It is very annoying to see posts deleted when they are not offensive, and especially so when valuable information is provided. For instance, a post that discusses the price of oil is substantive as it affects how a reasonable person would view investment decisons, and I would like to read that. That is not, in my opinion, a violation of the terms of use. If someone clicks the "report" button for a post like that, it should be reviewed, and then ignored as a baseless complaint.

If a post must be removed for violation, it really should be done in such a way as to be transparent. The user that has allegedly violated the terms should at least receive a private message as to why that post was removed. Better yet, the community could see a message in the body of the post saying that it was removed for violating the terms. This approach would make it less confusing to read this board. I have on numerous occasions struggled to understand what people were responding to because the original post was as if it never existed. It leads to misinterpreting what someone is saying, and can make it look like the response is to someone else altogether.

Furthermore, if someone is violating terms so frequently as to have nearly 100% of their posts deleting (assuming they really are violations), shouldn't they be suspended from the forum?

On a related note, can people please stop reporting almost every post, as it seems that is what is happening? I don't think an Agoracom moderator is doing this on his/her own, but in response to people clicking the "report" feature. I think both the reporting and the subsequent removals have been excessive.

Just comments and questions respectfully submitted for thought to help make this board better for all.

Wesley