As someone who frequents neither the birther threads nor the Religion threads I can say that the FReeper Welcome Wagon ping was innocent and did NOT have an ulterior political motive. BuckeyeTexan VOLUNTEERED to host the ping list yesterday - out in the open - in a thread I'll link at the bottom of this reply.
The problem identified by the mods (and the rest of us) is that just about everybody these days, newbie or old soldier, is being accused of being a troll at the first hint of disagreement of any kind. Experienced FReepers don't care but newbies are being put off and are RIGHTFULLY complaining that they are being misunderstood. And that's very easy to believe around here in the no-tolerance-or-ZOT zone.
The Welcome Wagon idea itself is less than 24 hours old and is a work in progress. It is OPEN, NON-SECRET and, hopefully, non-threatening.
There is no reason to back off intellectually from a newbie but keep the IBTZ posts - and especially personal attacks - to a minimum until a newbie gets a chance to explain themselves.
Isn't it a FReeper Principle to get your facts straight before spouting off at the keyboard? I think it is. This is all that is being asked of anyone. We'll keep working until the Welcome Wagon is a seamless introduction for newbies and also a warning to trolls.
OK, FRiends? Thanks.
Thank you Mods for leaving this open. I think we can hash this out later today and move on.
Post On.