I noticed after a break from posting that when I returned to post about the elections it asked me to log into the forum with the prompt stating that only registered members can read the forum. I was hoping that having the information open and available would cause it to be picked up by spiders and as a result show up on the web and potentially lead voters/readers to the sight. No having the forum open also means that candidates who take the time to post can only have their views and ideas seen by those registered to the forum which is nice but would be even nicer if what is written on MJ's boards could really impact the vote to a broader degree. So if I am correct only registered members will benefit for all the effort of information gathering is that right?
I'd have to check but I believe the politics section is the one section in the forum that lurkers don't have complete access. I believe it's been set up that way since we switched over from MetJax, back in 2008. The reason being, back in those days (well during any election season) it became the most volatile and difficult to moderate. When left unchecked, it quickly became a cesspool of people with agendas signing up with false names and spreading libel against candidates running against whatever person they happened to be backing at the time. Since that time, when we've had candidates come, we've opened up the front page for them or set up live forum chat sessions.
Ah okay. Makes sense.