OOC: This Petition Deal.
I've just read this thing, and it seems to me that if I'm going to focus on work at all today, I need to write out my initial reaction to this whole thing.
First of all, making "demands" starts it off with such a sense of entitlement that it's automatically going to cause more strife than necessary. I'm glad they became "requests" by the end of the document.
1.) I'm not touching this one.
2.) I am going to require several provable examples of "micromanagement" and "inflexibility" backed up with evidence if I'm going to believe Rach is anything other than one of the most helpful, attentive, friendly and organized mods I've ever seen. I find it especially startling that Gavin and Michelle would take part in the effort to remove a mod from the game she created after the same thing happened to them on the Marvel Mansion game. But I went to bat for Gavin and Michelle then, and I'm going to bat for Rach right now.
Just because they don't have the same laissez-faire, anything-goes managerial style that Mansion does, and just because they want to maintain their own separate identity from the Mansion game doesn't mean it's wrong or has to adjust to be more like the game you run. They're both fine, they're just different. It seems to me that maybe people are intimidated by the level of organization she has (because she likes to be organized, and I certainly envy that on occasion) and the main reason anyone is hesitant to come to her as a problem-solver is that they know she'll likely be RIGHT and have the evidence to back her opinion up, which leaves less room for "but I WANNA." My first impression is that this may be due to the same sort of exaggerated commiseration spiral that resulted in the Mansion fracas.
3.) I haven't seen the Harley app or the emails in response to it, so I can't say anything about this.
4.) Michelle's message was a bit snarky ("There was a thought Jo's application did not pass the muster for the game. We the following disagree and wish to give Jo a chance to prove her talents." could easily have just said "Here's Jo's second pass at a Harley app" without implying the inherent rightness of those who disagreed with the mods), but The Person Formerly Known as Richard's response was pretty obviously an overreaction as well, although it seemed much more personal than anything in an official mod request.
5.) I have seen no evidence of this "turf" stuff, either. Concrete examples with proof, please.
6.) Sure, another mod could help speed things up or something. I'm cool with that, although I don't really think a week is a ridiculous wait time, either, especially if it's a borderline app that requires consideration. While I'm thankful for the Mansion's laxness on 'temping as application' since I've benefited from it, I also recognize why mods might be reluctant to allow that process to go forward. What happens when the temping isn't up to snuff and application has to be denied? You've already got sub-par characterization on the comm as official canon. No one wants another Jubilee talking to Rogue about masturbation. I can certainly understand the desire to keep applications on personal LJs and in the OOC app post. It's just a different managerial style and it's perfectly valid. There's nothing stopping people pitching in on app posts on private LJs like is happening with Jo right now.
7.) I reiterate that The Person Formerly Known As Richard's personal details are not really anyone's business (and if Rach knew any of it, there was absolutely no obligation for her to tell anyone else about someone's personal details, and I should hope that people aren't blithely sharing what they know about me with whoever they meet), and the subterfuge of RL details shouldn't have any bearing on the game (although overreactions like that message to Michelle about the re-app certainly could). Ex-Richard has been ridiculously dedicated as a mod, from what I've seen, especially in stuff like whipping up those huge spreadsheets about all the icons in every utility LJ as well as poring through the entire archive to create the list of posts that needed repair after Chris' suspension. I have no idea what's going on with the angry people and Richard RL, and that's not my business either. I can see why people would like him to step down as a mod, but I certainly appreciate his dedication and herculean efforts so far. Personal issues with him need to be separated from the game.
8.) I can see why this wasn't posted on the OOC board, as that's usually how drama explodes into ugliness, but I also have to say that circulating a secret petition doesn't feel particularly "public" either. I'm not sure what the right way to handle such things is. Other than, say, unclenching and playing pretendy fun-time games. I also understand that not everyone who signed the petition agrees with every point of it, too, which seems like adding riders to senate bills.
Honestly, if the mods being mildly sticklerish on occasion is really "extremely difficult to deal with" and "amazingly hard on friendships," then I have to say "pretendy fun-time games" again and wonder why exactly anything that happens on this meaningless diversion where we all pretend to be the Superfriends can actually cause this kind of stress for anyone.
