I would just like to make the perhaps unpopular point that in fact, the idea of treating everyone the same is in itself something of a fallacy. A "one size fits all" policy does not work. Think of the context. Look at MB as a, well, community I guess. Some of us are here for the long haul. We write, create and post in threads, talk to friends, make new ones, help newbies out, search for songs on behalf of people who will never post again, maintain journals and in general try to contribute to the overall wellbeing of the community. I would class those sort of posters (and of course I include myself in them) as
Working Posters.
Then you have those who come here rarely, have a look around, say hi and dash off, and may not be seen for some time. While here they may contribute, and may contribute well, and be missed when away, or they may add little to the community. These I would call
Casual Posters.
And finally, you have the (excuse the disrespect) lowest level of community society, those who come here to spam, cause trouble, troll and make fun of people, get into arguments, stamp their feet, shout at the mods and so on. They are the equivalent of people who hang out on street corners getting high and becoming involved in petty crime. They are the
Lazy Posters.
OK so far? Any problems with those descriptions? There may of course be other variants but I think that covers most people here. Of course there are the
Mods, who are mostly a separate entity, but can fall under the first two categories too, but never in my experience the third.
So, let's say a Working Poster pops a one-line post in a thread. So does a Lazy Poster. Both get infracted. But Mister Lazy Poster is probably just upping his or her post count so they can post links, and will then scoot off to some other community. He or she offers nothing to MB. Mr. Working Poster, on the other hand, is known for writing considered arguments, making good or at least funny and interesting threads, is well known as being someone you can talk to and perhaps (or not) maintains a journal. He or she is a valued member and the fact that he or she posted a one-line/smiley reply does not mean in any way that he or she will not later post something far more significant. He or she certainly contributes more to the community than Mister Lazy Poster.
So, should both be punished the same for the same infraction, given what we know of the two?
Answers on a postcard please...
What? Postcard? It's a small piece of stiff paper with a picture on the front and .... you know what? Just email your answers in ok?
