More JREF Stuff - Sorry

I apologize for using this blog to talk about JREF stuff, but this is where people know to find me. Once this drama dies down, I'll remove the posts. For now, I'll answer some questions people have asked me.

Why would you expect to be able to log in if you asked to have your account unregistered?
To be clear, what I sent them was "Please inactivate/unregister (or whatever you call it) my account so that I have a status of Guest without posting privileges." Nothing more was said by either side. Had I wanted my account to not let me log in, I could have done that myself without contacting the JREF. First, I would change the e-mail address on my account to a junk e-mail address. Then using something like Notepad, type a gibberish password with my eyes closed. Hit Shift-Home to select the text and Ctrl-C to copy it (all with my eyes shut). Alt-Tab back to the browser and paste in the new password. Save it, and Bob's your uncle. Any lost password requests will be sent to the junk e-mail address. The account is locked.

However, I turn the question around: why would I expect to not be able to log in? I didn't ask for that. Nobody ever said I would not be allowed to. I'm not arguing their right to keep me from logging in. I'm just disputing the notion that I should have somehow known this since I was never told about the policy, there is no written policy, and I had been permitted to log in for two months with their full knowledge. And I can't see any good reason not to permit it. What's the harm? 

Why did you ask to have your posting privileges suspended? If you didn't want to post, then don't post!
That's a fair question. To be candid, it's a matter of being honest with myself. For various reasons I needed to take a break from posting on the JREF Forums. However, I still enjoy reading some of threads (I lurked for a very long time before registering) and knew I would still want to do that. Having my account status lowered not only prevented me from posting, but it also prevented me from seeing the Members Only areas. One area in particular, Forum Management, gets under my skin.

Simply put, if I had access to read Forum Management, I would read it. If I had access to post, I know I'd find a way to rationalize posting "just this once." Next thing you know, I'm in the middle of a long debate - exactly what I don't want. Call me weak-willed if you'd like, but I was just being honest with myself. Maybe when you're on a diet you don't mind the house being filled with cookies and soda. I envy you.

What is this "conspiracy theory" stuff?
It was clear to me that someone was messing with my account settings without telling me. Turns out I was 100% correct. I figured it was either a hacker or someone at the JREF. I dismissed the former because it was extremely unlikely considering the account had virtually no privileges and none of my other accounts under UncaYimmy using that password were compromised. Clearly people at the JREF had means and opportunity. That just left motive.

Well, considering that I had been logging on without a problem for two months and only found my account blocked 12 hours after posting a blog critical of the JREF, my antennae went up. Furthermore, my relationship with the moderators was not very good:

• I have been called "mean spirited" and "petty" by a mod not acting as a mod in Forum Management.
• I have had heated exchanges with the mods and admins in the past.
• I appealed a post being moved to the trash bin. That appeal languished for 40 days despite the fact that I bumped it several times. At the time I asked a former mod about the situation and was told that it is highly unusual for an appeal to sit that long (most are resolved in a day or two). Only after my last bump was not approved (appeals are moderated) did I contact Darat and Lisa privately. It was a week later that my appeal was finally addressed (denied).
• I told Jeff Wagg via e-mail that I had some concerns about how members, including myself, were treated by the moderators and asked if we could discuss it. He ignored that request. I know he got the e-mail because he responded to another part.

Still, though, I did not even mention any of this until after Lisa told me that nobody at the JREF had altered my account and she told me (in her second e-mail) that "this discussion is over." I didn't bring any of this up until after Darat told me, "to be blunt I am not interested in seeing reports from non-Members" and he had failed to communicate clearly what he had done. Remember, at this point I was still under the impression that Darat had not made these other changes to my account. It was then that I involved Jeff Wagg and laid out the case that it might be someone on the inside. Still, I did not make any direct accusations.  I addressed various possibilities and  concluded with:

The JREF should work with me to try figure out what has happened. Did Darat type my e-mail address incorrectly or was my account altered again? Has anyone else experienced a similar problem lately? Are there logs that can give a clue as to who did this such as the IP address of the machine that made the change? What e-mail was used for password resets? Is there a bug? A corrupted record?

Seriously, does this sound like someone who is spouting off a conspiracy theory or someone who is genuinely concerned about what is happening to his account? In response, Jeff did not answer any of my questions directly. He simply stated that I should not expect to be able to log in to my account since I requested it be unregistered. He added, "No one is playing games with you. Please stop with the theories. Your paranoia is serving no one."

From this am I supposed to conclude that Darat twice changed my account settings without telling me? Remember, I have been logging in as a guest for two months, so of course I expect to be able to log in. I interpreted "no one is playing games" as meaning that nobody at the JREF had touched my account and that Jeff was under the impression that I had never been able to log in. Clearly Darat knew I had been logging in - how else could I have submitted reports?

I find Wagg's attitude disrespectful, insulting, and unbecoming of a Communications and Outreach Director.