The direction of the show recently

[sh1fty]

What is suspicious here is people such as yourself who suddenly appear, have never participated before, and immediately take on the hosts of the show with your criticisms. This smacks of prior involvement with the guest. It seems like you have been sent at the behest of someone else. Given that you are not the only one who 'suddenly appeared' my guess is that you are here as the result of a 'rally' somewhere else where it was brought to your attention that the Paracast was attacking your favorite cult, so you are here as a vanguard of sorts to protect the honor and all that. We saw a lot of that during the last US election where one forum would rally around their guy and say, 'Go over to so-and-so's blog and defend against this slander!' Given the timing, it's likely.

Of course, I can't prove that because you are not using your real name and are hiding behind anonymity. You've also not established your own credibility. You've never contributed here and you seem to be a single-issue poster. You're not here to contribute. You're not here to learn, nor to provide information to others. That's suspicious.

So back to your question of why have this forum. It is so those of us who appreciate the approach can discuss the issues. Compared to a lot of shows, this is a breath of fresh air. If you're not comfortable here, too bad. You're entitled to find a place where you are comfortable, but the rest of us are not required to provide it.

I love this! It's like no one here can believe someone is actually dissatisfied with the show!

I am not on a rally from another site or person, I'm not a government disinformation agent and I'm not an alien from Nibiru trying to undermine Gene and Davids efforts for the reptilian agenda. If you scope my post history I do actually contribute, attempt to learn, and ask questions. Listening to the Paracast and posting on it's forum are two different things, I don't know why you're equating them.

I used to not be able to get enough Paracast in my diet, don't get me wrong. This entire thread is about "the direction of the show", and I feel like it's changed, and I no longer enjoy it because paranormal topics are being discussed less, and people talking about people talking about paranormal topics are being discussed more.

Fair enough friends?

 

[Schuyler]

I love this! Fair enough friends?

Make up your mind. Nobody's accusing you of being an alien and to pretend so to make the argument seem absurd doesn't work. I find it unlikely (though possible, I suppose) that you have been a long time stealth listener to the show and never bothered with the forums until just a few days ago. If you are a long-time listener, surely D&G's style is not new to you. With you & Mr. Bass the same day? Seems bizarre to me, but could be coincidence.

So, I'll withdraw my suspicion of you being a plant, and I will gladly refund to you any money you may have contributed to the show. Meanwhile, I must assert that I like the direction of the show and urge it to continue in the fine tradition it has, including David's rants, some of which are quite eloquent and have me laughing so hard my stomach hurts. Who can top "Fer Chrissakes! Jesus R. Chicken Cheese!"

You, shifty! If you don't like it, find another place to take a dump. David, please do not change. We need you, man!

 

[sh1fty]

Yes, we need you David. We are threatened by others and we need your help attacking them for us! We do not want to be responsible with our own thoughts, that's too much work! We need you to decide our opinion for us! Rather than listen to the interviewee speak, we need you to filter the content before it gets to us! We need to take your word! Thinking for ourselves is too much work!

Whatever though, I guess. I'll continue my paranormal journey elsewhere. What I enjoy is listening/reading to what someone has to say, then do a little research and find out for myself if I agree or not. To each their own though.

 

[Schuyler]

Whatever though, I guess. I'll continue my paranormal journey elsewhere. What I enjoy is listening/reading to what someone has to say, then do a little research and find out for myself if I agree or not. To each their own though.

You remind me of a neighbor I once had who used to come over at inopportune times. He'd hang at the door for the longest time with 'just one more thing' and had the hardest time just getting up the nerve to shut the damn door and leave, already! Phone calls, too.

God, I love Caller ID!

 

[dianadee13]

Come on you guys! Everyone can express their opinion without getting personal, this lead started out well but has turned into a shouting match, with everyone attacking everyone else! We should use this space for respectful intelligent debate, surely?
I love the direction of the show. Well done Gene and David. And if you need to take a break then do so.

 

[David Biedny]

I do this show for my own selfish reasons, and if people like Schuyler appreciate the time and effort that Gene & I put into the show, is there something wrong with that? Do you really think that we expect everyone here to agree with us? Look through these threads, there are plenty of people who have issues with me personally, my style, and my opinions. Nancy Talbot tells me that I know everything, Nancy Birnes has called us Calvinists and witch burners, and she called me a bully. Hell, I was the tall bruiser who defended the little weak kid Roberto from the bullies in Caracas, they wanted to beat the shit out of him but were afraid of me, the anti-bully. So now I'm a bully, because my brain still works and I question bullshit when it's shoved in my face. I don't suffers fools lightly, and this is a character flaw. Perhaps that last bit is true, especially in a world infested with incompetence and ignorance. Like that's my fault.

