Please Vote In My Poll

gdub411 wrote: James Lee wrote: Sean: I agree. It's much harder to lie to people about your good intentions if you don't have convincing proof. There's a parallel universe where the Boomtown Rats were able to give Geldof all the attention he craved, and he didn't need to become the Bill Graham of charitable events. Luckily (because the Rats really did suck most of the time), we're stuck in this universe...so we'll just have to hope some good comes out of it. As far as actually helping people, I do believe that he's accomplishing something, so I can't be TOO critical...I just don't think that the actual aid generated equals the cost of the spectacle. I tuned in briefly to see Madonna with her arm around a 'rehabilitated victim of poverty', who looked quite fashionable... and found myself wondering whether pop culture missionaries will take over for religious ones- i.e, do insidious damage to other cultures for centuries to come in the name of saving them. That's why I like you James. You're always upbeat and optimistic. Seriously, though, once again, you give us something to think about.

No,he didn't.....

Snow Dog:

Interesting.  You note that quite a number of people viewed your poll, but only 28 voted in it.  What does that tell you?  I am surprised that you fail to see the relevance.

Garion:

Obviously, the site would not permit the sale of stolen property of any type.  And though it would admittedly be difficult to prove whether something was stolen or not, it is clear that most if not all of these tickets were obtained through "proper" channels, i.e., the lottery.

As for "Behavior Not Related to Decency," I must continue to reiterate my previous comment.  There have been any number of threads and posts that members complained were indecent, immoral, or otherwise inappropriate.  Yet no one left or made a "cause celebre" out of them, even when the admin group chose not to delete them.  If something was, in fact, indecent or otherwise inappropriate, the admin group either edited or deleted the offending thread/post, and/or ejected the member responsible.

"Decency" is in the eyes of the beholder - or, more practically, in each person's definition of what is "indecent."  In the case of this site, the admin group determines, sometimes on a case by case basis, whether an offending post is "decent" or not, and to what degree.  And again, in the past when the admin group did not side with even a majority of the members over something they felt was "indecent" or otherwise objectionable (and thus deletable), no one made a mountain out of a molehill about it.  The determination of the admin group was accepted, even if a little bit of grumbling persisted.

What makes this different?  After all, it does not rise near to the level of some of the threads/posts that members have complained about in the past - some of which were, in fact, deleted.

I continue to feel that many of you are "working on emotions" rather than truly thinking this through.  There is a "hysteria" on this site right now that is extremely unhealthy, and is, sadly, apparently being deliberately "stoked" by a few members.  The problem is that that hysteria has its roots only partially in facts and evidence; the rest is presumption and cynicism.  Would I be too far afield to suggest that this is how dictators come to power?  After all, Tony has all but begged me to go over to "the Dark Side of the force" and use my authority as "benevolent dictator" to delete the offending threads - and he did this by quoting no less a totalitarian primer than Animal Farm!

Call me arrogant, call me stubborn, call me anything you want.  But if I have anything to say about it, I will not permit this site to lose its focus, to compromise its most cherished principles, to cave in to the threats or hysteria of members, or to become a place where freedom of speech can and will be impinged by the "majority vote" of its members.

I want all of you to keep this in mind as we in America watch our freedoms and civil liberties erode as the result of a pro-rich, pro-war, right-wing agenda that has no room for dissention - which it has openly labeled "unpatriotic."  As two reporters are sent to jail by the Supreme Court for not revealing sources - an absolutely essential element of a "free" press - and when two members of the Bush Administration state, with a straight face, that "people need to watch what they say," I cannot help but be wary of those who would send the admin group down the road to the same sort of proto-totalitarian censorship under the guise of some misguided notion of "morality."

I will not become the "Big Brother" of Prog Archives.

Peace.