Mongo wrote:I have met the man in question, and a few others who have also, yet only one who has anything positive to say about him. Am I wrong? Dave
Man, I hate to stick my nose where it doesn't belong (believe that and I have a bridge I'd like to sell you), but I am not going to let you slam a good friend in public. Your incredibly bad manners, alone, deserve a rebuttal, but we'll put that aside for now and just deal with your fallacious comments.
I have been in this hobby for 52 years. I have seen a lot of yokels, come and go - never to be heard from again. No doubt that Mr. Fuller will never win any Mr. Congeniality contest, but the only people you will find that will bad-mouth him are those who resent his knowledge, proficiency and his inability to put up with crap from people who talk a good game, but never have anything positive to contribute to a project, or the public discourse, surrounding one.
When I see him on iChat at 1 AM, his time, when I know he has work the next morning and I ask, "Hey, old man. Why aren't you cranking Z's?" - the answer is always the same. "Working on CSG stuff," with a smile added to signify that he is doing something that he loves doing.
There isn't an organization that would not benefit from one or more persons who share his enthusiasm and dedication to the task at hand. He will always go above-and-beyond the call-of-duty, whenever necessary. What have YOU done, sir, to advance this hobby, in any way, shape or form? Please elucidate. Is that silence, I hear?
Yes, I will gladly and proudly admit that I hold Mr. Fuller in high-esteem and consider him a good and loyal friend that I can always turn to in time of need and know that he will be there for me. Maybe it's because we have both been around the same block, more than a few times that we have such simpatico. Not sure. I dare say there are many others who feel the same way. I am sure of this - he certainly does not need me to fight his battles for him. I am merely reacting to your blatant denigration of a good man, a dedicated fish keeper and a true icon in our hobby, one, I would dare say, that you are not worthy of carting his turkey baster.
I know that there is tension at times, especially among the various "site-owners," but I chalk that up to the passion each of them feel for their projects that they all dedicate an inordinate amount of time, energy and financial resources into, for the benefit of the rest of us lowly fish keepers. There will always be disagreements and no two strong-willed individuals are ever going to totally agree on every point. That's part of what makes the world go 'round. In the end, though, I believe they are all prepared to "lift a pint" and let bygones be bygones because ultimately, they realize it's not about their egos or their stature in the hobby or who has the most/best content or "hits" - it's all about the body of knowledge that they are attempting to amass for our mutual benefit.
All of these people, especially Jools and Ian deserve all the respect and appreciation we can possibly afford them.
For you to slam Ian in public is simply a low-class move, which I personally resent, strongly.
Neither Ian or Jools will be pleased that I have entered the fray, but where I come from we don't sit idly by and allow our friends to be trashed in public.
Get a clue, get some manners and do something positive in your life. When Ian does something to you, personally, then - and only then, should you see fit to open your pie hole to cast aspersions about him.
I will gladly entertain any feeble attempt at a rational retort, via a PM. I only posted this publicly to show you what it feels like to be trashed in public. Of course, Jools, at his discretion may see fit to delete or move this post, entirely. I respect his call on the matter, without question. - Frank
well done for sorting the running order -im easily pleased (as long as we don't get a car locked in a car park 
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