They are NOT a paid site sponsor, so your theory is completely worthless

 

You are absolutely correct I don't care if the vendor in question is a site sponsor or not, I won't allow anyone to use this forum to bash a vendor. It surprises me how few people stop to think that anything you say in these forums can be used against you in court.

Telling your tale of woe to 1 person doesn't mean much but when it has the potential to be seen on such a huge basis, (40,000 members and maybe a million guests) proving slander or libel would be child's play for an experienced Attorney.

We don't always get it right, but we sure try hard to do what is best for the community here as a whole.

You are ABSOLUTELY correct....When it came time to protect the vendors who pay for the right to advertise here and stop allowing every vendor in the world to advertise his business in his signature, Mine was the first to go.

As a site owner I could easily say I am the exception to the rule and have left my business name in my sig, but I hold my own feet to the same fire as the rest of you .

Back when we did not allow personal avatars because of server issues, I think only Jack and 1 or 2 other Admins had them. I still refused to use one simply because I knew the rest of you couldn't. To me it just didn't seem fair, so I didn't do it.

Bottom line here is we try to be as fair as we can to everyone, but it doesn't always appear that way if you don't know the truth. People like the fellow who stated in this thread that it was removed because they were a site sponsor, was only spreading a lie.

They have NEVER been a sponsor of this forum but none the less people feel the need to talk about things they know NOTHING about. Some forums love all that "Jerry Springer" drama crud, but it isn't welcome around here.

 

No your are 100% wrong in that statement. Banks makes some very fine products, but even they know their products are not for everybody. We don't care if anyone states they had a bad experience with a product for one reason or another, we just won't tolerate bashing the VENDOR themselves on this forum.

There is a HUGE difference in saying "I bought one of Joe Schmucks Wizzos and didn't like it so i got rid of it" vs "That Joe Schmuck guy is a thief, he sold me a junk product and ripped me off"

Big difference in those two statements and the intent portrayed by them. The fellow whose thread is missing posted this in one of his last comments on the removed thread "I'm posting this on every board possible to try and take away as much business as possible from them. Thats my way of getting even."

That is CLEARY malicious intent and not the reason this forum is here. DTR is NOT a personal platform to fight one's battles from and this is why we don't let the vendors bicker over their products here either.

Vendor bashing, personal bashing or flaming of anyone on this forum will NEVER be tolerated.

 

You're incorrect. For one, they don't advertise here. In addition, there have been paying advertisers that we've dropped because of this issue. They couldn't seem to get the rules through their head, so we refund them and send them on their way. It's happened more than once and I'm sure it'll happen again when we have one that won't listen.

 

This isn't a criticism, well I guess it is. Censoring language is one thing. Censoring opinions is another. Unpleasant experiences with a vendor are important to me. It's how Ebay maintains its integrity - Feedback. People need to justify the truthfulness of vendors AND buyers. Though this isn't a sales site, it is supposedly a source of information. If the information is cleansed, than the value of the information it provides is diminshed.

I'm old and wise enough to tell the difference between an emotional opinion devoid of fact and an argument with merit. I rely on sources that present fact based arguments to make decisions and am extremely suspicious of one-sided POVs. If your objective is to not point fingers, even if factual, then isn't that a disservice to your membership? For example, I was thinking about ISSPRO gauges. But, if you only allow positive feedback on ISSPRO, am I not getting only rose-colored glasses opinions of others and shouldn't that diminish my trust in the opinions presented here? If 5 out of 20 people think that ISSPRO gauges stink, I'd sure like to hear that before I spend the money to buy them.

I guess the threads on DC warranty obligations, or lack thereof, regarding the Cummins Diesel Engine Limited Warranty are bashing then? DC is a company and a vendor, no? So are the VP-44 warranty issues out of line? Or is DC an exception to the rule? I'm perfectly comfortable slamming DC's livleyhood if it means getting a refund for the $2100 that I just spent on a miserable design and something that I clearly believe is warranteed.

 

You didn't read the entire thread, did you?

1. "My ISSPRO gauge doesn't work, and I think it's junk." That's OK.
2. "The #$)(*& so and so who sold me that ISSPRO gauge is a thieving crook." That's NOT OK.

Read the entire thread first, mkay?

And I just love it when people start trotting out the "C" word. You don't pay for the site. The First Amendment doesn't apply here. It's a privately owned site and the owner can put forth any rule he wants to. Don't like it? There's plenty of other sites out there.

 

You summation here is totally with out merit, perhaps if you go back and actually READ what I already wrote you will understand why.

If you think I am censoring information about Isspro, than why not use the search engine to find out? What you will find is a ton of information pro and con on the product and the opinions of those who use it.

What you won't find is the hot headed, one sided personal vendettas like the one removed in this situation. Go ahead...pick any product and you will quickly see that your argument is full of holes, because the truth is we only remove the intentional bashing stuff.

We are not trying to censor anyone, you can clearly discuss your experience with products on this forum, in FACT most people only post when they HAVE a problem.....that is the very nature of forums like this one.

The main reason threads like that one disappeared is because the writer posted it with malice and as a vendetta against another party who can not defend them selves here.

It was NOT about a problem with a product, but rather a problem with the human service rendered. He had NO complaint about what he purchased, only the service he received from the company. If you are as old as you say you are, you should be well aware that there are two sides to every story

He may be right, he may not...I am not concerned with the accuracy, only with the method used and that is why it is no longer here.