I've been without internet for the last couple of days.
My oh my oh my.
First off let me begin with a snippet of song that I hope will cheer all of you up.
Ding dong the witch is dead, the witch is dead the wicked witch is dead, ding dong the witch is dead.
Let me then move right on to this; Bobby, this site needs guys like you who stand up for what's right, who stand up for what they think to the point of overdoing it, who, once it's overdone and proven, step back and say, "oops, sorry about that." It's better with you than without you.
Shrap, dude, words won't cover the feelings, as good as I am with them, but I think you get the vibe.
This site is still in it's infancy. Even though the King has gone on vaction, we do have a king and a few ministers who seem to be coming into thier own. I suspect the King will return once he sees that there is some value to the kingdom beyond that of mere entertainment. In order for that value to become evident to our jaded King we, the populace at large and in general, must hold together and target what WE want this site to be.
If you don't want manipulative bitches twisting facts and minds SPEAK THE HELL UP AND SAY SO, don't just let it go. If you want this to be something other than an entertainment center, do something about it. If you just want to sit and bitch, be prepared to have someone question you about your motives. It might be me, it might be someone nice, you rolls the dice and you takes your chances.
I can't speak for Rich but I can speak for what I've learned of human nature. I can speak of the many buttons I've pushed here and the reactions those pushes have induced.
MOST of the people on this site want it to be a place for good folks to gather. They want a place that DOES set some limits on who is allowed and what happens when one of the previously good falls below the standard set by the membership, be that standard spoken or only roughly agreed to. Most of the members want the bad guys to be called out and taken to task whether they, the general members, do it or not. Many of the general members do not want to do that in public, many simply can't, but, and this IS key, the support it being done.
We've seen it come full circle and then some over the last few years and STILL this site is just a kid in all relative terms. Most of the staff are just now figuring out just what the membership at large REALLY wants from them. Rich is in the same boat, though at present he is napping below decks, and will soon come up to see how the wind has shifted THIS time and whether it blows fair or fowl. How it blows is up to US, the general members and what WE let those Ministers and thier assistants know.
Dennis and Ken and Jay and come LEAPS and BOUNDS in their ability to see and do in the last year or so but are still in unfamiliar waters because they never had INPUT from any but a select few. NOW, with all the little mods, and the more outspoken of the rest of us, there is enough knowledge and backing to take a stand and try to make changes.
THIS, this pruning of the tree, is one important step. There are some who simply don't belong and there is NO reason to let them sup with us. NONE. It's not easy to be the guys who say, "hit the road, you're not welcome here," as a rule, but even when unpleasant, it must be done. Just as it must be said to some, whether in public or private, "thank you for your help."
Recently this has been being done.
THIS is a turning point, a cust if you will, and what WE do from here will effect Fauna for the next bit of while.
WE make it what WE want it to be by listening and speaking and NOT by having personal agendas.
Ahhhh, I hear many of you now, "you're a fine one to talk Wes, what about you and (pick a name as there are many) and your personal vendettas, what of them?" All I can say is this, which I have said before, it's not so much personal vendatta as it is cleaning up the mess, keeping the sandbox clean, taking out the trash. Out of sight is generally out of mind for me, believe me or no and so I DO feel qualified to speak on this as one who is intimately familiar with the ins and outs of personal vs. non-personal interactions.
It's not WHO I go after, not in the big picture, but WHAT they represent. Not the person so much as the action and if you look back at my history, this does become evident over TIME. If you just look at one or two persons, take neil ''the liar'' gubitz or Jay, if you JUST look at my interaction with them, then sure, it seems ONLY personal, but IF you look at the loooooong list of folks I've spoken unfavorably of, you will see that it is more what they represent than who they are. And for the record, I didn't call Jay, as I have been wont to do so frequently in the past, owens, because, as far as I am able to discern to date, he has changed his method of late. It's not so personal as it was professional and I mention this in depth only to bring home my point; ASSumptions are just that.
Some are ASSuming that the King won't be back, that things will go to shit and there is naught we can do. To that I say HA and HA again. It's being done right now. It may well need refining, in fact I can almost guarentee it will, BUT, finally, it is begun. There is talk of what is needed, how to gain what is needed, how to maintain what is needed, what the cost of such needs and their maintainence will be and whether or not THAT is good or ill.
Things are changing, eyes are opening. Soon baby steps will be taken, and who knows, perhaps even some races run soon.
Stay Bobby. Voice your opinion. Same for the rest of you. It's a group dynamic that cannot be maintained by any less than what has occured, so many coming together and voicing opinions and taking stands and CONTRIBUTING personally.
It's going to be interesting to see what kind of flower comes out of this pile. Could be quite a beauty. Likely to bear some hellashish claws too; mores the better for that I say.
Anyway, that's what I think, that's my contribution, my personal gift to this site and I hope, sincerely, that by doing so, good will come to the members and users of Fauna, even to that guy who is, really, just another cornsnake breeder who happens to be the King.
It all sounds great, but the underlying truth is never hidden. The hard facts still remain and show big time here. IMO, ignoring it is not going to make it go away.
