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Post by admin on Jan 8, 2009 8:34:59 GMT -5
We have had several people sing up recently. One of them is under the account thmsbldwn. Naturally, several people have been curious about this one. Because Tom baldwin is a known name, I have received a few inqueries.
If this is Tom Baldwin signing up on this site, I will welcome him. I did send the following email to that person and will await a response. I fully intend on asking tom the next time I see him if he is attempting to post with us. Should that happen, I fully expect that participants will remain civil. Here is the email so that people understand my position:
To whom it may concern,
A person with the above email has signed up to participate on the Freehold Voice web site. Indications are that the person is Tom Baldwin, a well known resident of Freehold Borough.
It is very rare that I utilize a participants email without having first gained permission to contact that person in this manner. This email is that very rare exception due to concerns that I have. These concerns are rooted in maintaining the site integrity and ensuring that no person is posting under another name.
For now, I have to deny the account of thmsbldwn. That will only be until I can confirm that Tom Baldwin does wish to participate on the site. Once I have that confirmation, I will very gladly approve the account.
The Freehold Voice is a community site, open to all residents. Tom Baldwin is an active and vocal person who I would welcome to the site. As the admin of the site, all that matters to me is that people carry themselves in a civil manner. I am confident that Tom would.
I apologize for this inconvenience and hope that you understand my position. I hope to clear this up as soon as possible, and get Tom posting on the site.
Brian
site admin
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Post by admin on Jan 8, 2009 8:54:52 GMT -5
Brian, I agree. I know Tom a little bit and he is exceptionally honest and authentic. If he were to sign up on the FV, he would use his name complete with vowels. In addition, I checked the profile yesterday, and it listed "female" for gender. Tom would not do this. You did the right thing based on integrity. Thank you. We will see what happens. I really wouldn't mind having the real Tom here with us. He and I do not agree with many things, but he is civil and cares about the town. On this site, that is all I care about. |
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Post by richardkelsey on Jan 8, 2009 11:10:53 GMT -5
Brian, I agree. I know Tom a little bit and he is exceptionally honest and authentic. If he were to sign up on the FV, he would use his name complete with vowels. In addition, I checked the profile yesterday, and it listed "female" for gender. Tom would not do this. You did the right thing based on integrity. I agree -- Mr. Baldwin would be a fine addition to the site, given his passion and involvment. While I obviously disagree with him -- and have been the subject of one of his letters as an attack -- he would be more than welcome to join the site and post his ideas and thoughts. Obviously, we want to make sure that no one is trying to impersonate him and trade off his name wrongly. Accordingly, Brian, I think you made the right move. |
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Post by admin on Jan 12, 2009 17:11:29 GMT -5
I just received word that the account in question is Tom Baldwin. Needless to say, I did approve the account and welcome him to the Freehold Voice. He just needs to activate his account.
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Post by richardkelsey on Jan 13, 2009 17:09:49 GMT -5
I just received word that the account in question is Tom Baldwin. Needless to say, I did approve the account and welcome him to the Freehold Voice. He just needs to activate his account. Well --- before we all get ripped -- I hope he appreciated the efforts to ensure that it was him, and not someone trying to trade off or misrepresent his name. |
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Post by novillero on Jun 11, 2009 9:29:35 GMT -5
For the record, I did not post on Topix about Mr. Baldwin and would welcome his different onto this site. Not everyone agrees on this site, and that is how it should be.
To my recollection, councilman Levine stopped posting for reasons having to do with his public office; Geo did post here right until he was appointed as a councilman. Both councilmen then erased many of their posts. Another gentleman was banned (twice) after not being able to conduct himself in a courteous and responsible manner.
Other people come and go. That is the nature of such a website. You will note that the person that gets bashed the most over at Topix, does not post here much anymore. And I do not remember any endorsements posted for him here, although I may be wrong. My usual position is to vote for 3rd parties first, then anti-incumbent, and if there is no choice after that, my choice is to not vote. As to budget questions, I most often advocate voting no.
For the record, I do not post on the Topix website. But I will admit, I have gone onto that website to read their nonsense, just as the Topix people are avid watchers here (and probably think much here is nonsense as well, oh well. I guess it's a good thing they have their Topix site).
The major difference between the two sites is that there are active administrators (*plural, of both political parties) who will watch content here, while no one is at the store over at Topix. Obviously people may not happy with every ruling by the administrators here, but it is certainly better than what goes on elsewhere. It is the Lord of the Flies over at Topix.
Anyway, I would welcome Mr. Baldwin's perspective, and I think he may find that there are more things that I (and others) agree with him on than he may think. Same for others.
