I will quote myself, because I think it gets the point accress that I am trying to make:
"Guys, and girls, it's not your site. With the exception of ONE person, we are ALL guests. If that ONE person wants to drop f bomb after f bomb, it's his house. If he tells us we can't swear, then don't. Where's the problem? Are we that moronic that we can't handle this rule? Is our vocabulary that simple?
Would you go into someone's house and put your feet on the coffee table after they ask you 100 times nicely not to? Or do you claim to be protected by the 1st amendment? THEN WHY DO IT HERE???"
The whole HOUSE analogy is flawed.
Agreed: The forum belongs to the guy who pays the bills but it is more like a public park or a restaurant than his home. Forums are open to the public just like a park. There are no criteria that need be met to enter. It's a public forum.
Like a park one can do what one wants within the law and in general and as far as I know freedom of speech isn't restricted in one (hop right up on a soap box and commence to speak your mind). The only caveat I would add is that since THR is a topic focused forum that posts should be ON TOPIC and if not then they should be deleted. There are many off topic threads on THR that are never deleted let alone locked because of the arbitrary nature of some of the mods.
Now some parks, and other establishments are members only affairs. One must meet certain criteria to belong. THR isn't like that. Show up, register, and voila you be a membah! Yeehah!
So I don't buy that whole it's his house deal. One doesn't invite 10,000 strangers into one's home. One does invite 10,000 strangers to a public park.
And while I'm ranting the THR Mission statement says:
It is the declared mission of this board to achieve and provide the highest quality of firearms discussion on the Internet
All the mods are doing now is providing the most arbitrary firearms discussion on the internet along with discussion of non-firearm related topics they have a particular fondness for.
THAT SAID: I still visit THR and read about 1/2 of what's posted. I still occasionally post but not near as often as I used to. I still read general and L&P but mostly read the gun related forums. Why because there's nothing arbitrary about the gun forums and the mods there.
Maybe THR should just kill off General and L&P and stick to the gun and other forums.