The Prophet

I think interest in these topics generally just runs in cycles. People - including myself - would leave the Skeptiko forums for months at a time only to return later. I assume COVID-19 doesn't help, as everyone has other things to prioritize.

But I also think there's a cycle of general public awareness - between Mind-Energy, Skeptiko, and Psciencequest we've likely covered all the basic and some in-depth stuff about Evolution, The Hard Problem of Consciousness, Parapsychology, Quantum Physics, Information Science, etc. There just isn't much new to put forward, even the skeptic/proponent debates have a sense of cyclical exhaustion now.

I think this then reveals the divergence of interests, where people go off to other spaces to look deeper at the particular facet they have interest in.

For me personally I am just going to start posting some things relating to more specific topics, like my thread on Super-Psi vs Survival. Even 1-5 people genuinely interested is enough for me. Thinking about doing Trickster & the Paranormal next...

As long as you don't go down the conspiracy rabbit hole after Alex.  I find that utterly zany.

As long as you don't go down the conspiracy rabbit hole after Alex.  I find that utterly zany.

It's not my particular interest, I realize there are political connections to the paranormal - as with all things - but I actually really dislike political internet discussion...

I am in reflective mood, like the man in my favourite book, it appears that the time has come to leave. 

So I will say a deep thank you to everyone who has accompanied me on my journey. I may well post conversations to various individuals, but my public posting days are over.

I said that I was ‘howling at the moon’ a few times when I wrote about my recent spat with my pals. I can’t express loudly enough how well this phrase ‘vibes’ with what I’m feeling. 

It is perfect.

from the Prophet by K. Gilbran:

 For what is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and to melt into the sun?

And what is it to cease breathing, but to free the breath from its restless tides, that it may rise and expand and seek God unencumbered?

Only when you drink from the river of silence shall you indeed sing.

And when you have reached the mountain top, then you shall begin to climb.

And when the earth shall claim your limbs, then shall you truly dance. 

92

And now it was evening.

And Almitra the seeress said, Blessed be this day and this place and your spirit that has spoken.

And he answered, Was it I who spoke? Was I not also a listener?

I hope Stan W. speaks and listens here again.

I think interest in these topics generally just runs in cycles. People - including myself - would leave the Skeptiko forums for months at a time only to return later. I assume COVID-19 doesn't help, as everyone has other things to prioritize.

But I also think there's a cycle of general public awareness - between Mind-Energy, Skeptiko, and Psciencequest we've likely covered all the basic and some in-depth stuff about Evolution, The Hard Problem of Consciousness, Parapsychology, Quantum Physics, Information Science, etc. There just isn't much new to put forward, even the skeptic/proponent debates have a sense of cyclical exhaustion now.

I think this then reveals the divergence of interests, where people go off to other spaces to look deeper at the particular facet they have interest in.

For me personally I am just going to start posting some things relating to more specific topics, like my thread on Super-Psi vs Survival. Even 1-5 people genuinely interested is enough for me. Thinking about doing Trickster & the Paranormal next...

I agree. But, we haven’t seen one of this magnitude since Alex nuked Skeptiko. It’s more than just interest, and we may have to reconsider how to attract -and retain- users.

[Ninshub]

What on Earth happened? I noticed that Max_B is gone. Many of the skeptics have jumped ship as well.

E. Flowers, and anybody else curious, some members have left over various reasons within a timespan of many months - but admittedly both Max and Stan relatively in quick succession. It's not been one thing, but different circumstances. Chris left over the coronavirus thread-placement debate/brouhaha several months back. Linda disappeared (without actually announcing her departure?) soon after. At the time she was mostly posting about that topic.

I can't divulge what's gone through PMs to reveal all of the details as to why Max is gone, but he got upset over a member posting and wanted the moderators to ban the member quick, quick, quick  - I remember joining the conversation to tell him "can this just wait until we can have a proper conversation about it?" (I was in the middle of a work day) - but he was already announcing he was leaving and deleting all his posts and seemingly nonchalant about his decision once he'd made it.

Stan took issue with my moving one of his threads to another sub-forum, something pretty much the same happened the next day, and he also apparently decided to leave. In both cases he was opening threads using topics that the community had long ago voted to have reserved for specific sub-forums, but his point was that his spiritual perspective was broader and he felt censored and stifled by the actions.

It's very unfortunate, especially with Stan and Max leaving over such issues that were in my view repairable through more discussion.

In both cases he was opening threads using topics that the community had long ago voted to have reserved for specific sub-forums,

I question this.

The first video was a video about economics - not politics as you suggested in a pm. Look for yourself, it was a discussion between a socialist and a capitalist. I felt that it was such a good example of how discussions between people with very different views could/should be held it was a feel good video. Barred to the hidden threads without discussion. 

The second one was an interview with Tom Campbell ffs! 
Barred to the hidden threads. You’re surely missing the plot when Tom Campbell videos are censored. And Imo, it is a definitely a form of censorship.

[Ninshub]

Stan, you presented the video as being about "capitalism". As a moderator I interpreted that a capitalism vs. marxism video cannot only sealed off as "economics" - economics and political theory are deeply intertwined there. It's a call I made, and you have a right to argue if my call was wrong.

People can watch it here:
https://psiencequest.net/forums/thread-a...-interview

The second video, which Laird talked to you about, was about Tom Campbell talking about masks re: the coronavirus thread. The very topic that created this enormous forum upheaval that led people to leaving and after which it was decided should be in the non-psi-related scientific controversies thread (in fact it should have been there in the first place, according to the forum rules, a mistake Laird owned up to as he was handling it initially). We made it explicitly clear afterwards that any posts or threads about the coronavirus not just involving sending well-wishes to people affected by it should be placed in that category.

We were ready to discuss with you (I'm going on my discussion with Laird about this) to see what your intentions were with this new thread, and see if we could have made an exception, but personally my main problem was that it would devolve into a discussion about the virus and its political-social dimensions. Which it immediately did.

See the thread here:
https://psiencequest.net/forums/thread-t...bell-video?

Stan, you've always had an issue with those political or scientific controversy sub-forums being hidden, and you equate them with censorship and absence of discussion. Personally I can't make sense of that and I'm sure I'm not the only one. Most of the forum members are subscribed to them. The minority that don't wouldn't discuss them anyway. So I don't see the problem, but I recognize it's always been a problem for you and again you have a right to see it your way. But that was a decision the entire forum made when it voted on those issues.

It's a call I made, and you have a right to argue if my call was wrong.

I would say ‘watch the video’ then if you tell me it belongs in the hidden part of the forum then I simply despair. Have any of you watched it? 

Ok, I admit that the discussion ‘went wrong’ immediately when the Tom Campbell thread was commented on, that is unfortunate and most frustrating. You were correct in your decision, but don’t you think it’s a bit weird, stopping open viewing of a Tom Campbell vid? I still maintain that we ought to be able to discuss this topic openly in a forum which deals with strange phenomena. If you still think there’s nothing strange about the Covid event then I really think your not paying attention. 

If I’m alone in thinking that hiding certain topics is a form of censorship then so be it. 

I think Covid is an extremely important topic that we really ought to be talking about. I see the psychology of it as being profoundly worth questioning and lessons that are just begging to be learned might well ultimately be held up as fundamental. It’s like the spaceship really has landed on the whitehouse lawn, and we are ignoring it and, head in the sand, we largely argue away about the same old stuff. 

The virus event is spiritual in nature, things like this are not random events.