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The School Survival Forums are permanently retired. If you need help with quitting school, unsupportive parents or anything else, there is a list of resources on the Help Page.

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To everyone who joined these forums at some point, and got discouraged by the negativity and left after a while (or even got literally scared off): I'm sorry.

I wasn't good enough at encouraging people to be kinder, and removing people who refuse to be kind. Encouraging people is hard, and removing people creates conflict, and I hate conflict... so that's why I wasn't better at it.

I was a very, very sensitive teen. The atmosphere of this forum as it is now, if it had existed in 1996, would probably have upset me far more than it would have helped.

I can handle quite a lot of negativity and even abuse now, but that isn't the point. I want to help people. I want to help the people who need it the most, and I want to help people like the 1996 version of me.

I'm still figuring out the best way to do that, but as it is now, these forums are doing more harm than good, and I can't keep running them.

Thank you to the few people who have tried to understand my point of view so far. I really, really appreciate you guys. You are beautiful people.

Everyone else: If after everything I've said so far, you still don't understand my motivations, I think it's unlikely that you will. We're just too different. Maybe someday in the future it might make sense, but until then, there's no point in arguing about it. I don't have the time or the energy for arguing anymore. I will focus my time and energy on people who support me, and those who need help.

-SoulRiser

The forums are mostly read-only and are in a maintenance/testing phase, before being permanently archived. Please use this time to get the contact details of people you'd like to keep in touch with. My contact details are here.

Please do not make a mirror copy of the forums in their current state - things will still change, and some people have requested to be able to edit or delete some of their personal info.


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a message for those leaving
Author Message
Rebelnerd Offline
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Post: #1
a message for those leaving

Alright, I see it now. Maybe I just wasn't paying close enough attention before, but although I still believe much of it was an exaggeration, I'll acknowledge that there is a problem. No, this forum is not what it used to be. The ratio of pointless threads to ones involving meaningful discussion has increased, and a lot of good people who we've all come to know and love have decided that it's time to cut their losses and leave. Maybe you hope there's somewhere else out there that will be more like what SS used to be.

To those of you, I'd like to ask one question. Well, actually two. The first is, why did you come here in the beginning? I don't mean this as a rhetorical question, or as a way of angrily telling you to get out. On the contrary, this is a literal and direct question for you to think about. What was going through your head when you first stumbled up on this site and decided to stay? What was your motivation? I'm sure everyone has their own story to tell about why, some people's being funnier or sadder than others, but we all had one thing in common: we knew deep down that something about the society we live in was wrong, and we wanted to do something about it.

Now for the second question: when you registered, did a little window pop up with a legal affirmation that everything from this point on would be easy? You know the answer; we all did. My message to the people who are leaving is simple: we've fallen on hard times, but that's no excuse for giving up.
SS is more than just a website. It was a community, a shelter, a place where for once in our lives we could say what we felt without being ostracized or punished, where nobody would label you mentally ill and perscibe you with the drug of the week or ship you off to some hellhole prison just for the crime of being who you are. Here, different was not a disease.

We are rebels, all of us. We gave the finger to the established order that's been beating students down for literally hundreds of years and made one last, tiny pocket of freedom where we could go when things got to bad to handle. They thought they could strip away everything that made life worth living and leave us no alternative but the paths they had laid out for us, but by creating this last refuge we threw a wrench into their plans that they still haven't taken away. Hackers, trolls, cops, teachers, nobody has been able to destroy this yet.

But rebellion is never easy, and nobody should have expected it to be. Nobody promised us that everything would always go smoothly, or that all our dreams of standing up to the world would go without a hitch. The fact is, when you form a community that goes against everything the dominant regime stands for, it will exist in a constant state of siege. There will be problems, there will be hard times, there will be threats from inside and out.
We built our little castle and sat around just thinking freely and saying what we wanted, and it was wonderful. But we all knew it couldn't last forever. If only a few people, who met some very high standards of knowledge and debating skill, were allowed to take part in this, then how were we supposed to accomplish anything in the long run? We always talked about expansion, letting more people in, reaching out accross the wavelengths of the last form of free speech in this world and inviting others to our cause.

Well now they're here, and all you do is criticize them. You say there are more stupid people who don't understand. What did you expect? When you open the gates to the rest of the world, not everybody who comes in will be perfect. If someone here thinks and argues in a way that goes against the establishment, but is the same as everyone else's here, then are we really nonconformists after all? You need to understand that if we want to be anything more than just a little exclusive club where ten or so kids hang out and talk about school, we need to let in people who might not be our type.

Boiled down to the esscence, what I want to say is this: We're going through a rough period, but you need to stick it out. It's really easy to say you believe in rebellion and individuality when you're not faced with any problems, but the problems are the filter that determines who is a true believer and who just wants a place to relax. Maybe you will find others out there, but will it really end up any different? If you really want freedom in this world then you have to fight and endure for it. And if fighting for it means having to scroll through more useless discussions than you'd like, well, I guess I just don't think that's too much of a price to pay.

Please, don't go. We need you all now more than ever.

