Great Western Coffee Shop

Regular members and guests who happened to have been around over the last month or two may have noted that we had a member claiming to be a revenue protection officer (RPO) in training, and latterly a revenue protection officer.  We welcome rail professionals here, and that would include staff members in those positions.  Doubts with what was being posted lead the admin and moderation team to significant doubts as to the credentials of this person, and further enquires and an admission tell us that (s)he is not in an RPO role, nor training to be one, but just in the process of applying.

There's a bond of trust between posting member and our admin and moderation team that people will post accurately (and more in the forum agreement everyone signs) and when we suspected that bond had been broken, we solicited further data. I regret that the further data was only partially and reluctantly provided, and didn't answer our suspicions one way or the other.  After subsequent posts that we believed to be inaccurate again in spite of a warning, further enquiries confirmed the lack of truth in some key posted elements.  As a result of this second cycle of lies, we have now imposed an indefinite ban on the account.

If I was going into hospital for an operation, I would want to be operated on by a surgeon and not by someone who said he was a surgeon because he hoped to get training and become one at some point.  And if I'm going to be advised on fare and ticketing rules, I want to be advised by someone who knows the rules, not someone who claims to be an RPO but is nothing of the sort.  Someone claiming to be a surgeon, or an RPO, when they're not bring disrepute upon the qualified members of those professions. RPOs have a difficult job,and I admire what they do; someone who claims he's one, but isn't is a disgrace and (in my opinion) is not suitable material for the role.

Yet ... having said all that, some excellent questions were asked and some interesting discussions entered into and answers give - and on that basis I'm leaving the posts in place.  There's also a twinge of regret at having to ban anyone.

..........I wonder if he when went to bed last night he found a dismembered Avantix machine & a shredded FGW RPO cap under his pillow?  (less messy & more appropriate than a horse's head!) ;)

Never doubted their lack of bona fides for a moment.