Should we create religious and political neighborhoods?

I would be opposed. one of the problems that we have, is we have secluded ourselves way to much. Just because I am not an Obama fan (or Hillary) doesn't mean that they don't bring up some interesting ideas. and even within different faiths, beliefs may differ from church to church. I have freinds from all walks of life, just because I am a conservative, doesn't mean that I don't have freinds, and things in common with someone who is liberal in politics. some of my closest freinds are of a differnt faith, heck one is an Athiest. but I enjoy thier company, and respect their beliefs and opinions.

agree with solo_vader

why not shut down all communication altogether? why would you oppose an open discussion of anything, let alone religion? let's keep quiet about Priests, and not protect our children. let's keep the children home and shut up in their rooms so they can't discuss what needs to be heard. let's take away the fifth amendment. Here's a quote for you: I like your Christ, I don't like you're Christians, they are so unlike your Christ.- Gandhi. Damn, i'm not going to Heaven

NO..NO..NO....ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!!!!!!! KEEP THIS OUT OR YOU'LL HAVE ONGOING FIGHTS AND PROBLEMS!!!!!!

While I truly believe in community and sharing of like minds, Belief.net already has this thoroughly covered and I don't think a retail/auction site is the place for gathering of spiritual like minds. This Neighborhoods forum is more for sharing your interests not your beliefs...if you wish to share those further with someone you met, then so be it, but let's not start drawing lines in the sand on this site.

WELL SAID JEZ!!!!!!!!!!

nononono - - ebay should never be the forum for religious or polical opinions.
Religion: we want to convince others that our beliefs are the only acceptable ones.
Politics: we usually bombast the opposite party; name calling, etc.

Unfortunately, these are topics were people don't 'listen' but do like to 'talk' i.e.
convince.

Heidi

Please... let's leave religion and politics out of E-bay. I would say that things are volatile enough around here as it is.

Is there an aquarium of fish neighborhood ( or pond? )

Absolutely not - I am not opposed to people engaging in open discussion of such subjects, but it should be done in the appropriate forum and Ebay is absolutely NOT the appropriate forum for political or religious discussion. Surely Yahoo, AOL and Google have groups for such discussion, chat rooms and whatnot. This is a COMMERCIAL forum. Personal business has no place here.

I am one that would like to at least see a sites for the different faith or political persuasions. My comment to those that don't like the idea of having politics or religious neighborhoods well they just don't have to join. Besides, business whether large or small is completely political. I believe that allowing people of like thinking to gather for support etc.
If you don't allow the religious or political neighborhoods you might as well discontinue the charitable donations through Giving Works too.

yes,simply because we are a society of various political and religious views. we should be able to pick and choose where want to chat and with you, about what!

on 'our neighborhoods blog'....It says you can see a complete list of them when you click on it...all I see is your recent posts, and their comments, no different neighborhoods.....where is the complete list?

PSPULLEY & MADDIE147.........With all due respect......If this Happens A Can of Worms so Great in Size will be Opened.........This is just NOT the Place for this Type of Topics........There's other areas on The Internet that I'm sure You & Others Could look into and Join In...........THIS IS NOT THE PLACE I AM SORRY TO SAY & I HAVE NOTHING AGAINST POLITICS or RELIGION......To say it Politely Ebay, Politics & Religon Should be kept Separated.

While I myself am a christian, i have to agree with the naysayers on this one... there are MANY more appropriate places for us to gather and chat than the store. But even if ya do at least we won't be blocking the aisles or checkout lines while we have our mid-week gab sessions.

I think it would be great to have a religious, and political neighborhoods. I do however see everyones points against it though. I think if we did though they should all be inclusive, but closely monitored for fights and trolling. As long as they remained friendly I think they could work, but then again maybe I am to optimistic as I can see how that would be unrealistic for some people.

This is my Final Comment on this Subject UNLESS WARRANTED OTHERWISE.....To Each His Own.... Whether it be POLITICS or RELIGON....Discussion(s)of These Topics are Not a Problem......BUT NOT ON EBAY!!!!

I would be opposed.

I believe religious and political neighborhoods would ultimately create hard feelings among the members and perhaps toward EBay, because these subjects encompass very personal beliefs that are highly diversified among their their members. In a world Store-- I believe their are about 200 political affiliations and perhaps equally as many religions. I don"t think so!!

This is a site to buy and sell crap. It' not about politics or about religion--unless you want to buy or sell religious or political crap. Don't open discussions up about politics or religion. There are plenty of sites for that.

There are two things you don't discuss other than with like minded people that you know: RELIGION and POLITICS. They do not make for good bedfellows. midstatecollectibles

It sounds like Pandora's box to me. I would think you would have to let in all religions and political groups...even ones that might be offensive to many. I don't come to eBay for such discussions.

