|  Author | Topic: Town of Liberty (Read 2,163 times) |
phsgrad
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|  | Re: Town of Liberty
« Reply #20 on Jan 12, 2008, 12:24pm » | |
Wow GG - you sure seem to have an ax to grind with Alex lately...
Personally, I've wrestled with the theories of whether there are actually MORE incidences of moral decline than there used to be, or whether there are about the same number as there have always been, only now we just hear more about them than we used to.
Society and victims do seem more willing these days to bring incidences of criminal/moral lapses out into the open, either because the population in general is more forgiving than it once was regarding the circumstances that might have led to a crime of moral turpitude, or because the parties involved might achieve a measure of fame, notoriety, or compensation from their role, or because there are so many more news outlets than there used to be, and they have to have something to talk about.
However, if the number and frequency of the things we're talking about has ALWAYS been as high as it seems to be now, then I have sure been living in a fantasy world.
It does seem to me that there has been an explosion of deplorable events in the last few years, even in small, historically conservative areas like Pickens County. The actions of these police officers, presuming they are found guilty, are, in my mind, more evidence that society is in a downhill slide. I don't see this as an indictment of the police departments they served, because those departments have to hire from the pool of applicants, and that pool must be pretty shallow.
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diamonddave
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| | Re: Town of Liberty
« Reply #21 on Jan 12, 2008, 6:24pm » | |
Hey folks(U2 phgrad), my understanding is, that you are supposed to presume innocence, & that guilt has to be proven. In the case of the Pickens cop, he took a Pickens city patrol car into Anderson County, wrecked it, got busted by the HP, taken to the ACDC, & had a BAC of 0.11%. Sorry, but that looks like a no-brainer to me. In the case of the Liberty assistant chief, he claims to have paid at the electronics dept. with 2 $250 gift cards. Whether it's a cop or you or me, this appears to deserve some consideration, but he certainly should have kept his receipt, assuming that he had paid for the merchandise.
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beth
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| | Re: Town of Liberty
« Reply #22 on Jan 13, 2008, 12:59pm » | |
Perhaps it is the "sky is falling" aspect of the boards that is bothering people who would ordinarily post here. There is no doubt in my mind that certain people who post here think that the entire morality of this country is going to h*ll in a handbasket. But to continually read it over and over again can get depressing. And, too, I think that it gives a very warped view of Pickens County! I think I may have mentioned this in a very long ago post, but I think it is still applicable. Pickens County is a great place to live, a great place to raise children, and a great place to retire. None of that comes through on this board--if I were planning to move here and stumbled across this board I would most definitely think again.
There are definitely things wrong in this community, in this country, in this world. But there are also good things that are happening.
I drove through Central and saw that they have brick accents on their pavement now. But upon closer inspection they "stamped" the existing roadway and sidewalks and then painted it red. You get the same look with much less cost. And it is easier to walk on than the brick that is put down piece by piece.
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Moderator
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Posts: 552
| | Re: Town of Liberty
« Reply #23 on Jan 13, 2008, 3:30pm » | |
I believe the morality we see on TV and in movies is going to h*ll in a handbasket, and real life is starting to follow, but that isn't the point I want to make.
I think the negative side of things comes out on this message board and all other message boards in this country, because there is so much spin that comes out of government. Look at the press releases of most government agencies. They are most always postive or the good side of the story. Go ask the school district about their building plan? Reading their releases, there are no negatives. Look at any candidate's press releases -- all positive.
The average citizen knows nothing is all positive and that is only one side of the story, so they feel compelled to tell the other side through the only outlet they have -- message boards -- and that other side is the negative side.
Also people who are motivated to post are usually upset about something. Being happy about an issue isn't a strong movtivator to action. That's why most letters to the editor are negative.
The first year, we had about 200,000 hits on the website. In 2005 we had about 400,000 hits. In 2006, we had 900,000 hits. In 2007, the hits fell off to 690,000.
This website has been the same from the beginning, so I would attribute that growth in READERSHIP to what is written here.
The number of posts are falling. I agree.
The question is, why do people like to read the message board, but don't like to post on it?
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westside
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Posts: 8
| | Re: Town of Liberty
« Reply #24 on Jan 13, 2008, 8:24pm » | |
Blogs and talk radio are like car crashes. Every body slows down to see them but they do not want to be part of them.
