One More Time, For Chris
Again against my better judgement...
Chris - I re-read the entire thread - all 170 posts to date. Of those posts 105 were from you or Rob Dunleavy, and doesn't include posts that Rob submitted under an alias that were removed by moderators. Now, many of those posts were your responses to people posting about you (28 posts), and I can see why you would want to defend yourself, but I do think that I can safely say that these were, for the most part, off topic. The thread, entitled "Dan Felice - Good Guy" was about my experience with Dan - other topics are, by definition, off topic. And lest you feel singled out, I felt that ALL of those posts back and forth between you and Jeff, Chris R, Wendy, Wes etc. were off topic, which is why I quit reading the thread.
Rob - I failed to find a way in which you contributed to the thread except to say, in essence "I believe what Chris has told me". Do you have any first hand knowledge of Dan and previous dealings to support the things that you allege? And why post under different names?
For both Chris and Rob - you may not like what Wes had to say, but he has a point. Especially in a forum like this, how you say things can be as important as what you say. The personal issues back and forth, the cross posting, posting under aliases - it all undermines your credibility, even if your message carries the truth. You clearly want people to believe you, to the extent of posting repeatedly about the issue, so let your actions support your words, not detract from them.
As far as the truth goes, I have no idea what the truth is in the matter of Dan and the hybrid cribos. I've heard your version, I've heard Dan's version, and there's been a lot of extraneous supposition along the way. The opportunity to PROVE that Dan hybridized the snakes and knowingly misrepresented them is probably long gone - it would require DNA testing of the parents and babies, and proof that the snakes being tested were in fact the snakes alleged to be involved. Until then, its your word against his, and people can interpret his silence as they wish.
The things that I do know to be true are that Dan treated me well, and that I'm happy with our interaction. For the record, Dan offered to replace the cribo that died for free (I pay shipping) PRIOR to this thread being started - and was, in fact, the impetus for the thread. I asked him to wait, because I was concerned about the other snake, which did in fact go on to die. Don't know why the snakes died - they were in the same room and similar rack environment as my other 50+ snakes, but they did. I've been a reptile hobbyist for more than 10 years, and this isn't the first time that I've had baby snakes just not do well - it happens - not often, but it does. When that happened, I asked Dan to honor the offer of a replacement, and offered to pay for another snake to pair them up, which he accepted - at a cost below what I've seen these snakes go for. Now Chris - I have a question for you. You said in one of your posts that had you been the seller, you would have replaced both snakes for free. Really? Eight and twelve weeks after I received them? If so, you have more generous terms than any seller I have seen on Fauna, KS, or individual websites. What do you produce, and do you have a website or ads containing your terms of service?
Let's for a moment stipulate that Chris is right. Dan Felice DID knowingly misrepresent hybrid cribos as Texans. Now what? Should I return my snakes and ask for a refund? Badmouth Dan on an internet forum? Picket his house with a sign? As I've said before, what goes around tends to come around - I'm not sure that I need to be the Karma Police on this one.
Both Chris and Rob have insinuated that Dan and I are somehow in collusion, or that he has put me up to posting my experience. I've spoken to Dan once on the phone prior to the sale, and several times by e-mail before, during, and after. Obviously we discussed this thread in the wake of everything, but he has never asked that I post (or not post, for that matter) about him, and honestly probably wishes I never had. Since I KNOW that Chris and Rob have jumped to conclusions about me, you can see how I might suspect they've jumped to conclusions elsewhere as well.
As for another buyer asking me about Dan, I would tell him honestly that Dan treated me well despite not all going smoothly. I would also tell him that there have been third party allegations of misleading buyers on the internet stemming from one incident a couple of years ago, but that to the best of my knowledge none of those buyers has actually surfaced.
Chris - I think you've made your point about what you believe to be true about Dan. Please restrain yourself from making assumptions about me. They detract from your credibility on other issues. I look forward to having civilized discussions on other topics elsewhere on the board.
-Lee McMurtry
