There has been a recent change on The Philosophy Forum: I have been removed from the site staff and am no longer a moderator. The reason was stylistic: my frank manner of speech was felt to have a detrimental effect on the representation of the forum, and, having been assigned the role of a forum representative, that was deemed to be unacceptable. The substance of what I was saying, however, was not even a factor. What I was saying may well have been true. But it might have caused some offense - which is apparently a no-no - even though the content that I am referring to contained no insults. Rather, the problem was that some people might find such directness unpleasant. (Wah).

A consequence of this decision is that I no longer have the power to edit the content of others, as I used to do quite frequently, and without my doing so or flagging posts, the editorial standard is likely going to slip somewhat. It may have already done so to some extent. (I have a keen eye for noticing these things).

Another consequence is that my manner of speech might not actually change or might even become yet more frank. And, regardless of the role that I'm assigned, in practical terms, someone such as myself may simply be more notable, or more readily associated with this forum, than someone else - whether that someone else is a member of the site staff or not.

This is not an appeal to regain my former position as a moderator. This is just some feedback. (Yes, another one of those).

So, how do you feel about the practical consequences of this change? (How do you intend to celebrate this hollow victory?) And is this not yet another example of the shortcomings of a certain sort of idealism, or, dare I say, political correctness?