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Suggestions & Concerns / "theflatearthsociety" word filter

« on: January 25, 2016, 06:25:19 AM »

So this is rather disappointing. We just discovered that a word filter has been set up on this forum to replace any instances of "tfes" with "theflatearthsociety" - a clear attempt at blocking links to tfes.org. I would like to ask the admins of this site to reconsider this decision, for (some of) the following reasons:

It retroactively breaks links that others have made here to discussions on tfes.org. If you want to restrict others from linking to our websites, that's your prerogative (even if it's needlessly incendiary). However, automatically breaking a whole bunch of links simply renders some of the threads unreadable, especially those which reference our FAQ/Wiki as sources of arguments. This is not only annoying on a political level, but it's also simply not how the WWW is supposed to work. Don't deliberately break links.
It's a very one-sided tactic. I would understand if this was in response to us doing something similar, but we do not stop our members from linking to theflatearthsociety.org on tfes.org. We share a common goal, and if it weren't for the fact that Daniel disappeared in the middle of discussions, we wouldn't even be two separate sites. What do you stand to gain by openly attacking us?
Finally, this comes as a particular disappointment on a personal level, since there is only one person who could have likely set this up - John. John, you recently stopped by on our forum and got attacked by Thork. Notice what happened afterwards. We warned Thork, and, as I understand, you received multiple reassurances that he doesn't represent us in any way. We're playing nicely. I'd like to ask you that you do too.

All in all, this strikes me as extremely petty. I hope that this was just an angry reaction to your recent clash with Thork. I hope you can take a look at this in a calm and collected state of mind and take it back.

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Technology, Science & Alt Science / I ordered a ThL W11

« on: November 29, 2013, 12:52:05 PM »

I'm not a complete "retart" so that could be one of the reasons I'm looking forward to it so much. Android is very smooth, has great functionality, and doesn't lock you into restrictive DRM and licensing policies from a single company. I like that it lets me replace the stock OS with a custom ROM of my choosing if I don't like the way my vendor does things. My only complaint is that... wait, there's nothing to complain about. It's got a fucking 1920x1080 display that fits in the palm of your hand, and two 13M cameras. I also get to support a valiant freedom-fighter company who cares very little about ridiculous concepts such as "intellectual property" or "naming your company something that makes sense". I am very confident that with this Technology, I will live a Happy Life.

On a more serious note, this is the first time I'm buying a reasonably expensive product that has not been made by a well-known brand. The store I ordered it from has a reasonable 45-day return policy which will allow me to return the phone to its Chinese overlords if I happen to be dissatisfied. Assuming the build quality is acceptable, the phone appears to offer very good value for money compared to Western competitors. We shall see how things go once it arrives!

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Suggestions & Concerns / Please unlock "Site Upgrade Suggestions."

« on: November 26, 2013, 04:03:40 PM »

That thread is awaiting JD's/Wilmore's response to a very crucial issue. Please unlock it and, instead of taking the easy way out, moderate it vigorously until that happens. Bonus points if you create a special usegroup to stop markjo and Thork from posting in that thread - it'll make the moderation much simpler.

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The Lounge / Saddam Hussein's avatar

« on: October 23, 2013, 01:02:22 AM »

This is a historic day for FES. The mystery of the man in Saddam Hussein's avatar has finally been solved. Behold:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein

That's right. The man we've all come to recognize as Saddam Hussein is in fact a real person, but he was was was the fifth President of Iraq, and his name is Saddam Hussein. I'm trying to find more pictures of him from that website, but it's tricky. Here's another one:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:SaddamStatue.jpg

I can post the image itself, because it's a not PDF, but it's labeled with the same name, so I'm sure you'll have no problem spotting it. It's a statue of the same guy, but he looks somewhat different!

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The Lounge / DISC personality test results - 100% official thread!

« on: October 15, 2013, 10:35:20 AM »

ITT: Take this free version of the DISC assesment and post your scores so that Parsifal can either flaunt how he totally predicted it, or call the test shit when he hasn't.

