Seafarer Exploration -V- Reef Dawg

[wreckdiver1715]

I have deleted all the threads related to Reef Dawg's battle with Seafarer Exploration due to serious violations of our forum rules. While we do support honest open and sometimes spireted discussion of issues of the day, we will not tolerate venomous lies and personal attacks in defense of ones position.
While I have not yet banned anyone involved in these violations, I will not hesitate to do so if these infractions continue. Since all involved are new to the forum consider this heads up, and should you decide to continue on TreasureNet may I suggest that you follow the link to the Forum Rules to familiarize yourself with these basic rules before you post anything further.

Thanks

wreckdiver1715
Global Moderator

 

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[Reef Dawg]

I never intended on impeding on the decorum of this site by my posting on Seafarer Exploration. I find Treasure Net one of the best of its kind available on the web. It’s informative, insightful and brings together the treasure hunting community from across the globe.

I do have to disagree with one statement of yours, I never posted “venomous lies” as you stated. I merely posted a topic which was from my direct and factual experiences as the former Director of Operations for Seafarer Exploration Corporation.

Other than that, I will read your disclaimer on postings and apply myself from hence forth accordingly.

My thanks for your understanding,

Capt. S.F. Murphy

 

[allen_idaho]

Look at it this way, Mr. Murphy. We fellow members are here for you. We understand. But there is not really any way to confirm or deny that what you are saying is true or false. So to avoid a potential lawsuit for slander and libel, the posting had to go. You see?

Personally, I wish you the best of luck.

 

[wreckdiver1715]

Just to set the record straight, Reef Dawg and I have discussed this issue off line, and as I stated to Sean yesterday, I have no issues with his original post on this subject. It was the responses generated by individuals that claim to be associated with Seafarer who violated our forum rules. Fortunately, I was able to remove those post before too many folks were able to see the trash that was posted on this site.

Tom

 

[AtochaGirl]

Hi Tom, this is a tremendous site that is a wealth of good information and knowledge and there are some very interesting people that are members of the community. As a moderator you are not paid for helping to maintain and administer the site and for providing such a service you should be commended for being the valuable resource that you are.

However, it is terribly disappointing to see that you are more or less tacitly condoning Sean Murphy's (Reef Dawg) desperate attempt to libel, slander, besmirch and sully the reputation of Seafarer. Your statement "I have no issues with his original post on this subject" is very troubling. As per your post, you have had a discussion with Sean and apparently you take what he has told you to be the gospel truth.

Could it be that Sean Murphy has an agenda and an axe to grind with Seafarer? Do companies in general have the right to dismiss a person for reasons having to do with safety and performance issues, and in fact don't most businesses normally part ways with individuals for issues (or for lessor reasons in many cases) such as these? If a person who is dismissed from a company has never previously spoken negatively about that company, but then suddenly appears on forums to vigorously "make their case" and post defamatory and misleading information after they have been dismissed, does this say something about that person's credibility? In other words, why would someone suddenly bombard Internet sites with negative (i.e. defamatory and misleading) information only AFTER they were dismissed, and not before?

Although this forum is obviously not the place to air "dirty" laundry, there are many facts about this situation that have not been made public. Have you spoken to anyone associated with Seafarer? I sincerely believe that if you were to take an objective view and learn the facts, you may feel differently about Sean's efforts to use this very fine site as a tool to damage and harm Seafarer.

Best regards.

 

[BigStu]

Tom,

I want to first congratulate you on your stand to delete the Reef Dawg v. Seafarer quotes. I have visited this website many times in the past and know some of the posters. I have never had the desire or need to register to post on this site until now. I have had a keen interest in treasure salvaging operations. I believe that this forum was not meant for the type of material that Mr. Murphy started posting a few weeks ago. I do agree 100% with Atocha Girl's comments concerning Mr. Murphy. I actually made a few calls concerning Mr. Murphy's comments and the responses seem to indicate a man with an axe to grind that will say anything to assist in his vendetta. I will continue to be a very interested party to viewing the real comments on this site concerning treasure hunting activities and want to thank you again for deleting the type of tripe that has no place on this site.

 

[rgecy]

I say let him speak! I believe there is a Rants and Raves forum here where pretty much anything goes. I am sure Sean knows the potential consequences. I don't know all the facts, or most of even what was said, but I think that investors and potential investors need to know. Maybe, just maybe, the Axe Needs Grinding!

I think it's our duty to keep these companies in check and make sure the truth comes out. I am not saying that ReefDawg is in the right or even speaking the truth. But, he was on the inside, and certainly has first hand knowledge.

I think that in the end, a company's actual time on the water and performance speaks volumes! Everything else is just hot air!

