As for the FTL BBS, I would just mercilessly ban all the trolls. But that's just me.
gotta lol @ the thread over there on the bbs trying to blast me for all of this now… i am not even sure how this all got started :o
pretty sad too, because you were actually one of the people I liked over there Blackie…
I said this ( http://forum.freekeene.com/index.php?topic=2361.msg27229#msg27229 ) and you replied. Don't worry about it. Blackie is a troll that tries to ruin the freedom movement.
Blackie is a good man.
Anyway, the BBS isn't going anywhere. It's too popular to be taken offline just because some people might be confused. Listeners of our show know what's up with it, and anyone else that ends up there through whatever means, is told right when they sign up that the forum is virtually UNMODERATED. Color me unconcerned, but I've gone ahead and added to our BBS user agreement the following text:
[quote]
Please note, this forum is not a NH-based or NH-liberty oriented forum. This forum is dedicated to the Free Talk Live talk radio program and should not be confused with NH liberty movement forums.[/quote]
Yep, I support troll banning too. Private property is private property – we've got enough tragedy of the commons in society as it is.
Edit: The above disclaimer looks good to me.
Nah, it's nuts to talk about shutting it down over that confusion. It's part of the commercial venture of FTL and it works well for its intended purpose. It's entertainment for the people who enjoy it and a place to talk about subjects that come up on the show, few of which are actually NH-based in the big scheme of things.
I should point out that when I talk about trolling the liberty movement, I'm using the term "troll" a bit loosely. That doesn't mean they're all trolls in the traditional sense at the FTL BBS (though I'm sure there are still quite a few that prolly fit the desc). It just means they mostly seem to talk a lot about liberty without doing much. That's the opposite of someone who has uprooted and moved across the country to be an activist. But then I haven't been following the forum in a long time so you have to take whatever I say about it with a huge grain of salt.
I knew what I was getting into when I signed up for the BBS. I just thought that there may be more productive conversation here than some of what is going on over there. I did not mean anyone there was stupid, I just meant that it looks like there are more topics here dealing with liberty etc… I like it there, and I like it here, both for different reasons.
Holy Be-JEEZUSSS
Obviously I am not good with words, but I guess I am really awesome at sparking a debate about something I never intended to be a topic anywhere and getting myself right into the middle of it.
This is my favorite forum. I hardly spend any time on the BBS.
To clarify, Blackie may seem abrasive on the forums, but he's really a hell of a nice guy in real life.
Anyway, back to the topic of Robin & family movin' on up!
Sigh
What the FTL BBS is, is both a filter and a lounge. This is what it became, not by design, but by a natural progression of evolution in an authority vacuum.
The Filter -
Liberty minded people, on the whole, are fairly spiky and intolerant to bullshit, and rightfully so. Now, this often leads to a general intolerance that is… less productive. Every damned one of us is subject to this. Most people who know me know I have more than a little enmity toward conspiracy stuff. Everyone has their pet peeves.
However, a large portion, I'd even say the majority of these small annoyances are fairly just.
The BBS is a fortified wall against a lot of that nonsense, because the hammer drops fairly quickly on bullshit and the Alex Jones/Antisemitic/AntiReptilia/nutbag crowd generally goes elsewhere which I think is a net profit to our crowd.
Yes, the hammer drops too easily and often unjustly. A hair trigger comes with vigilance sometimes. I don't know the solution to this, and I won't deny that I'm rather weak in this regard myself.
The result is often a sense of insularity and xenophobia toward new people, and the feeling of having to get through a gang initiation to become one of the cool people.
But it's a dirty job that, in the end, helps people at the more serious places in the freedom community. Without the BBS, I would argue that many of the people who act like jackasses over there would otherwise be here. Consider that. And because the rules are less tolerant of assholery here, the trolls would behave in a more sneaky, insidious way, where they will slowly annoy without breaking any particular forum rules until people hate being here, rather than just running into the room and yelling "COCK LOL" like they do at the BBS.
The Lounge -
This is a big one. Sometimes, people just like to shoot the shit. Sometimes there are very active freedom lovers who don't really want to be quizzed every fifteen minutes about "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE FOR THE FREEDOM MOVEMENT LATELY?" and "SO, WHEN ARE YOU MOVING, HUH? HUH? HUH?!?" Sometimes peer pressure is repellent, and being too close to the movement at all times can blind a person to how obnoxious that sort of thing can be.
