This is because it would mean that any full discussion would have to be approved officially, almost like having to get published. — Jack Cummins
I have looked at some other forums and not bothered to join because they seem to have have less freedom than this one. — Jack Cummins
I am not saying that I don't want to see quality material but that in having to submit work it would destroy all the spontaneity and probably drive many away. — Jack Cummins
I would certainly not have taken part in the site at all if it had been devised in this way
Yes, I could have taken part in the lounge conversations but I probably would not have bothered because it would be just like being a nobody in the audience. — Jack Cummins
If everything had to be scrutinised, who would do it.? — Jack Cummins
Why not put an end to this and start a topic that explores your nature of thought, using the “magazine model” or whatever model you like. — praxis
I've already written on the nature of thought about a hundred times. At least the way I discuss it, the subject appears to not be of much interest. But that's ok. Perhaps I suck at explaining it, that could very well be the case. — Hippyhead
I agree that most of your suggestions would improve the quality of this free-form forum. But it might also eliminate non-professional philosophers like me. I assume that there are forums out there that do have more formal requirements for submission. But the ones I've looked at are way over my head. So, although most threads on TPF eventually trail-off into gotchas and one-liners, we are not forced to follow those snipe-shots all the way to the whimpering end of the flame war. That's exactly why I seldom jump-in to threads over a couple of pages long. However, perhaps the mods of TPF could spin-off a sister forum for more formal presentation of essays & articles, followed by commentary The Formal Philosophy Forum. :smile:Here are a few suggestions for improving the quality of the forum. — Hippyhead
But it might also eliminate non-professional philosophers like me. — Gnomon
These are not bad suggestion Hippyhead, but it is a different model from what the forum is intended to be. — Philosophim
I know that you wish to end the conversation — Jack Cummins
rather than leaving philosophy in the hands of the academic elite — Jack Cummins
Isn’t it reasonable to think that if we can’t explain something that we don’t understand it well? — praxis
I’m interested in the subject and I think other views and understandings may help me understand it better. — praxis
Isn’t it reasonable to think that if we can’t explain something that we don’t understand it well?
— praxis
It's also reasonable to consider that the audience may not be capable of understanding a particular topic and there's not really anything the author, perhaps any author, can do about that. The limitations can exist on all sides of the conversation. Sometimes such limitations must just be cheerfully accepted. — Hippyhead
I’m interested in the subject and I think other views and understandings may help me understand it better.
— praxis
Yes, my point exactly, other views may help us understand the topic better. There are many people all over the world who write on such topics, and I'm sure many of them do so better than myself and others on the forum addressing such topics.
Without some organized effort to attract quality new members then all of us are basically stuck reading the same people saying pretty much the same things over and over again for years. It might be fun to take on the challenge of addressing this limitation of our experience here. Or, it might simply be too threatening a process of change to survive here. — Hippyhead
People like StreetlightX should be given a number of warnings about personal attacks then they’re suspended for a time. In fact StreetlightX should not be a mod. — Brett
I don't believe that you believe that none can understand your ideas about that nature of thought. — praxis
Having just read the OP, unless I've misunderstood it seems that all you're suggesting is to make the FORUM link on the top menu only visible to registered users and to publish rejected articles to the forum. — praxis
Anyone can scout out and invite new members as it is. — praxis
My guess is that it would only decrease new membership because many would be put-off by having to register before seeing the forum. — praxis
Actually no one seems to be doing anything. — Brett
I like the clash-of-personalities model better than the magazine model. What my books can't give me is an unpredictable collision of hundreds of personalities. — five G
Surely we don't want them to have to keep intervening like some government. — Jack Cummins
Maybe some posters are being scared off by low quality posts. I don't know. — five G
The interface is the best I've seen — five G
and it wouldn't hurt my feelings to be hidden in the background. — five G
Get involved in philosophical discussions about knowledge, truth, language, consciousness, science, politics, religion, logic and mathematics, art, history, and lots more. No ads, no clutter, and very little agreement — just fascinating conversations.