Cigar Exchange Protocol

[chiefmd]

I have been involved in many trades and giftings on other forums and yes sometimes what is received does not measure up to what was given, but in a community like this these things will happen, for many different reasons.

Lefty

We aren't like other forums. I think I actually enjoy my cigars more knowing that I can trust what goes on here because of the rules.

 

[leftyposthole]

I would be curious as to what most are afraid of?

 

[louich]

Well I don't want to talk for everyone here (as I am a newbie) but clearly the rules are there to help members (mainly newbs like us) understand the customs of the community. Yes community instead of forum as I have not been around for too long but discovered that half the action between the guys goes on unseen on the forum.

Now I don't think the rules are there because some were afraid of something as I view them more like guidelines to be followed so everything can be treated on the same level by anyone, juts like you stop at a red light (don't ask why it is like that).

Plus I have been very pleased with the warm welcome the member heres gave me and how I am being treated when I interact with others (referring to the friendly forum comment of your other post). I went to other forums and while some were nice none were this welcoming and tolerant of ignorant/newbs like me and that has nothing to do with the rules but how I interacted on the forum (I guess lol).

 

[leftyposthole]

Please don't misunderstand me, I am not by any means advocating that things be changed or done differently. And I completely understand this place is not like other communitys. It just seems that all the don'ts and cannots don't gel well with I'm the freindliest place on the net. Agian not trying to pick a fight but to understand.

 

[chiefmd]

I've actually made a lot of good friends during my short time here.

 

[sar127]

Lefty,

I felt exactly the same way as you when I first joined too. But in my very short tenure here my views have changed, and yours may too. From my new perspective, I see these criterion less as rules and more as etiquette. Of course there are those hard and fast rules like the 4 months activity before passing, etc, but those are to weed out the real asshats trying to take advantage of members and I don't think you're talking about those rules anyway. But things like this OP or posting an introduction as a first post are good examples of etiquette that I believe enhances a community.

Of course if you're one that's well versed in cigars, you may already know the proper etiquette, but many other cigar/forum noobs like myself still need to be taught, and perhaps some others have to be reminded. And if you accept that as a distinction, I think you will see all of this in a more positive light. Again over the short time I've been here, I've seen threads like this pop up just every so often as a reminder, but the majority of the activity here is clear evidence of true camaraderie.


Edit: grammar

 

[MX]

Lefty,

First off Hi there and welcome to CP!

Thank you fro keeping it civil in this discussion, well played. I guess to throw my euro in the bucket, I will say this:

Why did the Commandments have to be written out? Did people know before hand that killing was wrong? Of course they did, but now they can't pretend they don't know.....

Tim

 

[grateful1]

Lefty,

First off Hi there and welcome to CP!

Thank you fro keeping it civil in this discussion, well played. I guess to throw my euro in the bucket, I will say this:

Why did the Commandments have to be written out? Did people know before hand that killing was wrong? Of course they did, but now they can't pretend they don't know.....

Tim

ooooo wah, oooooo wah, ooooo wah, oooooo wah,
ooooo wah, oooooo wah, .....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RgSzXEYtKI

 

[MoeCizlak]

Here are some thoughts and observations from a noob here that are being said with no disrespect or malice. What seems to be happening here is you are trying to set rules and regulations to govern every possible situation that could possibly arise. That is all well and good except you cannot govern everyones actions in every situation, our government and churches etc. have proven that out. The whole point of forums and communitys like this are fellowship and friendship with other likeminded folks. Yes, sometimes people don't act like we think they should and so we want to pass rules and regulations to make sure that sort of thing can't happen in the future. When groups like this get some age on them, "I think this forum has been around since "91", they seem to lose sight of the original purpose and objective, to have fellowship and develop friendships with other BOTL and SOTL'. Unfortunatly its a natural progression that happens in life.When you have been involved with a place like this for many years you tend to close ranks and narrow your perspective which causes us to become cinical and untrusting. I have been involved in many trades and giftings on other forums and yes sometimes what is received does not measure up to what was given, but in a community like this these things will happen, for many different reasons. I have lived by the rule " have a thick skin and a tender heart". When you have been a member for a long time it becomes "in some cases" hard to keep an open view of its original intent. You seem to do a very good job of outing snakes and thieves which is a good thing, but please don't take the fun and enjoyment out this place by overregulating every aspect of what goes on here. This forums motto, "the friendliest cigar forum on the internet" in my opinion has lost site of that. I know I will be attacked and flamed for this, but again my intent in writing this is not to be disrespectful in any way, but just hoping you will step back a little and examine what you are doing with an open mind and a tender heart. I urge not to lose sight of why we are here in the first place. A gift is a gift, once given it should be theirs to do with as they wish otherwise it was not a GIFT. I know many will say this place may not be for you, so be it, I would hope however that this place would be open to other opinions and observations.
That being said let the flaming begin, I have thick skin....................

A BOTL,

Lefty

Sorry to disappoint you, but you're not going to get attacked and flamed. Maybe you could point out what exactly has transpired in your couple of weeks on this forum that has made you think we have lost sight of the forum's purpose.

 

[leftyposthole]

Thanks for your response Moe, I hope my OP did not come across as mean or disrespecful as that certainly was not my intent. It was merely an observation of my perception of overregulation. I probably have not started off on the right foot here and may have allienated some already. I understand some regulation is a nescessary evil when there are many snakes and thieves prowling the web these days. Help me understand how a 4 mo. waiting or probationary period will help protect us from thievery. If a noob, like myself, wants to post an ISO or trade thread and is willing to send his end first how does that become a problem? An example is a fellow just a few weeks short of his 4 mo. waiting period posted an ISO for EMPTY BOXES and got shot down for it. curious. I am going to assume that these don'ts and cannots have evolved over the life of this forum and were instituted as diff. problems have come up to protect the members. However I don't think you can totally protect yourselves from them completely, thieves, and at some point they, the rules, can become excessive. That is merely the point I was trying to make in the OP. That being said I don't expect you fine BOTL's to change a thing about the way this forum operates as it seems to be working very well for you. My observation was simply that all the rules somewhat clouded the idea of " the friendliest cigar forum on the net " I should add that the few dealings I have had with the members here in my short tenure were all done by true gentlemen and great BOTL, and I was offerred many warm welcomes in my NOOB thread. So I hope I have not burnt all my bridges in my short NOOB life here.

