Radio, I've got no problem with constructive criticism. However, we had this links discussion just 10 days ago. I explained that the links policy was a result of an RO's vote. Your response was, "C'mon Les.....let's be honest here. Reputation of a site is not why you banned them, you don't want people advertising for other companies when the items can be bought from you!"
In other words, you called me a liar.
At that point, several other ROs came along, ones who participated in the vote and recalled the results. You ignored those comments and said, "I just thought that Les should be honest with the real reason commercial links are not allowed."
I said this then and I'll say it again now. The "real" reason why commercial links are not allowed is a result of a vote of the ROs - just like every major board policy. I do not make arbitrary rules here. The participants control the content and the policies. We have even voted on Avatars. Yes, I do get a little upset when, after six years of trying to build a decent place for boaters to get honest and sound boating advice, of trying to build a community where boaters can get help and make a new friend or two, of doing it for free for four of those six years and then holding another vote to see if a subscription fee would be acceptable, I get accused of lying. The subscription fee puts not penny one in my pocket. It all goes to fund site expenses.
That said, I do appreciate your business, Jason. It would seem, however, that something else might be bothering you. As noted above, we had this link discussion 10 days ago. You concluded with, "I am proud to be part of this community, and am thankful for what Les, George and anyone else that has worked to build this site into what it is today have done for all of us. I simply stated that it should be made clear why those links are not allowed, and Les has done that. So, end of issue."
You then comment on this thread, after a post by Pete, "perhaps it would be better for you to ask these questions directly to myself or Dan, that way you can avoid any ridicule that may be slung your way by the Boatfix police here."
That is an insult to all the experienced boaters here who contribute their time and expertise on a daily basis - as if you and Dan are the sole source of knowledge here and the only ones who will supply unbiased information.
I don't ever recall anyone being "ridculed" for posting a link with the possible exception of some one-shot wonders. They are usually handled with a small edit of the post with an email to the poster explaining the policy. While I am not a big fan of West's business tactics, especially after they specially mentioned BoatFix as a target, they are not singled out. The "no commercial links policy," clearly stated in big bold letters in the registration agreement here, is applied as fairly as I can. There is no problem with links to manufacturer's sites, to non-profit sites and to other informational sites. But we do have numbers of people blowing in here, dropping their advertising, much of it bogus, and leaving. Folks here got tired of it and the policy was a result of the majority opinion. You seem to have a real problem accepting the results of that vote. This thread would not have deteriorated into what it is if you had just accepted Pete's comment that wasn't even directed at you.
Wood made an honest "error" by referencing a photo by linking to the WM site. Pete attempted to correct the problem. You come along and, despite your comments of 10 days ago, jump in with full-blown negativity, again accusing me of lying to the folks here. That despite the posts of ROs who voted. However, I'm sort of glad you did. While there's not much I can do about the search function here, I will place a higher priority on consolidating the databases on BoatFix to improve the search function there.
