Got to say I am dissapointed, I've been here at /. for a long time, posting as both a reg'd user, and as AC depending on at home vs work and topic, my Karma is excellent, I subscribe to slahsdot and have for quite a while.
Recently I posted a comment on an Apple article, an opinion, granted but not obscene, or off-topic but apparently quite controversial. It received 5 down mods and 3 up mods and as a result, the IP or my USERID, not sure which yet was placed in TIME out ??? While I can appreciate the need to mod, the post was NOT a troll, nor off-topic and yet silenced I am. I sent an email to /. for info and received a reply and then sent follow up..they are attached :

I have replied again and am awaiting response :(

Would that be me, or one of the 75 or 80 other registered users from this place ? Does it include an ID # or just the IP ?
Basically, someone doesn't like my opinion and I am being censored because of it ? I do not troll, or post anything not general audience safe, I use AC occasionally to post things that might conflict with my work's stated opinions or such, as many other people I work with also post on slashdot.

Nice just checked my account : 7 flamebaits on a single apple article, gee nice system, post an opinion and get bounced from the audience.
BTW During the same period on the same posting there are 3 POSTIVE MODERATIONS AS WELL, so essentially 3 people decide what is suitable for everyone to view, what happened to the SET your BROWSE LEVEL to avoid the noise ?
"Perspective is skewed..Wed August 18, @02:53PM 3 1, Interesting
what do you expect from rabid Wed August 18, @02:12PM 1 0, Troll
      attached to Real Feels iTunes Backlash"

  I have talked to several other users here and we all beleive there is a problem with that kind of censorship, but if it is working as designed we will of course work within the system, after all the net is about community :)

Note : KARMA EXCELLENT, subsciption ACTIVE, EMAIL available for response, instead I get modd'd down anonymously and gagged by automation...

-----Original Message-----
From: Robert Rozeboom [mailto:samzenpus@akane.blockstackers.com]On
Behalf Of Robert Rozeboom
Sent: Friday, August 20, 2004 7:28 AM
To: Duffield, Robert L
Subject: Re: new ip moderation is censorship any way you look at it,

You have been downmodded too many times and are in time out.

On Thu, 19 Aug 2004, Duffield, Robert L wrote:

> it is your web site and you are free to run it the way you like of course but,
>
> If you think this is unfair, please email moderation@slashdot.org with your MD5'd IPID and SubnetID, which are "fb1a0da8eeb758c77e86486ba4501552" and "4d56937246936127aabe0e1618fd7391" and (optionally, but preferably) your IP number "171.159.64.10" and your username "Archfeld".
>
> This is one of the firwewall IP's for a very large tech company, there are like 100,000 users coming from behind 3 possible IP's. It is very likely that is the cause of so-called excessive posting. I have been a /. registered member for a LONG TIME,note the 4 digit CONTINOUSLY USED ID, but if I cannot post anonymously on certain topics I'll just go elsewhere, thanks.

http://slashdot.org/~Archfeld

Where are the Weapons of Mass Destruction ? The US government scrambles to cover its' ass, unfortunately they are ALL ASS...
Tom Ridge and John ASScroft continue the facist run thru Amerika, and Jeb Bush has appointed a guardian to a retarded womans' fetus, in addtion to her state appointed guardian, so what happens when they conflict, does the court decide the mother is in fact just a warm breathing baby carriage ?? Obviously is can't be considered in the fetus's best interest if an abortion is prescribed....Thanks Bush Clan, is there one of you who isn't a lying cheting piece of human feces ? and Barbara doesn't count...she married in.

Sigh, I am torn by the 'war' or more properly $75 Billion (that's US billion) police action in Iraq. There is no doubt Saddam is a capital fubar but our government led by his Royal Ineptness GWB scare me more than anything I can remember.
I just hope that between the protests and the stripping away of our freedoms bit by bit by this Facists regime the supreme court has inflicted upon us, that the only people truly deserving of our support and sympathy don't get pushed aside. Those poor souls eeking a living in Iraq, and the brave men and women who volunteered to serve this country not knowing they would be so poorly used.

While not a normally very religious guy God Bless us all, we need it.

Time to rant..as one of the survivors of the recent wave of corporate separation, aka firings
MAN things suck even worse around here. Thanks to the wonderful legislators in California, I am back on a time sheet and have lost my coveted 9x80 workweek with Monday's off. Then to add insult to injury we pick up 3 new contractors who have yet to produce ANY work of value, but seem to require more handholding to get the simplest of tasks done. Somewhere I really hope a staffing consultant is choking on a ham sandwich. I am off to Dallas to inspect a lab and try and figure out how you support hardware from 2000 miles away. Sadly but the economy is making me pine for the Clinton days, when all you had to worry about was who Bill was Fscking. Now we have to worry about GW, A$$Croft, Ridge, and Congress, and the concerted victim is US, not some willing intern.

I've recently began actually following the web of friends, and yes sadly freaks here. It is a really cool function, and following it one step further to friends of friends and foes of friends, etc shows a hugely complex web of relationships, and by far the best way to track intelligent discussion and lower the noise to signal ratio.

Sad to see...If you need help with the security issue to stop a crap flood let me know...otherwise good luck and I'll see ya around here :)