FEATURED ASSOCIATE
FIRST FEATURED: 03/14/06
ASSOCIATE SINCE: 2005
CURRENT ADMINISTRATOR: Terpcat
FOUNDER: TullyB
URL: p079.ezboard.com/btheencampmentofthebluegypsies
FOUNDED IN: 2002
MAIN INTERESTS: General discussion, music, the Moody Blues
"If you're looking for one overall theme for this BBS," says founder TullyB, "I would have to say it is 'freedom of speech'." In fact, it was the out-of-hand discussions and heavy-handed administration at his favorite message board community that prompted TullyB to create Blue Gypsies Fireside Chat in the first place. Tully and many of the current regulars at Blue Gypsies first came together ten years ago, having discovered an online message board dedicated to their favorite musical group, the Moody Blues. However, when conflict erupted and the message board disintegrated, Tully wasn't willing to let their tight-knit community fall apart completely. He created the Blue Gypsies page, imagining that this new board would serve as home on the web for online migrants, he and his friends who had been driven from their favorite message board like gypsies driven from their homes, gathering around the campfire to chat.
Tully hoped to solve the administrative problems that had plagued their first message board home: "To avoid the problems of heated discussions offending certain people, I created the 'Bare-Fisted Debates' and 'Civilized Conversations' forums. It was my hope that this would compartment the discussions in such a way that people being offended would be held to a minimum, and so far it has worked pretty well." The recipe for success over at Blue Gypsies has allowed the board to prosper for nearly four years, making the board a welcoming encampment both for the original core of members and for new waves of migration.
This past September, Tully appointed long-time member Terpcat to take over the helm of administration, and she has continued his tradition of "hands off" administration, keeping potentially heated debates in a forum separate from general chat. Says Tully: "People are free to express whatever views they have, and the only thing asked of them is to use the proper forum." Aside from the core forums for "Bare-Fisted" or "Civilized" discussions, there are also forums for the discussion of music and, of course, the Moody Blues. Regular member Diana calls Blue Gypsies a "cyber-family" with a unique group of visitors: "I have visited more than a few boards, but have never found one with the 'characters' and the freedom that this one has." The crowd at Blue Gypsies is diverse and welcoming, boasting a membership of all ages, from younger people to "boomers (and near-boomers)", which member Stevek53 credits with keeping the board lively and interesting.
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