The SUSPENSION of illicit drugs/mind altering substance topics on ATS (The experiment failed)

So, I'm just clarifying things.... "octomom to make porno"-ok....
"teens turning to anal sex to maintain virginity", just fine there...
"california receiving legislation concerning legalizing...."NO NO NO NO NO!!


Remember, we have to keep it professional around here. Stick with anal sex and mom of 16 attemps to cash in and make a porno. None of that "legislative" nonsense. You might mess up the kids brains...

I know a lot of people, both on the net and in real life who have heard of this site. They know what it is. Most think its a bunch of crackpots.. Hmm... anal sex and pornos.. No reason to think that. When I try to correct them and tell them that its a site that discusses odd current events and the such they roll their eyes. I think I'm starting to understand why..lol

Skepticoverlord, why aren't you letting us talk about how the government is going to dumb us down via the use of drugs or let us talk about our theories and the like?

I know about censorship but I mean come on!

You can't end all of the discussion on drugs.

The conspiracy theorist in me sees a real problem with the sudden rise in media stories about the potential legalization of pot. This is no coincidence folks. As we who frequent ATS know, distracting stories and issues always happen for a reason. And now, with really serious problems spreading throughout the world as a result of financial malfeasance by bankers and governments, we're given this issue (pot legalization) to deflect our attention. Really?

The world wastes billions upon billions restricting a plant for no good reason, no one used to care when we thought we could afford it but now people are starting to realize the war on drugs is an expensive joke we can't win and can't afford. Plus we have a president who isn't a stuck in the mud idiot, he might actually offer some real change! THIS is why it's in the news at to moment, THIS is why the issue has 'grass roots' support.

Yes we do know that stories always happen for a reason, most the time it's because the management of the media company are trying to push their own personal beliefs down our necks - hmmm the conspiracy theorist in me suggests that maybe this has happened here... Does the 'deny ignorance' tag ring as ironic as 'Fair and Balanced' fox news? Is the desire to uncover conspiracy really just another way to push your world view, to push your own personal agenda?

Well i don't like it, ATS has gone right down in my estimations, how can it be a good place to get the whole story if a gang of over zealous mods are just waiting to ban any threads and delete all posts with opinions they don't like - that, after all is the main problem over the last few days is it not? I didn't see anyone suggesting we all start taking drugs, i didn't even see many people admitting to have used drugs but i did witness a huge backlash against over censorship -maybe the conspiracy theorist in me is saying that you don't want to tell your gang of mods off, it's not my place to suggest why this might be, maybe you don't want to offend your prefects, maybe you don't want to upset your powerbase -who knows, people on the internet are crazy. MAYBE You are over hyping the 'terrorist threat' to keep the sheeple in line?

oh well whatever, i'm off to find a site which actually allows open and honest debate, enjoy your advertising revenue.

Originally posted by Frankidealist35
Skepticoverlord you seem to be forgetting the fact that there is a huge area of conspiracies that have to do with illegal drugs.

Not at all.

And unfortunately for us and our members, there's an intolerable number of people who would subvert those threads into advocacy for personal use, and discussion of personal use.

As I've mentioned (three previous times now in this thread), we're looking at ways to reintroduce the conspiracy side of these topics in the near future. But for now, no-tolerance.

reply to post by Frankidealist35


There is no doubt about it. A whole Topic, full of conspiracies is ruined.

But the Blame is not on the Owners, so they say. The blame is supposed to go to a couple of immature posters, that is why we the people are never aloud discuss this sort of thing ever again.

Things like, "what if the Government is bringing Cocaine into the Country?"

Which is a big topic.

Or "what if the government is putting substances into the medical marijuana?"

Those are legit(However outlandish they are) Conspiracies. Though we are not aloud to post about it anymore. Were still aloud to talk about alcohol though.

Originally posted by ANOK
It's going into the hands of ordinary citizens who sell, legally or not.

Ah, so because it goes into the hands of "ordinary citizens" and not the government, that somehow makes it okay, no matter what they are doing with it?

Originally posted by ANOK
Where do your taxes go? To invade foreign countries to create new markets and line the pockets of the few.

What our taxes go towards is not the the issue here. Nor does government doing using my tax-money for something I disagree with (too large of a list to name here...) somehow justify what people do with drug-money. That line of thinking boils do to a childish "Well, someone else is doing it!"

Originally posted by Frankidealist35
Skepticoverlord, why aren't you letting us talk about how the government is going to dumb us down via the use of drugs or let us talk about our theories and the like?

I know about censorship but I mean come on!

You can't end all of the discussion on drugs.

Oh, they'll pull out the good old standby "we own the site" (nevermind that without US this site is nothing). You see, they want to keep the subject matter on more important things like the reptillians that control us, or which world leader is today's antichrist.

