Some things were written “officially” on BME/ModBlog today that sort of bugged me… As you know, when I was forced to sell the site, one of the first things that happened is that all of the “history of BME” pages were edited not just to reflect that I was no longer with the site, but they actually completely removed or downplayed my historical role (as well as other staff that had fallen out of favor). I guess it’s not unheard of for a founder to be edited out of history documents, so that’s fine, but it does bother me when outright lies are told… Most recently;
Shannon didn’t post more than Roo and Roo didn’t post more than Jordan
Well, I posted a lot more content; anyone can look at the historical archives and see that. I aimed for 7-10 posts per day on ModBlog. The fact that BME’s traffic/popularity ranking has significantly dropped since I left, while other sites have continued to rise in popularity should show there’s a difference and that people can see it.
…meanwhile poor Phil has been behind the scenes picking the photos for what was originally Jordan’s pet project when he was interning for BME back in the “good ole days”. … PHIL picked out the images for Shannon to post.
Suggesting that ModBlog was somehow “Jordan’s pet project” is completely silly. Until this year under the new management, he rarely posted to the site… I think less than a dozen posts out of the thousands of posts that I made? ModBlog had been running for years on my personal blog (long before Jordan was an intern), mixed in with my personal content, and the shift to a dedicated name was an obvious evolution so as to have the content available to people who didn’t want to read my politics posts, and so as to better promote the site… It just seems so ridiculous to suggest that I was just some puppet under Jordan’s control.
As to Phil picking the images, that’s also totally false, and a lie that I hear way too often. Part of his job was filing interesting submissions into a “potential” folder. I did a second scan of the submission queue to fill it out and catch what was missed. Then from that queue, I selected what was posted and wrote the attached text. His role was to save me some time, but in no way was he responsible for any of the content.
Bodytwo was something that was started to try and redirect traffic away from BME.
Bodytwo was started because I love writing about body modification. When I was locked out of BME, I needed another place to write. Simple as that. If I thought I could write about it now without getting sued, I’d still be writing about it. But unfortunately I don’t have a series of rich boyfriends that I’ve convinced to finance my personal vendettas, so c’est la vie.
Anyway… taking my name out of the history of the site is one thing, but writing a completely false history where others are given credit for my work is BS.
153 Comments
While I know it is unnerving, to say the least to play down your role in BME it is just silly and anyone who didnt just stumble upon BME has to be rolling their eyes. That said, were I the Mother of your daughter, I’d have taken affront to your entry about the 15 years with your fiance as a dig or a goad. “Everyone” knows that you are the body and soul of BME. The same everyone knows that she is the other bio parent and was married to you and quite made the Queen of BME.
No one can take away collective memory or make it less so. <3 We love you!
The whole story will never come out, just guessing.
That said, there was a lot of side-taking. Some people were caught in the middle, and some wanted to be neutral. I’m more than a little disgusted at who took the insurgent’s side.
You’ll rebuild.
I’ve got tattoo photos to have removed from BME. They paid for my life membership to hard/extreme, which – guess what? – I can’t get into. The only reason I even want to get in there is to find my tongue bifurcation photos – which I sent to SHANNON in 1999.
I continued, dear Reader, to BMEZine, IAM, and ModBlog [before Jordan, by the way - and Jordan sat on about a dozen articles off the top of my head because he was too busy to post them]. I tried to stay neutral during the divorce, even when the whisper stream began to show how ugly it was going to get.
I don’t like liars or embezzlers.
The BME revisionism has always been very disturbing to me. BME was a very important resource for me for many years, long before ModBlog even existed. To see the tampering that has gone on with every aspect of it is truly galling.
One thing I noticed shortly after the take over was that Modblog authors would use phrases commonly used by Shannon, I believe, to make it seem to casual readers like it was business as usual.
I wish the end had not been so vitriolic for all involved, but I’ve been happy to follow you here, Shannon. If anything, I really enjoy how much more holistic your blogging is now, as it was always your charismatic writing at the core of BME.
Keep up the great work.
I think that fact that they have to try and erase you is a complement. They know as much as everyone else that you are BME and without you it wouldnt have been what it was. I dont go to BME anymore its become stale and impersonal. The new folk who end up finding the site might not ever really know what you did for the site but I dont think they will get the same experence that most of us did. F*ck em. lol
I second that emotion. :)
I think the comment Shannon made regarding Caitlyn and “15yrs” was more of a -In some form or other, through ups and downs, have known each other for 15 years. I didn’t think on any level that should be taken poorly. Shannon has never made silent who Ari’s bio mom or ex-wife is.
As far as “queen” goes, there was a rumor she rigged ballots at modprom. HA!
Anyway, I’m not in the least surprised about any comments or trying to erase any and all trails that lead to you, Shannon. I’ve read statements about how zentastic is phoney bullshit BME is so open and diverse. BME has gone straight down the shitter, leaving brown nosers by the dozen.
As far as bullshit goes, it literally is the place to come up with mysterious illnesses most common in Asian males over the age of 50. Not to mention being the most unlucky of persons when it comes to anything health related.
Whatever, like Kyle says- Fuck them. Take pride in being so worthy.
If the current posting was Jordan’s vision for his “pet project” I don’t see how it was at all related to the work you were doing on ModBlog. Really, I miss the old posts. The new stuff just seems like a tattoo freakshow to cater to the gawkers with no real substance on body modification.
My last comment was moderated because of a bunch of links I posted. Bleh!
BMEzine/ModBlog are nothing without you. They are just working off of what you made great, nothing like reaping the benefits of something you had almost no part in.
I can’t explain to you how much I looked forward to checking ModBlog everyday when you were still posting pictures/movies/interviews. It was the highlight of my day.
Granted that Jordan, Roo and Rachel are all avidly posting new content, it just isn’t the same. The content they post is, for the most part, mediocre at best. It almost seems like they are just looking for the most shocking and poor quality tattoos and other modifications to post, just to gain some more visitors.
I miss the old BMEZine it isn’t the same without you. I hope to see a lot more from you in the realm of body modification and I’ll support you 100% in everything you do.
I am finishing the last of my rather extended free IAM time since this whole morass and I’m going to let it drop, and I’ve been on since January, 2002. This whole situation has bothered me more than any other external influence on my life since I joined. I only knew one of the people that I know today before I was on IAM (and that one was the person who got me on IAM to begin with). My entire circle of friends and associates radiated outwards from that community, both as a member and event host. Without BME I would have never suspended, or, by hosting suspension meets (local enough as they were) neither would have at least a dozen people whom I know to have considered it a serious, significant portion of their lives. A dozen is not a lot in the grand scheme of things, being less than one main page of IAM, but it wasn’t about any memberships or politics or anyone else- it was for us and we never would have if it hadn’t have been for BME.
This whole situation has been terrible. I almost feel as if there have been informal pogroms on IAM, and the current management seems to be clutching at Orwellian straws, emphasizing how awesome they are and how they’ve been working on ‘making it better’ and how they’ve really been working for years, keeping IAM and BME afloat while they were in their race cars or whatnot (hi, Rachel). I honestly don’t remember her doing anything, or at least talking about doing anything, until this all happened. I remember an occasional post about race cars- I may be generalizing, but I frankly didn’t realize that she was anything other than ‘that’s Shannon’s wife’ until this situation revealed that she was some kind of company officer, in title or in practice. I’m very disappointed in the fact that it’s come to this. Sure, I’ve noticed the membership ‘thin,’ as it were, in recent years, but there was always something that kept me coming back, but that certain je ne sais quoi is not gone.
Having spent most of my adult life either as a history major or as an armchair historian it irks me that the whole story will apparently never come out. I know that there’s a lot of personal stuff intertwined, and, really, it’s none of my business. But the fact that this will never, ever really be explained to the masses— even from the perspective and bias of the current powers that be— more than any other reason is what is driving me away. Not telling us, in my opinion, while simultaneously reinforcing the message of how much better our lives will be under the new regime is just like being a child who is told that everything is OK while mommy has a black eye and daddy a broken finger and the sheriff, social services and a loan officer are standing on the porch, telling me how great foster care is going to be. Are my views there extreme? Quite possibly. But we’ve been around for a long time. I was sticking things into myself before I knew that boys could pierce their ears. My brother was rubbing shit into cuts before anyone ever told us that people had been doing it for years, or that anyone did it today. And I guess this hiccough in our lives over the last half decade will be just that- a hiccough- and we’ll go on doing the things that we’ve been doing: we just get to keep ownership of our pictures from now on.
Ah that should be…
but that certain je ne sais quoi is now gone.
at the end of the second paragraph. Can we have edit buttons, please, Shannon?
I was never really big on BME, though I always enjoyed reading your blog once I discovered it. I don’t pretend to know the details of your banning etc. but I do know that once it was clear that you weren’t returning I haven’t been back. Your entries showing your artwork as it progressed inspired me to take my own artwork seriously. I can’t begin to imagine how hard it must be to lose access, and now possibly, credit for something that obviously was the result of so much of your time and effort. I hope you can find some joy or at least consolation in knowing that your treatment has not gone unnoticed.
after 8 years on iam, and after the hostile takeover i deleted myself. fuck that shit. and i have asked several times for all of my photos to be removed from the site, and they refuse to do so. i linked every single one, and what user name they were under (i had 3 incarnations)
its infuriating to say the least……
I love how everyone says they will never know what happened when really it’s just about adding facts.
