I know I am very new around here… but I agree with big mike, I can tell you guys that since I’ve been here that I have given way more than received, simply because I really like the idea of what is going on here, the system is great the way it is, leave it up to the growers if they want to disclude people, who could probably really use the beans based on their status, this reminds me of the star belly sneetches, leave it the way it is. Don’t be divisive. Imho 
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I think TL3 and emeritus only and move to private lounge ( make emeritus accessible to lounge also ) makes sense : )
You want seeds then put the effort in and earn that right
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Seed give aways and comps should also only be aloud in private lounge , away from public view also and only available to TL3 and or emeritus : )
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So a couple points, let’s say a user starts a seed run and than like many of the users here cannot be online reading as much as they are now so they drop to TL2. Now that user cannot access their own run in the private section. Also other long standing members that have dropped to TL2 for whatever reason, those who have been here for years and done many runs for the community, now have no access to co-ops that are starting. Sorry but that does not seem like a fair solution but rather one that puts up walls and divides the community into sections. That is not the OG I am used to, I love the idea of Overgrowing the world, not a big fan of Overgrow the world as long as you are TL3 
I see many complaining about the work load and talking about making things easier on the distributors. Well let’s look at that, Sebring never complained that I know of nor have I seen any other distributor complain, only users. Being the US hub means he has the biggest workload. This is why he buys those containers and does not count seeds. Unlike when the rest of us are counting to 10 at a time and packaging Sebring can sit and knock off hundreds in an hour. He does this by using a 1/8 teaspoon so scoop, close the lid and repeat. This is a much more efficient way. When he is done packing them he can just slap a sticker on each container and move to the next strain. Now this is a ton of work and there is no denying that he should have help but compartmentalizing this to death just overcomplicates things to me. Personally if it was me what I would want is for a couple of members on my team that I can use to send a few strains and containers to, they could break them down and send them back packaged. This would dramatically reduce the work load and allow him to focus more on organizing. Folks keep saying those sending seeds should do this but I just disagree. Folks who do runs have already invested a ton of time, money and effort into producing seeds to give out to the community for free. Adding more work to those generous people does not feel like a good solution. I say this as not only someone who counted out every seed to cover the list before sending to Sebring but someone who also sent a second load to him after finding out he doesn’t count seeds and was very short once he packaged my seeds since his 1/8 teaspoon method turned the packs from 10 to 15 seeds each.
The only problem I see here is Sebring having some personal issues. This is not a problem that all the talk from OG members in the world can fix. This is just life and has shown that he should not be alone. If he had his couple trusted helpers they could have picked up the ball when he backed away and things could have gone smoothly. That’s really the only issue here, the man with the most work has nobody set up to pass the ball too if he cannot devote the time for whatever reason. I really feel that is the only thing we need to help correct.
Now maybe I am a control freak. In the last 20 plus years I have covered a territory for one company or another. It’s how I work best. I take on an area and it’s workload and make sure everything get’s done. Heck, service calls don’t even go through my company like for other techs but come straight to me, I like it like this. It’s what I am accustomed to and how I work best. Working on my own, organizing work loads and getting things done is just my thing. Many are not wired to do that but in my case it’s what works for me.
Now I am looking to invest in those containers Sebring uses as they will save me a ton of time and effort but you can only order them by the 1000 and I don’t have an extra $250 US to spend so I am stuck counting but hey, that’s the work I offered to do. I know folks have been in touch with Sebring so all things will get sorted out. The only people that have any right to complain a this point are those who have sent seeds in to him for distribution. They are the only ones who have really invested anything and they will in the end see their seeds distributed. Nobody has even paid for shipping except for those in the USA and those people will see what they signed up for at some point so it’s a non issue in my mind.
On a last note paying through Sebring’s site is not a good idea for here. In Canada we can etransfer at no cost and it works perfectly fine. No payments are accepted till shipment is ready and I can offer standard or tracked shipping to users as they see fit. Credit cards and lack of shipping options when paying through the DIY site makes this a much less useful way of doing things, at least here in Canada. The way it is currently set up works fine, I can get an actual correct cost for tracked shipping and if they wish to pay for it than all goes smoothly, if not they can pay for standard mail. Again, this has not been a problem in the past and as such is in no need of fixing.
Now look folks, I am sorry for writing a novel here but I started typing and looked up to realize all this spilled out. I get everyone has their ideas and all views are relevant, there is nothing wrong with an open exchange of ideas to see what everyone is thinking. In the end there is only 1 issue and that is one user has caused a delay and there is no mechanism in place to sort that out. If that one thing get’s worked out and the man get’s the help he needs all the other stuff will fall into place as the system works.
Have a great day OGers, sorry to give you all eye strain reading this. I am off to smoke one. 
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Agree 100% with this 
, @DougDawson , I would be glad to send a little coin your way to help you get to the $250, for packaging those runs… even though I’m only a member 
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Depends how you look at what overgrowing the world is
For me it’s about teaching others to be better growers , not about handing out seeds : )
The quality of the members on here should be more important than the quantity : )
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Yeah, it does depend. Nothing to teach if there are no seeds to grow and you can’t overgrow anything without seeds to plant. I do agree with the statement of quality over quantity, can’t argue that at all, but restricting things to private is going to cut out many quality members so those who teach many and we can learn from are not included.
I would rather weed through the grab and goers to keep things inclusive for all rather than cut out some great members in order to get rid of a few that are here for what some consider the wrong reasons. BigMike55, JohnnyPotseed , misterbee , all great OGers we could learn from, all would be excluded from the private lounge. Sorry but to me what is being proposed would cut out those very quality members you speak of IMO.
