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I've got eight people on my ignore list: President Diedrich and seven people whose names ring no bells whatsoever. Porn spammers, maybe. I don't ignore-list people I dislike; I ignore them the old fashioned way by not reading their threads/posts.

That said, I love having the option, and I think it's impossible to abuse the feature. It's provided for Gaians to use as they see fit, to increase their enjoyment of the site. If they need to block people who have racy avatars, or obnoxious signatures, or ignorant opinions...well, those uses are every bit as valid as blocking porn spammers. Even if I don't agree that my avatar is too racy, or my sig too obnoxious, or my opinions too ignorant, so what? Everybody gets to draw their own lines. I also don't think stating that you're going to be ignoring people counts as abuse. Maybe if you specifically singled out an individual? Maybe. But saying you've found a bunch of people you need to block is much the same as remarking that there's a lot of jerks in a thread. Just doesn't seem like trolling to me.

(Regarding the SF thread: If the person ignoring everyone is making info threads, then they shouldn't get much discussion with so many people blocked; a competing thread should be able to thrive. Failing that, simply logging out lets you see the thread. So I'm not seeing a special circumstance that requires a change to the ignore feature.)

Just checked my ignore list and there's 3 people on there!! I was expected 0 since I forgot that system even existed. I have no idea what those people did end up on my list but it must've been super duper bad because I went out of my way to find the ignore button hahaha

It's interesting thinking about the thing in perspective of abusing it tho. I could see it as a form of harassment itself as I have seen people just publicly post "hahaha youre blocked!!!" and then harass that person. its really petty and usually makes things even worse. But then again, the ignore system is really up to the user. If the person really thinks ignoring people because of differing opinions is how the system is supposed to be used, I guess you can't do much else but say huh. :|c I could never imagine myself doing that but I'm someone that doesn't really get into heated arguments or conflicts like that so I guess it's harder to imagine that sort of situation

Related to the discussion over the last few pages, you are free to use your ignorelist as you deem necessary. It is your ignorelist and you can put whoever you want there. That said, there are ways that you can use it that can cause you to violate the ToS.

For instance, if you are in a contract with another user, such as for an art commission or some other agreement that involves an exchange of gold/items/services for gold/items/services, you should be working something out with that user to end or cancel the transaction before adding them to your ignorelist. Simply adding them to your ignorelist before the transaction is complete, or cancelling it on your own without a mutual agreement from the other user, can land you in hot water for scamming.


I cleared my ignorelist when I became a moderator in 2009 and I have only had to add three people to my list since then, one being someone that was spreading false information to her roommates (my offline friends) to tear relationships and friendships apart. I have pretty thick skin and I try to leave people off of my ignorelist so that my inbox remains open to everyone, especially since I am one of two people currently working on hacking reports. Unfortunately, there are just some people who behave in such a manner that adding them to my ignorelist was the best option I had.

I guess people on Gaia are very chill and there are not a lot of problems user to user like there are on other sites. I havent blocked anyone...in a loooong loooong time. Usually if I'm in an internet argument with someone I'll just stop going to the thread and leave it alone. On other websites I'll block people who send me spam messages, which on Gaia I fear getting the message notification because usually its from a moderator (thanking me for reporting a thread 6 months ago). GCD and SF have a great set of people in it that don't generally bother me.

I'm not too sure moderators should have the ability to block people, simply on the basis that it's hindering their job. I mean you literally can't see them breaking the rules...Or maybe it's a good thing that you dont handle the case if you already had a bias towards that person??

How often do you use the ignore system?
Not a lot, but past drama has made me block quite a number of users before.

How far is "too far" in order for you to block someone?
Generally when they're being offensive asshats and don't give a damn. I can understand if they're ignorant and don't understand what they're talking about since not everyone knows everything, but even when they're told and decide to continue on with specific beliefs and be jerks, I decide that its time to never see them again. Once a user on here convinces me that they're not worth interacting with, I don't want to keep those avenues up.

Is the ignore system important or unimportant to you?
I think its important. I come onto this site to have fun with friends and to read interesting topics. If someone is going out of their way to disrupt that, they're simply put on the list. If I can walk away from people I don't like irl, I should be able to do that here, too.

Making enemies... is it a good thing or a bad thing?
Bad, of course. I don't intend to start drama, but sometimes I feel the need to speak up when someone's wrong about something, and sometimes I can get a little mild if they say terrible things. Y'know, just like everyone else when their buttons are pushed. Otherwise, I'm on my best behavior and try to avoid it.