Men's Corner: Deedy and the "servants

Can someone walk me through what this comment actually means:

Which specific rule are we even talking about here? All I saw in the sticky was some mention about uploading images to two specific "servers."

But then, looking at this other post in the same thread
the same moderator is out here asking for suggestions for an alternative host because those two "official" ones are acting up.
So why was the suggestion from user relaxed flat-out rejected, and why did they end up getting a public reprimand for supposedly breaking (which?) rules?

What’s with these two "servers" having a total monopoly? Why can't we just use something else? I get it if there's a paid sponsorship involved, but it feels like the mods are just playing favorites by pushing certain sites that clearly make a buck off our traffic.

granitebadger7 said:Can someone explain this comment:

Which specific rule are we talking about here? All I saw in the sticky was that images have to be hosted on two specific sites.

But then in this other post in the same thread the exact same moderator is asking for suggestions for an alternative host because those two "official" ones are acting up.

So why was relaxed's suggestion flat-out rejected, and why did they basically get a public reprimand for supposedly breaking some rules?

Why do these two sites have a monopoly? It’s fine if it's a paid ad deal, but otherwise, it feels like the mods are just playing favorites with certain websites that clearly make money off this traffic.

There was a whole discussion ages ago about why those specific hosts were chosen for photo uploads.

The reasoning is right there in the topic's intro post.

granitebadger7 said:Why on earth do these two specific "servers" hold such a monopoly, and why can't we just utilize other options? I can certainly wrap my head around it if this were a matter of paid advertising, but otherwise, it feels as though the moderators are making decisions that unfairly favor certain websites which clearly generate profit from this arrangement.

Hello there, let me provide a concise explanation for you—it was established quite some time ago that we would exclusively use the two servers mentioned in the introductory post (which contains the thread rules that are frequently cited to ensure everyone remains fully informed). The reasoning behind this is actually quite straightforward: on other hosting sites, images would simply vanish because those providers would delete them the moment even the slightest bit of skin was visible (I am talking about an elbow or a neck, for heaven's sake!), while on other platforms, users themselves would go in and delete photos after only a few hours or days. None of those scenarios are acceptable to us, and we have made our stance on that matter abundantly clear on numerous occasions.
The reason I requested a temporary (!) suggestion for a third server is strictly because both Zaslika and Upload images had been experiencing technical glitches recently (though they haven't in years), causing photos to disappear within a 24-hour window. Fortunately, however, things seem to have stabilized again today. Should these issues persist, we will certainly devise an alternative.

As for those suggestions mentioned by the user you linked, they seem to be tied to a certain group on Facebook and an obligation to cross-post photos there, which is absolutely not the focus of our discussion nor the direction we intend to take. Furthermore, our thread shall not serve as a promotional springboard for that Facebook project; while I certainly do not oppose it, we will most certainly not be advertising it here.
There, I trust that everything is much clearer to you now.
Best regards,
Aaron Harris2