Tony Ortega's Underground Bunker

[SocialTransparency]

 Greetings all! Don't really know how to broach this subject as it is more of a personal observation than anything else. May even be petty,but I will give it a go.

 Many of us who wanting to keep abreast of things related to scientology turn to journalist Tony Ortega and his blog called the 'Underground Bunker". There a treasure trove of factual information can be had to those who  have concerns with scientology.For this poster specifically one of scientology,s front groups known as "NarCONon" which in my humble opinion is a quack drug treatment program.

I enjoy reading the main topic,s Mr.Ortega posts,but am finding it increasingly difficult when scrolling down to the comments section for any information or remarks that may add to the information/article Mr. Ortega has taken the time to present. I do understand blog culture somewhat,but do not understand the constant derails of the topic of the day by a rather large percentage of the regular posters.

I personally feel it does a great disservice to the site itself. Bear with me here as I am in no way attempting to disparage anyone who posts there,but it has become at least for me,very "cultic" within the context of that particular comment section.

I read the comment section in order to glean information that may add to my knowledge.Now and again someone does comes along with some seriously hard hitting factual information that may aid me when addressing concerns over narCONon.

Mind you,I am just venting here as I personally feel more often than not,that comment section distracts and or takes away from the subject of the day. Myself coming from active public involvement in dealing with narCONon wishes those daily posters would perhaps become publicly involved in quilling the likes on narCONon in their area instead to expending time and energies on a blog.

I do take comfort there are a few that do do this,so I guess maybe i need to be more accepting,yet see a great platform provided by Mr.Ortega being debased via meaningless banter.

End train of thought rant.

[BigBeard]

ST - The Bunker has been like that for a long time.

There's actually quite a bit of real world interaction between the "Bunker Bugs", and things that started outside the Bunker often get continued within it. Also, one persons comment may jog someone else's memory about something similar, and a whole new train of comments gets started. Sometimes it's like an on line version of 'The Whispering Game' kids play, and what comes out at the end has nothing to do with what went in at the beginning. I also find it frustrating at times, but the folks who hang out there have a diversity of interests (including cats & toads) about $cientology beyone narCONon, and for them it's the right fit.

I believe having a diversity of views and formats on the forums and blogs is a good thing, and keeps our minds constantly on the lookout for new avenues to bring $cientology and narCONon down. Much better than being in lock-step "group think" to the Dwarfen Furher's "command intention".

[SocialTransparency]

ST - The Bunker has been like that for a long time.

There's actually quite a bit of real world interaction between the "Bunker Bugs", and things that started outside the Bunker often get continued within it. Also, one persons comment may jog someone else's memory about something similar, and a whole new train of comments gets started. Sometimes it's like an on line version of 'The Whispering Game' kids play, and what comes out at the end has nothing to do with what went in at the beginning. I also find it frustrating at times, but the folks who hang out there have a diversity of interests (including cats & toads) about $cientology beyone narCONon, and for them it's the right fit.

I believe having a diversity of views and formats on the forums and blogs is a good thing, and keeps our minds constantly on the lookout for new avenues to bring $cientology and narCONon down. Much better than being in lock-step "group think" to the Dwarfen Furher's "command intention".

Guess I will just read the blog owners journalistic input and steer clear of the comments section.

[DeathHamster]

On the plus side, all the comments are included in the page text, so search engines will see it. (The Disqus wrapper fills in some meta information from their site, but all the text is there.)

I'd love to do automated comment mining, but teaching code the difference between informational comments and general stuff might be hard. It's the same with the comments in Mike Rinder's blog.

[mefree]

On the plus side, all the comments are included in the page text, so search engines will see it. (The Disqus wrapper fills in some meta information from their site, but all the text is there.)

I'd love to do automated comment mining, but teaching code the difference between informational comments and general stuff might be hard. It's the same with the comments in Mike Rinder's blog.

That's good news about the search engines.

[ethercat]

I usually scan over the leftmost comment, and if it doesn't have anything to do with what I'm interested in, I'll skip the rest on that branch and move to the next.  It's hard to follow, for sure, considering it could take all day to read all the comments, and it's tiresome clicking "show more". 

I've often thought Tony should add a forum for his community to gather in/around.  He could have the articles automatically post into new threads in the forum, where comments could be made as followups, and then also new threads could be started for tangents and the off-topic conversations. 

