Talkfreethought refugee

[DrZoidberg]

[quote=""justme""]

At one time TR was similar to SC, with somewhat less moderation. Even RnR at one time wasn't as bad as TR became. Definitely neither were ever alt-right. In fact, pretty sure any alt-right type would be quickly driven away like most everyone else would.

Hmm... but that's a problem. A forum should attract a variety of people with a variety of views. For a forum to truly be a free thought forum we want people to feel free to express themselves. A forum where people don't have opposing views is a dead forum. Even alt-right people should feel welcome.

The problem with the alt-right isn't the opinions they hold. But that they have rarely thought it through. And that they spam forums with with pithy posts, without substance. That's where moderation comes in. Moderators can force people like this to make an effort, or get kicked out.

I think the right has their own set of truths and are on the lookout for anything and everything to verify that truth. What they do is react to a situation according to those truths instead of trying to understand anything.

I think that is the reason the evangelical community has hitched their wagons to them.[/QUOTE]

I'm pretty sure you've described every living person who has ever lived. We're all like this, and I think it's important to be honest about it. Some of us are just a little bit better than the rest at it.

[justme]

[quote=""DrZoidberg""]

At one time TR was similar to SC, with somewhat less moderation. Even RnR at one time wasn't as bad as TR became. Definitely neither were ever alt-right. In fact, pretty sure any alt-right type would be quickly driven away like most everyone else would.

Hmm... but that's a problem. A forum should attract a variety of people with a variety of views. For a forum to truly be a free thought forum we want people to feel free to express themselves. A forum where people don't have opposing views is a dead forum. Even alt-right people should feel welcome.

The problem with the alt-right isn't the opinions they hold. But that they have rarely thought it through. And that they spam forums with with pithy posts, without substance. That's where moderation comes in. Moderators can force people like this to make an effort, or get kicked out.

I think the right has their own set of truths and are on the lookout for anything and everything to verify that truth. What they do is react to a situation according to those truths instead of trying to understand anything.

I think that is the reason the evangelical community has hitched their wagons to them.

I'm pretty sure you've described every living person who has ever lived. We're all like this, and I think it's important to be honest about it. Some of us are just a little bit better than the rest at it.[/QUOTE]

Well, the main thing about honesty is being aware that we don't know everything and that we aren't infallible in which we interpret the world around us. When you get into the far fringe groups, then you get into people who are of such rigid thinking they are almost incapable of thinking beyond their own prejudices and are ready, will and able to act upon these.

One case in point, I was at a Christian web site and was discussing Philosophical truths. You would have thought I was Judas Iscariot. To them the Bible says that Jesus was the truth and the light and they acted like discussing the difference between subjective and objective truth was blasphemy , for, to them there was only one truth and that was Jesus.

I can understand where they were coming from, since I grew up as a Jehovah's Witness, but I can't understand closing their minds to me even to try and explain myself.

[Pandora]

[quote=""justme""]
I think the right has their own set of truths and are on the lookout for anything and everything to verify that truth. What they do is react to a situation according to those truths instead of trying to understand anything.

I think that is the reason the evangelical community has hitched their wagons to them.[/quote]
Little bit of a quibble here, with respect to this being presented as a distinguishing feature:

I think the left has their own set of truths and are on the lookout for anything and everything to verify that truth. What they do is react to a situation according to those truths instead of trying to understand anything.

I think that is the reason the antifa community has hitched their wagons to them.

The above is just as true, and just as compelling an argument.

[crazyfingers]

[quote=""Jobar""]Hi and welcome, Dr. Z. I think I've interacted with you a few times at TF.

No definite plans have been made, but we may try some sort of merger with TF in the next year or so. This board has been getting less active for some while, and when DMB, one of our founders and the most active poster died a few months ago, things have been gettin' mighty quiet. Hopefully we can do something to keep at least some semblance of the old II going.[/quote]

I didn't know about DMB. Sad to hear.

