Forum Terms of Use

• Personal attacks.  Yes, those with opinions opposed to your's are either exceedingly stupid, pitifully misinformed, or pure evil.  Any or all of those assessments may actually be true, but they are still human beings and as such shall be treated with respect.  Remember that respect doesn't necessariy confer agreement, so you're safe in being respectful. Many forums are plagued by trolls (people with an agenda other than honest discussion)—if you think you've identified a troll, either ignore that commenter or post a factual considered refutation; trolling usually breaks one of the rules listed here anyway, and their troll-posts will be removed when that happens. 
• Defamation of any person or group.  This is a fairly universal requirement, and it also applies in this forum.  You can still call out bad behavior without being defamatory—actually absence of defamatory elements makes a criticism more credible.
• Plagiarism and posting materials you don't have the rights to.  This also is a fairly universal requirement, and it also applies in this forum.  We want to hear your views anyway—so even with fair use, identify the source and say it from your personal perspective.
• Pure advertising and personal promotion.  It's called spam—don't do it.  Any mention of a product, organization, event, website, etc. needs to be clearly in the context of the forum.  We know it when we see it, and if it doesn't pass the smell test, it's gone.
• Juvenile bickering.  Adults of all ages slip into it—when you find yourself going down that slippery slope, just chill already.
• Off-topic comments.  If a thread is about oceans, and you post about mountains, provide a nexus to the main thread or start a new thread.  For example, a post that addresses mountain streams and their flowing eventually into oceans would be relevant to that thread.  On the other hand, it would be a stretch to comment on a bird species that feeds on berries in the mountains in a thread about fish in the oceans even if birds that feed on ocean fish are included.

Here are the types of comments I like to read—chances are you do too:

•  Original thought, and not just repeating the clichés of one's own philosophical tribe—you agree with them, so tell us why.
•  It's okay to reveal your biases.  We all have biases, and your comments will reveal yours anyway no matter how hard you try to hide them.  In some cases, it makes comments more credible when the basic perspective is clear. 
• Facts.  That's meaningful information, not just manipulated data or statistics to obfuscate reality.
• Sincerity.  Straight talk, nothing deceitful.
• Passionate opinions.  There's an overload of things to be angry about—and you can be forceful without being hostile, hateful, or bitter.
• Admit it when you're wrong.  It's a bit counterintuitive to our fearful human nature, but this is a sure way to win respect.
• Bridge the parallel universes.  There are any number of influences on people's opinions, and a plethora of presuppositions that slip in under the surface of one's own perspective. And if we were brutally honest with ourselves, we'd admit that we sometimes buy into perspectives out of necessity—to fit into a group, survive in business or at work, or have peace in a relationship. Perfect logic is useless if its foundational assumptions are flawed—thus some forums have statements that are the logical equivalent of "the sea is wet, therefore the sky is blue." The winds of agenda-based opinion influences blow with gale-force strength, and it takes real effort to keep one's balance. Be persistent and have infinite patience with yourself, as well as those on the other side of the reality divide. Never give up.

Now let's hear what you have to say. Please proceed here.