I'd love to do automated comment mining, but teaching code the difference between informational comments and general stuff might be hard. It's the same with the comments in Mike Rinder's blog.

Sometimes it's hard enough for human readers to tell the difference.   

[aegerprimo]

I am an avid commenter at the Bunker. I do try to keep my posts on topic, but sometimes I get distracted. It happens.  I find the "Bunkerite" aka "Bunkeroo" community fun, and I learn a lot from them.

I am an ex-Scientologist, so I often can contribute to something being said regarding the daily article from Tony or a response to one of the comments/questions. (Then sometimes I might post a heart thingy ♥ or a pic of caek or popcorn or a shoop I made).

My trick on browsing the comments at the Underground Bunker is that I will sort comments to BEST. I will scan the OP and some of the responses. If the responses don't interest me, then I click the minus sign ( - ) to collapse the whole comment and responses then move on to the next comment. 

I hope this is helpful.

[Juicer77]

@SocialTransparency- I'm a regular commenter at the Bunker, and things often get off-track or silly or involve inside jokes. I'm one of the mouthiest ones! I'm sorry you find it frustrating and there are times I agree with you.

AegerPrimo gives the best advice - sort comments to "Best" and you'll get the most cogent responses to the day's topic. "Minus sign" to far right of comment uses the invaluable Collapse Thread technique.

FWIW, some of us have tried to start "Off Topic" Disqus threads for various subjects so they don't clutter up the comments, but it's like trying to divert a raging river with a teaspoon. Keep hanging in there and reading. Different viewpoints are welcome and encouraged.

[SocialTransparency]

I am an avid commenter at the Bunker. I do try to keep my posts on topic, but sometimes I get distracted. It happens.  I find the "Bunkerite" aka "Bunkeroo" community fun, and I learn a lot from them.

I am an ex-Scientologist, so I often can contribute to something being said regarding the daily article from Tony or a response to one of the comments/questions. (Then sometimes I might post a heart thingy ♥ or a pic of caek or popcorn or a shoop I made).

My trick on browsing the comments at the Underground Bunker is that I will sort comments to BEST. I will scan the OP and some of the responses. If the responses don't interest me, then I click the minus sign ( - ) to collapse the whole comment and responses then move on to the next comment. 

I hope this is helpful.

Hi aegerprimo

Thanks for the suggestion. I didn't think about clicking on the ( Best) option. I will give it a try.

[SocialTransparency]

@SocialTransparency- I'm a regular commenter at the Bunker, and things often get off-track or silly or involve inside jokes. I'm one of the mouthiest ones! I'm sorry you find it frustrating and there are times I agree with you.

AegerPrimo gives the best advice - sort comments to "Best" and you'll get the most cogent responses to the day's topic. "Minus sign" to far right of comment uses the invaluable Collapse Thread technique.

FWIW, some of us have tried to start "Off Topic" Disqus threads for various subjects so they don't clutter up the comments, but it's like trying to divert a raging river with a teaspoon. Keep hanging in there and reading. Different viewpoints are welcome and encouraged.

 Hello juicer77

 I'll give what AP suggests a try. Guess I come from a more hands on background when addressing the cults actions within the public sector.

I have seen the fruit of those labors reaped successfully here on the website and also narCONon Reviews. 

[SocialTransparency]

238 views on this thread as of 10/06/2015. Why don't you folks stop in and say hi?

[9001]

Hi ST. Just remembered my password!

I'm a newb member. Found my way here through talking with Juicer at the Bunker.

Great advice regarding the Bunker comment section from AP and Juicer. Something else I've noticed is that the comments start on topic and tend to wander off as people don't want to labor the point and repeat what others have said already. So sometimes it's worth reading the earlier comments too. It does go well off topic at times but it's sometimes fun and/or educational.

Anyway good to meet you.

[mefree]

I enjoy the Bunker. The social aspect and humor there is appreciated after a day of dwelling on scammy rehabs. That being said, the filtering suggestions are appreciated.

[SocialTransparency]

Hi ST. Just remembered my password!

I'm a newb member. Found my way here through talking with Juicer at the Bunker.

Great advice regarding the Bunker comment section from AP and Juicer. Something else I've noticed is that the comments start on topic and tend to wander off as people don't want to labor the point and repeat what others have said already. So sometimes it's worth reading the earlier comments too. It does go well off topic at times but it's sometimes fun and/or educational.

Anyway good to meet you.

Good to meet you too. Stay awhile and have a look around. Good stuff here.