I can understand a problem poster being dealt with. That is what a mod is for, afterall. Weeding out the trolls. But they dont work like that here. They see a bushell of apples with one bad one and throw away the whole bushell. I say, toss the one bad one and enjoy the rest.

Originally posted by budski
This is a welcome policy.
Like the man said - there's plenty of other sites where it's acceptable, go find them.

I don't come here to read about someones experiences with controlled substances, and I know many others feel the same way.

Couldn't have said it better myself

I come to ATS for conspiracies... I do not think I have ever felt the need to chat about drugs on here ...

...and if I did feel the sudden urge to bang on about drugs I guess I would just look for the appropriate website




[edit on 25/2/2009 by alienanderson]

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


I thought that's why RATS existed.

RATS is the drug forum isn't it?

Anyways,

As I've mentioned (three previous times now in this thread), we're looking at ways to reintroduce the conspiracy side of these topics in the near future. But for now, no-tolerance.

You better keep your word, or, you're probably going to end up censoring a lot of valid discussion on the site. I'm just telling you my $.02.

[edit on 25-2-2009 by Frankidealist35]

Originally posted by SkepticOverlord
You have no idea. My father and my wife's father would benefit greatly from this... to the point of a completely altered quality of life.

Oh, yet you still think it's not an important subject to discus? Now I'm even more confused by your attitude to this.

As mentioned in the opening post, there are many online venues much more appropriate for those who are concerned about advocacy on these subjects.

There are on-line venues for all kinds of discussions, maybe we should take all ATS topics elsewhere also?

But point is discussing stuff on sites specific to that subject is boring, preaching to the choir, what the point? ATS is a huge and popular site, I want my points to be heard by those who are ignorant and not already educated.

Originally posted by CA_Orot

Originally posted by Uniceft17
But ATS seems to think that facts can't be discussed because the mods can't do their jobs and simply ban or delete the post a certain user makes about using drugs in an illegal manner, period.

Personally, I think you're out of line.

The Mods (who do this in the "free time" - outside of Real Life, Jobs, Comitments etc) do a pretty damn good job, considering...

Quick question from the makers of Microsoft - Don't the Mods deserve a chance to act as members once in a while and post their opinions instead of babysitting us? Or are we just that immature, that we need someone holding our hand?

The new policy has been made - hop on board, or logout.


- Carrot

Like i've already said, a complete blanket ban on any drug talk has been banned when the problem is so small that it can simply be modded, i've seen other rules broken far more and the mods seem to handle that well, but when a few people decide to talk about using drugs the whole subject is banned from discussion all together from ATS.

You act as if people discussing their personal use of drugs is such a problem that it's impossible for mods to control it and still have time to post their own opinions in topics they like, not so true. This rule has been broken far less than any other rule, and this has been blown up to make it look like it is a HUGE problem.

Which is probably why im not alone in thinking that the reason behind this is not what the Owner is saying.

Originally posted by spliff4020

Originally posted by Frankidealist35
Skepticoverlord, why aren't you letting us talk about how the government is going to dumb us down via the use of drugs or let us talk about our theories and the like?

I know about censorship but I mean come on!

You can't end all of the discussion on drugs.

Oh, they'll pull out the good old standby "we own the site" (nevermind that without US this site is nothing). You see, they want to keep the subject matter on more important things like the reptillians that control us, or which world leader is today's antichrist.

I can understand a problem poster being dealt with. That is what a mod is for, afterall. Weeding out the trolls. But they dont work like that here. They see a bushell of apples with one bad one and throw away the whole bushell. I say, toss the one bad one and enjoy the rest.

Fret not, friend! In just 6 months they may or may not allow us to once again question the wisdom and motives behind the current drug policy.

Originally posted by Unit541
Hurray! You win the prize for both the most ignorant post of all time, as well as the weakest argument!

Do you people not understand "hyperbole" when you see it? I even said it was H Y P E R B O L E.

Sweet Zombie Jesus...

Originally posted by Springer

The ability to continue to provide our members with a huge venue upon which they can express and challenge their own theories, or the theories of others, exchange information with their peers on the thousands of other topics welcomed here, is far, far more important than risking it all over a handful of topics that are covered in a much better way on other sites, set up specifically for them.

[my emphasis]

That's interesting. This "risk", the "risk" to "the avenue" i.e. to ATS in general. What is this risk ? What risk so threatens ATS that discussion on a whole subject must be banned altogether ? From where does it originate ? Is it board credibility or advertising revenue that's threatened ? Or both ? Or something else ?

