The ATS Issues Thread

Just a quick note -- this is now working again, formatting in three columns instead of two! Thank you, forum bug-fixing gnomes (or random chance)!

I have a question about the alert button.

If someone complains about a post, does that result in a post ban until the post in question has been looked at?

I ask because a couple of times today I have been in the middle of writing a post only to have the cursor suddenly disappear, the "post reply form" page freeze and then return me to the thread I was trying to post to.

Coincidentally, I have posted recently on an emotionally fraught topic in Breaking News -- posts which comply with the T&C, but which some people might find offensive (i.e. some might consider them potential disinformation).

This is not a complaint -- I can totally understand that a brief (and it hasn't been more than a minute, tops) freeze on posting could be the best way to handle complaints. Just wondering.

reply to post by americandingbat

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No the "alert button" does not create a "temporary post ban".

Most likely you experienced a browser hick-up or your cursor was on the "back page" button. Sounds like your browser went back to the page you were reading before you started typing.

Hope that clears it up a little.

Springer...

reply to post by Springer

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Yes, thank you. I had a feeling I was being paranoid, but it's happened three times today (and never before) so it was worth asking. I appreciate the quick reply.

reply to post by americandingbat

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If all of us weren't at least a little paranoid (read as "above average intelligence") I doubt we'd have ever found AboveTopSecret.com right?

Springer...

anonymous posters

is there a way you can make it
so when the pests post it doesnt boost the topic in the forum
untill aproved by a mod/admin?




since it confuses members and sometimes
the Org poster hasnt been here for years to even address the question or read it.

i know you guys want more content as it = more hits = more value to your site

but does that mean having up to 6 year old topics.
some people post to them not even knowing that the op isnt around and so on.


move it to a secret (hidden) forum which only mods and admins have the permission masks to view the topic and the reply)

that way its not messing with the other forums
i have done this with ipb using validating posts and seeing as you guys have fully customised this forum from scratch it shouldnt be that hard


sorry about the rant


also any chance you can sticky this topic

[edit on 26-8-2008 by bodrul]

Hi,

I read somewhere (may have been a thread to do with truste) regarding stored personal information. SO said that if your email address was removed from the account then, you would never even have seen it.

Some time ago, I changed my email address in my account settings yet I still receive the newsletters through my old mail address.

I am concerned now about this. How are you sending me email on an address that shouldn't exist on your server?

Also, the time zone setting has never worked. I try to set it to GMT, but when you save, it just flicks to some other random zone. Sometimes, it changes of it's own accord without me changing any settings.

Some clarification would be useful. Thanks.

Sorry if this is posted in the wrong place.

The emails come through a different server, with a different database. There is a link to unsubscribe from the email service at the bottom of each email... additionally, the privacy policy contains this information as well as a link to a web page to manually unsubscribe.

reply to post by bodrul

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Is it not better to post in an existing thread than to start a new one? Perhaps ANON has some new piece of information to add to the old thread thereby making it valid and more relevant.

Nothing wrong with old threads IMO. sometimes things should get dug up and re examined.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord

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Just so I understand...

I need to unsubscribe the old addy and re subscribe on the new one? The newsletters are nothing to do with the address in the account profile? Meanwhile, you keep the old addy stored on another server?

reply to post by Prote

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You can subscribe to newsletters even if you're not a member. The newsletters have nothing to do with your username on ats.

reply to post by whatukno

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im not saying old topics are bad if they are brought up
im just saying its a Pain when they are dragged up when the topic its self has no Use or who the topic was directed at is Long gone.

it would be better for members if a anny poster posts in a real old topic
that its not dragged to the top untill its been allowed by a mod or admin.
that way only usefull topics are dragged up by them.

you cant say thats not fair?

Okay,

CHEER UP BILL!!

Who else would like to see Bill CHEER UP?

Sure you're under lots of stress, but we all love you man.... (in a brotherly sort of way)

I have no idea what you are speaking of specifically. I am not an “insider”. But that will not stop me from offering unsolicited advice….

ATS is now a large website with a LOT of traffic. As such, the rules need to be black and white. Ban whatever topics or words you like, and of course ban anything of an illegal nature (based on whatever country your server is hosted in, or countries that provide a lot of traffic). But if you expect to be seen as fair, site rules must be SPECIFIC.

It is not about “sudden statements” or “noisy exits” or how it “seemed”. Either it violates stated site rules and/or specific laws, or it DOES NOT. It is not about emotion (or okay it can be about emotion but you need to use specific rules/laws to back up your emotional reactions so it seems justified).

Is ATS a front for CIA? I personally have the experience that debunkers are favored, that people are banned for little or no reason(10% of ATS members are banned!!) and that posts are deleted without reason.

One post that was deleted within minutes of being posted without any reason was by a user called starvingartist where he asked if ATS was a CIA front, luckily I took screenshots before and after it was deleted:

Here is a screenshot of the thread "IS ATS A CIA FRONT" has just been started and is visible on the front page

after I read it I wanted to reply, but then it was all of the sudden deleted:

Here is a screenshot of the deleted thread

Note that it was deleted within a minute of it being posted, and only two people had read it. Makes you think, does it not?

reply to post by Acharya

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The reason threads like that are closed is not a "cover-up" but the fact that there are already dozens of posts on "Is ATS a CIA Front?" available.

See page 10 of this thread for more info.

