"Dr" James

Posts : 41 Join date : 2009-08-04

What's your opinion of him? Some say he should be allowed to post however he likes, but there's a big question mark over his credentials. In my opinion he should be banned from the board if he has misrepresented himself and fraudulently offered paid coaching. Anyone feel like this is not being taken seriously enough?

Posts : 18 Join date : 2009-08-04

I don't see how anyone can be banned from an open board when it's difficult enough to ban people from private registration-only ones. They simply use a different computer and choose a new name. At least we know where we are with him. More unpleasant are the stalkers and trolls clown

. I long ago learned to consider anyone I met on the internet as a potential basket-case until proved otherwise.

Posts : 183 Join date : 2009-08-02

ukchris wrote:: What's your opinion of him? Some say he should be allowed to post however he likes, but there's a big question mark over his credentials. In my opinion he should be banned from the board if he has misrepresented himself and fraudulently offered paid coaching. Anyone feel like this is not being taken seriously enough?

I'm a little surprised too, but I think Bill has a laisez faire attitude on the board a lot of times. Maybe he thinks since James also contributes good on the board, and now that James has been "outed" that perhaps it's punishment enough. Hard to say....

Posts : 6 Join date : 2009-08-06

I had an uneasy feeling about him from the beginning. I thought about emailing Bill about him but never did because like Sapphire, I thought Bill wouldn't care.

I had a sense that James was trying to win over the members to follow him instead of Dr. Stoll even though he was praising Dr. Stoll.

Surely, by now James has lost all credibility.

Posts : 18 Join date : 2009-08-04

JuliaRose wrote:: Surely, by now James has lost all credibility.

Seems not as two posters have asked him questions this evening. I was wary when he blamed his son for the outrageous post to Charles (but only after he was tackled about it) and wondered if Bill would do something, but how can he if this person is as determined as Carl suggested?

Posts : 183 Join date : 2009-08-02

Bill could easily ban him, but this ban would only apply to that one computer... true, James could then just use another computer to post, but most people wouldn't make the effort to find another computer just to post on the board. Bill seems to wait a long time before he bans anyone, giving them a chance to change their ways. Maybe he's giving James a second chance.

Posts : 2273 Join date : 2009-08-02

Walt should make the decisions, since it is his BB. I take nothing as gospel, and look for proof of info, from sources I can accept or believe in, and would always look for supporting info, unless there was none and i was despirate, but then I would walk lightly, and be ready for a problem.

I have a friend who had a heart attack after taking Celebrex, that a mutual friend thought I was foolish for not getting it for knee pains I had, but I went with the suppliments and solved the problem a few times. Now my friend who had the heart attack is having afibulation, and Dr's are talking pacemaker. I suggested the amino Taurine that is needed to keep the heart strong, and CoQ10, which people suggest, but I don't think is as good. My friend doesn't seem interested in taking a suppliment, that might fix his problem from what I have read, and even if he gets the pacemaker, may help his heart not get any worse. It's his heart so he can do what he wants, but even supposed professional help might not be the best, but what they know and do. My friend seems to go for what the Dr's want him to, and says I Know about alternative stuff. I only know what I know from searching for a simple cure, and would rather take or do something simple. My friend had back surgery where they put rods in, which would have been the last thing I would have done. I have a lot of back problems from my muscles being weakened and damaged, but I try supplements, and back supports, and 2 supports now, since I don't want more problems than I have.

Anyone who listens to James should do their own research, but in the end they will go with things they believe in

Posts : 49 Join date : 2009-08-03

Sapphire5000 wrote:: Bill could easily ban him, but this ban would only apply to that one computer... true, James could then just use another computer to post, but most people wouldn't make the effort to find another computer just to post on the board. Bill seems to wait a long time before he bans anyone, giving them a chance to change their ways. Maybe he's giving James a second chance.

I agree, he could only ban him from one computer at a time. Based on what I've seen of James though, he would just find another computer and continue to post until that one is banned, and then find a third, etc., etc. What I would have expected by now at least is to hear whether or not James's credentials checked out, and what the board plans to do about it. Even if they are not successful in banning him completely, they can at least admit that this guy is not what he professes to be, and warn people to only accept his advice as if it was coming from any other non-professional poster.

