‘Stick to the facts, not personal attacks”
Nextdoor allows private groups to operate without much control by their own review process and message-filtering algorithms. I know, because I’m a Reviewer, and have never had a post or reply from the Magnolia News Group referred to me for consideration. In return for this freedom, Nextdoor requires group administrators monitor members’ posts and comments, and apply some common-sense controls over message content. We have applied none. Until ‘The End of Mean’ campaign during the 2023 Christmas season, we were in violation of the rules, and the ‘spicy’ content of some of our threads was putting the entire Group at risk of being removed from the platform.
We’re all human. While acknowledging that we, any one of us, can descend into the ‘personal attack’ mode now and then, there are individuals that view arguments as mere contests where the primary objective is to triumph or exert dominance. In this perspective, personal comprehension holds little significance, and mutual understanding is deemed irrelevant. The deployment of ad hominem attacks, targeting individuals rather than the positions they uphold, serves as a tool to control discussions through emotional persuasion. These individuals assert that the unequivocally correct stance is already established, eliminating the need for genuine argumentation and categorizing dissenting voices as mere stubbornness against acknowledged truths.
Some examples:
‘Why don’t you just stop your whining?’
‘You people just want the Club to fail.’
‘Don’t you have anything better to do?
‘If you don’t like it here, why don’t you just move?’
‘We are sick of the negativity. You just demonstrated it.’
‘Oh, here you go again.’
‘They appear to be hiding the history to make people think our board has been inadequate.’
This is not helping to advance any arguments presented on ‘For Magnolia Residents Only’. In a more favorable scenario, ad hominem attacks in this vein deflect any attempts to question the supposedly unquestionable by dismissing those who dare to inquire. In the worst instances, such behavior can be perceived as trolling, characterized by a refusal to engage in meaningful discussion and a preference for irritating, degrading, and harassing opponents.
So, what if the ‘offense’ doesn’t shout at the top of its lungs? What if no one is directly named but the effect of the post or reply is to malign groups or associations of individuals? The rule for all:
If the reference in the post or reply does not advance the narrative, but attempts to intimidate with a narrowly based appeal grounded in emotion, and not facts, the post and/or reply will be removed. Violators of this policy will be warned and given an opportunity to edit or remove their comments. Members of the Group that are warned of violations more than three (3) times will be removed from the Group.
For reference, these patterns align with Jürgen Habermas’ Normative reasoning modes, as outlined in the Philosophy Dictionary of Arguments.
If this is unacceptable, post what you want under ‘Magnolia Residents on Nextdoor’.
It just won’t be welcome on the ‘For Magnolia Residents Only’ Group.
NOTE: ONE THREAD PER AUTHOR, PER TOPIC, IS ALLOWED AT A TIME IN THE GROUP; FURTHER, POSTS THAT APPEAR IN BOTH ‘MAGNOLIA POINT’ AND ‘FOR MAGNOLIA RESIDENTS ONLY’ WILL BE DELETED FROM ‘FOR MAGNOLIA RESIDENTS ONLY’.
This policy is at best a work in progress and we don’t profess to have all the answers. If you have suggestions to improve this policy, message me at davepetraglia@gmail.com to discuss further, or to report a post or reply you feel is or was in compliance with the rules.
(Revised: 2/17/2024)