This is not a “denounce and flounce” post. This is not ragequit or whining post. This is not an “omg butthurt” post. This is just my analysis of some of the problems on TGD. It’s also TL;DR.
Now, to begin:
I am exhausted, and I am going away for awhile. (This will undoubtedly please many of you, but my telling you this is not to give you any cheer.) I don’t know how long I’ll be gone; it might be a month, or it might be years, but, in the end, it doesn’t really matter. What matters is that my reason for announcing my leave is because it is TGD itself that is causing me to take a break.
TGD has so much potential. Everyone here is reasonably intelligent, types in coherent sentences, and has fairly good ideas about games and game systems. TGD could be the closest thing to an intellectual oasis amid the ENWorlds and RPG.nets of the Internet—here, we can say what we want to say without having to deal with moderators censoring us. Unfortunately, TGD is the joke of the Internet among gamers—an asylum where the inmates are running things. We’re the Stormfront.org of games. And you know what? They’re right.
I will freely admit that my posts are part of the problem with TGD. I’ve partaken in the behavior that I’m going to critique (give me a paragraph or two), and I shouldn’t have. (You can still call me on this if you’d like, but I’m calling myself on it first.) However, given that the content on TGD is all user-generated, it’s our burden to bear. All of us. If we want to change things, we have to change them ourselves.
Problem 1: Manner of Debate
The first problem I’m going to address with TGD is the manner of debate. Yes, we all have our opinions, and yes, we’re all sure that we’re right and everyone else is wrong. The problem stems from how loudly we debate here. Since TGD has little restraint on what we can and cannot say—something I will touch on in a minute—we have the privilege of ranting, screaming, and swearing, and this is the form of many debates on TGD. This stifles the exchange of information and the invention of new ideas. Why? Because it’s a matter of pride.
If Poster A says, “Your idea is bad, and you’re a turd, to boot,” then Poster B is going to back up his position, using similar derogatory speech. Pretty soon, the board has an all-out flamewar, and neither party will budge an inch on their stances because if one backs down, then the other was right—both about system mechanics and the other Poster being a turd. (Even if this isn’t the case, it is how the Posters will perceive it.)
This is a maturity issue. Does Poster A need to tell Poster B to fuck off because he disagrees with Poster B? (That answer would be “no,” by the way.)
Solution: Be more civil. Ask questions instead of yelling.
The first problem I’m going to address with TGD is the manner of debate. Yes, we all have our opinions, and yes, we’re all sure that we’re right and everyone else is wrong. The problem stems from how loudly we debate here. Since TGD has little restraint on what we can and cannot say—something I will touch on in a minute—we have the privilege of ranting, screaming, and swearing, and this is the form of many debates on TGD. This stifles the exchange of information and the invention of new ideas. Why? Because it’s a matter of pride.
If Poster A says, “Your idea is bad, and you’re a turd, to boot,” then Poster B is going to back up his position, using similar derogatory speech. Pretty soon, the board has an all-out flamewar, and neither party will budge an inch on their stances because if one backs down, then the other was right—both about system mechanics and the other Poster being a turd. (Even if this isn’t the case, it is how the Posters will perceive it.)
This is a maturity issue. Does Poster A need to tell Poster B to fuck off because he disagrees with Poster B? (That answer would be “no,” by the way.)
Solution: Be more civil. Ask questions instead of yelling.
Problem 2: Hostility to Different Ideas
The second problem goes hand-in-hand with the first. When someone comes in with a differing opinion from the norm, everyone goes apeshit and dogpiles on him or her. I could get into specifics here, but I will simply say “Elennsar.” While Elennsar was whiny and irritating, people treated him like shit because his ideas weren’t the standard fare of TGD’s ideas about D&D. And I know that I this will result in people posting about how Elennsar did this and Elennsar did that, but face it: he wanted to play a completely different game than what the members of TGD prefer, and, rather than accepting that difference, the members of TGD were total assholes to him.
If you’d like further examples, please refer to the “GOP—Sore Losers” thread, where commenting that abortion isn’t as open-and-shut as most people would like to believe (and that the entire issue is moot) has resulted in people accusing me of trolling (which I’m not), screaming and stomping their feet at me, and musing on how useful I would be if I were dead.
I could also point to the thread where there were spamwaves that amounted to “if you’re religious, you’re an idiot and a bad person.” Challenging that notion went unanswered, except for a tangent by another poster about how God is a jerk.
Folks, that’s just not good form, and it’s another maturity issue. I expect histrionics out of teenagers. They’re dumb, they don’t know the world, and they have strong ideas. I expect to be told that pro-lifers are violating human rights by 16-year-olds, not adults.
Solution: Read posts with an open-mind and be less reactionary.
The second problem goes hand-in-hand with the first. When someone comes in with a differing opinion from the norm, everyone goes apeshit and dogpiles on him or her. I could get into specifics here, but I will simply say “Elennsar.” While Elennsar was whiny and irritating, people treated him like shit because his ideas weren’t the standard fare of TGD’s ideas about D&D. And I know that I this will result in people posting about how Elennsar did this and Elennsar did that, but face it: he wanted to play a completely different game than what the members of TGD prefer, and, rather than accepting that difference, the members of TGD were total assholes to him.
If you’d like further examples, please refer to the “GOP—Sore Losers” thread, where commenting that abortion isn’t as open-and-shut as most people would like to believe (and that the entire issue is moot) has resulted in people accusing me of trolling (which I’m not), screaming and stomping their feet at me, and musing on how useful I would be if I were dead.
I could also point to the thread where there were spamwaves that amounted to “if you’re religious, you’re an idiot and a bad person.” Challenging that notion went unanswered, except for a tangent by another poster about how God is a jerk.