BAD IDEA. Majority of consumers are judgemental people bad enough as it is, and some people hide behind religion/politics to manipulate the consumers. Ebay already has human beings of all practicing(or not)religions/political groups interacting with one another and it has been a positive thus far...do not screw it up.Besides, there are plenty enough social networks that have this outlet. ie. myspace,blogs, etc...

Religion and politics are very personal, and behind most of the fighting going on all over the world. No we do not need it here.

Keep politics and religion out of eBay! I have never walked into a storefront and been pleased if I was confronted with the owners political or religious views, and I wouldn't want to see it on eBay, either. Opinions are not what I'm shopping for or what I'm selling!

Thanks everyone for your comments. I'm a bit surprised that there weren't more people commenting in favor of having neighborhoods around these topics since they are consistently the most suggested.

We shared many of your same concerns that these topics could degenerate into flame wars. We believe people are basically good and would hope that they would be well behaved ... but we are also realistic. We will not be creating any religious or political neighborhoods in the near future.

To address one other point made in some of the comments, neighborhoods aren't only commerce related. eBay is powered by a community of real people and neighborhoods are a great way to meet other people in the community who share the same interests and passions whether they be buying and selling jewelry or a love of Stephen King novels.

Sure why not - as long as they are not targeted against another group - For instance Democrats who hate republicans would not be good or Obama supporters who hate Hillary would not be good. But Supporters of Obama or Supports of Huckabee for President would be fine.

This would open the door for a lot of arguing. There's a time and place for everything and I don't think ebay is the place. If you want to argue go to a relition/politics chat room. Just to prove a point LONG LIVE REPUBLICANS!!!!! MCCAIN FOR PRESIDENT!!!!!! I AM A BAPTIST!!! Lets see where this gets me.

No. It would be a distraction from what Ebay is all about - buying and selling. There are TONS of other sites for arguing about politics and religion. Adding such things would repel people away from neighborhoods. Plus, people from those type of neighborhoods would probably start posting their rants everywhere on every neighborhood on Ebay. There would be no benefits to adding that sort of thing. It is definitely not needed there at all and would most certainly ruin neighborhoods.

Nopie. I have participated in a specific licensed group, professional forum for over 6 years. About 3 years ago they added P&R category, because the discussion was occurring under other subject titles on the forum anyway. It made it worse... name calling and insults escalated and then spilled over into category topics concerning business, the real intent of the forum. Immature folks couldn't separate the animosity that generated from political and religious views and opinions. Many long time posters dropped out and valuable friendships and professional input have been lost.

You said, "We will not be creating any religious or political neighborhoods in the near future." But I noticed that Wicca has it's own neighborhood now. Wicca is a religion that many consider to be a cult! So Wicca items are also part of that belief system, too! Christians should be able to have their own neighborhood for support, as should anyone who requests one of their own. Why should others get a neighborhood & not a large group of Christians, or Catholics, or Mormons, etc.? I sure didn't know that e-Bay was prejudiced towards Christians having their own neighborhood. A Christian neighborhood is no different than a Grateful Dead neighborhood. Also, because more people who have requested their own neighborhoods were not responding to the question about religious or political neighborhoods, it is obvious that they weren't aware of the question & so they did not get an opportunity to be heard. I think e-Bay would greatly benefit by allowing neighborhoods for those who request one, except for those sexual in nature. Thank you.

i agree with a lot of the others. i don't think those 2 topics belong here. case closed.

Absolutely!!!! Why not?? I am a Christian and am not afraid to share inspirational, encourageing messages to anyone out there. I don't advocate exclusiveness as far as beliefs, denominational or otherwise. However, we are all either contributing something positive or negative to this world everyday, why not positive words of encouragement and acknowledgement to others when they inspire us? Check out my e-bay store,Gigi's Country Cottage.

Why not. Look how much time has already been spent here on the topic?

The TIME SPENT here On this TOPIC is to AVERT A DISASTER TO ALL........Hard and Bad feelings ETC. If YOU want to Proclaim Your FAITH & POLITICAL VIEWS......That's Fine........BUT NOT HERE ON EBAY!!!!!!!!!!!

This may not be the place to say this, but i don't think Ebay should be branching out in ways other than as a site to buy and sell things. There are already blog sites and Wikipedia sites that function just fine. Rather than pilfering the good ideas of other successful businesses, Ebay should concentrate on its strengths.

