Nickcdn,

I think what bothers people here is that there are new posters popping up out of the woodwork and it takes time for personalities to become integrated with the flow of conversation.

There is an inherent level of distrust for new accounts here. Look at the Stockhouse board, where there have been comments recently alleging that the majority of the posts on the KWG board have been the result of a single entity using multiple accounts. Is that what's really happening? It's hard to say, but based on the posting histories there, it's certainly possible. We don't want that happening here.

Agoracom has a better history when it comes to content and rational discussion. Content is king, and on Agoracom, there is an emphasis on quality over quantity. Analysis and discussion are important here, rather than just posting dozens of links to news articles. We don't care about how many posts we make or points we accumulate; we're here to learn from each other.

In addition, a large number of the posters here know each other in real life, not just as virtual avatars. Anyone who does three minutes of research can figure out exactly who I am in real life, and know that I'm not an insider, nor a member of any financial services industry, nor associated with any of the companies discussed here. I'm just a regular (well, that's debatable) Canadian guy who pays a lot of attention to the Ring of Fire, and who has invested some spare funds. I know a number of other ROF investors by their real names from discussions behind-the-scenes. Many other regular members of this message board have met in person, either at the Golf Tournament, or casually to talk shop over drinks.

There is also a lot of distrust for someone who says that they've lurked for years, but suddenly posts repeatedly when finally opening an account. If you didn't have anything to say for years, why so chatty all of a sudden? Also, a side note, if you've really been lurking here for years, you've probably been invested here for years. If so, my condolences about being so underwater at the moment.

Anyway, I hope this succinctly sums up why there is an inherent distrust of new accounts. If you want to make friends here, think of it like real life ... you need to invest some time and build trust. Many of us here are invested for the medium or long term, so patience is a virtue.

Have a happy New Year's ...