Rachel claimed Shannon was unstable, a threat to BME, himself and others. Oh, he was also addicted to drugs and abusive.
He was never charged with any abuse. He kept FULL custody of his daughter. He proved he wasnt using drugs, or unstable etc and really, her “reasons” for “stealing” BME was a big huge lie and she ended up having to settle which is now why Shannon can retire. He gave up the fight to be rid of her, wouldn’t you?
Claiming someone is abusive but giving them/them recieving full custody, what? WHat has been missed here? She lied.
And yes, Rachel was all about traveling and race cars for many years. BME and Family were NOT her first priority.
As far as I recal, Shannon had always been the main provider, both financially,emotionally and physically.
Or… that’s how it’s always looked from where I’ve sat.
I really do wish she’d be more honest about her illnesses tho. Or her “charitable donations”. Cancer, MS, Arthritus, more cancer, elective surgery to remove her uterus. Woah, nut job. What will it be next week?
I have also asked for everything I submitted to be deleted. I mean, she did say she would delete everything a user asked to be deleted.
Either, she lied or… it’s the whole history thing again, just can’t keep anything straight!
I seem to have missed and am unable to find whatever you’re referring to… But it is complete and utter crap that Jordan posted more before the ‘takeover’ than you or Roo. Roo used to make regular posts – not just videos – as well.
Having lurked on BME since 2000 or so but never joining IAM (social retard), and witnessing the internet version of what went on, I don’t really regret not joining any more! The heart of BME is gone and while the information archived there is still valuable, new content is lacking something I can’t quite word.
It’s too bad you married such a vindictive bitch. Better luck this time. <3 (I understand if you don’t want this comment to show.)
What I think is really scary is that the whole “arguement” that happened today on modblog has suddenly been removed. It just seems like to me that if Rachel can’t get her way, and someone shines light on some of the facts, she’ll delete the “opposing side’s” comments instead of correcting the problem or situation.
https://typealice.com/bme/bme-wiki/1994-changes.htm
Hey, I’m really not saying anything here that hasn’t been said before, probably a hundred times over. In my teens I would spend hours reading BME and constantly refreshing modblog in the hope of new posts. The knowledge I gained from this has stopped me making a lot of very stupid mistakes regarding body modification as I got older.
However much as I liked a lot of Roo’s commentary when he got into the swing of it nowadays I very rarely go to modblog now Jordan has taken over. Honestly, I just don’t enjoy it. The writing is poor and the images are… alot of the time quite dull or like someone else said just deliberately trying to shock and provoke a reaction in a community that I always believed was supposed to be very accepting.
Basically what I’m trying to say is that Shannon, BME, modblog etc were infinitely better when you were at the helm. I very much enjoyed your informed commentaries and politics. Hence the reason why I bookmark this blog and now longer BME or modblog.
Just my 2 cents
I’ve read/visited BME for years and was only briefly on IAM, but I agree with what everyone’s saying – BME is nothing without Shannon. ModBlog was/is a daily read because there were *tons* of posts (by Shannon, mind you) on totally fascinating mods and experiences. I still read it occasionally for some reason, but it’s become a bit of a joke. Jordan may be a nice guy, but his commentary is rarely funny or makes sense. And there are 2-3 posts a day now versus Shannon’s 7-10.
Shannon, you put a very distinctive stamp on all your contributions to BME thorough the years, and despite their revisionist history, we know how much of you was in that site.
I read Rachel’s site as well (or did before it was taken off public) and admittedly, its been really interesting to see the two sides of the story. And RMX256′s point, how can someone manage a site with the claimed level of involvement and be off race-car driving? The pieces don’t add up. Nicole, your version is totally my take on the info too.
While I wish I could get a better daily fix for my body mod interest, at least I/we have the pleasure of reading zentastic – I do feel inspired to be more creative, and Shannon’s parenting stories make me actually look forward to having kids.
So. Not sure what my point was, but … go Shannon?
If anyone is at a loss of how to describe how Shannon wrote for Modblog, here’s what you’re looking for: inclusive. He championed all people, skinny, tall, fat, tattooed, cut, split, hung, weird, normal, cute, messy, all of it. He understands the concept of community. I was going to put community in quotation marks, but that might imply to someone that I mean it in a less than serious way. He never belittled people, he wasn’t snobby or snarky or sarcastic. He always felt that the 15 year old girl with a navel ring had just as much value and importance in this world as the person with a 2″ lip plate and tattooed eyeballs.
Of course I am a little biased, but I think anyone who has been a fan of bme for more than the past year, this should be obvious.
Funny how things have a way of dissapearing! Everything you quoted (and more) has VANISHED from modblog! SUR-PRISE, SUR-PRISE!
i stumbled upon modblog a couple years ago and thought it was awesome showed it to multiple people who shared the same enthusiasm for it. when you posted i could check 2 or 3 times a day and there would be new content… Roo posted quite a bit jordan rarely posts i’m lucky if he matches the amount of content in a week that you posted in a day! when you switched to bodytwo i told my friends to look there instead then when everything went down i stopped lookin at modblog everyday i check it maybe once a week :(.
point is old modblog was awesome new modblog is sad unless roo started posting more cause he seemed to post stuff simular to what you would.
now i read this blog
as someone who knew you before pre-BME and heard you talk about your ideas for an online community before the term “modified” even existed and the interweeb was in its infancy…and then saw it emerge as this project started by a guy who had the drive and the talent to make it happen…to follow it for years and years and years and see it become something none of us could have imagined…and then to see this crazy person try to take it away and claim it as their own creation?
fucked is the only word to describe it.
well…sinking ship would be a close second.
anyone with any real credibility has since disassociated themselves with that site.
she’s a primo scam artist. that is her claim to fame and nothing else.
oh, and this post shannon? you probably just gave modblog the most hits they’ve had in a year…
Yeah, I’ve stopped checking the main BME page, not because of content issues, but because I feel more loyalty to Shannon’s vision than to the actual execution thereof, and the current website is a travesty in that respect.
I occasionally look over at ModBlog, but am constantly disappointed. The writing is not funny or interesting, and the pictures are boring.
Anyways, keep it up, we’re behind you.
All I can really say right now is
HAHAHA!
As cliche as it may sound, karma does return the wrongs someoneone does to the right person. In your case, time will do just that.
It’s a shame that what you’ve built has been reduced to what it is today, but it’s no longer in your control at this time. The lies, the drama, the lack of subscriptions and the negative feedback will hopefully bring it back to you in some form of another in the future.
I find it funny how when they posted this years top contributors Lane Jensen was on the list, even though they formed a lynch mob and chased him off the site around august. this is poor taste to have a site about personal expression and then tell someone they’re wrong. (i have no opinion one way or another in reguards to Lane’s actions.)
BME changed my life. But I can’t stand going to that site these days, so I don’t. Shame. It was probably my favorite site before all that went down (and I adored the old ModBlod [and Body Two]).
I do still stay on iam, though. That is more of a community. I feel like I can still help people who might feel the way I felt when I first became aware of the whole thing.
I don’t see the current administration keeping the site running for another thirteen years, though…
i was one iam for 2 years.. lurker for more than 5.. since shannon left i havent been back.
checked it out once to see the differences. its not worth it. the passion once there is definitely lacking. now i check zentastic daily :)
Dear Shannon,
Having never met you, I feel completely comfortable addressing you as “Dear Shannon.” This is all that matters; the rest is commentary.
When I first found BME, I was enhralled. It fascinatd me, frightened me, amazed me, turned me on, churned my stomache, made me think and changed my life. At the time, I had a simple vine tattooed around my left knee and a couple of ear rings. Now I’m the first hit that comes upon images.google.com when you search “tricia allen lizard” (Tricia is my tattoo artist), and I’m just getting started! BME… no, you, through BME, opened my eyes to the world of humanity as we choose to be, and that is an amazing thing. When I discovered modblog, I spent weeks going through the archives until I was caught up; I’m still fairly certain there isn’t a picture or a post on there that I haven’t seen.
When the takeover happened, I watched it with baited breath; I switched to bodytwo right away, but kept an eye on BME as well. Now it’s stale- many of the sections use the same image, there are regularly badly done tattoos and johnny-come-latelys on modblog, and it’s very much a corporate entertaintment site.
In closing, I’d just like to say, that I’ve always seen BME as Shannon’s face on the internet, and when you left, that ceased to be. Some of us remember, and we have followed you here, and if necessary, we’ll follow you again.
I’ve been told once or twice in my life that eminating is the greatest form of a compliment, yet i can believe that as long as i don’t recieve any credit. I mean nothing hurts more than doing some unique and original, to only be run over by copy-cats who are in search of stardom.
cant***
I just first want to reiterate everything that’s been said.
I discovered the site back in late 2002 and discovered a whole world that I never knew existed, and because of BME…no Shannon I went and got an Apadrayva in 2004. That single event has been likely one of the defining moments in my life, and has made me feel so much more comfortable in my own skin. I’ve looked through the site recently and given what I’m seeing, I wouldn’t have stayed looking at the site now as long as I did back then.
