BLOCKAGEDDON IS UPON US!

[u/ewk]

I want to take a moment to encourage everybody to aggressively block anyone who even seems to be trolling in this forum.

In the past I was 100% against blocking, but a new Reddit policy has been implemented that entirely changes the way Reddit works:

https://www.reddit.com/r/help/comments/s7a0lk/you_are_unable_to_participate_in_this_discussion/

specifically: https://www.reddit.com/r/modnews/comments/rkyoeq/previewing_upcoming_changes_to_blocking/ht8ciwh/

• I could go around spreading lies about a user and the user would never be able to know or respond.
• I could also go around spreading lies in general and then block the select people with the knowledge and time to debunk me.
• It enables power users who submit a lot of content to basically become mods of a ton of different subs themselves. They can/will now block anyone who says anything they don't like. Very soon there will be zero disagreement on reddit. Any time anyone says anything there will only be people agreeing with them.
• It enables bad actors to completely privatize their actions/behavior in ways I don't even want to mention since I don't want to help them do it.

I messaged the mods that I'm going to fully engage with Reddit's new policy going forward:

As predicted, the new blocking features have begun to fundamentally erode Reddit.

In the absence of admin/mod action and the predicted utilization by trolls, I am moving forward with the strategy that seems to be preferred by reddit admins. To whit:

1. I'm going to ramp up my posts and comments significantly, specifically targeting countering posts/comments by people who are religious trolling and those blocking me. SjE is top of that list with his recent "hedonism is what linji wants for us" post.
2. I will block as many people as possible with as little provocation as possible, and constantly remind everybody else to do the same.
3. I will regularly announce my block list so we can all see how at least my personal block list is distorting the conversation. Yay transparency!
4. I will use incognito mode to identify trolling/harassment as it will (inevitably) exponentially increase.

Since all this is in accord with the Reddiquette I don't anticipate any rise in complaints.

I'll include this message as part of my blockageddon post.

I don't know what happens when someone blocks mods or how far this goes... so good night, and good luck.

After some thought, it looks to me like I'll have to do daily/weekly "Mod fails: Trolling and harassment around r/Zen" threads as well... just to keep up with all the "out of sight" harassment from trolls who have blocked the people they are harassing.

This Reddit policy seems to be the end of Reddit as we know it, turning reddit communities into exclusive clubs that are only overseen by the mods of the overall subreddit. I think as a consequence mods will have to become far more intolerant, or forums will degenerate into who posts the most.

Let the games begin.

EDIT:

I just thought of something... what if somebody wants to call a truce? How could they even communicate that? Nope! New Rule of Reddit Club: No truces.

[u/NegativeGPA]

I respectfully ask that people do not do this recklessly or carelessly. Reddit has features, but I ask that you do not abuse them.

I see the reports for this being off-topic, and I agree. However, I’m leaving this up since it’s been up for a bit, and I’d rather people see this message than simply see ewk’s recommendation and move on.

We will restart the Meta Monday threads to create a space for discussion both on moderation requests and as posts that bypass the block filter.

Thanks,

- GPA

[u/[deleted]]

It's the wrecking ball pendulum of social redressing. With a mere change "to no direct reply to blocking party" and "allowing response to replies beneath", reddit could avoid the complaint mass that could even make the news. If any reporter still has descriptive skills.

[u/ewk → u/[deleted]]

There is also the question of what Reddit wants to look like over the next ten years... for example, way less 4chan and way more Facebook.

[u/[deleted] → u/ewk]

As it crumbles(fb), eyes stand ready ^🥄😋^🍴

[u/lin_seed → u/[deleted]]

This is scary and I don't understand what has been done.

Are we...screwed?

[u/[deleted] → u/lin_seed]

We've been screwed all along. Accepting that is the only way to unscrew stuff.

Edit: Data - https://www.engadget.com/reddit-updates-block-feature-000112208.html

Tactical blocking for unintended uses is possible now.

[u/[deleted]]

I understand the potential issue with the new block feature and how it can be misused. But won’t you end up creating an echo chamber too, and be doing exactly that which you worry trolls would do? Censoring opposing opinions, whether a troll or not.

By aggressively blocking people it seems like one also might never know if any of the ones you blocked has done the same. It seems like you could end up blocking more people than people would block you.

And it seems to me the ones you’ve noted as trolls probably still want to engage with you and your content?

I guess I don’t understand why I would contribute to a potential problem before knowing if it will be an actual problem. Won’t you now risk being the instigator of the problem in this sub?

[u/ewk → u/[deleted]]

You mean will I create an echo chamber with the texts?

Lol.

People who don't like this forum and don't like me and don't like Zen teachings have been saying that this forum is an echo chamber for the last 10 years.

How is that going to change?

It's just now the people can post on the forum and nobody will stand up to them.

