Open letter to FDers

[Connie Fournier]

A couple of weeks ago we had a major drama on Free Dominion. At the time, Mark and I were going through some trying things in our real life, so we mostly addressed things in the background and tried to keep things going in the forum as best we could.

The root of the problem was, as is often the case, a spat between two people that resulted in other posters lining up behind each of them and creating an all-out war. The moderators did the best they could to keep a lid on it in our absence, but it was completely out of control.

When we returned to the scene, we tried to moderate the situation fairly, restoring threads that had been locked, and unbooting people. It was our hope that people from both sides would talk to us and that we could resolve the conflict as fairly as possible. I even started a thread at that time inviting people to send me private messages giving me their perspective on what had happened. Several people took me up on that and I was grateful for their input.

Unfortunately, the principal participants in the fight were unwilling to let it be resolved. BOTH sides were angry because we didn't ban the other side. We were in a lose-lose situation.

Despite our efforts to make peace, a fundraiser thread for our legal defence was deliberately vandalized. The people involved in doing that were banned, but they were invited to speak to me so that we could still try to find some resolution.

It is noteworthy that one of the people who was banned had sent me a PM and ASKED me to ban him.

The result of the dialogue with the banned posters was that three of them (Yoda, HSMom and D.Johnson) were invited to come back. They declined.

The other one, Post Tenebras Lux, wrote me some very disturbing emails so he was not invited to come back.

In those emails, Post Tenebras Lux accused one of our moderators of disclosing the identities of certain posters to him. This was untrue, and the non-identifying information that was disclosed to him was in the form of a personal note to someone who had identified himself as clergy and was, therefore, considered to be a safe person to confide in. Instead, PTL violated that moderator's trust and demanded that the mod be reprimanded for confiding in him.

He further accused me of reading PMs (more on this later), and he finished with the following in response to my demand that he stop playing games and send me the text of the conversation where the mod supposedly "outed" posters:

"You are the one playing games. And you are rightly worried. You should be.

After all ... I can't be trusted can I?"

At this point, I told him that any further correspondence from him would be considered harassment, and that I would take appropriate action. I don't know what he was threatening, but I have learned over the years to cut off communication with people who seem to be a threat.

I have given this much thought over the past couple of weeks and I figured the best course of action was to address this situation in the forum rather than allow people like PTL to write the history on this.

I have to admit that I really resent it when people try to drag me into their fights. We are, supposedly, adults here, and I shouldn't have to deal with people turning on me because they are mad at each other. And, yes, that includes RedDog who threatened to involve us in further litigation by suing Yoda. It's ridiculous and it makes me angry.

I also want to address Post Tenebras Lux's allegation that we read PMs. Anyone with any degree of web programming experience knows that PMs are stored in a database on the server. Your personal emails from your home accounts are stored on your ISP's server, too. If we really wanted to, we could read them. That is something that is 100% necessary given the potential for people to abuse that system. Your ISP can read your emails if they want to, too (unless you encrypt them).

However, we don't even have the time to read all of the posts that are posted in the public forum. We don't have the inclination or the time to sit here and nose into people's personal lives. In my opinion, the fact that someone would think that we would do that only goes to show that, given similar circumstances, that is what they would do.

In any case, the PM system has been provided to you all as a convenient way to contact fellow posters without having to exchange emails. I suspect most of us have used it at one time or another. But, I am not willing to open myself up to slanderous allegations just so that members can continue to use that feature. Therefore, the PM system will cease to exist within the next few days. If your personal exchanges are not on the FD server, you will know 100% for sure that I am not reading them.

This whole mess has been extremely trying for us. Mark and I have always tried to be as fair as possible and to let exchanges take place on FD with the absolute minimum of interference. We have done this at great personal expense, and with no return other than the knowledge that Canadian conservatives had a place to speak freely. The fact that the very people we provided that place for would viciously attack us is both hurtful and discouraging.

We have considered all of your our friends, so it is a bit shocking to find that some of you consider us something else. I hope that those of you who really ARE our friends will feel free to email me directly if you have any comments or concerns and give me a chance to respond directly to you. My email address is connie@freedominion.ca.

Connie

[RedDog]

To clarify, I only consider Yoda and his wife to be an entertaining nuisance and little more.

My greater concern was another participant suggesting I was luring young girls by buying them gifts. This surrounded a birthday gift for an adult aged friend who happens to be the daughter of a friend of mine - who was with me in helping to choose an appropriate gift.

I reaffirm an apology for my involvement in the events mentioned. I've been trying very hard to be a more hospitable participant since.

[Connie Fournier]

You know. for someone who considers himself "defamed", you certainly like to repeat the words you are complaining about. That doesn't even make sense!

[styky]

I made a statement last week on the events which you can read <a href=http://www.freedominion.com.pa/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=1586137#1586137>here</a>.

There is no way that could or would out anyone. This stirring the pot gave me considerable distress at the time and still does. I have always considered Yoda and HSMom to be dear friends and am hurt that they would think less of me. As for PTL I just don't know he leaves me astounded.

[styky]

The one morning I have an appointment,

I'll discuss it when I return.

[backhoe]

<I><B>...the PM system will cease to exist within the next few days...</i></b>

Note to self: Create a notepad file to dump any info you want to save.

Connie, I have seen on other boards the internal email system used to foment discord, launch mass attacks on other members- it can certain pose a hazard.
Pity to see it go, but you're the boss, and these flame wars are quite unseemly.

