Banned from Aquarium unfairly

Seve OB

Dear mods,


http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057463889

I created a post asking for advice on a filter for a fish tank which quickly got derailed and is still way off topic 3 pages in.

All I wanted was advice on the filter, but all I got was advice on needing a huge tank, which is never going to happen in my house. We did well enough to find space for the one we got. For the record, the 14l tank and 2 goldfish (some people seem to think there are 3), each no more than 5cm long, were purchased (by my sister, for my kids) in petstop Blanchardstown. If people have issue with the law, then they should not attack me. No laws were broken.

Fair enough, maybe I did "back seat mod" by asking for my thread to go back on topic, but it is something I have seen on many other forums, never with any issue. Surely "back seat modding" is more than asking for a topic which I created to go back on thread.

I agree, I called one poster a name. But was that any worse than his comment to tell me to "Leave it unplugged then, they'll die quicker and be out of their misery sooner". He is supposed to be the once giving expert advice.

I would appreciate if you could reverse the decision to ban me, as I feel DBB did not listen to any of the reasonable arguements I made, nor did he/she moderate the thread and ask people to go back on topic.

Seve OB

where did my sig go? had it all year! but as soon as i post this query, it gets deleted

The Hill Billy

Hi there.

Please follow the process outlined above & attempt to resolve this amicably with the mod who banned you. If you cannot resolve this matter between you, then come back here & we will review your appeal.

If you have already done this, please forward me a copy of the Pm exchange.

tHB

PS - I have no idea about your sig. Maybe it was too big?

Seve OB

The Hill Billy wrote: »

Hi there.

Please follow the process outlined above & attempt to resolve this amicably with the mod who banned you. If you cannot resolve this matter between you, then come back here & we will review your appeal.

If you have already done this, please forward me a copy of the Pm exchange.

tHB

PS - I have no idea about your sig. Maybe it was too big?

thanks for the reply.

i have followed the process and pm'd him already

think i already sent it to you but will do again now

The Hill Billy

PMs received. Thanks.

The Hill Billy

Hi Seve OB:

I have taken a look at this for you & find that the 1 week ban was warranted.

You requested advice in a specialist forum & you chose not to accept that advice. That's fair enough. But when you say that you "dint [sic] care about the fish" in a forum frequented by lovers of all things aquatic - that was just plain wrong. It would be akin to going to a Dog-lovers forum & asking for advice on a leash & saying, "I don't care if it chokes him - I just want advice on a leash."

When a poster mentioned that your actions will likely result in the fish dying, you resorted to name-calling & received an infraction. (I'd like to point out that at no stage were you personally attacked.)

The mod then posted a clear on-thread warning that your actions were not acceptable & told you not to post in the thread again. However, you ignored the mod instruction & queried the mod's actions on thread. You have been on this site long enough to know that this is not acceptable. Not to mention that you received an infraction & a two-week ban for similar behaviour in the parent forum - Animal & Pet Issues - only last month.

The ban is upheld.

Please take care not to ignore moderator instructions again. If you fail to do so you may find that your posting privileges will be removed for longer periods.

Also, please indicate if you wish to appeal to an Admin.

tHB

Seve OB

Hill Billy, thanks for reply. AJ has already been in discussion via pm.

For the record, yes I sought advice but at no time did I not accept any advice given on the topic I requested. Most of the advice coming my way was off topic advice.

As discussed on PM with AJ and DBB, my comment about not caring for the fish was out of context and what I should have clarified was that I didn't care to discuss the fish. Of course I care about them, otherwise I would not have turned to the forum to seek help and advice. I will clarify this when I get back on thread.

I believe your reference to the dog on the leash is not comparable, as a working filter would do absolutely no harm to the fish.

The poster did not recommend my actions would likely result in the fish dying, but rather quite bluntly told me to plug out the filter so they would die quicker. That was where it all went wrong, he was the one who soured the thread with that comment in my opinion. I know I was wrong to get into name calling, but he was also wrong to throw in such a stroppy comment.

While I still fundamentally disagree with it, I can live with the ban, and I will clarify my misunderstandings when I get back on the forum.

Many thanks for taking the time to review my appeal.

S