I think Buenaventura Durruti is a pretty cool guy. eh kills fascists and doesnt afraid of ruins.
The quickest way to kill a revolution is to wait for it.
10-21-2008 06:36 AM
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Darthmat Offline
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Post: #2
Re: a message for those leaving

It has more to do with maturity then intelligence level. IQ is something you can not control, maturity is.
And yes, awesome people leaving sucks. But they have a right to. It's ok to be upset over it, I know I am, but they still can.

I highly suggest Mobb Deep's albums The Infamous and Hell on Earth, if you have not listened to it yet.
10-21-2008 06:56 AM
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Heavy Lids Offline
Rebel

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Post: #3
Re: a message for those leaving

What's going on?

A meaningful moment through a meaningless process...
10-21-2008 07:03 AM
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Rebelnerd Offline
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Post: #4
Re: a message for those leaving

of course they have a right to. i'm just trying to actually solve the problem for a change.

I think Buenaventura Durruti is a pretty cool guy. eh kills fascists and doesnt afraid of ruins.
The quickest way to kill a revolution is to wait for it.
10-21-2008 07:06 AM
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Darthmat Offline
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Post: #5
Re: a message for those leaving

@Heavy Lids: The forum has changed drastically. It used to be a small community, where newer and interesting ideas were a lot more rampant.

@Rebelnerd: It can't be fixed. The only thing that will change anything is people maturing.

I highly suggest Mobb Deep's albums The Infamous and Hell on Earth, if you have not listened to it yet.
10-21-2008 07:19 AM
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magikarp Offline
Valerie Solanas

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Post: #6
Re: a message for those leaving

Heavy Lids Wrote:What's going on?
Several people left because they're upset that the forums aren't as good as they used to be. Now we're debating about how to improve the forums and whether they even need improvement.

Hidden stuff:

"Do we treat straight public sex differently than we do gay public sex? Of course. Straight people are so proud of their public sex that they named a cocktail after it."
10-21-2008 07:21 AM
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Heavy Lids Offline
Rebel

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Post: #7
Re: a message for those leaving

All I can say is, it doesn't matter what forum it is. This always happens with online communities and the best thing that everyone can do is work to try to come up with fresh material or let the less intelligent posters burn out and leave.

If you think you aren't getting enough people here, you should try to get more publicity somehow.

Also if you think you're one of the better posters (it's okay to think this, it doesn't mean you're an ego freak), then you should make an effort to simply ignore dumb posts and try to make more intelligent posts of your own.

- my 2 cents

A meaningful moment through a meaningless process...
10-21-2008 07:32 AM
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Rebelnerd Offline
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Post: #8
Re: a message for those leaving

Ok people answer me this: how come, on schoolsurvival.net, the only one to really give a real fucking idea that made sense was a damn TEACHER???

I think Buenaventura Durruti is a pretty cool guy. eh kills fascists and doesnt afraid of ruins.
The quickest way to kill a revolution is to wait for it.
10-21-2008 07:36 AM
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Darthmat Offline
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Post: #9
Re: a message for those leaving

Ohnoes. Teachers with good ideas.

I highly suggest Mobb Deep's albums The Infamous and Hell on Earth, if you have not listened to it yet.
10-21-2008 07:40 AM
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PunchingYou Offline
Revolutionary

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Post: #10
Re: a message for those leaving

Just let them leave, people who actually give a damn will stay.

JESUS SAVES... ON THE PRICE OF DETERGALL GLORY TO THE HYPNOTOAD!!
10-21-2008 11:03 AM
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thewake Offline
Unconstructive

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Post: #11
Re: a message for those leaving

There's nothing wrong guys, we're just changing. Change is good. I'll believe something is wrong when this site is like Myspace or 4chan.

[Image: nAOqYk7.png]

[Image: USVWSwj.png]
10-21-2008 11:12 AM
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dreamer... Offline
Pariah

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Post: #12
Re: a message for those leaving

Excellent post, Rebelnerd. Notworthy

If you want to see an improvement, don't leave, make an effort to improve things yourself.

Rebelnerd Wrote:When you open the gates to the rest of the world, not everybody who comes in will be perfect.
Surely the original SS was not perfect to begin with. Everyone seems to see the "old" SS through rose-colored glasses...was it really as ideal as everyone says?

Rebelnerd Wrote:If you really want freedom in this world then you have to fight and endure for it. And if fighting for it means having to scroll through more useless discussions than you'd like, well, I guess I just don't think that's too much of a price to pay.
Yes, yes, yes, and yes. Yourock

On second thought, I probably shouldn't be replying to this, as I am one of the newer crowd here. Although new doesn't necessarily mean bad - even if less rebellious types start joining, SS will have a wider variety of opinions and will be less one-sided...I don't think that's a bad thing.
Edit: maybe it is a bad thing. It seems the old members want SS to stay a close-knit group of friends...and I suppose I'm one of the noobs intruding on that little group. I can't "improve" my own posts because they're mostly well-thought-out anyway...but my opinions seem too different from the rest of the forum's. It's not like I can just change my views of things to make everyone else happy...perhaps I shouldn't be here.
10-21-2008 02:52 PM
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SoulRiser Offline
Site Founder

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Post: #13
Re: a message for those leaving

This thread is pure win.

Quote:Ok people answer me this: how come, on schoolsurvival.net, the only one to really give a real fucking idea that made sense was a damn TEACHER???
Giggle
Well, not the only one.

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10-22-2008 04:23 AM
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