I don’t know you personally Shannon, but I feel like I do from your writing on BME/Modblog/Bodytwo/Zentastic, which I’m sure is a widespread sentiment.
Thank you Shannon for creating and maintaining for as long as you were allowed what used to be a great site and community, which has fallen sadly from grace.
oh so many words to write, such a hard thing figuring out where to start…
The most proud moment of my life was when Rachel TOSed me for calling her out for the piece of shit mother she is and the poor excuse for a human she pretends to be, I had more then 100 people write me in support, a few of them are even her so called friends.
For those that find it hard to follow, it’s actually quite simple and sadly she is just another pathetic cliche, it all boils down to good old fashioned greed.
She sought out a man that created a company by wrapping herself in everything he did, she manipulated her way into his life, because as much as I adore you as a friend Shannon, you are easily fooled, wanting to see the good in people.
She then used his trust in her to get him to put his company in her name, for “business reasons”
When she realized the money making potential of BME, a company Shannon created before Rachel was even out of puberty btw, she decided to steal it, using any means necessary, even his love for his daughter.
She accused him of abuse,of heavy drug use, of endangering his child, the child she had no qualms with leaving him with as she moved away, traveled, raced cars, yet when it was seen as a tool to use, her lies came into play..
Funny how her posts forget to mention that the abuse charges were dropped, how Shannon passed all drug tests with flying colours, and that he now has primary care over his child..Not that she cares, it was just a tool to twist his arm into giving up his company. What parent, or at least good and loving parent wouldn’t make the choice he did?
Her rants, tirades, lies and general “wagging the dog” on her page, patting herself on the back one moment then whining about her mystery illnesses the next(right after a post about snowboarding) are sadly veiled attempts to garner sympathy or kudos, depending on her mood that day..It’s like a pretty girl saying all the time “I’m ugly” in the hopes someone will say she is pretty. Sorry to tell you Rachel, no matter how many plastic surgeries you have you are still the ugliest person I have ever met, you shine through all the glamour, many see the true, ugly you.
Shannon is my friend, as is Caitlin, I have known them both for many years, since we all worked together at Stainless, and they are good honest people.And contrary to a lil bobble head spreading silly highschool gossip, I do not now, nor have I ever wanted to “bone” Shannon..lol
So much more I can say, but frankly Rachel bores me, all I can say is karma is a bitch. I’m just enjoying watching the fall from here.
And Rachel, cause I know you are reading this, I thank you for taking my tattoo studios name off of BME411, because of this simple act, you showed many, many people that you are petty, and that the comunity does not matter to you, that you manipulate Shannons old site as a tool, a weapon either to try to hurt those that speak out to what you are..Trash
I tryed commenting saying. “I’ve been reading Modblog for 5 years now, and in my oppinion Shannon has posted the most.” Yeah it didnt make it through the moderation haha. Whataya figure!
As was once said: “Shannon Larratt is BME” ..Was the only reason I frequented those sites, and the reason I now don’t.
Surely said claims were just made to annoy you?
Perhaps it bothering you and you posting about it is job done.
i used to read bme and modblog daily. bme did for me what it has done for many people, but as soon as it was clear that you weren’t coming back shannon, i stopped visiting. there was (and is) no bme without you.
the whole thing makes me terribly sad in so many ways. i hope that one day soon you’ll be able to do what you love again. i, along with many other people, will be there in support.
BME is has been my hompage for years, as well as IAM has been my cyber home…..I don’t wanna leave it because I like the people around…However, the spirit you injected in the site (dark, second degree humor, serious politics + tons of highly interesting links) is gone and this sux..I can really feel that BME is now a corporation in the proper sense of the term (Im considering purchasing stock options ;))…..The legal issues you’ve had are none of my business….but the least they could do should be to credit you for creating , launching and making a community grow….
I still avidly read your posts on your blogs and always keep on eye on your projects (you’re such a busy man ;))… I hope one day you’ll be @ the head of another bodmod Internet project…..Until then…keep on the good work and don’t be brought down by liars and stealers….
I remember the stuff you did on modblog and you were always posting on there. I miss those days because back then it felt like a community; now it just feels dead and lifeless on bme.
When Shannon left BME, I threw my hands up in the air and I left too. It wasn’t that he was squeezed out (which was horrible), it was that everything that Rachel had to say about the situation was done in such a public forum. I think had I not known about the politics I probably would have stayed on IAM and kept checking ModBlog for another couple of months (I would hope I would have been smart enough to have figured out that something wasn’t right).
I think her playing down the very magnitude of your role within the inception of BME is childish. I almost hesitate to say that I feel like her motives are born from her need to keep newer members reading and submitting. It’s almost like she’s saying, “All these great posts were by [enter cronie here] and not Shannon, so you should still read ModBlog because it’s still the same person writing!” I think she’s starting to enact her form of damage control, grasping at straws to keep what readership with a mind she still has.
Sadly, her “damage control” measures are actually more damaging to certain people, and SHE KNOWS IT. Sick.
I always try to tell people that wives in divorces aren’t as bloodthirsty as they seem… wow, score one popular culture.
Shannon, I adore your writings as does my husband. If I could even have a modicum of what talent and ability you possess, I would be very lucky and very happy.
You will, as they always say, carry on with your head held high. Just try not to sucked into the hate mongering that Rachel has succumb to. You can hire cronies for that! :) Kidding!
It’s nice, whilst unpleasant, to hear more of what happend in relation to BME. It is a shame, ModBlog I feel is not what it once was. I used to get my body mod ‘fix’ as it were from ModBlog and BME updates alone.
Now I feel I need to use several sources to get the same satisfaction (including this blog, several forums and artist blogs) whilst still checking ModBlog and BME. I guess whats lacking is that ModBlog/BME used to surprise me, even after the inevitable desentization of browsing the site for years, and now I find most new posts a bit of a let down.
I hope, some how, that you can fully return to partaking in the online comunity publicly and wish you all the best in every other aspect. Your recent books have been great reads and it was fun re-reading articles I hadn’t seen in a few years.
Mickey Finns
deleting the article that sparked this post from you is yet another example of the idiocy that is IAM/BME. the post was made, as were the revisions to the BME archives…at least have the balls to stand behind it!
i haven’t looked at modblog in well over a year, but i went over to see the post you were referring to i was really taken aback by a. how shitty the images were, b. how terrible the writing was, and c. how much i didn’t care to ever go back again.
i would read your ex-wife’s blog entries with the same interest i have in watching a train wreck. frankly, i’m relieved she has removed her posts from the public domain because as the mother of your child its in your child’s best interest that anyone with a computer can’t read about what an unsound person she appears to be.
When I first saw that she had her hands on you it was obvious she thought she was a cool groupie. Full of self worth. I am sure she thought you were a zillionaire that would keep her rich for life. She tried to use you to live the life. Her lies are beyond belief when the truth is she has been a poor Mother and a poor friend to many. Sadly she has and will detroy BME. It’s only a matter of time until BME folds. Mark my words. Look at Mexico and the dramas she caused there. More of the same goes on. For those us that BME was part of our lives she has destroyed part of our existences. Sadly, some will read her utter dribble and crap on BME and think that maybe she talks sense. Thankgod Ari has your Genes
never mind them, a lots of people know who you are and what you did!
“I’ve always seen BME as Shannon’s face on the internet, and when you left, that ceased to be. Some of us remember, and we have followed you here, and if necessary, we’ll follow you again.” – ANSELM
I couldn’t have said it better.
I have been around since the BME BBS, and have watched Shannon create BME/IAM – and each time he posted – he made reference on how much he was doing to work on the site, and make it more and more better. I finally met Shannon in 2001 at a BME event. With all the coding/ working on the site/ etc, you’d think Shannon would be hard to talk to. In reality he’s a very down to earth guy.
I know from my personal experiences with Shannon that he is a genuine friend. A few years back I was having a hard time – and without a second thought Shannon helped me out. On top of that- he kept givng me words of support.
When this whole thing started about that site, I knew who I would stand by – Shannon. And my loyalty has not waivered. True friends are hard to come by – so when you have them – you keep them.
Shannon created BME/IAM for like-minded people to meet up online. Without knowing it, his creation of IAM became a place that felt like family.
For those that remember, Shannon used to send out stickers/ shirts / and had the BME events (I do not recall him asking for people to pay for those things — heck, sometimes he’d just ask for a postcard and he’d send stuff to you).
You can see that Shannon’s IAM was a labor of love and friendship – and was not based on how much money could be made by creating the site.
When Shannon left IAM (after all the stuff that went on) I left too. My loyalty to a true friend far outweighs anything from a website that was taken from him. (and I felt that if I stayed on IAM, it would be like a slap in the face.)
And I too asked for my pictures to be removed — I received no response.
I think I covered all that I wanted to say.
From p7tms
aka E. Brass
I was going to refer her to the history of the wiki entries mentionning you to prove that she had done or asked someone to do the rewriting but it seems she has purged even that. I wish someone had made caps of those pages.