However, from what I've seen today, Walt is going around telling people that he agrees with James's posts and that they should listen to him. You be the judge.

Posts : 183 Join date : 2009-08-02

FootlessBird wrote:

Sapphire5000 wrote:: Bill could easily ban him, but this ban would only apply to that one computer... true, James could then just use another computer to post, but most people wouldn't make the effort to find another computer just to post on the board. Bill seems to wait a long time before he bans anyone, giving them a chance to change their ways. Maybe he's giving James a second chance.

I agree, he could only ban him from one computer at a time. Based on what I've seen of James though, he would just find another computer and continue to post until that one is banned, and then find a third, etc., etc. What I would have expected by now at least is to hear whether or not James's credentials checked out, and what the board plans to do about it. Even if they are not successful in banning him completely, they can at least admit that this guy is not what he professes to be, and warn people to only accept his advice as if it was coming from any other non-professional poster.

However, from what I've seen today, Walt is going around telling people that he agrees with James's posts and that they should listen to him. You be the judge.

I think James has something of value to say, even if he may have lied in the past. As long as he's not holding himself out to be something he's not (a Ph.D. or whatever), I personally don't have a problem with him posting. Everyone should do their own research though, that's for sure.

Posts : 49 Join date : 2009-08-03

Sapphire5000 wrote:: I think James has something of value to say, even if he may have lied in the past. As long as he's not holding himself out to be something he's not (a Ph.D. or whatever), I personally don't have a problem with him posting. Everyone should do their own research though, that's for sure.

Yes, he has some good information, but his need to lie, decieve, and pretend to be something he's not is beginning to outweigh his contributions, in my opinion, and, as Mike said, before he changed is position, "how can we believe anything he says if he lies about his credentials?".

He's still trying to decieve, here are a few quotes from today:

"..Here are my clinical observations on nutrition and orthomolecular treatments. Again this is my personal experience but it is from working with many hundreds of anxiety and stress patients over 30 years.."

"...Without a face-to-face diagnosis this is an educated guess. I have seen this in many patients that are musculoskeletal contractors/responders..."

Now if these statements aren't proof that he isn't still trying to pretend that he is a doctor, I'll eat my hat.

Posts : 41 Join date : 2009-08-04

I agree with Footless Bird. And I like your pic/name combo!

Something should be done about this before someone is hurt or swindled.

Posts : 49 Join date : 2009-08-03

ukchris wrote:: I agree with Footless Bird. And I like your pic/name combo!

Something should be done about this before someone is hurt or swindled.

Thanks Chris, it is an interesting image, a footless bird.

And I agree with you, I definitely think some kind of stand, or at least explanation or qualifier, should be made about this guy. Not everyone will realize that he is not an authority. Also, I feel he is so desperate to fool people that he might even comprimise the integrity of his information in some cases.

Posts : 183 Join date : 2009-08-02

FootlessBird wrote:

Sapphire5000 wrote:: I think James has something of value to say, even if he may have lied in the past. As long as he's not holding himself out to be something he's not (a Ph.D. or whatever), I personally don't have a problem with him posting. Everyone should do their own research though, that's for sure.

Yes, he has some good information, but his need to lie, decieve, and pretend to be something he's not is beginning to outweigh his contributions, in my opinion, and, as Mike said, before he changed is position, "how can we believe anything he says if he lies about his credentials?".

He's still trying to decieve, here are a few quotes from today:

"..Here are my clinical observations on nutrition and orthomolecular treatments. Again this is my personal experience but it is from working with many hundreds of anxiety and stress patients over 30 years.."

"...Without a face-to-face diagnosis this is an educated guess. I have seen this in many patients that are musculoskeletal contractors/responders..."

Now if these statements aren't proof that he isn't still trying to pretend that he is a doctor, I'll eat my hat.

I didn't realize he was still doing that. IF he's continuing to pretend to be something he's not, then he definitely should be banned. It's so hard to know who or what a person is on this board based on various posts. I've had people accuse me of all sorts of rubbish based on their mis-reading my posts, so I don't want to falsely accuse him... so I'm still a little hesitant to say I know for sure he's a fraud. I know how awful it feels to have someone imply I've been untruthful when I haven't been. I felt a little bad after I made that post about him on the AWS bb, because I'm not totally sure he's been lying... he probably has, but I still have a little uncertaintly. But for sure, if he's actually not what he says he is, then he shouldn't be permitted to make these kinds of posts.

