I'm Banned from WSI

[Sir Realist]

Just went to log on to WSI and here's the message I got:

You have been banned for the following reason:
No reason was specified.

Date the ban will be lifted: Never

The only reason I can fathom I was banned was because of my association with you knuckleheads. It is a little strange that I was banned right after Baby Fisk was unbanned and I sent him a private message inviting him over here and asking him where he's been. I never did get a reply.

Oh well. I never once showed even the least amount of disrespect towards WSI or any of its staff members and I've been uncerimoniously excommunicated. I enter exile with my head held high.

:shrug:

[fquaye14ten]

Just went to log on to WSI and here's the message I got:



The only reason I can fathom I was banned was because of my association with you knuckleheads. It is a little strange that I was banned right after Baby Fisk was unbanned and I sent him a private message inviting him over here and asking him where he's been. I never did get a reply.

Oh well. I never once showed even the least amount of disrespect towards WSI or any of its staff members and I've been uncerimoniously excommunicated. I enter exile with my head held high.

:shrug:


well that's lame

[Unregistered]

Just went to log on to WSI and here's the message I got:



The only reason I can fathom I was banned was because of my association with you knuckleheads. It is a little strange that I was banned right after Baby Fisk was unbanned and I sent him a private message inviting him over here and asking him where he's been. I never did get a reply.

Oh well. I never once showed even the least amount of disrespect towards WSI or any of its staff members and I've been uncerimoniously excommunicated. I enter exile with my head held high.

:shrug:

Yep. That's exactly what we got a month ago.

I really hope BF didn't go rat you out for inviting him here... :omg:

[Sir Realist]

Yep. That's exactly what we got a month ago.

I really hope BF didn't go rat you out for inviting him here... :omg:

Actually, it was almost 2 months ago. Time flies when you're havin' fun. :)

[CaptainBallz]

Yep. That's exactly what we got a month ago.

I really hope BF didn't go rat you out for inviting him here... :omg:

but, it's like... March?

That's all so "Night of the Long Knives"...

Would BF sell you out, Realist?

[Unregistered]

Actually, it was almost 2 months ago. Time flies when you're havin' fun. :)

It was the end of January, if memory serves... :shrug:

[Palehose13]

Just went to log on to WSI and here's the message I got:



The only reason I can fathom I was banned was because of my association with you knuckleheads. It is a little strange that I was banned right after Baby Fisk was unbanned and I sent him a private message inviting him over here and asking him where he's been. I never did get a reply.

Oh well. I never once showed even the least amount of disrespect towards WSI or any of its staff members and I've been uncerimoniously excommunicated. I enter exile with my head held high.

:shrug:

Holy shit. Are you going to ask for an explanation? If it was for your association with us, that is pretty damn weak. However, that was the same banning message that we received. I would have hoped that we would be forgotten by now. I guess we really chafed someone's ass.

[Sir Realist]

Would BF sell you out, Realist?

I don't think so, but then again he is Croatian and I'm Serbian. It used to make me nervous when he'd speak German and talk about his love for Werner Herzog. The last time the Croats got all cozy with the Germans, eighteen members of my family were burned alive in a Serbian church in Croatia. :confused:

[Palehose13]

It was the end of January, if memory serves... :shrug:

I believe it was early January.

[Sir Realist]

It was the end of January, if memory serves... :shrug:

It was my birthday - January 10th

[Unregistered]

It was my birthday - January 10th

Wow, time does fly... :ok:

[CaptainBallz]

I don't think so, but then again he is Croatian and I'm Serbian. It used to make me nervous when he'd speak German and talk about his love for Werner Herzog. The last time the Croats got all cozy with the Germans, eighteen members of my family were burned alive in a Serbian church in Croatia. :confused:

:omg:

this runs deep...

[1951Campbell]

well that's lame

Yet totally unsurprising.

If they keep this up, they're gonna look around soon at WSI and not see a lot of people with a join date before 2005.

[Hangar18]

Just went to log on to WSI and here's the message I got:



The only reason I can fathom I was banned was because of my association with you knuckleheads. It is a little strange that I was banned right after Baby Fisk was unbanned and I sent him a private message inviting him over here and asking him where he's been. I never did get a reply.

