Math Mods' Office - 2019-06-01

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3:48 AM

I have noticed that the randomly generated patterns for users who do not select a picture can have rather unfortunate consequences. Specifically, probably with no intention toward it, there are users with images that are swastikas. I first noticed this on this user: math.stackexchange.com/users/403337/chris-custer

I'm quite positive this is unintentional, but it is also rather unsettling and something we may want to do something about, though I admit I haven't the faintest clue how.

Oh, perhaps I should ping a mod. @AlexanderGruber

YuiTo Cheng

@TheCount I don't think per-site moderators can do anything about this problem. Perhaps you should ask it on Meta stack exchange

The Count

I will see what they say, as I do not want to go over any heads.

skullpatrol

4:32 AM

Swastika

The swastika or sauwastika (as a character, 卐 or 卍, respectively) is a geometrical figure and an ancient religious icon in the cultures of Eurasia. It is used as a symbol of divinity and spirituality in Indian religions. In the Western world, it was a symbol of auspiciousness and good luck until the 1930s, when it became a feature of Nazi symbolism as an emblem of Aryan identity and, as a result, was stigmatized by its association with racism and antisemitism.The name swastika comes from Sanskrit (Devanagari: स्वस्तिक) meaning 'conducive to well being' or 'auspicious'. In Hinduism, the symbol with...

Ajay Mishra

4:54 AM

hey @skullpatrol why you are everywhere?

skullpatrol

i've got a lot of interests :-)

Ajay Mishra

Why "patrol"?

skullpatrol

originally from a police "patrol" car

13 hours later…

Alexander Gruber

5:57 PM

@TheCount Part of my PhD thesis involved generating random datasets with $C_4$ symmetry

You'd be surprised how difficult it is to avoid making things that look like swastikas

Best to just think of them as Heathen sun crosses

The Count

6:14 PM

@skullpatrol yes, I know the history of the swastika. in the western world, such responses are usually an excuse to justify the use of hate symbology, so perhaps check yourself there. this isn't Eurasia.

@AlexanderGruber I figured as such. if there was an easy fix, i'd ask for it, but as I suspected, it seems to just be a 'thing'. and it is clearly unintentional.

quid

@TheCount I suppose we could remove the one identicon.

That said, personally I have a hard time to see a symbol there though.

Alexander Gruber

@TheCount many of our users are from europe and asia actually! I wish we still had the pin map up from the main math chat many years ago

The Count

6:36 PM

@quid There is no need to remove the one identicon. Just something I thought I'd point out.

@AlexanderGruber Yes, I know. I was strongly reacting to any idea that swastikas in a Western context mean anything other than an association with Nazism. And despite the wonderful worldwide panoply of users we enjoy here, the English requirement alone is enough to justify that reaction, I think. Still, no big deal if the symbol change is a big hassle.

Alexander Gruber

6:57 PM

@TheCount Yeah-- based on past experience, users who decide to use their SE profile to promote Nazi material, they are not subtle about it. IRL I have seen a lot of examples of non-Nazi swastikas (Buddhists and neopagans use them, also I lived in a pre-WW2 building once with swastika floor tiles) but I've never seen an example of these exceptions on SE.

Nice thing about hate speech is that it's easy to detect and thus can be dealt with quickly

The Count

7:46 PM

@AlexanderGruber Yeah, I didn't think it was deliberate, but for example, given the choice as a non-Buddhist and non-Pagan to eliminate swastikas, I'd take the chance, but it is not necessary. I'd argue that hate speech is often more subtle, but that is beyond the point of this exchange anyhow. To the credit of the mods, I've never seen any hate speech on this site (and I have a wide definition of the term) last longer than about 45 seconds.

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