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Post by admin on Jun 11, 2009 10:02:55 GMT -5
For the record, I did not post on Topix about Mr. Baldwin and would welcome his different onto this site. Not everyone agrees on this site, and that is how it should be. To my recollection, councilman Levine stopped posting for reasons having to do with his public office; Geo did post here right until he was appointed as a councilman. Both councilmen then erased many of their posts. Another gentleman was banned (twice) after not being able to conduct himself in a courteous and responsible manner. Other people come and go. That is the nature of such a website. You will note that the person that gets bashed the most over at Topix, does not post here much anymore. And I do not remember any endorsements posted for him here, although I may be wrong. My usual position is to vote for 3rd parties first, then anti-incumbent, and if there is no choice after that, my choice is to not vote. As to budget questions, I most often advocate voting no. For the record, I do not post on the Topix website. But I will admit, I have gone onto that website to read their nonsense, just as the Topix people are avid watchers here (and probably think much here is nonsense as well, oh well. I guess it's a good thing they have their Topix site). The major difference between the two sites is that there are active administrators (*plural, of both political parties) who will watch content here, while no one is at the store over at Topix. Obviously people may not happy with every ruling by the administrators here, but it is certainly better than what goes on elsewhere. It is the Lord of the Flies over at Topix. Anyway, I would welcome Mr. Baldwin's perspective, and I think he may find that there are more things that I (and others) agree with him on than he may think. Same for others. Thank you for clearing that up. Someone alerted me to the nonsense over there a couple of days ago. That site is full of lies from a malicious troll who was likely banned from this site. There are very few people posting over there, and I am certainly not one of them. Your points about the moderators is on the money. I always make it clear that site participants have easy access to the admins to air out any concerns or suggestions they may have. If people are uncomfortable approaching me, there is Lisa and Ka19, both people who I trust and give plenty of liberty to in there actions and judgment. AS to Tom Baldwin, I do believe that is him who began the account in question. I did approve his account and would welcome him here. At this point, he has yet to activate his account. AS far as the lies on Topix, I will not address them here. I see no need to feed the troll. If people have concerns, they are welcome to join up and begin civil discussions. To date, the only people banned are the ones who engage in malicious behavior that we see in abundance on that other site. No person has every been penalized for their view points, even when views are a bit controversial. On another note, and and illustration of how open this site is, some of those elected leaders you mention, as well as others including from the BOE, are well aware that they can reach out to me with concerns and I very often accommodate them. I maintain very good relations with many elected leaders in our town because I respect them and we do listen to each other. |
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ka19
Junior Member
Posts: 356
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Post by ka19 on Jun 11, 2009 10:21:45 GMT -5
Of course all are welcome here. I am a very objective middle of the road person who never lets "political ideal packages" color my opinions from issue to issue. I teeter from left to right and then back to left, depending on what are the important issues of the day. Lately, I have been tilting more left and have never been shy for expressing that here. This is a great place to discuss politics and our town in general. Even the people who I am constantly disagreeing with are enjoyable to converse with. Some have become my friends despite my zany and wacky political positions. This place is nothing like how it is described by people on Topix.
In addition to that, I love all the different forums on here as well as the fact that it isn't tied to newspaper headlines. It is a free conversation style.
Finally, no one has ever EVER been banned from here because of their viewpoint. It has never happened. The only reason for anyone to be banned is because of the manner in which those viewpoints were expressed.
Sure there are opinions posted here sometimes that have me shaking my head in disgust. But to leave this place because of it is less interesting to me than challenging people on their opinions and seeing if they can defend them. That's what debate is all about, and the reason why we want more posters with a diversity of viewpoints. Otherwise this place will not be very interesting.
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Post by richardkelsey on Jun 15, 2009 11:36:59 GMT -5
I have to say I think Mr. Baldwin is adorable. For some reason, I swear, I could picture him perfectly in a Werther's or Country Time Lemonade commercial as the beloved grand-dad... Lisa -- this is what makes America great. The fact that someone out there can find Mr. Baldwin "adorable" shows just how different the world can be viewed. I'd like to see Mr. Baldwin post here --- not because he brings any particular view point I have not read or heard. But, I'd actually like to see him have to intellectually defend the positions he takes. It might be an excellent exercise for him. All opinions are welcome -- it is the manner in which they are expressed that may not be welcome. Follow the rules, and post what you wish. However, posting well-thought out, factually defendable, logical, well-written posts are even more welcome -- IMHV. As for the other site -- the stuff that happens there is crazy. Having said that -- I think I posted there once, 2 years ago -- under my name of course. It was a post to Mr. Baldwin. |
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