 

[wreckdiver1715]

While it is true that I stated that I had no issues with Capt. Murphy’s post, in as much as he did not violate the established forum rules in his original post. However, do not confuse this statement with me supporting his position against Seafarer Exploration in any way shape or form.
I would say that it is quite obvious to anyone who had an opportunity to read his post that Capt. Murphy indeed has an axe to grind with Seafarer Exploration, and his post was simply an expression of his opinion towards his former employer.
As a moderator it is not my place to agree or disagree with personal opinions posted on this site, nor is it my place to expend vast amounts of time and energy in order to determine if anyone is lying or telling the truth about any given post. Me and my fellow moderators responsibility is simply to ensure that the forum rules are followed and enforced.
When these types of controversies appear on TreasureNet and they have many times in the past. The truth usually comes to the surface for all to see eventually. The Visa Gold Exploration Inc., case is a perfect example, as is the ongoing controversy over Odyssey Marine and the Black Swan recovery project.
All parties involved in this controversy are welcome to express their opinions providing that our forum rules are followed.

 

[AtochaGirl]

Hi Tom, again no personal issues with you, just issues with the way that this whole thing with Sean Murphy ("Reef Dawg") and Seafarer is being characterized.

Sean Murphy's post was not simply an expression of his opinion towards his former employer, it was a calculated effort to spread falsehoods and lies in order to harm Seafarer due to a personal grudge. Furthermore, you state that Reef Dawg did not violate the established forum rules in his original post...

According to the forum rules:

"You may not.... Abuse, defame, harass, threaten, stalk, or otherwise violate the legal rights (such as rights of privacy and publicity) of others."

By posting outright lies and misleading information about Seafarer it would seem that Sean Murphy has violated the forum rules in terms of defaming Seafarer and or violating the legal rights of Seafarer! If the information that Sean Murphy posted about Seafarer is not true but the information that was posted about Sean Murphy is true, would you still feel the same way?

Secondly, the reference to Visa Gold seems inappropriate as it implies by association that people associated with Seafarer may be engaged in the same type of activity that took place with Visa Gold (after a cursory review of Visa Gold it looks like there was a concerted effort by insiders and brokers to pump the price of Visa's stock so that these individuals could benefit by selling shares at an inflated value...). Interestingly enough, since I own Seafarer shares, I can tell you that the stock has done nothing but for the most part go down so if this is a situation like Visa Gold it is sure an intersting way of going about things!

Again, this is a tremendous site but this whole situation is truly distressing. I implore you or anyone else who is at all interested to contact Seafarer, or better yet, contact the people involved in Seafarer's dive operation. There are 5 individuals who are currently working in Seafarer's operations, one is a captain with significant experience working the 1715 fleet and the other four are divers. Additionally there is a well known archaeologist working with the dive team as well, this is the same person who is a first person witness to an "episode" involving Sean. These people are not Seafarer management or executives. I would bet my life that to a person this group will be more than happy to provide you with information that will open your eyes to the game that Sean Murphy is playing including the fact that he has used this forum, as well as several others, for the nefarious purpose of attempting to damage and harm Seafarer simply because Seafarer was not willing to overlook disturbing safety and performance issues involving Sean Murphy.

Thank you for your time, best regards.

 

[T Hunter]

Are you sure of this

 

[wreckdiver1715]

AtochaGirl, while I do appreciate your position in support of Seafarer. The simple truth is that I don’t know who is telling the truth in this matter. All I know is that we have a couple very opinionated folks that are 180 degrees out with their opinions. While you may not like the statements that Reef Dawg has made about his association and experiences with his former employer, it is my opinion that he did not violate our forum rules. However, your comments were over the top and did violate our forum rules resulting in there being deleted.
Since you obviously were not around during the Visa Gold incident, and had to do a “cursory review”, you appear to have missed my point completely. I was not comparing Seafarer Exploration to Visa Gold, and defiantly not to Odyssey Marine, but drawing a parallel to what was transpiring with postings on TreasureNet at this time, before all the facts were known. In that case some investors had posted some comments on this site about the owner of Visa Gold alleging that he was a con-artist and a thief. As I am sure you will appreciate, he took exception to the comments and contacted me directly in defense of his position. The facts in that case did not bode well for Visa Gold and its owner and the posts made by the investors stood, at least for a time. Ultimately this treasure hunter was vindicated in a court of law and the evil stock brokers in Toronto and New York were found guilty of not only stealing the investor’s money, but also of taking the treasure hunters money as well.
In the case of Odyssey Marine, a continuing saga that has been going on for many years, there are many with differing opinions about Odyssey. Unfortunately, at the beginning of that controversy I was forced to ban several long term members who refused to conform to our forum rules.
I am not a reporter, and again as I stated previously, I don’t have time to verify with multiple sources to determine who is telling the truth, and who is lying. The folks at Seafarer Exploration are more than welcome to join us at TreasureNet, and share their opinion like everyone else.

 

[mariner]

Atocha Girl refers to the TNet rule about not defaming anybody, and then goes on to do exactly that about Reef Dawg.

I know this is a difficult situation for you Tom, and I think you are handling it very well, but if you are going to censor Reef Dawg's posts, I suggest you do the same to this other newcomer also.

