Re: 2concerned jogging in the heat
Date: July 29, 2012 02:04PM
I'll be quick to admit that I don't know everything about Patrick and his track record here, nor is it likely that I ever will.
But, he's one of three people here that I'm aware of here who actually became known, and didn't run and hide in response.
He explained quite a bit about the background, and he was up-front about a number of mistakes he'd made. I've actually found no reason to think that he's distorted anything, and it's difficult for anyone to "one up" him on credibility when everyone else is just taking anonymous potshots. Actually, if Eesh and Mephisto are to be believed, then he never even outed them, since they continue to deny those identities.
Of course, my situation IS different than most. I eliminated the concern of being "outed" right off the bat, though that was obviously a mistake. It didn't occur to me that the same folks who wouldn't return a phonecall would be so quick to call the Police based on some out-of-context tidbits. Heck, their biggest concern seems to be the picture of the kitty with the gun, and the Police hadn't even seen that when they arrived, and they were going on a description, instead. (The FCPS Officer had the picture on his cellphone, though... he tried not to let on, but I think he might've been the one guy who saw the humor in it, and he was the first one to consider the matter resolved.)
In the end, I suppose that only Eesh, Mr. Mephisto, and Patrick know the entire truth, and I watched the first two distort everything that I wrote... the fact that they have no credibility isn't really the same as Patrick being credible, but I think there's good reason to believe Patrick's account over the other two. Eesh's seeming assertion that he was victimized without cause seems ludicrous, given Eesh's apparent nature.
Until I have reason to believe otherwise, I'll continue to give Patrick the benefit of the doubt. Really, the popular hobby here might seem like harmless trolling to many, but that's pretty far from the case. Baseless accusations are thrown around like breadcrumbs, and if Cary doesn't like you, then it appears that you're on your own, and that your detractors won't even be held to the rules. (Of course, according to Wikipedia, Cary is Eli.)