Creation of on-line forum

Dear fellow activists, I have been participating in NY911Truth events for some years and been subscribed to the news list (news@list.ny911truth.org) for some time too. However I only recently got added to Tom Foti's email CC list and discovered that there actually is some level of online discussion amongst the group. While i do appreciate anyone taking initiative towards group communication, the current methods are severely in need of an overhaul. A few weeks ago Bill from AboveTopSecret.com attended an organizational meeting and offered technical and hosting help for establishing a NY911Truth Forum. I would also like to offer my expertise in making this happen. If the group approves, I would be willing to work with AboveTopSecret to establish the forum, form a committee or whatever is appropriate. Volunteers would also be needed for forum moderators once the system is populated. There is only one structural arrangement i would like to see that isn't really obvious. I suggest making the forums publicly readable but restrict posting privileges to those that attend organizational meetings and sign up for it in person. This is a simple, effective way to keep anonymous online "trolls" from ruining the fun. At another meeting it was mentioned that complete transparency in the decision making process was a worthy goal and everyone seemed to agree on that. A publicly readable forum would do this instantly. It could also make the meetings more productive by allowing the details of current issues to be discussed in depth before meetings are convened. Meetings could then be more about final decision making and less about hashing out the fine points of every issue. The reasons for creating an online forum are so many that I don't really want to detail them all here. I've put a list at the bottom of the email. I trust that the members of NY911Truth are savvy enough to see the value of this way of working. This year presents a special opportunity, to take advantage of it we must make our internal discussions more intelligent, on topic and productive. Any feedback will be appreciated. I'll incorporate anything helpful and submit it at the next meeting. — Jonathon Vreeland