Why doesn't Hubpages have a block button

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   paradigmsearchposted 5 years ago

   HP probably has no problem with the concept. My guess is that implementation is just too much labor-intensive programming for them right now. They are probably buried in existing projects as it is.

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2. 91

   poppyrposted 5 years ago

   I make a point to avoid topics that might end up in arguments, such as religion, politics, etc. While I’d never condone the silence of free speech and expressing one’s opinions, it might be a good way for you to avoid being insulted or bullied.

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      promisemposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      I understand your point. On the other hand, it doesn't benefit HubPages or us to have people who fill the topical forums with fake news and hateful posts. It makes us look bad to anyone who visits us.
      
      So I think we have a responsibility to lift the forums to a higher level of discussion, even if it means getting into an argument.

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         wildernessposted 5 years agoin reply to this

         You may well be right - we all have that responsibility.  But (IMO) it is not served by censorship - it is served by each and every one of us behaving ourselves.

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            Will Apseposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            "each and every one of us behaving ourselves."
            
            lol. That is not going to happen.
            
            For one thing, there are evangelists everywhere, secular and religious. Plus that terrible need to be heard. And those clamouring egos...
            
            I should give fair warning that I am beginning to feel a little like my old self, so don't expect me to be to stitching any kid gloves.

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               wildernessposted 5 years agoin reply to this

               You got that right; it isn't going to happen.

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            TessSchlesingerposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            GDPR Deleted
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               wildernessposted 5 years agoin reply to this

               It sounds like a fine system.  You can say what you like...until a govt. committee decides to label it "hate speech".  And you may not post wrong information, such as "God lives and loves you!" even if it is known to be true from personal experience.
               
               I trust you're following the line of thought here - it is unacceptable to allow a government, or other people, to decide that you can only say what they will permit you to say.  Americans have decided there IS a limit, but that limit is far outside what YOU would allow.
               
               Yes, some believe in some things simply because they've heard it  thousand times.  Others resist that methodology.  With the result that one persons "fact" and "truth" are anothers fairy tale.  One has only to look at religious beliefs, that can be proven neither true nor false, to understand this.

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                  SmartAndFunposted 5 years agoin reply to this

                  +1
                  
                  The British model is dangerous. No system is perfect, but at least in the USA we don't get thrown in jail for saying something that others find offensive or don't agree with.
                  
                  I don't care if HP installs a block button or not, but it's a much better solution than prosecuting citizens for wrongthink.
                  
                  Englishman arrested for making Mandela joke. https://jonathanturley.org/2013/12/13/e … dela-joke/
                  
                  Teen arrested for burning Koran
                  https://jonathanturley.org/2010/11/26/e … ing-koran/
                  
                  Police arrest man for saying homosexuality is a sin
                  https://jonathanturley.org/2010/05/03/p … ity-a-sin/
                  
                  Woman arrested for referring to male-to-female transgender person as a man/male
                  https://jonathanturley.org/2019/04/12/d … or-gender/
                  
                  Soldier gets 70 days for burning Koran
                  https://jonathanturley.org/2011/04/19/e … ing-koran/

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            promisemposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            I agree with you about the need for each of us to behave ourselves. I don't think a personal blocking button stops anyone from expressing their opinion.

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               wildernessposted 5 years agoin reply to this

               I don't know - reading this thread over this morning I am unsure of just what is being asked of that button.  May one not reply to a forum post because the first poster doesn't like the second?  Not only does that seem difficult, given the way HP forums work, but is most definitely censorship.

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                  promisemposted 5 years agoin reply to this

                  My interpretation of the post is that she doesn't want to see any posts by particular people, especially when they are personal attacks.
                  
                  If she can't see them, she can't see what they write about her.

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   Kenna McHughposted 5 years ago

   Tess,
   Do you want to block someone in general, so you never see their comments in the forum and your articles?  That is quite a task for the staff and labor-intensive. 
   I hide comments on the forum and filter forum topics on stuff I don't want to see or read. I also delete any comments I don't like, and basically, ignore them.

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4. 93

   Kenna McHughposted 5 years ago

   Wilderness, I agree. I ignoring them is the best option. Though, it might be hard not to get irked. That is a more personal thing.

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      promisemposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      It's hard not to get irked when you are called in front of the entire HP audience "vile", "sick", "disgusting", "wacko" and "predator", which is what someone recently got called (among other names).