People who know me, personally, will tell you that I do a LOT for the freedom movement. You would not know that at first glance by my presence on the BBS. You would not know that by anything I do online, apart from Think Twice stuff, which has been on the back burner since the movie began and I've been pulling 16 hour days editing and special effecting.
I want it that way, and so do many other people who are active on the BBS. Some of us aren't interested in public recognition, or propagating the movement in general. People who do that, Like the activists, seem to be doing that just fine. Not everyone is a public speaker. Not everyone is a good debater. Not everyone is willing to get locked up. They have not sinned. They do other things.
I'll use a friend as an object lesson - Where would you guys prefer Jason Osborne - Sitting in a jail cell or doing what he does? What do you think is more productive? Let people use their strengths and stop trying to cram everyone into The Acceptable Mold, where anyone who doesn't fit is the enemy.
Activists in general seem to think that their way is the only way. This is faulty thinking and their intolerance toward people with different methods is frankly anti market. Diversity brings progress.
And some people? They just like posting goofy pictures and having a good time, which, last time I looked, is a good thing for the freedom movement. If you tell everyone that your way is the way to think and live, and you are a bitter miserable person, how many people do you think are gonna jump up and yell "YEAH! I WANTS ME SOME OF THAT! I wanna be pissed off at the state all the time and scream from the top of my lungs about how evil the world is!"
Less hating tyranny and more loving freedom.
Thank you.
Best first post ever. Please, stick around.
[quote author=Sovereign Curtis link=topic=2361.msg27397#msg27397 date=1264623247]
Best first post ever. Please, stick around.
[/quote]
I should have used the disclaimer that I'm a mod over at the BBS. 
But thank you.
From what I've seen, there aren't very many active threads. You guys must be too busy getting "active for liberty in your lifetimes" to post. Plus, where are the fun posts? Seems like one big circle jerk of prudish activism to me.
That being said. . . COCK
This is the most active liberty forum in NH. We have fun in real life like at Karaoke, Movie Night, and Social Sundays. 
Can I come?
[quote author=widespreadpanic link=topic=2361.msg27403#msg27403 date=1264626149]
Can I come?
[/quote]
Anyone can.
[quote author=ttie link=topic=2361.msg27374#msg27374 date=1264615107]
There could be a sticky on the BBS forum identifying freekeene as a forum specifically focused on Keene activism. Perhaps then more people would look here for info on the movement, not there.
[/quote]
[quote author=FTL_Ian link=topic=2361.msg27388#msg27388 date=1264619147]
Anyway, the BBS isn't going anywhere. It's too popular to be taken offline just because some people might be confused. Listeners of our show know what's up with it, and anyone else that ends up there through whatever means, is told right when they sign up that the forum is virtually UNMODERATED. Color me unconcerned, but I've gone ahead and added to our BBS user agreement the following text:
[quote]
Please note, this forum is not a NH-based or NH-liberty oriented forum. This forum is dedicated to the Free Talk Live talk radio program and should not be confused with NH liberty movement forums.[/quote]
[/quote]
Maybe a note that specifically points people to the FSP or FK forums if they want to get involved with people who are actually part of the in-real-life Free State movement?
[quote author=FTL_Ian link=topic=2361.msg27394#msg27394 date=1264620991]
To clarify, Blackie may seem abrasive on the forums, but he's really a hell of a nice guy in real life.
[/quote]
Is this the same Blackie that tried to “save Grafton” from the Free State Project?
If I come will you sing a duet with me. Maybe 'Summer Loving'?..no, no, no, on second thought you can pick it, I just need a to know now so I can start practicing.
[quote author=J’raxis 270145 link=topic=2361.msg27406#msg27406 date=1264626476]
Is this the same Blackie that tried to “save Grafton” from the Free State Project?
[/quote]
IIRC, it was the Free Town Project.
http://save-grafton.blogspot.com/
There were supposed to be 200 Free staters in Grafton within one year of June, 2004.
How many are in Grafton currently?