I recognize the very real possibility that there could be members of the Talkboard who do not think they should count and would be very happy to leave the current situation as it currently stands.

In a previous post, I have attempted to present the argument as to why they should count. While it is not the exact motion before the floor, it is a possibile outcome should this motion pass. In this post, I will attempt to explain why, even if you don’t think OMNI posts should count should support this motion.

First a little history:

In Aug 2004 the board policy changed so that OMNI posts no longer counted.

By November 2004, it was deliberately changed back to the OMNI posts counting, as confirmed by the FT staff and in December 2004 by Randy, which lasted despite being brought before Talkboard in 2006 & 2007 lasted until February 12, 2008.

On that date we were given the story that this was the correction of a settings glitch and the policy was unilaterally changed. This was done without input from the community. It is the admin staff and the owners purgative if they want to make a unilateral change, since he who owns the gold makes the rules.

It was later discovered that the explanation that was given did not stand up to the facts. This resulted in the board being misled by Randy as to the reasoning behind the change. While I doubt it was his intention to mislead the community, it occurred nonetheless.

I will be more then happy to PM this documentation to anyone that asks. I have posted it enough times in recent threads on this debate that I don't feel the need to post it again here.

As a community we should hold those who have the power to make unilateral decisions to a higher standard. We should not accept (whether intentional or not) misleading explanations from those in a position of power.

By supporting this recommendation, we, as a community are sending the message to him that these types of actions are not acceptable to the community as a whole.

Is this the type of behavior we want to condone from its members, Talkboard, admin staff and the owners? I think not.

The FT community is built in part on trust between its members, Talkboard, the admin staff and its owners. This incident severely strains that trust.

I urge all of the Talkboard members to vote for this proposal. Not because it could restore the post count to OMNI, but because Talkboard must set a precedent that this type of behavior is not acceptable to a community as a whole.

If we fail to send that message, what type of precedent are we setting for the future?

Would it be acceptable if what happened was done to any other forum and this proposal was about any other forum besides OMNI?

If you truly believe the answer to my last question is yes, then you should not vote for the proposal. Otherwise, help set a precedent that the FT community does not condone these types of actions and vote yes to the proposal.