Mariner

 

[AtochaGirl]

Tom, I do understand that you are caught in the middle, and I truly respect your position and duties as a moderator of this site.

In terms of you stating that I "...may not like the statements that Reef Dawg made...", this is not the case. I don't like the fact that Sean Murphy is attempting to harm people that are sincere and trying very hard to build a legitimate company during difficult times. I posit again that Sean Murphy has used this forum, and other forums, as a tool to post misleading and untrue statements in an attempt to do harm to and defame a company in order to satisfy a personal vendetta that he has because he was legitimately dismissed for safety and performance reasons. Accordind to the forum rules this is clearly a violation. Again, why did Sean Murphy start his campaign to damage Seafarer only after the Company dismissed him? I'll humbly and respectfully leave it at that and throw myself at the mercy of the fine people of this site.

Mariner, I have no issues with you and I am not looking to start anything with you, however I am not sure why you seem to have a bias in this situation. You claim that I have done "...exactly that about Reef Dawg" which means you believe that I have defamed Sean Murphy. According to Merriam-Webster, to defame means "to harm the reputation of by libel or slander". The key here is the part "...by libel and slander". I have done neither to Reef Dawg, everything that I have stated is factual, of this I am very sure. Since you have taken an interest in this thread for some reason, I again would humbly ask that if you do not believe me that you contact Seafarer, or at least someone connected with Seafarer, in order to hear a different point of view and make your mind up from there.

Treasureinvestor2, As to the question regarding who is Seafarer's captain and crew, I am afraid that I do not know all of their names. I do know that the captain is Rodney Grambo (Grandbo?) who previously worked the 1715 fleet. The diver who was referred to as dressing up as a pirate I believe is John Smith, a/k/a Ringo. It is my understanding that Ringo is a member of the dive team, he apparently was hired by good ole Reef Dawg and had no previous treasure salvage experience. I may have the captain's name incorrect, I'll try to contact Seafarer on Monday and double check this as well as get the names of the other divers. Seafarer uses Jim Sinclair as their archeologist, of this I am certain and he seems very credible.

Best regards to all...

 

[allen_idaho]

Am I the only one who finds these posts suspect? Not one. Not two. But three new members to this website who had something to say on the subject? And all basically saying the same thing? Come on now. It seems that all you did was join this forum in an effort to discredit Mr. Murphy. Why is that?

I'm sorry. Too much coincidence. I don't buy it.

 

[wreckdiver1715]

I know this is a difficult situation for you Tom, and I think you are handling it very well, but if you are going to censor Reef Dawg's posts, I suggest you do the same to this other newcomer also.

Mariner, thanks and trust me I censored all of them already. They are all welcome to post all they want, including Reef Dawg if he wants to reengage. Providing that they operate within the scope of our forum rules.

 

[AtochaGirl]

Hi allen_idaho, I have used this site for some time however, prior to seeing that Murphy was using this site as an instrument to attempt to harm people in order to satisfy his personal agenda, I never felt compelled to post here. Do you likewise find it suspect that Murphy has been registered on TN since Dec. 2008, and he was working with Seafarer during this time, however he never posted anything here until right after he was dismissed from Seafarer?

 

[mariner]

Atocha Girl,

I don't know Reef Dawg (or you, for that matter) from Adam, but he did offer to send anybody who was interested the evidence he had to support his initial statements.

Would you mind declaring any interests that you might have, if any, one either side of this debate?

Mariner

 

[allen_idaho]

Hi allen_idaho, I have used this site for some time however, prior to seeing that Murphy was using this site as an instrument to attempt to harm people in order to satisfy his personal agenda, I never felt compelled to post here. Do you likewise find it suspect that Murphy has been registered on TN since Dec. 2008, and he was working with Seafarer during this time, however he never posted anything here until right after he was dismissed from Seafarer?

No, i do not. He was a registered member of this site for about a year. You, on the other hand, were not. You decided not to register until a week ago. That is suspect. Mr. Murphy is not.

 

[AtochaGirl]

allen_idaho, since Reef Dawg registered as a member of TN in December 2008 yet he never, ever posted one thing here until after he was dismissed by Seafarer, then ergo, everything he says must be factual and he must be beyond reproach...Likewise, since I have been a reader of TN for nearly two years, but have never registered or posted because I never previously felt compelled to do so, I must be suspect...makes sense!

Mariner, Reef Dawg has made the same promise on other forums regarding "sending" people all kinds of good stuff, however when called out he appears to have nothing to send. I have been very forthright that I own shares in Seafarer. If you are asking me to declare if I will send you anything, I would be more than happy, to the best of my ability, to put you or anyone else who is interested in touch with either Seafarer's management or the entire team of people who were working with Reef Dawg so that you can get more information. Please let me know...

 

[mariner]

Atocha Girl,

My practice is to take people at their word, until such time as that proves to be a mistake, but it is nice to know if they have vested interests in a particular subject.

I shall watch with interest as all this plays out with interest. Incidentally, it doesn't help to mis-state what allen_idaho said.

Mariner