From my now closed thread:


Now, I have reveived a U2U from a mod (thanx Duzey ) about thread number2, that has been moved to RATS. Fair enough.

The author of thread number 1 got BANNED. Why ?!

To the poster above: no I don't think ATS is a CIA front. It definitely isn't a forum for full freedom of speech either. It is highly (and inconsistently imho) moderated.

ATS is, first and foremost, some peoples' income, we might all do wel to remember that.


[edit on 30-8-2008 by sn00daard]

reply to post by Acharya

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Okay, I just can't stand this any more. I'm going to explain what you need to do. If you'd had a mentor when you came on ATS, they would have told you about it. And don't worry, I'll be fine; I'll just pay a little extra this month to cover it.

You see, ATS has a paypal account. It's ATSpyramidscheme@hotmail.com.

Newbies pick a new moderator (maria_stardust is mine) and you pay your monthly dues via the paypal account. In the comments section put your moderator's name so they get credit.

For $5 a month the moderators leave you alone for anything less than serious T&C violations.
For $10 a month you get a certain amount of mod support against thread trolls, personal attacks, and OT posts in your threads, plus a higher level of "looking the other way" for your own transgressions.
For $15 a month you get a few replies guaranteed for every thread you start, an occasional applause, and a better level of mod support.
For $20 a month you get lots of attention for your threads, harassment of your "enemies" in the form of warnings for those who dare to attack you even indirectly, and protection from all warnings, points deductions, and banning unless you are dumb enough to violate the T&C so flagrantly that it can't be ignored. (No refunds, sorry)
At $25 a month you get guaranteed regular applause, a guarantee that any thread you start will make at least 5 pages, and unwavering mod support unless you manage to act like a total jerk.
You can pay more, of course, and the level of support, help, and protection will go up accordingly. I think Skyfloating, Internos, Dan Tanna, and several others give a fairly significant portion of their monthly income to ATS (have you seen that Untersberg thread? Dwarves and people missing on a mountain with a little Hitler thrown in, and it's gone 21 pages already. ).

Each regular mod is then required to pay a percentage of their dues to the supermods and FSMEs, and the supermods and FSMEs must donate a percentage on up to the site admins and so forth. SkepticOverlord is of course at the top of the pyramid, and he gets a LOT of money. Now do you understand why he is so attentive to ATS?

So get yourself a paypal account if you don't already have one, pick one of the newer mods, pick your protection level, and start paying your dues. You'll quickly see that your ATS experience will improve greatly.

PS If you want to become a "fighter," there are extra fees that go to MemoryShock, especially if you want to WIN any debates.

------------------------------------End of Sarcastic HUMOR Post---------------------------

You know, I've only been here since the 10th of July, and I've gotten lots of mod support, mod help, applause, etc., and only once have I gotten an indirect (and very polite) "warning" to cease and desist in a particularly heated argument. I've posted all kinds of weird stuff and it just gets ignored, not deleted.

ATS is like a giant zoo where the predators would eat the prey and tear each other apart if not for the zookeepers. Of course the predators don't like the zookeepers, the smarter prey animals do, and the animals too dumb to know that they'd get eaten if they weren't protected and kept in their own enclosures resent them.

All these people who are constantly whining about ATS and asking these "provocative" questions just annoy the heck out of me. If you don't like ATS, go somewhere else. I challenge you to find a better board. And if you choose to stay at ATS, then quit complaining and make the best of it. This is USER GENERATED CONTENT and you and I are the users. If you don't like the way it is, make it better.

/rant

This has been my suspicion since I joined and saw how the moderators did most of the debunking. They also appeared to ignore insults of certain posters as long as they were debunking someone they also disagreed with. And the mindset of strict policing of posts and banning of certain members seems more that of CIA, military types than it does conspiracy fanatics.

Interesting to find your post because I was going to start a similar thread on the topic today. I've been looking for proof that ATS is a CIA front and came across a youtube on John Lear that makes the same claim about ATS. He is banned and his index page of archived posts has been disabled because of "AbovePolitics.com site reintegration."

It makes perfect sense that the CIA would want to keep track of what secrets have been leaked into the public domain and at the same time use this venue for disinformation ops.

Anyway, it's very curious why ATS won't allow new threads on the ATS/CIA connection to be created and dumped your thread here. It seems to me to be an effort to hide the subject and prevent others with any information from coming forward. Yet, there are lots of repeat threads about UFO's and aliens and other topics. I never see moderators telling the new author of a thread on the subject to post on a thread that is already active. The whole reasoning seems bogus and self-serving. (protecting ATS' reputation)

ATS is about controversial subjects of a conspiracy nature. I don't see how ATS = CIA should be an off-limit topic. In fact there should be a separate forum on it. And since when does anyone need proof to post a topic on ATS? That's the nature of conspiracy: It's all about speculation and conjecture. Why should ATS try to stifle that?

Acharya, sorry to see your thread closed. Completely unfair.

[edit on 8/31/2008 by Matrix1111]

reply to post by Matrix1111

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Sorry for chiming in here, but I have to take exception to your opinion.

In my opinion, the mods do a great job of allowing the conversation to flow, without being heavy handed about it.

They're also members, and as such, are allowed to have an opinion.

I find this confusion about the site rules just a little perplexing.

Since I read the rules and stuff I've had a great time here - I even made a few friends.

There's also the handbook for lots of other questions you may have.

The suspicion of debunking or being CIA operatives is a little far fetched IMO,
but that's only IMO.