It has been twenty eight days since THE Hoover Forum was launched and it's time for a State of the Forum report.
 
The forum has had 238,680 page impressions, with 40,023 unique visitors (30,719 First Time Visitors, 9,304 Returning Visitors).
 
The forum averages 7,699 daily page loads, 1,291 unique visitors daily.
 
Our membership increases by 5-10% daily.
 
We wish we could say that we have not censored anyone but you all know that's not true.  We have deleted 20 topics with 31 posts in four weeks.  That represents 1.35% of the total posts that the board has had.  Not bad.  In comparison, our friends at the other forum have deleted 134 topics with unknown posts under each topic.  We think their percentage of deleted topics may be higher than ours.  
 
Our traffic comes from all over the planet, but mostly from inside the US.  The type of traffic we get ranges from news organizations, to law offices, to universities, to school boards (can you believe it??), to accounting firms, to government agencies and a variety of others including everyday people like you and me.  Although we don't divulge any visitor information, suffice it to say that you, the forum members, would be proud to see who reads your words on a daily basis.
 
We have done all this without selling out to anyone.  No contributions are taken, no advertising is sold.  If we do advertise in the future it will be with the understanding that our principles will not change.  We will not sell out.  
 
Finally, a big thanks to our daily contributors.  You make this forum what it is - a place where people can have a spirited debate, exchange differing opinions and make Hoover a better place.  Yes, this forum is filled with people who share many of the same opinions, and yes, you are like a family that protects their own when a stranger comes in attacking another member, but hey, that's what close knit groups do.  
 
A friend and I were having a discussion today regarding the forum.  I wondered out loud if, when the current "hot topic" ends, if this forum will still be as popular as it is.  Who knows.  The potential that this place has is enormous.  That's evident from the people who read what you have to write.  They are taking you seriously, don't forget that.  A friend once said something that I won't forget any time soon:  The internet is a very powerful thing.
Yes it is.
 
Until next time...
 
THE Hoover Forum Admin
 
 

Quote from ILuvHoova on 08/04/07 at 7:50pm:

 
Ditto!!

I, too, thank you, and sincerely hope that the forum continues .  Frankly, I don't see the primary "hot topic" being resolved any time soon.  The power players have underestimated their constituency and it's going to take a while for them to figure out their next chess move (excuse that slip--obviously none of these players know  the slightest thing about the game of chess, but there are many people on this forum who do).  The "leaders and pillars" of our community have boxed themselves in as far as I'm concerned and we can say "checkmate" to them all day long. Yet money, ego and potential civil and criminal liability will continue to prevent them from making the right choices.
 
The bigger issue to me remains the city elections next June.  Nothing that the city council or board of education or mayor do from this point forward can undo the damage they have collectively done to our community and school system as a whole.  We need a clean sweep and a new slate.
 
There are also a number of significant school issues that need to be dealt with besides RP and the status of Hoover football.  Spain Park High School has an incredible number of problems.   Primary one is the principal, Billy Broadway.  He is part of whatever scheme is being played out by the city council and school board at our children's expense...on many levels.  But in terms of rank, he's at the bottom.  We need to tackle the hard issues (and people) from the top on down.
 
I'm not saying we have to look for problems to keep this forum alive.  But this is a community of 70,000 people and there will always be issues of importance to discuss. And this forum can do more now and in the future to keep us informed about the "good" , the "bad" and the "ugly" better than the local media.