ChicagoDiscus.com     Cafepress Store

Results 1 to 12 of 12

Thread: Discus Cops....

  1. #1
    Guest

    Default Discus Cops....

    They seem to be out in full force lately :-\
    Its a tough situation really....there ARE alot of crooks out there in the discus world, and its great that alot of them are being exposed. It could save someone alot of grief, heartache and money.
    I personally appreciate those that step forward and say....Hey.."I" got burned by such and such.....BUT HOLY CRAP PEOPLE!! Talk about beating a dead horse.....some of it gets pretty old. I dont think the problem is so much the comments from the people directly involved....but the comments from those that only want to "ride on the coat tails" of others. People who have NO RELIVANT INFO....people who make wiseass cracks....people who just like to listen to themselves blather on....and on.....AND ON!!
    Dont get me wrong...I think there is a definate need for "the dark side" to be exposed....but even for those that ARE directly involved....when the horse is lying there dead....JEEEZUS QUIT KICKING IT!! Some of you make yourselves look bad in the whirlwind of emotion that ensues.
    There should be a seperate room for this type of thing (no...not a bullring) Breeder ratings...somewhere that any member can post a breeders name and recive feedback from other members, but only in the form of positive or negative checkmarks on the initial page.....similar to a pole I guess. Then we should be able to click on either the positive or negative and view WHO checked what, with emails or im's listed.....the interested party can then delve futher into the positive or negative parties experiences by inquiring him/herself.....Make sense??

    Sorry I was so long winded.....I dont get out much ;D

    Tony

  2. #2
    Registered Member April's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2002
    Location
    vancouver
    Posts
    7,466

    Default Re:Discus Cops....

    Yes Tony....it makes very good sense...and might save our forum from getting in the direction its going...as ive had a few emails and alot of people not enjoying reading those posts..and worried its going to go the direction other forums went they all quit reading.
    It gets very old and tiring..and you do lose respect for some people....oh no....sheeeeesh...there he goes again...
    or sheeeeesh here we go again.


  3. #3
    Registered Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2002
    Posts
    585

    Default Re:Discus Cops....

    I think part of the problem is when and where to draw the line. It's not a black and white area. When does someone's negative experience become a personal attack? Where does joking about someone's prices start being painful to read? At what point does the piling on start? And it really gets hot when someone starts defending themselves, how much leeway do they have in answering the charges?
    I like your idea of keeping these discussions in one place, they do have a way of turning up all over the board. And there is a place for breeder info already, we ought to keep it to that area. And I agree that a bullring is a bad idea.
    I can't think of another way to keep these threads in check other than using the moderators to moderate (def: avoiding extremes of behavior or expression) or referee the discussions. Even with guidelines, it is going to come down to subjective calls as to when to pull posts or lock threads. I personally think that they should act sooner but I understand that they have been criticized for being overcontrolling.
    To me the most important thing is that the casual hobbyist (the largest block of readers and source of future members, IMO) should feel comfortable posting here without worrying about being attacked. And they won't feel that way as long as we allow aggressive posts on the forum.

  4. #4
    Registered Member
    Join Date
    Apr 2002
    Location
    Morris, CT
    Posts
    1,690

    Default Re:Discus Cops....

    I think that all posts on these sorts of sensitive threads should be measured as follows:

    PRE) Prior to posting you MUST exhaust all avenues with a dealer/breeder/store just out of principle. There are 2 sides to every story and give the other party the chance to put things right BEFORE going public. This will always alienate the person you are doing business with and make the process of receiving restitution that much harder. Also, if you are going to post in this kind of a thread, don't be anonymous - if a lone post comes in from someone with no e-mail address it is not credible or impactive.

    1) RELEVANCE: Responses which are not first person have no business in such a thread. We don't want to hear I have a friend who... or I heard that... If this is the case, get the affected party to post so we can ask questions and get to the root of things.

    2) TONE/ATTITUDE: Negative or vicious tone ruins any statement. Stick with facts and feel free to go into detail. A statement such as: 'I bought 6 marlboro reds from XXX Discus in April of 2000. They arrived on time but were not marlboro reds, but red turqs. I repeatedly requested that the proper order be sent out or at least a refund, but they never responded and to this day have not made things right' is going to be better received than 'XXX Discus screwed me. He is a scam artist and needs to be killed!' Also a snide attitude turns readers off and sets up a feeling of negativity and animosity.

