I have indeed been kicked from the forums entirely - did send an email requesting clarification as to their rationale, but no response, so I assume tis permanent...
Anyway ... since they can't be bothered to respond to me, and since they deleted not one but 2 threads so you can't read for yourself, here is what happened.
The thread re: meeting disappeared ... but in its place, the admin posted a new thread which stated that if we wanted to meet, we need to provide them (via email) with a bunch of information including the purpose of the meeting, number of attendees, location, date, agenda, etc .... THEY will set it all up for us (isn't that ever so ~nice~ of them?)
I responded that it would be difficult for any one of us to provide detailed responses to their questions since they had deleted the very thread where we were attempting to sort those details out. Very shortly thereafter, that thread, and my comment, of course, disappeared into the ether. A new admin thread appeared - locked this time - that one you've probably seen, as I imagine it is still there .... one about using the forums only to discuss issues relating to landlording...?
An hour or two later, I posted the blog post below this one ... offering to facilitate an email list if people wanted.... and then I posted a message on "my" thread re: being "So discouraged" mentioning only that I had added a couple of posts to my blog if anyone was interested.
Shortly thereafter, my account was deactivated and there ya go ...I am, apparently, far more problematic than Tagly, and Doug, and .... well, everyone!
Which, of course, especially combined with the ~magic post~ I mentioned, and the lack of transparency re: the association's advocacy activities re: our issues, or even, indeed, re: who is behind the OLA, causes me to view the whole thing with a rather jaded eye at this point.
I do not understand why an association which claims to have all the answers in its database of over 70,000 posts would disable the search function, also.
And I certainly do not understand why I, who have actually paid to be a member of the Ontario Association of Landlords, would be ejected for so minor an offense as attempting to facilitate something they claim to be supportive of.
Apparently, name calling, insulting others, and posting ridiculous nonsense are all just fine... but attempting to facilitate contacting people outside the forum is not.
What IS it that the Ontario Landlords Association does not want its members to discuss, I wonder?
Why is a simple get together for coffee so gosh darned threatening to them?
Smells fishy to me.
