LOL! That reminds me of how I became acquainted with Mark over at AV123.
Back in '04 there was a lot of enmity between the two forums (Axiom and AV123) due, primarily, to a dust-up here at the Axiom forum with one particular individual who felt it necessary to go over to the AV123 and call in reinforcements who came over here, joined the forum, and joined the fray. Even an AV123 employee joined in which I thought was way out of line.
In the thread started by this particular individual over at the AV123 forum, many forum members were saying almost the same thing Tom said above, but not in jest. They went on, ad infinitum, about how much better than us they were.
I had witnessed Mark's openness and willingness to accept criticism over at the AVS (not AV123) forum. So, believe it or not, I screwed up my courage and emailed Mark my thoughts and complaints. He responded by asking if he could give me a telephone call to discuss the issue. He called and we talked, rationally and calmly. He agreed with me on many points, and we agreed to disagree on others. All in all, it was a positive experience, and I came away with a lot of respect for Mark. That was, quoting Rick (in Casablanca), "the beginning of a beautiful friendship."
I'm happy to report that, for the most part, relations between the two forums have warmed considerably with a number of folks posting at both forums. The simple fact is, the members of both forums have much more in common than not. In fact, there recently was a thread at AV123 where one member praised, and highly recommended, the Axiom Algonquin outdoor speakers he had purchased. The concept that preferring one particular brand doesn't mean any other is junk seems to be gaining wider acceptance, as is the understanding that it isn't necessary to run down another's preference in order to justify our own.
Interestingly, the same gentleman who caused the unfortunate brouhaha between the forums has, due to his contentiousness, just about worn out his welcome at the AV123 forum, and the employee who came over here to do battle is no longer an AV123 employee.
