Sob Stories Win Contests

[IndustrialAction]

Am I the only one that has noticed recently that far too many contest winners seem to either be someone with a recent loss (death) or someone with a serious illness (themselves or someone close to them) or that they are in such dire financial straights that they need to win to be able to keep vaping? I'm left wondering if some of these winners aren't scammers or BS artists.

I'm not a cold-hearted person by any stretch. I understand that lots of people are going through very rough times, especially with the holidays only a few days away.

That said, I don't think I would use my troubles to my advantage to win a contest.

Vapers (myself included) are almost all former smokers so having health issues shouldn't be a surprise. If we spend a significant time on ECF, we also probably spend way too much money on our vaping habits. As for deaths, they suck but are also a fact of life.

We've all been sick, we've all been through hard times financially and we've all experienced significant losses but is it right to use those stories to win free stuff?

Am I alone in shaking my head at some of the entries I've seen?

I know there are lots of legitimate stories out there but unless a contest is asking for "how using product X got me through a rough patch", I vote for no more sob stories in contest threads.

I vow to never talk about illness, lack of $ or the loss of someone or something to win a contest on ECF and I hope that others join me.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with telling your story and sharing it with the trusted community. What is wrong, IMHO, is using that to your advantage.

Thoughts?

 

[VAPOINSANO]

hi I A,

many many thoughts,

and not 1, appropriate 1 ?

i read this somewhere?
+ it may apply?

"believe nothing you read,
and only 1/2 of what you see!"
anonymous

"tis the season" ?

in hopes of a need @ least be truthful ?

seasons greetings

V.I.

 

[Vchick]

Personally, I find that your post is insensitive.

You can choose to enter all of the contests you feel necessary and have done so.

You can also go to the PIF group and ask for things when you can afford them and have done so.

I don't think that anyone wants to post their tough times, but it happens. I think for the most part that there are good people here who have hit hard times and I don't think anyones intent is to scam anyone on here

 

[IndustrialAction]

Again, I'm respecting everyone that is honest and I feel for everyone in pain or going through tough times. I do not, however, appreciate the people that use those stories to win contests and I fear that some, perhaps even many, are not being honest.

Also, you may want to re-phrase your post because it reads like I personally have done the things you mentioned which I have not.

 

[VAPOINSANO]

lets all be sensitive here.

in all seasons,

we all have a right to voice our opinions

taken in acct. w/ respect to both,

the question+answer.

to me you both have made wise observations+rebuttals

also i agree with both of you to a point,
thats my perogative

we can choose to agree on disagreeing and be civil
wise ol'saying we may have to eat the words we spew

why is there always room for blame
and never enuff for respecting a persons
desisions ?

we are all adults here
and we are all fallible
live/learn move on

i do not think anybody deserves to be disrespected
on this or any forum (unless your into that)
no matter how intelligent or not

i learn quicker when i feel accepted.

No disrespect implied,

my 2cts
mine

V.I.

 

[IndustrialAction]

Thumbs up V.I.!

 

[xg4bx]

i hate internet munchausen syndrome.

there was a girl on a classic gaming forum i visit who literally had a new tragedy every week. one week she was deathly ill, another week her dad died, the next her dog died, etc. every single week it was sob story du jour. what i never understood was the fact that she was a well regarded member of the community. this girl supposedly had so much "tragedy" in her life she had to have been living under an egyptian mummies curse, it was unreal. nobody's life is that unlucky.

i don't bother people with my sob stories, frankly its none of their business.

i've been to enough forums to know that a large % of users are b.s. artists. unless they can provide unequivocal proof, i believe nothing that people say online.

further reading:

Münchausen by Internet is a pattern of behavior in which Internet users seek attention by feigning illnesses in online venues such as chat rooms, message boards, and Internet Relay Chat (IRC). It has been described in medical literature as a manifestation of factitious disorder or factitious disorder by proxy.[1] Reports of users who deceive Internet forum participants by portraying themselves as gravely ill or as victims of violence first appeared in the 1990s due to the relative newness of Internet communications. The pattern was identified in 1998 by psychiatrist Marc Feldman, who created the term "Münchausen by Internet" in 2000. It is not included in the fourth revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Münchausen_by_Internet

 

[VAPOINSANO]

Thank -you xg4bx,

thats exactly what we need in these forums
(an actual expierience? proof/truth!)

now there is actual proof that this does happen !

so IA may be on to something here?
with all the scammers
(probably more than ever due to tuff times)
we could be accessible? +as a forum we are not alone!
i have had the good fortune to have avoided this somehow

now THIS forum seems alot more user friendly(family feel) than others
i think thats what rubbed Vchick(cute avatar btw) the wrong way+ understandably so.
im new here and i feel good here for some reason as many others do
(excitement,groundbreaking,health orientated , comradery etc)

(i wonder if theres any data on attacthment to a forum,
or sumthang on a large member site? lmao)
who knows maybe,it is the information overload syndrome fer sure!

i also wanted to ad

with out proof,

theres only our opinions

and to quote bono from U2...
"All i need is a red guitar,3 chords+the truth!"

i hope this helps?
always i/m/humble/o +
never 2 b preachy.

seasons greetings
to ecf + ALL members

thx
V.I.

 

[xg4bx]

something like this just happened again on that same board. a guy came along with a 3rd sob story within as many weeks about a poor neighbor who needs some help (his first was about needing money to get his truck fixed, the 2nd about needing money to buy his kid a bike for christmas). people actually helped out the 1st 2 times and ended up not even getting a bleeping thank you. he got greedy and now users are telling him to go bleep himself.

there's a very broad range of users on this board, many who have never participated in a forum before so i'll lay it out: unless you have built up a relationship with another user, believe nothing you read. much like leeches in other avenues of society, there exists a segment that does nothing but troll forums and prey on the good will of strangers.

i'm sorry for anyone who is truly in need but the bad guys ruined it for you. there are certain members who have a good reputation on the board and i would be willing to help them if i could. but you've gotta look at certain others with a jaundiced eye. if somebody just joined the community and is already crying poverty, you've gotta think twice before helping. i hate to say it but that's the way it is.

as for contests...speaking soley for myself, i'd feel scummy trying to turn a genuinely poor situation into profit. if i was genuinely in need i'd foster a trade of some sort on p.i.f., i don't want charity. if i really needed juice and was flat broke, i'd at least give you some dvds or something in exchange.

 

[Elendil]

I am always surprised when I read that someone can't afford 1 or 2 attys or some juice. Given that 99% of us here are/were smokers and that most of us spent $3-$5 per pack at a minimum (yes there are exceptions, I don't care to hear about them) you have to wonder how they afforded to smoke before they discovered vaping.

This may seem insensitive, but when someone posts about personal issues in a forum like this, my reaction is often 180 degrees from the reaction they are seeking. I with xg4bx on this, my issues are none of your business and yours are none of mine.