The sudden disapearance of proof makes me sad only because I can see a whole new generation not ever knowing the role you played in BME and IAM and seeing a side of the modification world that has nothing to do with what it is to you…
I personally feel torn on the matter, I came into the situation much too late it seems, only finding BME after the regime change. Don’t get me wrong, I’m definitely on Shannon’s side, but I want to join things like IAM and so forth. The idea really strikes a chord with me, even though I now know what underhanded things Rachel did to take it over (which is really upsetting to hear, I might add).
As I’m reading these comments, I’m seeing a lot of people say how BME and IAM are not what they used to be, and how they quit after Rachel took over which just leaves me at a loss because I’m not going to search around for a two-bit proboards forum with a picture of a stretched ear for a logo just so I can join a mod community, because even though Rachel took over BME and IAM, it’s still Shannon’s ideas and that really shines through.
I’ve actually tried to look up the situation that brought about Rachel taking over BME/IAM to no avail and to finally read what happened, frankly I’m shocked. Not only is this shit being slung in a way to take over a business that she had no part in creating, but it’s being slung in a way to defame the character of someone who doesn’t deserve it. Even to go so far as to remove every instance of Shannon’s contribution, I can’t help but imagine the other editors receiving messages saying to edit certain articles because they reference “nonpersons”. Enjoy driving your race cars around Oceania!
I guess what I’m trying to say in all my babbling is that I support you, Shannon, and I love reading Zentastic, but without better alternative I’m still into BME, because no amount of court bullshit or revisionism can take away that it’s Shannon’s baby.
https://typealice.com/bme/bme-wiki/bme-changes.htm
https://typealice.com/bme/bme-wiki/iam-changes.htm
https://typealice.com/bme/bme-wiki/rachel-changes.htm
https://typealice.com/bme/bme-wiki/shannon-changes.htm
Anyone who thinks it wasn’t yours is a fruitbat.
Yes it is revision. But it does not matter.
What matters is that the old site is crashing and burning.
It is a stretch to say it would not crash and burn as fast
If there was less revision but slow fire fast fire it is still burning.
Most likely the Mutineers are sleep-walking,
They, themselves isolate in space one from the other they too
Have read the public posts about thousands lost in lost T-shirt Ink
No new subscriptions, unpaid heroes unsung too.
They will likely stumble revision to revision till the servers are pulled.
I hope in one way or another they are able to find work
Forget about the high-profile players. The forums,
The entire site not just whatever is over-laid by the LIE. The revision.
It was tragedy when it happened. Revisiting it it is sick comedy.
Rachel was good but she made one error, her Mutineers can’t sail.
Funny that is the essence of the original Mutiny. Bligh was the Sailor
And at the time more wanted to get in the Lifeboat than stay with Fletcher.
For her sake before she loses it all she should mutiny
and maybe just maybe that is what she has done.
Everything really has gone down-hill. I’ve been on BME and read ModBlog for years. Since about, oh, 2000 or 2001..
Shannon, you’re very interesting, and I’m glad that you still have zentastic.
let us not be too cruel
it “in the bunker time”
except they the mutineers don’t even have that sweaty up close and personal
they are isolate
and they are alone
alone with what they did
and what they can’t do
they can’t sail the boat
BME deleted their own history from the wiki. Luckily it was saved, and is available for public viewing on my domain. Not so easy to erase ALL the history.
Why delete it if you’re not guilty of doing something wrong?
Thank you, Gillian.
Can I ask something? WHY IS SHE STILL ‘LARRATT’? Or has that been answered already?
Gillian, you are amazing :)
The theft of BME from you is absolutely horrible. I am so sorry for your loss. Not being able to continue writing about BodyMod on your own is just rediculous. This is a huge loss to our community and to the industry IMO.
Whats even worse is the rise of pedophiles, gang propaganda nazis and other scum on BME. It is surely going down the drain. Its an absolute shame that something once so good so falling into filth.
I want to know more, but respectfully resist asking about things your decline to discuss. Unfortunately, i think the BME scene and the cummunity in general NEED the true story from you so they can make things right. At some point the beans have to be spilled, i just hope it wont be too late for BME.
For now, would you please tell me who at BME you can still trust or believe in??
Those that stayed behind on BME are either too new to know the greatness BME and IAM once was, or they just don’t care, the vast majority of the ones that stayed are nothing more than sycophants, spending their days stroking Rachel’s fragile ego and patting each other for a theft, woops I mean job well done..IMO :)
peteD3, I’ve been wondering the same thing.
I joined BME probably 5 months before you were booted, and I was excited to read every post in the ModBlog’s history. Modification was such a huge part of my life. While I still find IAM to be a useful resource, I miss the more scholarly and professional aspect to BME. It used to be more of a educational professional environment. We miss you! And I hope sometime you can come back. I miss getting emails from you everytime I submit!
Because, as always, this person spouts bullshit- lets see what new has been said.
Written by Rachel concerning my post.
“One thing I will note that Nicole, posted is that the winner of the
> holiday charity auction was a fake bidder. As the only person I have told
> was Gregory that the bidder was fake, for her to know this looks pretty
> badly on her.”
First off, I never said ANYTHING about your “holiday charity bidding” you imbecile. Whoever bid, check where the ip address came from. Tho then you wouldn’t be able to point fingers at others when all else fails. Personally, I don’t even believe you recieved a “fake bid” I think you pocketed the money- much like the abused womans url* you had where people made donations you then kept. Or how about traveling Europe then returning after weeks to beg people for donations cause you didnt have enough money to fly from NY to Toronto to visit your daughter.
Yes, your priorities are obviously family first.
Just wish you’d stop with all the bullshit lies. Grow up. Admit to erasing history and having to pay for the site because you didn’t own it like you claimed and falsified the reasons you gave to lock out Shannon. Don’t forget Marc and I still have your personal emails the day the lock out took place, slandering Shannon.
I’ve been in (brief) contact with Rachel when she took over BME. She was in full “I’m the poor victim” mode and totally lost courtenance when I dared to ask her what else she possibly could want after her epic win over BME. She bitched at me in the name of feminism.
A woman who trades her daughter for a business with the man she had just accused of domestic violence demanding female solidarity – what a sad and lousy joke.
Raskin666 expressed my own feelings very well!
Shannon is a better person than me. I would have lashed out more violently and immaturely. BME is hostage. We await your next move Shannon.
i have lurked in some way or another, with infrequent comments, on bme/modblog for years. i was, before the takeover, a paying member of bme hard/extreme.
even before this whole mess i was “team shannon.” while i will probably never have the pleasure of meeting him in real life or even knowing him on a personal level, i have admired everything he has done for body modification.
as caitlin said earlier, shannon was inclusive… shannon, and readers of zentastic and bodytwo, never made me feel as if i was not “cool” enough to belong to this wonderful community.
from the very beginning of following these sites, i have been appalled by rachel. she comes off as the snobbiest, most money grubbing, poor excuse for a mother i have ever seen. i hesitate to speak ill of her mothering skills because i don’t want ari to be exposed to people badmouthing her mother… but she is worse than mommy dearest. the fact that shannon has primary custody or her speaks volumes. the fact that rachel thinks nothing of engaging in life threatening activities and traveling extensively while leaving her daughter behind are atrocious.
i, too, am disgusted by her ability to do so much (like traveling to europe and stay up until 3 am drinking) and then turn around complaining of her mystery illnesses and lack of money. she is an awful woman i agree that karma is a bitch.
what goes around comes around, rachel… and you WILL get what’s coming to you.
I lurk and very rarely post. I lurked over on BME for a long time, and once Shannon left, I followed him here. It’s entirely possible he could write about being unconscious in a paper bag, and it would still be beautifully written and interesting. His enthusiasm for life, especially his daughter and Caitlin, is inspiring, and I look forward to seeing how it continues.
Joan:
“but frankly Rachel bores me” – for someone who bores you, you tend to post quite alot of vitriol…
Gillian:
Nice! Do you have a copy of the modblog post that started this?
Hi, no, sorry, I don’t. I came far after that. The original post had nothing to do with Shannon, but rather a hidious lipsynching number by a guy with a lip plate. Wasn’t at all funny. The comments were directed at Shannon because someone (I forget his name) said that ModBlog isn’t what it used to be. By the time I got around to it though, most of his comments had been deleted along with everyone else’s that Shannon had quoted.
I left IAM last year. Recently I purchased an account because its one of the only ways I can stay in touch with friends from abroad. I paid for my membership, but when I went to set up my IAM account the software was “temporarily” not accepting new accounts. Funny, the software gladly took my money but wouldn’t give me the service I paid for. Support, of course, didn’t reply to my complaint.
Thomas, since you feel the need to call me on my comments I will gladly answer you, rachel bores me in the way that she keeps repeating her past lies, adding to them again and again while trying to change history all in the name of greed, she isn’t even interesting in the fact that she is very cliche, a gold digging *****. If she actually acomplished anything on her own, created anything rather than stole it, or owned up to past mistakes like an adult, then that would impress me and be something different, as it is, she is the same ol Rachel. Same shit different lie.
And the fact that I continue to post in defence of my friends Shannon and Caitlin is simply what real friends do, they do not sit idly by and allow people to spread lies and hate about good people.
