As private sponsors of 'The Inspectors Journal' we would like to state our position regarding any censorship of posts on the forum included on this site. While we too dislike censorship, we believe it is necessary to maintain a certain level of decorum on this forum. TIJ was originally created with the idea of providing a resource center for both new and experienced home inspectors alike. The focus of the site was intended to be news articles, events calendars etc. and the forum was included as further resource and networking opportunity. The content of the forum impacts the commercial opportunities that are available on this site, without which TIJ will not be able to successfully continue it's mission. TIJ has newsletter distributorship of over 8000 home inspectors as well as a large number of 'hits' that arrive directly on the forum topic pages via search engines. Our policy reflects what we believe is our responsibility to organizations that wish to advertise to this audience. The policy on TIJ is clearly stated under the 'Forum Rules' link on the 'Help FAQ' menu and includes a section on 'What is Appropriate'. TIJ has provided both a chat area and private messaging facility for discussion that does not meet the criteria stated in the forum rules. It is unfortunate that any censorship has become necessary, but the lack of respect for this business by a small number of participants on an on-going basis has created a situation that must be responded to. We will be reviewing our internal policies as a result of these incidents and may consider warnings or suspension of partipants as a preferable alternative to removing offensive threads. It is not the intention of the sponsors to limit discussions of any particular topic. To keep this board free of 'censorship', participants need to ensure that both topics and replies are relevant to the category where they are posted and meet a reasonable level of decorum. Keep it professional everyone! Rose Balden/Michael Brown DevWave Software Inc.
