Friday's Most Active Threads

I prepare to write these posts by reviewing lists of the threads with the most views and the most replies. When I did that this morning, many of the top spots in both lists were held by topics that were sexual in nature. I've had a long-running issue with Google flagging posts as "Adult: Sexual content" even when there is nothing explicit in the thread. Too many such warnings can lead to our advertising being cut off, so I am obligated to remove these threads even though I disagree with the categorization most of the time. Therefore, this morning I decided to check which threads Google had flagged overnight and remove them before writing this post. Sure enough, this resulted in my deleting several of the most active threads. This is disappointing and frustrating because I didn't think any of the threads were inappropriate. So, while I will describe the threads I discuss as being the most active, that is not entirely true.

Even before removing the topics describe above, the thread leading in both number of replies and number of views was titled, "Stanford Sued After Following Another Student Suicide" and posted in the "College and University Discussion" forum. The thread is about the suicide of a star female soccer player. Apparently, the young woman had "accidentally" spilled coffee on a member of Stanford's football team who had been accused of sexually assaulting another soccer player. As a result of the coffee incident, the woman was subjected to the University's disciplinary system and notified that her diploma could be withheld. When she committed suicide, the email notifying her about the disciplinary process was still open on her laptop. The student's parents have initiated legal action against the university due to what they describe as Stanford's mishandling of the situation. This is a fairly complex story in which many things are not completely clear. However, many, probably most of those responding, address broader issues such as how mental health is addressed on college and university campuses and the treatment of sexual assault allegations. Many posters focused on Stanford's dirty laundry, particularly the Brock Turner case which the original poster had also mentioned. There are posters who both agree with the parents' allegations and those who sympathize with the family but disagree with the lawsuit. There is a lot going on in this thread which touchs on many complex topics, so it's not exactly a light read. It might be eye-opening for the parents of college-bound students.

Second in both number of replies and number of views was a thread in the "Off-Topic" forum and titled, "Legality of southern flag on residential properties and pole size limits". Until just now I was under the impression that this thread was posted in the "Political Discussion" forum. I was only aware of it due to posts that had been reported and I guess I didn't notice in which forum it was posted. The original poster uses "southern flag" to describe what most of us would call the "Confederate flag" or, more accurately, the "Battle Flag of the Army of Northern Virginia". The original poster asks about flag pole height restrictions and any restrictions on displaying such a flag. The poster concludes by asking that there be no political discussion or prejudice. In sum, this sounds like the poster wants to erect the largest and highest Confederate flag as legally permissible. Most of the initial responses take issue with the description "southern flag" which some see as an effort by the original poster to avoid the negative associations of the more common designations. Others dispute the flag's contemporary association with the South given that it is more popular in some northern areas. Many posters warn that while the flag might be legal, it is not socially acceptable. A poster who does finally get around to addressing the original poster's questions points out the answers will depend on the locality and any HOA rules that might apply. While reading through this thread to prepare this summary, I discovered that the original poster repeatedly posted as if he were a third party and not the original poster, in one case even describing himself as a "NP" or new poster. For reasons I don't understand, in his subsequent posts the original poster turned the thread towards discussions of which areas near DC are rural and which areas are inhabited by "transplants" as opposed to longterm residents. I think he lost interest in his original post. Regardless, I locked the thread due to the original poster's trolling.

The thread that was third in both number of replies and number of views yesterday was titled, "8 in 10 Asian Americans who oppose affirmative action believe it’s racist, survey reveals" and posted in the "College and University Discussion". I was confused at first because I thought I had already wrote about this thread, but then I realized that it is just very similar to an earlier topic. The original poster quotes from an article — though without indicating that the text is quoted — reporting on a poll of Asian-Americans showing that almost half oppose race-based admissions in colleges and universities. Of the group opposed, 81% believe that race-based admissions is racist. The original poster offers no opinion or analysis so the purpose of the thread is not entirely clear. Many of the responders suggest that there is really nothing surprising about the poll results. Some take issue with the original poster's title which they consider overly dramatic and aimed at controversy. They suggest that there is nothing surprising about affirmative action opponents considering the practice to be racist. That is to be expected. The thread also delves into the larger issue of university admissions and attempts at "holistic evaluation". I am not sure there is anything new in this thread that has been repeated many times in numerous similar threads, but at least I am not aware of a single post being reported. So, it is good to see that race-centered threads don't automatically turn racist and bigoted.

The final thread at which I will look today is titled, "Options for a 13 year old this summer" and posted in the "Tweens and Teens" forum. This thread was fourth in number of replies and fifth in number of views yesterday. The original poster asks for suggestions of summer activities for a 13 year old. The original poster explains that her son cannot stay home alone during the summer so he wants to find activities that can keep him busy. Most of the recommendations are for various camps which the original poster indicates are probably the best option. Some posters recommended various jobs that might be available for a 13 year old. I don't want to simply list the responses, but if you are interested, visit the thread. Overall, it appears to be pretty helpful.