Many have jumped to Shannon and Caitlin’s defence but as they say, most do not really know them in person or know many of the facts behind the propaganda, I do. And as a friend, I defend those I know are being lied about
I really don’t waste time on posting anything about when Rachel posted lies about me, frankly I found it funny and somewhat amusing, but I won’t stand by and let her stand on her stolen website that Shannon created and use it as a soapbox to take away his lifes work and insult Caitlin. It’s pathetic
Been reading BME daily sense it was .freeq. All politics aside the site sucks now. Everything that has happened is a shame.
Sad to see BME drama continuing. I left the site shortly after Shannon left. I have never liked Rachel (I have personally witnessed her be cruel several times in forums and then run back to Shannon to tattle when people stood up to her). I completely disagree with the business approaches that have been taken by BME since Shannon left. I’m very happy to see that you and your family are doing well and are living a good life. Karma will catch up with Rachel eventually.
Ali: Might you be referring to her picking on Nicole in the Girl’s Locker Room and then having Shannon TOS her for NO REASON AT ALL?
She’s the most corrupt business person I’ve ever met. She SUCKED to work for. I feel bad for Phil (who she badmouths ALL THE TIME behind his back), Roo and Jordan (but just a little). Jen can lick my ass- she deserves all the bullshit that Rachel throws at her. I hope she knows she’s being taken advantage of… the little ugly lovesick puppy.
mistertee – thanks for posting that. I have been meaning to renew my account for the past 18 months or so, just to update it with my real name and forwarding information so my dearly-loved IAM friends may still be able to find me one day. after seeing these recent comments, I felt more urgency to do that, save any photos I might have missed last time I backed up my account, and then lay to rest my IAM days. but if my money is going to be taken but no time added to my account, then I shall wait.
as with most people here, BME and IAM were a major part of my life for a long time. I’ve been fortunate enough to meet many of my online friends in real life, and they’ve all proven to be as beautiful and significant in real life as they were on IAM. it has truly broken my heart to see all of the fighting and negativity, and while I always sided with Shannon, I tried to keep an open mind about Rachel. but, I guess not so much anymore.
those of us fortunate enough to have had our lives shaped, influenced, and validated by BME, IAM, and the lovingkindness that Shannon has always shown to his brothers and sisters in modification, will always be much richer than those who will now go without. while only having met Shannon once, it was an incredibly enriching experience to be welcomed in to his home as an almost complete stranger, so that I may meet some of my online friends in real life. that was December 31, 2000 and an evening I will never forget. it was, I think, the beginning of the BME BBQs, which I know lead to many more beautiful experiences for me, and for all of my fellow lovers of body modification.
as for Rachel and those who now work with her I cannot comment much. but if what is being said today is true, then I hope they can someday repair the damage they’ve caused, and set their egos aside for the greater good of the community. BME was always for the greater good, and I hope it can find its way back again someday.
peace to all.
I’ve been an irregular passer-by of BME over the years, an occasional interloper since the old freeq days. Although an irregular read, it’s often been both a fascinating and entertaining one. I’ve noticed, though, it had lost something over the past year or so: it had become rather workaday, pedestrian and uninspired; all of a sudden it seemed it was now doing the bare minimum to justify its existence. Scratching the surface to find out what had changed led me here, which has proven enlightening.
So what’s this got to do with Shannon’s comments? Well it seems pretty obvious to me that the “interesting and entertaining” were his work: I remember him from the newsgroup and that summed him up pretty well. And as the main driving force behind what made the site good, it’s simply preposterous to attempt to airbrush him out of history, and rather distasteful watching the feeding-frenzy as others fight over who gets to take credit.
Take credit for what, though? BME today looks like a classic corporate re-branding; all image and no content, all that’s left worth looking at being its users’ submissions. BME without Shannon is like a sports car driven by a joy-rider.
Gillian: Nicole was definitely up there, but even before they were getting into it, I saw Rachel be particulary rude to random people (I’m talking years ago). She just always came across to me as a mean girl. : /
I also can’t stand to read BME without your input.
I prefer your writing. I check your blog daily, theirs… monthly or less.
I will admit the random girls with belly button rings bugged me. If they were a gate way id be fine but since i knew a million girls who had them because they thought they were cool it bugged me. But like it was said shannon treated every perircing and every minor tattoo with the same respect, i suspect becasue no matter your pericing or tattoo if you were on bme, you has a greater interest. Witch made me think and agree. I always had a hard time being a peirced, tattooed kid with dyed hair in a small town of 400 hundred, lol I didnt exactly fit in. lol Witch of couse my bme made me feel great in. Its a feeling ill never feel from the new BME. Its a feeling i get to share with my cuzins myself. What are we at now 85 ? Whats even the point now. If we havent proven it, then who cares. BME is Shannon and Shannon is BME, erase him for there new future. lol It just makes him the legend of what was. Not the disgrace that is. lol
I dont know your legal situatuion, But am i the only one asking for you to have a modified blog?
I started reading BME about 2 or 3 months before you left and I hadn’t noticed until now, how much I’ve stopped frequenting the blog. It’s not the same it makes me sad. I enjoy reading both your blog and Catlin’s blog and I’m really sad that things had to go to shit.
Word.
Actullay to what you wrote shonnanon, what is what I’m “wording” to. I miss the North.
I drank too much again
Shit. Anyway, I’ll dig a flowerbed for Shannon any day. Where’s that helmet?
Is “diggin a flowerbed” code-talk for a practice which cannot be described?
I didn’t see the original comments which triggered this discussion, because I hardly ever look at Modblog any more. However, their removal is symptomatic of the way in which Rachel now seems to run the site – suppressing dissent, for the most part with a hostility bordering on outright vindictiveness. The “editing” of entries to deliberately remove or play down Shannon’s role in creating and running the site for 14 years is just unnecessarily spiteful, as is the constant trickle of belittling comments in forums over the way in which allegedly poor and sloppy programming is wasting the time of the current staff. It’s all disheartening for those of us who’ve chosen to remain and continue contributing to the site despite no recognition: for the first time this year the end-of-year awards made no mention and showed no appreciation of the hours of work put in by UNPAID volunteers in helping out as they always have done in the past.
I’m not going to comment on Rachel’s abilities as a mother: I don’t know her, it’s none of my business anyway, and ultimately it’s a matter for a Court to decide. But I think it’s unrealistic to try and run a site like BME, and to involve a community, without some of your personality and your personal life showing through. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: a site like BME – and more especially IAM – is dependent on trust. That trust is a two-way street, and it involves more than just being nice to people who buy T-Shirts.
Holy bajebus! Where in the world did all of this free time to become a “disgusting”, “stalker” evil mastermind come from?
You know what I hate more than Rachel. Ok, nothing. But I really hate when she points her sympathy cane in my direction when being unwarranted. If you’d like me to try and sabotage you like others, all you have to do is ask. Tempting me in such a fashion, however… tsk tsk.
Morons. It’s the internet. Rachel, if you want to put an item openly online to be bid on, you’re going to recieve fake bids. DUH. Set up a proper bidding system with verifiable accounts. Too difficult? You may actually want to concider placing some proof of donation as well.
Oh Rachel, now don’t go getting your size 000000000000 panties in a bunch. I’d never dare insinuate that your little good hearted donating attempts have been going toward new purses. We all know Miss. Frankenboobie needs fixing of scars on a botched job, and luckily you’ve already had your 5 sizes too large for your head, veneers replaced. Kudos- I called you “Chompers” for quite some time. But please stop taking advantage of kind people willing to overpay for low quality and outsourced workmanship on those badboys.
I know the person who placed the fake bid is heheheing right now (you brat!) You are now having me cheer on your quest. Hell, if Rachel keeps it up, she may have more on her plate then she can handle.
Now, wake up Pinky, it’s time to take over the world!
hahaha.
And No, Adam. I think Phil meant a literal flower bed. No more Sopranos for you!
I can’t say that I’m an oldschool BMEer but I have been on and off the site for about a decade and I will honestly say that I miss the substance. I really don’t like how it has become a business venture rather than a community to meet and discuss what is beneath the superficial aspects of cuts, holes and ink on skin. The site has become clearly geared toward sucking whatever cash can be had from its users rather than a “community of friends”. I miss your articles and when I find myself looking for inspiration I go back into the archives and read over the oldies. Anyhow, I have never officially said this but thank you (Shannon) for creating BME!
bwahahaha, hey Nicole apparently I’m a druggie according to Rachel’s blog now too…lol
I find it insanely amusing that it is always the go to accusation that Rachel and her minions fall to..First Shannon, then you and now me…my my, be more imaginative with your lies for christ sake Rachel it’s getting dull that you can’t come up with something more inventive. At least make me an uber slick drug smuggler..If you’re gonna lie, lie big sistah
Especially since I don’t even take Advil unless I have a migraine..
The fun never stops over on BME. Especially with the Golden Girls licking the Commander-In-Chief’s well waxed anus.
I personally enjoy how they read this blog religiously, and then run back to their demi-God with links and a full report. A close second would be the holier than thou, “I have ALWAYS taken the high road” rhetoric of the woman who had to pay for ownership of BME.
And finally, that Gregory fellow who hated her and that site? Apparently he has now jumped ship. What is that about.
Some classic quotes:
spikesannstuds
All those crazy bitches need to get therapy, seriously. I’m a big believer in the karmic wheel and have no doubts they will all get theirs. Didn’t that junkie hack Joan get her shop shut down awhile back for some hygiene issue? Or am I thinking of someone else? I’m sure it was one of Shannon’s groupies.