    3) AVOID MULTIPLE POSTS - Say what you have to say and move on. It's easy to keep going and make the thread degenerate. State your experience and let it go. This can be hard, especially with situations where you did get burned, but you're not going to get restitution or make people sympathetic if you are overly aggressive or come off like you are on a crusade.

    If you can stick to these basics, it makes the forum a lot more pleasant for all. People DO want to know if there are unscrupulous folks out there taking advantage of fellow hobbyists just like they DO want to know who is doing a great job. They just don't want their favorite forum turned into a warzone.

    Nor should they have to put up with it.

    John

  5. #5
    Registered Member ronrca's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2002
    Location
    Near Edmonton, Alberta
    Posts
    3,003

    Default Re:Discus Cops....

    I totally agree with Tony! I think it would be a very good idea on having a 'breeder rating' topic/thread. Setup a general form to fill out and thats it. Any other comments like flaming/insults, deleted.


    Breeder:

    Discus purchased (strain/price/number/size):

    Date:

    Shipping method (ups/air/hand/yourself):

    Tank Setup (bare/planted/gravel/etc):

    Acclimation/Quaratine method:

    Water parameters:
    ph:
    ammonia:
    nitrites:
    gh/kh:
    conductivity:
    Temperature:
    Filteration:

    Symptoms:

    Action taken (medication/isolation):

    Breeder contacted (phone/e-mail):

    Response and action taken:


    Just a thought!

  6. #6
    Registered Member
    Join Date
    May 2002
    Posts
    936

    Default Re:Discus Cops....

    can i have an AMEN brother!

    i am glad to see you guys bring this up as it is really needed. i see no problem letting people inform us of bad apples. i really like the idea of limiting it to first hand experience,using tact,and only posting exact facts with no jabs thrown in.we can accomplish the same results without the jerry springer format.

    denny

  7. #7
    Registered Member
    Join Date
    Jul 2002
    Posts
    1,565

    Default Re:Discus Cops....

    I think it is a great idea. Anything that will help improve some of the inappropriate business tactics that are out there is a good idea! Frank

  8. #8
    Registered Member
    Join Date
    Jul 2002
    Posts
    1,565

    Default Re:Discus Cops....

    I also think this thread should be in a place where more people might see it. Frank

  9. #9
    Registered Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2002
    Posts
    13

    Default Re:Discus Cops....

    Being new, I didn't want to rock the boat, but I am very happy to see others voicing their opinions about this. I have seen other boards I became sick of reading all of the negatives. That is why I never joined them. But this board was different. I would hate to see it be turned into a media where a few members could carry out their own personal vendettas against someone they think has wronged them.

    I believe whole heartedly in free speech, however, it does come with a price: responsibility. Our mission is to promote and elevate the hobby, not drag it through the muck. If you have a problem with a breeder, take it up with them. If that doesn't work, chances are you will never see your fish or your money anyways. The best you can do at that point is to give everyone else a heads up on that breeder. Warn us about him in a factual and objective manner. That will go farther in detering future business from them than resorting to name calling.

    Not only is it up to the moderators to police this board, but to all of us as well. This site belongs to all of the members equally and we all need to protect it's existence by discouraging the type of flamming that has been popping up lately.

    regards,

    mike

  10. #10
    Guest

    Default Re:Discus Cops....

    I think what really burns most people including myself, is when a person pops-up on this board and tries to sell stuff without being around here before.

    There are some members here that have started selling items and fish, and I think that's great. It's just the guys that only come around to sell stuff that bother me.

    Also anyone that know's Cary, Rod, Mike, and a few others. Know that they are very passionate about the fish and work very hard at it, Why can't they voice their opinions on other breeders?

  11. #11
    Registered Member
    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Posts
    9

    Default Re:Discus Cops....

    I have purchased discus from Cary and Mike and they have just been awesome. Who is Rod and does he have a website? Thanks JIM

  12. #12
    Registered Member April's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2002
    Location
    vancouver
    Posts
    7,466

    Default Re:Discus Cops....

    Rod is in Australia..but has shipped Jason ,Smokey and i fish in Canada. and he has helped alot of people...for a few years since hes had his computer with fish questions. never promotes his own fish...but loves to talk fish. He posts here.
    heres his website for curiosity. www.lewisdiscus.com.
    but doesnt ship international really......just had to humor me.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  

Cafepress