NOM

Alright, so every once in a while I visit the Mormon discussions board. It never fails that there is some sort of really targeted post regarding Dan Petersen. Honestly, it's a little wierd and obsessive. Is there some back story there that I am unaware of? Did tapir Dan murder someone's firstborn? I should make clear that this is the terrestrial forum. The celestial forum is not that interesting.

I have been watching the back and forth drama between that board and mormon dialogue and discussion (had a different name a long time ago) for more than 7 years. It goes back into the 2000s actually. Daniel Peterson posted on the old fair board, and he was a noted apologist. Then, Dr. Scratch came along and it has been an acrimonious exchange ever since. I am not invested in all of the drama (aside from a humorous bystander), but IIRC, Daniel Peterson was demoted years ago and FARMS was disabled and renamed something else and I think that is where the hatred really cranked up to 50 on both ends. What's so funny to me is the behavior I have observed about on both boards mimics a lot of behavior on Twitter and Reddit nowadays. I think it leads me to see that most online forums of any kind devolve into infighting and break aways and off shoots and deep seated grudges.

I check out MD too. It's interesting. There are some pretty smart people, but also some weirdos. I post over there once in a great while. This site is generally better. I'm not sure how NOM seems to keep out the weirdos, but it does.

Shades started the board back in 2004 I think and had issues with bandwidth and it crashing a lot. They rebuilt it in 2006 and marketed as a place for open discussion with very little censorship designed to promote open dialogue between both sides of Mormonism.

Overtime the anti Mormons were using logic and evidence against faith and belief and at some point most of the apologists tool there ball and went home. Fair may have tried to start their own board but eventually MD&D became the faithful board. So now there’s a lot of back and forth.

Dr Scratch was once outed IRL, threats against academic employment have been made, apologist believers have become unbelievers. It’s been quite the shit show over the years. God, I need new hobbies.

There were a lot of good discussions over there between 2008 and 2012. Once the church essays got released it seems the church acknowledge long time problems that were always cloaked as anti-Mormon. Now the new Mormon history is anti-Mormon.

Acmeist wrote an accurate assessment.

acmeist wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 28, 2019 8:05 am

I have been watching the back and forth drama between that board and mormon dialogue and discussion (had a different name a long time ago) for more than 7 years. It goes back into the 2000s actually. Daniel Peterson posted on the old fair board, and he was a noted apologist. Then, Dr. Scratch came along and it has been an acrimonious exchange ever since. I am not invested in all of the drama (aside from a humorous bystander), but IIRC, Daniel Peterson was demoted years ago and FARMS was disabled and renamed something else and I think that is where the hatred really cranked up to 50 on both ends. What's so funny to me is the behavior I have observed about on both boards mimics a lot of behavior on Twitter and Reddit nowadays. I think it leads me to see that most online forums of any kind devolve into infighting and break aways and off shoots and deep seated grudges.

deacon blues wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 28, 2019 11:25 am

I check out MD too. It's interesting. There are some pretty smart people, but also some weirdos. I post over there once in a great while. This site is generally better. I'm not sure how NOM seems to keep out the weirdos, but it does.

Weirdos come along once in a while but don't get taken seriously enough and give up. I think we have only banned one person but that was when he started making personal threats against individuals in the forum.