My Observations

[Admiral Ackbar]

There has been much talk about how the community has become divided. About how the community lacks character. And that is pretty easy to see. It's also pretty easy to trace the problem back to it's roots.

 

Unfortunately on this site, there is a clear group of insiders and a clear group of outsiders. This elite insider group is hard to penetrate, and for your friendships on this site effect your ability to infiltrate this group. If you become friends with the wrong person when you first join, you will not be able to crack the group known as the insiders. However, as a new member if you just so happen to talk to the correct member you will be instatnly recognized as a "good" or "quality" member and can get away with more things.

 

I'm a newish member here. I've been very active since I've joined and this is what I've observed. A lack of privacy on this site with your PM's (Private Messages). They are being read when there is no reason for a mod to read them. I understand there are times when a PM needs to get read, for instance if it's reported. However, that lack of privacy is startling, and pretty darn scary. The insider group is made of mainly of our "trusted" mods. And unfortunetly not even the mods are safe from the wrath of the insider group. The recent demotion of One and Vitamin PWN are prime examples of that. The chaos and uproar that caused this also lead to SJ deciding to "step down". And with that came the post by Total Mayhem about our character on the site.

 

Seems to me that the problem isn't the members themselves. But the clear chasm that is on this site. Granted tempers can flair, trolls can sign up, and that can cause the site to have less character. But when a dedicated long time member is banned for standing up to a "mod" and voicing their opinion it's time for change. It's time for all of us to step back and evaluate our own characters. Time for us to evaluate who is being trust with the running of this site. Twam has done amazing work with this site, and it seems like the old saying "Absolute power corrupts absolutely" is a very true saying. The members who are running this site, need to take a look at themselves and see if they can be proud of what they've been doing. See if Twam would like their recent decisions.

 

It's time for us to bridge the gap. For mistakes to be recognized, and apologies to be handed out to those who deserve them. This site is slowly decaying, and it needs to be revamped. It's not broken yet, but it's headed down a road of destruction.

 

Now all the fault doesn't lay with the mods and staff members. There are normal members who are just as guilty as the mods. Normal members who are so mean and cruel to the new members. A new member makes a simple mistake and is told off by numerous people for no reason. There is a difference between helping a new member out and giving them advice and just being an ***. Pardon my language. If a member makes a mistake, feel free to correct them, but do so in a nice way. And if you see people have already told the member about the mistake, don't feel the urge to post also. When someone is being told off constantly by multiple people and in a mean way, they will most likely start to troll. So some of the trollers are caused by members being mean for no reason to new members. Instead of telling them off, try being nice, and helping them. Maybe less trollers will come through.

 

I have been guilty of this myself. I can come across rude and mean. When that happens I try to let the new member know that I'm not mad with them. Just trying to help. This things can greatly help and benefit the community.

 

 

 

May the Force be with you all

[BeckoningZebra1]

True but why will u be banned?

[Durandal v2]

I feel that people have for the most part ignored me.

 

Some people will post a update that gets more replies than a long time member going away message, . it's sickening almost

 

I doubt they will ban you but if they do then that would only fuel the flames

[Azaxx]

I completely agree with the post Adm, and sure hope it will be taken heavily by all who read it..

[Sarge]

YOU SHOULD NOT GET BANNED FOR VOICING YOUR OPINION! Everyone has their own opinion of everything without the freedom to express oneselve proves this has just turned into a "communist" site in which people are afraid to show how they feel truthfully about a certain thing. I pity the staff of 343i if you dare ban him for this post.

[Harbinger]

If you get banned. I have noticed this....sadly I am displeased with all that has been happening. I am also guilty of this I normally realize my mistake and try to apologize and answer truthfully my most recent one was the Master Chief looking like a Promethean I answered it truthfully at first then began to continue. Even though he left instantly before I even got to post and never returned if he did he could have been crushed. I don't fully know whats happening with this site but I see complete logic in whats happening....sadly I don't know if this can be fixed.....and the sadder part is that its happening everywhere in nearly every site and in real life.....

[D-38 Boss]

I've met some great people on this site, but i haven't been around long enough to notice a particular change in climate. however, if you get banned, it will be for an Unfair and Illegitimate reason, you are voicing your opinion and stating your observations, if you get banned, some of these observations will be shown true.

[Vaulting♥Frog]

Which is another reason why I am stepping back and staying in the shadows of the forums. Dont particularly want to interact at this point.

[Meta Knight]

I for one unfortuanlty am one of those so called insiders, but im now going to encourage any memeber to be a part of it

[Absolute Dog]

There has been much talk about how the community has become divided. About how the community lacks character. And that is pretty easy to see. It's also pretty easy to trace the problem back to it's roots.