I don't claim to have answers, just opinions, like anyone else. I don't expect folks to take my word as gospel - I'm one of the more self-deprecating folks I know, and it sometimes drives my friends a little crazy, especially my honey - so please, if you're going to come on here and accuse someone like Schuyler of not being able to think for himself, I'll clue you in a little secret, that guy can think circles around me and anyone else on these threads. Shit, if he told me I was an asshole, then I'd be sure of it. Instead, we seem to meet his rather high standard for integrity, and he's not the only one who expresses that to me & Gene, it's why we continue to do the show.

Folks from around the planet tell us we provide a valuable bit of edutainment at no cost to our listeners, so we're going to feel a little cocky. The fact that we're creating such strong response is a sign that we're touching nerves and doing something right and useful. So be it. Folks who can't stand us, move on, there's plenty of other stuff out there. Constructive criticism is always game here, we're big boys and can take it. You want to tell us how to make the show better, we're happy for the feedback, you want to bitch and complain, sorry, that's our gig!

dB

 

[PhantomAce]

I like the show.

 

[rowdy27]

Me too..it's like a schoolyard fight where the 2 gangs are seperated by a 50' high fence & nobody can actually reach their adversary!

 

[Blacknight]

Room for another opinion?

I think the show has gotten better, is remarkably consistent and intelligent. I think there are occasional lapses, as there are in every aspect of life.

However, I also think these forums have turned frighteningly to the worse; they are often dominated by a handful of people who somehow think any opinion which doesn't conform to their own is fair game for ugly personal attacks, dismissive attitudes and condescension. Dialogue is shut down routinely by what seems to have become an odd cadre of thought police. Opinions are seen as objects to be refuted--as if there is a single objective truth which requires lockstep conformity through browbeating dissent into submission. More peculiar is the tendency to rush in to "defend" any comment which is seen as even mildly critical of the show or its hosts. And that is most often done disrespectfully and even arrogantly. It does, indeed, as has been noted earlier, often seem very sycophantic.

I would suggest that more would be accomplished by encouraging honest opinions. Even those which are "different"! Personally I find the energy spent in relentless parry-and-thrust very tiring. I have found myself more and more inclined to breeze through these forums and pass on. If the objective is to create an army of passive spectators, to enhance the perception of singular conformity of thought, I think the recent trend in these forums is fast approaching unqualified success.

 

[rowdy27]

He who has the bigger Vocabulary wins around here!

 

[David Biedny]

Blacknight,

I really appreciate your comments, there's a lot of truth in them. At the same time, you could probably make the same case about the majority of forums out there, something about birds of a feather... but yeah, we should always strive for open discussion and an air of tolerance. It's tough, I find that my emotional investment in this stuff is sometimes out of whack. I'm working on it.

Thanks again for that post.

dB

 

[aNorthernSoul]

...Nancy Birnes has called us Calvinists...

dB

I'm more of a Hobbesist, myself.


I think the forum here is pretty much like every other forum on the Internet. You sort of just have to take the good with the bad on internet forums and there will always be older posters who reflect on a time when the forum was much better than its current state. I think almost every message board I've been on, no matter the topic can be described this way.

It's a real catch-22 sometimes. You want to get people's minds going to try to think about stagnate ideas on what various paranormal phenomenon may be but at the same time, you need to ensure the thought processes involved in coming up with these ideas are firmly routed in a bit of common sense. I honestly think logical thinking is important, but not the law in this field simply because our logic may not be the same as "their" logic (if that makes sense.) I also think while science will certainly assist us in finding some answers, we also need to remember that "their" science is obviously miles ahead of our own. There also seems to be some spiritual element to the phenomenon, so there is also that element to take into account. Sadly, I've already opened the door to any lunatic with a delusion simply by prefacing my overall pondering on where theorizing may see some needed expansion. I think open minds are important, but once in a while even the most open mind will make theirs up once in a while.

 

[rowdy27]

The other pickle is the Alter-ego the faceless anonymity the Internet provides.
Sometimes written words get misunderstood without facial emphasis to show the true emotion involved.
Sarcasm is lost very quickly.

