Conflict of Interest

[LWM]

All is good, Basically what I have asked the Mods to do is keep me in check, I will refrain from Moderation in the Vendor section in order to:

“act at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the independence, integrity, and impartiality of the forum, and shall avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety.”

I will still step in when needed to help hold the forum to the standard that we have grown accustom too. The basic issue is that I want you as members to feel free to praise or condemn ANY product (including The Steel Armadillo) that you feel the need too without fear of repercussion.

[Matt]

.....in that case....

what's with that S.A. dude? Didn't he promise progress pics of an XK front bumper like 2 weeks ago??? That audacity....

[The_War_Wagon]

I'm still so new to Jeeps, I'm soaking it all in!

Being a moderator on an AR15 board, I can appreciate the struggle between wanting to cut loose, and professionalism - I'm sure that's tougher when you're also a sponsor, although I've seen that managed well elsewhere, too.

I like this board, because of the 6 Jeep forums I joined the first week after buying my Commander , this one is the most responsive, and has the most personable people. Matt saw me on another board and invited me to join, and I haven't been disappointed yet (blame him)!

I also like to spend money where I hang out, so as soon as I get some, I already plan on spending it here (which I realize is a lotta talk, until you ACTUALLY do it, but there you have it...). And other than the crazy guy with no doors on his Commander, I'm thinking no one else here would steer you into something crazy or hazardous - all YOUR rides still have their doors, fenders, & accoutrements relatively intact - a not unimportant consideration to a new board member whose about to mail Payment #2 on his Commander later this week!

I think the strength of this board is in it's low key/low pressure approach to helpfulness. I don't see anyone trying to build "Jeepzilla" here, and y'all have wives you hafta sneak stuff past too (I'm really looking forward to sneaking a 2" lift and 30x9 A/T's past MY wife... to say nothing of custom bumpers, rock rails, winch, and a roof rack ). I ONLY discovered last night in fact, that Knappster and Steel Armadillo are one & the same!

[Steel Armadillo]

I ONLY discovered last night in fact, that Knappster and Steel Armadillo are one & the same!

That makes two of us!

[Sal-XK]

And other than the crazy guy with no doors on his Commander, I'm thinking no one else here would steer you into something crazy or hazardous - all YOUR rides still have their doors, fenders, & accoutrements relatively intact - a not unimportant consideration to a new board member whose about to mail Payment #2 on his Commander later this week!

Just point this guy out man I'll take care of him for you. I say we make him walk the plank of shame!

[hoaxci5]

(I'm really looking forward to sneaking a 2" lift and 30x9 A/T's past MY wife...

Step it up to at least 31s (I don't think you need anything extra to make them work)
My 32s required spacers and pinch weld mod so you may not want to do that

/end

[HueyPilotVN]

I'm still so new to Jeeps, I'm soaking it all in!


I think the strength of this board is in it's low key/low pressure approach to helpfulness. I don't see anyone trying to build "Jeepzilla" here, and y'all have wives you hafta sneak stuff past too (I'm really looking forward to sneaking a 2" lift and 30x9 A/T's past MY wife... to say nothing of custom bumpers, rock rails, winch, and a roof rack ). I ONLY discovered last night in fact, that Knappster and Steel Armadillo are one & the same!

I am lucky in that my wife, (Lee) is always pushing me to find new modifications for the Commander. She is the one that talked me into buying the Stacker trailer to carry the Mustang and the Commander with us on trips.

Oh yes, and Jon I would not worry at all about being both a vendor and Moderator. Jon has as much integerity as anyone I know. I trust that he will always do the right thing.

[LWM]

Oh yes, and Jon I would not worry at all about being both a vendor and Moderator. Jon has as much integerity as anyone I know. I trust that he will always do the right thing.

Thanks Bill, that is the reputation I want to keep intact!

[ScorpionCrawler]

Oh yes, and Jon I would not worry at all about being both a vendor and Moderator. Jon has as much integerity as anyone I know. I trust that he will always do the right thing.

Well put Huey...and my sentiments exactly.
Jon, and everyone that make this place great, keep it up.
Still laughing about the guy without the doors giving advice.

[El Cid]

Jon should be commended for starting this thread. It shows the kind of transparency that will be necessary to handle what will be an increasingly delicate issue. I've been getting private communications from forum members or watchers who are lamenting the long-term impacts of this potential conflict of interest, yet they have feared to say anything publicly -- perhaps because they don't want you all to hate them, or they don't want to be banned, or who knows what. (If someone could tell me why the heck they write me, I'd love to know; I think it's sorta odd.)

The fact that Jon is opening up a public space for such comment is absolutely commendable and honorable -- whether folks choose to take advantage of it or not.

Oh yes, and Jon I would not worry at all about being both a vendor and Moderator. Jon has as much integerity as anyone I know. I trust that he will always do the right thing.

I, too, think Jon has a lot of integrity. No question there.

At the risk of sounding like Chicken Little, however, I think it is wrong to say that he shouldn't worry about being both a vendor and moderator. No offense to any saints out there, but I don't trust anybody to always do the right thing. At best, I trust a few folks (and I suspect Jon is one of them) to consistently do what they think is the right thing to do ... but which may or may not actually be the right thing to do. That's just life.

I happen to think Jon was absolutely wrong, for instance, in deleting the sequence of posts referred to above that could have put him and his business in a bad light; at the same time, I think he was absolutely right in undeleting those posts after I raised the issue of a double-standard at work. Jon did the right thing in the end, to his great credit, but he didn't do so instinctively. In other words, I think he does need to worry about the issue.

While I know one response is to say "If you don't like it, go home," I hope you can see that this is not a sound mentality for the long-term health of what has been a fantastic forum. The best solution is to bring any issues out into the open, as Jon is here doing, in order to confront them and deal with them. That's how strong ties are forged.

Speaking of being open, the more I think about it the more I'm not totally sure that it's a good idea for Jon to have the two names. On the plus side, it can help delineate the businessman/hobbyist aspects of Jon's role, but on the down side it can hide the fact of who's who. I'm just not sure what's best there ... not that it's my call to make, of course, but I wonder what others think?

I do want to put some more context on this issue, just to give examples of how this has been or can be a problem -- if nothing else to serve as examples for the moderators -- but it'll take me a bit to figure out the best way to do that. In the meantime, I hope folks can understand that I'm only pointing out these issues because I very much want to see this forum succeed -- and because other folks seem reluctant to talk about it.