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I recently stumbled across this comment:

Aren't you the one who tried posting a answer to my "should I pick doom shroom or cherry bomb" question and got your response deleted? Don't let it happen again!

The answer the comment is referring to is this one.

Firstly the answer was actually self-deleted, after 2 downvotes, due to the answer being not the best. But my main issue is the way the user seemed to be reprimanding the poster, as if having an answer deleted by any means is not acceptable.

In this specific example, I have flagged their comment, and responded asking them to refrain from this in future. Is this how this sort of thing should be handled?

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  • D: I didnt even notice that...
    – Eris Starmaster
    Commented Nov 19, 2020 at 12:37
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    @Eristheguest Good, because you shouldn't have to deal with rudeness like that. :)
    – Robotnik Mod
    Commented Nov 19, 2020 at 13:56

1 Answer 1

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Flagging that comment was the right call.

Beyond that - I would generally discourage any further actions - including leaving comments in reply. Comments are meant for requesting clarifications or constructive criticism aimed at improving the post in question - starting side conversations about someone's tone/rudeness just adds to the noise, and can actually make the situation worse by flaring up more arguments.

Pragmatically speaking, if you are going to comment in response, keep it simple, rather than trying to address whatever point they're making. Something like "Please don't be rude to other users. It might be worth taking a look at Arqade's Code of Conduct".

If they come back and continue their rudeness after that, flag and don't respond further - it's not worth your time. Your flags will have alerted the mod team, and we are generally better equipped to deal with these situations - with various tools and levels of escalation available depending on the severity of the matter.

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  • I would never leave a mean comment in reply, I know better. That just brings more hurt.
    – Eris Starmaster
    Commented Nov 19, 2020 at 14:06
  • Thankyou for the confirmation. I'll admit that at the time, I was a bit worked up, but did my best to simply contain the situation (I personally have had other experiences with this sort of thing, both through observation and personal involvement). Since I was feeling a bit hot headed my reply was, as you pointed out, a bit excessive.
    – Ben
    Commented Nov 20, 2020 at 0:28
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    @Ben - your reply definitely wasn't too bad. I was more giving advice for future scenarios in which you or someone does reply to rude comments, rather than saying your comment was out of line or anything.
    – Robotnik Mod
    Commented Nov 20, 2020 at 0:42

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