 

Unfortunately on this site, there is a clear group of insiders and a clear group of outsiders. This elite insider group is hard to penetrate, and for your friendships on this site effect your ability to infiltrate this group. If you become friends with the wrong person when you first join, you will not be able to crack the group known as the insiders. However, as a new member if you just so happen to talk to the correct member you will be instatnly recognized as a "good" or "quality" member and can get away with more things.

This is simply your perception. This community does not lack character by any means. This whole though about groups, inner and outer circles, sounds more like some high school talk than anything else.

 

I'm a newish member here. I've been very active since I've joined and this is what I've observed. A lack of privacy on this site with your PM's (Private Messages). They are being read when there is no reason for a mod to read them.

Where is any proof of this?

I understand there are times when a PM needs to get read, for instance if it's reported. However, that lack of privacy is startling, and pretty darn scary. The insider group is made of mainly of our "trusted" mods.

Moderators are on the inside by nature as we run and manage the site. This makes no sense.

 

And unfortunetly not even the mods are safe from the wrath of the insider group. The recent demotion of One and Vitamin PWN are prime examples of that.

They were removed because they disgraced the staff and created this exact kind of eruption because they are not willing to tell you the truth apparently. Jester will definitely set you straight on this for a fact!

 

The chaos and uproar that caused this also lead to SJ deciding to "step down".

You again have no clue what you are talking about. This is not why Jester stepped down, period. Jester will definitely set you straight on this for a fact!

 

And with that came the post by Total Mayhem about our character on the site.

Mayhem's comments about character where directed at the members which was needed because there is a very small number of members have been causing issues, behind the scenes and publicly. They latched onto a moderator who himself admitted he should have left long ago, he was burned out. Instead of doing the right thing, he injures the site, breaks the rules he once believed in before he burned out. That is what saddened both Jester and I so much and played a part in him stepping down. Jester will definitely set you straight on this for a fact!

 

Seems to me that the problem isn't the members themselves. But the clear chasm that is on this site. Granted tempers can flair, trolls can sign up, and that can cause the site to have less character. But when a dedicated long time member is banned for standing up to a "mod" and voicing their opinion it's time for change.

You have absolutely no clue about what you are talking about. No historical perspective and you fail to mention, and I am pretty sure who you are speaking of, that member was protected by a moderator from being banned long ago for repeatedly getting it wrong and doing so publicly. You are simply bemoaning a friends ban and lashing out.

 

It's time for all of us to step back and evaluate our own characters. Time for us to evaluate who is being trust with the running of this site. Twam has done amazing work with this site, and it seems like the old saying "Absolute power corrupts absolutely" is a very true saying. The members who are running this site, need to take a look at themselves and see if they can be proud of what they've been doing. See if Twam would like their recent decisions.

Not only is Twam fully aware of all that has happened, he agrees with all actions taken. Some he wished had happened long ago. He was also stunned at what Vitamin did and fully agreed with his removal. We are proud of this site and all of the hard work put into it.

 

It's time for us to bridge the gap. For mistakes to be recognized, and apologies to be handed out to those who deserve them. This site is slowly decaying, and it needs to be revamped. It's not broken yet, but it's headed down a road of destruction.

This site is not decaying, it is thriving and growing despite efforts by a small numbers of disgruntled former staff members and there friends. They are what erodes away at what is good about this site.

 

This site is about Halo, 343 Industries and various other gaming discussions. It is natural members make some friends and may not like some other members. That is life. Get used to it. You create the cliques, not the moderators or staff. Moderators have to make decisions, it comes with the job. Just because one moderator burns out and lashes out against the very people he called friends and mentors.

 

Also noted: You are here less than 2 months and you seem to think you know it all.

[GermanShepherdD]

In regards to what Admiral Ackbar said:

 

This post could not be any more wrong. You do not have enough knowledge on the subject matter to post something like this. The information you have gotten is being corrupted and shrouded with lies.

[Twam]

Twam has done amazing work with this site, and it seems like the old saying "Absolute power corrupts absolutely" is a very true saying. The members who are running this site, need to take a look at themselves and see if they can be proud of what they've been doing. See if Twam would like their recent decisions.

 

From what you have said above if seems that you are under the impression that i am unaware of the happenings that go on within the forums on a daily basis or that i have no input in any decision making. I can assure you that you have your facts wrong, I have had a great deal of input into all the major decision making including each of the separate cases you described in your main post. Not only that but i agree with the actions taken.

 

It's so unfortunate to see that the facts have been so skewed from the real truth.

