I've noticed that no political topics are permitted to be posted outside of Hot Topics now. In the past when a person was incapable of scrolling on by and decided they should censor for everyone, the threads usually came back after moderator review. They don't anymore. Maybe it's a moderator who removes them, but if it is, they could at least let us know there's a new policy.

I don't remember that post........or is that the one OJ started a few days ago? Because of Mayflowers response, I went looking for OJ's and it's gone. If it's the same one as you're taking about, Annie, then it does seem that anything political gets deleted.

Another one, initiated by this mischievous fella, along the line of whether a president might be considered an essential service and thus deserving of getting paid through the shutdown ....

... didn't last long, either, it seems, as when I returned a short time later, it was sorta like easter eggs on a snowy day - pretty much hard to find!

ole joyful

(that "much" wasn't there as I wrote ... but it does kinda fit, so I decided to leave it)

o j

I think some people over on Hot Topics got jealous, lol

It was about what happened at the Lincoln Memorial on Saturday between some protestors and a Catholic boys group and how the media reported it.

It's a holiday, so mods may not be working. More likely that someone here flagged it. I head a voice of dissent before it went missing.

Many private sector companies don't recognize MLK Jr Day but rather treat it as an optional holiday.

Yes, the Washington matter. Someone complained and/or a moderator decided it didn't belong. It's Houzz's site, their game, their rules apply.

I read the post and when it disappeared, it seemed to have morphed into more of a political discussion (with a couple of rather inflammatory comments on both sides) than just a report and offered opinions on the event itself. So perhaps someone - or even Houzz admin - found that objectionable and the thread was removed.

It does seem that threads that take on a very political tone are the ones to get deleted. And if that is the case, perhaps they are best left to the Hot Topics forum where they are most appropriately sited. And allowed to take their course :-)

I am sure the Houzz mods/administrators work pretty much 24/7/365 - most IT based industries (or portions thereof) do.

And MLK Jr. Day is a Federal holiday so typically only applies to Federal employees or those business or institutions with Federal ties - Federal or governmental offices, banks, post office, schools. Most other business are open. Even my library, which acknowledges most holidays, is open today.

It started taking on a HT tone. I think Hot Topics posters bring that tone here and it doesn't work. We used to be able to talk about politics without the personal attacks or attacks on the right or left but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore.

"We used to be able to talk about politics without the personal attacks or attacks on the right or left but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore."

I agree :-) But maybe that is just a reflection of the current political climate, which at least to me seems to be far more divisive and confrontational than it has in the past. And mean-spirited ;-)

I have only seen evidence of one moderator for the entire site.

I am sure the Houzz mods/administrators work pretty much 24/7/365 - most IT based industries (or portions thereof) do.

No, that does not seem to be the case gardengal. In HT, posts begin disappearing due to flagging in earnest late Friday, and they don't return until Monday, after the moderator's review. By then they are usually on page 3 or so. Even non-political topics, such as music sharing threads, get this treatment. I don't know if the moderators have today off.

I'm not sure that the moderators or administators have any sort of visible online presence :-) mayflowers, if you are referring to Heather (I think that was the name) that intervened and often made comments when all the flak hit after the big changeover and complaints about the site were rampant, I don't think she is a moderator at all but just a 'customer service' person and provided some human connection to help explain the changes and how to work around the bugs.

The company has something like 2000 employees and while a good percentage are dealing with online sales, there has got to be a pretty hefty IT staff to manage a site this large!

MLK Jr. Day is a paid holiday for only about 33% of the general workforce and is often considered a flex day (a u-pick holiday for companies with that option). I would be surprised if most the Houzz workforce was not in today.

I am sure the Houzz mods/administrators work pretty much 24/7/365 - most IT based industries (or portions thereof) do.

Actually they don't. If you spend any amount of time on HT you quickly realize that the cat is away on weekends.

With all the recent name changes I would say there has been moderating going on, lol

I don't think it's as easy to just make a new name if your banned from Houzz. I think your IP address is banned which means making a new name won't let you in either. But I could be wrong.

The "What a difference a day makes" thread is back up;) Looks like the mods are working today and topic freedom is alive and well;)

...along the line of whether a president might be considered an essential service and thus deserving of getting paid .... - joyfulguy

That is really funny.

It appears that some folk(s) didn't agree regarding the original, blfuntown.

I was suggesting that, as a gentleman, he might consider foregoing his salary for the remainder of the shutdown, and several said that he's been turning it over to some government services/programs.

o j

O.J., He said when he was running that he wouldn't accept a salary. I suppose when you're a Billionaire, you don't need $400,000 a year.

my contribution to that thread was: I don't think there are many (if any) in Congress or in the White House who would notice if they didn't get their salary. They're all wealthy people. Bet they'd notice the shutdown if they had to clean their own bathrooms!

Some of the Congress would notice, particularly the new members. However, it might make more of an impression if not only did members of Congress not receive their pay, but the staff didn't receive any pay either! Why punish people who have nothing to do with the shutdown. If you really wanted to get something done in Washington, stop paying the people who are the root of the problem.