My initial reaction to this question was "why on earth would there be religious or political forums (neighborhoods) on e-bay?" as I am new to e-bay. But after viewing the list of neihborhoods, I am just SHOCKED that people are opposed to a group that centers around the likes or affections for Jesus Christ, or a politician....yet we can have a group that centers around the "affections" for Angelina Jolie, Beyonce, Brad Pitt or Elvis!! We are "free" to turn our affections for any actor or model into a neighborhood....yet if someone wants to "worship" (give attention to, have affection for) GOD, or center their discussions around a certain polititian....there is such a negative uproar?!! Wow! That this question was even ASKED...that e-bay thought it needed approval or opinion from the "general public" on e-bay also surprised me. Was the same kind of poll presented before a neighborhood was created for Britany Spears? Or Eddie Murphy? ...if not....then not only are you discriminating against religious or political people, but also discriminating against God Himself, and each individual politician. If this is how every neighborhood is "approved" or started on here, then all is fair in polling for opinions.

Here's my 2 cents worth...I don't think that a neighborhood should be set up on eBay for anything except general interests. Neighborhoods on crafting, collecting items like books, antique & vintage items, photo & pin collecting, games, gardening & the like, etc...(things that are bought on ebay), those are safe issues. I thought the whole purpose of Neighborhoods, was to talk with others who are interested about the things we collected, buy, and sell on the site. That's my opinion.

uh, no

there's no reason to categorize buyers and sellers by religion or politics

that's just going to create opportunities for the "I'm better than you and here's why" whoo-ha

Just because some are against a P&R category on here, does not mean we atheists or agnostic.

Politics and religion are two highly volitle subjects among groups, doesn't matter where the conversations take place. You typically don't walk into a retail store and find banners announcing the P&R convictions of the owners..........for a reason. There are certain subjects that are declared off limits because of discrimination, the ability to offend, and the animosity that grows from certain convictions and disagreements about those subjects. Brad Pitt is not one of them.

I would predict the temperature of such a category (ies) will be fortold just in this post as it grows. Sit back and observe.

I am neutral about creating groups for certain religious or political debates, etc. BUT -- I would love to see one for religious items, relics, etc. I have run across several items that I could not identify, including what I thought was a Catholic holy water sprinkler that turned out to be a Martini shaker!!!!

agree with weekend. If I sell Christian Faith Items. I would like to be associated with the Neiborhood. So It is good. But Politics well. Again if you see like items. Good association to Create and be in. Well its up to you. You want it Creat it. If you go strict with your neiborhood and buy from them its up to you. Well enough rameling.

It would be a good place for people to go that like to argue. Just my 2 cents worth.

I sell wiccan, catholic, stuff and I'm a huge supporter of Barack. I served my country so did all my family. That's not the point, The point is. We all come from "mixed" backgrounds. Trying to make us cohesive won't work. We will never be "one nation" because we are so diversely mixed.
Mixing politics and religion will end up with alot of Right wingers/fighting the Left wingers.
Being independent and no follower of any "set" religion marks people as being all against or all for nothing. You will just end up with people yelling and screaming that "their" way is right and no one else's is. Good luck.

Since many people come to ebay alot and are either sellers or buyers, there is no reason why anyone cant have any club or neighborhood here on ebay.

We have 'coffee lovers' and "ACEO and various special interest groups and I see no problem if say, a bunch of Catholics want to talk about religious items for sale here on ebay or get social with one another...

Or if Baptists want to talk to other Baptists or Christians to Christians or even Wiccan to Wiccan~~ Doesnt matter what the interest is as long as people mutually want to discuss their interests.

Moderators would have the job of policing their groups just as they do anyway.

If for example someone wanted to attack a religion of one group, the moderator can ban the person. If on the other hand someone doesnt like a political or religious discussion, they can 'click off' and go elsewhere.

There are many clubs and neighborhoods on ebay and many of us sellers and buyers are different and do form friendships here and everyone should be free to express themselves in appropriate forums as long as they are respectful and on task.

I personally get ticked at censorship and exclusion merely because someone has a religious belief they cant share it? Sure I wouldnt want to have certain politics or other religions pushed at me, however I would stay away from forums I didnt like and stick to the ones that hold my interest in a positive way.

Just because I might not like a particular politician I wouldnt want to exclude politics from ebay and so on. It is too controlling and manipulating of those who push for censorship and exclusion of religious and or political clubs here and they shouldnt be the deciding voice of ebay, only part of the choir~WE all have rights and none should impose on the other.....

Politics and religion ..Never seems to mingle to well."smilling"
But if groups are groups and neighbors are likewise why
not, I have no problem with it.
I did not see any fences on the way into EBay.
Maybe a politician has a vintage campaign button to sell.
The Christian may have the greatest of yardsales.

