to think some posters are far more invested in policing threads than actually contributing to them?

[catchingup1]

I keep noticing the same weird little gatekeeping lines popping up on here, like people have appointed themselves Thread Police overnight:

Why did you start this thread
What do you want out of this thread
You didn’t answer my question
What has this got to do with you
Nobody cares about your opinion
There are loads of threads on this already
What you are talking about cannot possibly exist because I have never experienced it?

Since when did we all need to submit a business case before posting?
It’s a forum. People start threads because something crossed their mind, annoyed them, interested them or they just fancied a chat. Not every post needs a clear objective, measurable outcomes and a Q&A session at the end

The irony of replying to a thread just to say why does this thread exist is a bit lost on some people.

If it’s not for you, scroll on. It’s not that deep.

Agree. You’ll get someone along to police this soon, too!

And the ones who complain about people not reading the whole thread, so bossy

Yet you're now policing how people post!

(I broadly agree with you though)

There is merit there though, especially in at the very least reading the OP’s posts.

Because so often someone will read only the OP, and then post something completely pointless ten pages in when the thread has moved on completely. it’s utterly pointless and makes them look like a bit of a tit.

It's an online forum - people can contribute to a thread in whichever way they like (as long as it is not abusive)

You are being unreasonable to be annoyed by this. Think of it as just part and parcel of the online (and real) world!

To be fair, if it’s a long thread, e.g. in relationships then it’s best to click to see all posts by OP before commenting, it doesn’t take long to do that. A lot of those have important revelations and developments, and people jump in to tell the OP she IBU and give her a kicking when it’s really not appropriate!

I do think it's odd that people come onto a thread just to let the OP know there are already loads of threads on this. Thereby putting it into I'm On for them! If a thread bores them, they should just scroll on by and forget about it. This is MN, almost everything has been done before.

Even weirder though is when someone comes onto a celeb thread just to say they've never heard of them 🤷‍♂️

Often you get these responses to OPs who post things like "I was surprised to see how many very overweight older ladies on benefits were having three course meals in my expensive local cafe, with their large drooling dogs. Anyone else noticed this?"
Other times people are just being cantankerous.

I totally agree. I put up my first thread recently and won’t do it again. I had people telling me the subject was non of my business and that I was obsessed with the issue I was posting about - such bizzare comments to make on a chat forum. I decided that it made the posters feel good about themselves to say these things - as if they were some sort of wise guru handing out advice to a poor simpleton.

You're not wrong OP, some women love to police other women, its the same with the "if this was the other way around..." posters. Men don't do this to each other, its a very female thing and I can't stand it.

Heh, agreed.

See also "you used the wrong word". I started a thread about the ICE debacle / murders when they first broke, and had the audacity to use the word "carnage" as a descriptor. One poster started a derail because it was inappropriate and should only be used in cases of multiple casualties, despite it having become venacular for situations that imply chaotic and negative events of all sorts.

Yes, clear communication is helpful, but honestly talk about alleged style over substance, especially on serious topics. Although I sometimes suspect it is a misdirection tactic for contentious subjects in some cases.

Tbf that one is genuinely annoying.

True but there have also been some hysterical OTT responses to posts -I wondered if the teens are all home revising for exams

I agree in the whole with what you say.

Actually comments such as "Nobody cares about your opinion" aren't so much policing as being down right rude.

Sometimes questioning an OP about why they started the thread is relevant in topics such as AIBU or Relationships where it becomes very ckear the OP is only looking for opinions that validate their own and they are dismissive and even unpleasant to anyone who offers a different view point. Or sometimes when the motivation of starting the thread is clearly goady or shitstirring.