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5. 77

   psycheskinnerposted 5 years ago

   Blocking has no effect at all on the blocked person.  It is a standard feature of modern forums to hide, just from you, posts you find annoying provoking or otherwise unpleasant--and would otherwise automatically read whenever you come across them.  It is a standard feature because it improves user experience and reduces the need for moderation.

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      RTalloniposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      If it did affect the blocked person that would be shutting down discourse, allowing only one faction freedom of speech.

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   Kenna McHughposted 5 years ago

   The "x" to the right of each post/comment allows the user to hide that person's comments. I use it now and then when I don't want to read negative topics.  It's easy to use and effective.

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      RTalloniposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      It's a useful and obvious solution unless someone wants everyone else to protect them from what they do not like or is seeking to shut down freedom of speech. Many people want to ponder views they oppose for the sake of mature discourse so the x isn't used as often as one might at first think.

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         TessSchlesingerposted 5 years agoin reply to this

         GDPR Deleted
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            promisemposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            Agreed. Blocking a hostile person in the forums is no different than hanging up the phone on an obnoxious telemarketer.

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   shanmarieposted 5 years ago

   I've asked that before and their response to me was basically that the HubPage network is not designed to be a social media community.

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      promisemposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      Then they shouldn't have forums, because forums are social. 

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8. 93

   Kenna McHughposted 5 years ago

   That makes sense because HP is not a social media platform.

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9. 67

   shanmarieposted 5 years ago

   HP's sole purpose is pretty much just to make money. Comments bring visitors, which subsequently brings money. So it does make sense even if it is sometimes inconvenient when we don't want to interact with someone even so much as seeing a comment they posted or by having to delete their comments from our own hubs. It does have the feel of a social media platform, though. Especially to those of us who go way back to when they had things like the 'share' and 'vote up' buttons.
   
   Actually, looking back over the comments, I see that Kierstin Gunsberg took a guess earlier.  I can confirm that she is right because I had someone from HP directly respond to me when I emailed a similar question to them a year or so ago.

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      TessSchlesingerposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      GDPR Deleted
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         theraggededgeposted 5 years agoin reply to this

         Anyone can see the posts here.
         
         
         

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            TessSchlesingerposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            GDPR Deleted
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               wildernessposted 5 years agoin reply to this

               Probably best to simply assume that anything at all that you put on the web is available to anyone that really wants it.

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    psycheskinnerposted 5 years ago

    If the assumption is that it is used to ignore things people just disagree with, not so much.  It's more just people you find super flocking annoying.
    
    How many of us don't go to the topical side of the forum not because we lack interest in things like politics and religion but because the majority of the content there is repetitive and juvenile and it is tedious to wade through to find the interesting posts?  If those users just vanished from the screen, more people might use topical to research their hub topics as was presumably intended.

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    Kenna McHughposted 5 years ago

    We are all different and see things in our own way based on education, experience, and ideologies. I try to follow the Golden rule.

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       RTalloniposted 5 years agoin reply to this

       It is a wonderful rule to follow, working out beautifully through patience, kindness, generosity, humbleness, respectfulness, forgiveness...

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    Kenna McHughposted 5 years ago

    That is true. If you don't want to be noticed or you want to hide, them stay off the Internet.

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13. 96

    Readmikenowposted 5 years ago

    Tess,
    
    I'm surprised you would want to block anyone.
    
    You've always struck me as someone who had enough heavy verbal weaponry to defend your views against any type of attack.  I picture you as a literary soldier eager to engage anyone is word to word verbal combat.  A sort of Shogun of the English language.
    
    I'm sure you know you probably cause as much frustration to those who engage you as experience from them.  You impressed me as a person mentally and emotionally strong enough to not be bothered by what anyone writes. 
    
    After the Aussies and English I've experienced, I'm shocked you'd be upset by anything.  I've heard some real strong words exchanged before a moment of silence and then laughter occurs.
    
    I always thought you were always someone who toyed with people who had an opposing view and had a good laugh at their expense. 
    
    Please tell me you don't take any of us serious.

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    Kenna McHughposted 5 years ago

    SmartandFun,
    Is this spam you are posting?

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       SmartAndFunposted 5 years agoin reply to this

       No, those are links to a blog written by an attorney in the USA who is a free speech expert. These blog entries cover just few recent incidences of people in the UK being arrested/jailed/questioned by police/etc. for expressing their opinions.

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    theraggededgeposted 5 years ago

    Tess: "Same argument that if you criticize a country's politics, then you ought to leave it."
    
    Really? You don't mean that, do you? If everyone who criticised UK politics right now were to leave, the country would be empty.
    
    

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