Go to sleep for fourteen hours and look what I come back to...
I clearly stated that the rumors were rumor and further stated which ones I personally gave credence to but could not prove. The thread I wrote was in response to a number of demands for bad care information that Kaplan had spread and requests for why anyone would be distrustful. The inclusion of the long standing rumors was merely further evidence as to why her public opinion isn't very high for anyone who knows what they're doing...
The questions were, as other have pointed out, innocent questions. Cheri seemed to be stating her opinions on why the thread was left up for a day before being deleted as being factual, which would imply that she had some direct information on the subject and my questions would have brought out the most likely manners in which she could gain this factual information. They were merely questions to determine if the information Cheri had given as fact were verified truth.
Cheri also has stated on the KS boards that she believes I am GMoney (The instigator of the thread on that board), something I do take insult at. I may be a bit harsh at times but it comes from honesty and a low tolerance for certain mannerisms I perceive as being ignorant (A significant nuance between ignorant and naive is the willingness to learn) but never would I write as the instigator of this KS thread did. I have some pride. Anyone unable to distinguish between the way I write (long winded) and what that individual wrote, or able to ignore it in order to make ridiculous accusations about my identity either really isn't too smart or is initiating personal insult and slight.
Do I go off about Kaplan a lot?
Sure I do, it's an issue I obviously feel strongly about. She's an animal rights activist who wants the pet industry destroyed (Probably zoos, hunting, medical testing and meat consumption right after) and furthers her own goals by giving out "care information" that's just plain wrong. I see her as one of the biggest threats to herpetoculture existent today. Sure PETA and the like have larger budgets but Lawmakers generally know what they're about... Kaplan looks innocent at first, she just wants to help your animals... She furthers this outward deceptive appearance by maintaining the "Largest care website", writing a book sold in pet stores to naive consumers, being more active in the California State government than those who should be combating her and moderating for message boards when the owner is dumb enough to buy all the above nonsense.
She has stated in her single post on this board that she wants the pet trade banned.
She has written on her website that she accepts corrections, even welcomes them... She has been given hundreds of corrections, the same ones over and over for years but refuses to change them.
She has made comments that are directly damaging to some of the largest companies and reputable individuals in the industry, many of whom directly support Kingsnake financially. Jeff can toss out that $54 from Adam, but where will he be when Prehistoric Pets, Pro Exotics, VPI and Bob Clark get sick of one of his own moderators blasting his advertisers?
The public opinion of her, in the eyes of those who don't know better, is positive. They see her information as being infallible because she wrote a Dummies book (At least TFH used to pretend to have someone competent check them before editing), since I see the industry opening up and changing the way it interacts with that first time pet owner, I see the public support of a very negative character as being damaging and actively speak out about it, even if it's just when someone posts a link to her website.
While most of the examples of her inaccurate "care" information can certainly be found in species other than the green iguana, the iguana pages are loaded with them too, they simply take longer to explain because she has hidden them better. If anyone desires a more complete rundown of a few of those, I'd be happy to do so in the iguana discussion forum on this website but, as I said, it takes longer to explain (Although nowhere near as long with the average fauna participant as it would elsewhere).
The comment about the ignorance of the average iguana owner, I stand by. It has been my personal experience that the average green iguana owner knows nothing whatsoever about herps and has this innate refusal to learn. Not all of them by any means, but the majority. Most of this is due to the fact that they get the garbage information from books sold in pet stores and then refuse to listen to arguments against it even when these arguments are strongly evidenced and their books obviously aren't working. Since the iguana care section of this website is new, it will be easier to combat and avoid some of those seriously wrong impressions people make before they get started, thus avoiding the headaches that usually come when dealing with iguana owners who somehow feel biological facts don't apply to their animals.
