I can’t I’m afraid, I’ve just given up smoking.
And as it is still understood by most of the world, I might add.
Give me a freaking break.
Collounsbury is a regional expert. Somebody who lives in, reads the local media (and IIRC writes some of the local media (???)) has a far superior bullshit detector for regional knowledge or ignorance than somebody who can’t even speak the local language. Also, istara said, “Probably”. (Collounsbury also had some decent economic training, but I doubt whether istara was referring to that.)
Though Una’s knowledge is both wide and deep, I daresay that her mid-East knowledge is unexceptional. As is mine and I suspect yours, for that matter.
I may have lumped you in with a few people that tried to claim that Coll was an “eighth grader in an arm chair” or some such, apologies if you are not among them. I have professional testimony of his actual experience and qualifications, and they are both impressive and extensive. I can’t provide cites or specific facts because he has security and privacy issues, especially at the present time, but he was and is no phoney. Regardless of his character/abrasiveness he brought an enormous wealth of knowledge about the Middle East to this place.
PS: Elsewhere it is being said that we are “enemies” and I have some huge bone with you. For the record: I barely know you, and I certainly hold no grudge or ill-will or bad opinion of you.
AFAIK and from what I gather both Collounsbury and yourself are in fact experts on events in the region people call “North Africa/Middle East”. I have no arguments, nor do I hold myself out as knowledgeable in any way, shape, or form on that area. What I was being was needlessly pedantic about the difference between “exceptional Member” and “exceptional Person”. Collounsbury I am certain is in fact an exceptional person and has an exceptional knowledge, but what I was saying was that he was not, on this board, an exceptional member. This leads of course to the sub-debate of whether or not a person should be allowed to remain on a board even if they violate the rules, provided they are an exceptional person or talent.
I never had one word to speak to or about him that I remember, however, and I’m not going to say anything bad about him. In fact, I don’t remember anything bad about him, at all, period; I didn’t generally happen to read threads he was in I suppose. My post was connected to the original OP which made it sound like “all the good people are going/gone”, and I felt like that slighted a large number of good people still here. I assure you it was nothing personal towards him.
Despite the efforts off board to cause trouble between us, I don’t know of any trouble whatsoever between us whatsoever, even if we don’t really know each other very well, and I hope at worst we continue to not have any disagreements or conflict.
Sorry to bump this, but I just wanted to make sure you were aware that the post you linked to was actually made several months before I became a moderator. (I saw your later, calmer post but it wasn’t clear if you’d realized this fact.) Just a regular poster slinging shit at you, nothing more.
On the plus side, I did say I thought you were more than twice the poster that Reeder was. 
Good point but isn’t thatsort of like saying that my shit stinks twice as bad sa your shit?
:smack:
Believe it or not, I really do know how to spell…I blame not enough sleep combined with no coffee.