Brandon Steele's response to a whacko reviewer 3/31/05

[bigguyinpasadena]

Brandon Steele's response to a kooky review by a QWA(queen with attitude)is a GREAT example of how an escort should respond to a "no-show"review when there is a "communication"problem-in this case the reviewers brain synapses do not seem to communicate.

This is a real"don't you know who I am"sort of review and good for Brandon for using laser like precission to tear apart this bogus "no-show"review.

I hope other escorts when recieving a bogus no-show review will use the same care and precission that Brandon has used.Not only did this serve to maintain his reputation,in my book the boy got some bonus points for his intelligence.Way to go Brandon!

[Skyyguy]

I've met Brandon, and his response shows what a nice guy he is.

He's very friendly, and a great guy to be with. You can tell from his pics that he's hot as hell.

[Luv2play]

BigGuy, I read the review and response and I think you are being unfair to the reviewer. There are clearly two stories here and, as we know, the reviewer has the last word. But, while Brandon Steele may be a well reviewed escort (I haven't read all his reviews but take your word for it) the fact is the reviewer does not appear to fit the "wacko" label you attached to him.

 

After all, he is a known reviewer (he cited at least 5 reviews) and since he identified these previous reviews I checked a couple of the recent ones, including one on Rick Monroe who is well known to this site. He has given credible reviews of these escorts and there is nothing in his record that indicates he is a "wacko". It is ironic that his date with Rick was after another escort had stood him up and was arranged at the last minute.

 

From reading Brandon's response, this is a "he said-I said" story and given the credentials on both sides, I would not wish to take sides as you appear to have. There are serious discrepancies between the two versions, as to who phoned whom, when etc. Also the reviewer said the date was to be on the last night he was in Florida (26/2) but his first night in Fort Lauderdale whereas Brandon asserts the 26th was the first night that the client was to be in Florida.

 

Also Brandon questions how the reviewer could comment on his performance but the reviewer did not comment on that since he was in no position to do so. There were a few other comments that Brandon made that did not square with what the reviewer put in his review so all of this left questions in my mind.

 

I don't know whether the reviewer could care less what posters on this board think of him but based on the record I don't think he deserves a "wacko" label. And if it were me, it would discourage me from submitting other reviews when they may indeed be welcome for the light they shed on the escorts whom we all love to hire!

[JT Brooklyn]

IMHO..The fact that the Escort did respond, is very Cool. There are two sides as we know to most stories..Everyone will decide for themselves whether what was said was deserved. The guys that donot respond, definitely will lose Biz, which hurts as much, "probably" more Financially, than what was said about them! :+

[JT Brooklyn]

IMHO..The fact that the Escort did respond, is very Cool. There are two sides as we know to most stories..Everyone will decide for themselves whether what was said was deserved. The guys that donot respond, definitely will lose Biz, which hurts as much, "probably" more Financially, than what was said about them! :+

[HotdadENYC]

A couple of comments:

 

The escort has the last word, NOT the reviewer. The escort's response to a review ends the process. Clients will then have to resort to other means (like the forum) to discuss the issue.

 

Just because the reviewer has several other posted reviews does nothing to convince me that he is creditable. Its like saying that an escort who has several positive reviews can't have a bad experience, and we ALL KNOW that that's not the case.

 

In this instance, if the escort couldn't accommodate the client, then the client had the option to seek out another escort. He obviously has experience at doing that kind of thing at the last minute, based on published experiences.

 

hd NYC

[Luv2play]

I don't think it is a given that a "no show" does not result in some "hardship" for the potential clients. I realize that in life, being "stood-up" is something that happens to most of us at one time or another. It should be no big deal, life goes on, blah blah, BUT, it can ruin what would otherwise be a memorable moment for someone. This is particularly the case when one is travelling on vacation

 

In this instance, the reviewer had made the date for the last night he was to be in Florida on a week-long vacation. He had not spent the whole week in Ft. Lauderdale but was flying out of there and had decided to treat himself on his last night. He had made arrangements with the escort of his choice in advance and, according to him, checked 2 days before the date to ensure everything was on-track. This is when he found out the escort was otherwise engaged for the evening.

 

Now the escort had said at the time (some 3 weeks earlier) that the date was first set up to phone and confirm 2 or 3 days before the event. This the client said he did. The escort disputes this. Other points are at issue too. I accept this. But to say, well just call another escort.

