Just got a bunch of hatemail from the people who were removed for slagging heavy mods (and no, saying something is “sick shit” or “brain dead”, is attacking, not “stating an opinion”), accusing me of abusing their rights (free speech), called IAM a cult who's members are “morons” and “followers”, tried to claim that I'm ripping everyone off and getting rich off them, and all the other typical statements… Topped off of course with calling me a retard and making fun of Canada, heh…
Anyway, I told them the same things I tell everyone: If you don't like the rules here, you should make your own site. Knock off IAM's interface if you want — I think it's well designed, and I long ago released the idea into the public domain. Unfortunately, 99.9% of people are willing to put enormous energy into complaining and insulting, but very little effort into actually doing anything.
A solid coder could build IAM, at least with 80% of the featureset that's here now, in a week of work, tops. It's really not hard. If you aren't talented enough to do it yourself, and you're really convinced it's a money making machine (a common accusation) then you should be willing to pay someone to do it or license similar software… Now, I'll warn you that IAM is a “money losing machine” and it's an investment that wouldn't pay off without really rethinking policies like no advertising, but I figure if people want to accuse me of that they should be willing to stand behind it.
I don't know what it says about this world when people are more inclined to desperately try and blame others for their own acts, and don't want to do anything to help those around them… It's very sad, and I hope that as we mature as a species it will become a thing of the past.
Oh, and since it's the most common accusation, here's some advice on how to own cool cars (and I think I do have some very cool cars) without spending too much money:
- If you want a new car (like my TT), lease it through a business. That way you'll get decent rates, plus you can write it off. Personally though I wouldn't do this again though, I don't think it's the best bang for the buck.
- Buy an older sports car that's devalued — like my Corvette. People are generally shocked when I tell them that it cost $2000 US ($3000 CDN); that's a great deal, but not unusual. Then learn to do the work on it yourself — another good thing about older cars is they're mechanically simple.
- Buy a kit car, preferably a VW based one (because they're simple to work on and cheap to maintain). This is the best — probably only — way to drive a real exotic sports car on a $2500 budget, and I'd recommend it to anyone with a hands-on DIY attitude.
- Learn the market and always buy quality. If you do this, you can own a series of ever better cars by simple buying and selling.
Hell, considering the hours that I work, I can't say that my path is the best decision if money was my goal… Luckily my goal is to be happy and make sure the people around me are happy, and to always put my effort into things that I can ethically stand behind. As long as I have enough money for good food, a decent place to live, and the ability to occasionally throw a fun party, I can't complain.
…and as a P.S., I hope that if anyone has concerns about the TOS or the ethics surrounding this or anything that I do, that they are comfortable approaching me about it.
Well, the hour and a half of BBQ footage just finished getting captured, so it's off to the editing bay with me! I'll probably thow some stills up shortly.