 

[bobheck]

Yes, we need you David. We are threatened by others and we need your help attacking them for us! We do not want to be responsible with our own thoughts, that's too much work! We need you to decide our opinion for us! Rather than listen to the interviewee speak, we need you to filter the content before it gets to us! We need to take your word! Thinking for ourselves is too much work!

Whatever though, I guess. I'll continue my paranormal journey elsewhere. What I enjoy is listening/reading to what someone has to say, then do a little research and find out for myself if I agree or not. To each their own though.

Pssst, everyone....is he gone yet?

That is the second time he said he was going to leave. Hark, I think I hear another sh1tty post coming...methinks he suffers lastworditis.

 

[ghoul]

You remind me of a neighbor I once had who used to come over at inopportune times. He'd hang at the door for the longest time with 'just one more thing' and had the hardest time just getting up the nerve to shut the damn door and leave, already! Phone calls, too.

God, I love Caller ID!

How cool is it to be Steve "one more thing" Jobs' next door neighbor?

 

[Schuyler]

Well, I'll tell ya. I'm probably a pest to some people. After all, I don't have a real life or a job and can afford the time on here. If people don't like what I post they can feel free to put me on 'ignore.' Works for me. I can often spend an hour on a post.

In my opinion, you are free to post here as often as you wish and whatever you want. There is no mechanism to prevent you posting other than banning, which is quite rare. However, if you post, expect to post accurately and to back up you claims with facts, citations to your sources, or whatever is appropriate under the circumstances. You need to be held accountable. Somebody is going to take you to task if you do not. (And I don't mean by me. I've been caught in some glaring errors myself. That's fair. Oops.)

For example, the original post on this thread made a claim that the show was tending to be more about the ufo field and its personalities than about UFOs themselves. On the surface, this sounds like a reasonable, if not insightful comment. That doesn't mean the show should change. maybe it IS about the UFO field and its personalities, but still--it's a reasonable comment.

Except that it's not true. Gareth researched the archives of the show, presented the data, and pretty well proved the contrary. His conclusions were that there were SOME shows that did do exactly what the OP claimed, but that overall, including recent shows, that clearly was NOT the case. The data refutes the claim. That should be the end of the story, but people continue to argue it.

There's another thread here regarding Bill Birnes where it is claimed the Paracast mistreats him and calls him a fraud. This time I went through almost 500 posts, pulled out the ones by our hosts, and discovered that though there were a couple that were clearly negative, overall in about 50 posts (haven't counted them) Birnes was clearly treated with respect and even defended. About 95% of the time our hosts posted Birnes-positive comments, and this includes shows back to 2006--ALL the data, 100%. So much for the criticism.

What really galls me is when people come on thse forums specifically and only to criticize it because they 'don't like' David's style. I mean, if you 'don't like' Rush Limbaugh, don't listen to him. Is that so hard? The thing is, if the Paracast were to conform to every criticism, it would turn into a bland show, one that never asked penetrating questions for fear of offending someone. If you feel more comfortable with a less contentious show and less contentious forums, there are plenty to choose from. There's always ATS, with a HUGE population, that never met a conspiracy theory it didn't like. (Hope you like the moderation over there.) Bill Birnes himself has a forum. There's 'amerikon' I believe it is called. Mufon has forums. Vaeni has a forum. Noory & Co. have a forum (Got some $$$?). LMH has a forum, does she not? I'm not sure. Surely you can find a place you're comfortable hanging out at, but you don't hang out at a Steelers bar unless you support the Steelers. I think it is unreasonable for you to expect the show or these forums to conform to how you want them to be. If you are a Seahawks fan, better lie low.

Even if the contentious issues upset you, the fact is that the Paracast is clearly a 'moderate' show. It's not extremist. It is not a full-blown skeptical show that Randi would prefer. It's not extremely religious in its outlook. It does not take on a 'believer' stance. Therefore, it is frequently under attack by all three of those different, but extremist camps. That's a difficult position to take, really.

Everyone here has the opportunity to post in their field of interest in as much detail as they want. If you are going to make claims, you can expect to be asked to show your work. If you do not contribute at all, that's not anyone else's problem. Don't ding those who put forth the effort. And if the ONLY time you show up out of stealth mode is to complain about what IS here, that seems nonsensical to me.

If you don't like the show, you can walk out. I pledge to refund any money you have spent. And as for 'Land of the Lost'? Don't bother. Its terrrrrible!!!!!