Posts : 18 Join date : 2009-08-04

FootlessBird wrote:: However, from what I've seen today, Walt is going around telling people that he agrees with James's posts and that they should listen to him. You be the judge.[/b]

Oh I'd missed that. Walt had already said what he thought and should stick to it. My concern with trying to completely ban someone who is allegedly a problem on other forums is that when they're determined to have their say they'll manage to do so somehow and can be very unpleasant to a lot of people in the process. If Bill bans them at IP level they'll find another way in, and can also use an anonymous IP service. It's also likely that if he's banned, the trolls, of which there are several, will create a fuss.

Posts : 49 Join date : 2009-08-03

Sapphire5000 wrote:: I didn't realize he was still doing that. IF he's continuing to pretend to be something he's not, then he definitely should be banned. It's so hard to know who or what a person is on this board based on various posts. I've had people accuse me of all sorts of rubbish based on their mis-reading my posts, so I don't want to falsely accuse him... so I'm still a little hesitant to say I know for sure he's a fraud. I know how awful it feels to have someone imply I've been untruthful when I haven't been. I felt a little bad after I made that post about him on the AWS bb, because I'm not totally sure he's been lying... he probably has, but I still have a little uncertaintly. But for sure, if he's actually not what he says he is, then he shouldn't be permitted to make these kinds of posts.

Yes, he certainly is misrepresenting himself. One of these posts was made yesterday, and one today. I agree, based on all the accusations about James so far, and his inability to produce or verify his credentials, along with his determination to pretend he is a doctor, is audacious, and he should be banned in my opinion. And yet here is how Dr. Stoll responded to one of these posts:

Posted by Walt Stoll [93.7937] on August 17, 2009 at 15:20:18:
In Reply to: confused posted by Mike [8955.7738] on August 16, 2009 at 22:31:14:

Mike,

I totally agree with James--so long as you are practicing your SR twice a day. If necessary, you can always see the OP later.

Let us know how you do.
Walt

So you see, Dr. Stoll is continuing to allow James to misrepresent himself, by allowing him to say that he has worked with hundreds of patients for over 30 years. This only encourages him to keep posting, and to keep misrepresenting himself. I don't know if Bill actually checked his background or what he may have found, but my guess is this guy is a fraud, or else he would have produced valid credentials, and Walt would have verified them by now. And, James would have been infuriated by Carl, who called him a fraud. There are other things that James has done that have made me very suspicious, so in my mind, I am fairly sure he is not being truthful. The real danger is that certain people will take his advice so seriously that they could be harmed.

I understand your hesitation, and your wanting to make sure someone is truly a fraud, before accusing them, but at this point, I feel someone has to draw the line somewhere. If Walt is not going to verify and prove Jame's legitimacy, than it is up to us, as individuals, to respond to him in a way that makes us feel most comfortable. I don't disrespect anyone who chooses to accept James's information, as long as they are aware that he is probably not a doctor, and that his advice is not officially valid. Walt is leaving it up to us to take the risk ourselves.

As for having your posts mis-understood I can totally relate. This medium is fraught with danger, and it's so hard to communicate without any body language and eye-contact. Even the sound of the voice. And in addition, there are politics, crowd behavior, cliques, and hostile people, and as a result, you've got the ingredients for flames galore. I know you try very hard to account for what you post, and that is admirable. You even go to the point of explaining yourself, and I wish more people would try that hard to communicate, it would make such a difference.

Posts : 183 Join date : 2009-08-02

Thanks, FB, I really appreciate your post. I do try to clarify when people misinterpret my posts, but sometimes it hardly seems worth the effort. You are so right, it can sometimse be very difficult to make a point in writing, and often we write something in a hurry without realizing the numerous ways it could be taken, and then all the effort to clarify can make the whole process a chore sometimes. Neutral

As I think about it, it seems Walt didn't want James to try to make money from folks on the board... so that was maybe Walt's main gripe. Maybe as long as James just gives opinions but refrains from soliciting for paying clients, Walt and Bill might be okay with things as they are. Just speculating, because I don't really know for sure... Question

Posts : 49 Join date : 2009-08-03

Sapphire5000 wrote:: Thanks, FB, I really appreciate your post.