No I am not dissappointed that I did not get flamed, as that would have happened at some other forums. So thank you for that, as that already makes this place differrent.

Thanks for reading the rantings of an old man who is just trying to understand.

Lefty

 

[MoeCizlak]

In regards to your "Help me understand how a 4 mo. waiting or probationary period will help protect us from thievery." question, let me give you an example: A guy out of nowhere comes here and is allowed to post a sale in his first week, let's call him Newb 1 He sends his end first and the transaction goes smoothly. He does this several more times and after three weeks he has done half a dozen trades, each of them has gone off without a hitch. His only interaction in this community has been sales and because there wasn't a problem with those sales, someone new, let's call him Newb 2, doesn't think twice about buying his next, big sale. Newb 1 asks Newb 2 to send his $300 for the box of cigars first since Newb 1 has a positive trading 'history'. Newb 2 sends his money in good faith and Newb 1 disappears, never intending to send the cigars. Newb 1 built confidence by doing a number of small trades and then when the stakes were raised, he got free money. Imagine if that scenario played out in a pass. The stakes would most likely be much higher than the price of a box of cigars. While you can't know everything about someone from 4 month's worth of participation on an internet BB, if someone participates enough you can get a pretty good picture of them. Sure having someone new send their end first is a protective measure, but at some point someone newer is going to get involved and then they will have to send first. This is not a cigar market site, the selling and trading that goes on here is a privilege of participating members. There are sites out there designed for the express intent of buying/selling/trading, and believe me, that scenario I gave you of Newb 1 and Newb 2 has played out on more than one occasion. While our 4 month rule admittedly isn't the very definition of brotherhood, it does help protect the ones here for camaraderie.

 

[Gavin]

This is not a cigar market site, the selling and trading that goes on here is a privilege of participating members.

Particularly well-said.

 

[ilikefishes]

Lefty, I appreciate your civility in this thread. You sir are a class act. The 4 month rule is what it is. Could have just as easily been 6 months or a year or less time. 4 months is what the group decided on.

I agree that you would have already been flamed on other boards as I was a part of another board. The difference is that a lot of the other boards are very protective of their turf and they don't play nicely with new people. That is not the case here and I am very glad that these guys/gals are exactly who they say they are.

 

[leftyposthole]

Thanks fellas I appreciate the civil input, not being a thief I never would have thought of that scenario. Thanks for helping thid old fart understand better. I will bide my time and observe more and shut the heck up. Subject closed.

Lefty

 

[2K6TBSS]

Thanks fellas I appreciate the civil input, not being a thief I never would have thought of that scenario. Thanks for helping thid old fart understand better. I will bide my time and observe more and shut the heck up. Subject closed.

Lefty

You will also notice that 99.9% of the people trading/selling on here are not thieves either. The ones that are thieves will usually get outed and booted within minutes.

Not sure if you saw this, but there is a Newbie Trade Thread in the B/S/T Section of this forum. The 4 month rule doesn't apply to that, and is a great way to get a few (I think the max is 2) trades under your belt and start creating a little reputation for yourself.

I also was involved in the Beer PIF, and the Wine/Liquor PIF before my 4 months was reached (both interactions were approved by senior members before I was allowed to participate though). I think I was at like 3.5 months though. However, I did complete a few of the Newbie Trades before hand. Just something else for you to consider before posting an ISO or a sale.

 

[leftyposthole]

I normally never have anything to sell, I do have some HTF sticks that I truly enjoy that I am looking to find, all in due time. A side note with a touch of humor is when you are young and in the prime of life, like most of you whippersnappers 4 mos. is nothing, At my age there is a well lets just say when you are looking for something a sense of urgency in your quest. I am a generous guy, however I don't feel the calling to have a well stocked humidor full of tasty well aged cigars to be left to some young greenhorn to enjoy at my funeral if you get my drift. So that being said this grandpa will swallow his pride and take a look at the noob trade thread, If that will make all you young punks happy.

Smoke em if ya got em, for tonight might be your last sunset.

Lefty

 

[louich]

I get your POV but I think you'll be pleansently suprised form the newbis sampler thread (I know I did!). The guys usually take into account your likes and dislikes when making up the package.

Plus even at your age time must pass by fast enough (wink wink)

Signed an happy punk

 

[wkoti]

Lefty, it's not all bad sir. I'm now a FOG on the Newbie Sampler Trade, as well as 6 other stand up gentlemen. I've been on the purchasing side 5 different times in 3 years. Only because I wanted a little variation, or I wanted to try some stuff I've never had or heard of before. And because of those packages, I've found a taste for many different brands.

You are right, I'm a young whippersnapper, but I also like helping BOTLs out, and I as well as others feel I have a very nice variation of cigars that could be beneficial to others.

Don't feel forced to do it, some never participate, but many do. And many benefit from it, being seeing as though you've been smoking for many years, and you've built yourself a wonderful collection of cigars, you really don't need our help. But if you would like to give it a try, give it a shot.

 

[leftyposthole]

So do I just take the next guy in line or can I pick someone in the list?

 

[louich]

Usualy next guy in the line or maybe wkoti would do something directly for you!