Something needs to be done about the conspiracy theories forum

Translation: "People challenge my opinions and I can't handle it, much less answer the challenges. Please sir may I have a safe space?"

So you want any challenge to any CT just shut down and banned? That's what it sounds like to me.

What is wrong with people challenging the topic? I get the nature of the forum is a bit out there but if ct-ers can't robustly defend their ct from legitimate challenge what's the point of the forum?

So you are looking for some sort of safe haven for CT? I don't think it's wise idea imo.

What changes would you like to see?

CT won't be closed down because if they did that then you would just get Conspiracy theorists posting shìte all over the place, CT forum is the place to keep them.

Or if questions are allowed, would it be acceptable for people to ignore questions?

What questions would be acceptable and which would not be?

Would it be acceptable for people to dump a link to some bitchute video or link to some conspiracy blog, declare it's all true, then vanish from the thread completely?

What if someone posts something that is factually wrong and is shown to be so. Are people just supposed to not mention that and continue as if the false claim is true?

You're always going to get whacky stuff, but it's a problem where a thread is posted with a potentially interesting theory that could have a good discussion, and it's just immediately shot down citing "evidence!".

This is a mischaractisation.

Evidence is not proof. You can provide evidence for something even if you don't have proof.

If someone is making a statement of fact, such as "X amount of people died" why is it unreasonable to ask for something to back up a claim like that?

What's wrong with answering "I don't have anything to back up that claim"?

But most of time, people aren't asking for evidence. People are asking "what do you believe?" and "why do you believe it?" Or "how do you address this contradiction that I can see?" None of that requires evidence or proof.

Wouldn't these questions allow for the discussion you believe would be fun and intriguing? Is there anything unreasonable about asking those questions?

Is it reasonable for people to just ignore those questions?

As you know well we aren't living in a world of theory anymore. It's now a world where false is fact. The internet and the walk about life have wrapped and morphed into some hateful disgusting hybrid child. The notion that conspiracy theories are some lovelable chatty joy discussion is gone maybe five years ago.

It's sad but it's the reality. We had people dragging someone sick out of a hospital in this very country last week.

.I mean ...... Wtf

The charter you are referring to was a temporary charter change (and was unpopular). The key difference was that it generally allowed conspiracy theorists to post conspiracies without evidence, which turned the forum into an echo chamber and safe space, and that includes the more extreme stuff (anti-vaccination stuff, dangerous medical disinformation, antisemitic conspiracies, Holocaust denial, etc), which can't be challenged.

It's a public forum, and when people are using it to e.g. revise history, contradict medical science, attack vaccines, deny events like the pandemic, then it's only normal that people are allowed to challenge those views. Friction occurs because those who are posting the "conspiracy theories" are generally seeking validation, and do not like having their views questioned. The mods are active and generally deal with rules breaches like any other forum.

There's no such thing as "counter-Feedback", dude. It's all just feedback.

I agree. As @growleaves mentions above though, it's a total time sink to participate in the forum with the way it works right now. So who'd bother?

Ideally there'd be a middle ground where a theory can be posted with some source info, discussed, tested, etc, without it feeling like a military interrogation.

Can that crap not just be ignored then? And allowed to fall into the ether? Why entertain it at all?