You're welcome Sapphire.

I do try to clarify when people misinterpret my posts, but sometimes it hardly seems worth the effort.
You are so right, it can sometimse be very difficult to make a point in writing, and often we write something in a hurry without realizing the numerous ways it could be taken, and then all the effort to clarify can make the whole process a chore sometimes.

LOL, I know what you mean. Sometimes I try until I'm blue in the face, and the more I try, the worse it gets.

As I think about it, it seems Walt didn't want James to try to make money from folks on the board... so that was maybe Walt's main gripe.

Exactly, that's what he said the other day.

Maybe as long as James just gives opinions but refrains from soliciting for paying clients, Walt and Bill might be okay with things as they are. Just speculating, because I don't really know for sure...

Yes, I agree that this is probably the case. However, what should they do when James says things like he has "worked with hundreds of patients over thirty years" or "I have seen this in many patients" ? I feel by ignoring these comments, it is indeed condoning this misrepresentation. I don't agree with it, but it's not my board. cheers

Posts : 41 Join date : 2009-08-04

Maybe after each post of his we can all write a little note warning the person about his background? It might get tedious, but also it might annoy James so much that he goes elsewhere after awhile.

Posts : 18 Join date : 2009-08-04

FootlessBird wrote:: but my guess is this guy is a fraud, or else he would have produced valid credentials, and Walt would have verified them by now. [/b]

He's posted them now, is there some way we can verify them - registration with some accredited body etc?

Posts : 47 Join date : 2009-08-02

I don't know. He didn't list any of the schools or state that he was in practice in a certain state.

Posts : 41 Join date : 2009-08-04

Yeah, I guess that's what he means by "personal info". How convenient, and thoroughly unconvincing. I've asked about the domain of his email address. Doesn't seem to exist in any way other than as an email contact, which is very easy to set up. Fishy!

Posts : 49 Join date : 2009-08-03

I saw his post helena, no school names, no dates, no way to verify.

BS in Human Sciences (prep for medical school)
Second BS in Human Studies (cultural anthropology - sociology)
Masters in counseling with special emphasis in transpersonal psychology
Doctorate in clinical psychology with thesis in psychoneuroimmunology and research assistant in audioanalgesics & psychoacoustics
Pharmacology studies leading to licensing as a medical psychologist
Certified in substance abuse counseling
Lifelong interest and education in the psychology and physiology of anxiety disorders and more recently in allostatic load for stress and central sensitization disorders
No formal degrees or certifications in nutrition but over 30 years of study

18 years consulting with people detoxing from psychiatric drugs and most recently researching the genetic implication of sedative/hypnotic tolerance and withdrawal.

Over 20 years of facilitating community based psychology/medical support groups (where I probably learned as much as college)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I believe he's a fraud, but that's just my intuition. and chris, if you remember what carl said, james sounds like he's not that easy to discourage. he's like a virus.

Posts : 41 Join date : 2009-08-04

I believe the email address domain holds the key. If there is no associated website, then I'd suggest he has bought a domain which sounds impressive and authoritive in order to deceive people. I'm going to press him on it because he's ignored the question so far.

Posts : 183 Join date : 2009-08-02

[quote="FootlessBird"]

Sapphire5000 wrote:: I do try to clarify when people misinterpret my posts, but sometimes it hardly seems worth the effort.
You are so right, it can sometimse be very difficult to make a point in writing, and often we write something in a hurry without realizing the numerous ways it could be taken, and then all the effort to clarify can make the whole process a chore sometimes.

LOL, I know what you mean. Sometimes I try until I'm blue in the face, and the more I try, the worse it gets.

Yes, so true, I've had the same experience... I hate it when that happens! Wink

Posts : 49 Join date : 2009-08-03

Sapphire5000 wrote:

FootlessBird wrote:: LOL, I know what you mean. Sometimes I try until I'm blue in the face, and the more I try, the worse it gets.

Yes, so true, I've had the same experience... I hate it when that happens! Wink

I knew you'd appreciate that Sapphire! Very Happy

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