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This Atheist Shrewds board is a meeting place to discuss philosophy and life, as you might in a community hall, but not wanting to do so specifically at a religious church. In the old tradition of the board, anything goes.

When introduced to Shrewdm in December 2022, it quickly filled with posts *almost exclusively* relating to US Politics. That is quite different to just having a good proportion of the posts about politics. Thus the introduction of the US Policy board.

The idea of discussing politics is conceptually no problem except that in this case has completely overcrowded other posts. For US Politics, please use the US Policy Board: https://www.shrewdm.com/MB?bid=17

There are many intelligent and creative folks here, not to mention of great character, so having the separate political boards solves two purposes: (1) Allowing the political topics to be creatively explored with real focus and sense of purpose, whilst (2) secondly to keep the other boards, that are not related to politics, also focussed.

I have moved all posts on the Atheist Shrewds board to US Policy, as at least 95% of the posts there were actually of that subject - US politics.

US Policy
https://www.shrewdm.com/MB?bid=17

I will move some of the posts that are not US policy related back here to the Atheist Shrewds board gradually.

(If you want to include US policy posts here, it is not a problem if you label them off topic "OT:" in the subject, and you can add a url link and summary to the full post on the US politics board).

And there's a 3rd board to consider posting at - the Political Asylum board - which is also very distinct! This board is to discuss politics where there would ordinarily be fear of censorship elsewhere, but protection from that here. That is the correct way that the word 'asylum' is warranted. This board has a completely different character to the US Policy board. If anyone wants to post something political, first decide if it relates to US politics consistent with what could conceivably be covered in the popular press, and if so then the post should be on the US Policy board and not the Political Asylum board. Welcome page for Political Asylum - https://www.shrewdm.com/MB?pid=82221060

Political Asylum
https://www.shrewdm.com/MB?bid=118

So get posting! Even if we are splitting the posting with the new US Policy board, this atheist board has some serious history to continue Shrewding.

- Manlobbi

Nice. Thanks!

So will you be enforcing/policing the "OT" stuff? I know you do this on your own time, and I suspect that would be a huge demand on your time and energy.

I'm OK with this. I'm not complaining. But I would point out that the old TMF board was just regarded as a place atheists (and others) could talk about *whatever*. If TMF had been too strict, the atheist board would have died because it would have been limited to posts like "yep, still no reason to believe in a deity". Fortunately they didn't do that (though, in the very early days, they tried to scrap the board a few times because apparently our presence offended religious people).

So will you be enforcing/policing the "OT" stuff? I know you do this on your own time, and I suspect that would be a huge demand on your time and energy.

I’ll continue to have a very light hand as with all the boards over the last 16 months. I wouldn’t say I have “enforced” a single thing (even including someone spamming blatant adverts who I just gave a earning to).

If I had to over-police I would blame something with the software or cultural structure itself and work on that.

People are just to civilised at Shrewd’m and have a sincere cooperative tendency that is inspired by dignity rather than repression/fear.

I'm OK with this. I'm not complaining. But I would point out that the old TMF board was just regarded as a place atheists (and others) could talk about *whatever*. If TMF had been too strict, the atheist board would have died because it would have been limited to posts like "yep, still no reason to believe in a deity".

I thought about that too and I’m extremely aware, from my main occupation, how one’s creative impulse requires flippancy and flexibility for ideas to blossom.

In this sense, certainly anything goes here.. it is just a case of splitting between two boards to keep their focus.. regular readers will like it and they will read *both* the US Policy and Atheist Shrewds boards depending on their mood, and know which topics (and most frequent authors) are on each of the two boards.

Sometimes conversations here will steer into poltics mid-thread. It is fine. The main thing is to just keep the tendation for this board to not look like a pure US Policy board, even if there are some political posts briefly. When the thread is unwittingly become a hardcore political thread - re-start the same thread on the US Policy board and add a last post “continuing on the US Policy board” here, with a url link to the thread. The momentum built in the thread should not get lost.

Fortunately they didn't do that (though, in the very early days, they tried to scrap the board a few times because apparently our presence offended religious people.)

That is quite hilarous. Thankfully Shrewd’m doesn’t have public relations oversight staff, and everything is in the service of what the community want themselves.

Without some structure there is chaos, with too much structure one is strangled, so I will try to get the balance right. I have tended to, and will continue to, actually err toward chaos as I have found that this works best in my other creative endeavors. I view Shrewd’m as a creative endeavor for every single reader and author here.

- Manlobbi

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