Sheer frustration, I should think. It's not universally true, but what we've seen, over and over, is that a lot of conspiracy theorists will be given an inch and take . . . well, a mile isn't near long enough. An AU?

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Gillian

"Now everyone was giving her that kind of look UFOlogists get when they suddenly say, 'Hey, if you shade your eyes you can see it is just a flock of geese after all.'"

"You can't erase icing."

"I can't believe it doesn't work! I found it on the internet, man!"

The typical (or stereotypical, if you prefer) conspiracy theorist argues more from rhetoric than from reason. That is, if a debate ensues he will try to win it by manipulating the debate framework so that he can't possibly lose. That usually means avoiding a meaningful test of the ideas, achieving at worst a stalemate that can continue going around and around. For example, see the 500 or so posts by Bart5050 on the subject of UFOs.

The rules at BAUT are designed to force a test of the ideas, not of the ability of their proponent to suck them away from scrutiny. They don't impede people who really do have a point to make and who want the opportunity to make it. The rules are only a problem for people who are trying to sneak their way through a debate.

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"Facts are stubborn things." --John Adams
Clavius Moon Base

The Godlike Productions forums aren't strict. Then again, those forums are... well, let's just say that whatever conspiracy you can make up, there will be somebody there who would support it.

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Spread the Love!

Makes sense to me. Half the time I think the people arguing for certain conspiracy theories are actually arguing against them in a deeply ironic way.

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http://truthahol.com

Took the words right off my screen.

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Never attribute to malice what can be adequately explained by ignorance or stupidity.
Isaac Asimov

lurner: Makes sense to me. Half the time I think the people arguing for certain conspiracy theories are actually arguing against them in a deeply ironic way.

Yes, I agree. I probably misunderstood your comment earlier: when you said "CT forum" I wasn't sure whether you were referring to skeptic boards like BAUT where conspiracy theories are dissected and tested, or advocacy boards like Godlike Productions where conspiracy theories are propounded, compounded, and praised.

Each has a set of rules appropriate to its agenda. Skeptics want ideas to stand or fall on their merits. Conspiracy theorists generally want certain ideas to be treated favorably.

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"Facts are stubborn things." --John Adams
Clavius Moon Base

I guess citing "Bad Science..." won't cut it, or that this is just censorship.
BS of course, has the connotation of Bull**** - another reason why censorship will rule again...

The thing is, Phil and Fraser get to decide what goes on their board. You don't. You can start a board yourself and say whatever you want, or you can find a board that will let you say it, but in the end, what we're allowed to discuss here is at Phil and Fraser's discretion.

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Gillian

"Now everyone was giving her that kind of look UFOlogists get when they suddenly say, 'Hey, if you shade your eyes you can see it is just a flock of geese after all.'"

"You can't erase icing."

"I can't believe it doesn't work! I found it on the internet, man!"

I disagree strongly with the implied characterization. Truthbox, you seem to want to paint it as if discussion here can be cut off with a call to the board's version of a scientific fact. Were that true, it would be small-minded at best. However, were such a policy true it would also be quickly clear to anyone browsing the board.

The people here make a very strong effort to reference to available literature, experiment, and real-world examples. To reference papers in reputable journals, standard textbooks, and classroom answers. If you disagree with a board regular on some matter of against-the-mainstream science, you can have a fair degree of confidence you are disagreeing with the general consensus in that field -- not the limited opinion of a single person on an enforceadly parochial board.

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"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

If you want to search through the old topics, you can see that the science was discussed, and discussed again, and yet again, and still again, and dozens of times after that.

Aside from not being astronomy or space related, it quickly became a stale topic. As with you, I had the impression that many of the people were more interested in getting on a soapbox than actually discussing the technical aspects of the subject, so there really was little point in continuing on the topic.

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I say there is an invisible elf in my backyard. How do you prove that I am wrong?

Disclaimer: Avatar is not an official NASA image and does not imply any specific interplanetary or interstellar capability.

The Leif Ericson Cruiser

Can you be more specific without being profane or obscene?

This board is family friendly.

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Olsen the moderator.

what will BAUTforum do when in 2012[1984] plenet X (NIBURU) (gog)(INGSOK) which is realy (M@RS) (M@Gog) attacks Earth, using the Vega (II minute) topsecret (NATZI) beacons broadcasting (HATE) using a low frequency signal from Machines placed secretly on the moon and on Cydonia by (firstCONTACT) men in black astroNOTs while the world watched a fake moon/mars landings (Why have ! when you can have @ at twice the price) and working from central command @rea 51 room 101 their fearless leader GOZER the gozIRiAN arrives a near miss to Earth and meets all the covert agent bigfoots at the Boheemian Grove in their Gillie suits and his mountian like ships open and a dark smoke cloud is full of (Demons) (UFO) (ALEINS)(LOCUST) all ruled by the dark big vater (Devil) (nG.zODg) and he tells the (m@sions) (N@S@ )(#@@) who he created by comunication through Bacon wormholes and John D mind control with UFO cropcircles primers. HE commands the WORLD to bow to his feet and worship and Tellss all the Lucifer warshiping saten loving(NUMBER OF HIS NAME) manturian (presidential) conspiracy election runers to activate their 666 homing beacons which make them mindless Zombies and WAITs for the rapture (Teleporter)(Photon belt) of EnLITEnment to take them away..and begins his NEO ORDER. of the ages (AQUARIUS) .. with earthquakes using the underground tunnels and a third of the Trees Burned from Global warming and random tidlewaves smash into cities... But, the only place on earth where he wont have power is in USA, because the president is not Squawking and cant be controled and rebels agianst the Fire SALE of his world and orders all the HARP Technology built by Tesla when his death was faked and he joined the secret revolution awaiting the coming of the Gr@ys and the Turnover of the World to the false Light.. But like in "War of the Worlds" and "Independece Day" he the presedent and a few rag tag band defeat the evil and cause NIBURU to flee the earth and We WIN the war... yeah Tesla..

conjunction junction whats your function

Note: All puctuation misspelling and Capitalization is intentional. ITS a ConsPIRACY!!!

Whoa. Were any conspiracy theories left out of that post?

Ahh, okay. I was gonna complain about that.

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Spread the Love!

There's a potato shaped moon orbiting Jupiter. Will that do you? I personally like them scalloped.

A "potato shaped moon"? I didn't know potatoes had such a well defined shape.

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Spread the Love!

I had a moon-shaped potato once.

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Bring back Firefly!

"It is quite clear that Occam's razor does not sharpen in your pyramid." (Nicolas)

"Still, a man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest." (Paul Simon)

"K, here's what we've got: the Rand Corporation, in conjunction with the saucer people under the supervision of the reverse vampires." Milhouse from the Simpsons.

Thankfully with his inclusion of the "saucer people" we can still safely post his conspiracy theorem:

"are forcing our parents to go to bed early in a fiendish plot to eliminate the meal of dinner. "

You know, the downside to the "Astronomy only" dictum is that now the pages are filled with UFO threads. Can't we at least get some variety; Hollow Earth, or Geocentrists (or are those more at home in ATM?)

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"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."