Jen
I shouldn’t say favourite, just makes me laugh when we’ve removed a person’s photos and they post saying we haven’t. The 4 cheerleaders need to get a new cheer, they show up for the same reasons, to post the same things, every chance they get. They are quite comical.
spikesandstuds
I can’t stand even looking at his blog, it’s all just so obviously bullshit. Every single thing he writes just comes off like so much fake saccharin look-how-great-my-perfect-life-is bullshit, you can spot it a mile off! I also love all of hsi supportive comments – yeah, cos he deletes/doesn’t approve any that disagree with him. He’s so ridiculous. I’m sorry you’re having to deal with this.
That being said, I think he and “famous by proxy” absolutely deserve each other – I mean, was there ever any doubt that Miss Batshit-Insane Former Stalker/Starfucker would say HELL YES to marrying him, no matter how hideotrocious the ring is?
I also think it’s COMPLETELY inappropriate that he, evidently, encourages Ari to mock her grandmother’s faith. Gee, Shazza, I thought you were all about accepting other people’s choices? Oh, right, only if they agree with yours. Isn’t that called fascism?
I saw BME when it was an actual pet project, probably less then a year after launch. I wasn’t my scene in particular, but I love to watch it grow. I’d sometimes pay up for a month or two of full access. Otherwise, I kept the occasional eyeball on it.
When it changed hands, I made one single comment and left. My IP has darkened the doors since exactly once – today. That’s somewhat bitter of me, but seeing what I saw I can’t say I showed up to anything that was proving me wrong in thinking this wasn’t going to go well.
I certainly have no resources or online clout in the vicinity of making any of this right (nor, for that matter, rich boyfriends) but it’s really hard. I can only barely imagine what it’d be like to be in this type of situation from the other side.
Machinegunjoe, those posts are sad :(
I first found bme/modblog when searching for a tattoo blog, knowing nothing really of other body modifications. From there I grew so interested in the subject and came to read modblog religiously. Because of all of the changes that have taken place, I’ve since realized that I simply love to read what you write, even if it’s not about body modification.. I just wanted to say thank you for what you did for bme, it really changed my life (and it’s terrible without you). But also thank you for letting us read about your life experiences. I know so many others feel the same.
MachineGunJoe: I find it all rather comical, I don’t do drugs at all, and maybe drink one drink per month if that, so to be accused of being a druggie is spectacularly funny, and since my shop apparently has been closed acording to their brilliant sources, I should turn my award that my shop just won for being the best in the tri-cities, or maybe my staff and I should stop going to work every day..
I find it kinda weird that they have the messed up belief that if they write it on-line, no matter how false it must be true..
Kind of along the same lines as when Rachel TOSed me when I had a wee argument with her after she decided to be ignorant on my page (yup, got screen shots of it all) So she actually tried to say I threatened to beat up my little girl all the time, which is ridiculous, anyone that knows me on or off iam knows I am fervantly against spanking, cio or any other forms of child abuse..I notice she tends to accuse people of things that she herself does..Since it was her spanking Ari om her last visit home.
And for them to talk about the same four cheerleaders for Shannon seems a tad ironic since it’s always the same ego stroking sycophants saying the same things to Rachel on every diary entry..One of which keeps sending me everything she posts on the sly.
And I find it even sadder that Jen is being so supportive of a “friend” that told me on several occasions “poor Jen is so unfortunate looking, I wish I could just figure out a way to get her plastic surgery” nice friend you got there..
And math may not have been my best subject in school, but are there not more than four posters in here? Just wondering
Still if they are going to make up lies and falsehoods about me, I wish they were more original or exciting about them, at least accuse me of something other than what Rachel herself does
I don’t know you at all Joan, but I do know that since I joined that website so many years ago, I have seen many, many people change their allegiances to suit themselves.
With the exception of that Jen person. She has always been desperado for attention and credibility.
Look at her and everything she writes on her blog. Does she honestly think that her boss is her friend?? I too know many people who have heard her boss slag her in some very awful, demeaning and nasty ways. I guess when you live in the ArmPit of Canada, you take whatever “cool factor” you can get.
While her loyalty is admirable, the source of her affection is more than questionable.
My favorite part of the owners page is that she has now cut it off from public viewing. This can be construed as keeping it “in the family”, but it looks more to me like she is putting an even bigger wall up around her to insulate her from the harsh reality of her wrongdoings.
I would have an ounce of respect for her (possibly) if she actually just owned up to caring more about her rich boyfriends, status and car racing than she does about her own child.
Oh wait. I forgot. She’s the one calling “family meetings” even though she’s been absent from the majority of her child’s life.
When you live in a gated community you hear what you want to hear.
Oh wait…isn’t that what her revelers are accusing shannon of doing?
I used to read ModBlog daily but after you left it sucked. Never visit BME anymore in general.
On a side note I love this edit;
“Thanks to Rachel, Shannon was able to appear in the intro to the ”Clerks II” film (playing “Ear Guy”).”
so is there anyway to actually get all your submitted content deleted? can we have a joint lawsuit or something? i forgot to add on my original post that i was TOS’ed by rachel or jen cant recall which when i protested about the hostile takeover.
Chrissy – in your first post you said you deleted yourself. In this post, you say you were TOS’d. Not sure it makes a difference in getting your pics deleted but deleting yourself and getting TOS’d are 2 different things.
I had only started reading modblog regularly a few months before you left, Shannon, even though I’d been on BME off and on for years. All I’ll say is, I stopped reading it the day you left. It’s clear that it’s simply a different sort of site without your vision, and your personality and reasonableness and dedication to education and inclusiveness was what I really enjoyed about the blog and interviews on BME. Really, the only time I look at it now is when you mention it here – maybe you shouldn’t even give them that much satisfaction.
I’m just glad you’ve kept writing and working on various other things despite having bodmod work taken away from you. Keep on keepin on, this blog and your other projects are great.
“Thanks to Rachel, Shannon was able to appear in the intro to the “Clerks II” film (playing “Ear Guy”).” HA HA HA HA HA HA HA I saw that John. As if that was the best thing that Shannon ever accomplished. Oh thank god he got into that Clerks II film! Without it he would be nothing.
It should read thanks to Shannon …cultures changed, people came together, lives were improved… insert what you wish here.
ohh look like this forum doesn’t like cut and paste.
Looks like Rachel is teaching “Internet networking” at the 2009 APP conference.
Kinda funny, no?
I haven’t been to BME since you were ousted. ModBlog was terrible after you left. I don’t want to throw fire on the flame, but if it was some kind of business decision to get rid of your most enthusiastic, enigmatic content contributors, then like the American auto industry, it deserves to fail.
i have no clue who that person is saying shit about caitlin (though “spikesandstuds” is possibly the worst handle ever) but she has been silent throughout this entire thing.
say what you want about the 2 people involved, but i think insulting caitlin is bullshit.
She has an excellent reputation in her community for her friendliness and kindness:
“Lori St.Leone is known on IAM as: spikesandstuds, has been a BME QOD staff member since 2003, and owns and operates Vogue Body Piercing in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia.
Lori St.Leone began her piercing career in 1995 in her hometown of Anchorage, Alaska, and has been working at Vogue Body Piercing since 2001. Lori is extensively experienced in all aspects of body piercing (everything from lobes and eyebrows to genital projects), and she also offers services such as punch and taper method surface piercing, large gauge dermal and cartilage punching, lobe scalpelling, genital beading and newer techniques such as microdermals. She is the sole piercer working with the NT Department of Health to improve legislation in regards to body modification in the Northern Territory, and is strongly committed to constantly improving her techniques and the shop’s setup to conform with best practice available as the industry advances. Lori has an excellent reputation in her local community for her ethical and superb quality practice, as well as her friendliness and kindness, and often volunteers her time doing community outreach and education regarding body modification and related health concerns and issues.”
really? well her friendliness and kindness sure are apparent in her insulting someone who truly is a kind and decent human.
anyone who would write insults like that about caitlin is clearly not kind and friendly.
I am confused as to why people who are still on iam.bmezine and dont mind Shannon being ousted are coming here. They still have their pages, their community. Look, our virtual “homes” for nearly a decade are gone, it makes sense that we’d be less than thrilled but they got what they wanted so… ? Also I dont understand why there is ever any mention of Shannon in an unfavorable light at the site that he created, grew and loved. It’s beyond dishonorable. That said, there is no reason to shit on Jen. As far as I know she has always been a very respectable person.(who’s page I miss, a lot) If the worst you can say about her is that you dont like her friend, that she has misplaced loyalty, well first of course it’s her business and secondly, no one is slamming Shannon for having been friends with Rachel so why slam Jen for the exact same thing?
I honestly cannot believe what I am reading here. The lowest form of life is someone who accuses someone who is sick, of lying about their illness. How do you people sleep at night?
The only reason I rarely posted in Shannon’s Whatever forum despite reading every post is that Jen would inevitably jump down everyone’s throat with her self-righteous replies, whether she was right or wrong. It made me crazy. You could never get a word in edge-wise without Jen having a problem with it.
