Board Thread:Administrator Notice/@comment-3416945-20140101032620

Hello all,

I am here today to discuss the issue of rule interpretation and to clarify how we handle suspensions and punishments here on the Sonic News Network. On chat, on the wiki, and even off the wiki, there is often much debate over the rules of the Sonic News Network. This is nothing new and this isn't a problem: a variety of interpretations of the rules isn't a bad thing. It's also good to have an administration and community whose opinions differ. If rules were all interpreted the same way, there would be no differing opinions; there would be no internal improvements.

As far as the policies on the Sonic News Network go, they are very vague and are not very in-depth. This isn't a bad thing. Again, a straightforward and simple ruleset allows for different rule interpretation between the community members of the Sonic News Network. Different rule interpretation means different moderation styles on the wiki and on chat, which is also a good thing.

If our rules were in-depth and prescibed punishments for every offense, then not only would the rules be easy to loophole, but the wiki would begin to lack a variety of rule interpretation. With a lack of rule interpretation, the wiki would become a hierarchy that operates on a strict ruleset.

This is not to say that a strict moderating style is bad - it's quite good, actually. This is also not to say that a loose moderating style is bad - this is also good. Having a diverse administration team allows for more internal improvement and also allows for different perspectives in site discussions and other debates.

This is precisely why different rule interpretation benefits the community as a whole. It allows users to participate in the wiki and it allows other users to provide feedback for their peers. It allows administrators and chat moderators to provide feedback to one another and improve their moderation. It allows for difference of opinion.

'''TL;DR: Different rule interpretation is a good thing. Stop ridiculing others' moderating styles by accusing them of being too strict or not strict enough. Do not argue with moderators or administrators over how you interpret the rules in the case you get in trouble. Bring another administrator into the situation in the case you feel another administrator has banned you wrongly.'''

Thank you,

~Kyle

03:26, January 1, 2014 (UTC) 