> Then what is the role of the guidelines?

So that the community has a touchstone.

But they are guidelines, not laws.

> Things are moderated - but with no consistency.

It's a big job, so it isn't done perfectly. But I'm sure they'd love to hear about specific instances of moderation that are or seem inconsistent.

But note that the moderation isn't all done by the moderators; the community moderates too.