Well, I can’t speak for other people, but in answer to Elizabeth’s question I personally DO mind that Shannon was “ousted” and I said so at the time. If there was anything I could do to reverse that, I would. But there isn’t and I can’t, so I’ve chosen to accept the reality and support BME for the benefit of the thousands of ordinary members for whom the site was created in the first place.
However, it was entirely down to Shannon’s editorial direction of the site that I became interested in it, joined, and decided to take an active part in it. It dismays me that he’s being portrayed in an unfavourable light, but that’s largely down to Rachel and I can’t change that either. I love reading Shannon’s blog here – which is always interesting, positive and informative – and I have tremedous respect for his ability to get on with his life post-BME without bitterness, and to make such a success of doing new things. So that’s why I come here.
As for Jen, she may be Rachel’s friend, but she’s also a salaried employee of Bmezine and has been for the last five or six years. Rachel is her boss and her employer, just as Shannon was previously.
As for Jen
Like when Rachel told the GLR that Shannon was making up his pain, even after he posted a video of the CT scan of his tumor?
Don, apologies, I was not referring to those who are on the site and wish Shannon still were but rather the revelers, of whom I do not believe Jen is a member. No I completely understand those who miss Shannon at BME coming here. It just seems tacky beyond all reason to trash the man using his own code to do so and then come here. Very hateful. Like hahahahahahahaha we’re living in the wonderful community that you created and using the shit out of your awesome code that’s better than any other webcommunity (and how!) but we’ll talk shit about the quality of programming and programmer, using his work to do so, wee! Very ugly character shown.
I do remember Jen jumping on issues in whatever but hell I remember the same of Shannon and Rachel so poo. Curiously strong personalities tend to be opinionated and argumentative. I have never seen her act in a two-faced manipulative or backstabbing manner so she’s ok in my book.
Jen is dull. And ugly. And she complains ALL THE TIME. My favorite posts of hers was when she was absolutely convinced that people were “slamming the door” just to piss her off. I think she had to move out of her residence or something because of that issue. Yes, Jen. Everyone’s out to get you. Her obsession with pro wrestling and designer bags makes me laugh and feel nauseous all at the same time.
What I don’t like about Jen is that she’s continuously the first person to post in R’s forums (or at least she used to be, since I was deleted off of IAM I haven’t been able to see for myself) and it’s always her agreeing with Rachel and whatever choices she makes. It’s really sickening how much of a starstruck person she is. She’s only on IAM for the glory and for hopes of some day being Rachel’s BFF. Which will never happen. Far too ugly. And Rachel only keeps her around because she’s loyal to an embarrassing fault.
And even when Jen KNOWS the history of BME, same with Jordan or Roo or Phil, no one is going against Rachel and saying the truth. No one has the fucking balls to stand up for what they know is actually the facts. That’s what pisses me off. Without Shannon fucking ALL of you would be without work, and all of the IAM members would never have come together as you have.
Yes, Rachel is the owner now, but she in NO WAY started BME or gave it any kind of heart. She was on the business side of things because she loves money. And duped Shannon out of millions and laughed about it behind his back. I was a witness.
I never had a problem with Shannon’s or Rachel’s Whatever posts. Jen’s really stood out and drove me away from even bothering to post most of the time. I never said she was two-faced, just self-righteous in the extreme and argumentative without any willingness to understand the other opinion.
i don’t think you can fault someone for being physically ugly. you can’t help your genetics. being ugly on the inside though…that’s a totally different story. and one i see a lot of from that site.
I understand but in terms of ugly behavior, others impress me FAR, far more. Hate her for not quitting what feeds her, hate her for who she chooses as a friend and the ways she shows her friendship but at least aknowledge that she does not belittle Shannon. Or not that I ever saw. That is the only thing that I take such offense to, living in the house a man made and being critical of the house or man. Tacky!
I’m just calling Jen “ugly” to be mean because I think she deserves it. She’s been horrible to me for years, so I have no guilt.
gillian – totally get that. you were treated like absolute shit for no reason at all.
It’s their way, Rachel hated Gillian due to a massive sense of obvious jealousy so she made it her mission to hurt and insult Gillian at every turn.
As to Jen, I do not think she is a bad person in many senses, but for her to sit idly by and see what was really happening to Shannon, to see Rachel’s blatant theft of BME and knowing all the lies Rachel was spewing about Shannon and never stand up to defend him? That is sad and shows her character, she many times claimed on her page what a great friend Shannon was to her, yet it seems her friendship is only loyal to those who hold the power. To trade a great friend for the ability to name drop and schmooz with Rachel for a job and a few cast off designer purses is what I judge her character by, and in truth, she is as ugly on the inside as Rachel is
I had no idea “spikesandstuds” was so cruel. Why say such mean things about Caitlin? A person that believes in karma surely wouldn’t stoop to that level.
in all honesty, i still check BME maybe once a week – just to see if i’ll be suprised by anything. it’s so rare for there to be anything really worthwhile on there. it’s really been too commercialized and what not for my tastes. i found BME many years ago when you first had started it and i found it utterly fascinating because that was when i was starting my odd little spiritual path that has evolved into what it is today. YOUR site helped me to realize that my addiction to pain and to modification was totally normal and healthy and that i wasn’t some sort of crazy or freak but that i was a normal person who had normal desires. in a way, that makes you a mentor. and i am truly grateful for that. i think it’s sort of disgusting in its own way when someone is so biased, jealous or otherwise jaded that they refuse to acknowledge and give credit where it is due. regardless of whatever happened, and whatever the outcome has become at this point – BME was and will always be yours in my eyes and that’s just one person. but i know i’m not the only one.
I had to laugh at that delusional comment from one of Rachel’s lackies..”he, evidently, encourages Ari to mock her grandmother’s faith”.
WTF? Shannon didn’t ENCOURAGE her at all, he merely expressed amusement that a little girl would find someone having faith in something she has been brought up to believe doesn’t exist.
Gillian – thanks for clarifying the ugly comments. I always liked you and it was kinda crappy to read you calling Jen ugly. but honestly, thanks!
as for Jen, I used to read her IAM page. but, it was always so negative and whiny that I quit. I’m not surprised she’s in on the crap.
now I’m wondering about a few other kids and which side of the wall they’ve landed on. lilfunky1, shan, Jason Sand, Frances Sand, Erik Sprague, VEAL, micehell…. or maybe they’re neutral, or moved on.
oh, now I miss IAM a ton. balls. I had a number of friends on there whose real names I didn’t know, and who I may never find again. like, how do you find someone on the internet named orange? sheesh. I even met orange in real life once when I lived overseas. he was a good guy.
IAM wasn’t just a website. it was a home.
It must hurt a tonne, but step away Mr L. I’ve never gone back to bme, iam or modblog since you weren’t involved, and I never would.
Be proud of what you did, and ignire this shit.
I find it hilarious that the ’4 cheerleaders’ are actually 120 people responding to a single post.
i’d love to know exactly who those “4 cheerleaders” are…cause i’m reading this thread and seeing a whole lotta love….
Gillian, I remember those door-slamming posts as well. Everything you say in your comment sums up everything I loathed about her! God she was (and I suppose continues to be!) awful… but one could not help feeling sorry for her. It must be a really shitty life she leads…
well I know who three of the four cheerleaders are, it’s the firth that is baffling the hell outa me
ha, or maybe even fouth :P
see what happens when you type in the dark with a dog sleeping in your lap? one last time, i know who 3 are but the 4th is alluding me
oh…I just figured out the fourth..yay me…In no order of importance, I think it’s Gillian, Nicole, Estrojenn and myself..go team..lol
What I find funny is the comments that anyone who is friends with Shannon is a groupie or we are in a cult of Shannon, yet I was his and Caitlin’s friends long before BME was even started and so have many others..Maybe ot’s the fact that they are all using each other to get what they can, it baffles them to see real friendships so they have to allude to something sinister, like stalking, obsession or god forbid we must secretly want to “bone” him..It must be sad to only have fair weather friends, that will be by your side only as long as they are getting something out of it..yeah, sad..lol
Why am I #1, haha. Maybe it’s because I’ve been their friend and their employer and am ones of the few to know the real truth, rather than only the he said/she said that most of you know. At least in part.
Anyway, the point is, is that no one still on iam else has the fucking balls to stand up and tell the truth about the history of bme, for the fear of getting kicked off and losing their internet home like the rest of us. yeah, shawn porter, i’m talking to you.
Do I get some sort of prize for being one of the first people to get kicked off of iam. by Rachel back in 2000 or so solely for the fact that I’m friends with Caitlin? If I get a choice, I’ll take cupcakes. But any prize will do.
And really, I’ve kept quiet for the most part on this because Nicole (and Gillian, and Joan, etc…) say what I am thinking so much more eloquently than I ever could; but the fact that someone would put someone else through this much hell mainly because they hate the “new” (she was there before you ever were you chompy-toothed money-grubber) girlfriend? That is one of the most pathalogically psycho “Hell hath no fury blah blah blah” things I have ever heard. Get over it Rachel. Go delete more things on BME to make it all about you. Oh, and don’t forget to delete out any of your old “fat” pictures. There’s a lot of them.
