[Feanor of the Peredhil]

I have followed along. I have read blogs. I have read rants. I have read threads, chatted, been long-winded and concise. I was e-mailed about the Statement; I read it carefully, at least twice, and decided not to sign.

My decision not to attach my moniker to the Statement stands. I will support the mods for my own reasons. My qualms are my own. But I have my own Statement to make.

I did not want to post here because I did not want to get involved. But I am involved. For the very fact that I am a member of this community. For the fact that I have been around for a while. For the fact that I may well have played a role in how far this whole ordeal has gone. On that thread, that very legendary thread, that famed and ill-reputed Lord of the Bible, there is a hint that davem was the only antagonist.

Yeah right.

If nobody else will admit to it, I will. davem asked, on the thread, for specific details about what could be called our thesis. I responded, honestly, thusly.

Originally Posted by Feanor of the Peredhil

Thus far it's been fun simply to antagonize you. The specifics will come when I have free time to think about it. As for anybody else's specifics... you'll have to wait for their responses.

I am sixth on the list of posters to that thread. Prolific. Lengthy posts. Some discussing the topic, others qualifying the topic, still others being a pure and simple annoyance.

Sure, davem's sarcasm bit. But I encouraged it. And I am not the only one, though I may be the only one to freely admit it. I love to argue. I miss davem's presence here. I miss debating with him because he is an intelligent man with firm opinions. It is an educational experience to pick his brain. I respect him immensely and I like him.

Yep. I encouraged his sarcasm. I stated that it is what I was doing. I loved that everyone was getting passionate. Real debates require passion. Beautiful writing requires emotion. You have to care. You cannot sit back and be objective. You cannot. And even if you could, you never, ever should.

I very enthusiastically encouraged the discussion in The Lord of the Bible. I wanted to learn. I wanted people to think. I wanted to see views and to refute views and to bend and stretch and break preconceived notions.

So I posted frequently. I composed posts to draw out both sides.

I knew it was going to escalate. I did it even after there were warnings about the thread's future.

I didn't want to post here.

Wanted to keep out of the argument.

Refused and still refuse to sign.

I am firmly of the belief that my thoughts mean a lot. But I am equally firmly comfortable with the knowledge that this is a privately owned website with carefully chosen moderators and admins, almost all, if not all, of whom I have interacted with and enjoy. I respect them whether or not I agree with them.

In the case of davem's ban, whether I agree with it or not, I have only one Statement to make, as a member of this Community.

If the ban was caused in part by davem's refusal to drop issues, it may be wise to consider banning me, for my own encouragement of all sides toward passion.