Dominant. That's me. Damn right. α-male

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Suggestions & Concerns / Continued from the Lounge: discussion of the removal of the post removal feature

« on: August 15, 2013, 09:12:22 PM »

Since my requests to split the threads have been unsuccessful, here is a re-run of the relevant parts of "Is Sceptimatic an imbecile?" up to now:

Quote from: Lord Wilmore on July 24, 2013, 04:33:04 PM

And this is why members weren't allowed to delete their posts. I am temporarily removing this right pending further discussion. Delete your profile, cool. Delete your posts, no.

Quote from: Saddam Hussein on July 24, 2013, 04:37:02 PM

Or you could just ban him.

Quote from: Lord Wilmore on July 24, 2013, 04:43:37 PM

This has happened loads of times before. It will happen again. I really don't mind members deleting their profiles - the only reason we ask them to come through us is to avoid the deletion of posts. But it sucks when threads are full of conversations between one person. It's not fair to everyone here, or everyone who will come here.

Quote from: PizzaPlanet on July 24, 2013, 04:50:05 PM

I don't understand what this achieves. Not only are you trying to restrict people's freedoms^{[nb]That's not necessarily "wrong" per se. Your forum, your rules. However, it is fairly morally objectionable (especially when you do not claim ownership of people's posts), and is currently in conflict with the registration agreement you present to members. Hypothetically, some crazy American could sue you.[/nb]}, you're failing at it humongously. I even already linked the thread that can serve as evidence here. Instead of removed posts, you'll just have a bajillion of posts reading "the", "e", or "....".

Don't go that way; or, if you really have to go that way, at least do it right.

Quote from: Lord Wilmore on July 24, 2013, 05:18:46 PM

Quote from: PizzaPlanet on July 24, 2013, 04:50:05 PM
I don't understand what this achieves.

Well, it stops people deleting posts and ruining threads, mainly.

Quote from: PizzaPlanet on July 24, 2013, 04:50:05 PM
Not only are you trying to restrict people's freedoms^{[nb]That's not necessarily "wrong" per se. Your forum, your rules. However, it is fairly morally objectionable (especially when you do not claim ownership of people's posts), and is currently in conflict with the registration agreement you present to members. Hypothetically, some crazy American could sue you.[/nb]}

First of all, my gut instinct is that our not claiming ownership does not imply ownership, or remove our right to keep posts that have been posted in the public domain. I could be wrong though, let's hear it. As regards the registration, I may well have missed something, but I can't see what.

Quote from: PizzaPlanet on July 24, 2013, 04:50:05 PM
you're failing at it humongously. I even already linked the thread that can serve as evidence here. Instead of removed posts, you'll just have a bajillion of posts reading "the", "e", or "....".

Don't go that way; or, if you really have to go that way, at least do it right.

Yeah, I know, but editing posts is kind of core functionality, and somehow people seem less inclined to do that, and for whatever reason posters perceive edited posts by a member/guest better than their total absence.

Quote from: Lord Wilmore on July 24, 2013, 05:21:06 PM

Anyway, as I say this a temporary measure pending discussion. I'm all ears, so I am.

(continued in further posts)

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The Lounge / The great PizzaPlanet round-the-world trip of 2013

« on: July 20, 2013, 01:20:32 AM »

In about one week, I will be flying into the Dulles International Airport and meeting Muphci and her family. Together, we will embark on four weeks of reckless tomfoolery as we explore the great continent of the United States of America -- or at least Washington, DC; New York, NY; some of Colorado, CO; and quite likely the Grand Canyon, AZ -- using many different means of transportation. From there I will proceed to Australia where I intend to commit heinous crimes on the unsuspecting Parsifal (don't tell him, top secret).

The current plan is to spend a few days dicking around in DC with Muphci and her family, then go to NYC on our own and stay there for a while, eventually coming to a small city in Colorado and using it as our base of operations from there on. After a grand total of 1 month of time spent in America, I will relocate to Australia, where I will spend another month, after which I will return to the UK, transiting through Malaysia and Sri Lanka. As I will not be going back the way I came (my flight to DC is a direct westward flight), this will be the first time for me to circumnavigate the plane.

Since I am 21 years old and can drink in even in Soviet America, I will be drunk all the time on this trip, and thus relying on my camera to provide you with saucy pictures of all the interesting places we visit may produce very interesting results. The first attraction is probably gonna be the Capitol, so stay tuned in about one week!