Oh well. I never once showed even the least amount of disrespect towards WSI or any of its staff members and I've been uncerimoniously excommunicated. I enter exile with my head held high.

:shrug:


Life in a Police State ...........
Welcome Home

[Sir Realist]

Holy shit. Are you going to ask for an explanation? If it was for your association with us, that is pretty damn weak. However, that was the same banning message that we received. I would have hoped that we would be forgotten by now. I guess we really chafed someone's ass.

Nah. It is what it is. In the grand scheme of things it's really no biggie.

The Parking Lot over there looks like the dialog for the pods from Invasion of the Body Snatchers after all the personalities got banned in January anyway. Walking on egg shells doesn't really appeal to me.

The only things I'm going to miss are Jjav's and voodochile's posts.

[Hangar18]

Holy shit. Are you going to ask for an explanation? If it was for your association with us, that is pretty damn weak. However, that was the same banning message that we received. I would have hoped that we would be forgotten by now. I guess we really chafed someone's ass.

Freedom will do that to some people. Look what Hussein did to people who weren't on the same page ...........

[Palehose13]

Nah. It is what it is. In the grand scheme of things it's really no biggie.

The Parking Lot over there looks like the dialog for the pods from Invasion of the Body Snatchers after all the personalities got banned in January anyway. Walking on egg shells doesn't really appeal to me.

The only things I'm going to miss are Jjav's and voodochile's posts.

:thumbsup:

BTW...has anyone invited Jjav?

[CaptainBallz]

I hate pussy ass lameos...

[Unregistered]

I already told him about this place. He's a pussy ass lameo, he ain't gonna join.

He's pretty much given us the douche shoulder since we got banned.

:blowme:

[Sir Realist]

:omg:

this runs deep...

If Baby Fisk had anything to do with my banning, I'm sure it was an accident. He may have went to "Caiaphas" or one of his minions with my private message and link to ask permission to join here and inadvertently threw me under the blooftoni.

[Hangar18]

I already told him about this place. He's a pussy ass lameo, he ain't gonna join.


Maybe he CANT. He may be too scared to do so .....
(......somewhere, a dark sedan waits in the alley)

[CaptainBallz]

...to ask permission to join here ...

This is a concept that still has me shaking my head. I'm not sure the exact amount of cock sucking that goes into being a message board member, but it seems to me that "any" is too much.

I'd like to give people the benefit of the doubt that they're seriously not THAT fucking lame, but I tend to be wrong sometimes...

[TeeDeeGee]

Well, all WSI jackassity aside,
Welcome to the Banned of Brothers, Realist. :rock:

[Sir Realist]

Maybe he CANT. He may be too scared to do so .....
(......somewhere, a dark sedan waits in the alley)

You're probably right, Henry. It's as if a line is being drawn in the sand - "You're either with us, or you're with the terrorists".

[fquaye14ten]

hangar can we cool it with comparing banning people from an internet message board to crimes against humanity

[1951Campbell]

This is a concept that still has me shaking my head. I'm not sure the exact amount of cock sucking that goes into being a message board member, but it seems to me that "any" is too much.

I'd like to give people the benefit of the doubt that they're seriously not THAT fucking lame, but I tend to be wrong sometimes...

To be fair, I think some people are simply asking if they can be members of both boards, and then making a decision as to which one to pick once they're told one way or the other. That's a little different than asking permission.

[TeeDeeGee]

Well, all WSI jackassity aside,
Welcome to the Banned of Brothers, Realist. :rock:
http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/234/bobhd0.jpg

Also, off topic, but tag this thing: http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f224/TheDarkGundam/DancerPepper.gif

[Sir Realist]

This is a concept that still has me shaking my head. I'm not sure the exact amount of cock sucking that goes into being a message board member, but it seems to me that "any" is too much.

I'd like to give people the benefit of the doubt that they're seriously not THAT fucking lame, but I tend to be wrong sometimes...

I'm with you about any amount being too much. That's probably why I'm not even going to ask why I was banned.

Isn't it ironic that a board with a "no politics" policy is involved in some of the most bizzare politics I've ever seen on a board?

[Sir Realist]

http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/234/bobhd0.jpg

[/IMG]

Thank you very much. Can I be the medic guy that's in charge of the morphine stickers? :rock:

[Unregistered]

To be fair, I think some people are simply asking if they can be members of both boards, and then making a decision as to which one to pick once they're told one way or the other. That's a little different than asking permission.