Folks, that’s just not good form, and it’s another maturity issue. I expect histrionics out of teenagers. They’re dumb, they don’t know the world, and they have strong ideas. I expect to be told that pro-lifers are violating human rights by 16-year-olds, not adults.
Solution: Read posts with an open-mind and be less reactionary.
Problem 3: Inappropriate Use of Moderation
Problem number three is an interesting one. I will go back to Elennsar. Here was someone who didn’t actually say anything inappropriate or offensive. He didn’t post anything like Frantic’s guro-spam. However, the people at TGD reported his posts anyway because they found him annoying and frustrating.
That’s…that’s not an appropriate reaction. The report button isn’t there so the mods can ban Elennsar for being annoying (which he wasn’t purposely doing). (And I am aware that Elennsar was not banned, but the fact is that people would have banned him.)
I should also comment about a more recent moderator message. If you’ll recall in the thread started by AlexandraErin, I called her fat, repeatedly. Just in one post, though. Strangely enough, this seemed to offend folks beyond telling them to “suck a barrel of cocks” or calling them “idiot,” “retard,” or “horse-fucker,” and I received a PM about how I should stop with the “fat posts.”
That sort of double-standard doesn’t sit well with me. (That’s more of a personal grievance, I am aware. I suppose you could call “butthurt” on this one, though it’s more of a mild irritation.)
Again, while TGD is mercifully free of most moderator intervention, the members of TGD need to learn how and when to use the report button. If, say, I were to report people on TGD every time they called someone else stupid, retarded, moronic, or anything like that, I would spend all day hitting the button. Since we’re in an environment that specifically allows for us to call others stupid, retarded, moronic, and so on, using the report button for that function would be inappropriate.
Frantic’s pictures of hentai-guro were a good example of a post to report.
Solution: Report buttons are there to report Bad Things.
Problem number three is an interesting one. I will go back to Elennsar. Here was someone who didn’t actually say anything inappropriate or offensive. He didn’t post anything like Frantic’s guro-spam. However, the people at TGD reported his posts anyway because they found him annoying and frustrating.
That’s…that’s not an appropriate reaction. The report button isn’t there so the mods can ban Elennsar for being annoying (which he wasn’t purposely doing). (And I am aware that Elennsar was not banned, but the fact is that people would have banned him.)
I should also comment about a more recent moderator message. If you’ll recall in the thread started by AlexandraErin, I called her fat, repeatedly. Just in one post, though. Strangely enough, this seemed to offend folks beyond telling them to “suck a barrel of cocks” or calling them “idiot,” “retard,” or “horse-fucker,” and I received a PM about how I should stop with the “fat posts.”
That sort of double-standard doesn’t sit well with me. (That’s more of a personal grievance, I am aware. I suppose you could call “butthurt” on this one, though it’s more of a mild irritation.)
Again, while TGD is mercifully free of most moderator intervention, the members of TGD need to learn how and when to use the report button. If, say, I were to report people on TGD every time they called someone else stupid, retarded, moronic, or anything like that, I would spend all day hitting the button. Since we’re in an environment that specifically allows for us to call others stupid, retarded, moronic, and so on, using the report button for that function would be inappropriate.
Frantic’s pictures of hentai-guro were a good example of a post to report.
Solution: Report buttons are there to report Bad Things.
Problem 4: The 4e Hate
The fourth major problem is something that you will undoubtedly be shocked to hear pass my lips: there’s too much 4e hate.
And I hate 4e.
We need to drop the complaints about 4e (even though there are many) and work on our own things. When lurkers visit the forum and see pages and pages of threads that are devoted to bashing 4e, it makes TGD look bad—not only do we hate 4e (sometimes irrationally so), but we’re completely obsessed with it (or so it would seem).
Similarly, we can see this problem magnified in the thread that AlexandraErin started. We’re like wolves on a dying moose. And while much of our 4e hate is justified, the dogpiling that we did to her was unacceptable. We’re no better than the 4e fans on the WotC forums if we do that.
And I know that it’s hard not to jump on someone like AlexandraErin when she says something stupid—you see the post and immediately want to respond with an appropriate verbal beating. That’s fine and dandy, but when she’s having to wade through seven posts for every one she makes, it’s ridiculous and it’s going to stifle her ability to respond/keep up the debate.
Solution: Temper your rage.
The fourth major problem is something that you will undoubtedly be shocked to hear pass my lips: there’s too much 4e hate.
And I hate 4e.
We need to drop the complaints about 4e (even though there are many) and work on our own things. When lurkers visit the forum and see pages and pages of threads that are devoted to bashing 4e, it makes TGD look bad—not only do we hate 4e (sometimes irrationally so), but we’re completely obsessed with it (or so it would seem).
Similarly, we can see this problem magnified in the thread that AlexandraErin started. We’re like wolves on a dying moose. And while much of our 4e hate is justified, the dogpiling that we did to her was unacceptable. We’re no better than the 4e fans on the WotC forums if we do that.
And I know that it’s hard not to jump on someone like AlexandraErin when she says something stupid—you see the post and immediately want to respond with an appropriate verbal beating. That’s fine and dandy, but when she’s having to wade through seven posts for every one she makes, it’s ridiculous and it’s going to stifle her ability to respond/keep up the debate.
Solution: Temper your rage.
I have seen other problems, but they’re more nitpicky and generally covered by the four complaints above. If we can alter our behavior so that we can lessen these four problem areas, I think that TGD will become a better place.
I guess that’s the end of this post, then. See you guys sometime later.
--Psychic Robot
