Ex-Political Junkies looking for a new home.......

nihahi

Direct quote from the Mods regarding the abruptly locked Political Junkies Thread........

"Thank you for reaching out to us regarding the Political Junkies thread. We understand that locking the thread has caused some concern in the community, but we want to assure you we didn't do it to censor anyone. Given the climate of the current election cycle, and the potential for political discussion to get out of hand very quickly, we made the decision to lock the thread before it got to a point where it would be difficult for us to safely and fairly moderate it.

There is a political thread for our conservative members, and there is also a thread for our more liberal-leaning members. We've allowed both to remain for some time, as there is an understanding that members stick to the thread that promotes their own political views, and not post in the other thread to stir up controversy. These threads will remain unlocked, as long as they adhere to the rules of each thread. They aren't secret, but we don't include them in the active threads list."

(fyi....the "bold" type face is my highlighting of the reasoning in their quote.

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Soooo...... Because the topic has the "potential" to create lively discussion, and "before" our (imho) self disciplined civility was breached........really????

From their own words, I can only assume that as long as discussion remains amongst like minded members, (because GASP!!!!....who in the world would be interested in other points of view!!!!), the very interesting and informative discussions can continue here if anyone would like to participate.

muska

With all due respect the purpose of this site is to discuss breast cancer related topics, so unless there was something on the threads related to Carly Fiorina's breast cancer history I don't see why we need to stir the pot here.

nihahi

With all due respect......the mods seem to have no issues with the MULTIPLE threads that are word games, pet photos, book clubs, etc., that have no direct tie in to cancer topics, (at least I don't see the connection), other than they are avenues for members to stay connected without constantly discussing bc. The "conservative" thread is HIGHLY political, has been for a significant time, not just a few months, yet has not been censored.

This thread is in the "Moving Beyond Cancer" forum. I didn't create the forum.....the mods/bco.org did. I think many of the discussions in the political arena, (and not just during this election cycle, and not just in the US) have direct impact on cancer care, research funding, patient/family support, health insurance, women's health, drug availability, etc. etc. etc.

I adamantly believe it does no harm to allow members to pause within the community of bc, and re-establish links to current events that may directly impact their care, now and in the future. Being a BC veteran is a commonality, imho, that brings awareness/intensity to us that those who have not travelled "our path" perhaps do not have.

chef127

Carly Fiorina had (has) breast cancer and has moved on...........To maybe be the VEEP of the US. That gives us all Hope! (my BC contribution)

I'm so glad this thread has been restarted. I hope all PJ will come back to post. I learned more here than I have on political networks. Thanx for the intel conversations. The entire political atmosphere right now should concern all of us for the future of medical care, research, for the rest of our lives. I'm not much of a contributor but I've gotten a lot of balanced info that I feel is relevant to our future health care. I hope all continue to contribute.

xox

muska

I wasn't aware of the existence of the conservative thread but I just looked it up. In my opinion, it should be closed too. I don't think there is a lot about candidates' views on cancer care, women's health issues or other related topics on either of these two threads.

I am a very political person and have my adamant opinions on some political topics but this is not the right place for these discussions. Being a BC veteran is a commonality but this commonality does not always extend to political views. Let's be respectful of each other.

nihahi

Ah....gotcha suersis! Thanks for the clarification....and btw....couldn't agree more. There is no absolute all right/all wrong in the real world....and the only way forward, is to find common ground and work together.

Moderators

Nihahi, as we stated in our Private Message to you, our focus on Breastcancer.org is breast cancer and do not want that focus to be distorted by political talk as we are NOT a political forum. There are other political communities you may feel free to join, but at this time, we are discouraging all political discussion in our breast cancer community. The threads you have mentioned do not engage in opposing conversations and debates -- in fact, we have a rule that opposing parties are not allowed to engage on the others' threads. Having a free-for-all political thread makes our jobs as Moderators extremely difficult, as we need to remain neutral and unbiased, and it's difficult to do so with ideas that offend some but not all. How can we effectively moderate an open thread without being accused of bias?! It's not possible.

As for the humor/games forums -- those are lighthearted distraction threads which very rarely -- if ever -- need to be moderated, unlikely a very controversial topic such as politics. It has been brought to our attention that some members have felt uncomfortable with these topics being discussed among our Community, and have felt offended. There is no place for political debate on a breast cancer board, unless in relates directly to an insurance issue, health care issue, etc. in which those concerns or questions may be addressed in the Employment, Insurance, and Other Financial Issues forum. We will not tolerate debates on the political aspects there, either.

Already today and yesterday, this topic has taken our time away from helping new and existing members with breast cancer concerns.

We acknowledge your passion on the topic, and thank you again for your cooperation. We are locking this topic as well, as it has become another distraction from our duties as Moderators of the breast cancer community.

--The Mods