First of all, making "demands" starts it off with such a sense of entitlement that it's automatically going to cause more strife than necessary. I'm glad they became "requests" by the end of the document.
1.) I'm not touching this one.
2.) I am going to require several provable examples of "micromanagement" and "inflexibility" backed up with evidence if I'm going to believe Rach is anything other than one of the most helpful, attentive, friendly and organized mods I've ever seen. I find it especially startling that Gavin and Michelle would take part in the effort to remove a mod from the game she created after the same thing happened to them on the Marvel Mansion game. But I went to bat for Gavin and Michelle then, and I'm going to bat for Rach right now.
Just because they don't have the same laissez-faire, anything-goes managerial style that Mansion does, and just because they want to maintain their own separate identity from the Mansion game doesn't mean it's wrong or has to adjust to be more like the game you run. They're both fine, they're just different. It seems to me that maybe people are intimidated by the level of organization she has (because she likes to be organized, and I certainly envy that on occasion) and the main reason anyone is hesitant to come to her as a problem-solver is that they know she'll likely be RIGHT and have the evidence to back her opinion up, which leaves less room for "but I WANNA." My first impression is that this may be due to the same sort of exaggerated commiseration spiral that resulted in the Mansion fracas.
3.) I haven't seen the Harley app or the emails in response to it, so I can't say anything about this.
4.) Michelle's message was a bit snarky ("There was a thought Jo's application did not pass the muster for the game. We the following disagree and wish to give Jo a chance to prove her talents." could easily have just said "Here's Jo's second pass at a Harley app" without implying the inherent rightness of those who disagreed with the mods), but The Person Formerly Known as Richard's response was pretty obviously an overreaction as well, although it seemed much more personal than anything in an official mod request.
5.) I have seen no evidence of this "turf" stuff, either. Concrete examples with proof, please.
6.) Sure, another mod could help speed things up or something. I'm cool with that, although I don't really think a week is a ridiculous wait time, either, especially if it's a borderline app that requires consideration. While I'm thankful for the Mansion's laxness on 'temping as application' since I've benefited from it, I also recognize why mods might be reluctant to allow that process to go forward. What happens when the temping isn't up to snuff and application has to be denied? You've already got sub-par characterization on the comm as official canon. No one wants another Jubilee talking to Rogue about masturbation. I can certainly understand the desire to keep applications on personal LJs and in the OOC app post. It's just a different managerial style and it's perfectly valid. There's nothing stopping people pitching in on app posts on private LJs like is happening with Jo right now.
7.) I reiterate that The Person Formerly Known As Richard's personal details are not really anyone's business (and if Rach knew any of it, there was absolutely no obligation for her to tell anyone else about someone's personal details, and I should hope that people aren't blithely sharing what they know about me with whoever they meet), and the subterfuge of RL details shouldn't have any bearing on the game (although overreactions like that message to Michelle about the re-app certainly could). Ex-Richard has been ridiculously dedicated as a mod, from what I've seen, especially in stuff like whipping up those huge spreadsheets about all the icons in every utility LJ as well as poring through the entire archive to create the list of posts that needed repair after Chris' suspension. I have no idea what's going on with the angry people and Richard RL, and that's not my business either. I can see why people would like him to step down as a mod, but I certainly appreciate his dedication and herculean efforts so far. Personal issues with him need to be separated from the game.
8.) I can see why this wasn't posted on the OOC board, as that's usually how drama explodes into ugliness, but I also have to say that circulating a secret petition doesn't feel particularly "public" either. I'm not sure what the right way to handle such things is. Other than, say, unclenching and playing pretendy fun-time games. I also understand that not everyone who signed the petition agrees with every point of it, too, which seems like adding riders to senate bills.
Honestly, if the mods being mildly sticklerish on occasion is really "extremely difficult to deal with" and "amazingly hard on friendships," then I have to say "pretendy fun-time games" again and wonder why exactly anything that happens on this meaningless diversion where we all pretend to be the Superfriends can actually cause this kind of stress for anyone.