It would be a loss to all, if Gord left the board, I for one enjoy the insights and comments.
On the matter of "one brand" maybe I've been around these types of public posting "Boards" for too long. I believe people speak best about what they know best and I've not found any of the posts regarding LOOP or other brands to be overly "promotional". If posters are "Pro-Staff" with any brand, they should acknowledge this in their signatures and readers can take what they want from it. Maybe this thread will cause some folks to moderate their posts, but I'm 100% with Toolman about censorship. Whether a "poster" has (or not) some vested interest in a product, this should not preclude them from sharing their knowledge, short of outright ADVERTISING by the manufacturer.