 

Twam

[Spectral Jester]

Still get emails telling me when new threads are started and had to log back on to answer your questions.

 

Admiral Ackbar you couldnt be more misinformed, and the comments you have made whilst wild and inaccurate also show that you are part of an insder group, this insider group you have got your information from is the one that sees it as there divine right to undermine the moderating team, hence why I originally had an about me last week saying exactly that.

 

Lets set the record straight shall we....and as ive stepped down, there can be no punishment for me...not like I can get banned from telling the truth

 

There has been much talk about how the community has become divided. About how the community lacks character. And that is pretty easy to see. It's also pretty easy to trace the problem back to it's roots.

 

Unfortunately on this site, there is a clear group of insiders and a clear group of outsiders. This elite insider group is hard to penetrate, and for your friendships on this site effect your ability to infiltrate this group. If you become friends with the wrong person when you first join, you will not be able to crack the group known as the insiders. However, as a new member if you just so happen to talk to the correct member you will be instatnly recognized as a "good" or "quality" member and can get away with more things.

 

One thing this community does have in abundance is character, inner, outer circles? what is this playgroup? please accept me, please, please. by being yourself, people will grow to like you, not picking a funky username, look at me im brilliant im MLG PRO 1, so Im great.

 

I'm a newish member here. I've been very active since I've joined and this is what I've observed. A lack of privacy on this site with your PM's (Private Messages). They are being read when there is no reason for a mod to read them.

 

Oh Really? Dont believe what the angry and disgruntled people tell you, a moderator is not allowed to check a pesons pms without good cause.

So lets get to the nitty gritty, One yes his pms were checked, we had reports of him sending pornographic pictures via pm, this was investigated and found to be true, hence his demotion.

Vitamin, stepped down did he? not really, we have a moderator section, where we talk privately, so lets give an example.

a role in the staff comes up, we discuss options, lets say Moderator A says Member X is a good candidate, then moderator B says im not sure, because of xyz, now is moderator B being vindictive? being mean? or just plain being honest? does this mean moderator B doesnt like the member? Not at all. but Vitamin took it upon himself to copy and paste the comments and pm the member to let him know, and twisting it to make it sound like the moderator was being hateful, sorry but this is moderator rule 1, we have known about a leak in the mod section for months, and only recently found out who it was, with the thanks to a member letting us know.

Vitamin who know says turned down legendary? no he didnt, he was demoted back to legendary by myself, and upon reflection this was stripped from him, a mod who broke the rules, gets legendary? what does that say about the other legendary members who have given there all to the site? so he was stripped.

These are facts, so to all members, relax your pms are not being read, unless of course you are reported for someting you did in your pms, then we only view that pm.

 

And unfortunetly not even the mods are safe from the wrath of the insider group. The recent demotion of One and Vitamin PWN are prime examples of that.

 

answered this above, but to add, this shows how misinformed you are by the inner circle of members who wish to take down certain moderators.

also no 1 moderator can make a decision on ther own, in fact, we all have to talk, discuss and agree

 

The chaos and uproar that caused this also lead to SJ deciding to "step down".

 

Psychic are we? you have no idea why I stepped down, so please dont comment on things you know NOTHING about, it only serves to inflame and stir up the membership

 

And with that came the post by Total Mayhem about our character on the site.

 

really? anyone could of posted that, as I say too all moderators, staff, remember we are all members. and Totals post should get an award for post of the year..... did you look in the mirror after reading it and thought hmmm is he aiming that at me?

 

Seems to me that the problem isn't the members themselves. But the clear chasm that is on this site. Granted tempers can flair, trolls can sign up, and that can cause the site to have less character. But when a dedicated long time member is banned for standing up to a "mod" and voicing their opinion it's time for change.

 

Banned for standing up to a mod? let me guess who we are talking about? Candibunni, well lets see, every member can stand up for themselves, but a member that is quoting wrong or incorrect information, just because there friend was demoted? hmmm, then spreads lies around the forum both privately and publically, and you wonder why she was banned?

You talk about honesty, lets see, candibunni be honest to the membership? eh candibunni?

Next time someone says to you, Moderator X banned me from shoutbox for nothing, dont say, thats mean your my friend, ask them, okay what did you really do? as no-one, I repeat NO-ONE is banned for no reason.

the problem isnt the membership? again basing that off of what exactly? if there was no problem in the membership we wouldnt need half the moderators we do. this again smacks of the inner circle that is intent on trying to bring down the moderators.

 

Dedicated long time member means what exactly? all it means is they have done 500 posts and been registered to the site for a long time.

doesnt mean that they are honest and true to themselves. I could create the worlds biggest thread of dedicated members banned, and the TRUE reasons why they were banned, you have no idea what they have done, only the LIES they have told in there defence to save face.

