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IMO, it would be a good idea for this site to have a disclaimer printed on the face of the forums page that states something to the effect of:
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The views and opinions expressed in our forums are strictly that of our individual members. The contents of this forum have not been approved by the owners of pets.ca and are not necessarily the same views and opinions held by us.
We do not endorse any views expressed by our members nor does any of the views or opinions expressed here take the place of the views expressed by your trusted veterinarian.
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To me, and I am not a lawyer, this is a gathering place where individuals share thoughts and feelings. I would not expect for a pet food company to be interested in a bunch of "anonymous" individuals have to say, as far as it relates to their sales any more than one of those pet food company heads would have a lawyer on speed dial to call in a lawsuit anytime he happens to hear one of more individuals "trashing" their name in a public or private place.
While I do believe that it is better to try not to come across too strongly against a particular product in order to preserve a friendly community, unless such an individual is bullying of harassing other members or otherwise making the conversation or board inhospitable, I do not believe that censorship is the way to go.
IMO, if I see several people really heatedly against a certain product I am going to go out and do some research on my own to see if what they say holds any water... and certainly I would be unlikely to purchase such a product. In a conversation about pet food disallowing the name of a food or passionate accounts of bad experiences to be relayed without the proof of a case document of a lawsuit that has been won, it would only hurt the pets (not saying that this site would go this far... just saying I think it would be bad).
As individuals, I think that most of us know how to take the opinions of others to aid them in their quest for the proper pet food... and although I feel that many have helped pet owners to find a better food, it isn't like this forum is a well known and endorsed 1-800-Pet-Food (or similar number) for people to call for help with finding the right pet food for their pet where they have to worry about X company calling up and getting all riled up because 9 out of 10 operators when prompted call their food crap.
Even then... if 1-800-PET-FOOD can show that they believe that the food is crap and they are not maliciously targeting one company, X company may not have a case.
Just my opinion...
ChancesMom
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