Announcement about RDF Part 2.

[DanDare]

Just something that has puzzled me for a while nowand it may have nothing to do with anything:
The former RD.net forum veteran member FedUpWithFaith whom I always respected for his wit and intelligence stormed off rather suddenly over a year ago now I think, while the former Admin ObscuredByClouds also left as an unhappy bunny, does anyone know what that was all about?
I never wanted to ask on RD.net, then again, of course I may just have missed all the right threads.

ObscuredByClouds ended up over at Sam Harris' site I believe.

[NineBerry]

You shouldn't make this too personal. You are increasing the potential that people will hurt other people even more

[macdoc]

This might have been covered but it's moving faster than I can read on a couple of sites...

this from the thread at JREF

Some were banned before and some after the forum was locked for good.

Even still, a simple revoking of posting rights would have sufficed. For example DarwinsBulldog had something like 13k of serious science posts with links to published papers on evolution. All gone, wiped clean. No need at all apart from pure spite at being criticized publicly. At least 4 other posters with huge track records are wiped clean too, not had posting privileges revoked, their entire record wiped clean. Current conservative estimate is over 30k of posts that up until last night were regarded as some of the most useful and educational on the site.

http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php? ... ost5649405

what a nightmare....

[HughMcB]

You shouldn't make this too personal. You are increasing the potential that people will hurt other people even more

I agree but let's call a spade a spade here, we got thrown out on our asses for kicking up a stink about the fact that the forum community was going to be out on its arse in 30days, along with a big fuck you to the mods.

I think we were well within our right, then we get locked out for that, a snarky "update" message and no proper means to retrieve all our hard work and effort in thousands of posts. Lets not forget the censorship exercise that begun thereafter.

Yip, we shouldn't get personal, but let's at least get the word out on some sites and e-zines on what really happened, before Josh-eph Goebbels manages to successfully cover up his communi-caust.

[SpeedOfSound]

... but it mistakenly neglects two important functions that the forum in its old state performed: As a support group for coming-out atheists, especially those who might face ostracisation in RL; and as a magnet for theists, fundamentalists in particular, to post their arguments for public debunking.

That's the loss that bothers me most. RDF was a magnet for people that believed in various kinds of spooks. Can you imagine how bored the Romans and the lions would have been if it were not for christians? That mix made the forum exciting for one thing.

More important to myself personally, is that the counter-terrorist assault of the anti-physicalists impelled me to think through my ideas on the brain in a way I never could of with people that agree with me. I will probably become a dull old man now. Humming and pruning my roses. I do despair.

[locutus7]

You shouldn't make this too personal. You are increasing the potential that people will hurt other people even more

I agree but let's call a spade a spade here, we got thrown out on our asses for kicking up a stink about the fact that the forum community was going to be out on its arse in 30days, along with a big fuck you to the mods.

I think we were well within our right, then we get locked out for that, a snarky "update" message and no proper means to retrieve all our hard work and effort in thousands of posts. Lets not forget the censorship exercise that begun thereafter.

Yip, we shouldn't get personal, but let's at least get the word out on some sites and e-zines on what really happened, before Josh-eph Goebbels manages to successfully cover up his communi-caust.

Okay, I've been monitoring Josh's communications. He just ordered 10 surplus German Gestapo uniforms and, probably coincidentally, hired 10 new mods. And he received a long list of instructions from something called The Discovery Institute. I dunno, can anyone make heads or tails out of this?

[Ace]

This might have been covered but it's moving faster than I can read on a couple of sites...

this from the thread at JREF

Some were banned before and some after the forum was locked for good.

Even still, a simple revoking of posting rights would have sufficed. For example DarwinsBulldog had something like 13k of serious science posts with links to published papers on evolution. All gone, wiped clean. No need at all apart from pure spite at being criticized publicly. At least 4 other posters with huge track records are wiped clean too, not had posting privileges revoked, their entire record wiped clean. Current conservative estimate is over 30k of posts that up until last night were regarded as some of the most useful and educational on the site.

http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php? ... ost5649405

what a nightmare....

Even though I couldn't care about what happens to RDF. I have to say, that is a very shitty thing to do. This was all done in spite? Jeeze they do have issuses.

Just my 2 pence of thought on it.

[Matt H]

If you are going to tell more people about this (like New Humanist, PZ Myers etc) please bring up the fact that Mazille, the moderator responsible for the science-writing award, was completely deleted from the forum, along with every post he ever made.

[MedGen]

I want my fucking forum back. :pissed: :pissed: :pissed: :pissed: :pissed: :pissed: :pissed: :pissed: :pissed: :pissed: :pissed: :pissed: :pissed: :pissed:

[HughMcB]

If you are going to tell more people about this (like New Humanist, PZ Myers etc) please bring up the fact that Mazille, the moderator responsible for the science-writing award, was completely deleted from the forum, along with every post he ever made.

I have confidence that our now ex-mods will make an excellent article/email to all sources on the net.

Please keep the good ideas coming though, we don't want to miss out on any deets!

Do we know how Durro is doing with his email?

[hotshoe]

I googled my posting history from RDnet and in the front few results there wasn't anything I felt needed to be saved for generations.

But, damn, I hate Josh Timonen and his boss, Richard Dawkins, for destroying our community.

The fact that there are no dead bodies to recover and no physical wreckage to clear away is some consolation, I guess.

Life goes on -- as long as life goes on.

[Katherine]

[MedGen]

[hackenslash]

I googled my posting history from RDnet and in the front few results there wasn't anything I felt needed to be saved for generations.

But, damn, I hate Josh Timonen and his boss, Richard Dawkins, for destroying our community.

The fact that there are no dead bodies to recover and no physical wreckage to clear away is some consolation, I guess.

Life goes on -- as long as life goes on.

I'd call the loss of the posting histories of 5 prolific posters dead bodies. Someone has a cunning plan to reciver them, but we'll have to see.

[GeneticJen]

I take it I'm alright including a link to Rationalia in my upcoming blog entry about the incident? It's for any members who still haven't figured out what's happening really.