Solitude Diver:
I do not think the post regarding the “emergency room visit” sounded true, and if so did not specify facts which pointed to a dive shop’s (or anyone’s) negligence, or even if that dive shop was doing anything more than transporting a victim of something? Perhaps requesting more information would have been an appropriate first step rather than deleting everything? My concern is that if it was a true story, and there was negligence involved from someone working at the time for that dive store, then it would have been an appropriate story to add to the review(s). Incomplete or poorly written posts should not be (and aren’t) usually pulled instantly without someone requesting more information or substantiation, or at least a warning from a moderator. If this story is true, and the post was pulled because someone was protecting a shop from embarrassment (or whatever) then I hate to think of the implications that creates. (Censorship comes to mind). :11doh:
The implication being ... what?
For the record ... the thread didn't get pulled because of that story.
I did not moderate the pulled thread in any manner. In fact, our rules expressly forbid it. So the implication that someone pulled the thread to "protect" a shop doesn't wash ... the mod who pulled the thread doesn't live here, so he has no personal interest in any of our local businesses.
In truth, I would have preferred to leave the thread out here ... where the thread originator could have been exposed for the fraudulant statements that he made ... both by trying to pass himself off as an independent instructor when, in fact, he was promoting the shop he works for ... and by making false statements about a competing shop, which he cannot substantiate because they did not happen.
The moderator who pulled the thread did so at his own discretion ... for what he felt were ToS violations. Those violations had to do with the escalating tone of the thread, which was inappropriate to the type of forum we try to promote here.
In truth ... if pulling the thread protects any shop, it's the one this person was attempting to promote. Once he "outed" himself as an employee of that shop, several people had indicated that they would avoid that store because of his negative postings.
Publicly slamming your competition seldom produces positive results ... and doing it under false pretenses even less so.
For my own part, I had put some thought into the responses I had made in that thread. Personally, I'd have preferred to see them stay out here. I will not second-guess the moderator who felt otherwise, however. We are often placed in situations where we have to make judgment calls ... and it's a rare case when someone doesn't cry "censorship". Truth to tell, it gets a little old.
Yeah ... we can all get along. All we have to do is be honest with each other. But when a thread starts out on a dishonest note, then whatever else it becomes loses all sense of value once the fabrication is known.
In this case, that is exactly what happened. NWDivemaster would have made a much more positive impression if he had simply been honest about who he was, and why he was so negative about all but one local business.
Shop politics stinks ... no matter who promotes it.
Also for the record ... I like Bubbles Below. I like Bud. I like Tim. I like Laurel. I've gotten along with all of them for years, and hope to continue doing so.
NWDivemaster is also a staff instructor of the store. He and I are members of the same dive club. We don't particularly get along ... and we don't particularly need to. That's simply as a matter of full disclosure ... and it's personal.
What is NOT personal is that I will do everything in my power ... and support other mods for doing so as well ... to maintain a certain level of credibility on this board. When people post things that are patently untrue ... or misrepresent themselves as something that they are not ... their posts do not deserve to remain here.
I hope that is a satisfactory answer ... it's the only one I have to offer.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