 

In some markets, such as New York city, which you cite, no big deal, there are hundreds of escorts and I have never had a problem getting one at the last minute there, even if it took 4 or 5 tries of the ones I would fancy (I always have a list when I am traveling). But in Ft. Lauderdale, where the escort market is not as large, this may be easier said than done, especially in the tourist season as February is. Arranging something at the last minute often does not work and you are left high and dry, a terrible fate on your last night of vacation (I know, get out the handkerchiefs). :-(

[FrancoDiSantisxxx]

Another Country Heard From

 

>I don't think it is a given that a "no show" does not result

>in some "hardship" for the potential clients. I realize that

>in life, being "stood-up" is something that happens to most of

>us at one time or another. It should be no big deal, life goes

>on, blah blah, BUT, it can ruin what would otherwise be a

>memorable moment for someone. This is particularly the case

>when one is travelling on vacation

 

In noticing that new reviews are finally up, I also saw a number of responses from escorts in the upload today. Mr. Steele (of the unsimiling portrait) was the longest of the three today and one of the longest I can recall reading.

 

When I first became aware of the site, I tended to read many of the new reviews. After a while, I started to read only the reviews of escorts in Los Angeles or towns I intended to travel and after a longer period, I only started to read the responses (and the reviews that the escorts were responding to). Most reviews read very similarly, in a number of set and defined patterns. However, the responses are far more telling than anything else on this site.

 

As any number of clients have commented on the Message Center, some of the responses tend to the Client had (a) bad breath, (b) body odor, © was more overweight than expected, et al., or they are very defensive, no matter how politely stated, he said, I said responses.

 

For the most part, the I said, he said[/i] response are not polite. Trent Foster has submitted several of these, one of which also included the "how can a client who claims I am a no show" describe me . . . and another which offered the salve that he was concerned about his own security so did not answer the door to his hotel room when he did not see the client's car in the lot.

 

In any event, as everyone well knows, I am all for giving the escort the benefit of the doubt. Often, clients are, as Mr. Steele attempts to suggest here, vindictive or vengefull. However, I know this client and have communicated with him repeatedly over the last two years since we first met. He is a very kind, sweet, considerate man. He wrote a simple, straight-forward review where he indicated the escort left him hanging, even though he had repeatedly stayed in touch.

 

That another client (that means you, Big Guy, and I have heard only nice things about you) would refer to Jimmer as a WACKO on the basis of what was written or would describe what Mr. Steele wrote as laser-like simply has no relationship to reality.

 

The reviewer considered the escort taking another engagement when he felt a confirmed appointment was made, and only being told another engagement had been made, when he called, as the escort requested, to confirm, is what the client felt was unprofessional behavior.

 

Big Guy, are you suggesting that writing to an escort, inquiring as to availability, agreeing to a time and date and then, when calling the escort to confirm (as requested by the escort), only to find out the escort made different plans, is an indication of "wacko" behavior by a client and abject professionalism by an escort (or any other person in a service profession)?

 

Mr. Steele indicates that it is his professionalism that requests that clients confirm an appointment, even after a number of emails have been exchanged. Personally, having been in Mr. Steele shoe's, I would suggest that this is simply a way for him to find out if he has a definite appointment or not, so he is not, in his own words, "how many times arrangements have been made via Email for me to meet someone, then have them not even take the time to call to cancel." Unfortunately, as any number of escorts who post here repeatedly, this is part and parcel of the nature of the job. It is part of the reason hourly fees are what they are, to make up for the clients who are inconsiderate and lack simple courtesy.

 

However, Jimmer is not one of these clients.

 

How anyone could read his review and see if for anything other than it is, and then to call it (and the reviewer, by extension) WACKO, is beyond the pale.

 

To call Mr. Steele's response classy is also beyond the pale. Frankly, I still think Scott Matthews response to a client who complained that he did not enjoy himself and that Scott seemed distracted and tired, is the gold standard: Mr. Matthew said he was sorry, he regretted not being able to show the client a good time, he offered to make it up to this client in the future and he said, honestly and correctly, that everyone can have a bad day, and unfortunately this client had suffered the consequences of that. Similar escorts have provided such responses and, in the past, it has been those types of responses that clients have applauded on this site and responses such as Mr. Steele's (a lot of words, defensively stated, that contain few, if any facts, and provide little, if any, illumination) that Fin Fan Foom and so many other clients have torn into on this site.

 

As Hoo Boy once said, he gives the escorts the last word, but when the escort has a small number of reviews, many from first timers, and only one from a reviewer with more than 2 or 3 posted reviews, and there is a situation that arises where a regular contributor to the Message Center as well as a regular reviewer with multiple reviews of well known escorts makes a comment, the facts speak for themselves.

