So once there was a forum called EDIT which over time became very successful. Some of us were there right from the start. We went out of our way to get things going. Myself, I invented a whole new game and even stumped up the prizes out my own pocket for a competition of my own making. It was called the Balloon Game.

Time passed and EDIT grew substantially and made its owners multi millionaires. All well and good. During this time it became apparent that my skills lay more in investigative journalism than sales or self promotion. You see I’d spotted a hole in the community – independent criticism of the culture I was part of and held in high regard.

It was a natural progression and others asked me directly to find out certain things and get to the bottom of them. The cancellation of the 2006 U.K. Hemp Fair was one of them. I also became an authority on Amsterdam and particularly the High Times Cannabis Cup. I even went out of my way to provide, freely, information to make the stay of those going a more rounded, informed, and complete experience.

Did I ever get a thank you ?

Not fucking once.

So coming back to present day, EDIT goes tits up overnight. Guess what, I get called in to investigate the situation, say what others can’t, tell it how it is, and let everyone know just what happened. Fool that I am I even think I must be doing something right because when my computer goes up the spout I’m provided with a second hand one as a gift to tide me over. Better still I’m requested to take part in yet another new project which becomes ChilledTimes.com .

There are some conditions I insist on though. Sick and tired of dealing with childish teenage dramas I make it plain right before the start that I’m not going to put up with the same kind of juvenile foolishness that made EDIT such a chore to visit and an unpleasant experience. I’m assured that this time there will be no toleration of under 18’s, and that teenage drama and such foolishness associated with that will not be tolerated either. Under these conditions I am prepared to give it a go and put in the time to get things going and make ChilledTimes.com all the things EDIT was in the early days and so much more than it became.

So, Chilled Times gets launched and day fucking one there’s a 17 year old running around proud as a piss proud prick posting all over the forum like a rabid dog. I complain about this, pull it up as an issue, because either you mean what you say and ban kids off the place, or you allow every teenager to use it like a youth club. After some fuss the kid gets banned, but I’m made to feel as though I’m in the wrong for bringing it up in the first place.

Right then I should have gave it up, but again, foolishly I allowed the Mods of the place to convince me to stay because they were onto the job of weeding out the kids – no joke business, dude.

So what happens ? The place gets flooded by kids, trolls, and fucking christians. It makes cruising the boards a real fucking chore of misery. Trying to find one decent thread to actually participate in becomes akin to looking for a needle in a haystack. Children are allowed to run riot, to rule the roost, and if they can be overtly offensive in every way imaginable including promoting racist perspectives what happens ? Do they get slapped down and banned ? Do they fuck. They get welcomed and encouraged.

This isn’t what I’ve been promised. Not by a long, long way. So I complain, and what do I get back ? I get made to feel that I’m the one causing the problem. Then we get the latest episode, the Liam420 debacle.

Here we have a prime example of why kids should not be allowed near the forum because all we get is a daily barrage of teenage trauma, more drama and fiction than the BBC has produced in a decade, trolling, made up stories, and threads about ‘glands’. It’s way past the point of being a joke. It isn’t funny in the slightest and it flies in the face of all that was promised encouraging the same kinds of behaviour in others.

Better yet, when I tackle the issue I’m the one yet again who gets the flack and the fucking infraction points. Well fuck that. You want a kiddy playground promoting racism and the culture of ignorance fine. You got it. I want no part of it. I feel dirty and sullied by being associated with that, and once again, with the shitty end of the stick given to me, I feel used.

A thread appears saying how there’s to be a cull on the kids and that anyone posting now but who was under 18 when the forums began will get banned, no exceptions, except for Eat My Brains who I’d like to remind some – did not get banned on YKIT but day one of ChilledTimes showing no respect at all for the rules, and no it’s nothing like fair fucking play. It’s complete bollocks !

Again, Mods have asked me not to leave. Too late. Things have gone far too far. I wash my hands of it all. I want no more to do with any of it. Some of us just don’t have the time to waste anymore.

Chilled Times, it’s a teenagers toilet. Go to fuck !

Viper 6/4/2009

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Dear Mark/Bushmaster,

In the benefit of hindsight I think your right. I probably should have PM’d you. Unfortunately I didn’t feel as though it would make any real difference after the amount of stick I’ve taken from both sides of the boards all year. I'm just made to feel like the enemy.

There is no spin in the facts. They may well be unpalatable, but facts are facts.

I’m sorry if you received the impression that I was implying I had anything to do with the full on success that the shop became. That, as you know, simply isn’t the truth. The phrase “Time passed and EDIT grew substantially and made its owners multi millionaires. All well and good.” was a simple statement of historical fact and good will and intended as no more than such. Again, apologies if you received the wrong impression.

Some things that get broken can’t be fixed. It seems I’m one of them. I need to move on from here because, like I said before, all too many times in the last three months, I’m just wasting time, and I don’t think I have time to waste anymore. I don’t need the stress. I near got ploughed by a bus this afternoon while out walking trying to clear my head of some of this bullshit and I’ve been in a foul mood all weekend, walked out one of the local pubs swearing never to return over the price I got charged by the new manager for a large Jameson and a black coffee. Was it Dickens that said ‘life is made of many such partings’ ? Well, such as it goes. It’s been nice meeting you, your actually one of the good ones. My best wishes and good luck to your future endeavours. Whilst I applaud your efforts to uphold a system of free speech by creating ChilledTimes, I have to wonder if your crackers for doing so. I hope you manage to make it all that it should become.

Viper 6/4/2009 (4:17pm)

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First Published 6/4/2009 by Viperslair.co.uk

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