But please DO NOT make this an arena. LOL

The place where we are is EBay. That alone is selling and buying.
I know of a pastor that knows how to say Angel Dust. Carefull how you handle that rossin
bag. LOL

Yes,if any of you have read my blog then you know I am a huge debater and huge political junkie. We also need one for controversial topics.

EBay is for selling and buying. Not for intense discussions on philosophy or political beliefs. Post the religious and political comments somewhere else.

Many things stimulate buying and selling and to be able to solicite an opinion or seek advice over certain types of items, could make having these specialty groups a beneficial thing here.

I think I would love to have a religious neighborhood. You can meet other people who believe in your faith or encourage some who are having a hard time and think they have no where to go. AWESOME

Personally, I'd make it demand-based. I'd certainly allow religious and political neighborhoods, but be sure that there are at least some minimum number of unique requests before creating them to avoid creating zillions of tiny neighborhoods.

This all boils down to eBay prohibiting our First Admendment Rights of Free Speech. If people want to have either a Political Or Religious Neighborhood it should be allowed. Besides eBay already has groups that are Religious in nature. What is the difference between Groups and Neighborhoods. If you look at the area where you live that is made up of neighborhoods and in those neighborhoods is a diverse population race, politics, religion, economic status etc. I believe that most people would rise up if your neighborhood told you that you could not live there because you were religious or what ever. Many would be the first to contact the ACLU crying that their civil liberties were being infringed upon in that you can't live in your chosen neighborhood.
I am assuming that we are all adults here and that if something comes up that we don't agree with and can sense that it could be a potentially hot topic we could just say lets just agree to disagree on the issue and drop it. But, of course there will always be those that won't want to drop conversation that is where the Moderator would be required to step in.

Yes! Yes! Yes! i want to talk with others about Jesus and Christian sales.

Yes this is a great idea as many Christians sell and buy on e-bay

YESSSSS...!!!! I just arrived after trying to find a neighborhood for me. Early this evening, I posted to another person's blog regarding Bible/Church....etc! I can't see you! You can't see meeeee, unless I choose to change my pix.

WE LIVE IN A WORLD OF PEOPLE THAT HAVE DIFFERENT RELIGIONZ/RACES/COLORZ/BELIEFZ/MORALZ/CIVILIZATIONZ/ETHICZ/AND MORE KOOLSTUFF!

By the way... EVERYONE IS ENTITLED TO THEIR OPINION! Those that choose to hurt otherZ because of their RELIGIOUS BELIEFZ should be exiled from the E-BAY BLOGZ!

THANZ FOR LISTENING! KOLZ STUFFFFFF!

I am new to the neighborhood area of ebay and just saw this post. I feel as though I would like to add my thoughts. I think that the old saying "Politics and religion make strange bedfellows"...is right on target here!!! There are many places on the net for such things, ebay is for commerce and nicities! Why would you want to open ebay up to anger, hate and such an arumentative atmosphere??? It just doesn't make sense to me! I feel that the neighborhoods should stay light such as: people who loves pets, people who enjoy sports, people who are night or morning people, people who love sci-fi, comedy, soaps (perhaps pertaining to the catagories that you have!), jewelry, etc.... We need to keep this light and friendly!!! It seems as though everywhere you look now a days it's filled with hate and anger and war and crime, the news has gotten out of hand, etc! Please, let's keep this area light! I won't want to come here if it isn't and I feel that perhaps I am not alone! One place on the net should remain neutral and it should be ebay!!! Thanks for letting me express my 2 cent opinion! Have a great weekend everyone!!!

I just read some of the posts for the first time, after I made my first post. It's already starting!!! The negativity!!! Stop people, please!!! I already see people saying "Why can't Christians have a forum to worship if we want one, If there can be for a rock group, why not to our God to worship? There is no difference.". Oh, please! A huge difference!!! People are already not being able to look at this with an open mind. I knew that is what would happen, what always happens, people just can't talk about these things with an open mind without getting angry and insulted! Who needs it? This is a huge can of insanity that I don't wish to see opened and want nothing to do with! Thank you...

I can't for the life of me figure why we would need neighborhoods other than just basic selling, marketing, and networking! But, if eBay wants to include them as well go right ahead, I don't have to go into that neighborhood or read anything I don't want to. What's the big deal though? What importance to online buying and selling does religion or politics serve? I think some people have too much time on their hands and are reading way to into it. Your beliefs are YOUR BELEIFS, they have no weight on what I buy or sell. So I ask you, Why do we need it? Neighborhoods should be structured by region, product, marketing campaigns, and networking to bring a buyer and a seller together for a great (yet competitive) price. This isn't the mall! We're not here to window shop and then chew someones ear off about religion or what kinds of coffee I drink. I'm here to do business.

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!