Rob
31st May 2008, 04:58
A decision has finally been reached on the question of whether or not to remove MistyAndSamsCash from our Watch List. This is a decision which has not been easy to reach. This is in no small part due to the numerous issues identified within the recent poll/discussion thread (http://gptboycott.com/forum/showthread.php?t=18622), many of which we have never had to grapple with as a site before.
I'd like to start by praising the commendable efforts made by the new owners of the site to pay a significant portion of the "old" debt accumulated before they took over the site. It is hoped that this progress will continue and that within a few months all members owed cash will be paid in full.
Nevertheless, there are compelling reasons which, at this time, mean that we have decided to keep MistyAndSamsCash on our Watch List for the time being:
a. Some old debt still remains unpaid.
The vast majority of the 19 complaints which we have received about MistyAndSamsCash concern the non-payment of this debt. A decision has been made to keep MistyAndSamsCash on the Watch List until the site has paid off the full portion of debt accumulated before the current owners took control of the site - in other words, until the problem identified in the complaints we have received is resolved in full, we will not erase the complaints we have received about it.
It should also be noted that we have already shown leniency towards the new owners of MistyAndSamsCash by not boycotting the site. We have more than the ten requisite complaints to consider this site for boycott, yet we felt that we lacked the required "just cause" to boycott this program, given the progress that has been made towards dealing with the "old" debt.
b. The precedent this case could set if we removed the site from our Watch List.
If we were to allow this site to be removed from our Watch List at this stage, while a significant amount of money is still owed to members, it would set a worrying precedent for other possible candidates which may wish to be removed from our Watch List. After a consideration of what is most important for the members who complain to GPTBoycott, as well as of many of the posts made in the aforementioned discussion thread, we have decided that a site should not be removed from our Watch List simply for making a good effort, or for making some progress. Instead, in order to fully respect the importance of the complaints we receive, we have decided that we will not erase complaints we have received until those complaints, or the issues concerned in those complaints, are fully resolved. This approach is fully consistent with the decision which we made when the previous owner of MistyAndSamsCash requested Watch List removal.
c. Disapproval of some of the Terms at MistyAndSamsCash.
There are a number of Terms at MistyAndSamsCash with which GPTBoycott is concerned. Although these Terms do not constitute a major factor in our decision, we think it important to comment on a couple of points. We find the requirement that old members must log in every thirty days in order to receive payments which they may have earned and redeemed for years ago to be unacceptable. Moreover, the recent "gag clause" prohibiting the public reproduction of Admin messages does raise an air of suspicion which may work to undermine the excellent progress being made at the site with respect to payments.
I have received a private message from one of the owners of MistyAndSamsCash, who ensures me that the odious Hall of Shame pages will be removed from all of their sites soon. This move is of course a welcome step in the right direction.
I would like to thank all those members who came to GPTBoycott to vote or to discuss this case with us. Though tempers often flared on both sides of the discussion, when personal arguments settled down some excellent points were raised. We are aware that this decision runs counter to the 62% of voters who suggested we should remove this site from our Watch List, though our justifications outlined above for doing so are strong. It is to be hoped that in the coming months, when the full balance of "old" debt is paid and the Hall of Shame pages are removed from the site, we will be able to remove this site from our Watch List.
I'd like to start by praising the commendable efforts made by the new owners of the site to pay a significant portion of the "old" debt accumulated before they took over the site. It is hoped that this progress will continue and that within a few months all members owed cash will be paid in full.
Nevertheless, there are compelling reasons which, at this time, mean that we have decided to keep MistyAndSamsCash on our Watch List for the time being:
a. Some old debt still remains unpaid.
The vast majority of the 19 complaints which we have received about MistyAndSamsCash concern the non-payment of this debt. A decision has been made to keep MistyAndSamsCash on the Watch List until the site has paid off the full portion of debt accumulated before the current owners took control of the site - in other words, until the problem identified in the complaints we have received is resolved in full, we will not erase the complaints we have received about it.
It should also be noted that we have already shown leniency towards the new owners of MistyAndSamsCash by not boycotting the site. We have more than the ten requisite complaints to consider this site for boycott, yet we felt that we lacked the required "just cause" to boycott this program, given the progress that has been made towards dealing with the "old" debt.
b. The precedent this case could set if we removed the site from our Watch List.
If we were to allow this site to be removed from our Watch List at this stage, while a significant amount of money is still owed to members, it would set a worrying precedent for other possible candidates which may wish to be removed from our Watch List. After a consideration of what is most important for the members who complain to GPTBoycott, as well as of many of the posts made in the aforementioned discussion thread, we have decided that a site should not be removed from our Watch List simply for making a good effort, or for making some progress. Instead, in order to fully respect the importance of the complaints we receive, we have decided that we will not erase complaints we have received until those complaints, or the issues concerned in those complaints, are fully resolved. This approach is fully consistent with the decision which we made when the previous owner of MistyAndSamsCash requested Watch List removal.
c. Disapproval of some of the Terms at MistyAndSamsCash.
There are a number of Terms at MistyAndSamsCash with which GPTBoycott is concerned. Although these Terms do not constitute a major factor in our decision, we think it important to comment on a couple of points. We find the requirement that old members must log in every thirty days in order to receive payments which they may have earned and redeemed for years ago to be unacceptable. Moreover, the recent "gag clause" prohibiting the public reproduction of Admin messages does raise an air of suspicion which may work to undermine the excellent progress being made at the site with respect to payments.
I have received a private message from one of the owners of MistyAndSamsCash, who ensures me that the odious Hall of Shame pages will be removed from all of their sites soon. This move is of course a welcome step in the right direction.
I would like to thank all those members who came to GPTBoycott to vote or to discuss this case with us. Though tempers often flared on both sides of the discussion, when personal arguments settled down some excellent points were raised. We are aware that this decision runs counter to the 62% of voters who suggested we should remove this site from our Watch List, though our justifications outlined above for doing so are strong. It is to be hoped that in the coming months, when the full balance of "old" debt is paid and the Hall of Shame pages are removed from the site, we will be able to remove this site from our Watch List.