Last time I checked, there were no sanctions for WSI members who were also on SoxTalk (or ANY other message board, for that matter.)


Why here?


Why...






Now?



http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/3362/trekwherenoman1se6.jpg

[Palehose13]

I'm with you about any amount being too much. That's probably why I'm not even going to ask why I was banned.

Isn't it ironic that a board with a "no politics" policy is involved in some of the most bizzare politics I've ever seen on a board?

It'd be interesting to see how that place went down the tubes. Some rules were put in place to clean up the place, which is fine but then it went way too far. It start to feel like I was on a kiddie ride when I want to be on a roller coaster.

For the record, I never understood the "wasting bandwidth" issue. Whoever accused someone of doing it would say something like, "This is a White Sox message board." so wouldn't ALL non-Sox talk be considered a waste of bandwidth?

[CaptainBallz]

To be fair, I think some people are simply asking if they can be members of both boards, and then making a decision as to which one to pick once they're told one way or the other. That's a little different than asking permission.

...but the thing is "they're asking if they can be members of both boards"!!

If WSI says "No, you can't", who in their right mind would not tell them to go take a long walk...!!!??

And all for what!? Baseball discussions that can lead to you getting banned for not sharing the opinion of the owner??

Holy shit, that's stupid...

[Sir Realist]

Last time I checked, there were no sanctions for WSI members who were also on SoxTalk (or ANY other message board, for that matter.)


Why here?


Why...






Now?



http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/3362/trekwherenoman1se6.jpg

They may be trying to stop the bleeding. Sox Talk wasn't syphoning off members WSI every day by the hippy bus load like this site has been.

...or maybe they're just bored over at WSI.

[1951Campbell]

...but the thing is "they're asking if they can be members of both boards"!!

If WSI says "No, you can't", who in their right mind would not tell them to go take a long walk...!!!??

And all for what!? Baseball discussions that can lead to you getting banned for not sharing the opinion of the owner??

Holy shit, that's stupid...

Oh, I'm not saying the situation isn't lame, I was just pointing out that it's a little unfair to assume everyone is grovelling when they deal with eggshellsinteractive, that's all.

[CaptainBallz]

They may be trying to stop the bleeding. Sox Talk wasn't syphoning off members WSI every day by the hippy bus load like this site has been.




http://azedia.com/zaadz/images/hippiebus.jpg

The SATC/WSJ Ferry. Runs all day -- one way.

*look at fquaye's silly floppy hat...:nana:

[1951Campbell]

Last time I checked, there were no sanctions for WSI members who were also on SoxTalk (or ANY other message board, for that matter.)


Why here?


Why...






Now?





Add-a-sentence story at WSJ.

[Unregistered]

...but the thing is "they're asking if they can be members of both boards"!!

If WSI says "No, you can't", who in their right mind would not tell them to go take a long walk...!!!??

And all for what!? Baseball discussions that can lead to you getting banned for not sharing the opinion of the owner??

Holy shit, that's stupid...

Which, as you know, is why most of us are still banned - many of us haven't even bothered asking to come back. It's really just principle at this point. And more importantly, it's called having self-respect. In the best way possible, we're way too proud to beg to be reinstated from a board we were unjustly banned from to begin with. If we were new to the site and causing trouble AT the site, that would be one thing. But some of us have been there almost 5 years - and a few had never been banned prior to January. It's just insulting.

WSI is it's posters. Without anyone posting there, it's nothing. And they pay their posters back by banning them - for discussing the site and its members on another board.


:fap:

[1951Campbell]

Isn't it ironic that a board with a "no politics" policy is involved in some of the most bizzare politics I've ever seen on a board?

POTW.

:thumbsup:

I'd need a wall-sized flow-chart to keep up with all the entangling alliances.

[fquaye14ten]

STRAW HAT

[Unregistered]

Add-a-sentence story at WSJ.

BFD. Remember when we re-posted the thread on WSI? Cause I don't. :jagoff:

AAAAAAAAAAAAND that thread was harmless bullshit, anyway. We weren't intentionally being vicious, nor were we even speaking in reality-based terms. A couple people invoked the names of a few WSI personalities, sheerly based on BOREDOM, and it was treated like we were running around WSI telling everyone that FWC eats cock. I think a total of 2 PEOPLE brought WSI personalities into that thread, and only about 5 people even POSTED in the fucking thing.

How any of that translates into 30 long-time members and 1 respected mod getting lifetime bans is a mystery to me.

[Palehose13]

BFD. Remember when we re-posted the thread on WSI? Cause I don't. :jagoff:

AAAAAAAAAAAAND that thread was harmless bullshit, anyway. We weren't intentionally being vicious, nor were we even speaking in reality-based terms. A couple people invoked the names of a few WSI personalities, sheerly based on BOREDOM, and it was treated like we were running around WSI telling everyone that FWC eats cock. I think a total of 2 PEOPLE brought WSI personalities into that thread, and only about 5 people even POSTED in the fucking thing.

How any of that translates into 30 long-time members and 1 respected mod getting lifetime bans is a mystery to me.

The admins have a very short fuse.

[Sir Realist]

How any of that translates into 30 long-time members and 1 respected mod getting lifetime bans is a mystery to me.

31 now. :hello:

[1951Campbell]

How any of that translates into 30 long-time members and 1 respected mod getting lifetime bans is a mystery to me.

The mods there skew old, and old people are shocked by such stuff.

Again, not saying it isn't lame, just pointing that out.

[Unregistered]

This has been discussed ad-naseum, but I'll add this and leave it be: I guess I just feel like most (if not all) of us deserved a warning for what we were saying at WSJ. If we were told that we could no longer post at WSJ or we'd be banned, we'd at least be able to make a choice. And while most of us may have not appreciated the ultimatum and told them to go screw, we'd at least know what the consequences were. Instead, we all woke up one day to find out were banned. And that showed loud and clear what they thought of us.

Once WSJ was up and running I think I posted at WSI maybe 3 times in 2 months, so it wasn't like it affected me at all. But again - to me it's the principle.

[fquaye14ten]

This has been discussed ad-naseum, but I'll add this and leave it be: I guess I just feel like most (if not all) of us deserved a warning for what we were saying at WSJ. If we were told that we could no longer post at WSJ or we'd be banned, we'd at least be able to make a choice. And while most of us may have not appreciated the ultimatum and told them to go screw, we'd at least know what the consequences were. Instead, we all woke up one day to find out were banned. And that showed loud and clear what they thought of us.

Once WSJ was up and running I think I posted at WSI maybe 3 times in 2 months, so it wasn't like it affected me at all. But again - to me it's the principle.

I've said it before and I'll say it again---it really looked like they were looking for excuses to ban us....

A lot of our threads were getting roadhoused for no good reason, CLR was undercutting ph13's modding from time to time---the writing was on the wall

[Hangar18]

...but the thing is "they're asking if they can be members of both boards"!!

If WSI says "No, you can't", who in their right mind would not tell them to go take a long walk...!!!??

Holy shit, that's stupid...

Thats the thing I find ultimately preposterous. Never let a website tell you what to do my friends. Again like I said previously........ If that website wants to tell me where I can go/whom I can associate with, then I probably don't want to be a member there. Isnt Freedom Great?!

[Hangar18]

31 now. :hello:

hahaahahha. Im glad your here man

[Hangar18]

Last time I checked, there were no sanctions for WSI members who were also on SoxTalk (or ANY other message board, for that matter.)
http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/3362/trekwherenoman1se6.jpg

Look how big SoxTalk got last summer. SoxTalk isn't a threat to that other place. This one is, and they are sanctioning people left and right.
Heck, some have joined here with DIFFERENT screen-names, out of fear of Retribution by the Thought Police over there. I said dont worry about that nonsense, if they do that to you .....why would you want to go back?
SATC. The little board that could ............. (insert clever sentence)

[LuvSox]

Is WSI run by a bunch of High School girls? That's how they act.

[CaptainBallz]

Look how big SoxTalk got last summer. SoxTalk isn't a threat to that other place. This one is, and they are sanctioning people left and right.
Heck, some have joined here with DIFFERENT screen-names, out of fear of Retribution by the Thought Police over there. I said dont worry about that nonsense, if they do that to you .....why would you want to go back?
SATC. The little board that could ............. (insert clever sentence)

They're idiots.
I would just like to see the calculation in West's head proving that it's a GOOD idea to have hundreds of Sox fans going around bashing their website online and in the real world. I would say that's "bad business", but that's just me.
I was referred to WSI at the beginning of '05 by a friend of mine. He was subsequently banned for making an Office Space joke that went over West's head. I remained and was subsequently banned for being a member of another message board. Do you think either of us would talk up that site to other people like we once would?
Their response would probably be something to the effect of "Well, if their friends of yours, we wouldn't want them here"... or something to that effect.

That is why they are idiots.

[fquaye14ten]

your name has ballz in it

hee hee

[CaptainBallz]

your name has ballz in it

hee hee

respect this.

[fquaye14ten]

titmouse

[Palehose13]

I like beer.

[TeeDeeGee]

I like beer.

Alsip is full of rednecks or something. :shrug:

[LuvSox]

Alsip is full of rednecks or something. :shrug:

I'm excellent.

[TeeDeeGee]

I'm excellent.

I have no idea what you're all talking about.
Just thought you'd all like to know.
When is my boyfriend gonna PROPOSE?!

[Palehose13]

Proposals suck.






gene

[SoxCrazed]

I'm with you about any amount being too much. That's probably why I'm not even going to ask why I was banned.

Isn't it ironic that a board with a "no politics" policy is involved in some of the most bizzare politics I've ever seen on a board?

They should at least tell you why you were banned. Common courtesy unless you threatened someone or something. It is ironic that they say no politcs under the sun yet that is the 2nd most political board I have ever seen. 1st was thr NRA's. And they are a political org so I guess that's gonna be the case.

Are people really asking WSI for "permission" to join this site?? If so that is pretty sad.

[Prope]

Proposals suck.






gene
They sure do. You spend the money on the ring, then money on the dinner, perhaps some new clothes, and THEN A TIP?!?!?! Fuck that, I'm never getting married, costs way too much.

[ChiSoxGirl]

Sir Realist: I just checked your WSI profile. It shows you are not banned. You might want to check it out.:shrug:

[itsnotrequired]

Are people really asking WSI for "permission" to join this site?? If so that is pretty sad.

Beats me, I sure didn't.

[JohnBasedowYoda]

BFD. Remember when we re-posted the thread on WSI? Cause I don't. :jagoff:

AAAAAAAAAAAAND that thread was harmless bullshit, anyway. We weren't intentionally being vicious, nor were we even speaking in reality-based terms. A couple people invoked the names of a few WSI personalities, sheerly based on BOREDOM, and it was treated like we were running around WSI telling everyone that FWC eats cock. I think a total of 2 PEOPLE brought WSI personalities into that thread, and only about 5 people even POSTED in the fucking thing.

How any of that translates into 30 long-time members and 1 respected mod getting lifetime bans is a mystery to me.


Could I love him more.



So as it stands this is how I see it: WSI sucks and we rule.

[JohnBasedowYoda]

titmouse



You've achieved the rank of "pussy-willow"

[Sir Realist]

Sir Realist: I just checked your WSI profile. It shows you are not banned. You might want to check it out.:shrug:

Unable to connect to database

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b369/clare_shanahan/bunnybeating.gif

[Sir Realist]

They should at least tell you why you were banned.

This is probably the greatest sin in the whole drama. I never read the thread that got the original 30 people banned from WSI, but from I hear it was pretty tame and sounds like West really overracted. Even if the thread were mean and nasty and ALL the members of WSJ had crossed the line of decency, West still should have taken the high road gave reasons to the long standing members for their bannings.

Hell, I even gave them money to help support that site! To just cut me loose without any explanation after I never once said a disrespectful thing about White Sox Interactive or any of its moderating staff on ANY message board is very uncivil and pretty much unforgiveable. I would never apologize in order to be reinstated there. They're the ones that owe me an apology.

There was a thread in the Roadhouse in which I apologized to everybody for making a political thread about Kosovo. George Bova responded by saying, "Realist, you're too good for this board." It looks like he was right.

[JohnBasedowYoda]

This is probably the greatest sin in the whole drama. I never read the thread that got the original 30 people banned from WSI, but from I hear it was pretty tame and sounds like West really overracted. Even if the thread were mean and nasty and ALL the members of WSJ had crossed the line of decency, West still should have taken the high road gave reasons to the long standing members for their bannings.

Hell, I even gave them money to help support that site! To just cut me loose without any explanation after I never once said a disrespectful thing about White Sox Interactive or any of its moderating staff on ANY message board is very uncivil and pretty much unforgiveable. I would never apologize in order to be reinstated there. They're the ones that owe me an apology.

He's an asshole. We should've done something like this a year ago instead of letting those brokeback-lardbacks push us around all the time. Who ever said it was right when they said if you have to wonder if your going to get banned for posting something then the damn place isn't worth it.

[fquaye14ten]

This is probably the greatest sin in the whole drama. I never read the thread that got the original 30 people banned from WSI, but from I hear it was pretty tame and sounds like West really overracted. Even if the thread were mean and nasty and ALL the members of WSJ had crossed the line of decency, West still should have taken the high road gave reasons to the long standing members for their bannings.

Hell, I even gave them money to help support that site! To just cut me loose without any explanation after I never once said a disrespectful thing about White Sox Interactive or any of its moderating staff on ANY message board is very uncivil and pretty much unforgiveable. I would never apologize in order to be reinstated there. They're the ones that owe me an apology.

There was a thread in the Roadhouse in which I apologized to everybody for making a political thread about Kosovo. George Bova responded by saying, "Realist, you're too good for this board." It looks like he was right.


bova ftw!

[Sir Realist]

bova ftw!

Here's (http://www.whitesoxinteractive.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=39459) that thread.

I like this quote from George: "Either way this is no place for rational discourse... and it never was."

Getting George to hook his pages to this site would be a huge score. :whistle:

[JohnBasedowYoda]

PHG: ahhhhh the endless supply of bad threads...so much... time wasted
Fat Cow: let's delete them then *yam* *cookie*
PHG: oh bother

[soxwon]

I was banned 3 times.
If they banned you for being on here, thats really low.
im gonna go on to see if im Banned.

[Sir Realist]

I was banned 3 times.
If they banned you for being on here, thats really low.
im gonna go on to see if im Banned.

There's really no other explanation. Here's (http://www.whitesoxinteractive.com/vbulletin/search.php?searchid=405198) a list of my final posts over at WSI. I don't see anything there that deserves a warning, let alone a perma-banning.

[soxwon]

There's really no other explanation. Here's (http://www.whitesoxinteractive.com/vbulletin/search.php?searchid=405198) a list of my final posts over at WSI. I don't see anything there that deserves a warning, let alone a perma-banning.

your better off here, this is freedom of speech here.
i still go to wsi for information, but i also go to soxtalk and another southside board.
but i love this board best.

hangAr wheres steff at?

[ChiSoxGirl]

Sir Realist: That "Unable to connect to database" message is the one everyone gets when the server is having problems because even banned people can view the home page on WSI. The server has been up & down over the past few days over there. Try logging in again.

[Iwritecode]

Sir Realist: I just checked your WSI profile. It shows you are not banned. You might want to check it out.:shrug:

I checked and got the same thing. You're not banned.

[Sir Realist]

I checked and got the same thing. You're not banned.

This is what I get when I try to post:


You have been banned for the following reason:
No reason was specified.

Date the ban will be lifted: Never

[BURGH]

I was banned for being black on a Friday night.

[Palehose13]

Here's (http://www.whitesoxinteractive.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=39459) that thread.

I like this quote from George: "Either way this is no place for rational discourse... and it never was."

Getting George to hook his pages to this site would be a huge score. :whistle:

That might not be as difficult as one may think. When West was getting the new server (the one that costs almost $500/month, but he still was reluctant to take people's money for it), breaking away from flyingsock.com was discussed by the big guns. I think the issue was that they were going to have to get another web addy or something.

However, I don't know if George would want to come here. We are just a bunch of immature idiots. :devilnana:

[fquaye14ten]

That might not be as difficult as one may think. When West was getting the new server (the one that costs almost $500/month, but he still was reluctant to take people's money for it), breaking away from flyingsock.com was discussed by the big guns. I think the issue was that they were going to have to get another web addy or something.

However, I don't know if George would want to come here. We are just a bunch of immature idiots. :devilnana:

SEND THE INVITES