Multiple Choice Poll : Spam or Lobbying? Tell us what you think.

Spam or Lobbying? Tell us what you think.

We spend a great deal of personal energy defining the roles and acceptable behaviours in this forum.

I gave it some thought on a long ride in the back country yesterday and I feel I can draw a contrast on what we call spamming and the acceptable political activity called lobbying.

With lobbying people are paid to present a position or positions on important issues that someone wants to see influence the decisions of those voting.

Here in the politics forum those seen that repeating political positions in different contexts causes distress to some and we have called it and them spammers.

So is being passionate about influencing the voter (member of RIU) Spamming and therefore if you yank it three times you are playing with it? ( a joke about male masturbation and urinating )
Or are we all actually Lobbying our own agendas with every post we make and therefore are all guilty?

So is it Lobbying or is it Spamming : You decide.

Thanks..

lol .... I hate politics ... its all spam to me ........

Jeffdt1966 said:

lol .... I hate politics ... its all spam to me ........

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Then your vote is Strongly Spam... Thanks

Well it's not lobbying. Lobbying involves explaining your position to the people who have the authority to do something about it. Also, lobbying and spamming are not mutually exclusive. Lobbyists spam email as well as TV ads on a regular basis.

The way I see it, if you have an opinion on a certain subject, go ahead and let yourself be heard. Explain your position in an existing thread, or create your own dedicated to explaining your position. That's fine, that's not spamming.

It only becomes spamming when you start multiple threads about the exact same thing, when you're posting the same thing over and over again, or posting off topic in a thread. That makes the whole board difficult to read and is annoying. Spamming IMO involves repetition, advertisement posting, or off topic posting. As long as you're not doing those 3 things, you're all good in my book.

Dan Kone said:

Well it's not lobbying. Lobbying involves explaining your position to the people who have the authority to do something about it. Also, lobbying and spamming are not mutually exclusive. Lobbyists spam email as well as TV ads on a regular basis.

The way I see it, if you have an opinion on a certain subject, go ahead and let yourself be heard. Explain your position in an existing thread, or create your own dedicated to explaining your position. That's fine, that's not spamming.

It only becomes spamming when you start multiple threads about the exact same thing, when you're posting the same thing over and over again, or posting off topic in a thread. That makes the whole board difficult to read and is annoying. Spamming IMO involves repetition, advertisement posting, or off topic posting. As long as you're not doing those 3 things, you're all good in my book.

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Are you sure you are not Lobbying us to see things your way ( pun intended ) <:{)

Then your vote is Strongly Spam. It's Multiple choice as well.

Thanks

Ernst said:

Then your vote is Strongly Spam. It's Multiple choice as well.

Thanks

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Um no. My choice was none of the above. Don't try to speak for me.

MY BAD.. srry.. Be Well!

Ernst said:

MY BAD.. srry.. Be Well!

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Thanks. Sorry if I was a little snippy with you. I guess I misinterpreted your intentions.

We all out ourselves over time. You are predominate enough that I studied your cycles. From my observations I have formed the following opinion.

You have a need to control. Take your reply of None of the Above contrasted with the option of None of the Below. Logically they are the same yet yours takes control away from the poll and me, I assume, and restates it as yours. You then control a form of opposition as an opposing force.
A stake in effecting another's "agenda."
People are interesting don't you agree?


Thanks for voting.

Interesting. But I just thought it was not really an either or question. IMO the answer was not lobbying but as for it being spam, that depends on a few variables. I didn't see that option. Framing questions can be just as important as the answers themselves. If I see a false question or a question where you're being directed to make a false answer, I raise objections.

From your point of view and in line with you agenda?

So possibly someone could see that as Spamming?

Technically, the word "Lobbying" implies influencing a "governing body". I guess that could loosely be applied to Voters as the ultimately decide elections.

But the majority of banter that I see in forums can't really be described this way.

Some people share their innocent yet naive genuine feelings of how they think things should work in an ideal world.

Some people just repeat the words of today's Talking Heads.

A small amount of the banter is well thought out positions by people who have no way to change anything and just need to get things off of their chest.

Some people just want to argue. YES THEY DO.

And then some people just walk around Wal-Mart parking lots and type what they read on bumper stickers. You know who they are.

Ernst said:

From your point of view and in line with you agenda?

So possibly someone could see that as Spamming?

Click to expand...

Not sure I understand, but yes, someone can just as easily spam from my point of view as they could from another point of view. As I said, IMO what makes it spam is if the posts are off topic, repeating the same thing, or advertising something.

@ Dank One : Like personal opinions.
@ BendBrewer : Actually over a period of time there is a winner concept here and a loser concept here and the battle of evermore. Perhaps we are a (virtual) Nation of our own in this forum or even the Site? I do see your point of junk mail and parking lot preaching.

So do we repeat what we think and believe in everything we write?
Is that Spam or Lobbying?