[OC]

I also want to address Post Tenebras Lux's allegation that we read PMs. Anyone with any degree of web programming experience knows that PMs are stored in a database on the server. Your personal emails from your home accounts are stored on your ISP's server, too. If we really wanted to, we could read them. That is something that is 100% necessary given the potential for people to abuse that system. Your ISP can read your emails if they want to, too (unless you encrypt them).

Connie,
What emails are you referring to in the above? I don't for a minute think that you or Mark read people's PMs or emails but what do you mean that a web programmer can read personal emails from home accounts?

[Connie Fournier]

<I><B>...the PM system will cease to exist within the next few days...</i></b>

Note to self: Create a notepad file to dump any info you want to save.

Connie, I have seen on other boards the internal email system used to foment discord, launch mass attacks on other members- it can certain pose a hazard.
Pity to see it go, but you're the boss, and these flame wars are quite unseemly.

Everyone has access to their messages. Mods and admins are still able to send PMs and members can receive them, and I'm open to the idea of approving PM capability on an individual basis.

Feel free to discuss if this would be a good option and, perhaps, what the criteria should be for PM-sending approval.

[Connie Fournier]

I also want to address Post Tenebras Lux's allegation that we read PMs. Anyone with any degree of web programming experience knows that PMs are stored in a database on the server. Your personal emails from your home accounts are stored on your ISP's server, too. If we really wanted to, we could read them. That is something that is 100% necessary given the potential for people to abuse that system. Your ISP can read your emails if they want to, too (unless you encrypt them).

Connie,
What emails are you referring to in the above? I don't for a minute think that you or Mark read people's PMs or emails but what do you mean that a web programmer can read personal emails from home accounts?

I'm talking about the people who manage your ISP server. When your emails sit on that server in an unecrypted form, anyone with database access can see them. That is one reason I don't like gmail. Those emails sit on their server forever.

[RedDog]

I'll be in contact with backhoe concerning visiting him and have retrieved his contact information from our PM's here. I appreciate the advance warning here which allowed me to do that.

[dwday]

I also want to address Post Tenebras Lux's allegation that we read PMs. Anyone with any degree of web programming experience knows that PMs are stored in a database on the server. Your personal emails from your home accounts are stored on your ISP's server, too. If we really wanted to, we could read them. That is something that is 100% necessary given the potential for people to abuse that system. Your ISP can read your emails if they want to, too (unless you encrypt them).

Connie,
What emails are you referring to in the above? I don't for a minute think that you or Mark read people's PMs or emails but what do you mean that a web programmer can read personal emails from home accounts?

There may be exceptions, but in most cases, email, even if 'deleted' by the account owner, is stored on the mail servers of both sender and recipient. In general, it won't be looked at and at some point will likely be purged, but server administrators have the ability to read it until it is purged. You working assumption should always be that 'email is forever', like anything else you post. Nothing you really, really want kept private forever should be emailed unless you're using strong encryption.

[Edward Kennedy]

I missed the battle but it is for certain that Yoda has been and was attacked for a long time. At a specific point I came into the picture and started defending him.

I visited him, and HSMom on a quick forst leg of my trip this year and found both to be amenable, shrewd, principled and people I oculd trust. As to PTL, I have been in ocntact with him as well as the HSMom and Yoda and will continue to be so.

The owners have defended freedom, justice and democracy for a long time and I will continue to supprt them, while not being in agreement with all that has happened. I can be amenable to people that are in dispute with each other without getting into the fray.

There has been a loss of good Conservative people here that is regretable, people who supported the same causes that FD supports.

A house divided against itself cannot stand according to scripture, and that is always the truth. All should take note.

As a rejoinder, I have given away $$$ and gifts to children of my clients and it is always done through their parents, generally the father and this is how I choose to encourage young people while simultaneously assuaging my desire to be charitable. It is very tricky when it comes to teen girls but it can be accommodated with propriety especially when you give them things through their father anonymously. Yet it can be done.

[Godwin]

I was not aware of these developments, although I was aware that I had not seen any lists from Yoda for a long time.

Is anyone aware of Yoda posting on other sites? If so I would appreciate further information.


To be unfortunately blunt, I think banning Yoda was a mistake of the first order. While I often did not agree with his views he provided much valuable information and sources of information to this site.

But I can hardly blame him for not returning. I have noticed that the FD board has tolerated the unpleasantness that Red Dog and JB consistently generated on his threads. His threads were consistently hijacked with insults and since you were willing tolerate this behavior it led to these developments.

Like will attract like. Think about who FD will attract in the future.

[EdS]

I'm not surprised.

I have had contentious and hostile exchanges with a few of the banned individuals. I always believed that my posts were innocent, and without malice. Never-the-less my posts became the source of contention and dispute based on nothing other than punctured egos, a thin skin, and a supercillious attitude towards those of the "wrong" religion.

Frankly, IMHO, good riddance.

[DA_Champion]

It's too bad.

Yoda was definitely one of the wisest men on the forum. D. Johnson and HSMom, meanwhile, were also very interesting.

PTL was not as much of a regular poster, so I don't have as much of an opinion on him. That said, he seemed pretty good.

But I can hardly blame him for not returning. I have noticed that the FD board has tolerated the unpleasantness that Red Dog and JB consistently generated on his threads. His threads were consistently hijacked with insults and since you were willing tolerate this behavior it led to these developments.

JB can be a jerk, but he also often shows knowledge of the issues.

RedDog, meanwhile ...