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Philosophy, Religion & Society / E-mail scams

« on: June 22, 2013, 05:07:56 AM »

One of my e-mail addresses appears in several public lists. Because of that, I receive many messages from interesting people around the world. Usually Nigerian princes, United State^{[nb]Yes, just one state[/nb]} ambassadors, or the COCACOLA Company.

I read through most of them, because they both intrigue and amuse me. How do they manage to produce messages this unconvincing? How big must the cultural gap between us be for someone to take a picture of a Chinese propaganda poster and claim that it's a photograph of a lottery winner? Why do people fall for those scams?

What I find particularly interesting is that despite the absolutely terrible quality of these e-mails, it's evident that the scammers do some research for their "work". For example:

Quote

US AMBASSADOR TO NIGERIA
11 GARKI ROAD ABUJA
ABUJA, NIGERIA

ATTN:

THIS IS AMBASSADOR TERENCE MCCULLEY. UNITED STATE OF AMERICA AMBASSADOR TO NIGERIA. I SHALL BE COMING TO YOUR COUNTRY FOR AN OFFICIAL MEETING ON FRIDAY AND I WILL BE BRINGING YOUR FUNDS THROUGH AN ATM MASTER CARD OF $5M ALONG WITH ME BUT THIS TIME I WILL NOT GO THROUGH CUSTOMS BECAUSE AS AN AMBASSADOR TO NIGERIA, I AM A US GOVERNMENT AGENT AND I HAVE THE VETO POWER TO GO THROUGH CUSTOMS. AS SOON AS I AM THROUGH WITH THE MEETING I SHALL THEN PROCEED TO YOUR ADDRESS. (SEND YOUR CELL PHONE NUMBER AND THE ADDRESS WHERE YOU WANT ME TO BRING THE PACKAGE).
YOU HAVE REALLY PAID SO MUCH IN THIS DELIVERY THAT MAKES ME WONDER. YOU ARE A VERY LUCKY PERSON BECAUSE I SHALL BE BRINGING IT MYSELF AND THERE IS NOTHING ANYONE CAN DO ABOUT IT.

YOUR PACKAGE($5M) MUST BE REGISTERED AS AN AMBASSADORIAL PACKAGE FOR ME TO DEFEAT ALL ODDS AND THE COST OF REGISTERING IT IS $185.THE FEE MUST BE PAID IN THE NEXT 50 HOURS VIA WESTERN UNION SO THAT ALL NECESSARY ARRANGEMENT CAN BE MADE BEFORE TIME WILL BE AGAINST US.
SEND THE FEE VIA MONEY GRAM OR WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER

RECEIVER'S NAME: OKOH JAMES
ADDRESS: NIGERIA
TEXT QUESTION: GOD BLESSES?
ANSWER: AMERICA
AMOUNT $185
MTCN:
SENDERS NAME:
SENDERS ADDRESS:

AS SOON AS YOU SEND THE FEE MAKE SURE YOU SEND ME THE PAYMENT INFORMATION. MY FLIGHT IS FRIDAY AND I EXPECT YOU TO COMPLY BEFORE THEN SO THAT THE DELIVERY CAN BE COMPLETED. IF YOU DO NOT COMPLY, THEN IT WILL NOT BE MY FAULT IF YOU DO NOT RECEIVE YOUR PACKAGE.

AMBASSADOR TERENCE MCCULLEY.
UNITED STATE OF AMERICA AMBASSADOR
TELEPHONE NUMBER +2348062689162

Terence McCulley is the current US Ambassador to Nigeria and the picture is of the right person. How do you get that right but simultaneously manage to misspell "United States" consistently throughout the message? To me, this is mind-boggling.

How about you, FES? Have you had any interesting encounters with crazy scammers? Or perhaps you know enough about African countries and cultures to shed some light on how they make their messages so wonderfully terrible? Any opinions as to why people still fall for this crap?

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Suggestions & Concerns / RuSpinningAround?'s thread does not deserve this kind of derailment.

« on: June 10, 2013, 01:01:21 PM »

http://www.theflatearthsociety.org/forum/index.php/topic,58836.0.html

Seriously, now. I can understand that you disagree with him and that you think he's crazy, but this quite simply is not appropriate. Much worse seeing how the moderators are involved in the derailment as opposed to, you know, moderation.

