This explanation is kind of analogous to: "I have been molesting children since 2002, and I kind of like it." Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Disclaimer (for idiots): This is an analogy only.
They're moderators on an internet forum, not members of the Supreme Court or some kind of demigod. If they want to give their Avatars some character, what's the big deal?
Maybe. I'm aware that you have a problem with the idea, but I would simply ask that you consider what would happen to forum attendance if we just had party officials come in and write the topics? The biggest challenge would be dealing with those who can't tell the difference between talking points and political arguments they don't like.
The issue I have is when it's officials from the opposite party which make decisions about which topics are suitable to discuss Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! I guess it's fairly easy to apply a standard of discussion in the Physics forum, and I thank God that I am isolated from some of the shit some other mods have to deal with. Perhaps my issue is that I don't spend too much time in the Politics forum, or anywhere besides the Physics forums. and to be perfectly honest, I just don't care.
That's easy to tell, too, because those party officials will use their own talking points .... Er, okay. It goes beyond that. In this case, Sandy is known to troll, and for some reason we haven't done much about that. This is a stopgap measure. We should have just banned her months ago, thereby avoiding the situation that led to this discussion. • • • Thinly analogous. Remotely. Almost fictitiously. For instance, both statements represent justifications. You might as well be comparing the butcher trimming the fat off your favorite cut of steak with what happened in Rwanda. After all, we called that "butchering", too.