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Dolos-Project Militaria Blog Closes down (see Note below)

Like so many places (aka Pogo the Klown Posse and your followers) there are those that simply want to throw harpoons while providing very little value add.

has found that there are some with an alternative agenda to abuse our open approach to commenting on the world of militaria collecting/trading. To that end we would welcome suggestions from you concerning site format and direction.

It is sites like Dolos who suspect with their going into hibernation; that the world of militaria collecting will once again return to its uneasy status quo where people, apparently, would prefer not to know the truth. Others, who do know the truth. would clearly prefer it not be made widely available. Others still will do all they can to derail any attempt to assist collectors (and dealers) to make informed decisions.

but for claritfication; Dolos' aim was make the world of militaria collecting more transparent and less open to malicious abuse and profiteering and we stand by that aim. We would like to thank you for your support of the project.

Just so that you know, we were not taken down, no one set their lawyers onto us. We closed voluntarily. This decision was taken because we felt that Dolos was beginning to lose focus. There were increasing numbers of personal attacks from a very small minority with little to back them up and we had cases where threads hit a dead end because nothing was forthcoming when a participant was asked to provide proof for their claims. Deletion of such threads resulted in howls of 'censorship!!' which was extremely unfair and not at all the intention. Others outside the forum preferred to take the route of lambasting the site owners by email rather than stepping up to the plate on the forum to answer any questions themselves. Increasing amounts of time were required to administer all of this and the inevitable conclusion was that Dolos needed a 'time out' and that's where we are now.

If and when we reopen it will be to concentrate fully on our original aim by making it difficult for those with an alternative agenda to abuse our open approach to commenting on the world of militaria collecting/trading. To that end we would welcome suggestions from you concerning site format and direction.

Personal attacks? Geez, I wonder where we have heard that one...

Note: 2/15/2012 I see the Thread was closed without my advance knowledge and then reopened as I had an issue with not giving Mr. Bill equal response time which has now occurred and has again been closed to commentary. The thread was originally started to simply convey the issue of Dolos shutting down. Since it has reopened, the thread title was changed by Cyrkin.

While I don't have any major agita with some of the decisions it needs to include the threads owner unless it is really gone off the deep end.

One thing I absolutely disagree with is this nonsense about "not autograph oriented". We have lots of those discussions from Relic Cards to Titanic Props to WW2 Hitler Desk Sets and all don't have any "autograph association" but are within the realm of collectables. There are also quite a few worthy Military signatures and artifacts.

Thus to say it wasn't autograph oriented is lame. The rationiale IMO is that there was alot of mudslinging and flamethrowing apparently going on at DOLOs (which was one of the reasons they closed the blog down for awhile) that seemed to weave it's way over here in an annoymous comment Those types of posts, as was correctly edited by the Moderator, was perhaps indicative of potential future spiraling and out of control posts.

NOTE: 2/18/2012; While going to check on the Dealer rating page as it has some nice features that AML could use, I found a site message posted below; So I've change the title that Steve Cyrkin modified to say Refocuses on it's main intent, maybe.... It's pretty sad when to think that a once informative blog has again disappeared due to such backbiting and illwill.

I'm sorry for this repeated loss of service but even I now have to admit that I've come to the end of the road with this project in it's current incarnation. I'm closing because I don't need the poisonous hassle I'm getting behind the scenes.

Conspiracy theories about Dolos abounded and continue to abound. I have heard some fantastic stories about who people think is running the Dolos Project and why it came into existence. They would be funny if they weren't such a sad indictment of our hobby...

There is no point in continuing with the project in the current climate but I'd like to extend my thanks to those of you who saw through the hype and ill-will and had a genuine desire to effect change in our hobby.

Thanks for your time

The Dolos Project
Feb 2012

Tags: dolos-project, militaria

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Bill Panagopulos on February 10, 2012 at 2:50pm

Here is the link to the page of comments by "Stump" and "Joubert":

http://i1237.photobucket.com/albums/ff465/alexanderautographs/Untit...

Permalink Reply by DB on February 10, 2012 at 2:55pm

seems like all blogs on collecting subject matter have our stumps to grind or is that Crosses to bare

hopefully, their is better moderation going forward.

Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on February 10, 2012 at 3:10pm

I'm glad they're grinding stumps. I'd be REALLY nervous if those wackos were grinding axes.