[marc anthony]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

Actually Franco... I disagree with the entire premise of this whole controversy. I don't know Jimmer or Brandan Steele, but I do know what I think is right. And I don't think people should submit reviews of escorts unless they either 1) have actually met the escort or 2) were actually no-showed by them.

 

Neither circumstance happened in this case. Would you as an escort feel fairly treated if someone dissed you publicly because you cancelled an appointment or more accurately asked to reschedule it two days in advance?

 

Bottom line... I agree with you that there may be no evidence to warrant calling the reviewer a wacko, but he shouldn't have submitted a review. And if he did, the site shouldn't have published it.

 

I think there is "fair game" for what can constitute a legitimate review. There are those who will disagree with me, but I think if your encounter did not get to the point of addressing these basic questions, you are not in the game.

 

Did the escort show up?

Did he represent himself fairly and look like his pics?

Did he deliver what he promised?

[Luv2play]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

We can argue about what constitutes a "no show' but if an escort left me in the lurch 2 days before an appointment when I was on the road, outside his city and I had done everything possible to ensure keeping the date (such as phoning as requested by the escort), then I wouldn't bother with that escort again. I would probably react differently if I was in my home town, where rescheduling would not constitute a big hassle. But I tried to put myself in the reviewer's shoes. He didn't specify where he was in Florida but it wasn't Ft Lauderdale. He only had one narrow time slot to schedule an appointment. It is not always easy to get another on short notice with an escort of your choice in a smaller market than say New York, where this would not be a problem. And I see that the night in question was a Saturday night. Always a busy time for escorts. So there we have it. We probably agree to disagree.

[bigguyinpasadena]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

Sorry guys-but I still stand by what I wrote.

A-we are talkig about an appointment that was cancelled with TWO day notice-Not 2 hour notice,and certainly not 20 minute notice.TWO DAYS is plenty of time for a guy to schedule with another escort-there are almost as many in south florida as there are in LA.

Second there was comunication,how much we will never know-but the reviwer himself has stated there was comunication at least 48 hours ahead of time.

Third,and this is the basis of my calling the reviewer whacko,we all have things that pop up that neccesitate the juggling of our daily schedule.I deal with such changes by workers and trades people every day.It only makes me angry when I am up against a deadline-and then I go into hyperthreatning mode.I do not like myself when I act like that so I try and leave enough leeway to avoid it(usually setting their has-to-be-completed time ahead of the actual deadline)This I have come to accept as the norm in these time.Do I like it,no-but it only makes me more satisfied when a job is done on time and when people show up when they say they will be there.But I would never lose my cool and bad mouth someone when they gave me a TWO DAY heads-up on a non-critical appointment.

Lastly,this was an appointment with an escort,not a doctor or lawyer,or any other person that could not be filled in with another.

Brandan canceled this because he has a real job-not for another date.And That counts for a lot in my book.

I just feel that the "review"should have never been written-the reviewer comes across as just a QWA who IMO looks foolish for whining like this.I also fault the person who edits the reviews-it should have never gone up-but they are new and still learning .

[+ deej]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

>I also fault the person who edits the reviews-

>it should have never gone up

 

OK, two of you have now said this. What criteria should have kept this review from going up? What level of censorship are you advocating?

 

If the review and the reviewer check out, the review goes up. In this case, the escort's response acknowledges that the situation is real. Beyond that, it's up to the reader to figure out what to believe.

 

I see no reason this review should have been rejected.

[marc anthony]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

>>I also fault the person who edits the reviews-

>>it should have never gone up

>

>OK, two of you have now said this. What criteria should have

>kept this review from going up? What level of censorship are

>you advocating?

>

 

Deej: I think my post makes it clear what criteria I think should be used. I think for a person to submit a review, he either had to meet the escort, or have been actually no showed. Asking to reschedule 48 hours before an appointment does not constitute news.

 

Are you going to publish reviews when escorts don't reply to emails? Should I write a review because an escort has bad phone manners when I am making contact with him? Would you publish a review if the client wrote, "The escort advertises as a masculine top, but when I called him on the phone, his voice made him sound like a giant queen"? And since you feel this review is appropriate, would you put one up when the escort cancels 2 weeks before the date, what about 5 days, or 4 days? Or what if the escort's request to reschedule only changed the time by 30 minutes? Or one hour? Where is your cut off?

 

And since you are the site moderator asking about criteria, what criteria DO you use for publishing a review? Is it anything that people care to submit?

