I have a suggestion: why doesn't everyone agree that what people think is vulgar differs, and that what a player like Vellos or myself (because I might have reported that statement as vulgar too under a "conduct unbecoming" interpretation of the feature) may find vulgar will not necessarily be the same as what a player like Slapsticks or Anaris may find vulgar, and that that is okay? Unless it's not? Are we supposed to all have the same standards for vulgarity?
The issue shouldn't be that Vellos thought something that others don't believe is vulgar is vulgar, the issue should be whether Vellos *didn't* think it is vulgar and is just needling a rival character by abusing the mechanic (and maybe the Magistrates are already past that in the backroom discussion). Vellos reports a lot, and reports borderline cases a lot, or so it seems. But, is this behavior abuse, and is this behavior in need of correction? Or does Vellos just have narrower standards for what constitutes acceptable language/roleplay? Do the vulgarity reporting/judging guidelines need to be reviewed and edited? Does a restriction need to be placed on the number of reports or a penalty added for reporting falsely?
The message you receive when a message is reported as vulgar talks about determining the atmosphere of the game. If the intent is only for actual verbal vulgarity (which it states should find no mercy) then why does it go on about atmosphere? The first time I got a vulgarity report sent to one of my characters I read through the whole thing, and ended up voting "not vulgar", but I didn't think the reporter was abusing the mechanic just because I thought he was wrong.
@Slapsticks: Professing atheism (whether or not the letter actually did is irrelevant as long as Vellos thought at the time that it did) is strictly against one of Tom's rules for the game, but it wasn't a straight-up "there is no god and Paul Dirac is his prophet". Should that be reported to the Titans, which is for "repeated and blatant" violations? Or should it be reported as vulgarity, something that a noble should not say and for which the penalty is a single point of honor lost?
