Mr Bojangles - I haven't seen you post for a long time now, did they ban you for 18 months just because of that avator with the comic charactor droping his pants ? if so thats very childish on their behalf, it mad me laugh the first time i seen it, i don't know about any others but if it got up the admin's noses they could of just said to take it off, its not suitable, or something like that, not a complete ban.

Has anybody accessed and read any of the Lester File I linked to? I'm interested in knowing, and if you think this is enough to report fraud. To me, he is clearly telling the braintalk bulletin board that he is raising money for one purpose, while telling another community, the Second Life community, that he is using it to support a for-profit endeavour.

I've searched the Mass Attorney General website as Wittesea suggested, and found no links to forms for reporting fraud. There are such links for federal crimes and for NY, and Conn. Anybody know anything here?

http://www.ago.state.ma.us/sp.cfm?pageid=929


If you scroll to the area where it sats "consumer questions" you will see the hotline number, and below that is a link to a complaint form you can fill out and the address you mail the complaint form and supporting documentation to.

Hope that helps.

Liza - I have downloaded it but haven't had a chance to read it completely yet.

My Little man
 

Hello Brian
I did get sent to the sin-bin for a couple of weeks for my avator and got some pompous reason given. So I took the avator off an then I could post again after my 'time served". I think an incognito moderator got a bit drunk with all the power. So then I used to post with a blue pencil avator ( my way of highlighting silly censorship). Maybe that avator got up the admins noses, don't know.

Then I had computer trouble and lost my old password. I tried all manner of ways to re-register with different names; Joe Bangles etc but could never get back on-line so I just used to read the inputs.

Mr Bojangles
Still with no answer to my medical problems some 7 years on. Maybe getting close though.

Thats unreal, i thought the whole idea of a forum such as that was for people with neuro problems so they could post their concerns, big deal if you used a blue pencil avator, i thought Hitler was well gone but apparently not seems like he is still lerking at BT.:D, its a big differance here everyone is so friendy.
all the best,
Brian :)

Liza, with all due respect...
 

I am really disappointed to see this starting all over again.

I did read your document. And I did see it is missing some data.
There was an announcement posted on every forum, introducing Brigadoon
and asking for people to participate. There were more than one post on
Forum Feedback, about it too. I did not save them, but I recall one that
was a copy of an MSNBC story about it. I was not worried about it, and I thought it was a logical extension of the virtual chats that used to be on the old board.

I do recall that you were not a daily member on OBT and I do recall that
some time (months) would go by and we would not hear from you. So you
perhaps missed that.

Was fraud committed? I don't think so. People don't advertise fraud commonly.
Fraud to me would be using funds for non-related ventures, gambling,
fur coats, fueling hobbies, etc. Giving most of the monies to cronies or inflated salaries, as we have seen in Save The Children type charities.

Were we duped, lied to? Perhaps. I for one did not believe all that April 05 stuff about the server. And I know others who were skeptical too.

I personally feel that all the friendships I made and knowledge I learned there over the years was well worth what I had donated. Many of the boards, helped many people find relief from pain and suffering, and even turn their lives around. I am disappointed that the first database was turned off. I figured it belonged to MGH and they did not want it open anymore, probably for liability reasons. (that original experiment was over and the paper written).
I certainly believe we were "subjects" for that paper, and that is just as
hard to swallow, as the other things that followed for me.

And I think there might be a reason why the archives are not up yet, if ever.
I for one do not expect every detail of BrainTalk's functioning to be shared with me or the rest of the posters. This is where I differ from your point of view. Without Braintalk and its flaws, there would be no NeuroTalk as we know it. (Perhaps it would have appeared anyway, but as it stands, it was to help us out of that long down frustration). Without BrainTalk, I would never have met the wonderful people I now have in my life. The bucks do not compare to that.

Anger and hostility do not heal, but divide. Many are still confused, angry about things that happened at OBT. If one does not like it there, one can
leave. And I don't agree with you that it is busy there. I detect a loss of spirit on many of the boards. Only time will tell however, what develops.
In my opinion that board was plagued by trolls (allowing multiple user IDs was also destructive). The depression forum there was so out of control at one point, JL CLOSED it forever! It is unfortunate that innocent people were caught up in trying to control this. Bans on networks, inadvertently led to people getting blocked out. The heavy handed moderation was as an attempt at control, that lost control ultimately. Now OBT is trying again, and this board is trying its own way.
I think we are basically lucky to have
both, and a choice. I feel safer here, myself.

Hear, Hear,....Mrs D !

Mrs D
 

I understand that you do not want to see bad feelings, or fighting between communities or people, and nor do I. I still read OBT, and occasionally post there when I feel I have something useful to offer.

But my issue was with the donation and non-profit. If the Braintalk books were open, and I saw what was done with funds, and it was all above-board, I'd be fine. But Mr Lester has not made the non-profit's available, nor filed with the IRS (he wasn't required to), so his books are questionable, given what he has written about use of monies. I'd like to know that money was used for non-profit reasons. If it was not, then let the government do what it does in such cases. I have a strong suspicion, from Mr Lester's own posts, that he used money designated non-profit to enrich a for-profit endeavour.

That's all.

Let's all stay friends here, and all be free to speak our minds. That's what makes this community so wonderful.