Listers,
I know, enough already! I have been watching this exchange from the
"sidelines" because each side of the argument has valid points and
there is no totally convincing argument for or against such activity.
First and foremost, we have to recognize the right of the owner of any
website to establish guidelines that he feels are in the best interest
of the list and himself. As has been pointed out, there is no
monetary benefit for running this list. It is done so purely for the
love of the hobby and the desire to bring a particular community
together. To clutter an invaluable list with a constant barrage of
commercial messages defeats the purpose of the list and further
burdens the site and the owner's ability to maintain it. I think most
of us enjoy commerical free radio and TV. The same principle applies
here. Setting a precedent by allowing unfettered commercial messages
opens the door for more and more. The line does need to be drawn so
everyone understands exactly what is expected and the only individual
who has that right is the site owner.
On the other side, I am always interested in new products for my TR
and spend a good amount of that time searching eBay and the rest of
the web for those treasures. And I do not hesitate to mention a
website, product or supplier to the list that I think highly of
because of a personal experience. If another lister wishes to counter
with a negative experience or warning about my recommendation so be
it. I'm certainly no expert and one good experience is not a
guarantee for anything. But it is at least better than nothing which
appears to be the case for many new listers with no where else to go.
And that is how I feel the list's ultimate success and real value is
enhanced by the presence of such suppliers and experienced owners. It
succeeds in keeping the Triumph marque alive and thriving through a
very vibrant forum of many individuals with a common interest. I have
taken advantage of a number of commercial messages that I doubt I
would have found anywhere else, and that's a real high value service
in my opinion.
The problem is balance. When does a lister's commercial messages
become too self-serving and frequent? Is the very mention of "hey, I
got something you're gonna love!" a commerical message? Some time ago
I needed a replacement piston and asked for help. I was not expecting
someone to give me a piston for free. So if a lister asks, "How do
I...?" or "How can I...?" is it wrong to mention one of your own
products or that of a friend if others mention the Big 3 or even the
local british garage in town?
I do not feel that the site owner needs to continually monitor the
site for "balance". I do feel that as listers who want the site to
continue that we all do our part by being honest with each other and
ourselves so the owner does not have to step in. Personal dislikes
and flaming email need to be put aside if we are to be a responsible
and responsive community both to the site owner and fellow TR owners.
I do think certain "opinion" messages should go directly to the
recipient and not on the list. By broadcasting them it quickly
divides the list into "us" and "you" as we scramble to each other's
defense. It is counterproductive to the goal of the list and the
community as a whole.
This may sound like a bunch of political double talk but the reason is
simple - neither side is entirely right and neither side is entirely
wrong. Appealing to the middle ground is the most difficult and
challenging. It is said that when both parties of a legal action walk
away unhappy after the court's decision that the correct decision was
made.
Outside of self-monitoring (a vague concept I admit) the only other
solution I can think of from a technical perspective is to provide a
separate link in the "list footer" that listers can freely add
commercial info and endorsements, either their own or a third party.
Abuse would merit automatic removal from the list (i.e. no more than
one "mention" of a product for each lister). Once on the link it
cannot be brought up in the list except to refer fellow listers to the
link. That may not be feasible as my knowledge of website maintenance
and available software capability is zero.
Hopefully somehow we can offer and accept constructive criticism in
order to move forward and fix the problem. The list has been and
continues to be invaluable to me. To lose it over this issue would be
a tragic loss for the marque.
Well, I believe I added more than my two cents allows on this topic so
I'll shut up...
Greg Dito
CD6250L
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