As to these contributors somehow bringing little else to ATS apart from accounts of their own personal use, maybe. But the same criticism could as every bit be directed against many of the new US members joining ATS in 2008, the various Democrat & Republican fanboys who so pulled board quality down last year. Ya boo politics, anyone ? They were as much a turn off for me as these drugs aficionados.

This ban has little to do with any lofty principle, unfortunately, it's rather more to do with $$. ATS drugs threads high up the google rankings worries advertisers, other third parties & threatens revenue. And that might be a perfectly good reason to take this action.

But at least be honest about it, we're ATS members, we won the lottery of life & we're hardly stupid.

Originally posted by spliff4020
So, I'm just clarifying things.... "octomom to make porno"-ok....
"teens turning to anal sex to maintain virginity", just fine there...
"california receiving legislation concerning legalizing....

Yes, but those things are not illegal are they?

Obtuseness quotient increases...

Quick question to the staff:

Should I fear banning if I were to point out every infraction of the T & C I find on this board as I participate? what happens when a member of the staff refuses to act on a violation pointed out by one of us peasants?

I can tell you for one, if the "recruitment/solicitation" policy is enforced uniformly, there will be about 9 topics left on this board.

In fact, doesn't any debate, by the very definition of the term, constitute a violation of this particular rule?

Originally posted by SkepticOverlord

Originally posted by Cutwolf
Color me shocked and more than a little disappointed.

Me too.

In my five years of contributing to the management of ATS, action like this was never needed.

As I've said repeatedly, I'd personally prefer to be able to embrace and promote these issues in a sane and adult way. But the overwhelming majority of our staff feel that the relaxation of our policies on these topics have had an overall negative impact. I wish it were not so.

We're looking at ways to reintroduce the topics within six months or so... but for now, it's time to regroup.

Action like this is still not needed.

It's a cop out.

ATS has been expanding. Its member base has grown substantially from its early days and it has undergone more upgrades and updates than Flava Flav's jewelry collection. ATS has welcomed this expansion with open arms.

Yet you had to have known that with "great expansion comes great responsibility." This means more work for the staff. This means hiring more staff. This does not mean limiting topics of discussion that may be more difficult and time consuming to moderate. There are better ways to go about it.

Furthermore, my problem isn't as much with the action itself as with the BS justifications for the action. You want to funnel conversation to more serious topics? Really? So the first topic on the chopping block is discussion on illicit drugs rather than discussions on reptilians, Titor, Obama's birth certificate, 9/11 truthers, psychic visions, etc, etc?

The topic of illicit drugs is one of the few topics discussed on these forums that is empirically grounded in reality and has a verifiable impact on society.

Furthermore still, you're appointing yourself and the staff the sole arbiters of what constitutes a serious topic worthy of discussion, rather than allowing the users to drive the narrative. It is a dangerous and scary precedent.

We are no longer free to discuss the topics we deem to be important. We must discuss what you deem to be important. That makes this one of the most restricted forums of which I am a part - not the most free, as it once was.

SO, apologies but I cannot support you on this decision....for our generation (I'm 46) the only conspiracy bigger than our governments war on drugs and by extension us, is UFOs.

So you and the other site owners have made a blanket policy to ban discussions on illegal drug use...ok, I have to live with it.

In my opinion you have now left us with nothing of real substance to discuss...Yes we can talk about UFOs, Indigo children, Nibiru, 2012, Mothmen, etc...

Not a one of those things can be proven or disproven to be a REAL conspiracy..any discussion on those topics is just speculation, conjecture, and personal experiences that have no real proof.

Here we have a REAL conspiracy, the US govt. spends billions upon billions on a "war" they cannot win, they ruin peoples lives with their inane policies, they wreak havoc in far way countries over it, they make wastelands our of our inner cities over it...

Yet we are not allowed to seriously discuss it???

edit for spelling


[edit on 25-2-2009 by deadbang]

Originally posted by SaviorComplex

Originally posted by spliff4020
So, I'm just clarifying things.... "octomom to make porno"-ok....
"teens turning to anal sex to maintain virginity", just fine there...
"california receiving legislation concerning legalizing....

Yes, but those things are not illegal are they?

Obtuseness quotient increases...

Neither is a California assemblyman introducing a piece of legislation.

Originally posted by ANOK
ATS is a huge and popular site, I want my points to be heard by those who are ignorant and not already educated.

Then please be patient.

If we've demonstrated anything over the past five years, it's our ability to find a way to do what is necessary to support civil discussion of important and provocative issues. We created an open forum for highly speculative theories... we created a forum for "out there" personal stories... we constantly work on promoting serious political discussion without partisan bickering... we tried to encourage drug-related topics, it didn't work, so now we're resetting the board. I hope we find a way to try again... we're certainly discussing it.