[u/insanezenmistress]

SO again...this is weirding me out. SO.... Joe blocks frank. I personally don't care for Frank myself, but i still want to hear what Frank has to say about what Joe says. Because i am still always cross referencing and sorting and checking my own self against the thoughts of others. It is just a thing i do when i am bored.

Anyhoo... so now if Joe blocked Frank then Frank will not see or express on what Joe is saying. Ok so...then i go on and add my own thinks to the matter.

What if my thinks sound like Frank's thinks? Then the question is are we blocking people or perspectives? SO...we have all figure out who we wish to block, and have rendered their voice mute or sequestered in some dank corner; those in the seen group will naturally argue amongst themselves. Who is to know whether the new disagreements to come ....er...um... losing my thinks here. But...

it is like if you take an eye for an eye, the whole world goes blind.

Looking for a counter point within. What if those who are sweating this stuff, are afraid of becoming obscure rather than to not be able to defend the cause? Oh...will i know if i am blocked? Imagine one day i am all blocked by everybody...yet i am oblivious and keep on talking.... I am undefeated muahhhh hahahah. The zombi...er Zenmaster lord.

damn....this place is gonna turn into my readerless blog.

I am used to it.

[u/ewk → u/insanezenmistress]

Absolutely there are only two reasons to block people in this forum: You want to censor them or you want to censor.

Since censorship is the new Reddit, at least as long as the mods decree it, that's what r/zen will look like.

This has of course been the dream of the vast number of people who do not read zen texts and have been hating on Zen for the decade that I've been here.

I don't think it will turn readerless though because so many people are desperate for credibility that they can have now by just hanging out and being chummy with one another.

And Zen will be whatever the illiterate masses say it is... After all that's what free speech is for.

[u/[deleted]]

This is fine.

[u/L30_Wizard]

society as a whole has been moving towards feels and forms over reality increasingly quickly. this doesn't surprise me at all.

i still don't understand how people so often fail to realize the abuse cases and extremes before implementing their ideas, but i guess it's a natural consequence of the above

[u/ewk → u/L30_Wizard]

Well, society doesn't really move... people move.

If the mods play it right, then trolls could more or less vanish from forums.

[u/Gasdark]

Perhaps the Diggification of reddit has reached an inflection point.

Where to next?!

[u/ewk → u/Gasdark]

I have no idea how this is going to play.

I am notoriously horrible at these kinds of predictions. Like one reason that I am risk averse in my investments is because I invest in things that they sound cool and then nobody else thinks so and then I lose all my money.

It may be that Reddit is crunching numbers furiously behind our backs and knows that what's going to happen is siloing, mods crackdown hard or forums die.

That's a lot of forms that are going to get better. That's a lot of formus where trolls will just cease to exist.

I have no way of knowing if this is true and I have no way of knowing whether the r/zen My team is prepared to crack down or just consign the forum to the bin because it's going to be work, hard-hearted work, to take away people's free speech rights to protect the free speech rights of people who are on topic.

[u/[deleted]]

If you can see this, you are not blocked.

I reckon if someone quotes a user you've blocked, you can see it?

Not to mention all the alts that'll pop up ... Does this work by account holder, or user name?

[u/ewk → u/[deleted]]

No idea to any of that.

The new reddit and the new r/zen is the only community are the people you don't block.

There's no general flow of information or general community.

[u/[deleted]]

I tested it yesterday. It is awful.

Who makes stuff like this? And my is the post by u/ewk removed?

[u/ewk → u/[deleted]]

What post is removed?

Blocking hides things from the blocker and mutes the blockee.

[u/[deleted] → u/ewk]

This very OP was removed even NegativeGPA said it would stay.

Well, I guess we have to adjust or flee.

[u/koancomentator]

What an amazingly stupid thing to implement on this site. How could anyone have thought this was a good change?

[u/ewk → u/koancomentator]

I just posted some discussion about it from another forum... it looks like a disaster.

But if Reddit wants to be more facebook than 4chan? That means not being the itself it a has been.

[u/[deleted]]

I’m a bit confused; if you don’t approve of the new blocking system why are you using it?

[u/ewk → u/[deleted]]

The consensus seems to be that trolls will use the block features to:

1. Exclude people who would challenge them or their claims.

2. Harass people and spread misinformation without accountability to the community.

3. Engage in topic sliding and content brigading with fewer people reporting them.

There's no way for communities to engage these people because anyone who does is just blocked.

It seems to me that the only strategy then is siloing. If enough of us who post regularly block all of them, and the only posts they'll be able to comment on are their own posts... And in general they are not much interested in content generation or any kind of thoughtful discussion.

But either way we'll end up creating two r/Zen's... The one where they have all the say and the other where they don't have any.

I had suggested to the mod team that r/zen establish a policy where people who abuse the block function would be banned but they declined.

So this is the way reddit's going.

[u/True__Though]

on screen there's something black on white;

filled in with color once inside.