The Skool Bus

To hold our tongues when everyone is gossiping, to smile without hostility at people and institutions, to compensate for the shortage of love in the world with more love in small private matters, to be more faithful in our work, to show greater patience, to forgo the cheap revenge obtainable from mockery and criticism. All these are things we can do.
 
Jeff said:
Firstly, I don't know @rdce80. I've never met him, done business with him, spoken to him on the phone, or exchanged emails or PMs with him. Neither he nor anyone else has asked me to speak up for him.

Does he make things up and exaggerate other things? Undoubtedly. To give just one example of many (from his recent Berlin misadventure), there is no way he would have been given an involuntary Depixol injection unless the doctor doing so knew his medical history and any other medication he was on. Germany 2024 is not Germany 1944.

Having said that, today's posts on multiple threads (not just this one) look to me like an ugly pile on that does this forum no credit whatsoever. Sure, Ryan has lashed out at some people, but as far as I can see, only in response to those who've taken a pop at him first.

Let's be honest here: it takes some cojones to read what's been written about him on this forum and then join up and take everyone on. Nobody seems to have given him any credit for doing this.

So my request to the army who are against him is simple: give the guy a break.

My advice to Ryan may or may not follow tomorrow, depending on whether I can convince myself that he might take some notice...
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I hear what you're saying, and I partially agree.

Insist on putting yourself front and centre, make wild baseless claims of potential plans, and unsurprisingly people are going to have stuff to ask/say.
  1. A future announcement of Domainlore acquisition (DING!).
  2. Bunging Nominet £5m to remove dropcatching, and move over to an auction based solution (DING!).
  3. IPO 2029 Market Cap $100bn.
  4. Run for Prime Minister 2032.
  5. That there's more chance of buying GoDaddy than GoDaddy being an exit plan.
  6. etc.,
But what is expected when someone creates a thread titled "Ryan - AMA", on which he called a fellow member, who is someone that has provided more value to me on the fallen acorn, UKDNF, and here - "a cunt and a despicable human being"?

Almost everything that comes out of the guys mouth sounds over-egged (read: exaggerated).

I agree, negativity is not good at all for the community. So maybe that negativity should go back to the fallen acorn (which is all about positivity and good business), and there should be an agreement that nobody mentions the nonsense this guy is up to in any further threads/comments.
 
rdce80 said:
I stood my ground and said no. He asked me if i thought i was a big man - i replied no - i just don't want to be here. He took off his belt and gave me 10 lashes then repeated to go back to my dormitory - i said no and the lashes continued. After 30 lashes which felt like a life time he turned the belt around so the metal buckle was being used. I remember it like it was yesterday when he missed and the metal buckle skipped up and caught him above his left eye.

He lost his shit and had me up against the wall - my feet fully off the floor. I was 10 and a bit years old and this pathetic excuse of a man beat me with his fists. He was so angry and threw me out of the office. That day i stumbled back to my dormitory having lost a big part of my sight. That day the lights went off - not just my eyes but my vision for Oxford and Cambridge. I don't think its right that a child should have their light turned out.
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It’s a matter of public record that you were born in April 1980.

If you were ‘10 and a bit years old’ at the time of the incident you have described above, it presumably occurred during the second half of 1990.

Although corporal punishment in state schools was made illegal in 1986, it wasn’t made illegal in independent schools until 1998 in England.

What you describe is assault. Name the person who assaulted you and the school where it occurred so they can be written to about it.

Although not implausible, for a 10 year old to be treated in the manner you describe in late 1990 seems quite unlikely. Times had changed in independent schools by then. Corporal punishment was frowned upon and likely only used in very severe circumstances and after permission from the parent or guardian.

Your LinkedIn profile says you attended university 1996-1998. That would have mean you attended from the age of 16, pre A level. Did you attend and did you complete the degree or did you drop out?

 
Jeff said:
Let's be honest here: it takes some cojones to read what's been written about him on this forum and then join up and take everyone on. Nobody seems to have given him any credit for doing this.
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Absolute nonsense. Perhaps you are thinking from your own perspective. If the person has nothing else to do, nothing at all to lose and thrives off being centre of attention then he or she will do whatever they need to do to get it.
 
