Frequently Asked Questions

You’ve Got Questions — We’ve Got Answers

What will be discussed at the meetings?

There is no agenda set by anyone. Rather, each attendee can talk about any subject or issue during their allotted time and other attendees choose whether to respond to subjects already raised or introduce their own subject. It's like a competition of ideas and those which are of most interest to others will be talked about. So the agenda is organic and developed by the attendees themselves.

We provide a list of Standing Topics that participants can choose to discuss if they wish. See "Standing Topics" page

And remember there is no obligation to speak if you just want to come along and listen.

For a list of topic suggestions refer to our "more FAQs" page

Do I have to book to attend?

No, you don't have to book and anyone is welcome to turn up on the night.

However we do invite people to book a place at a meeting via our email address, and those who have booked will be offered the opportunity to speak first, in the order bookings are received.

We find that Interesting topics that are introduced early in the meeting often have a good chance of becoming the focus of discussions on the night, so if that's something you're interested in, drop us an email to book.

To make a booking please use our email address shown on the Contact Us page and let us know the meeting date you wish to attend and the number of seats you wish to book.

Free speech can be wild! How do you keep it respectful?

The meeting moderator does NOT control, judge or police the content of what attendees say, however we DO judge the language used to say it. In our experience, the use of the ad hominem fallacy ("personal attack") is the main issue leading to disrespectful dialogue and unhealthy discussions. We therefore use a points system to punish the use of, and reward the non-use, of ad hominems. Attendees who lose their points through excessive disrespectful and unhealthy language lose their right to participate further.

Google "ad hominems" to learn more about this subject and look out for a feature page coming soon in this website to provide more information.

MORE FAQs

Why not just do it in an online social media group instead of in a meeting?

The internet used to be a great place for free speech. That's why it was so successful. But with the enormous amount of online censorship now occurring, it is getting harder and harder to express opinions, share news and have meaningful discussions in online social media groups. Many online groups are poorly administered and often just push the personal agendas of those who run them, censor opposing views and apply rules selectively, often resulting in bullying, victimization and ultimately banning of dissenting members. They often do not foster respectful communications or free speech at all.

Basically there is always someone or something determining the agenda and often preventing unorthodox or non mainstream views from being heard. And all this happens in a "black box" controlled by big tech, "experts" and technocrats which in the end often prevents ordinary people from having their voices heard.

There really is no substitute for a good old fashioned, face-to-face, community meeting, where anyone can come along and have their say without going through the Big Tech middleman. So we've created the ultimate democratic, grassroots community meeting where there is no one person or group determining the agenda and everyone gets heard.

What kind of things do you discuss at meetings?

You can talk about anything here as this is a free speech space. We do not censor. We only request respectful language without ad hominem personal attacks. Here are some suggestions for things you could talk about:

any of the topics from our list of Standing Topics
issues, concerns, problems in your local area or around the world that you want to bring attention to
a problem you're having that you'd like to ask others for advice or help with
an interest you have that you'd like to share with others or find others to join you in your interest
recite a poem, joke, speech or short story you've written
launch a campaign or make a campaign speech
share a great recipe, useful traditional remedy or health information others may benefit from
announce a local event like a garage sale or a local community group event
announce a new project or group and find members to join you
report back on a community group meeting or public event to let others know what happened
announce any important news you think others should know about
you can also challenge (respecfully) what others at the meeting say if you disagree with them.

I don't know what to talk about, how do I start?

Sometimes we all get stumped when we're put on the spot! if you're new to this, a good place to start may be to simply have a look at your latest Facebook post, or if you're more a newspaper reader, a recent interesting media article you read. It doesn't matter where you start because its all about free speech, so just say what you like! :-)

If all else fails, stick to our list of Standing Topics.

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