Self congratulatory insulting of the person of hated person of the day does nothing...

The only person I see get any real hate around here is EthanEdwards. Although, now that I think about it, I do remember a few other posters being accused of trolling in my first few months (which wasn't very long ago).

I used to feel that the generally negative perception of Ethan was unwarranted; I now realize this is not the case. His arguments are greeted with the same "skepticism" that he claims the pro-contacters' should be greeted with. He is attacked only when he makes sly defamatory remarks about the community here and/or certain specific members of it.

It doesn't help that he refuses to present himself as remotely likeable: he comes off as extremely arrogant, is patronizing towards those who don't hold his views, and is generally condescending towards the rest of the board. All in all, I don't care what his intentions are - he can't conduct himself the way he does and expect those of us who can see through his game to not lash out at him every so often.

And then for all the half-baked conspiracy theories floating around here I don't think most people on this board live in the real world because most people here don't understand the public opinion against us and seem to think if only a few rich right wingers were to get overthrown we'd be living in pedo paradise.

That sounds like an exaggeration. There are those (myself included) who are more optimistic about our situation. Me, I think a couple of the older generations need to bugger off before the destigmatization can really happen. I find the young people today (i.e. my peers) to be VERY accepting of us relative to other demographics, and that makes me optimistic about the future.

This board should be supportive.

I can't recall an occasion when a member (myself inluded) - even a "newbie" for that matter - has made a post that genuinely calls for the support of the community and has been met with anything but.

Support doesn't always have to come in the same format - it's not always about making someone feel better (though it often has that effect).

For one, the very fact that this community even EXISTS is a support mechanism - back before I joined, I used to browse the posts at GC whenever I was feeling glum just to remind myself that I was not alone, that there were indeed others out there "just like me". Unlike VoA or VP, Girl Chat is an open forum that doesn't require registration to view, and that is one of its most important features IMO.

Another thing is that for some, their way of offering support may well be to promote the very ideology that made THEM feel good about themselves. I feel that when a person comes here who is self-loathing, offering them an alternative mindset which is much more conducive to self-acceptance is actually vitally important, and is ultimately a support-oriented thing.

It worked for me. Before GC I was self-loathing, severely depressed and anti-contact. Before GC, I had no idea there was even such a thing as being "pro-contact", that there was any valid perspective other than the socially accepted ones. Since my arrival at GC ~8 months ago: my self-esteem has gone up immensely; my relationships with my girls have become more enjoyable; and my life in general has felt much more meaningful and hopeful. I don't consider it a coincidence. GC helped me. It wasn't the only thing, but it played an important role.

Hey, if this isn't the place for you then by all means, find a different way to kill time. To each their own. I just think you're making it out to be WAYYY worse than it is. Girl Chat is pretty friendly most of the time, and being part of a pedo community focussed on girl-love has been nothing short of empowering.

- Rainbow