19
votes
Accepted
How to handle 'arguments from authority'
When it comes to identifying the "argument from authority" fallacy, then there is one thing one needs to pay attention to: Is the author using the authority as a source for a fact or for an opinion?
...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
16
votes
What is the point of comments like "Doesn't answer the question."?
When I see an answer that misses the point, then I usually reply with something like:
This does not answer the question. The question is "Why are hot-dogs illegal in Arstotska", but you ...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
15
votes
Should we allow posting answers in the comment section?
No.
Comments lack the facilities to support proper answers. There are significant size and formatting constraints, no (public) revision history, and, quite importantly, comments cannot be downvoted.
...
- 9,652
14
votes
Are comments of the variety 'The New York Times is Fake News' flaggable?
If one claims that a source is untrustworthy, they need to provide some reason for that. Just calling them "fake news" is an ad-hominem argument and therefore of little weight.
If someone uses a ...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
14
votes
Are comments of the variety 'The New York Times is Fake News' flaggable?
Yes.
Politics is a bit on the chatty side, compared to other Stack Exchange sites. You will often stumble upon idle discussion in comments. However, we do follow the same general guidelines. If a ...
- 9,652
13
votes
Should Politics SE ask to be part of the suggest Improvement experiment
TL;DR: It looks like a good idea that might be worth trying.
However, the way it is formulated, it looks half-baked and needs improvement before giving it a try.
Although comments are second-class ...
- 17.3k
13
votes
Accepted
Is this considered within bounds of "be nice" policy? If so, why?
No, it is not. When you see a similar comment, please flag it as "rude or abusive".
I took a look at the recently declined "rude or abusive" flags and found the comment quoted here under a question ...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
12
votes
Accepted
Confusion on community standards on debates in comments
Thank you for pointing out this comment thread, but next time please flag it instead of posting on meta. That's easier for you and easier for us.
To answer your question: No, we generally do not want ...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
11
votes
Are we going to start telling each other to "shut up" now?
I think I found the comments you were referring to:
The quality of a question is not measured by the number of answers it gets. If you don't understand that, there is no point discussing this matter ...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
10
votes
Accepted
Why do we suggest to new members who have low quality answers to do something they can't do?
You'll find similar wording for across SE -- it's not specific to Politics.
The privilege to post a comment anywhere requires 50 rep. Before that you can only post comments in specific circumstances, ...
- 30.7k
10
votes
Why my comments and questions are repeatedly getting deleted?
Your comment was deleted because we generally discourage comments regarding up/downvotes - see the examples in the Help Center article on the commenting privilege:
When shouldn't I comment?
Comments ...
CDJBMod
- 108k
10
votes
Is connecting the Nazis with the "far right" a Code of Conduct violation?
"Godwin's law" or "Reductio ad Hitlerum" is an over 30 year old rule for internet discussion. It states that:
Whenever someone compares something to Hitler or the Nazis, the ...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
9
votes
Accepted
Why was my comment on free healthcare deleted twice?
As shown in your screenshot, the question specifically refers to free healthcare as
"health for free" from payed [sic] taxes
In other words, OP already knows that "free healthcare" is not ...
- 3,760
9
votes
What to do with irrational comments?
I'm not surprised that people don't want to bother reading certain parts of your answer. That answer is super long, and the prose is confusing. Frankly, I don't feel like reading it.
See if you ...
8
votes
What is the appropriate action to take when nuisance comment flags are declined?
The comment provides valid criticism to the first part of the answer, about Bill Clinton's associate. That part is a bit speculative and does not answer the question. The question asks about ...
- 9,652
8
votes
am I wrong in thinking that an author raising "no longer needed" flag is always honored?
Some people tend to raise "no longer needed" flags on comments which point out flaws in their answers which they don't agree with. When I believe that the criticism is valid and useful for ...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
8
votes
Why were my comments under this answer deleted?
This question is already answered by the standard comment that is posted when a comment discussion is moved to chat:
Comments have been moved to chat; please do not continue the discussion here. ...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
7
votes
Should we allow posting answers in the comment section?
I concur with the idea that (semi-)answers in comments are evil rather than good.
The only goal for comments must be improving the post — Question or Answer, respectively.
Everything else is just ...
- 17.3k
7
votes
Did you erase the comments pointing out that Wagner is a terrorist organization?
I removed your comments because they were not constructive.
Justified or not, your polemic about Wagner and their warcrimes did not add anything productive to the question. That question is certainly ...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
7
votes
Does Politics.SE have a problem with too many comments?
Does Politics.SE have way more tangential comments than it should?
Yes
Does Politics.SE have lots and lots of blocks of comments that turn out to be side discussions that have to get removed to chat?
...
- 16.9k
6
votes
SE sites seem to be ruining the fun by disallowing comments
No, we should not allow "fun" comments.
The goal of this community is to provide factual answers to political questions from a neutral point of view. We want to generate content which can be ...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
6
votes
Why were the comments deleted rather than moved to chat?
Comments are ephemeral by nature on the SE network. They can get deleted without notice at moderators' discretion, for any reason. In particular when they're chatty or turn into an extensive ...
- 30.7k
6
votes
why was my comment erased?
Your comment was:
I just want to point out, for the sake of saving @indigochild some work, that "none of this provides a clear factual answer to the question".
Given that your response to ...
- 9,652
6
votes
If an unsatisfactory answer inspires comments by others that taken as a whole answer the question, should I mark it as answered?
No
No. Answers should be accepted if, in the OP's opinion, it is the best answer to their question. Comments are not a part of an answer. They are transitory elements that might eventually be ...
- 23.9k
6
votes
What is the policy on comments and answers that breed negativity?
Politics is naturally contentious. People depend a lot on their political context; they want things like stability, safety, liberty, healthy environments, opportunities, etc, that can only be granted ...
- 73.4k
6
votes
Do deleted comments exist anywhere?
Not for normal users. Moderators can see them, however.
One small exception would be that if the comment was posted, but not deleted, before the previous Sunday at around 03:00 UTC, it would be able ...
- 101
6
votes
Accepted
Declining comment flags and then deleting. Reason?
I declined the first two flags at first because those comments were criticism of the question. Getting moderators to remove comments is not a way to deal with criticism you don't agree with.
But after ...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
6
votes
What happened to my comments on this question?
I deleted some comments on that question, because they did not fulfill the purposes outlined in the description of the commenting privilege.
Remember that comments are for discussing how the question/...
PhilippMod
- 78.2k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible