The Metawank Paradox
by the skullkitty (2nd June, 2007 @ 11:56 pm)The second you have begun proving that you’ll express your disapproval for something, people feel they have to “win” by hearing you approve of their things.
the neonbat
I tell you, she’s a smart lady, neonbat, amongst her other considerable talents. You’ll just have to excuse the skullkitty for a moment while she editorialises a little…
So it was with some chagrin that this morning the skullkitty found a link to a certain website cross her desk. Well, a forum actually; one simply titled Dream Reviews. This deceptively simple concept held with it a morbidly fascinating premise; rather than doing classic reviews — a la this very website — DR was set up specifically with the intent of reviewing the staff and patrons of dreams. From the forums themselves:
The purpose of this forum first and foremost is promoting dreams that have a friendly atmosphere, helpful staff and a member base that have no real complaints with their dream of choice.
Secondary, to try and assist dreams that don’t fit the above criteria to try and improve on themselves, pointing out the flaws via constructive criticism in a public forum, anyone and everyone who wishes to participate listing together the various weak points of a dream to better it.
The last and the least is a warning, accountability, more so. If one is harassed in a dream and no one will do anything, if they are met with nothing but staff who degrade newcomers to fuel their own ego or banish on a whim, if members are afraid of speaking up in their own dream against wrongs being committed, they can come here and speak out either anonymously or by name in the knowledge that if their bringing it to light brings punishment, that too will be on record for anyone to see.
An independent watchdog for dreams in Furcadia? Could it really be true? And more importantly; should it be true?
This might seem like a strange question coming from this particular site — after all, the line between reporting drama and signing up to become card-carrying members of the Internet Police is mostly in the eye of the beholder — but Furc!Wank has always tried to wear its hypocrisy on its sleeve; we pick no bones over our own yellow hues. Nevertheless, it highlights an important paradox when dealing with this kind of thing; how far do you have to go before you yourself become guilty of the thing you’re accusing others of?1
As a fairly new invention, there isn’t a great deal of wank at the DR forums… yet. The dark clouds are certainly on the horizon, however, mostly care of Ten and Erik and what seems to be a spillover battle regarding The Leaky Mug Tavern and Inn. Ten is doing nothing other than what the forums were created to do — bitch about the dream’s staff — and Erik is doing nothing other than what he probably should also be doing in the situation; refuting the claims. Now, the skullkitty has never been one to approve of either the consent rule, adversarial RP in general, or dealing with OOC problems in an IC fashion, but that’s neither here nor there. What we’re talking about is the medium, not the message, and this thread demonstrates perfectly the inherent problems with attempting a kind of impartial arbitration tribunal. Namely; no-one is going to agree with each other, nor should they really have to.
Sites Furc!Wank and its compatriots inside and outside the game are in many ways mercifully immune to these kinds of issues. After all, this is my site and all opinions expressed here are, also, mine. I don’t much care if you agree with them or if you think I’m a total toolbox (which I’m sure many of you do). Maybe more importantly, while I am rather fond of being an armchair critic, I don’t really expect anyone to take what I say seriously. While I’m happy to point out that the staff in Dream X or the patching and DS in Dream Y are mind-numbingly horrible, I’m not going to insist that they change it solely because I think it’s bad. Maybe I’m just being egotistical (hah), but it occurs to me that this is the difference; and it’s a significant one. Because essentially what the DR forums do is give people a platform not just to express dissatisfaction with dream staff, but legitimise their complaints by implying that they have an explicit right to expect that dreams are run in a fashion that they approve of.
Here’s a tip for you, kids; life is not fair, no way and no how. Nor does it need to be. Because the same rule that applies to sites like Dream Reviews? To Furc!Wank itself? Well, it applies to all those prats running their dreams, too. Put simply, if I can say and do whatever I want on my site, then you can also do whatever you like in your dream. And I have to respect that, even if it’s diametrically opposed to what I think is ‘right’.2 There’s a difference between me telling you I think you’re an idiot, and me alleging that you are an idiot.
So this is why, when I was first asked to plug Dream Reviews this morning I knew I was in trouble. And let it be a lesson to all you kids out there, too; just because you’ve got a site that seems similar to Furc!Wank, don’t necessarily assume we’re going to be on your ’side’.
As the man says, it’s a cruel world.
And before we go, a special shout-out to our bot’s fanclub, who’ve been nice enough to form a little digopile around his feet. Extra special love goes to Hades Passion who — upon seeing that The Grotto had unloaded from FurN — instantly got up to sit in its place. This resulted in a short time when the dream became even more extra-secret and special since we got kicked off the main map completely by Celes|Chere#SM and her ‘chartered dream’ Celes Hidden Garden. Ah, upload wars. To think, this might actually suck if it were about something other than a vanity chat room. Remember kids; charter your dreams. That way, even if you don’t actually upload them to the map for six months, you can still kick other people off. Fun!
And to the rest of you; it’s been done, now. You don’t get mentioned twice.
Popularity: 31% [?]
- If you’re thinking to yourself that F!W deliberately tries to avoid this question by boldfaced admission then you’d be 100% correct. If you’re also thinking that it’s a pretty weak smokescreen, you’d still be right. You’re a smart cookie, aren’t you? [↩]
- Incidentally, as an aside, this is why all Furc!Wank staff and minions are told to honour the physicality (if not always the intent) of all bans placed against them by dream owners. Remembers, I don’t actually have to be in your dream or forum to find out there’s wank going on… or to write about it. [↩]
Actually,I DO Upload my Guild. Just because you don’t like that you got kicked off the spot I have Chartered is not my fault. You are the one who did not do their homework and find out which 30+ Spots out of the thousands on Furc were Chartered,they are posted on the Furcadia Website,if you bother to look. I was polite and it is not a war,because it is my spot and has been since 2003. I use it every night,every night,unless I can not get online for unavoidable reasons. That you see fit to whine about it,means there is something wrong with you,not me.
There’s a saying we have at work which goes something along the lines of, “Technical problems need technical solutions.” The scarcity of ‘good’ upload spots on certain maps in Furc is a technical problem and, therefore, it should require a technical solution. The idea of ‘chartered’ spots is not it. Chartered spots are a half-assed attempt at social engineering where the emphasis is placed on conflict-based resolution (”You took my spot! Imma gonna call a Guardian on you!”) rather than preventing the problem from happening in the first place. Which, really, shouldn’t be all that hard. The guys at DEP know this, which is why chartering is all-but obsolete. Of course, that makes an even worse situation where dreams like yours get grandfathered while new dreams have no recourse to a similar system.
In layman’s terms, the whole thing is fucked. That’s why I don’t check Charters; I don’t see why I should have to relinquish a tile to someone who was able to access a system I can’t by sheer virtue of time.
And you’re right, you were polite and you asked. Which is why I moved; not because you waved a ‘Charter’ in my face. I could simply not have, and instead forced you to try and call a Guardian. It was tempting. But you were at the time, ultimately, polite. At the time.
That’s my whole point; I can’t even if I wanted to. I wonder, then, if by your standards I am allowed therefore to ‘whine’ over that situation? If not, I’d very much like to hear what suggestions you have for an alternate solution.
Edit: Incidentally, I’m just curious as to what purpose you think inputting fake URLs and email addresses has when I have linked to your website in the post above? I mean, just out of curiosity and all.
Please don’t complain to me about how Furc made their chartering system,they are fixing that with Group Packages that will come out in the next update supposedly,I for one did not make the system,I just used it. I deliberately chose a spot no one EVER used,since I kept a watch on it for months….it is only after I chartered it that it seems to have become prime real estate. They only stopped taking charter applications 2 years back,when they came up with the concept for those Packages. It is not MY FAULT,that I chartered it years beforehand.
My dream gets ‘grandfathered’ because I have put the time into it over the years to make it a place to RP in. I have worked hard on it and I took the time to make it,I am also one of the few Charters still left out of the hundreds there used to be. This means nothing though.
YOU were complaining about my having you move when I don’t use the spot. The thing is I use the Spot,every night. My Guild is not gone or not uploaded,it is uploaded,every night. You don’t have the right to whine that I don’t use the spot,when it is obvious I do so. You did not do your homework on that part. You will have resolution on Charters when the Group Packages come out,because then everyone will have to BUY a spot they want and then keep maintaining the subscription for it. That does not mean you can whine about them until then though.
I myself dislike having to have people removed from the spot,I dislike having to deal with people who tell me lies and argue with me and call me names,but I can not resolve that until the Group Packages come out. So I am patient and wait,it does not mean I have to sit back and take being bad-mouthed though.
You accused me of kicking you off the main map completely,that is something I can not stand for. You had the recourse to move to another spot. I DID NOT MAKE YOU DO ANYTHING,but move off my spot. You could of uploaded anywhere nearby that was open at the time and not Chartered. Only a few Dreams are still Chartered in Furc,that leaves you TONS of other places to upload. But you accused me of throwing you off the map,which you should of never done,since I never did any such thing.
I mentioned the Database,because for one thing,it keeps such conflicts down to a minimum,you learn where the Chartered Spots are and stay off and then you don’t have to move so much or get into conflict with those few Chartered Guilds still left who have bothered to keep their Guilds going. Those of us who are left are very serious about our Guilds.
Also,please do stop whining about the people outside my dream,they have laid in that area for over 2 years,they are not doing anything to deliberately annoy you. They have gathered in that particular spot for years,they aren’t doing it to deliberately annoy you,their lives don’t revolve around you.
I put a fake e-mail,because the one on the Guild Website is not my main one and my main one is not the business of everyone on the web. Also,that website is not my main website,just the one for the Guild at that time….thus why I don’t give my main one out. It is not everyone’s business what my main e-mail or website is,that is for me to hand out to who I wish.