 

It's time for all of us to step back and evaluate our own characters. Time for us to evaluate who is being trust with the running of this site. Twam has done amazing work with this site, and it seems like the old saying "Absolute power corrupts absolutely" is a very true saying. The members who are running this site, need to take a look at themselves and see if they can be proud of what they've been doing. See if Twam would like their recent decisions.

 

again answered above, but to add, if the mod team make a decision and Twam says NO, then thats it the answer is NO.

Twam always knows what is going on, ALWAYS.

we discuss things as a group, not 1 person making a decision, again this goes back to the INNER circle of members who wish to take down certain moderators

 

It's time for us to bridge the gap. For mistakes to be recognized, and apologies to be handed out to those who deserve them. This site is slowly decaying, and it needs to be revamped. It's not broken yet, but it's headed down a road of destruction.

 

mistakes to be recognised, okay I couldnt agree more, One should not have been a mod, neither should Vitamin, there happy now, what purpose does that serve. again you dont have all the facts, so are making decisions based off of one side of a story, again this is a prime example of the inner circle trying to undermine moderators.

 

So to summarise, the inner circle we have on here, which is about 4/5 members has worked for over a year to get a member into a position of power on the site, (this happened around the release of Halo 4) and was removed thankfully around a week ago. This inner circle constantly undermined and backstabbed certain moderators, whilst talking to them daily as if they were friends.

 

Reasons I stepped down are my own, and at the end of the day, I do not appreciate my name being dragged into what I can only describe as an attempt by a group to get some answers and get one of there own into the moderating team, why so they can influence and get all there friends onto staff/mod team, not because they think they are the best (even though they do) but to chase color, rank etc Now that surely cant be good for the forum, no one on the staff and mod team has asked for there role theyve all been offered it.

Think you can do a better job, go out there and create your own forum, and lets see how you get on.

 

Im glad this thread is now locked, as it is a disgrace, and to be quite frank, if it was still open, i would of posted details of the inner circlem who they are, what they have done, with evidence and proof. you would all be shocked who the inner circle is!

 

 

Threads like these are always welcome, but only when they cold hard facts are out there, not a one sided argument, used to justify your reasoning, if that were the case we would all think Hitler was a nice guy, if we listened to his facts only, see where I am going with that?

 

There are 2 sides to every story, something I think you should learn Ackbar before posting threads like this.

 

Remember the moderating team are all volunteers, members, who give there time to manage this forum to the best of there ability, some are on all the time, some are on when they can, some can sit in front of there computers all day, some have wifes, families, jobs which means they cant be on all the time, its not about the time logged in, its what you do in the time you are logged in, I would prefer a moderator who is logged in 1 hour a day, who does his role, than a moderator who is logged in 10 hours a day and does very little, lucky for us, right now, we have a moderating team that does there roles to the best of there ability , which is all anyone could ask for.

 

As for me my time here is over, its been a good ride, but every ride comes to an end, and for me its now over.

Theres a multitude of reasons why I am leaving, and those are personal.

 

Do you know what my crime has been on here? and I will admit it here and now, actually thinking of the forum first, and not about popularity, some people see that as a crime, well if it is then I am guilty as charged.

For those of you that have been advised via pm of the fact I gave an honest answer to a question, didnt mean I disliked you, it meant I had concerns, but unfortunately how it was told to you makes it look like it was, You know who you are.

Edited January 8, 2013 by Spectral Jester
updated

[The Director]

Want to know my observations?

 

Moderators (both blue and gold) and staff members spend a massive amount of time on this site to make it a better place. No, seriously, we are on pretty much around the clock scouring the forums for flame wars, spam bots, and other things that need our attention. There are members who think they would do a better job at this, and are willing to go so far as trying to get moderators fired to prove it. There is a long standing rule (more of a gentleman's rule really) about demeaning someone in public, and this goes double for a moderator or staff member. There are some members (one in particular you seem to be familiar with) who know about this rule, but completely disregard it and constantly try to undermine moderator decisions.

 

The fact of the matter is, everyone has to abide by these rules. Even if AD or SJ were to break these rules, they would be removed and possibly banned. It doesn't matter who you are friends with, what you have done for the site, or what color your name is. As a matter of fact, there is a tendency to be more strict on staff members and moderators than regular members when it comes to rule breaking.

