The simple fact that shitposters are opposed to self-moderated topics proves that self-moderated topics are effective, otherwise why would they be annoyed by their existence ?
It's a bit ridiculous, from my point of view, asking for this system to be banned would be like asking for the grading system to be stopped for an exam because you wouldn't be able to pass it. It's stupid to get angry at seeing your posts deleted in a topic where your own posts aren't welcome (when it's for legitimate reasons), theymos himself said to be careful in these topics :


So it's in the contract, too bad for those who don't understand it.

For those who say "yes, but there are scammers who take advantage of it", this happened to me just a few days ago, so yes, it's true that some scammers can take advantage of it.
When it happened to me, I was a little weary to see that he had deleted the message in which I pointed out my doubts about his dubious topic. But after a few minutes' reflection, I understood that this was a positive thing in itself; it erased any doubt about his intentions, and provided proof that he's a dishonest user. So even in this case, self-moderated topics play a positive role. It's up to us to leave redtrusts when this system is abused, that's all.

Anything that can reduce the number of crappy posts and spam should be welcomed on our forum. Those who advocate in favor of spam and shitposting are militating against the general interest of the forum.