No Further Discussion of Political Issues Allowed (Updated 05/05/24)

[zmanjz]

Greetings,

After a thorough discussion by Toon Zone Owners, Administrators, and Moderators, the decision has been made to fully enforce a ban on political threads in the Cafe.

Whether a thread consitutes political discussion will be at the discretion of the moderators.

There are various sites on the internet devoted toward political discussion, and we refer you to them if you need an outlet.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,
Toon Zone Forums

[Nightflower]

Addendum:

Political discussion may be identified by the degree in which the issue (current or otherwise) is directly influenced or initiated by partisan interests (i.e. discussions on the war in Iraq or statements/speeches made by the political parties within the gov't should be considered inherently political).

Discussions that are inherently moral merely question accepted notions of right and wrong. The transition from moral to political takes place when said moral issue is taken up as a partisan cause. (i.e. Gay marriages are a moral issue that has been used in many situations in a partisan manner to influence the voting decisions of various religious sects, and therefore has made the transition to political.)

Topics such as the Terri Schiavo case are inherently moral discussions, not political. The extent in which the gov't had a hand in the decision was minimal to non-existant. That the case was taken to each level of the courts and turned away (because it was not their decision to make) should say as much.

Inherently moral discussions have the potential to become political discussions but are not guaranteed to. A thread's potential to become political will not cause it to be closed prematurely. Such discussions may not be closed until they do turn political, they become heated or arguments have begun to recycle.

In addition, the following are examples of other types of threads that will not be closed immediately:

-Issues dealing directly with an individual looking to gain knowledge on the actual structure of the government
-Issues that were at one point political, but have made the transition back to moral issues (i.e. slavery)
-Governmental issues prior to 1975 which would be considered more historical in nature.
-Issues that are related directly to the Judicial branch of the United States Gov't. This exception is removed once it becomes a "hot topic" for the political groups.

Issues that do become heated, or have transitioned from discussion to recycled arguments may be closed immediately.

Please note that this addition is a trial run only. If this new rule is abused and there is too much arguing over what is and is not a political discussion, as well as disrespect of moderator ruling, it will be removed.