Ok. So 2 threads? locked. Babs, secret forums are for what? This is one of the biggest reasons I left quitsmoke. Discussions like this do NOT belong in the main forum to dilute the goal of helping others (and myself) to remain quit. But, if we can't be free to say whatever we frigging want in here, then I'm not getting too comfy.

Off the record is a password protected forum designed to protect the members to make posts such as sharing photos or more personal information that they dont necessarily want to share with guests or google. That's all. Nothing sinister or sneaky. It's a great feature that a member suggested. 

Need a Thunderdome. Or alienate a sizable segment of the smoking population. Just sayin. You may not see it now but censorship always leads to revolution.

 

Funny though - in every revolution the power vacuum always gets filled the same way. Even the Mongol Hordes wound up picking up a hoe and toiled in the fields after a while. Somebody is always watching the Watchers.

 

And God Forbid the parameters of Off the Record be revisited in light of what has transpired. When you build  a go cart and on the test drive something goes clunk clunk you see if some adjustment is in order. You don't say "My go cart is perfect and needs no changes."

There will always be dozens of good citizens for every anarchist so the good citizens can always feel like they are right and have truth and justice on their side because that's what the vote showed. Only one way for them to test out their righteousness... build me a Dome.

There is a difference between freedom of speech and the right to be published.  Freedom of speech will only give people the right to make their own web site to express their opinions, but they may not demand to be published on any other web sites.  A good example is book publishing: You may write your own book, but you may not go to a publisher and demand them to publish it for you.  If you want to publish it, and there are no publishers willing to do it, you would have to print the book yourself and contact any stores and ask them if they would sell it.  If nobody will sell it, you'll have to open your own store to sell it. 

 

So, if members want to make negative comments about other support groups, they can make their own forum to do so but expect to met with possible legal action because if those support groups are there to make money, they can come after you.  I've seen it before.  Nothing like that has happened here and I won't even let things get close to that, but it's my responsibility to make the final decision on these matters and I make them based on what's best for this community as a whole.

 

This is a quit smoking support community.  Making negative posts about other similar websites, members etc., does not promote the atmosphere that will be maintained here.  It does nothing to help other members regarding their addiction and most, if not all members are here because they don't want that kind of atmosphere. 

 

Everybody is free to say what they want and it's my responsibility to decide if it meets the perimeters of this forum.  There is one thing that I've repeatedly expressed in these threads and private messages and that is please do not make negative comments about other support groups or bring up issues from other forums.  Those issues belong to them, not us.  Besides, they're not here to defend themselves so it does no good to bring these sorts of things up anyway.

 

With freedom comes responsibility.--MQ

 

 

that is true MQ I belonged to a nursing forum that was attacked viciously by these crazy girls basically they took our post onto their board and made fun of them it was vulgar (and these people were supposed to be adults) well the owner of the nursing forum got a lawyer and it eventually stopped and died out she also copyrighted the forum which made it possible for her to sue them if they used our posts in that way again......their forum died out eventually I believe. I also belonged to a bigger nursing forum which I shall not name that you cannot mention other forums because that is their business and that would be taking their "business " away.....

Additionally, we don't make any money from the membership here.  No get paid to click, using posts for marketing etc.  This is just a straight up support group like you'd see at the local diner for recovering addicts.  They meet for support, not to make money.  Same as us.  :)

Very well said Marylandquitter.

 

In my opinion...go ahead and vent...vent away.  This is a safe haven.  Vent about your husbands, wives, kids, inlaws, friends, job --whoever.  This is an anonymous site and unless they are smokers looking for support, most likely they won't see it (though you never know...so be careful)

 

But when it comes to this community...and when I say community I mean the ex-smokers club-- regardless of which forum you are a member of...we all are intertwined are no longer anonymous to each other.   Therefore, . I think it's our personal responsibility to censor ourselves....in order to not cause pain to another human being.  Period.   

Yes, vent away, just not about other forums.  That's pretty liberal considering how many rules there could be.  :)

Additionally, we don't make any money from the membership here.  No get paid to click, using posts for marketing etc.  This is just a straight up support group like you'd see at the local diner for recovering addicts.  They meet

for support, not to make money.  Same as us.  :)

 

Rofl. We bash other 12 step programs when we hang out at Shoneys after an NA meeting. Never mind. I understand. :unsure: