Why not ban users from a thread?

[Gumby]

The moderator team has discussed in detail this proposal and has concluded it will not accomplish either of the two stated objectives. That is, it will neither reduce the moderator workload nor lead to fewer threads being closed. Therefore, the team has chosen to recommend it not be implemented.

We wish to foster an environment where members are welcome everywhere and free to join any discussion. To change that and allow some members to disrespect the rules in one area but continue to participate elsewhere imposes an additional level of complexity and moderation, without any apparent benefit. As Janet H wrote earlier in this same thread

There are really just a few rules here. Be nice, don’t spam, and stay away from a few topics that are toxic. Members choose to follow these or not, but there is no “selective following” of the rules. Selecting which rules to follow or which threads or forum topics to apply them just doesn't work - we tried that experiment.

The moderators share the desire to keeps threads open and discussion vibrant. Threads are never closed because of just one post by one member. The multiple posts that lead to a premature close are usually deleted, as it is our intention to not embarrass, call out or point at any individual member, but thread closings are almost always the result of multiple snarky posts and users dragging a discussion away from the original topic.

Janet H shared with us how to keep threads open

If members want to keep threads open, they could step up and challenge the off topic thread diverting comments that derail discussions too often or report them before the thread has wandered too far astray to salvage...

The team appreciates the feedback and will continue to make every effort to improve our forum. We would prefer future discussions to have less sarcasm and snark, as they do not bring differing views any closer together or lead to a more positive outcome.