I have only met Shannon a couple of times, but he was always really nice to me; however I know Caitlin is one of the nicest, funniest people ever and the fact that people are trying to spread such obvious and ridiculous lies about her makes me just completely seethe with anger. She’s a better mom to your daughter than you ever were or will be.
meh, i’m no cheerleader. i just call bullshit when i see it. i also loathe people who tolerate lies and allow themselves to be manipulated – especially when they know the truth.
I’ll make you cupcakes anytime :)
Lies breed lies, I think they find it easier each time they make up one cruel falsehood aimed to try to hurt those that know the truth and stand up for it. Somehow what I find more sickening tho are the ones that stay there, knowing the truth yet never speak out for fear of reprisals. That weakness of character must just eat away at your humanity
Yes there was a mutiny and from the hindsight of a couple years it has gone
As mutinies go — bad for the mutineers. The mutiny that comes to mind, with
Captain Bligh and Fetcher Christian is the better read
The Bounty: The True Story of the Mutiny on the Bounty. Carolibbbne Alexander. HarperCollins. [20 pounds sterling20.00. xviii + 491 pages. ISBN 0-00-257221-4]. The story of the mutiny on HMS Bounty in 1789 has reached millions through the medium of the Hollywood film world. In this detailed, balanced and fascinating study of the mutiny, its origins, history and consequences, the author shows that, like so much Hollywood history, the story people know is a travesty of the truth. Miss Alexander, whose book was first published in the U.S., has gone back to the original records to …
It is my opinion that almost whatever we say here we are likely to regret having said it.
So why am I saying anything. Well to try to get some of you to step back from slagging.
Firstly, I am astonished that so many of you forget that when this thing went down the site set was worth between 5 and 10 million dollars. If shannon or rachel want to drink from the bitter cup of hindsight they could have settled out and either of them could have run the site successfully albeit in different ways.
Well that is not what happened. The way it went is available to anyone in Toronto who goes to the Courts. It might surprise you but anyone can go and buy a copy of your divorce (my divorce) or anything else that went on in a court room. It is part of due process.
The principles (Rachel and Shannon) can’t necessarily make it a KISS because of the undertakings they gave each other. But those undertaking are not a National Security Top Secret.
If you really want to know the exact numbers — go to the courts and find out. But lots of you were so near the process you know the numbers.
Shannon only got a fraction of what he could have got had he and Milo elected a friendly split earlier BEFORE 911 but likewise Milo at the price she paid and the staff she requires to run the site did not make an outstanding buy.
It is still likely that unless the site can clean itself up there will some day no one knows when a lawsuit which will put people in jail, it just takes one pissed off parent who feels bme has ruined their underage child.
You don;’t think so. Ask Conrad Black (NOT A US CITIZEN) how he feels about hiting the weight pile in a medium security jail in Fl.
NO THAT AIN’T A RAMBLE – IT MIGHT HAPPEN TO RACHEL TODAY.
IT don’t matter that in a few years he’ll (BLACK) will have his life and his lordship back. Barbara Amiel isn’t doing time and for sure she did the crime for which BLACK does the time. Not hard time but time.
At that level I admire Rachel because while we/you can debate how many of her Mutineers will be crackin’ rocks with her — I have never accused Rachel of playing that game – the woman has cojones.
Likewise I concur with a few of you who do not mock her health issues. I have a few friends — and so does Shannon — who have these damn afflictions like LUPUS which the doctors mock when they are not treating. The Stew that saved Shannon’s life has Narcolepsy — falling asleep – it’s real — like Shannon has learnt dealing with his chronic pain — a lot of likewise afflicted would appreciate if we would just say “yes I believe you are in pain”.
Of course Rachel is in pain. Do I believe she loves Ari. Yes I do. Do I believe she is a good parent. I BELIEVE SHE’D BE BETTER IF SHE WAS BACK RACING AND NOT LOSING THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS MAKING T-SHIRTS.
I understand how irksome it must have been (FOR SHANNON) to see Rachel and the Mutineers just being crazie in their claims. But come on. We all know what happened two years or more after the event.
It’s too bad but it’s done and gone.
The family never met Rachel. We meet Caitan Jane and WE LOVED HER AND WE STILL DO ALWAYS HAVE = she many times met Shannon’s Grandfather and Grandmother. That’s the Cor. 13 = connection as it was a favourite of VATI (grandfather) at X-mass.
I wish Rachel well and a return to racing and just being the girl with the neck tatoo sliding/drifting at 129 mph and not lossing it and winning another photo finish.
I mean isn’t that what iambme was about — becoming who you really are not proving a pt.
I’ll cede Rachel the pt that by her force of will and cojones she can do what she wills but come on girl. You can kill yourself with that will. Go with your strengths and let the mutineers have it. That to me is the 64 dollar question. If they are as good as you claim and I’m willing to believe they are keeping the site up. The problem is elsewhere as we all know without the need for 146+ comments.
Could they run the site without Rachel and Shannon.
Could they give you time to go
back to L.A. get some warm air in your hair and maybe go down to the Baja with your new love.
Come on.
Starbadger… phew. What a load of sh*t that post was.
1)I’m in agreement that BME and IAM are shit since Shannon was ousted. I deleted myself not long after and haven’t been back. It was something I genuinely loved and wanted to support with my own time and money. And I did for a while, trying to create a tangible offline BME community here in New Zealand. But people are greedy fools and never give back in equal amounts to what they take.
2)Lori St. Leone (spikesandstuds) is a good person and has given me sound advice over the years. She was always a friend and for that I will always be grateful. I don’t agree with her views of Shannon and Rachel and the side she took, but it doesn’t change the fact she’s a genuinely caring person and slagging her for the comments she makes ain’t shit. I’ve made negative comments too. We all have.
3)F*ck barbie-dolls who seek to turn grassroots communities into slick, media-savvy corporate ventures. BME was important to me but I’m just as liable these days to hope it all comes crashing down. I’ll watch with glee when it eventually succumbs to the sh*tstorm Rachel created.
Hail Satan :)
JON P
I am somewhat confused at how you object to my post then make three points with which i can find no fault
on your first pt i admire you as one who saw what happened and acted at the time
on your 2nd pt likewise i admire you able to know who your friends are does not mean agreeing on everything
on your third pt i wager you’ll have your glee in a few months – maybe this is our pt of variance – i think when something you don’t like is busy destroying itself it is best to not alert it by your glee
in my view it is now a death ship a ship of fools and lepers – if you care for your friend you might suggest to her privately that she fade away get her dirty pix
and sure wish her friend rachel well while keeping at least a pacific away
Where you one of the unfortunate ones that witnessed the digging of the flowerbed NICOLE? If so, I am very sorry. We were (me and Johnny that is) much more “odd” in those days, although we are still mostly odd in the eyes of nearly the entire population of the world. Those were the good days.
I agree with #146; we really don’t need to attack someone personally on something that they’ve done professionally. There are two people who will know the WHOLE story, and that’s Shannon and Rachel. Conjecture aside, it sucks that all this had to happen, but it happened. Let them do what they want to the history of BME and IAM. We all know who created and founded the community, and if it’s going to become what most of us think it is than it might be best for Shannon to disassociate himself with it.
It sucks that things are being said about Shannon, but in the end do we really want to look just as ugly and as hateful as the ones doing the lying?
I’m prepared to support Shannon in any way that I can, but I hesitate to say that supporting him calls for behaving in the same fashion your all accusing her of doing (not the lying; the throwing of stones).
I LOVE that you all stick up for Shannon and Caitlin, but if Rachel is as horrible as you all say than I am sure she will take care of herself.
And that, she will.
I cannot begin to explain the sad feelings I have regarding what BME and IAM have become. I deleted my page a while ago because I felt it was not the same.
On new years eve. I created an account to see what my ex had been writing about me. A few of my friends had told me that she was writing a large amount of lies and that I needed to see what was going on. (sorry for the run-ons its 4am).
Anyways, before I looked at her page numerous times and was subsequently banned from IAM I noticed a few sad and disturbing things about IAM/BME.
I must say that I love body modification. Specifically heavy body mods. such as facial tattoos etc..etc. and also the sexual side of body modification.
I feel like pre-rachel’s coup. IAM was a place where people who had different ideas (re:society,social and gender norms etc..etc..etc..) could go and be in an online community. It was the thing that was keeping me sane. It was my “safe haven” if you will from main stream society.
I feel like it was much more than an online journal site and more about freedom.Total freedom from the sick twisted mess that we call mainstream society.
When I looked at people’s pages I noticed that BME/IAM is now mainstream society.
It is a bunch of annoying “normal” people pretending to be original. Furthermore, I feel like chat areas like “the girls’ locker room” have just become places for psychotic ex’s such as Rachel to rant and lie about the men that they were with.
My ex was writing some pretty amazing and unbelievable lies. And the disturbing thing was that people ate this up. Even people that had been my “friends” on here.
In summary, the new BME/IAM is completely absurd. It is a sad pathetic shell of a formally innovative/cutting edge site re: alternative lifestyles.
I think I might rewrite this when I am more coherent. But for the time being I would love to see a site created not only for modified people per. se. but people who are different.
Anyways, if anyone wants to contact me my e-mail is
Bothrops06@yahoo.com
I would really like to hear from people that are truly different. I know this in an old entry and I hope someone reads this…..
yes BOTHROPS yes
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