Recently user alaksaball has identified themselves as a member of the Party of Communists USA. The user also promoted the event “RageAgainstTheWarMachine” as well as PCUSA’s official twitter account on this website. When questioned by other users about engaging in the promotion and platforming of fascists and reactionaries, alaskaball responded with hostility and name-calling. As anticipated, the event “RageAgainstTheWarMachine” was attended by prominent neo-Nazis and featured speakers who espoused homophobic and transphobic views, and used homophobic slurs and anti-trans rhetoric as official speakers at the event. Furthermore, user alaskaball has promoted the official Twitter of PCUSA, which has frequently platformed Jackson Hinkle who is on camera at the aforementioned event using homophobic slurs. User Alaskaball’s personal feelings towards LGBTQ people are irrelevant, as the user continues to platform an organization and events that are in direct contradiction of the standards of this website, and is therefore unfit to moderate communities.
What I am hearing is that there is already a bias either towards the party or this user in general. Full disclosure, I am part of the mod chat and sent a message about my post to the mod chat, but I will push for any discussion to happen here. As of yet, there hasn’t been a reply.
As far as it being an overreaction, I obviously disagree. The outcome of the event today could have been easily predicted, and in fact was predicted by many users, including yourself. Today’s events were likely to significantly harm a large portion of this site’s users, which can’t be helped. What is inexcusable is the event was promoted by this user, and then, to further the harm, anyone who questioned the promotion of the event was met with hostility and name-calling. That this behavior came from a moderator is unacceptable and risks the trust of the users of this site.
I also agree that the RATWM rally was cringe and full of weird reactionaries, but I don’t think alaskaball is a reactionary who has infiltrated the website. Alaskaball is one of the oldest users, going back to july 2020.
As someone who paritcipates mostly in the news thread, I don’t get the feeling that most of the users in the news thread support what actually happened at this rally as much as they support the idea of an anti-war movement and were just happy to see something without looking into it much. Feel free to check my comments, I was vocal about not being in support of this specific rally.
I didn’t have any specific issues with AB when I interacted with them regarding my criticism of that rally, but I can’t speak for others. A lot of people resort immediately to name calling here and things escalate quickly (I am also guilty of this). I did have problems with that other user, though.
bc it’s a pinned discussion with people with mostly the same opinions including about the event, so it’s a bigger than just that and probably needs broader discussion
I don’t think this is true at all. For one, shipwreck didn’t support the rally at all, mostly treating the success of the rally as an indictment on the impotence of the US left. I haven’t seen anything from SeventyTwoTrillion supporting the rally either. Shipwreck is a frequent poster there and SeventyTwoTrillion is the OP of the news megathread, so that’s already two main posters.
The news thread is without a doubt the worst part of the site. They should get a com and get the fuck off the main page.
:dumpster-fire:
