Ethics???

[MD_Brite]

Not sure exactly where to post this, but I thought this would be the best place. Something that has bothered me as of late, is that several friends of mine have been banned from a number of disscussion sites because either they live or know a certian individual, Scott Melrose who had the ID of Cyberdoc1971 and Cyberdoc for some odd reason. Yes, I do live with him, and I do not wish this topic to turn into a public lynching of him debating if he is a scam artist or not.

The issue being is it right or wrong to ban somebody because they have some kind of association being in contact with a person labeled as a scammer/thief/whatever?

I am not going to drag out a long list of who has been banned, I feel I might be next. I look at and use this site as a good repository for information and help with my Sony TH55 god forbid if something ever goes wrong with it. I kinda sort of feel that I'm losing my mind over this, so I'm asking how others feel about this.

[GodOwnsAnNX80]

Unethical? Probably. But they're still free to do it. Considering that you can go to jail for living with a known criminal under certain circumstances, being banned for living with a "known scammer" doesn't sound to unreasonable. There's a certain concern that said scammer could be using your account info to continue scamming, and they're obligated to protect their members.

[philpalm]

Ah, but your scenario may be your point of view. I am not an editor but I can read your posting history and can judge in a more broad view of where you are coming from.

First off if a person doesn't contribute thoughtful questions, generally disemitate bad information, or even show courtesy on those grounds many folks are banned. However some serial trolls never learn how to post civilily or politically correct and truly ruin their privilage to participate at this forum.

Actually your post may not have worded exactly what you mean. Sometimes re-stating the question may get you a better answer. Try again if you feel you haven't gotten the response you wanted.

[MD_Brite]

As I said before, this is not a debate if Scott is a "scammer" or not. Also, he is not a "known" criminal, he has no criminal or arrest record and I have known the man for over 5 years; and I firmly believe he does not abuse my account in any way. Like a lot of other people out there, I rotate my passwords out on a regular basis and keep those to myself.

[The New No. Two]

As I said before, this is not a debate if Scott is a "scammer" or not. Also, he is not a "known" criminal, he has no criminal or arrest record and I have known the man for over 5 years; and I firmly believe he does not abuse my account in any way. Like a lot of other people out there, I rotate my passwords out on a regular basis and keep those to myself.

For all we know, this is Cyberdoc talking.

[MD_Brite]

For all we know, this is Cyberdoc talking.

It's not, but what can I do to prove that?

The point of this topic is not about Scott, but if it is right or wrong to ban anyone from a site because they are connected to Scott Melrose in some way(friend, relative, co-worker, supervisor, business partner, etc), even if they have never done anything wrong.

[bh77a]

How would someone know that you are "connected" to "scott" unless you tell them that you are?

If I remember correctly there is nothing in the membership asking to state who on the forums you personally know, etc...

[The New No. Two]

It's not, but what can I do to prove that?

The point of this topic is not about Scott, but if it is right or wrong to ban anyone from a site because they are connected to Scott Melrose in some way(friend, relative, co-worker, supervisor, business partner, etc), even if they have never done anything wrong.

It's common for banned individuals to reappear under other usernames, often those of individuals they associate with. Therefore it makes good sense to ban the individuals who associate with the banned individual. If they don't like it, they have no one but the banned individual to blame.

You claim to be very close to this Scott fellow, and in fact you cannot prove that you aren't him. So I think that you would be one of the last people who would want to challenge the moderators' authority in this matter.

In other words, lighten up.

[Cyker]

How would anyone know if they were associated with this person anyway?

Unless they were doing something on the forum to link themselves to whoever this guy is, an/or disrupting the forum somehow, I can't see why they'd get banned.

[MD_Brite]

How would someone know that you are "connected" to "scott" unless you tell them that you are?

If I remember correctly there is nothing in the membership asking to state who on the forums you personally know, etc...

All I am saying, is that it has happened to others and I don't think it is right to ban somebody for no other reason than knowing Scott Melrose. I just got permission to do this from someone that was affected, but one specific example was with Terri Valentine, who visits and uses our PC from time to time. She was banned from Brighthand where they believe that she was an alter-ego of Scott. She is a real person, and very upset about all of this.

[philpalm]

Ah ha more details. Maybe the standards are higher at bighthand?

Similarily when a person uses a computer, that computer has an ID and everytime that particular computer(with that particular server) is used any person banned can't relog a new name and identity from that computer and server. Understand? Your friend needs to use a different computer, or have to send a message to Brighthand and explain the situation and why the person banned won't be using that particular computer any more. If your friend can't prove the banned person won't be using the computer, she/he won't be able to have the privilage to sign in where that person got banned. Open and shut case, be careful whose computer you use or let borrow.

[MD_Brite]

I'll tell her, I still don't think Brighthand had the right to do that. I also think there are some individuals out there that monitor our IP address, and don't like it if someone on this PC becomes part of an online community that they are part of. I was considering getting a Brighthand account for some good PDA info, but what has happened to Scott and Terri, that is not possible. Philpalm, just curious, isn't you location in Spain?

[Legodude522]

If 1src and other sites wish not to have anything to do with Cyberdoc it is totally up to them. It's not gonna hurt there business at all to ban people who have a relationship with Cyberdoc. In fact it will be better for the sites.

[MD_Brite]

I still don't think it's right for anyone to do this even if you don't like a person like Scott, you shouldn't hurt his friends like that. Also, I may be wrong, wouldn't there be legal issues to ban somebody because they were associated with Scott?

[jjesusfreak01]

Its simply the way banning software works. If a certain person who tries to unban themselves by creating new accounts and logs back on with the same IP, then they get banned. If you log on on their computer or on their network, the software should notice that it is not the IP you generally post from, give you a warning, or the mods should give you the ability to unban your account.

As far as rights go, the site owners have the right to do whatever they want. Its their site. If they pay for it, we shouldnt complain (too much).

[Legodude522]

I still don't think it's right for anyone to do this even if you don't like a person like Scott, you shouldn't hurt his friends like that. Also, I may be wrong, wouldn't there be legal issues to ban somebody because they were associated with Scott?When you joined the site you agreed to the Terms Of Service.

I am in now way associated with 1src. But I know the staff.

[minimalposter]

Ethics? Unethical? As a graduate student in ethics (specifically bioethics and its relation to reproductive autonomy) I find nothing about the ban or unban in the realm of "ethics." Just saying something isn't right in someones mind does not fall into the field of ethical thought.

I heard the most amazing talk on Josh Greene (Harvard I believe) investigation of moral inconsistency. Absolutely brilliant -- and if you are a member of 1src Josh I would love to talk sometime.


And if this was child pornography found on a community computer -- the results would be similar and more severe. Be careful with your friends.

[MD_Brite]

I only used the word "ethics" as a general term, I may be wrong in its specifics...but it seem to fit. I still believe what happened was wrong, and that several people suffered because of what I suspect as IP address monitoring.

[Telyx]

It most likely IS IP address monitoring. How else can a site keep the same person from rejoining under a new name every time he/she is banned?

[MD_Brite]

Scott has no intrest in rejoing 1src, it's our friens we are concearned about. Just to blindly block an IP address, or to assume someone is an "alter-ego" is wrong.

[philpalm]

Well now that we have gotten to the crux of the problem, there are solutions that can be offered and tried.
1) Have a notarized statement signed by Scott stating that he will not rejoin. Present it to the powers that be and see if anything ocurs.
2) Work out a solution where your friend uses you as a proxy in asking questions or using some of the services.
3) Your friend can e-mail to another person so that she can post thru that person.
4) Believe it or not there are various ways to circumvent the system, but it is set up so that the system will not be abused.

BTW it is alhambra near los angeles....

[MD_Brite]

Well now that we have gotten to the crux of the problem, there are solutions that can be offered and tried.
1) Have a notarized statement signed by Scott stating that he will not rejoin. Present it to the powers that be and see if anything ocurs.
2) Work out a solution where your friend uses you as a proxy in asking questions or using some of the services.
3) Your friend can e-mail to another person so that she can post thru that person.
4) Believe it or not there are various ways to circumvent the system, but it is set up so that the system will not be abused.

BTW it is alhambra near los angeles....

Interesting idea, but there are some other issues at work as well. I just discussed this with Scott, he has no problem in signing a statement, but this does not help others on diffrent sites.

He and I also believe that some of this is also the work of someone who does not Scott, myself, and people associated with us to be part of certian sites.

[Reggie]

I just saw this thread, and sorry if this has been asked before, are you this same md_brite in ebay? http://myworld.ebay.com/md_brite/

[MD_Brite]

Yes, and it is still a sore topic for me. Like a lot of people out there, someone abused my Ebay account and hurt some people out there. The issues were resolved, but I do not Ebay anymore because of this.

[holvoetn]

I am already following this thread since post #1, now I really need to say something:

I am the BrightHand moderator who banned Cyberdoc1971 and shadow1198.
To me you are one and the same. Your choice of language is exactly the same, the word choice, device interest, even the excuses ... (though you should not have any possibility of knowing this unless ... well, unless you are one and the same).

Let's recap:
- you got your IP address abused by others. Did you report this with your ISP ? I guess not ...
- your Ebay account was hacked. BTW did you file a complain with Ebay about this ? What was the outcome ? Why weren't the comments corrected on your account ?
- your forum acounts were hacked so others posted in your name. Did you report this to admin ? No ? Hmm hmm ...
- The terminology 'alter ego' was the term I used when banning shadow. You often read each others mails ?

Sorry, but this is becoming a joke ... you are trying WAY to hard to proof you are not who you really are.

@ 1SRC staff: please accept my sincere apologies for this outburst, but I really wanted to say this already since post #1. If you feel this was unjustified, please consider me like any other member over here and act accordingly.

[MD_Brite]

I am already following this thread since post #1, now I really need to say something:

I am the BrightHand moderator who banned Cyberdoc1971 and shadow1198.
To me you are one and the same. Your choice of language is exactly the same, the word choice, device interest, even the excuses ... (though you should not have any possibility of knowing this unless ... well, unless you are one and the same).

Let's recap:
- you got your IP address abused by others. Did you report this with your ISP ? I guess not ...
- your Ebay account was hacked. BTW did you file a complain with Ebay about this ? What was the outcome ? Why weren't the comments corrected on your account ?
- your forum acounts were hacked so others posted in your name. Did you report this to admin ? No ? Hmm hmm ...
- The terminology 'alter ego' was the term I used when banning shadow. You often read each others mails ?

Sorry, but this is becoming a joke ... you are trying WAY to hard to proof you are not who you really are.

@ 1SRC staff: please accept my sincere apologies for this outburst, but I really wanted to say this already since post #1. If you feel this was unjustified, please consider me like any other member over here and act accordingly.

I am who I say I am, yes I did report the abuse about my IP address and it still is being resolved. As for Ebay, that has been taken care of, and I do not know why there were no notes on my account in regards getting the issues resolved. Also, how can you judge a person by their word useage, if you pick 10 people at random...you might find that most of them will use the same words. Yes, Scott and I have used the same model PDA, he recently sold his TH55 and I still have mine. I have never had my forum account hacked, only Scott's was. I feel that this attack was unwarranted, the issue is what I have stated before, not about if Scott Melrose is a scammer. I have never met you, and wonder what I have done to deserve such abuse.

[Joel]

Interesting... Scott and you said the exact reason why goods were not delivered at an auction -- that your accounts were hacked. I find it interesting that your accounts can easily be hacked and in a large, popular site too. I wonder how easy it is for that hacker (who apparently loves to hack everyone's account there at your household) to hack your account in an insignificant site such as 1src?

So Scott Melrose, MD_Brite, Griffin, Sabine, or whatever your name is... it's quite difficult for you to convince the the mods and members here who you really are at any given time. And what your intentions are. Take a look at the replies... I'm seeing more negative reactions than positive ones. I hope you can see that too

Probably, the next thing I'll read (and I won't be surprised if I read it in the future), will be you giving the excuse that your account here at 1src was hacked all along...

[Joel]

I have an offer. If eBay writes us to clear md_brite's and cyberdoc's name, then I'll write a front page apology.

[philpalm]

Forum rules and feedback:
"Forum Rules

Although the administrators and moderators of 1src will attempt to keep all objectionable messages off this forum, it is impossible for us to review all messages. All messages express the views of the author, and neither the owners of 1src will be held responsible for the content of any message.

* No posting or soliciting of illegal applications such as warez, keygens, and cracks.
* No personal attacks against any other ClieSource member or moderator.
* No posting of messages that are obscene, vulgar, sexually-orientated, hateful, threatening, or otherwise violative of any laws.

The owners of 1src reserve the right to remove, edit, move or close any thread for any reason.

First offense: Warning will be sent and via email. For unregistered members, see second offense.
Second Offense: Username and IP's used will be banned for a week from the site's forums.
Third Offense: Username and IP's used will be banned for a month from the site's forums.
Fourth Offense: Username and IP's used will be banned for 6 months from the site's forums.
Fifth Offense: Username and IP's used will be banned forever from the site's forums.

When banned, access (viewing and posting) throughout the forums will be revoked. Since IPs are also banned, a banned member with multiple usernames will cover all his/her usernames.

We encourage everyone to report (by clicking on the 'Report post to moderator") any post which violates the rules specified above.

Thank you very much."
-----------------------------------------
Wow, I never re read the rules of the forum, and the whole issue of the link has other side issues. I am glad I am not a moderator since it is at times a thankless job. In some of the issues the person complaining should take it to a private level.

However burn me once, its often lesson learned. In the ot there are people supposedly hurt, but what about the integrity of 1src? The whole household thing sounds fishy, and I wouldn't want some of the good vibes at 1src be ruined on account of a few bad apples. Supposedly MD Brite is acting very polite, but due to privacy issues it boils down to unraveling other issues.

Fortunately the Palm&Co community is very tight. Other offenses can be checked, if anything scammers may not be smart if they made such a big issue. However if anyone who was hurt doesn't want the return of infererred party they should speak up(or be notified) so that we can also know their point of view.

[MD_Brite]

Interesting... Scott and you said the exact reason why goods were not delivered at an auction -- that your accounts were hacked. I find it interesting that your accounts can easily be hacked and in a large, popular site too. I wonder how easy it is for that hacker (who apparently loves to hack everyone's account there at your household) to hack your account in an insignificant site such as 1src?

So Scott Melrose, MD_Brite, Griffin, Sabine, or whatever your name is... it's quite difficult for you to convince the the mods and members here who you really are at any given time. And what your intentions are. Take a look at the replies... I'm seeing more negative reactions than positive ones. I hope you can see that too

Probably, the next thing I'll read (and I won't be surprised if I read it in the future), will be you giving the excuse that your account here at 1src was hacked all along...

The only 1Src accounts that have been registered in this home have been MD_Brite, Cyberdoc1971, and Cyberdoc (which I think was a mistake on the PC...not sure how it happened). Just asked Scott, he doesn't know and never heard of Griffin or Sabine. I'm a bit of a tech dummy, but is it possible to get an IP mixed up with another?

[Legodude522]

The only 1Src accounts that have been registered in this home have been MD_Brite, Cyberdoc1971, and Cyberdoc (which I think was a mistake on the PC...not sure how it happened). Just asked Scott, he doesn't know and never heard of Griffin or Sabine. I'm a bit of a tech dummy, but is it possible to get an IP mixed up with another?Nope. It is unique.

[MD_Brite]

Real strange, I know those sign-in names were never used around here.

[tlacour]

Scott,

As I have told you on quite a few occasions,

No one on these forums believes the sorted tales of hacking and ID theft that you cook up to explain your shadey behavior.

No one is fooled when you claim to be a friend who just happens to be living at the same house, using the same IP address etc.

The people here are smart and not easily fooled. It is obvious to all that all of these ID that you adopt are really you.

So far you and your aliases claim that 3 different friends live with you and your wife. The pattern seems to be that your friends sign up and start defending you. Then when someone discovers that this friend is using your IP address, it is suddenly revealed that this friend is really living with you.

If you would quit all of this BS and simply contribute to the comunity like everyone else, all of this would go away.

:confused:

I just don't get it.

You could....right now....drop this and start posting here. The people here, just like the other similar forums, are kind and considerate. They would take you in, treat you with respect and accept you. Instead you will keep going back and forth with the lies and acusations until you are banned here as well.
You were doing well over at the Linux forum. I would come across your name there from time to time, and every one there had taken you in. It wasn't until you started soliciting on the sale forums that the backlash ended up with you being banned there.

BTW anyone interested in my dealings with Scott can check out this thread and the associated links.

http://www.1src.com/forums/showthread.php?t=106088&highlight=cyberdoc1971

[tlacour]

The only 1Src accounts that have been registered in this home have been MD_Brite, Cyberdoc1971, and Cyberdoc (which I think was a mistake on the PC...not sure how it happened). Just asked Scott, he doesn't know and never heard of Griffin or Sabine. I'm a bit of a tech dummy, but is it possible to get an IP mixed up with another?

What about Shadow1198. The female pilot that is living with all of you over at Brighthand?


Brighthand Shadow1198 link (http://forum.brighthand.com/showthread.php?t=233553&highlight=shadow1198)

You must have a big house.
:eek:

[MD_Brite]

For starters, I am not Scott Melrose...I am his wife. We have a 3-bedroom house and currently we have one roomate, Terri. We have had friends stay with us from time to time, to me that doesn't sound too strange. Tony Lacour (Tlacour), I haven't had any dealings with you, but Scott has. I find it strange that you go off my main topic and drag out issues from the past, I am not sure what you are trying to prove...makes me wonder though. I am trying to keep within the rules in the 1src forums, you are starting to make it difficult, so please drop it.

[tlacour]

For starters, I am not Scott Melrose...I am his wife. We have a 3-bedroom house and currently we have one roomate, Terri. We have had friends stay with us from time to time, to me that doesn't sound too strange. Tony Lacour (Tlacour), I haven't had any dealings with you, but Scott has. I find it strange that you go off my main topic and drag out issues from the past, I am not sure what you are trying to prove...makes me wonder though. I am trying to keep within the rules in the 1src forums, you are starting to make it difficult, so please drop it.

Strange....in this post:

See post number 30 (http://www.1src.com/forums/showthread.php?t=106088&page=2&pp=15&highlight=cyberdoc1971)

You claim to be he and his wife's friend and roommate.
" I share a house with both of them, it works out for everybody especially since cost of living has gone up lately."

Did you and Scott knock off his wife and now you, Terri (AKA Shadow1198) and Scott are living in some sort of wierd 3way?
:eek:
Or....maybe someone is not being truthful. :rolleyes:

[MD_Brite]

That kind of behavior Tlacour is not appreciated or allowed here, I suggest you drop it, I have also notified a Mod on this.

[Reggie]

Uh oh, how are we supposed to believe you now, MD_Brite? Which is which?

[MD_Brite]

personally, I take everything coming from Tony Lacour with a grain of salt. He's the one that has been threatening Scott in calling up everyone in a contact list he pirated from us to tell about his grude of how Scott ripped him off. Or take it from me where I have been honest about everything and I do not have any secrets to hide. I think this has gone way off topic, and this bickering has to stop.

[Legodude522]

That kind of behavior Tlacour is not appreciated or allowed here, I suggest you drop it, I have also notified a Mod on this.I know Tlacour and he is a trusted member of the large PDA community.

[tlacour]

He's the one that has been threatening Scott in calling up everyone in a contact list he pirated from us to tell about his grude

I only told a few people about me grude and that was in the strictest of confidence. ;)




Thanks Legodude522, That was very nice to hear.
:)

[MD_Brite]

Not trying to step out of my bounds here, I thought the truth had to be told, and I'm hoping no more surprises with anything else. Let's see if we can continue with the topic at hand.

[_Em]

Not sure exactly where to post this, but I thought this would be the best place. Something that has bothered me as of late, is that several friends of mine have been banned from a number of disscussion sites because either they live or know a certian individual, Scott Melrose who had the ID of Cyberdoc1971 and Cyberdoc for some odd reason. Yes, I do live with him, and I do not wish this topic to turn into a public lynching of him debating if he is a scam artist or not.

You are Scott's wife, and you have personal friends, using your home network and living with you, who are being banned after posting information about their relationship with Scott, and defending him in forums that have to do with discussion about PDAs and OSes. So far, makes sense to me; I don't know where I stand on this. Most forums have an Off-Topic thread, and that's where stuff like this belongs. It doesn't appear that that's where it is being posted, however, which means the posters aren't abiding by forum rules.
The issue being is it right or wrong to ban somebody because they have some kind of association being in contact with a person labeled as a scammer/thief/whatever?
As has been noted previously, you can go to jail for aiding and abetting. If he is not a criminal, but just a lowlife, people can choose not to associate with people who associate with him. This is normal social dynamics. Personally, I try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt until I find that they don't just have an association with the other person, but are unwilling to disassociate from that person's way of life when associating with others. As his wife, I can understand that this would be very difficult for you to do.
I am not going to drag out a long list of who has been banned, I feel I might be next. I look at and use this site as a good repository for information and help with my Sony TH55 god forbid if something ever goes wrong with it. I kinda sort of feel that I'm losing my mind over this, so I'm asking how others feel about this.
This paragraph is just odd. You proceed to start listing people who have been banned at various places, and the first sentence is really an invitation to others on this board to start mentioning the usernames associated with Scott who have been banned. You then say you feel you might be next -- would you have been if you hadn't started this thread? You have moved from using this site as it is meant to be used to using it as a platform for defending someone who has been banned on other sites.

When others begin to respond, dragging up bad relationships with Scott and how he abuses forums by using multiple user IDs to game them, you say that this is off topic. However, it seems to me that this is the core of the problem. He is abusing his real life relationships to gain monetary advantage through his online relationships. As his wife, I would recommend that first, you sit down and have a talk with him about his behaviour -- you either condone it or you don't.

If you do, I find it completely acceptable that people are banning you from their forums. If you don't, you have issues of trust you need to deal with in your relationship (especially if you are protecting your usernames and passwords from your husband, and rotating your passwords to keep him from using your accounts. A husband/wife relationship should be based on more trust than this).

I would also suggest that you refrain from associating yourself with him in online forums. If a moderator asks you about sharing his IP address, tell them that you are his wife, and will refrain from dragging any of the problems he is embroiled in into their forums. Most admins will be fine with this, unless Scott starts attacking the site by creating multiple IDs, forcing them to ban his IP. In this case, If he won't change his ways, and you still want to have unrestricted internet access, the only thing I can suggest is that you buy another IP address from your ISP, and come to an agreement with Scott that he will never use it.

In closing, here's what I consider a better way of starting the thread you started:

1) find the correct forum area to post in (your choice wasn't all that bad here actually, except for the way you phrased your opening comment).

2) refrain from mentioning ANY names at first, and just ask about the theoretical issue of ethics, trust, and access. Invite moderators to contact you via private message if they want to discuss your personal matter privately.

3) keep your writing on-topic for this site. If this issue isn't happening at this site, but you are afraid it soon will, mention this (don't mention the sites). There is nothing a forum moderator gets more annoyed at than people bringing heated politics that started on another site to their forums. In fact, they tend to ban people who do this if they persist. This is not due to the politics, the people involved elsewhere, or anything like this. It is purely due to the actions of the individual being banned. They are against written or unwritten forum guidelines.

If your initial volley ends up souring things for you at 1src, I hope my message will help make things easier for you elsewhere in the future. If you come through this unscathed, I hope it will be a learning experience for all :)

-Em.

[Reggie]

Well, I'm trying my best to believe you MD_Brite and give you the benefit of the doubt, but all the signs are pointing the other way. Please do better or I'll just close this thread since it's not going anywhere. Right now, it is a bit ironic that this thread is titled 'Ethics???'.

[MD_Brite]

I am trying to keep on my main topic if it is right or wrong to ban someone based if they know a banned person. I know it got out of hand, and should have listed this topic in another forum, and I am sory for that...which I will keep this on track, thanks.

[_Em]

It's too late; you've already named names, called names, and created a forum issue where there was no visible issue before. You're going to have to either apologize, soothe ruffled feathers some other way, or let the thread go on with no more responses from you. If you try starting a new thread at this point and doing it right, people will probably accuse you of spamming the forums, which I doubt is your intent. You have made it impossible to make this thread purely about forum ethics.

Basicly, you've put yourself in a tough spot by naming names, and it's not going to be easy to get out of, short of ignoring this thread from now on, no matter how wrong you believe others' statements in this thread are. Like it or not, this thread is about Scott, not about ethical behaviour. You brought this on yourself, and have nobody else to blame. Personally, I laud the moderators for staying out of this so far :) Good work guys!

[Cyker]

IP bans are pretty typical; On another forum I frequent quite a lot, if people are found to have been circumventing a forum ban the IP gets banned, but it is very easy to pick up a new IP.

They tried IRC-style IP-block banning for a while, but this is difficult to implement in a way that doesn't affect legitimate users.

The ethics questions is pretty irrelevent IMHO - This is not a democracy and there is no Freedom of Speech here; It is upto the mods of a forum whether they want to ban people or not. Differing approaches have different effects.

The more heavy-handed ones tend to run cleaner forums - Less disruption, less flaming and a lot less spamming, but they also have a much smaller population.
The more open ones tend to be more 'alive', but you also get loads of tossers just jumping in because they can. Bit like Usenet in that sense...

Horses for courses, pick your poison, etc...

1src is among the more open; This thread would have been locked ages ago if it had been on most other forums ;)
But Joel and Reggie somehow manage to keep a lid on things despite the openness (I swear they're surfing here 24/7 :p :D)

[Joel]

A while back, I mentioned Griffin and Sabine. It's book 1 of a series by Nick Bantock. I won't give away the ending or the premise... you'll figure it out why I mentioned it if you decide to delve into it. (The sets by the way make fantastic presents). :)

Thanks for the insights tlacour, _Em and Cyker.

[MD_Brite]

It's too late; you've already named names, called names, and created a forum issue where there was no visible issue before. You're going to have to either apologize, soothe ruffled feathers some other way, or let the thread go on with no more responses from you. If you try starting a new thread at this point and doing it right, people will probably accuse you of spamming the forums, which I doubt is your intent. You have made it impossible to make this thread purely about forum ethics.

Basicly, you've put yourself in a tough spot by naming names, and it's not going to be easy to get out of, short of ignoring this thread from now on, no matter how wrong you believe others' statements in this thread are. Like it or not, this thread is about Scott, not about ethical behaviour. You brought this on yourself, and have nobody else to blame. Personally, I laud the moderators for staying out of this so far :) Good work guys!

I think it's best to close this thread, not trying to dodge the bullet, but I got some good feedback on my main topic. The other reason, apparently there is no such thing as freedom of speech in here as pointed out by one of the other members. Looks like to me for my honesty, I will be labeled as a scammer like Scott and never have a fair shake in any kind of dealings because most of you would rather believe heresay than the cold hard facts. At this point, I don't really care what you think...just keep in mind god has a funny way of setting things straight in the end. Mods please close out this thread, thank you.

P.S.
Also, I do not have any thanks to the likes of Tlacour...you know what I am refering to!

[Reggie]

Done. Thread closed.