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geraldgarrett
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Posts: 264
| | Re: Town of Liberty
« Reply #25 on Jan 14, 2008, 2:54am » | |
There is a story I always liked about the actor, David Niven.
Seems Niven was at one of those fancy black-tie cocktail parties one night in the grand ballroom of a high-class hotel - you know, one of those with the huge staircase where guests make a grand entry into the main area room to much fanfare.
As he stood there drinking his cocktail and talking to a gentleman he had just met, two elegantly dressed ladies stepped gracefully down that staircase, side by side.
Niven looked at them, then turned to his new friend and said, "That is the ugliest woman I've ever seen."
The gentleman hesitated a second, then said indignantly, "THAT happens to be my wife."
Niven quickly said, "No, no, I meant the other one."
"And the other one," his new acquaintance said coldly, "is my daughter."
Niven digested this piece of information for a few seconds, then looked at the gentleman and said, with a perfectly straight face, "I didn't say it."
David Niven could get by with that, Moderator. You can't - but you keep trying.
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beth
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| | Re: Town of Liberty
« Reply #26 on Jan 14, 2008, 7:04am » | |
And not a word congratulating Central for it's cost cutting measures. Alas--maybe it is too small a thing. Or perhaps it is posted in the wrong place--but Central has no place to post. 
While it is true that a lot of letters to the editor are negative--the ones that are positive are like a breath of fresh air.  As are opposing ideas--even if one does not agree with them. If everyone thought alike what a dull world it would be!
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Moderator
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Posts: 552
| | Re: Town of Liberty
« Reply #27 on Jan 14, 2008, 9:14am » | |
Westside makes a good analogy. In talk radio, I was told for every 500 listeners, only 1 person bothers to call in.
Gerald, I don't know what you mean by your post, but I can tell it is a another personal put down. I consider us good friends. Whether you feel the same or not, just say you disagree on the issue, why and leave it at that.
Beth, I didn't know about Central, and their cost cutting. It sounds like good news.
Heck, if you want to write a home page write-up on the whole thing, you can and we'll publish it. That offer has always been there.
Email the story to me, and I'll put it in the news column.
You can create a thread called, "The Town Of Central" and write about what you are talking about or post the article there.
Better yet, I'll ask again, do you want to be a co-moderator? That offer exists too.
If you want to write something positive, you can. Go for it. It is an open forum. I don't think the negative issues hurt the website. Blogs most always focus on the negative. What I think hurts the sight is when people go from negative issues to directing their negatives toward each other.
I think you have a good point, but when I think about the website, that isn't the issue I am wrestling with.
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strangerintown
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Posts: 66
| | Re: Town of Liberty
« Reply #28 on Jan 14, 2008, 4:27pm » | |
HMMM. READ YOUR POST. DIDN'T CARE UNTIL THE END. WHAT ARE YOU WRESTLING WITH? IN SUNDAY SCHOOL SOME BODY WAS ANGERY ABOUT HOW THEY MAKE A BIG STORY BECAUSE IT IS A POLICE OFFICER AND SAID HE IS JUST HUMAN. HE SAID HE IS NO DIFFERENT. WE ENTRUST OTHERS TO WATCH OVER. THOSE WE HAVE ENTRUSTED HAS FALLEN FOR TOO MANY. WHEN NURSES ARE KILLING PATIENTS. NANNIES ARE KILLING CHILDREN. POLICE ARE STEALING.
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Moderator
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Posts: 552
| | Re: Town of Liberty
« Reply #29 on Jan 14, 2008, 6:49pm » | |
I agree with what you said about responsibility and who we entrust this or that to.
Let me answer your question and we'll get back to the Liberty topic.
The site has had a good start, running about 700,000 hits a year. That’s more than I ever expected.
To push the usage over a million hits a year will require more interesting content on the home page. The message board has driven this website, but really, message boards are now all over the place, so it is nothing special.
If the website was at its full potential, the message board would be a secondary part of the website. That's why I don't fret too much over who posts and who doesn't post on the message board.
There are ways to spice up the home page and draw more people to the website, but that will require more time. I don’t have the time to do what is required. Better said, I DON'T WANT TO MAKE THE TIME to do what is required to push this website to the next level. I’d rather do other things personally and professionally.
That’s the main issue for me.
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