everyone have a great day…this so shall pass!

@Cruiser you are a good man…understood!

@BoBo1946 @Dog is a great girl. :)

@richardhenry: How about “Marx” as topic?

‘course I was thinking Groucho not Karl.

@cprevite loll..well, got’cha…see how much know about our mods! Thank you the correction!

footnote: a good spirited debate is always good for the family as long as everyone is civil and respectful. ...trying to understand the system and how is works is not a bad thing.

Personally, I feel that Dibley et al, is an adult. As such, she has the power to give her case to the moderators/owners if she wants to come back. She’s not a child who needs constant coddling and protection- she is a woman full-grown and is more than capable of stating her case if she so chooses.

I hope she is happy, healthy and growing. Whether that entails her participating on this site or not, is a subject that is personal for her and I don’t feel I have the right to demand an answer.

@cprevite I should have put Soupy Sales on the topic line, as I’m now wiping pie off my face.

The mods know what they’re doing, so with that said, hell no I wouldn’t petition for her to come back. I never liked her to begin with. Sorry.

Personally, I would be distressed if a group anywhere discussed me and my behavior without consulting me first.

@stranger_in_a_strange_land I would not feel remorse for asking such a question here. It is an legit Q and got legit answers albeit diverse and pointed, as such would be expected with such a question! IMO GQ!

Nope. Fluther is better without her.

I think you’re late to the situation – she was removed not yesterday, but quite some days ago. There was talk going around (from someone that has a crush on her) that 3 members got together and made the mods ban her – as I’ve said before, this is complete BS. I will not support this petition as you’re driving more tension into Fluther with this completely uncalled for overreaction. I second all those who have said she’s an adult, knew what she was doing (I’ve talked to her plenty in PMs to know that she knew when she was being one way or another or manipulative) and that whatever was the reason for her removal is one that should stay between her and the moderators who are NOT Nazis or Stalin or whatever…there are real issues out there and you are confusing what went on with something that actually matters.

Dibley was Sophief?

I’m so confused now… :\

@DominicX She changed her username because she didn’t want her ex/current boyfriend/someone from her life to find her on fluther.

I’m privy to the situation because of another jelly who was directly involved in what resulted in her banning. And just so you all know, what I know is not the result of a mod spilling the beans to me.
Nuff sed.

OMG MODS PLEASE BAN ME FROM THIS TRAIN WRECK.

I like this question. This site would be nothing without drama. :)

I was eating popcorn the whole time I was reading these responses…

@DominicX Lol…

@DominicX this is what you think is drama? boy how quickly we forget wis.dm~

@Simone_De_Beauvoir

Oh yeah, this is nothing compared to wis.dm. But it’s as “good” as it’s going to get. :P

@DominicX Meh, true enough :)

I bet she just hates all the attention

This is lame. I don’t want to here her paranoid ramblings. She was banned for a reason. And the reason was not 3 lesbians.

Wouldn’t posting for her just be aiding in a way for her to get around her ban? If people want her story, they should talk to her personally.

I’m just the go between. I’m not spinning this one way or another.

3 lesbians…lol…I saw that on her AnswerBag question (yes, I Googled it because I wanted to see what she said about it). Also, I’m a writer for the Enquirer.

:P

@Adirondackwannabe I’m sure she will. My point was, they banned her for a reason. If people want to get her story, they should e-mail her or talk to her outside of Fluther.

@Adirondackwannabe I know you meant well. But.
@DominicX – reaaaally? that’s hilarious – I have even less respect for her now than I ever did.

I also received the exhibitionist award. Is that the mods sending me their thoughts?

@Adirondackwannabe
No, that means you wrote an answer while 10 or more people were on this thread at the time you were writing.
It also means they know you were nude while writing it.~

@chyna That’s why I didn’t go with the leather chair. Sticks a little on hot days.

Wow, 72 new responses since the last time I looked at this question. I went the @DominicX route, only I was eating bagel chips instead of popcorn.

Shouldn’t we have a Siren Song award for getting banned by three lesbians?

@kevbo I just want to know if I’m one of the three because I consider myself queer, not a lesbian – I want this to be clear to everyone involved, damn it!~

[mod says:] If you’d like to discuss something with a member no longer active on the site for any reason, the best way to do it is to contact them offsite.

Interesting.

@chyna I sure hope I have better things to do.

@Simone_De_Beauvoir I was wondering who the 3rd lesbian was. Quick. Retract your horns and tail.
Oh, and for the record, I am not a lesbian either.

Just for the record, I don’t know who the three were and don’t want to know.

@tinyfaery No! I like the company I’m in.