The purpose of this board is to provide a safe place for Jehovah's Witnesses, former Jehovah's Witnesses and those interested in them to discuss topics related to JW's that can assist them in their discovery and recovery from facing the truth about 'the truth'.
Well my turn to jump in. Personally I have to agree with the above. One of the reasons I recently did the survey about the site was to try to elicit ideas from all of the posters about why they came here and why people stay. I think the above statement pretty well encompasses the majority of the statements from those who posted. I do see the need for a mission statement that makes it clear what the purpose of the site is. I am very glad to read Simon is working on it. And I think discussions such as this can help formulate what that mission statement will become. Assisting people can encompass so many things and is a broad category but the focus should be on helping and supporting those who need it. We learn to help each other and learn new social skills, heck new debating skills that were never permitted before.
Most important I think is the issue of safety. I never know who will read my post. I don't know that the next person who reads might be new here or fragile as a result of their past experiences, or what impact my words will have on a lurker. Because I see myself as a healer/caretaker I do try to carefully weigh my words before posting. I have on occasion been hasty and have felt badly when my words hurt someone. That has never been my intention. But I do make efforts to post respectfully and responsibly. That is for the benefit of others but it is also for my benefit. I feel badly about hurting others and prefer to avoid it. My 2 cents