Seriously, are ANY of you Genuine Punters?

[Mousey]

For the last couple of days, I've been feeling more and more despair every time I see the message boards, so much so that I haven't much felt like I want to be a part of the community any more.

I am fed up to the back teeth with people who I think to be good fun being banned from the forum because of whatever criminality/politicking is going on behind the scenes. With all the riddle-speaking and people hinting at something larger, you'd be forgiven for thinking that the whole board is populated and/or managed by pimps and people who are trying to appear friendly in order to gain some advantage over someone else. If you were to read and believe the claims that have appeared here, on IIE, and on other places like Elle's blog, it'd be almost enough for you to throw your hands up and walk away from ever posting or punting again.

I am not blaming anyone for banning them or being banned for whatever reason. I am not a pimp. I am not a pervert. I do not have a family to cheat on. I am a regular guy who punts for fun whenever I feel the urge. I really, really don't want to be a part of of the power stuggle between Ruhama and E-I, or criminal gangs and police, or red lights and blue lights, or anything like that, even on the Internet. I want to stay well clear of it all, so I find it a serious pisser when the boards melt down like they did a few days ago.

You don't post a few thousand times without getting attached to the handle and personality you've created for yourself on the boards. When you think of "Mousey", you already have an idea of what he's like based on his posts - the boobies, the eternal war with Horan, the hamster avatar etc. So what happens when someone who you think of as "alright" gets banned for being (even an indirect) part of all these behind-the-scenes wars? There's no point to posting, then, because you're probably just surrounded by pimps or wannabe white knights.

I know I am being naive, but I really wish all of you who are not genuine punters would just stop posting.