[bigguyinpasadena]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

But Deej-I do not see it as a review.I would not even clasify it as a no-show since this guy had 48 HOURS notice that the appointment was not going to take place.

Rather-i would classify as commentary upon a certain type of failed communication between two people and NOT worthy of posting under the escort reviews to leave a negative mark on Brandans record that just does not belong there IMO.

It might have been a topic to discuss here,in the message center,but should not have made it to the review section.

Now I want to make this clear-I have NOTHING to gain by this,I do not know Brandan,I just do not like it when someone with a chip on their shoulder is able to spoil an otherwise spotless record.

[Barry]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

Though rare I have to respectfully disagree with my esteemed colleague from the great state of California, Deej. :*

 

Traditionally the only "didn't meet" Reviews that Hoo published were No Shows. To be classified as a No Show there had to be a confirmed appointment.

 

The reviewer states "He asked me to confirm by phone a few days ahead of time, and I agreed.". The appointment was never confirmed so didn't qualify as a no show.

 

Maybe we should discuss this with Daddy offline.

 

Barry

[Luv2play]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

And I respectfully disagree with Barry. The statement "I agreed to confirm" has to be taken in context, which Barry failed to mention. The reviewer stated that a series of e-mails had gone back and forth for 3 weeks prior to the vacation. During that exchange an appointment had been made for the Saturday night. It was the escort who asked for a confirmation several days prior to the actual date and I can understand this with an out of state visitor whose travel plans could change. It might even apply to someone who lived in the same city given the elapsed time between making the appointment and the date. But I would characterize the phone call 2 days before the date as a "reconfirmation".

 

As for finding another suitable date on short notice in the high tourist season in Ft Lauderdale on a Saturday night, well maybe, maybe not. At the very least, if I as an escort made alternative plans that conflicted with a date that I had scheduled, I would at least call that client as soon as I had made those other plans, not wait for the client to call me.

[bigguyinpasadena]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

Luv-Brandan states that he DID try to reach him.Of course this falls into the "hearsay"cattagory-but I see no reason to doubt him.

I really think the non review-and the response-should be removed.

[FrancoDiSantisxxx]

The Great State of California

 

>Though rare I have to respectfully disagree with my esteemed

>colleague from the great state of California, Deej. :*

>

>Traditionally the only "didn't meet" Reviews that Hoo

>published were No Shows. To be classified as a No Show there

>had to be a confirmed appointment.

 

You are right, Barry. Hoo Boy did not run NO SHOW reviews unless there was an appointment and the escort did not keep it.

 

Here, as luv2play points out, there was an appointment and the escort attempted to reschedule it at the last minute, because he took an opportunity to work (waitering/catering) that he could have passed on.

 

It is not as if the escort had a job (lawyer or receptionist) with a defined schedule (M-F, 9-5), so the escort could have left his Saturday night open for the client but chose not to, in spite of previous arrangement. The call to confirm was simply that, a call to confirm, not a request for an appointment nor a call to reschedule.

 

Finally, Barry, Hoo Boy has published reviews almost identical to this one. If you want me to find one, I will spend the time and energy to do so, but trust me on that. They simply were not listed as NO SHOWS, even when there was discussion in one instance in the Message Center that it should have been listed as a NO SHOW.

 

So, in that regard, if Daddy listed it as a NO SHOW (which he has not as of this morning, even though another NO SHOW is there since Hoo's passing), then you are right.

 

Marc, as you know I am always a strong advocate for escorts. I think this is definitely a situation where there may have been a lack of communication.

 

However, if the situation is what the client presented, I would have dealt with it in a different manner and it never would have happened. On enough occassions, I have been burned, as the escort suggested, when a client did not show, even though we spoke a few hours before the session and the session had been scheduled weeks in advance. In one such instance, I had arrange for a threesome and felt I had to make it up to the second escort, and I did, even though the fault and blame was solely to the client. I was also in San Francisco when that happened, so the oppotunity costs were also greater than it would have been in Los Angeles.

 

So Marc, my opinion is as I stated. Big Guy had no business (other than he is certainly entitled to his opinion) calling a regular poster to the MC and a regular reviewer a Queen With Attitude much less Wacko on the basis of what the reviewer wrote and the escort, in my opinion, would have been better served with an appology, instead of an attack, particularly a defensive attack that addresses only some of what occurred and not all, in a cloud of misdirection.

[Guest Tampa Yankee]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

>Traditionally the only "didn't meet" Reviews that Hoo

>published were No Shows. To be classified as a No Show there

>had to be a confirmed appointment.

