You read it here first!

[ferret]

I prefer when people are direct and let me know I'm doing something stupid. Then I can stop doing it and listen to their advise. I get confused when people try to 'drop hints' and might end doing something halfway between the 'right way' and 'wrong way' ..

Feel free to be blunt to me, Rex. Thanks for your continuing help in my planted tank thread.

 

[Mr Burns]

First of all - PopupStopper does wonders. And I have it actively installed in the p.c. And you can't give up just by saying, "Well, that is the nature of our society." Parenting is tough. If it is easy, or you cop-out with this statement, you've done an injustice to yourself and the child. It's not easy. It's a pain. I don't like having my computer in the middle of a main room, so I can constantly look at the screen. I don't like the fact that I want to watch CSI and I instead tape it, as I never know what is going to be on. Thanks to Michael Jackson, I hate explaining the grim nature of a pedophile.

i didn't mean just popups...emails, tricky links, spam, etc. i have popupstopper installed also, but those ad programmers are usually one step ahead of the programmers writing the safeguard tools. it doesn't always work. that's why you still always hear about new worm and virus threats. what i meant by "the nature of our society," is that our capitalist society will stop at nothing to make a profit. this means the possibility of pandering "inappropriate" content to everybody regardless of age or gender. i agree that parenting is difficult, and i respect you a great deal for doing a good job and taking the steps you have. the only thing i would warn against is bringing up childeren that are too sheltered. when i started going to punk and hardcore shows in high school, i actually resented my parents for sheltering me so much. it was an upper-middle class white suburb kinda deal. i started hanging out downtown and in the bad neighborhoods (that's where all the good shows were) and i was amazed and intrigued by the wealth of diversity that was out there, and how very little i knew about people. i also realized how their sheltering basically brainwashed me into believing things i didn't know anything about or had any exposure of alternatve views to (like catholicism, being a republican, etc.) just an observation and warning, i don't mean in any way to tell you what to do...
on the other hand, there's a whole new generation coming up in which the majority doesn't know their ass from a hole in the ground. if you've never read the poem "the problem with this generation," you should b/c it's an amazing piece of work. scary as hell too b/c it's not far from the truth. this generation want to infomercial quick fix, or else they give up. this goes for parenting. that's why it freaks me out when i hear about government trying to get more involved in the raising of OUR (not mine b/c i don't plan on having any) children, b/c i know society isn't doing a well enough job on their own. there are exceptions, but my observations is that the growing majority i wouldn't trust to raise a pet rock. i don't know what that had to do with anything...just a vent i guess :?

also, i agree with what ferret said...if i'm doing something wrong, i want to be told immediately and in anyway possible, insult or no. i respect rex a great deal, and i value his advice. there are sometimes when i've thought "that guy kinda comes off as a jerk." but then i realize that i do that a lot too. i'm not the most elloquent person and try not to sugar-coat things in the fear that i might offend somebody. after all, i'd rather have him tell me i'm a damned idiot and save me from messing something up and risking the well-being of my fish and plants...

no hard feelings

 

[pyrowolf]

Ok, I think the real issue continues to get muddied between all the insults and distortions.

Let me reiterate, Rex was not banned for his FAQ (regardless of it's expletives), Rex was not banned for saying 'Puke', Rex was not banned because he is blunt, Rex was not banned because we wanted to create a 'Disneyland' environment, and the new user agreement updates were not only because of Rex.

Rex had received warnings about insulting people, and even had was given a second chance even though he should have been banned the second time it was mentioned. But, maybe we made a mistake by giving him the benefit of the doubt. Obviously it didn't matter even after he had been asked.

Not only does the stock phpBB user agreement have

You agree not to post any abusive, obscene, vulgar, slanderous, hateful, threatening, sexually-oriented or any other material that may violate any applicable laws

But the website UA has

This a family site intended for people of all ages and skill levels to come learn and share their experiences. Profaninty, insults, personal attacks, or posts of this nature will not be tolerated. If you engage in such a post, it will be edited, and you will recieve a warning. If it happens again you will be banned. If you have a problem with a post notify a moderator or Admin and let them take care of it.

Plain and simple, Rex was temporarily banned because he insulted an individual. Specifically, the last incident involved a person not understanding measuring CO2, but after they questioned 'why' what Rex said was so... Rex replied with:

Now if you can't understand that fact and want to dispute it that's fine. But at that point I will be forced to take this discussion private and start questioning your mental abilities and your parentage

Don't get me wrong, Rex has been helpful on many occasions. Some people appreciate his direct way of explaining things. But this was not being direct, it was belittling and insulting. If this was a young child, how friendly does it sound when someone basically replies "If you don't get it, then your an idiot inbred". But honestly, does it even matter if it was a child? Would you want to ever ask a question again?

This is absolutely NOT acceptable, and he had been given multiple chances to stop. We never asked him to be what he's not... he could have just as easilly never posted again if he felt the requirements were too stringent upon his personal expressions, regardless of how he wants to portray himself. I'm not sure how much clearer I can be than that.

Family friendly, at that point, had nothing to do with it. I would hope that any site would not allow a person to just prance around insulting people as they go, regardless of the quality of information they reply with in the process.

This has nothing to do with making PlantGeeks 'Disneyland'.
It has nothing to do with the fact we have members as young as FIVE on the forum.
It has nothing to do with protecting the children that come to PlantGeeks.
It has nothing to do with the fact that Rex violated the membership agrement by creating a new ID after he was temporarilly banned.
It has nothing to do with the fact that after he was banned, somehow he felt the need to say goodbye to everyone on this horrible forum keeping him down... in every single forum on the board.

So regardless of what is thrown around about what he has distorted into why he was banned, it only has to do with the fact that we don't think that insulting people is acceptable, and he agreed to those terms when he signed up. Plain and simple.

Hope that helps to clear things up...
- PDubya

 

[TankGirl]

Helps me!

 

[fishfreek]

Ok i was going to keep this open but now my better judgment is to put the ol ball and chain on it.