xxx

Just curious. Fodors nemesis got some initial responses and interest to his planned group tour. Wonder if any of those gullible nitwits are still contemplating spending a couple of weeks with him as his captive audience.

wondering

Are (we) people who love to travel just plain weirder than the general population, or are all internet mesage sites like this?

Capo

Speaking of Rex (and variations thereof)... <BR> <BR>Did anyone ever see the great 1995 movie The Usual Suspects? If so, did you catch the very clever play on words with the name of the criminal mastermind named Keyser Soze? <BR> <BR>

MM

Those aren't REAL gullible nitwits, silly, they're the fake "Oh yes, Rex, you God of Travel, please take us under your wing and show us everything" testimonial/syncophant posts that Rex posts under psuedonymns to pitch his tours. And then of course his dear, dear, slavish companion Art fends off all detractors by shrieking at them about their moral fiber, while pitching his own tours in the east. Ah yes, it's so beneficial to work in, shall we say, tandem.

Austin

<BR>Wondering--- <BR> <BR>All (Boards chat rooms etc) are like this. <BR>There is a Rex on every one of them. <BR>There are also the usual followers and psychophants. <BR>There are also the grand dammes with exotic names and their salivating followers. <BR>There are the deep serious pundits who write endless and boring posts about boring subjects and then there are people like me. <BR>Idiots who tune in one this and read it and even post on it. <BR>Twas ever thus <BR> <BR>AH <BR> <BR>AH

s.fowler

Sheesh. Don't you guys have something better to do than this? <BR> <BR>And jahoulih -- of you I thought better. Provication is never a justification for the kind of deceit this person has practiced. <BR> <BR>BTW I have received private email off-forum from someone who DID cancel the trip with the-person-not-to-be named. Someone wised up and saw the light.

OhNo

OK. I've officially made up my mind about He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named. If Ed says He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named did these things, and He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named isn't denying them, then they happened. That means that He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named posts incessantly under his own name, and still has time to do more posting under handles like "Bashful"? He is a sicker puppy than I thought. <BR> <BR>And some of you want to make excuses for this behavior? No one's travel advice is that good.

one of the black kettles

Now, now, S. Fowler, don't YOU have something better to do, too?

time

"Sheesh. Don't you guys have something better to do than this?" <BR> <BR>Um, s. fowler, lovely Macedonian goddess that your are, that was your fourth post on this Rex thread alone. We won't even count all the other times you've posted on Rex threads. <BR> <BR>For someone who keeps pleading with others to drop it and asking if they don't have anything better to do, you certainly seem to be highly involved in keeping all the Rex topics front and center by continuously posting on them. And don't try to say it's just you and one other person who is using fifty-seven different aliases, because you can't prove it. Nice try. <BR> <BR>Do we have a teensy-weensy crush on our perpetual agitator here, hmmmmm? (giggle)

jahoulih

Thanks, S. Fowler (I think!) I agree that the provocation doesn't justify what Rex did, and he remains responsible for it. On the other hand, to Jack, I wouldn't dismiss it as "the slightest provocation." It went on for days along the lines of MM's message above, with incredible persistence and nastiness; it was clearly designed to push Rex's buttons, and it succeeded. Extreme emotional disturbance for which there is a reasonable explanation is enough to reduce a murder charge to manslaughter; I'm not sure how far that analogy applies to the crime of impersonating a Fodor's editor, but I think it's pretty clear that Rex needed a vacation when he got one.

s.fowler

Well "true" since I can't write you off forum due to your lack of a genuine email addy and since recently I have only addressed this thread when it has risen to the top -- I find your post difficult to take seriously. If you are trying to egg me on to say what I think of this person you are barking up the wrong tree -- I'm a lawyer's daughter and I know where actionable language begins.

