OP/ED: Can You Handle The Truth?

In a little over a month from the time of this post, I will reach my first anniversary as a registered member of AboveTopSecret.com. At least, unless I do something stupid and get banned.

So far, so good -- I think.

With that, the upcoming councilor elections and the matter of the black bands on the ATS banners, I find myself reflecting on all this, on what ATS is all about.

Why are we here?

The answer is no doubt different for each of us, but I'll share mine.

I'm here because I'm looking for the truth.

Considering what is normally found on ATS, a statement like that might well make you laugh. Truth? Here?

Well, yes.

Indexing The X-Files

There is truth on ATS. The fact that it is overshadowed by fiction to an astronomical degree does not change the fact that ATS does contain truth.

Furthermore, ATS contains truth that can be very difficult if not impossible to find anywhere else.

Why doesn't it seem that way? Because it is so easy to become blinded by all the lies. And there is no shortage of those on ATS, either.

As a fellow member, I encourage you to ask yourself what you come here for. Do you come here seeking the truth, or to obscure it? Do you prefer to read lies that reinforce your prejudices or truths that challenge them?

To know the truth, you must be able to recognize it when you see it.

Would you?

Our International Pastime

We can and do complain about the current state of ATS all the time. We complain about the culture, the drama, the propaganda, the partisan bickering, the repetition, the fact that ATS isn't the same as it was in the “good old days”.

Complaining is the official member sport of ATS. Everyone does it, all the time, and most certainly including me. Heck, you could classify this article as a complaint if you like.

But in the end, how satisfying is just complaining about things? Has it made ATS any better?

Here's the truth: ATS is what we, the members, have made it.

We can point fingers at Simon and the staff and complain that they aren't doing what they should be doing, but the truth is that they have always done what they think we want.

If they have not succeeded, is it their fault for trying, or ours for not even knowing what we really want?

The Challenge

If you don't like ATS, remember who made it what it is. Simon and the staff provide the forums, but we are the ones who define what ATS is every time we come here and post.

The very first condition listed in the AboveTopSecret.com Terms And Conditions Of Use is this:

By using this message board, you agree to the following:

1.) You will not post any material that is knowingly false, misleading, or inaccurate.

I don't think that was an accident. Ask yourself why that is #1 on the list, and in the answer you may find that you're not the only one seeking the truth.

The owner of ATS is asking you not to lie to or deceive other members when you post here.

Have you violated that request? I have -- plenty. We all do, to some extent or another, even if we try our best not to.

We are human (most of us, anyway), we are fallible and we will make mistakes. Yes, even knowingly. Such is human nature.

But you can still try to be honest, even if you feel you have sinned beyond redemption. It is never too late to change that. There is always hope. Never let anyone deceive you into thinking there is not.

No matter how many times you may fail to be honest, keep trying.

Everyone has an agenda. Some members seem to come here with no other intention than to sway other members to their point of view, regardless of whether it is right or wrong.

Are you one of them?

Why are you here?

If you are here seeking the truth, then I urge you to remember that not only must you seek it, you must also speak it if you are ever to find it.

At least, it's worth trying.