Termination of Membership - Some Guidance

[dedgren]

I'm sitting here at the time of the evening I ordinarily get a lot done, 3RR-wise.  Staring at the monitor.  Waiting for inspiration that seems to be in hiding.  I'd be wondering what was wrong on most days besides today.

Today I know.

In the last 48 hours I've probably lost at least one of my best friends in the community.  I've been involved in terminating the memberships of other members who had impressed me here in the past in some way or another.  I've seen several folks to whom I am very close here called abusive and degrading names.  I've seen an organization whose members are dedicated to creating brilliant and innovative content for this community reviled and wrongfully accused of bad actions.

I am sick at heart.

I don't intend for this post to be a long one but I do intend for it to be a clear one.  Just over a year ago we had a situation arise that led us to add to our short list of rules this one:

• In cyberspace generally SC4D is, by and large, a self-policing community of members.  The staff cannot enforce these rules at some other fansite, or indeed anywhere away from SC4D itself.  Please do not expect, then, to the extent you would have a complaint about another member's conduct offsite, that any action will be taken- we are a fans of a computer game and not the cyberpolice.  One exception to this, however, is if a member is found to be offsite stating untruthful or defamatory things about SC4D or its administration- if you have a complaint about or some other issue with us, please give SC4D the courtesy of bringing that to our attention here in the form of a PM to any admistrator or moderator.  If a member is found to be offsite making statements that, in our view, are not constructive as regards SC4D or otherwise reflect inappropriate discredit, our assumption will be that the member no longer values the benefits of SC4D membership and he or she will almost certainly have membership terminated or, at the very least, suspended for an extended period, to include privileges on the LEX.

What is complicated about that?  What is confusing?  We run a banner on this site every day that urges folks to check out our rules.

The SC4 Devotion Rules-. We ask that you remain familiar with them by clicking here

Every day!  Click on it- it links to the rules.

Yet, last night, I went online and found someone who only a few hours before was posting that he (or she) was now "believing the rumors" heard about SC4D over here voting in our pic contest.   I found another member who I had just learned had referred to one of my brother administrators as an -ssh-le in an open chat session calmly posting in his BAT thread here.

I hit the roof.  Hey, anyone who's membership has been suspended or limited want someone specific to blame?

Blame me, because like Tommy Lee Jones said to Harrison Ford at the end of "The Fugitive" [linkie]- I don't care.

I don't care if you don't like what we did.  I don't care if you think we are...

...heh...

Net-zies.  I don't care because I know, and the vast majority of the community knows, that you are wrong.  Wrong and, quite frankly, behaving stupidly.

Wouldn't you agree that it is the height of stupidity to believe that, despite our rule, SC4D would sit back and do absolutely nothing while for two days you kicked dirt on this site and its members?  Wouldn't you agree that it is the height of stupidity to accuse SC4D of trying to destroy teams other than the BSC when the record shows that we have and will set up space here for any team that asks- to include the BLaM folks when simcities.com went offline?

You know- it's fine if you don't like the BSC's custom content.  Don't download it.  But don't you think it's stupid to publicly say what a bunch of cr-p the LEX has on it one day and then write the undersigned a pleading PM the next begging to have LEX access restored because you never thought, etc, etc.?

Folks, any of you want to be stuck on stupid- I'm your worst nightmare.  Yep, happy, smiley me.  Never a cross word, always wanting to help.  If I catch wind of you talking bad about SC4D on another site or in chat- I will personally cut you off at the knees here, and I will do my level best to have your LEX access terminated.

I'm really proud of what jeronij has made available to everyone here.  I'd hope as a member you'd be equally proud to be a part of it.  But just in case you are not, and feel like saying so in public, and find suddenly find that the only privilege you have at SC4D is the privilege to leave, if you are not inclined to grow up and blame yourself...

Blame me.


David