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If they reach emeritus then they could get to the private lounge if that rule changed
Also just cuz they can’t get to private lounge they can still teach on public forum so no loss there , I doubt they just here for free seeds
Also I don’t know in’s and outs of how big Mike got cut down to basic but lesson to be learnt is don’t get spanked ( no offence @BigMike55 )
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That could be easily solved if there’s no demotion after getting the TL3 status. System and distributors have been overwhelmed because of the exponential grow of the distribution network and members. Only cutting figures down will help and ease all the work to be done, not a question of being unfair but survival of the system … 
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I’m afraid access is granted by rank, so once being TL2 again you wouldn’t be able to reach the lounge, emeritus or not … 
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That’s why I feel emeritus should be same level as TL3 and would solve all the problems of the private lounge : )
Just a quick look into the seed run category, lots of (TL2) members doing runs, some of them multiple. nube, lambchoppd, twistedinfinity, mrmayhem1134, bigmike55, swe-can, disctrict_flora, plantshepherd. So you want to kick them all out? 
Does not make sense to me.
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Well there is a simple fact for all to realize. If you want to do a seed run and restrict access than you can do it in the private lounge, simple as that. While I disagree with your opinion it is still valid and just as important as mine. Speaking as someone who has done a seed run and has 2 currently underway I will be leaving mine in the general co-op area. I have no interest in cutting people out. In the end it’s up to the person doing the run.
As a distributor I will continue to allow folks who do runs to send me the seeds in bulk if they wish. I will put in the extra work as I have offered to in order to make their lives easier. If others decide they want things broken down for them than that is totally up to them. I won’t tell others how to do their thing.
In the end folks have control. Distributors can request pre packaged, seed makers can restrict access and set rules as they see fit which has always been the way. It’s really all up to those directly involved. It’s no different from giveaways, some done in the general area and others in the private lounge. It’s all up to those involved who set the criteria for their run, giveaway or distribution. All this talk about changing trust levels and blocking access to some with a system that already works does not seem useful but hey, as I have said before, nothing wrong with an open exchange of ideas. But the fact remains that if those talking about restricting things wish to do a run and keep it in the private area than than can do so. If they wish to break down their run into packs to make the distributors lives easier they can do that. Since the system already allows you to do such things I see nothing that needs changing. Well other than getting Sebring some help.
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But if the breeder is packaging the seeds also, the expense really starts to build up on the individual breeder. I feel like a lot of co ops would drop off because of that. I could be wrong. Also some people don’t have the time. Like myself, I loved doing the co op but I travel for work and would be hard pressed to sit down. And package all the seeds and ship to all the sign ups.
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All of the ones you mentioned had the TL3 status once, my idea is once you have it, you keep it, no emeritus needed after that, of course admin is the one to decide any change, but that move would solve many issues …
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Ah ok, I agree. But don’t see it happening.
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I know, just a wishful thinking, but can be done … 
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Doug, we should focus on the main problem which is handling and distributing tons of seeds to tons of members. My idea isn’t intented to restrict anyone, it’s just bringing more rational numbers so everything’s working like a charm again like in the past …
I see it in a practical way, you may find solutions that may work in your area but we need some standards working in the whole continents. For instance, paying seeds and shipping directly to distributors could attire leo’s attention while receiving money from different people in an ilegal country, you can even lose your Paypal account for that …
If evrything’s paid in Sebring’s site, there would only be a money transfer from Sebring to distributor to recover funds spent, no trouble with people “dissapearing” as they would have to put their own money before …
We need volunteers in the US to help Sebring, that’s for sure, anyone?
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I agree that they shouldn’t be responsible for the cost of packaging, and I think I even said that… Somehow reimburse / compensate / send them the necessary materials. For the veterans giveaway, I sent flips straight to BigMike from Amazon, no money changed hands and he got what he needed. So, perhaps look into somehow working something similar into a member doing a seed run. After they’ve spent the time, and money on electric, ferts, medium, etc, its only fair they don’t pay to package seeds that are essentially being “given away for a donation to cover the costs”… That donation should cover their costs as well… Not sure how to implement it, but its an idea…
And I understand not everybody has the time either. I was always of the philosophy that “many hands make light work”… Don’t wanna make it harder for anybody really, just figure out how to make it easy on all those involved… Maybe have an intermediate level of “seed packers” that pack all of a co-ops run, but that adds more hands into the mix as well…
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But it’s exactly what it would do George. We have one missing member, that’s the only issue here. That is what needs to be focused on IMO. People are conflating this with other issues that don’t really exist. The system works fine short of one issue of a member having some personal problems and this issue has been identified as weakness in the system. That can be resolved without changing everything else.
The bottom line is this. If a user wants to restrict their run to the private lounge they can. If a distributor will not accept bulk seeds and wants them packaged first that’s also up to them. People can set rules as they see fit and as such I don’t see why anyone other than those involved directly should really have any say at all. We all have opinions and some may want to revamp the whole system to fit what they feel would work best in their minds. That is normal as all have an opinion but in the end it’s really those making the seeds who decide the rules for who can sign up and the distributors that can decide how things best work for them to get the job they signed up for done. If a seed maker wants to say private lounge only or min 6 months on OG, or 6 pips or whatever criteria they wish to use than they are able to do that already. If a distributor wants only pre packaged seeds or if they wish all things to go through sebrings site than that is also possible I am sure, they would just have to arrange it as such. Since these abilities already exist I see no reason for blanket rules the force all to do things the same way. Just does not feel very OG to me. Folks can agree or disagree with that as they see fit, that is up to each individual.
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