 

As for whether or not this spells the end for the site, no. It doesn't. The fact is we've had prominent staff members and moderators fall from grace before. Believe it or not, it was actually just as messy, if not a little messier. Eventually though, the members of the community realize that they don't need these people to continue to enjoy the site. Whether they consciously realize it or not, they begin to realize that while these members were fun to talk to sometimes, overall they were a detriment to the community as a whole in the position they were in.

 

Overall, the only thing this community has to worry about is it's members. Running in cliques is fine, as long as you don't alienate the rest of the forum while doing it. Making friends with moderators and staff is fine, as long as you realize that you will not be exempt from punishment if you break the rules. Being competitive is fine, as long as you play by the rules. Telling newer members that something they are doing is against the rules is fine, as long as it actually is against the rules and you aren't speaking over a moderator to do it. Having a healthy debate is fine, as long as you don't instigate or participate in a flame war. And if you have a problem with another member (especially a moderator or staff member) you PM them instead of chewing them out in the shoutbox.

 

Really the only issue is that a lot of members feel a sense of entitlement. They feel like the have the right to know why we do what we do. When in reality, the only time you have the right to know "why" is when you are the one who is being given disciplinary action. It doesn't matter how long you've been a part of the forum, how many posts you have, or how many awards you have (it's damned unlikely that you will beat me in any of those anyway) the fact is that when someone gets banned or removed from staff, there is some embarrassment to that. Some people can't seem to get that through their heads. They put on the shining armor and "ride to the rescue" without even thinking about the feelings of those involved. Maybe One and Vitamin PWN didn't WANT you guys to know what happened. Maybe they would have preferred it to just say, "I screwed up and don't really want to talk about it."

 

Honestly, the fact that it went this far angers me. I want to clarify that you aren't necessarily the one I'm angry at Admiral Ackbar, but rather the ones who helped you formulate the opinion you spelled out for us. They should be deeply and irrevocably ashamed of themselves.

Edited January 8, 2013 by Spectral Jester
highlighted this

[MCPO Mayh3m]

Wow. Where to start with your statements.

 

1. Regardless of rank or title, anyone can be demoted at any time if they have broken the rules enough. It's happened. We have had to make tough decisions, but you need to understand something. The moderators and admin of this site do our job here to help the forum. Rank and status mean nothing. This is why we keep saying that it is not about the amount of posts you have but the quality within them.

 

2. No moderator is allowed to access ANY members pms unless they are given a very VERY good reason to. And as stated before, we are not even allowed to without a cause.

 

3. As for the Moderators that were removed... I won't touch that as I believe enough has been said about that.

 

4. As for Jester, well he's already spoken on his case so I won't comment.

 

5. My post did not stem from the demotion of One and Vitamin PWN Or the fact that Jester stepped down. In fact, I had thought about posting something like that for a while. It honestly feels like a slap in the face that this would be said Right after my post was made. So thanks. You really got some brownie points there.

 

6. What I read here... Is disappointing. I read a post that was built to destroy. And it is unfortunate.

 

7. It's Total Mayh3m not Mayhem. Just sayin.

And if you want Mayh3m then you might just get it.

 

 

For now... (I'll add more later)

[Choot 'em]

I believe the false claims have been laid to rest with the undeniable truths from Jester himself and with the responses from the staff.

 

It is disturbing to see topics like these brought forward by a member who has obviously been deceived by lies and misinformation and have sucked other members into believing those lies and to have other members condone this type of action by liking it. This type of action is just the type that causes unneeded disruption and distractions to the site. Do you actually enoy this type of chaos? Is this what makes your day, knowing that you could possibly cause a wrinkle in the site's integrity by stirring controversy surrounded by rumor? Why would members who "supposedly" support this community and what it has ALWAYS stood for attempt to cause this disruption? Doesn't make too much sense now does it?

 

This site and what it stands for was built around the enjoyment of Halo and all of it's offerings, both good and bad and enabled the ability, for members with a common passion for Halo and gaming in general, to share this experience. Discussing new ideas about a game is what we are suppose to do and we should always accept new members and not shun them away like other sites have.

 

I assure you that there is NOTHING you can do to divide the unity of the excellent staff that is currently in place. As stated before above, these guys (and gal) did not ask for their current position but believe in this community so much that they voluntarily devote time out of their lives to give you, the community, the best experience possible in a forum environment. Every decision made by Staff and Administration is made with the community's best interest in mind...for the community's experience. So to them, I personally thank you for that level of devotion.

 

As I've always said...

 

 

"Contribute what you can to the best of your ability. Not for reward, nor recognition but because you truly wish to contribute to the enjoyment of the community."

 

The Staff members have expressed where they stand on this subject and it is without question a unified stand. As a community, it is YOUR job to stand behind them and their decisions.

 

This is where I stand...

 

- Choot