How about you look at it this way; I allow you to air your grievances against me in a public forum (my own), and in return all I ask is for a legitimate email address. It’s not actually published anywhere on the site; WordPress simply uses it to determine whether or not your comments need to go into the moderation queue (i.e. are they spam or not).
By putting in addresses that are obviously fake, you are essentially vandalising my site by making it more vulnerable to spam. I don’t think your ranting (and apparent inability to disassociate your own personal aggression with the issue that is actually being discussed) is so valuable to casual Googlers that I’m prepared to let you get away with leaving rubbish in my database. While I support everyone’s right to mouth-foaming ranting, if you’re gonna do it on my site, you’re gonna do it on my terms.
The next comment you post with a fake email is going to be marked as spam and blacklisted from the site. I’m perfectly prepared to enter into a discussion as to the fairness-or-not of the chartered-versus-guild-packages system in Furcadia (you’ve got some good points, though I couldn’t really be arsed picking them out of the hysteria to address them intelligently), but if you want a place to just mindlessly rant about how the world hates you, you should perhaps consider setting up your own website.
Do grow up. I have not ranted or been hysterical at all during any of my posts,that you can’t tell the difference between ranting,hysteria,etc. and rationality is a fault in you it seems. I rationally explained why I disliked what you wrote. You accused me of something,I did not do. That doesn’t make me ranting or hysterical to object to such things. You have yet to accept the fact that what you posted was a fallacy,when you accused me of kicking you from the Main Map.which I did not do.
As to my e-mail,why should I give you a valid e-mail at all?? You have not given me one….fair is fair. As to spam,I don’t open your site to it at all,you do that just by having an e-mail account and a site at all. That is what moderation is for,to check to make sure that what is posted is not spam,try doing that.
And I explained why I agreed with you, but why I still disliked the system (which, incidentally, I acknowledge is not your fault). In your first two posts you accused me of ‘whining’ three times, and said that there was “something wrong with [me]“. I suggest you please look up what ad hominem is, and how it’s not considered to be part of rational argument.
The only thing I ‘accused’ you of initially was asking me to move, which you did do. Then I accused you of coming to my site and ranting hysterically at me, which in my opinion you have also done. I even acknowledge that I appreciate your right to do such things (and also feel free to disagree with my assessment, as you have), but that if you want to do them on my site (which I own, pay for and maintain) then you can at least have the courtesy of following my rules. Which you have done. So it’s all good.
Just to clarify it for you, what you’re getting upset over is my wording “kicked from the Main Map”. I admit this is somewhat hyperbolic; but then that’s the nature of this entire site and if people can’t recognise that… well, they probably shouldn’t be here. But hyperbole aside, it is — in effect — exactly what you did. You can post comments until you’re blue in the face, but alas none of your actions thus far have particularly engendered me towards apologising to you for my turn of phrase.
Not directly, but there is a contact form below which plugs straight into my email account.
Besides, you’re assuming that we’re in some kind of equal power relationship here, which we aren’t. Again I reiterate, this is my site. You are not entitled to do whatever you want here, contrary to what you appear to believe. Because I am a very nice person (har har), I will allow you to post comments only if you provide me with an email address. These are simply the ‘rules’. They aren’t ‘fair’. They don’t have to be. There are many other methods by which you could air your grievances at me without providing an email address (coming into my dream and yelling at the bot, whispering me on Furc, sending an email via the contact form and so on), but you chose not to use them. You chose to immortalise yourself publicly in a string of comments. And to make a comment on this site, I require an email address. I’m even generous enough to keep that email address confidential, which is more than I can say for most sites (and in fact is more than you yourself have done). If you don’t respect me enough to follow this very simple rule, then I don’t see why I should respect you enough to allow you space to air your views on my site.
Maybe I should reiterate it in simpler terms. Just as you are free to make whatever rules you want in your dream, and enforce them however you see fit, I am free to make whatever rules I want on my site, and enforce them however I see fit. Do you understand my point?
Actually, I’m talking about comment spam, not email spam (though I do prevent the latter by not publishing any email addresses on this site at all, as well as by participating in IP-blacklisting projects like Project Honey Pot). And you are absolutely correct, which is why my very simple rules on comments are in place; to prevent, as much as possible, spam. I’m not sure what point you’re supposed to be making here…?
Perhaps you should re-read the part in my post above where I explain the whole reason I require legitimate email addresses is to facilitate WordPress’ moderation queue.
(This is so fun! Like shooting fish in a barrel!)
Actually,I DO use my Chartered Spot,EVERY single night,unless I can not get online for some reason that deals with Real-Life.
That you had to get kicked off the then whined about it means there is something wrong with you. I have the right to use the spot I took the time to Charter,which means finding 10 founding members and making the dream,patches and such. When you have done as much,then you may whine.
It is not my fault that you did not take the few minutes it would of taken to check the Charter Database on Furc’s website,it is there for a reason. There is like at most 30-40 Charters still around out of the thousands of Upload Spots in Furc.