Permalink Reply by Bill Panagopulos on February 13, 2012 at 10:43am

Rec'd today from: Arthur Royster [adroyster@hotmail.com]:

So pleased to learn from the Internet posting that you and Craig are planning to get hitched! A big ceremony in SF I understand! Two questions here, dude: Who is the rabbi that will make the union...Will there be coverage in the Chronicle? I have friends there who might help out a bit. Understand the redoubtable Mr. Stump is doing an indepth article on fake signatures of Third Reich people, using copies of signatures in Bud Hamilton's books. Will wonders never cease?

I'm amazed that anyone anywhere can tolerate this kind of speech.

Permalink Reply by Bill Panagopulos on February 15, 2012 at 7:55pm

Thank you, Steve, for deleting the post of "Vinnie Rothko". Its hateful content was an embarrassment to educated collectors everywhere, in all fields. He has since directed his bile to me - via email.

I have detected that certain people in the autograph field are afraid to confront obvious haters. That's their decision, and I respect it. Some of these people make threats which would make the uninitiated somewhat fearful.

Let me say this. Of the thousands of collectors I've met at shows and conventions, and among the hundreds of new customers I've gained in the past past few years, none have shown the slightest indication of being anything less than devoted collectors of military history. Their choice is to collect WWII versus the Civil War versus the Boer War...In all wars there were class, race, and religious reasons for killing and murder, but collectors collect this material for historical reasons. The same goes for Holocaust material, which is perhaps more important in this century than any Nazi material.

Only of late have I discovered that there's an undercurrent of hatred among a very small group of collectors of WWII material, just as there are bigots who collect Civil War, etc. etc. The dealers I have come to know are completely outside that realm - their interest is in the history of the greatest conflagration known to man. They never discuss, nor even mention, politics - just as a dealer in Union or Confederate uniforms would not discuss politics.

Sorry I have tied up a lot of space here. But my father was a veteran, WWII collecting is my passion, and to see the hobby hobbled by a few sick individuals just turns my stomach.

Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on February 15, 2012 at 9:03pm

Bill,

Thanks for your posts. I'm editing certain inflammatory things out of everyone's contribution to this topic, but I'm leaving as much as I can.

Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on February 15, 2012 at 9:25pm

Prosper Keating emailed me and said he was VinnieR. I'm concerned that I'm being thrust into moderating a conflict that I don't understand and am not qualified to moderate. Is Live! the right place for this discussion, or since the Dolos Project is live again, should it take place there? I'm not backing away, but please think about it.

Most of the interested parties here are probably only watching it for blood sport. I don't think that does the topic, or the debate, justice.

Please let me know your thoughts.

Mr. Keating, please change your name using the link I sent you if you'd like to voice your opinion.

Thanks,

Steve Cyrkin
Moderator

Permalink Reply by Bill Panagopulos on February 15, 2012 at 10:12pm

As Mr. Keating neither collects nor sells autographs; has been carrying on a very public (and vitriolic) campaign against me, my family, and business; has been ejected from evert respectable military forum for bad behavior; has public ally attacked another prominent poster in this forum, accusing him of associating with male prostitutes; today posted a virulently anti-Semitic message under a pseudonym which you were rightfully obliged to remove; still will not post under his true name; has a blog linked to another site that suggests that the diaries of Anne Frank and Elie Wiesel are frauds...

Do you really need to think about this?

Permalink Reply by Bill Panagopulos on February 15, 2012 at 10:15pm

Mr. Keating, who has already grossly insulted this site (read my post), simply seeks yet another site to vent his spleen. He frankly doesn't give a damn about autographs.

Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on February 15, 2012 at 11:11pm

You want to bring me into a fight, outside of the autograph industry, where it will take me weeks of work to figure out if Keating really is the person anonymously spouting anti-Semitic and other hate vitriol.

Yet when your friend Steve Koschal calls me, a Jew, anti-Semitic on Autograph Alert for over two years, you just shut up, worried that he'll go after you if you say anything.

Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on February 15, 2012 at 11:48pm

This site and I are grossly insulted and defamed every day by, as a prominent dealer calls them, "the stupid and the criminal." It's the reason he's not participating in the site...he doesn't want to become their target too.

Bill, you've moved deep into WWII memorabilia, especially Nazi. Half the collectors chant "Never Forget." The other half sing "Those Were the Days." You've got to find a way to deal with the ones that lost the war and develop as thick a skin as possible or it will drive you to drink. Just like I've had to with the stupid and the criminal.

Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on February 16, 2012 at 12:06am

I'm closing this discussion. It's not closely enough related to autographs and no one's using smiley faces. If you have a compelling reason to reopen it, contact me and I'll give you the courtesy of hearing you out before I say no.

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Dolos-Project Militaria Blog Closes down (see Note below)

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