[crazyfingers]

[quote=""Jobar""]

Hi and welcome, Dr. Z. I think I've interacted with you a few times at TF.

No definite plans have been made, but we may try some sort of merger with TF in the next year or so. This board has been getting less active for some while, and when DMB, one of our founders and the most active poster died a few months ago, things have been gettin' mighty quiet. Hopefully we can do something to keep at least some semblance of the old II going.

Hurry up. At the end of the month, unless somebody takes it over Talkfreethought is gone. If you move now, think Secular café can have it for free without a fight.

One request though, the name! Talkfreethought is an awful name. Secular cafe isn't much better. One thing religious people have going for them, the understand human psychology, appeal to people's emotions and passions. Just because we're atheists/rationalists doesn't mean we also have to be boring. Internet Infidels was a great name. Something like that!

Fun with Blasphemy
Satan's Scientists
Better living through atheism
God's rejects
Thanks God for not existing

something fun, please

I understand that ZiprHead is going to take on the admin tasks at TF- but we still intend to discuss the hows, whens and wherefores of a possible merger, quite soon. Lpetrich, our sysadmin at SC since we began, has volunteered to take on RayJ's position there, so the two forums are already moving closer.

The main tech problem is that merging two boards running on two different versions of vB seems nigh on to impossible. And we do have to decide how we would unify our similar but separate rule sets, overall ownership, and other such practical issues. But I have hopes we can manage something.[/QUOTE]

Since I'm both here and there, same user name and probably the same password, (I didn't say that) I think a merger at some point makes sense.

Please let me know when I should start to whine about keeping my 2001 registration date at TF and humongo post count at TF.

duck and run...

[Jobar]

Lpetrich will fix you right up, crazyfingers.

When Diana died, I came very close to announcing I was going to resign, and if no one else was willing to take on the cost and responsibility of running SC, set a closing date. In fact we had talked about that even before her death, due to the steadily declining activity here, which in my experience has always led to a ghost town, eventually.

I suggested that we consult with TFT about a merger, then- but neither DMB nor Pendaric wanted to do so.

But now, with DMB gone, and Pendaric resigned... well, I have some hope we can put together the two boards in a way that will result in something of a revival for both. I know we can't re-make Internet Infidels, but I'd be very sad if nothing of the history and heritage of II kept going.

If you would be willing to help out running a unified board, I for one would be delighted to have you.

I'd also like to talk to Peter Kirby eventually, and sound him out about re-starting the BC&H forum. But we'll need to get the merger of SC, TFT, and the II/FR archives done, first.

[Roo St. Gallus]

[quote=""Jobar""]

I'd also like to talk to Peter Kirby eventually, and sound him out about re-starting the BC&H forum. But we'll need to get the merger of SC, TFT, and the II/FR archives done, first.[/quote]

You are in contact with Peter?

[Jobar]

Not in a long time, but I am a member at earlywritings.

[Roo St. Gallus]

[quote=""Jobar""]Not in a long time, but I am a member at earlywritings.[/quote]

Ah.

I didn't know that they had memberships. I might even have one, depending on what it entails.

I don't know if you knew Neil Godfry. He was a sporadic visitor at JesusMysteries at the same time that Peter was building his site (and finishing university, as I understand). He may have frequented the BC&A at IIDB, but I'm not sure. I learned a great deal from Neil and have continued to learn from his blog Vridar. I believe he has an American unindicted co-conspirator helping him produce it. They might also be interested in rebuilding a discussion board with a broader introductory audience.

[lpetrich]

It's this place: Biblical Criticism & History Forum - earlywritings.com - Index page

[Roo St. Gallus]

[quote=""lpetrich""]It's this place: Biblical Criticism & History Forum - earlywritings.com - Index page[/quote]

Ah, well...No, I am NOT a member.

I'm just a regular user of his online library.

*sigh*

....another site to spend hours nosing around.