@invincible even if it is all a big hoax, the opposite of truth would mean delusion, and in such case, he must have severe mental health problems. So, why don’t we all agree to just move on with our lives and maybe @dn @adm can just remove all of these threads, or put it to a vote. They don’t provide anything of value, and if anything, take away from the value of the forum we are trying to manifest.
 
rdce80 said:
Haha - yes its happened a bit recently. I'm over worked and have a very structured life to be able to fit things in so when i go out i get totally smashed and am a bit vulnerable. I also like to have some time where i can not be the person in control, the person who is not accountable.

I haven't seen your work but will look into it.

The thing you have to realise is that i am tied down by what i can and can't say as apparently if you are authentic or honest it makes you un-investable (not that i even want investment).

People want to see Lambos, Property and girls - that's not a real CEO and thats not what motivates me to make a difference. Because i dont care about money i can take more risk.

All i want is to go back to Scotland and have a small place near a river and take the dogs for walks, ride my mountain bike and feed the pigs & sheep. No internet no money.

I remember being 5,6,7,8 & 9. I had a vision of going to Oxford or Cambridge university and it was so beautiful and so vivid. I was a year ahead at school and my brother and i use to build bridges over rivers, ride wild horses and go hiking with mum and dad.

One day when i was around 9 i was at my grandparents and woke up early. I went to the bathroom and my grandad (or nonno as we called him) had left the heater on. I feinted and banged my left eye on the bidet - its sounds posh but it wasn't - just that my Grandad was Maltese and ended up in Scotland as a prisoner of war when Gaddafi took over in Libya. He was very successful with his 2 brothers but they took everything. This is why we called the finance business Falbros (Falzon Brothers) in honour of my grandad. I also have 2 brothers so there is synergy.

I spent 9 months in and out of hospital and lost sight in my left eye. It gradually came back - not 100% but enough that i could get by.

My dad was in the Navy so they thought it best to put me & my brother in a military boarding school as in the late 80's there were big differences in education systems and the school was part funded.

I will always remember my first day at boarding school. I was Ewen 4189 - at boarding school you lose your first name for some reason. I'd only been there a few hours and decided it wasnt for me so i went to the headmasters office to be greeted by his secretary who seemed surprised that i demanded to see him. After a while i barged into his office and said i wanted to leave. He was pretty angry and i explained i wanted to leave. He thought it was funny and told Ewen 4189 to go back to his dormitory. I said no. He replied 'get out of my office or else...'

I stood my ground and said no. He asked me if i thought i was a big man - i replied no - i just don't want to be here. He took off his belt and gave me 10 lashes then repeated to go back to my dormitory - i said no and the lashes continued. After 30 lashes which felt like a life time he turned the belt around so the metal buckle was being used. I remember it like it was yesterday when he missed and the metal buckle skipped up and caught him above his left eye.

He lost his shit and had me up against the wall - my feet fully off the floor. I was 10 and a bit years old and this pathetic excuse of a man beat me with his fists. He was so angry and threw me out of the office. That day i stumbled back to my dormitory having lost a big part of my sight. That day the lights went off - not just my eyes but my vision for Oxford and Cambridge. I don't think its right that a child should have their light turned out.

I remember limping and feeling the wall trying to work out how to get back. My sight comes and goes but i have incredible hearing and see in a different way.

The boarding school thing lasted around 8 weeks - with many funny stories in between - from hiding in a river for 3 days after running away while being chased by 400 elite navy, army and military cadets to letter bash (a game you never want to play)

Life kind of went back to normal - and nobody knew - i settled into school in Stubbington and started playing squash. Squash works well for me because of the confined space which helps my vision because the sound is so acute.

I got pretty good - played county and national. Sport is my thing it gave me a channel to get my anger out in a positive way and i learned from boarding school that you can separate your body from your mind which is important in sport because to get results you have to physically push yourself to the edge to get results.

I never stayed in one place too long as i wasn't comfortable being me - and i didnt want people to know that i had a bit of a gift - i guess i was always running away.

During covid i jumped off a bridge in London - not to kill myself but i had been out running and my phone fell out of my pocket. I was tired and decided to jump in after it. I spent 2 years in bed - too weak to get out of bed. I re-evaluated my life and worked out what i wanted to truly do. I made an 8 year plan. People talk about doing a deal with the devil in business but i made a gilt (promise) with god. I said if he gave me the energy and strength to get out of bed then there would be no more running, no more hiding, i would go for it and i would change the world. (Dont miss-understand this point - this isnt about being elon musk - but instead we all have the capacity to make people smile and start the day the right way -- its called the butterfly effect in Maths).

