Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Bush-The Mastermind behind 9/11? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: longnshort who wrote (1681)	8/4/2003 1:37:08 AM
From: WaveSeeker	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 20039

Hard to believe that grown adults indulge in this conspiracy BS.

To: longnshort who wrote (1681)	8/4/2003 3:52:26 AM
From: Don Earl	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 20039

<<<Don Earl does not believe in the first admendment>>> Sunday is usually my day for clearing out cache and cookie files, which deletes my ignore list until I sign back on. Since I haven't answered any silly posts this week, it looks like you win two weeks in a row. There are some things you should know about the First Amendment. You can say whatever you like, but that doesn't mean anyone is required to listen to you. SI basically amounts to a private club where it is necessary to obtain membership in order to be allowed to post messages. Further, individual members when starting a discussion thread have the choice to pick whether the forum is moderated or unmoderated. On a moderated board, the person who started the thread may prohibit any other member from posting. There are no rules or guidelines in that respect, it's strictly up to that member. If he or she doesn't like you for whatever reason, poof, you're history. You will note that as the person who started this thread, I chose the unmoderated format. What that means is I intentionally chose to allow any SI member who wishes to post messages in this forum the right to do so, and I have no control whatsoever to prohibit even the most childish posters on SI from having their say if they wish. I made that decision knowing full well that persons such as yourself would eventually show up. There are a number of reasons for my making that decision. First, I've noticed over the years that the most mindless contributors will eventually establish themselves as posters not worth reading. Far from discrediting the better researched posts, they actually end up supporting their opposite point of view as the result of hopelessly weak, unsupported arguments and childish personal attacks. Second, if a fact won't stand up to an opposing point of view, it won't stand up without it. I felt the issues were important enough to encourage views other than my own. In a lot of ways I'm somewhat disappointed there has been so little in the way of credible counterpoint. To date the official theory appears to be so weak, even its most ardent supporters are helpless to defend it without playing the part of the fool. Third, I felt it would be fantastically hypocritical to champion the core values of America, while denying others an opportunity to have their say. I happen to believe that if certain moral values are worthwhile, they are worthwhile all the time, and not just as a matter of convenience when it's no skin off one's nose to practice them. The end result is you and every other member of SI may post anything on this board that you would be allowed to post under SI's terms and conditions on any other board, without fear of censorship, or of being blackballed. To the best of my ability, I've protected your First Amendment right to freedom of speech. You still have to be a member, and you still have to follow the terms and conditions set by SI, but that's between you and SI, and not between you and me. My own list of persons who post what I consider to be mindless garbage is a different matter. SI has a wonderful ignore feature where I am able to limit what shows up on my screen to new people and those whose posts I've enjoyed reading in the past. My experience has been that it saves a bunch of time by not having to sort through endless nonsense by those who I've found to post endless nonsense. The messages are presorted according to my own personal preferences and has no effect on what other readers may wish to view. If you have a group of devoted followers who hang on your every word, my judgement in no way affects their ability to view your pearls of wisdom. So, while the First Amendment guarantees your right to write whatever you wish, it in no way requires me to read it if I chose not to, or agree with it if I do.