Not saying

Nice try, jahoulih. <BR> <BR>But others have been ruthlessly attacked for no reason at all on this board. Elvira. Neal. Ed and Julie, for example. Not one of these people has behaved like You-Know-Who. Constantly rising to the bait. Demanding the last word. Belittling others under the guise of giving travel advice. Posting as the fodors editors. Posting under the names of others. <BR> <BR>There is something wrong with that man. But to use your criminal law analogy, insanity is a defense, isn't it? <BR> <BR>As for S.Fowler, I think she's a class act. And who can blame her? That person really can get under one's skin.

Still

I'm still laughing over all the pseudonyms everyone created for this entrepreneur, just to avoid giving him the ego-feeding satisfaction of seeing his name in print yet again. <BR> <BR>"He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named" had me rolling on the floor! "Blankety-Blank," "Fodors' Nemesis," the list goes hilariously on! Thank you all for the "kindest words of encouragment" LOL!!!!

s.fowler

Well at least it's not "She who must be obeyed"

lisa

<BR>hiya all! <BR>i say its time to heed what our mothers taught us ...if you just ingnore them they will eventually go away... or sticks and stones may break your bones but....or if you cant say something nice...or dont lower yourself to their standards...the list goes on and on!!!! <BR> <BR>happy travels.. <BR>lisa

choose

"Extreme emotional disturbance" is certainly a fitting description for him. <BR> <BR>He participates here voluntarily, as everyone does. He returns repeatedly, again, voluntarily. Yet whenever he's unable to steer, control or dominate the content of the board, he unhinges. He starts posting anonymously while chiding others for doing the same; he assumes others' identities, again while chiding others for doing so; he launches into verbal assault contests nearly every day while claiming that he is constantly under "attack" here; and yes, he does pose as Fodor's editors. <BR> <BR>He has made many voluntary choices here. He chooses to continue coming back. He chooses to escalate any threads, whether he started them or not, into a brawl instead of just letting it go. He chooses to impersonate site editors. <BR> <BR>All of this he does voluntarily. He has the choice to post with less frequency, less ferocity, less tenacity, less condescension. He has the choice to ignore anything he doesn't like, which his "mouthpieces" will usually advocate that everyone ELSE do. He has the choice not to particpate on Fodor's if he is "provoked" to the extent that it causes (or exacerbates) "extreme emotional disturbance. <BR> <BR>But we all know what has choices have been and will continue to be. And just as he has made the choices, so he also must accept the responsibility and any consequences for them.

abc

So someone really wrote you, fowler, to say thank you for warning them? This I gotta hear about! Can you divulge a little content without betraying a name? I think it would be beneficial for other potential victims of Charlie Hustle to read and heed.

Yikes!

Uh oh. <BR> <BR>It's worse than I thought. Based on Ed's information that Rex sometimes posts as "bashful", I did a search. There were a few hits. One hit was on one of the "Join my trip" threads that Rex started. Bashful posted a response in support of Rex's right to advertise his trips here, and then Rex thanked "bashful." The other hits were on legitimate travel threads in which "bashful" started the thread to get some mundane travel advice about an upcoming Italy trip. <BR> <BR>So what do we have here? Rex is willing to post under a fake name when he doesn't have all of the answers, to preserve his status on the board as all-knowing, maybe so he can belittle others with travel questions. And when attacked, he'll post as a fake supporter of his, and then thank himself for the support. <BR> <BR>Whoa! If you don't believe it, do your own search.

Capo

If Tyrannosaurus Rex had lived at the same time as St. Francis of Assisi, do you think that it would have been as susceptible to the charm of St. Francis's gentle ways in the manner that other beasts allegedly were? :~)

s.fowler

Actually it's ~Capo I have a crush on folks --- he's soooo. SO... -&gt;wink&lt;- *SIGH* <BR> <BR>Re the person who withdrew from the aforementioned trip - they realized after the "weekend-of-madness" [tm] that something was seriously amiss. <BR> <BR>And I'm *shocked* that no one gotmy allusion above. Oh well.