Forum Changes: Law & Politics Section is now firearm-related only

[adymond]

Well this is the Pennsylvania FIREARMS Owners Association and is the only issue Dan created this site for. I too, like the diversity of topics we have here, but it really all comes down to this, once again, it's Dan's site, not a democracy, and his interest is in firearms in Pa.

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I fully understood that. I just wanted to share my thoughts. I think doing away with the lounge aside from the political issues being discussed there now would be more beneficial than just doing away with the non-firearms related political discussions. I enjoy the lounge, but feel it would be more beneficial to furthering awareness of the 2A to embrace other political discussions than say a Gun Babe thread (which I regularly view and quite enjoy).

[Justin]

I know this is your site, but I am afraid that if we become too one dimensional we risk loosing many members who are active politically across the spectrum. I can understand the need to keep the firearm info separate and pure, but as I said the more politically active any of us are the more likely we are to be interested in discussing more than just the political issues surrounding firearms.

I agree with this. I think that an important part of building unity amongst people is the feeling of community. I think that the side discussions build the community up as a whole, and when applicable it helps to leverage unity in the long run.

Of course it isn't a perfect idea, and both sides of this move have their pros and cons, that goes without question.

No matter what, pafoa will remain a wealth of information for firearm owners, specifically those of us in PA, but I would fear that becoming more "single issue" or unilateral will result in less "community" and may reduce effectiveness of the group as a whole.



Eta: thanks to site staff for leaving this thread open for opinion/discussion. Whether or not this threa has any bearing on your decisions, I appreciate it staying open for comment.

[andrewjs18]

boooooooo.....I'm 1 of the folks who enjoys reading/posting political articles...I'll 2nd the political sub-forum in the lounge.

[D10]

Well this is the Pennsylvania FIREARMS Owners Association and is the only issue Dan created this site for. I too, like the diversity of topics we have here, but it really all comes down to this, once again, it's Dan's site, not a democracy, and his interest is in firearms in Pa.
.

That about sums it up. It has been that way with several sites. The founder is the one that makes the rules. People might like it or not, or be offended by it, but your reply said it all. It is his forum.............and it does not matter if/or when you pay for "support".............it still is his forum. Forums have rules and they can be changed without prior notice.
Like it or not.

Rep. coming

[Carnes]

How is the determination made if the political or legal discussion is related to firearms?

I think there is clearly some discussion that is not directly related to firearms that has a significant impact on people's perspective related to rights and liberties. Being that the 2A is a rights and liberties issue these discussions have a big impact on people's perspective regarding the 2A.

Getting someone to understand why pot being illegal is contrary to the concept of individual liberties benefits the 2A as it is an individual liberty. If a person can understand why nanny-state regulations are bad in general, then they can apply that knowledge to the 2A.

As more and more stuff gets dumped into the lounge, it would probably help to break it up into some different categories. I just think there is something wrong with the idea that discussion about Iran's nukes gets lumped in with caturday.

[Guns4Fun]

I did the first 10 pages.



Probably not. If anything, as the traffic of the forum increases we will accept less and less non-firearm-related discussion, and we probably won't cater to it.

Wow, if that happens, it's going to be awful quiet on the site. I mean seriously, how many discussions can we have about which pistol to buy and who makes the best AR, AK, LMNOP, etc. I hope this does not happen. I like the non firearms discussion - you get to know people and it makes us more of a community - but, you're in charge.

[JayBell]

i have no problem seeing a discussion about Irans nukes lumped in with caturday, on a site about FIREARMS.

or a pro-anti war discussion lumped in with latest chain-email BS posted on a site about FIREARMS.

if you'd like to discuss something not DIRECTLY related to firearms, firearms law issues, and other firearm stuff, it belongs in the single NON firearm related forum.

the real issue here is "mission creep".. per se.

the site has ALWAYS been firearm related in EVERY postable category aside from the lounge, a sale forum, and a help forum.

unfortunately, various forums have been misunderstood in description and function... and got established as a place to put any state or countrywide political issue, or ANY news info, etc.

frankly, this is something that should have been clearly stated in the beginning, not wait a few years for the bad habits to get established befor clearing things up.

the way i see it, Dans actions simply put the site back on track with his intentions in creating it in the first place, a place where all aspects of firearms ownership, and how they impact the lives of Pennsylvania residents, can be discussed.

the ability to host discussions on anything else is simply a courtesy, as far as I'm concerned, i dont need to get the latest funny joke, or latest viral video, or dumb email, or yet more political or religious arguments to have to referee.

its Dans vision, its Dans site, and Dans say.

[Carnes]

<snip>

its Dans vision, its Dans site, and Dans say.

I agree with most of what you said. Ultimately every decision regarding the operation of this forum has to comply with the mission of the organization.

Clearly as a firearms forum, the focus needs to be on firearms discussion. However, I think it is good that we have a certain amount of 'comfort items' here. I like hearing the opinion of members here regarding issues that aren't necessarily directly related to firearms. And while I agree that it is a courtesy for Dan to allow non-firearms discussion, I think this place would be a hell of a lot different if there weren't any courtesies extended to the members.

Having a welcoming environment furthers the mission of the organization because it helps to develop the greatest resource this forum has, its members.

[dm_n_stuff]

It's all a matter of content vs. volume.

I haven't been here all that long, but if Dan wants to drive his traffic based on gun ownership, then this is the way to go.

If he eventually weeds out the political discussions about Obama, health care, etc, some folks will leave, others will stay, and new ones will join who may have previously been turned off by some of the nastier political discussions that went on.

The net effect will probably be fewer overall users, and a more gun-centric group. And, if that's what the boss wants, that's what he should get.

[phillyd2]

We have a Politics Section? Hmmm maybe I should check it out