As ridiculous as FE seems, prima facie, until it's proven false, I keep my mind open to plausible explanations for why:
A) the moon landings were all fake and we've never "been back"
B) there are no actual photos of the entire earth from space (unless you believe the sizes of the continents are changing by 30-60% every decade or so)
C) the only people on earth that we give billions of dollars to, to go to space, are faking any, let alone much (or all) of the footage, using green screens, parabolic "zero gravity" flights, actual hair spray to make their hair stand up, underwater studios (unless you believe in air bubbles in space)
You might say "but these items have better explanations than FE". Well let's hear those theories also. Let's not shoot down those who are proposing an outlandish, yet mostly comprehensive, theory, one that explains these anomalies as well as a plethora of others, like how did they use radio frequencies that don't even purportedly bounce off the ionosphere to communicate hundreds of miles during WWII, how can the horizon be seen above an item whose entirety should be hidden behind it, why is Antarctica, aside from a tiny portion, entirely off limits to most civilians, how was Felix Baumgartner able to slowly float up to nearly 30 miles without drifting a thousand or more miles because of the earth's rotation, etc.
Suggestions that these things are not even worthy of discussion, on a forum dedicated to conspiracy theories, have to be disingenuous.
Original Research
Let's not also forget that FE researchers are literally the only conspiracy theorists doing original research. These people will buy lasers that cost thousands of dollars, cameras, etc., and go to some large body of water (large lakes, bays, etc.) where they can test their hypothesis with an actual experiment. Everything else I see on here is pure speculation, or videos of interviews involving various professionals with dubious backstories (Malone, etc.).
Does it Matter
Pertaining the "would it even matter" argument, you honestly don't need a lukewarm IQ to imagine how much it would matter, if FE was real.
Principles
Most of us are here because we couldn't speak freely elsewhere, because "hate has no place on our platform" type communist bullshit. Now we're going to make the same kind of rules, especially banning arbitrary content that is desired by a clear majority, on a platform with already-existing mechanisms for getting rid of low quality postd (downvoting, hiding)? If FE posts are banned, this place is no better than TGA, and don't even pretend to be pro constitution when you can't even stand up for free speech about a conspiracy theory in a conspiracy theory forum.
I'm out of here, for good, if FE is banned. Aside from spam, illegal, doxxing, banning has no place on our platform.
You are missing the point I think, respectfully.
Allow me to explain. When teaching kids how to "debate", the first thing you do is give them a topic that they feel passionately about one way or another. You let them argue the point they believe in, and after that is done you make they argue the counter point.
You do that, not to make them think something that they don't(as is the suggested worry here), but to make them think in a manner unusual to them, to entertain ideas not previously entertained, and to make them argue from a position they dont believe in - so they are free from their own personal biases.
THAT, imo, is the important part. Whether FE is true or not is not as important, as people exploring and confronting their own bias. Whether it is FE, or the JFK thing, or 911, or 911, or 711, or Aliens, or Reptilian overlords, or whatever..
Anyway, just my 2 cents.
Reptilian overlords operating 711 and poisoning us by slushy!
All that can be expressed, and in a far more intelligent, cohesive, and non-schitzophrenic manner by discussing, for example, Gödel’s proof of the incompleteness of any symbolic logic system.
Or by crafting a well made post on philosophy and world view, perhaps with a focus on alethiology and the pursuit of truth.
It doesnt require fabricating a metric fuckton of fake “proofs” and misinterpreted “evidence”, which is a fundamental prerequisite of FE, or “birds aren’t real” or any of the other goto forum slides out there.
Im not disagreeing that things can be done better - but to stop/censor them, because they arent up to some arbitrary snuff seems self defeating to me.
I get your frustration. I truly do. Those that claimed no planes hit the towers or that they were lasers were annoying, they deflected from real questions, etc, etc, etc.. I don't disagree with what you see. At this point we are likely in 100% agreement.
My concern is that talking is always better than not talking. Many people haven't been at this as long as members here, or those that are "awake" and those first steps are crucial for breaking free of the conditioning. Sure the first steps are awkward, filled with silliness - but if they are mocked, ridiculed and censored when they step out -they will never come back, they will never get the logic, rationale and reason that disproves most of the conspiracy or mainstream theories. They are a lost soul. That bothers me.
Does that make some sense?
It does - however, personally, after my decade plus in the “community” allowing people who are wannabe priests of the cult of FE (note - NOT the honest, but misinformed seekers you describe) free reign results in more of those “lost souls” you mention turning away, never to return.
Is that at least plausible to you? That people could be turned off of the community because of the (undue, artificial, astroturfed even) prominence of certain voices?
Absolutely that is a concern. If someone was awake enough to think something like 911 didn't smell right, and came here to only see things about lasers, and drones and holograms they would rightly think the entire sub was batshit insane. But again - so what?
When the people that state those things say it, counter it with logic, reason and rationality.
Lets go back to the FE. It takes all of 30 minutes to prove to yourself the shape of the earth. There is no counter argument for 90% of the proofs of a globe. Logic, reason and rationality FTW !
IMO anyway. lol. Be well, now I am really leaving. Thanks for the convo!