Should able2know ban people for having untoward opinions?

Unn, no JL.




What about the topic surrounding the despicable terrorist actions, the numerous crimes against humanity, the myriad torture incidents, the plenitudinous rapes of the USA? Should these be aired?

This is just me - thinking...

It is one thing to state your opinion about something. It is quite another to act upon it. You can say anything you want. Others may not agree with it. Rape is actually offensive and is hurting someone else...which has no part in liberty - or freedom if you will. The moment you have trod over someone when they are protesting is the moment you have crossed the line.

People talk all kind of BS on here. I have no problem with it - mostly. I understand they can say whatever they want....I guess my only problem would be if this is the first step in actualizing fantasies they have. But how can you know that? I am the first to say I would err on the side of caution. But I am not a public forum.

Good Night Nurse...

This thread is 2 years old.


Well my opinion is there -late though it is. phth.

yeh but we gotta take a stand against blasphemy dont we?

Well, of course you're not. You're a near-by star, right?

Hawkeye, I agree.
Msolga, because this is America visitors have the right to free speech.
Farmerman, that's blasphemy!

what "this" are you referring to?

These are simply the little blurbs of propaganda being regurgitated, Beth.

Wow! A blast from the past.

I too saw Abuzz deteriorate terribly. As a result, I felt very protective of A2K, not wanting it to become like Abuzz. As a result, I had problems with the powers that be.

Over the years, I have found that A2K is not at the same intellectual level as it was in the beginning. Saying that, I too would not change anything. IMO (now, years later having experiences with internet forums) I am comfortable with people writing anything, no matter how distasteful.

I am perfectly capable of moving on to another thread. Problem is, I find that there are fewer and fewer threads that interest me.

i was considering your thoughts on the drive back from a quick portland get-away:

A2K right now accurately represents where America is right now, our consumption with the red/blue divide so much so that we are willing to forgo intellect and civility and get down into the **** filled gutters to fight it out. I have no idea why Robert would object, running a meeting place he should want the crowd here to represent what is going on outside of these virtual walls. I get that a fair number of people have turned up their noses and departed but think that a lot of them are elites who cant stomach reality and really, why should we give a ****??....the elite of this nation have been wrong about so much for so long and presided over the massive decline of this nation of the last decades both morally and substantially, there is no reason to have ANY faith in their judgement, that is to care about what they think and say. the elite have totally squandered their credibility.

lets remember that one of the main reasons that america is in so much trouble is that far far too many of the elites refused over a long period of time to care about truth, refused to speak truth, and refused to make a stand for what is right. so now they snivel as they take their bat and ball and leave...how typical of them! always looking for the short cuts to utopia and refusing to do the hard long work of building something that is good, that is what we have seen from the elites generally, to include the nasty habit of telling lies, and that is what we have been seen from Robert as he has attempted time and time again to make A2K into a vision that he has in his head, meeting with nearly constant failure. now dont get me wrong, Robert has some very good saving graces, for instance caring about truth and free speech, but listening to only those whom he considers to be the experts, the elite, is not one of them.

Can we ban people for being terminally inductive of ennui?

Or for being a terminal suckup?

You are right about civility. I find it very distasteful the way some members will "go after" another who does not share his views. As a result, I seldom venture into the political or religion threads.

I am in a peculiar position. There are aspects of both the left and the right of which I approve, and, just as strongly, I despise some aspects of both sides of the spectrum. Therefore, if I state my views, there will always some people who will take umbrage at my positions. Tough!

I remember, as a college student in the 1950's, sitting in some Greenwich Village coffee house, talking about LIFE. This was a time for learning, debating, for absorbing the various aspects of being human in the United States. I am way past that stage. That is not to say that I can't still learn. I have learned things on A2K that have basically changed some of my views, (Thanks, Frank!)

I am at a point in my life where I want peace, cordiality, and information. I don't want to get into brouhahas with people who are just nasty for nastiness sake.

You mean, "peace, cordiality, and easy to swallow lies", don't you, Phoenix.

Perhaps a vicarage tea party is more your metier.

understandable, but we as a nation are at a place where we cant delay any longer working out our differences, and we are not skilled at this or motivated to do this. these skirmishes have value in this, both in trying to work this out and in understanding where America is now....not that many are interested in the greater good when it gets in the way of their individual proclivities.

obliterating the old structure here and instead going to a bazzillion different individual created tags I think made it much more difficult to avoid what you dont want and get to what you do want, which is of course the exact opposite of what Robert said that he was going for. navigation has become too much work, people just leave and go someplace easier. i am betting that you would be more invested right now if this change had not been made.

the nastiness level going up is solely a function of the community breaking down. this was foreordained when Robert only took a very few views other than his into consideration when he remade this place, and also with his reinforcing this dismissal of the community with him periodically coming around being a **** to people. he was warned by me a long time ago that he fucked this up, but he is hard headed sometimes.

It would help y'all immensely, not to mention the rest of the world, Hawk, if you weren't so full of yourselves.

one of the joys here is that one finds non americans, but less so now. this is mostly an American place now.

Well now, that's sure to help y'all with your incredible conceit, isn't it?