I've just sent the following message to Kevin...

Date:   1997-03-22 14:05:24
From:   Paul Edwards of 3:711/934
To:     Kevin Mann of 3:54/0
Subj:   policy complaint
Attr:   Pvt Cra Loc 
Conf:   NETMAIL                       

POLICY COMPLAINT AGAINST DAVID MORE, 3:711/0
Lodged with Kevin Mann, by Paul Edwards on 1997-03-22.

Kevin, this is an official complaint against an NC in your region, David More.  
There are two different complaints I have.

1. Being too easily annoyed.

2. Abusing his position as NC.

David recently indicated that he was going to be leaving fidonet soon (around 
this time actually), so it could be that he is doing all these things in an 
attempt to have "one last bash" before leaving, with no risk to
himself, and 
getting some "pleasure" at being able to point the finger at me
on his way out, 
as if I were the instigator of all that is bad in fidonet.  Basically, the fido 
equivalent of a murder-suicide.


BEING TOO EASILY ANNOYED
------------------------

David More appears to be PC-trigger-happy.  The first instance of which I am 
aware was when a node (who presumably had an incorrect configuration, I'm not 
sure whether an answer was ever obtained about that), had a user who posted 
some commercial ad in ZONE3_SYSOP.  As you know, ZONE3_SYSOP, like all echos, 
is carried purely by consenting systems, unlike routed netmail, so actually, if 
you don't like a particular echo, your only RIGHT is to deselect the echo. You 
can usually do one step better than that though, and inform the nominal 
"moderator" of the echo to request the sysop concerned do
something about it, 
and failing a satisfactory response there, to request his feed to cut the feed, 
etc etc up the line.  However, David More, who wasn't even the echo moderator, 
chose instead to raise a PC against this node, which would have seen him 
EXCOMMUNICATED FROM FIDO, not just that one echo!  Fortunately the PC was 
overturned, but unfortunately no complaint was ever lodged against David fo   r 
being too easily annoyed.

The next instance I know of was just a couple of days ago, where David lodged a 
complaint against me, for messages ALSO written in ZONE3_SYSOP. Most of these 
messages were not to him.  The echo moderator again, has not even ruled the 
topic off-topic.  The next action above that, would be too banish me from the 
echo for a length of time (possibly forever), an action which the moderator has 
ALSO not done.  The next action above that would be for the moderator to 
request my immediate echo feed to cease to supply the echo to me, an action 
which the moderator has ALSO not done.  The topic that the messages are about 
are totally irrelevant, given that the moderator has not even ruled them 
off-topic, but just for the record, they are about the FTSC, which is 
sysop-related, so would be considered by many to be on-topic in that echo 
anyway.  The debate itself revolves around one point, who the
"real" FTSC is, 
out of a choice of two, and obviously there are only two points of view.  I 
happen to    hold a minority view (at least amongst vocal members of the 
ZONE3_SYSOP echo).


ABUSING HIS POSITION AS NC
--------------------------

The very first instance I know of was when it was apparent that the N711_SYSOP 
echo was being "leaked" to non-n711 sysops.  He said that he
would denodelist 
whoever it was if he caught them.  It was not me who was the leak, but I 
pointed out to him that actually the only thing he could do was, as moderator, 
request a feed cut to that sysop, and that an arbitrary denodelisting would see 
him get a PC himself.  His response was that he could do it regardless, and the 
process of the node filing a PC and getting reinstated would take a matter of 
months, which would make it all worthwhile.

The next instance I know of was also in N711_SYSOP, where, in response to 
someone questioning what he did as NC, he responded by saying that "he worked 
very hard to keep N711 running smoothly" (roughly translated meaning
"as an NC 
I thought my job was to be lord of the N711 sysops instead of merely 
maintaining the nodelist"), and demanded an apology from the sysop in question 
(which wasn't me).  I guess he didn't specifically say that if he didn't get an 
apology he would denodelist the sysop, but a "demand" implies
that you have 
some power with which to back it up with.

The next instance I know of was where a user on my system was involved in a 
heated discussion (as usual) with someone else, and the other person was 
threatening a PC (although he wasn't actually a sysop, so he wouldn't have got 
very far).  However, David apparently took it off his own bat to go and have a 
look at some messages from this user in echos which he presumably didn't read 
before now, and decided that these messages were "unacceptable from members of 
n711" and demanded that if I didn't axe this user's access to my system, I 
would be denodelisted (note - he didn't threaten raising a PC of his own, he 
just threatened arbitrary denodelisting).  Although it is totally irrelevant, 
let me point out that this user, like most people, has both good and bad 
points, of which I have personally witnessed both.  He provides a lot of 
technical information/help as well as a lot of waffle.  However, there has only 
ever been ONE moderator who has EVER asked me to cut Rod's access to an echo, a    
request which I complied with.

The final instance was with me, personally.  A discussion was occurring in 
ZONE3_SYSOP, and David didn't like my side of the story.  Instead of just 
joining in the debate, he sent me an ultimatim, that either I stopped telling 
my side of the story, or I would be denodelisted.  

These are the actions of an out-of-control fascist, not the actions of a 
responsible NC.  The expression "power corrupts, absolute power corrupts 
absolutely" has certainly been true of David More.


IN SUMMARY
----------

Kevin, as a member of N711 yourself, you will have seen all this stuff I refer 
to yourself.  I can provide documentary evidence of the most recent of these 
messages, as they are still in my messagebases, but the old stuff I don't have 
access to anymore, but if it is required, I can post a message in the relevant 
echos to see if someone else still has them.  Please let me know what you 
require and I will attempt to obtain it.  Thanks for your time, and I'm sorry 
it had to come to this, but it has now gone too far. Some would say that I was 
selfish for not raising a PC against him straight after the "commercial ads in 
ZONE3_SYSOP" PC, but I was doing my best to not be too easily annoyed myself, 
and contented myself with just posting echomail messages deploring the 
situation.