Important Notice For Users of BTS (2)

Let's try this again... perhaps my current avatar will not inspire inappropriate commentary. (rather than the previous photo of a centerpiece in the Metropolitan Museum European sculpture garden ... still no word on an explanation btw) This "Below Top Secret" board is for our members to converse about non-conspiracy topics, not to play board-bully or engage in ego-games. A trend has been noticed where several members have observed to believe nearly anything goes on BTS and taken advantage of an environment of less moderation. This will stop now. If it doesn't stop, those involved will encounter posting bans. If it still doesn't stop, those involved will encounter being banned. And if it still doesn't stop, BTS will be shut down. The same rules and expectations of civility apply to BTS as much as ATS. The primary difference between the two boards is the non-conspiracy focus of BTS topics... which is the ONLY DIFFERENCE. [Edited on 24-2-2004 by SkepticOverlord]

not to waz you off but why shut it down and spoil it for all of us who like posting in here and ats i think the last one is a bit to far but i see where you comeing from

Yeah, let's stick to number 1 and 2..and only go to 3 at DEFCON 5....

The threat of should be enough....

I like the new avatar, clockwork orange is excellent.

aye,aye sir

oh btw, what happened to the Rant forum? I guess too much ranting ....

yeah! rant forum should be back. i mean bts is below top secret so i dont see why we cant just go off on a tangent now and again.

I do not want BTS to be shutdown. I like my weekly questions!!!!


I think a warning should be sent to the people that are abusing BTS. Maybe we should have more mods for BTS. I would be willing to do it but if you dont like me as a choice I am sure there are others that would be willing to do it.

14 hours 36 minutes.

Til.....what?? Til you shut it down??

Until Tetsuo-51 is allowed to return?

No, the time taken from this thread being made until ilp made an offer to be a mod

I'm glad to see that MA wasn't banned. That would've been way to harsh. But I wouldn't expect an explanation in your life time. Just a hunch.

Anyway, it's good to see some BTS crack down... it could use new mods though. I don't think there are that many.

This is the 1st time I've seen a temporary ban placed on a forum. Hehe.

I did not ask to become a mod. I offered my help. I have not asked to become a mod in a while.

Can someone please tell me what inspired all of this in the first place? What happened exactly?

I'm wondering the same thing....

Without getting into nasty detail... the online equivalent of roving gangs with baseball bats were swaggering their online egos in various forms in the BTS fora. The reason I'd rather not name names, is because it turned into a flash-mob me-too phenomena pretty quick. After some alarming observations by some members and staff, it was time to remind everyone that BTS must abide by the same rules as the board that gave it birth (ATS). Civility must prevail. However, these events (the original thread and temp-ban on one member) has spawned a misinformed drama event on another discussion board (imagine that), where our actions here have been scrutinized and theories espoused of varying degrees. Well, the reality is simple. 1) A thread was posted as part of an effort to put a stop to the insults and chaos on BTS, 2) Someone wasn't swayed by the warnings in the thread, and felt compelled to continue what was asked to stop, 3) The person received a temporary posting ban, with a clear indication to communicate an explanation (implying the ban would be lifted after private communications), 4) The person has chosen not to communicate, so the ban remains. [Edited on 25-2-2004 by SkepticOverlord]

Ah...I see. Shame. Hope this doesn't go too far. Despite my initial disdan, I've come to like BTS.

It already seems like everything is back to normal with a minimum of "drama" on ATS/BTS, and perhaps MA is just busy and unaware of what happened. I understand his inflamatory comments were likely directed at my avatar, but wrong thread, wrong time.

we're only human.