Question for the head honchos

It dawned on me recently that I don't think I've ever seen any posts or threads by any of you other than board questions.

You guys started this site, and I'm sure most of these topics interest you, and if it were me, I'd have to jump in and post. I couldn't just be satisfied by reading threads.

So, I guess I was wondering if you all have another identity here that you can freely post your opinions and comments without revealing who you are.

It just seems odd to me that you can't enjoy your own site unless, of course, you use an alternate identity.

It's probably not any of my business, but I was just curious.

Dude...

Did you check their profiles..?

Skeptic's

Springer's

Crakeur's


I thought not...






mamargr idet!

[edit on 3/12/2009 by chapter29]

Dude,

I'm not a dude.

Yes, I see they have posted threads, but if you look at most of them they are announcements and answers to board questions.

I meant I don't see a lot, if any of them actually getting into a discussion about a topic. I don't see them debating on any topics. That is what I meant.

I didn't check every single thread or post of theirs, but sometimes you read something posted by someone and remember it. I only think of board questions or announcements when I think of them. That's all.

Maybe I'm just not seeing those threads that I'm talking about.

[edit on 12-3-2009 by virraszto]

reply to post by virraszto



Dude-et...




Yes, they are convoluted, but you will find that each of them have begun threads not regarding the board...not a whole lot, but they are there.

reply to post by virraszto


Here's a post that Simon Gray wrote in November when there was a rash of inquiries about why he didn't post very often anymore.

My impression is that the Three Amigos suffer from the same phenomenon as most Moderators do, only to an even greater extent. They end up so busy behind the scenes that they don't get as much time as they might like to make a lot of contributions on the public areas of the boards.

Considering we spend 10 - 12 hours a day on the "day to day" running of the site and building/managing the business (The Above Network, LLC) it does get hard to find the time to get into the topics...

If you search the Aliens/UFO forum you'll find quite a few threads I've either started or participated in heavily, SkepticOverlord can be found in 9/11 in the same way. The economic meltdown the past few months has made running a start up "New Media Company" exceptionally challenging and TIME CONSUMING.

There is a heck of a lot going on behind the scenes that relates to AboveTopSecret.com but involves totally unrelated industries (television, radio, publishing, etc...) that we are working on as well.

Lots of projects, new ventures and only three guys doing all the work they entail.

If it wasn't for our awesome volunteer Moderator staff we wouldn't be alive right now, we'd have fallen over dead on our keyboards!

Springer...


[edit on 3-12-2009 by Springer]

I miss SkepticOverlord's Op/Ed articles. I haven't seen one in a while.

Like:

OP/ED: Banned Books and The Loss of Free Thinkers
The War Over "War Secrets": Why The NY Times Is Not Treasonous (Op/Ed)
Maintaining Liberty Is The Hardest Thing to Do (Op/Ed)

reply to post by americandingbat


Good post,


That should make every ATS member sad, in a way. The guys who bust their tail to make their own site on interests they, themselves, investigate, have a very hard time enjoying what they love.

And, as it so happens, I've seen some content-related threads by all three. They truely create threads the way they are meant to be started. They gather almost all their current evidence, write up the thread making links and roads to the evidence and when it's all written out, they submit it. They then support their views with confidence, evidence and logic.

Look through their thread lists and read some. They are the best example of what they preach (edit- wrong word. I feel "encourage" works better) for us to do.

My $.02
Cuhail


[edit on 3/12/2009 by Cuhail]

reply to post by Springer


I didn't even think of the time spent doing other things related to the board. Taking that into consideration, I understand now.

Thanks for the reply and thanks to you guys for all you do. This is a great forum.

reply to post by virraszto


Here's a thread I authored last fall. LOTS of people were involved in getting everything in that thread put together...

Enjoy...

www.abovetopsecret.com...

Springer...

I'm glad you asked this, because I was wondering about some things myself. I wonder where Skeptic and Springer stand politically. How they feel and what they think about what's going on in the political world of the US these days...

The economy - Whose to blame? Is it engineered? Where's the wealth of this country?
Bailouts and Stimulus - What's your opinions?

Are they of the conspiracy mind that the gov't is the Big Bad and all the "leaders" are puppets? Or do they wish McCain had been elected? Or Ron Paul? Dennis Kucinich? Do they think Obama is the Anti-christ?

Do they support the second Amendment? Gay marriage? Pro-choice or pro-life?

So... I'm just wondering these things. I sit here, wonderin'...

reply to post by Benevolent Heretic


Check this out.

Springer jumps in all too rarely, but this is a good one.

[Edit to add]

And think of the drama if they openly expressed political views. On the one hand, it's truly a shame they don't, but based upon the necessity of ATS maintaining a neutral stance on most issues, it's just the way it is. Otherwise, we'd be accused of steering discussions and moderating based upon editorial content rather than the T&C.

Unlike now, where we're never accused of it.

[edit on 3/13/2009 by yeahright]

Originally posted by yeahright
And think of the drama if they openly expressed political views.

Oooh, yeah! It's a yummy thought, isn't it? True, perhaps they could just slip me a U2U. I mean I'm REALLY curious!

Otherwise, we'd be accused of steering discussions and moderating based upon editorial content rather than the T&C.

Unlike now, where we're never accused of it.

I understand. Thanks.

I see posts from mods and staff in forums alot actually. But then again I am all over this site.

I always enjoy it when I see a mod participating in a thread. It is good to hear from them AND their presence keeps everyone on their best behavior.

Peace and love

the day to day operation of the site requires a lot of work. Simon has a paying gig that keeps him busy but he does pop up as often as possible. Skeptic Overlord is always online, but he's working so posting is not always a possibility.

Springer is always on the phone. I mean always. It's like having a girlfriend or, worse, a second wife. He calls me, he calls Skeptic, he calls me again, he calls Johnny and/or Dave, then he calls me to tell me he called Dave, he asks me to call our agent, then he calls me back to see if I called our agent. He calls SO to complain that I don't take his calls. This goes on until about 8 at night. Then he settles in for some emailing. similar stuff, only without the voice.

Me? I work full time here and at my own firm. Busy busy busy and, yet, I do post in threads unrelated to business from time to time. I also spend a hefty amount of time working the mod side of things. Not that I'm needed or of any real help but the staff knows that I am useless and they humor me. Thanks guys.

As to where we all stand on various topics, go listen to some old ats mix shows. I did a show or two about the last stimulus/bailout. SO and Springer also did bits almost every week.