And so here i am - thats my why - just because i didnt have a community, country, government or guardian angel that cared enough for me doesnt mean i have to carry it with me. I look back at is as an elite training camp to prepare me for what comes next....
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🤡🤡🤡 tldr
 
ben said:
@invincible even if it is all a big hoax, the opposite of truth would mean delusion, and in such case, he must have severe mental health problems. So, why don’t we all agree to just move on with our lives and maybe @dn @adm can just remove all of these threads, or put it to a vote. They don’t provide anything of value, and if anything, take away from the value of the forum we are trying to manifest.
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I think we should have the clown emoji as a reaction under "like" just for @rdce80
 
invincible said:
Absolute nonsense. Perhaps you are thinking from your own perspective. If the person has nothing else to do, nothing at all to lose and thrives off being centre of attention then he or she will do whatever they need to do to get it.
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I actually think this clown only posts on here after a few large Gin and Tonics if you catch my drift. Dutch courage all the way and let the built-up rage out in sporadic blasts of incoherent contradicting bollocks. I personally see this idiot as a 'mouldy walnut' with a very dim future. Entertainment at best is what he provides.
 
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Reactions: cm
username said:
Another thread loses it's title.
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Sorry mate, that was me, I wanted to delete the whole thread but don’t think I can. Just want us all to move past giving this person attention. Either way, the guy needs help and like someone else said to me, if he does, I don’t want to have a hand in bringing his mental health further down.
 
ben said:
Sorry mate, that was me, I wanted to delete the whole thread but don’t think I can. Just want us all to move past giving this person attention. Either way, the guy needs help and like someone else said to me, if he does, I don’t want to have a hand in bringing his mental health further down.
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I think some posts need removing at this point. If it's entirely uncivil, it should go imho.
 
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Reactions: ben
If the thread is deleted people will undoubtedly forget what was said and why it was said, eventually causing others to wonder why they shouldn’t let him back in. Without the evidence for why not, he’d be let back.
 
ben said:
No you’re right, but when I joined the industry, people had a lot to say about you. I’m not educated on the topic to have a valid opinion of it, but I feel like what you said above might be a bit ironic. I’m sure you did some shit people weren’t happy about on Acorn back when Steve owned it.
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Not at all.
 
ben said:
Sorry mate, that was me, I wanted to delete the whole thread but don’t think I can. Just want us all to move past giving this person attention. Either way, the guy needs help and like someone else said to me, if he does, I don’t want to have a hand in bringing his mental health further down.
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You're right buddy and it is commendable that you show such good character now you have realised there is a high probability the gentleman we are discussing is as nutty as a fruit cake, however, I drew that conclusion some time ago and decided to ease off with my 'forensic' analysis of his professional public statements. However, there are many types of 'fruitcakes' and the 'mental health' umbrella should not be the case for every oddball. As you are aware, there are nice fruitcakes and scheming calculating fruitcakes that are of bad character and we as a community should determine each and every case on its own merits and either show or be sympathetic or stick the boot in. I have now formed my own opinion where this guy is concerned and the gloves are off. Big picture, there is a wider community globally that needs safeguarding from certain elements, especially in a teeny weeny industry like ours and it makes matters worse when so-called industry journalists don't do their homework and give any clown with a big gob a platform to manipulate the masses of unsuspecting novices.
 
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ben said:
Since I lack any evidence, I'm happy to delete my posts about this.
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Leave them be. It’s not the end of the world. People can read and make up their own minds. If you’ve not evidence anything it will be obvious to anyone reading.
 
ben said:
Sorry mate, that was me, I wanted to delete the whole thread but don’t think I can. Just want us all to move past giving this person attention. Either way, the guy needs help and like someone else said to me, if he does, I don’t want to have a hand in bringing his mental health further down.
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I'm strongly opposed to deleting threads. That's the sort of thing Helmuts does, and he isn't exactly the gold standard in forum moderation.

However, I do think that both this thread (preferably with its original title reinstated @ben) and the "Ryan - AMA" thread, should be moved to the members only section, hidden from search engines. Hopefully that's a compromise we can all live with.
 
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