Safe Speed Forums

Hi,

I find it slightly irritating (well, a lot irritating) that the interesting thread entitled "Since when has SafeSpeed been a charity?" has been locked for a period of 48 hours just as it was in full flow.

May I remind those who moderate and administrate the forum that if the Government or other Authority performed a similar action it would be doubtless condemned immediately as being anti-democratic, totalitarian, or otherwise deliberately performed to prevent free exchange of opinion with some ulterior authoritarian motive.

No other thread has been closed. You (and every other poster) are still free to post on other threads and start new threads.

However every forum needs a certain degree of moderation and it was my view (supported by the other members of the admin team) that this particular thread had become somewhat overheated and would benefit from a cooling-off period.

In general I feel we bend over backwards to take a reasonable approach and give alternative views a fair crack of the whip.

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"Show me someone who says that they have never exceeded a speed limit, and I'll show you a liar, or a menace." (Austin Williams - Director, Transport Research Group)

Any views expressed in this post are personal opinions and may not represent the views of Safe Speed

Agree that Peter is wrong to suspend the thread. He should pull it completely.

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When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race. H.G. Wells
When I see a youth in a motor car I do d.c.brown

PeterE has made a good call in this instance especially given the fact that one forum poster has now condemned the "censorship" whilst another has claimed he has not gone far enough.

Moderating the Safespeed forums is always done sensitively and for good reasons. Safespeed has never deleted or suspended a thread just because the content opposes its views; if we were to do so I suggest that "camera operator"* (in particular) would never make a posting that remained (imho he has never had a post deleted).

Regards

Malc

* This is not intended as a dig at Camera operator, whom I respect but disagree with.

I echo the sentiments of the posters above. The thread has digressed, which is never a problem, but it has moved so far from its original point (an attempt to paint SS in a bad light by suggesting that the erroneous tag of charity was intentionally and deceitfully applied) that it no longer seems valid.

There are some fantastic exchanges therein, many of which I would like to see continued, so perhaps the thread could be split into several new ones, each dealing with the appropriate points, or the main contributors, myself included, invited to create new threads which could, for each matter, remain more closely on topic?

SafeSpeed has always considered itself above, and has always been, and remains, so, petty forms of censorship that we have seen on other forums when faced with opposing points of view. It is my hope, and expectation, that we welcome such dissenting voices, in the hope that civil and logical debate may ensue, and that both parties may learn from one another. When this ceases to happen, then time must be called,but I hope that we can reopen the channels of discourse in such a way that further benefits may be garnered.

I sincerely hope Martin, having closed and reregistered your account, that you similarly welcome such discourse, and would eschew any cheap points-scoring opportunity in favour of betterment of the overall objective of safer roads for all.

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Regulation without education merely creates more criminals.

why fetch me into it,

next thing cameras are the cause of the credit crunch, i remember mpaton2004 getting suspended after a remark after the ECHR ruling, JJ getting suspended, Basingwerk suspended, and all the other trolls who do not toe the party line,

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now retired

The distinguishing feature being that they are TROLLS that don't toe the party line. Non-trolls are still here, hello mate!

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Regulation without education merely creates more criminals.

BTW can you jump start a helicopter

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now retired

How do you mean?

You can start a helicopter on external power, we generally do, or do you mean blow-starting the turbine?

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Regulation without education merely creates more criminals.

Gas turbines certainly don't sound like they used to.
The new breed of GE-9x motors sound like generators in a power station and the V2500's sound like PT6 turboprops.
I miss the days of non-hush kitted Speys on One-Elevens, now that was a noise worth getting up early for.

Sorry Camera operator for dragging you into this.

I was only using you as an example of a person who does not toe the party line on Safespeed but has never been censored and who should not be censored.

I can only personally hope that you have a revelation on "the road to Damascas" but till then long may you post. I believe that opposing views made reasonably should never be a reason for restrictions to the ability to post and I also believe that the Safespeed moderators have the same opinion.

Malc

I don't remember all those people but the ones I do remember tended to violate the "no ad hominem" rule an awful lot, and probably a few others.

You do not do that, your posts are always informative, well written and non-inflammatory. I have a lot of respect for you sticking your neck out and posting here. The other examples seemed to be more interesting in being annoying and stirring up drama, or at the very least were too dumb to know what "ad hominem" means.

The opener of the thread appeared to accuse the founders of the site of representing the campaign as a charity.

As someone pointed out on a different forum where this thread has apparently cropped up - the question should have been directed at the news medium which mistakenly reported this as such.

Now my kids attend an Independent school which as "charity status". Under legislation it has to provide a benefit to the community. It does. It educates our kids and it also provides a discipline for our young villains which I think the rather politically correct teacher in the local school would struggle with. As it happens .. the teachers in the "tough on discipline" school have their hands full with our little feline felons

But these schools have to offer their facilities to the local community and be "active within it" to continue the "tax perk".

BRAKE started out as a campaign for road safety and addressing a consumer issue as to rogue garages. In this "incompetent garage" campaign which was highly succuessful .. plus the counselling services .. BRAKE were able to make a case for "charitable status". The charity still has to register for VAT in order to claim VAT suffered on supplies and also some exemption from VAT on various find raising events which otherwise would be liable to VAT .. see the Inland Revenue website .. as this does have various constraints and conditions .. as Sir Tel Wogan lamented on the VAT suffered to Children In Need on those excellent Janet & John CDs.. which we bought as they are just so wonderfully funny.

BUT.. where a non-profit campaign .. which exists solely on donation and which revenues remain under threshold limits .. then they would enjoy some of the tax perks enjoyed by registered charities. Do check the Inland Revenue and a veritbale tome .. which gathers dust on the shelves of accountancy firms and which would cost you a pretty penny or more to buy.. by a bloke called Kessler.. which spells out all the legislation and per this book.. the late Paul Smith was canny-savvy - and conformed to the laws on such issues.


Now it's really immaterial how press report things. If you believe the press .. the entire medical profession are full of Nurse Pinks.. Nurse Allitts and Dr Shitmans. (And yes .. I deliberately typed his name like that as he was a disgrace .. a lasting one to our profession .. breaking that oath we took on qualifying and which I take seriously still) and the police are full of bent coppers and teachers have some sinister motives... but only if you believe the press Per the press - plenty of unproven speculation was published about the family whose daughter was abducted in Portugal. When facts were published .. compo had to be paid to all parties in that very sad story of " complacent holiday stupidity" on the part of the parents

So press are not exactly the most reliable and when we do indulge in the wind up posts to von over on the other channel - we always use the phrase "as alleged/reported by whatever journalist" which means we (as in me .. Wildy and the Swiss who are also active-ish on motoring and cycling fora ) do not necessarily take what the journalist says as "fact".

Spindrift as it is he per the link to chapmancentral (hint spinny.. if you wish to keep nonny .. do not post such big clues ) has gotten his chamois lining caught up in his spokes again

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