 

[Blacknight]

I'm more of a Hobbesist, myself.
I think the forum here is pretty much like every other forum on the Internet.

That is often true.

What is disconcerting, and VERY ironic, here is that the very nature of these forums is to invite in people who share a wondering and, theoretically, open-minded approach to natural and, maybe, even supernatural events. If there is any forum which should have at least a modicum of tolerance and openness to dialogue it is this. Instead, what I have found in increasing doses is a wagon circling, mine-is-bigger tone that certainly discourages dissent and stifles criticism. And that shuts down real dialogue. Read some of what has been posted here. It is nasty, nearly vicious and mostly unwarranted. And it all began because someone had the temerity to offer an opinion and someone else found it necessary to try and prove him wrong for that opinion. Not to just disagree but to beat that opinion and the holder of it to dust. And that is not a good thing by any measure.

 

[Gene Steinberg]

That is often true.

What is disconcerting, and VERY ironic, here is that the very nature of these forums is to invite in people who share a wondering and, theoretically, open-minded approach to natural and, maybe, even supernatural events. If there is any forum which should have at least a modicum of tolerance and openness to dialogue it is this. Instead, what I have found in increasing doses is a wagon circling, mine-is-bigger tone that certainly discourages dissent and stifles criticism. And that shuts down real dialogue. Read some of what has been posted here. It is nasty, nearly vicious and mostly unwarranted. And it all began because someone had the temerity to offer an opinion and someone else found it necessary to try and prove him wrong for that opinion. Not to just disagree but to beat that opinion and the holder of it to dust. And that is not a good thing by any measure.

I don't totally disagree with you. It's a sad fact that, as a forum gets popular, some of the regulars take an "us" and "them" approach and don't always welcome newcomers into the discussion. That's human nature, rather than anything that exists in a specific online community.

But we do have a pretty forceful Terms of Service, and if you feel you have been abused in any fashion in our forums, report the matter to us, and we can definitely take appropriate action. Some people have been banned over the years, and more will join them if that proves necessary.

 

[Schuyler]

Here is an excellent example of how a new person was treated on the Paracast. He came on here, just joined, wondering about UFO crashes. He listed a bunch of books he had read. Unfortunatelty half of them were BS. Many people jumped in suggesting where he could go and what he might want to read to further his knowledge. Here it is: http://forum.theparacast.com/the-uf...w-come-so-many-ufos-crashes-their-tech-t4794/. Was he mistreated? If he had responded that Greer was right on and we didn't know what we were talking about he might have been, but he didn't. He was reasonable. I hope he sticks around.

What I object to is people like Mr. Bass who come in here with a chip on their shoulder and guns blazing intent on teaching everyone here their concept of Reality. He was here just to do a hit job--that's all. If you want to be 'treated fairly' why not make some contributions? Nobody owes you anything, but if you come up with just a few thoughtful contributions, you'd be welcomed with open arms. Show us your stuff.

Did you see the post bobheck just put up on Robbert? I don't know bobheck well and am somewhat unfamiliar with his views, but that was great stuff! Relevant, new information, to the point, and with citations. It doesn't get any better than that.

 

[AnnetteMarie]

That is often true.

What is disconcerting, and VERY ironic, here is that the very nature of these forums is to invite in people who share a wondering and, theoretically, open-minded approach to natural and, maybe, even supernatural events. If there is any forum which should have at least a modicum of tolerance and openness to dialogue it is this. Instead, what I have found in increasing doses is a wagon circling, mine-is-bigger tone that certainly discourages dissent and stifles criticism. And that shuts down real dialogue. Read some of what has been posted here. It is nasty, nearly vicious and mostly unwarranted. And it all began because someone had the temerity to offer an opinion and someone else found it necessary to try and prove him wrong for that opinion. Not to just disagree but to beat that opinion and the holder of it to dust. And that is not a good thing by any measure.

what he said.

AND what schuyler said a page or two ago (but it is way too long to add to my comment)

upshot of it all is: when you are in someone's home, you remember your manners as a guest.
when someone is in your home, you remember your duties as host.

there is lots of room for differing opinions - some of us are really good at facts, statistics, theories of particle physics, etc. some of us just have a gut feeling, and some of us like to think we can see both sides of the fence. whenever posting, using our manners is never a wrong choice.

so again, what he said, AND what schuyler said.