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Suggestions & Concerns / I think we need an extra sub-clause for the troublemaking rule

« on: March 24, 2013, 09:07:00 AM »

I think the troublemaking rule needs an extension (or perhaps just an elaboration). There are many degrees of posts meant to cause a reaction. There's a playful "ur retarted", and there's this kind of crap:

Quote from: jason_85 on March 23, 2013, 06:48:26 PM

Bullhorn, your posts are beyond description. As someone who has studied literature and has a formal education in engineering and science, I do not often speak in absolutes, in fact I deliberately try to avoid it because I find that sort of language confining. However, I'm willing to make a qualified exception in this case, to say that the post you started this thread with is possibly the dumbest thing I've ever read in the 20-something years I've been on this planet.

And by dumb I don't mean only lacking in intelligence, because I believe stupidity to be something so much more than that. It's that ratio between intelligence and oblivion that you have so masterfully, as if by design, minimised to what must surely be in proximity to a global trough. You have so masterfully found a mathematical equation that you can partially fathom, and used it as a pedestal, a shoulder of giants if you will, to demonstrate your profound and baffling inability to comprehend the concept of the axiom. You go on to believe you have shaken the foundation of a millennium of mathematics with a question that every 4 year old child of average intelligence, possibly even a primate given a basic education in the name of science, has asked its educators. If I don't say the following to you I'll have robbed myself of the right to say it to any person I ever have or am likely ever to meet.

You're an idiot.

I think it should be made clear that posting a three-paragraph insult of this level is an offence entirely different from other things that would currently fall under the same category, if that makes sense.

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Suggestions & Concerns / Can I have my title back?

« on: March 18, 2013, 08:12:15 AM »

I'm still a FEW editor, as well as an official member.

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Suggestions & Concerns / Suggestion: Fix the avatar scaling on the default theme

« on: March 17, 2013, 09:45:15 AM »

It's been a year and a half now, c'mon.

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Suggestions & Concerns / Moderators do not understand when a thread should be locked...

« on: February 07, 2012, 01:47:10 PM »

...which is, essentially, never. Ichi's recent attack on us is an excellent example. Why would he force us to make another thread to continue an unfinished conversation?

If a thread is being derailed, remove the derailments and reprimand the offenders. If the thread does not fit the general sentiment of the forum, move it. It's really simple.

Can we please ensure that the few moderators we have will learn to moderate? Wilmore, is this within the scope of things you can do without writing a petition to three government officials and receiving an official rule-enforcement visa?

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Suggestions & Concerns / A continuation of "We need new mods"

« on: February 07, 2012, 01:41:22 PM »

As the previous thread has been locked before all questions have been answered, this thread will serve as a venue for Wilmore to reply.

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Suggestions & Concerns / Karsoa Is Gone's sig...

« on: January 23, 2012, 06:09:55 PM »

...is too damn enormous. Could someone scale it down?

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The Lounge / @CockTower

« on: December 13, 2011, 07:33:09 AM »

Since the original thread was locked, and you don't accept PMs from me, we can continue here! Yay!

Quote

I do love it when you use 'that was sarcasm' to avoid admitting that you were wrong. Nice.

What was I wrong about? A tu quoque doesn't make me any less right or any more wrong. At best, it might make me a hypocrite.

Quote

You did notice the word "effectively" above, didn't you?

I did, but it changes nothing about my claim or its validity.
You did notice the word "notice" above, didn't you?

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Suggestions & Concerns / This thread needs moving

« on: December 11, 2011, 03:46:59 AM »

Let's try again.
http://www.theflatearthsociety.org/forum/index.php?topic=52120.0

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Suggestions & Concerns / markjo moves threads that point out his failures as a moderator...

« on: December 09, 2011, 05:29:40 AM »

...without addressing them. In the meantime, a trash thread (low-content posting, troublemaking, and many other of markjo's favourite rules are being broken) to which markjo has "contributed" (if we can call it that), remains untouched.

I would request a moderator other than markjo to resolve the problem raised in the previous, moved thread, and the issue here.
markjo's non-interference will be most appreciated.

http://www.theflatearthsociety.org/forum/index.php?topic=52086.0

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