February 12, 2005: Headlines: Letters: FAQ: PCOL Exclusive: I made a post and it didn't appear right away. Are you blocking users from posting messages?
Peace Corps Online:
Peace Corps News:
Letters to the Editor:
February 12, 2005: Headlines: Letters: FAQ: PCOL Exclusive: I made a post and it didn't appear right away. Are you blocking users from posting messages?
I made a post and it didn't appear right away. Are you blocking users from posting messages?
I made a post and it didn't appear right away. Are you blocking users from posting messages?
An email from a user says: I made a post and it didn't appear right away. Are you blocking users from posting messages?
Answer: Thanks for writing. No, we're not blocking our users.
What has happened is about a month ago, we started getting posts on PCOL advertising online casinos and pornographic web sites. We want to keep that kind of post off PCOL so we spent a long time manually going in and deleting each post. We tried blocking specific domains (IP addresses) that the posts came from, but the spammers just redirected their posts from other domains.
It just went from bad to worse when one night we had an avalanche of porno and casino posts. So about a week ago, we implemented moderation which means that every post now has to be approved before it is posted to the site. That way we can eliminate the pornography before it is posted to PCOL.
As always PCOL is dedicated to free discussion among RPCVs and we will never block any Peace Corps related post. We have previously dealt with off-topic posts and posts that put volunteers lives at risk, now we'll deal with comment spam.
If you can suggest a better solution, we'd like to hear it. Feel free to forward this message to others.By the way, we know it is an annoyance not to see your posts right away, but we check the site several times a day to approve messages, so if you check back you will see your post on the site shortly.
Best Regards,
Admin1
When this story was posted in February 2005, this was on the front page of PCOL:
 | The Peace Corps Library
Peace Corps Online is proud to announce that the Peace Corps Library is now available online. With over 30,000 index entries in over 500 categories, this is the largest collection of Peace Corps related reference material in the world. From Acting to Zucchini, you can use the Main Index to find hundreds of stories about RPCVs who have your same interests, who served in your Country of Service, or who serve in your state. |
 | WWII participants became RPCVs
Read about two RPCVs who participated in World War II in very different ways long before there was a Peace Corps. Retired Rear Adm. Francis J. Thomas (RPCV Fiji), a decorated hero of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, died Friday, Jan. 21, 2005 at 100. Mary Smeltzer (RPCV Botswana), 89, followed her Japanese students into WWII internment camps. We honor both RPCVs for their service. |
 | Bush's FY06 Budget for the Peace Corps
The White House is proposing $345 Million for the Peace Corps for FY06 - a $27.7 Million (8.7%) increase that would allow at least two new posts and maintain the existing number of volunteers at approximately 7,700. Bush's 2002 proposal to double the Peace Corps to 14,000 volunteers appears to have been forgotten. The proposed budget still needs to be approved by Congress. |
 | RPCVs mobilize support for Countries of Service
RPCV Groups mobilize to support their Countries of Service. Over 200 RPCVS have already applied to the Crisis Corps to provide Tsunami Recovery aid, RPCVs have written a letter urging President Bush and Congress to aid Democracy in Ukraine, and RPCVs are writing NBC about a recent episode of the "West Wing" and asking them to get their facts right about Turkey. |
 | Ask Not
As our country prepares for the inauguration of a President, we remember one of the greatest speeches of the 20th century and how his words inspired us. "And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man." |
 | Latest: RPCVs and Peace Corps provide aid
Peace Corps made an appeal last week to all Thailand RPCV's to consider serving again through the Crisis Corps and more than 30 RPCVs have responded so far. RPCVs: Read what an RPCV-led NGO is doing about the crisis an how one RPCV is headed for Sri Lanka to help a nation he grew to love. Question: Is Crisis Corps going to send RPCVs to India, Indonesia and nine other countries that need help? |
Read the stories and leave your comments.
Some postings on Peace Corps Online are provided to the individual members of this group without permission of the copyright owner for the non-profit purposes of criticism, comment, education, scholarship, and research under the "Fair Use" provisions of U.S. Government copyright laws and they may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner. Peace Corps Online does not vouch for the accuracy of the content of the postings, which is the sole responsibility of the copyright holder.
Story Source: PCOL Exclusive
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Letters; FAQ; Moderation; Online Community; Community
PCOL17318
77
.
regregerg
Dear friends and colleagues,
We are a community-based eco-tourism project located on a small island off the coast of Sierra Leone, West Africa. The project was begun in March 2006, the physical infrastructure is now substantially complete and the guest house is open, operating and covering its basic costs. To ensure its sustainability, to optimize its positive environmental impact and ensure a maximum poverty-reduction effect, we are seeking a volunteer or volunteer couple for at least one year (two years preferred) to live and work on the island with the local community.
We can provide a furnished one-bedroom residence with a living room, kitchen, bathroom and home office area, with modern plumbing, piped water from our well, generator-provided electricity in the evenings and a veranda. The volunteers can eat at no cost with our staff (fish with rice and sauce on most days) and/or cook in their own residence with food they would purchase for themselves. Fresh fish and lobster are abundant and cheap on and near the island. Other items can be purchased in Freetown, the capital city. We can also provide a basic living allowance of US$100 per month which will cover local transport, toiletries and other small items. Transport to/from the island is in our own boat so there is no cost getting to/from the mainland. The volunteer(s) will need to find funds for airfare and must purchase a medical evacuation policy and have health insurance. We need this assistance as soon as possible.
Finally, we should emphasize that we are located in Sierra Leone which, according to UN statistics, has world’s worst poverty with about 80% of the population living on less than a dollar a day. It is imperative that the volunteer(s) be prepared to deal with poverty, a different culture, a different sense of time, little understanding of concepts like productivity and be prepared to learn the local vernacular language, Krio. The country is at peace, it has a democratically-elected government, it is physically beautiful with wonderful beaches and sunsets, friendly and outgoing people and has enormous potential. We need a volunteer who is culturally flexible, very patient, well-organized with good communication skills and a sense of humour. The volunteers will be backstopped by a local committee of well-educated people who can help guide this effort but the volunteer(s) must be self-starters and highly-motivated. Please share this with anyone you wish. Thank you.
Gary Walker
Advisor to the Banana Island Youth Association
Gary A. Walker
Partner, Associates for Global Change
1c off Cape Lighthouse Road
Freetown, Sierra Leone
Tel: (232) 76 52 90 67 (cell)or
Tel: (232) 33 25 65 19 (cell)
E-fax: 1 202 478-0440
E-mail: garywalker.agchange@yahoo.com
