"Position: SCAMMER"... wtf?

[aigeezer]

So I look at a thread in the newbie section in which someone asks a reasonable question.

The first reply I see also looks reasonable.

Then I notice that the author of the reply appears as:

terrytibbs
SCAMMER
Sr. Member
*****

So what the heck does this mean? Is it a scarlet letter of warning? Is it hacker humour?

I use View Profile and it says:

Name:    terrytibbs
Posts:    472
Position:    SCAMMER

I click on "show last posts of this person" and they look like routine stuff.

So what is this all about? If it's part of "forum culture" I've never noticed a reference to it and it seems a bit, um, puerile.
Oh, and if the forum has aggressive screening of newbies, how does it wind up with a "Sr. Member SCAMMER"?
What is a newbie to think of this kind of response to a hesitant newbie question?

[terrytibbs]

I made some shady business decisions in the past. Perhaps you should reconsider if you were planning on entering into a business deal with me, but other than that, I won't bite.

[Blind]

I made some shady business decisions in the past. Perhaps you should reconsider if you were planning on entering into a business deal with me, but other than that, I won't bite.

Haha, how genuine

[Maged]

Unlike most forums, we don't ban scammers. The reasoning for this is really quite simple: a ban is for someone who disrupts the forum in some way. In most cases, scammers aren't disruptive - they just make bad business deals. As such, to warn people, we tag the account appropriately. There's no reason to take away someones ability to be part of discussions for something completely unrelated.

[btc_artist]

I made some shady business decisions in the past. Perhaps you should reconsider if you were planning on entering into a business deal with me, but other than that, I won't bite.

So did you learn from those business decisions?  Will you make the same mistake again?

(I do believe people can change)

[theymos]

I added a note to terrytibbs's profile so people can see why he has the scammer label.

[edd]

I made some shady business decisions in the past. Perhaps you should reconsider if you were planning on entering into a business deal with me, but other than that, I won't bite.

So did you learn from those business decisions?  Will you make the same mistake again?

(I do believe people can change)

The following statement has nothing to do with the user terrytibbs but is simply a piece of general advice I want to pass along - I have learned from experience that, more often than not, people who say they have changed, haven't.

[btc_artist]

Very good advice.  However, someone who has *not* said they changed, but who *has* changed, as evidenced by their actions, is another thing.

[Matthew N. Wright]

I added a note to terrytibbs's profile so people can see why he has the scammer label.

Thank you theymos. I truly believe that this is the best way to do it.

[aigeezer]

My inner cultural anthropologist wannabe is intrigued by this approach.

It reminds me of the Puritan practice of putting miscreants on display in stocks. (I'm not being critical, just observing a similarity).

Time in the stocks was temporary though. This seems more permanent, so perhaps it is more like the scarlet letter approach.

Those historical practices died out, but I have no idea why.

I'll watch with interest to see how this turns out. Really! No veiled criticism or irony intended. This medium makes every comment seem so sour.

Hmm... I'm glad I don't have to wear labels in dirtspace for my lifetime of misjudgements.

Does the system include any path to redemption? Could someone get a fresh start if they wrote new code for the forum, for instance?
That would be an apples/oranges mix but might be a worthwhile tradeoff within our closed society. Yikes, what price redemption?... Corruption?... Fairness?...
The whole morality debate looms.

Ramblin', I know, but it's a cool topic. Somebody gave me a copy of Muzzey's "Ethics as a Religion" when I was a kid and it must have done something to my brain.

[Matthew N. Wright]

My inner cultural anthropologist wannabe is intrigued by this approach.

It reminds me of the Puritan practice of putting miscreants on display in stocks. (I'm not being critical, just observing a similarity).

Time in the stocks was temporary though. This seems more permanent, so perhaps it is more like the scarlet letter approach.

Those historical practices died out, but I have no idea why.

I'll watch with interest to see how this turns out. Really! No veiled criticism or irony intended. This medium makes every comment seem so sour.

Hmm... I'm glad I don't have to wear labels in dirtspace for my lifetime of misjudgements.

Does the system include any path to redemption? Could someone get a fresh start if they wrote new code for the forum, for instance?
That would be an apples/oranges mix but might be a worthwhile tradeoff within our closed society. Yikes, what price redemption?... Corruption?... Fairness?...
The whole morality debate looms.

Ramblin', I know, but it's a cool topic. Somebody gave me a copy of Muzzey's "Ethics as a Religion" when I was a kid and it must have done something to my brain.

If I had to guess, I'd say you're related to Phinneous Gage

[Maged]

Does the system include any path to redemption?

Yes, he just has to pay back the people that he scammed. While it won't guarantee that we'll remove the label, it will at least allow us to re-open the case and re-evaluate things.

[terrytibbs]

So did you learn from those business decisions?  Will you make the same mistake again?

I wouldn't've started this whole shebang had I known what was coming. On the other hand, I still refuse to refund my customers.

I added a note to terrytibbs's profile so people can see why he has the scammer label.

Thanks! Is it possible to have some kind of link next to what would've been my avatar, the "user box"?
If this were XenForo, a simple template hook would suffice, not sure how SMF handles its stuff.

If I had to guess, I'd say you're related to Phinneous Gage

Have a look, Matthew:

I asked myself, WWAD? Upon finding the asking, I did it--opened a new account. With that new account, I went on a diatribe about being banned, this forum needs change, etc.

[Matthew N. Wright]

If I had to guess, I'd say you're related to Phinneous Gage

Have a look, Matthew:

I asked myself, WWAD? Upon finding the asking, I did it--opened a new account. With that new account, I went on a diatribe about being banned, this forum needs change, etc.

I think it was 'Nikki the Bitch'.

[theymos]

It reminds me of the Puritan practice of putting miscreants on display in stocks. (I'm not being critical, just observing a similarity).

The idea is to warn people who might trade with him, not to punish him. The forum doesn't handle justice.

Thanks! Is it possible to have some kind of link next to what would've been my avatar, the "user box"?
If this were XenForo, a simple template hook would suffice, not sure how SMF handles its stuff.

I don't think that's necessary.

[terrytibbs]

I don't think that's necessary.

Slap it in my sig, then (I can't access my profile settings).

[terrytibbs]

I don't think that's necessary.

Slap it in my sig, then (I can't access my profile settings).

I would like it as follows:

Code:

[url=https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=47551.0]A friendly heads-up from your friend terrytibbs[/url]

[theymos]

Ah, I forgot that scammers can't edit their profile info. Would have been easier to use the signature to start with.

That text isn't clear enough.

[terrytibbs]

That text isn't clear enough.

It's clearer if I sign up for another account, right?

[theymos]

OK, I guess it doesn't matter since there's a clear link on your profile.