FaunaClassifieds - View Single Post - Is there a way to block posts from a single user?

01-05-2022, 08:45 AM

Though it is usually hard to find something to add to Rich's "perspective" posts (love it

), I will add that if the main thing that a poster's advertised item has going for it is that it is on page one, it may not be worth selling.

People do use the search feature, and do seek out the animal they're looking for. Any buyer who only looks at the first page of ads isn't a serious buyer, and sure isn't a serious herp keeper, and isn't necessarily the sort of buyer I'd prefer to get involved with -- one who is buying something that simply catches their eye.

I scan most of the ads here daily, but not to buy -- rather, to see what people are selling, or looking for, and for how much; to see who's a scammer and who seems like a valuable member of the larger herp community. The scads of bumped ads are a speedbump to that project, for sure. But when I go looking for an animal I actually intend to buy, I either use the search feature and PM the last handful of posters of ads of that species to see what they have available, or I simply watch the relevant section of the classifieds. When I need a used truck I don't look at all the Craigslist ads -- I look at the truck ads, and usually only the ones that list exactly what make, model and features I'm looking for, and only the ones that are within a reasonable driving distance of me. The fact that someone has eleventy thousand motorcycle ads posted doesn't matter.

While I think non-contributing members of Fauna are very valuable (many of my sales, and purchases, and many really nice interactions here are with non-contributing members) and it is clear that being a contributing member does not remotely give anyone a pass for their other detriments to the hobby, to wildlife, or to humanity in general, I'd feel funny accusing a contributor of parasitism for the sorts of reasons Rich mentioned.

There seem to me to be two realistic alternatives for herp classifieds currently, and not only is Fauna the easiest to support financially, but it is the more "community" oriented one in terms of these sorts of personal interactions (with the site owner, no less), and a stance against scammers of all sorts that persists even post-BOI, and a history in the hobby that goes back much farther than the other site.

Sometimes one bad apple does spoil the barrel, but sometimes it is worth picking out the bad one and keeping the rest. One little mushy apple isn't so bad.

01-05-2022, 08:45 AM	#7
Socratic Monologue	Though it is usually hard to find something to add to Rich's "perspective" posts (love it ), I will add that if the main thing that a poster's advertised item has going for it is that it is on page one, it may not be worth selling. People do use the search feature, and do seek out the animal they're looking for. Any buyer who only looks at the first page of ads isn't a serious buyer, and sure isn't a serious herp keeper, and isn't necessarily the sort of buyer I'd prefer to get involved with -- one who is buying something that simply catches their eye. I scan most of the ads here daily, but not to buy -- rather, to see what people are selling, or looking for, and for how much; to see who's a scammer and who seems like a valuable member of the larger herp community. The scads of bumped ads are a speedbump to that project, for sure. But when I go looking for an animal I actually intend to buy, I either use the search feature and PM the last handful of posters of ads of that species to see what they have available, or I simply watch the relevant section of the classifieds. When I need a used truck I don't look at all the Craigslist ads -- I look at the truck ads, and usually only the ones that list exactly what make, model and features I'm looking for, and only the ones that are within a reasonable driving distance of me. The fact that someone has eleventy thousand motorcycle ads posted doesn't matter. While I think non-contributing members of Fauna are very valuable (many of my sales, and purchases, and many really nice interactions here are with non-contributing members) and it is clear that being a contributing member does not remotely give anyone a pass for their other detriments to the hobby, to wildlife, or to humanity in general, I'd feel funny accusing a contributor of parasitism for the sorts of reasons Rich mentioned. There seem to me to be two realistic alternatives for herp classifieds currently, and not only is Fauna the easiest to support financially, but it is the more "community" oriented one in terms of these sorts of personal interactions (with the site owner, no less), and a stance against scammers of all sorts that persists even post-BOI, and a history in the hobby that goes back much farther than the other site. Sometimes one bad apple does spoil the barrel, but sometimes it is worth picking out the bad one and keeping the rest. One little mushy apple isn't so bad.