Is RJN also a robot? If not, why can't we PM him or her? I guess this post will be deleted forthwith .. but I will try again.
From:
bob__mosurinjohn@hotmail.com
Subject: Making APOD forum more interesting
Date: Mon, 7 Dec 2009 09:58:48 -0500
I have been an apod forum poster for four or five years, for long periods sometimes posting every day, and have watched the forum degenerate badly in that time, with the bulk of Apod forum traffic now generated by three or four regular posters including moderators, as evidenced in your thread requesting how to make the forum more interesting.
I understand Nereid has been replaced as head moderator by Geckzilla, and while I thought that a change in head moderator might make for positive change, I have had a report from another long-time user that Geckzilla is an unfavourable personality because of insults, which at least Nereid never stooped to, and that brings us to the great problem with the fourm, not a problem of format in any degree, but that forum traffic other than consensus-oriented is plainly'demonized', with consensus-dissenters often attacked with insults, on rare occasions those insults bordering on or outright libel/slander. I am totally convinced that the insults and strong intolerance of non-consensus views accounts for the huge loss of interest in the forum, and I state plainly that moderators must carry that responsibility as no effort appears to be made to correct those making insults, and with moderators occasionally joining in with insults of their own. For instance, I have seen a moderator tell an Electrical Engineer that his expertise was not science; and another moderator badly malign a leading theorist who has not ever appeared on the forum, but who is recognized world wide and working at one of the most advanced labs in the world. This occured simply because the moderator strongly disagrees with Modified Gravity theory. My considerable reading has shown me that scientists who are internationally recognized as important people are generally temperate in their views, saying things like, 'while this theory has yet to be proven it deserves more consideration ...' Whereas on apod, the consensus statement response to innovation is, 'your theory is not Big Bang so is therefore not science.'
Topics are banned because a moderator decides the topic is ‘unscientific’, with participant Christ Peterson, an amateur astronomer, often telling forum posters (no matter how well qualified or how well read) that “you don’t understand what science is.” Chris never seems to be chastised for his many insults, and Nereid seems to have the same opinion as Chris, having declared, for instance, Plasma Cosmology "unscientific" and not to be discussed, which is strange, as Plasma Cosmology was at one time the leading contender for how the universe was and is being created. Moderator prejudices are so strong that I have little hope for the forum unless moderators step aside and let the forum be self-governing. I have seen no hate rants, racism, or other serious abuses other than the insults on the forum, and it is obvious forum participants are generally intelligent-minded people who can govern themselves, while moderators seem unable to achieve either moderation or self-moderation. Two topics I opened, ‘Black Stars Not Black Holes’ was removed despite being foundationed on an article in Scientific American, and also removed was my topic on the new Attosecond photography developed by Canada’s National Research Laboratory in partnership with Ottawa University, “a completely new field of photonics.” The absence or revamping of regulators on the forum is the major change needed to enable genuine exchanges of opinion and knowledge.
Religion is another issue. Despite Einstein and Hawking (as well as other professional scientists) publicly stating their faith in God as it relates to their science, and with Creationism recognized as a science in its own right by many recognized scientists, any mention on the forum of 'religion' is not tolerated, and I have been banned for saying as little as “the alpha and omega was published a long time ago” in response to someone saying ‘it would be nice if we knew everything.’ The forum needs to accept that for many scientists both professional and amateur, a Creator is a reality, and for them most questions will remain unanswered without discussion including the role of the Creator. Of course I see the dangers in 'denominational proselytizing', and have warned against such on the forum at a time when the topic of whether religion should be discussed was active. Despite moderator intolerance of Creationist Science, the Big Bang Religion is preached daily from the Consensus Pulpit.
You will undoubtedly be told I am merely a troll, but that is not true in any way. I am 62 years old, and a person who avoids trouble in life, and if you search my name bob mosurinjohn or robert mosurinjohn on Google you will find my sense of responsible behaviour evidenced many times; but I grew tired of abuse and infringement on freedom of speech and opinion on the forum, and that, combined with my not being a Consensus person, makes me a troll according to a couple of the moderators, with ‘Troll’ being an accusation hurled at posters other than myself who disagree with consensus view. For a long time I viewed moderators' failings as human nature, and even humourous, but I now see the reality, that they are severe hindrances to the success of the forum, with lack of participants in the forum being the clear proof that I need to confirm my judgement. My responses to abuse after a considerable time led me to some insistance of my rights, and for that the Public Library of the City of Ottawa's (Canada) IP address was banned, blocking thousands of students access to the forum. Ottawa has two major universities, a few private universities, a community college, hosts Canada's National Research Laboratory, and is one of the two major hi-tech research and manufacturing cities in Canada. When I made those facts public on the forum, I was asked for the IP address, probably so the block could be lifted, but I declined to provide it, as I have actually come seriously to believe the banning as a positive influence for young science-oriented minds, as they will not be exposed to the abuse and rigid mindedness promoted so heavily on the forum.
Thanks for asking for input as to how to make the forum better, as the forum has been a valuable interest for me despite its problems. Perhaps the most value the forum had for me was providing the necessity to read huge amounts over one winter, that reading necessary to disprove the mindset and information promoted on the forum. Despite my views on the proceedings of the forum, I have considerable regard for the moderators and participants, even Chris Peterson, for the knowledge they have and their willingness to share .. but especially as their stimulation led me to be forced to investigate and to truly think scientifically for myself.
I will be banned again before you can read this post, so I am sending you this PM, which you probably won’t be able to respond to with a personal message on the forum because I will almost certainly have been removed, but my email address is
bob__mosurinjohn@hotmail.com
P.S. Einstein said, "Immagination is more important than knowledge." So what really is Science?
