For those that don't want to wade through this monster thread:
The END of the Discussion of Drugs on ATS (although, I do strongly suggest reading
Springer's opening post as it gives a detailed explanation of what is going on.....and strongly suggest reading the whole thread)
Here is a quick summary of what it has come to.
There is no more discussion of illegal drugs on ATS. No personal use, no legalization, no legislation, no nothing. This is due to the fact that the
threads get derailed and personal use stories are inserted. That is not welcome nor needed on a conspiracy site. Especially one with the standing of
ATS.
A few bad apples ruined everything for everyone.
A lot of people do not agree with this and have called it everything from censorship to NWO mind control to bowing down to the demands of advertisers
to a revenue promoting gimick.
It is none of those things. It is Admin trying to keep their board friendly to all and trying to protect themselves and their members from the
discussions of illegal activities that could get
everyone in trouble.
Without going into every argument from every member on the original thread, here's the summary of what they thought.
For the members who were not on the extreme ends of the argument, a compromise was suggested:
...dedicated forum akin to the Bully Pulpit
...strict moderation from a large group of Mods
...strict oath/rules to agree to before being allowed to participate
...2 strikes and you are out of dedicated forum
...certain drug topics allowed but nothing about illegal personal use or personal "pothead" stories
...no testimonials as that is basically equivalent to admitting to illegal activity in a lot of places and is already against established ATS T&C
(might need to be evaluated with medical MJ only)
...forum threads not to appear on front page of ATS (meaning flags are disabled in that forum)
...Point entry fee required based on ATS posting history, not points gained from joining Twitter, contributing to tinWiki, etc.
Most members in the original thread agreed on this compromise.
We were also asked to come up with nominations people to work with site Admin to discuss the compromise with them: A DISC Committee. These people
would represent the members and what they want with regards to this topic.
That list can be found
here . There is still some disagreement on how the
committee members should be chosen. Some say a public vote would turn into a popularity contest (members voting for friends or for people whose
avatar they recognize). Some don't want Admin to pick the members. Some think that Admin picking is the only way to be completely fair in the
selection. But, the link provided will give an idea of who is up for the committee.
PLEASE, PLEASE....this thread is not to rehash everything that has been said in the original thread. This thread is not to argue anything else. This
is not a thread to vote on. This is just a summary of everything that has been said, in case you don't want to go through the whole 40 pages of the
original thread.