>

 

That is what I recall too and I believe that Hoo's words to that effect can be found in the archives if someone wanted to search.

 

That being said there has been a change at the helm of the ship and some policies will change. I have never been a believer in the "that's the way we've always done it" rationale. That also applies to "that's the way HooBoy did it". IMO a few policies should change, however I don't think this is one of those based on fairness and practical considerations of where you draw the line.

 

My concern is that policies and policy changes be thought through and not become introduced by accident and instantiated by custom. This is a time of transition. Changes are inevitable. Daddy is back in training for a while, He's a smart thoughful guy but as the new short-order cook he also is a little busy right now learning the ropes in the kitchen, in the middle of the grand re-opening.

 

Policy discussion is good to focus the issues. Daddy has the ultimate call. It will take a little time to work out the transition wrinkles. That applies to policy too.

[FrancoDiSantisxxx]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

>Sorry guys-but I still stand by what I wrote.

 

>A-we are talkig about an appointment that was cancelled

 

>Brandan canceled this because he has a real job-not for

>another date.

 

He had a "real" job he took when he had previously agreed to an appointment.

 

If you hired an escort while traveling when you had only one window of opportunity to meet, you would be pissed. Nothing in the review comes across that way, it simply states facts.

 

I can find name calling, such as Queen With Attitude, which comes across as far more pissy than a simple recitation of what one client is presenting as the facts of a situation.

 

 

>I just feel that the "review"should have never been

>written-the reviewer comes across as just a QWA who IMO looks

>foolish for whining like this.I also fault the person who

>edits the reviews-it should have never gone up-but they are

>new and still learning .

 

This certainly reads pretty whiney to me.

[bigguyinpasadena]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

Franco i have to wonder if you would be so defensive if you did not know the reviewer personally.

I do not,nor do I know the escort in this case.

 

Franco you wrote"Here, as luv2play points out, there was an appointment and the escort attempted to reschedule it at the last minute, because he took an opportunity to work (waitering/catering) that he could have passed on."I, for one, do not find that 48 HOURS could be considered "last minute"by anyone.

This guy was in FORT LAUDERDALE for g-ds sake.Not Debuque Iowa-FORT LAUDERDALE is a gay mecca.As I stated earlier ther are almost the same number of escorts in So.Florida as there are in LA.This fella had lots of time to find someone else to play with.

Brandan,IMO had his priorities straight on this one.He chose to work a legit job,where I would guess he is actually making less money then his escort work,out of loyalty to the catering company.Having owned a catering company-I appriciated being able to call on relible workers who knew the routine,If I got too many"gee I would like to but I have something else to do"from a potential hire his name would go to the bottom of the list.

and ONLY a pissy attitude queen would take the time to write a negative"review"over such a "slight"as "ONLY 48 hours notice of cancelation"

[Luv2play]

RE: Another Country Heard From

 

BigGuy, maybe you are the one who is a little defensive, now that you reveal you have a link with the catering industry. Aren't you in a conflict of interest here? ;-)

 

The interesting thing is you would think Ft Lauderdale would have tons of escorts who our friend could have turned to with 48 hours notice. If you scroll down the escorts who are reviewed on this site, who resemble somewhat Brendan (I don't think you can substitute a guy who is completely or even somewhat different physically or profile)plus if you X-out anyone whose last review is over 2 years old, you come down to a handful of escorts, less than 5.

 

Now on a busy Saturday night AT THE HEIGHT of the tourist season, I would say "Good Luck" in your search. I have been in this position a few times in Ft Lauderdale, and had to resort to the Hotspots Magazine. It is loaded with ads for escorts but a lot of them are duds. You would also face a lot of answering machines and not get return calls. How long are you going to wait before you move on to the next number. It can be VERY frustrating.

 

Remember, this guy was not on the scene. He was traveling somewhere in Florida. For all we know he was deep sea fishing or visiting his dear mother in a retirement home! He may have had problems finding the time while in transit. In any event, I think if one accepts his version of events, he was let down by the escort.

[Guy Fawkes]

Brandon's reply was posted because of circumstances involved and out of fairness to Brandon who IMHO did a credible response.

 

I’m currently reconsidering the entire “No Show” policy; I am not comfortable with the current format and want to think the process out thoroughly. I will be updating the FAQ when I’ve reached a decision.

 

I'm locking this thread because it really is a major issue for the web site and not the Message Center. I will review the thread carefully as I formulate the policy. Thank-you for your comments.

 

Daddy