About Patrick.net

Patrick.net is an anonymous forum where ideas censored in the mainstream press are available for discussion in a civil manner.

Before posting, ask yourself: "Is there good will in this comment?" A little teasing is OK, but outright hate for "the other side" is not. If it's just hate, please don't post it. Post something constructive instead. Something that unifies us rather than divides us even more.

If you threaten another user with violence you'll be instantly and permanently banned. We have seen an epidemic of real world violence from BLM. We don't need more.

Freedom of speech is nothing other than the freedom to offend. Speech which offends no one needs no protection because it will not be censored. Controversial ideas are inevitably offensive to someone and therefore need protection from censorship. But it is possible to express these ideas with good will toward that person who is offended.

As MisterLearnToCode says:

We can't ban offensive speech because then we'd be at the mercy of the most easily offended; the lowest common denominator, and wouldn't be able to discuss jack shit.

The least popular ideas are the censor's wedge.

I especially want people to have a place to say things they cannot say in person because of family or work or school pressure to conform to the politically correct opinions in their area.

The goal is for patrick.net to be a place where anyone can amicably discuss anything with others, anonymously, without being subject to the PC police who have effectively suppressed free speech in the United States and many other countries.

If you are expressing a sincerely held point of view with good will, your comments and posts are very welcome here. If your point of view is "offensive" to others, that is no problem. Enjoy your freedom on this site, but please try to keep it about ideas and not about the other users or the site itself. I love Texas Congressman Dan Crenshaw's philosophy about political debate:

https://patrick.net/post/1326765/2019-08-23-perfect-description-of-how-public-debate-should-be

There are many ideas that we will never agree on. The left and the right have different ways of approaching governance, based on contrasting philosophies. But many of the ultimate goals — economic prosperity, better health care and education, etc. — are the same. We just don’t share the same vision of how to achieve them.

How, then, do we live together in this world of differing ideas? For starters, let’s agree that the ideas are fair game. If you think my idea is awful, you should say as much. But there is a difference between attacking an idea and attacking the person behind that idea. Labeling someone as an “-ist” who believes in an “-ism” because of the person’s policy preference is just a shortcut to playground-style name-calling, cloaked in political terminology. It’s also generally a good indication that the attacker doesn’t have a solid argument and needs a way to end debate before it has even begun.

Similarly, people too often attack not just an idea but also the supposed intent behind an idea. That raises the emotional level of the debate and might seem like it strengthens the attacker’s side, but it’s a terrible way to make a point. Assuming the worst about your opponents’ intentions has the effect of demonizing their ideas, removing the need for sound counter-reasoning and fact-based argument. That’s not a good environment for the exchange of ideas.

The primary moderation rule is just to be reasonably kind. Personal attacks solve nothing, and in fact get us further away from solving anything. Examine what is said, not who speaks, and try to acknowledge whatever truth there is in what the other person is saying before attacking the flaws in their argument.

If you don't like this site, go somewhere else. This site cost you nothing, was a lot of work for me, and doesn't even have advertising. If you can't resist insulting the other users or the site itself over and over, you'll be banned and your comments deleted.

Here are the site rules:

1. Do not insult the other users.
2. Do not insult the site.
3. Make your point without anger.
4. Do not misquote people by using the "quote" function and then editing the quote. If you do that, I'll delete your comment, and might ban you.
5. The only thread where tits or other porn is allowed is https://patrick.net/post/1293879/2016-07-30-sexy-picture-thread-titties-and-all-else

Or, more succinctly, don't be a dick (or a cunt).

Flag misquotes, personal attacks, and attacks on the site with the "flag" link by each comment so that they will go into moderation where they will be reviewed by a moderator. Please do not flag comments just because you don't like the opinion expressed.

If you're wondering why your comment was flagged, please click the "edit" link on it. It should be pretty obvious when you read your own words again. If you think there was a mistake about the content's being flagged, please write p@patrick.net

If you're suspicious that comments are flagged for political reasons, you can see any flagged comment in the html source of that page. View Source in your browser. Yes, it's inconvenient, but that's deliberate. I don't want those comments being part of the conversation because they are personal, or divisive, or spam, etc.

If you don't have the "flag" link, please report personal comments to p@patrick.net by email.

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Here are the original articles that made this site famous:

https://patrick.net/post/1282720/2015-07-11-ten-reasons-it-s-a-terrible-time-to-buy-an-expensive-house
https://patrick.net/post/1282721/2015-07-11-eight-groups-who-lie-about-the-housing-market
https://patrick.net/post/1282722/2015-07-11-37-bogus-arguments-about-housing

If you ignore another user, you will not see that user's posts or comments. There is a user ignore link on each comment. To see who you're ignoring and to unignore, look on your edit profile page.

To get another user's attention, mention that user in a comment with an @ character prepended to his username ( for example @Patrick ) and then he will get an email of that comment.

If you include an image URL ending in .jpg, .png, or .gif it will be converted into the visible image in a post or comment.

You may not post large sections of copyrighted material unless you have explicit permission from the copyright owner. But excerpts for discussion are fine, and in fact protected by law.

If you include a video url from Rumble, Bitchute, Vimeo, NewTube, or BrandNewTube, the post or comment will display the video. Please try to avoid YouTube urls, since YouTube routinely censors political discussions.

These basic html tags work in posts and comments: a b blockquote br code del font hr i iframe img li ol p strike sub sup u ul video vsmall

You can surround a word or phrase with the * character to make it bold or the _ character to make it italic.

You can edit any post or comment you entered within a week of creating it. After a week, content is permanent and will not be deleted.

You cannot pick your own password on patrick.net. The goal of this is to prevent people from using, say, their bank password on patrick.net, so that if this site gets hacked, their bank account is still secure. You'd be amazed at how many people use the same password for everything.

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Sorry, this is necessary because lawyers.

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