OT: Let’s all take a deep breath

[WraithLord]

Hi,

I’m following with growing alarm the escalating turn of events following Sombre’s ban.
I want to make a statement or an appeal or something in between.
Please take into account that I only call what I see. I’m not on IRC, I don’t know about past grudges between players and I may have missed one or more nuances. Still, I gave it an earnest try to read the related material available here.
Yet, my views my upset some ppl, so plz bear in mind that I’ve no intention to insult/hurt/mock etc. Peace and love brothers

So.
I’m personally saddened by the ban and consequent bans. I think many ppl here feel the same. I believe Sombre et-al are overall positive guys. They contribute a lot to dominions and the community. They are free spirits and not shy about expressing their opinion, if at times bluntly.
That said, I also generally like the way the forums are managed. I appreciate Shrapnel’s and the moderators efforts in keeping them civil. They had a tough call on their hands and they made a decision – and I believe it was made in good faith and not out of evil, power crazed mania.
I respect the moderators and am grateful for the way the forums are maintained yet I do believe they didn’t handle the situation as well as they should or could have. As I see it, instead of disarming the bomb they chose to nuke it, as if raw power could make issues go away. It’s a mistake ppl of authority sometimes make, yet trying to fix a problem using raw power usually ends up breaking things.

And while I’m upset with the bans I’m totally against labeling the mods/staff as evil and lashing at them and at the forums. Sombre’s supporters, I believe your cause is just but you shouldn’t take the destructive path – spamming threads & picking up fights. This only makes your cause look worse. You can channel your protest into an effort to fix what was broken, not break more things.
Speaking of which, the thread “: Managing Communions - the sombre challenge.” was plain negative. It looks to me like Verjigorm was at a disadvantage due to cultural or language gap and the way he was slugged there is just ugly. That’s not what I want to see these forums turn into.
Nor should the “I’ll make your life a living hell” comment merit much fuss. It looks to be clearly good humored, although it may not have been all that funny or called for or helpful.

Bottom line: A lot of ppl are upset now. You have a right to be but don’t take it out on this place and the players that don’t have a clue.
Chill out. Talk 2 the banned guys instead. Since they are mostly positive guys I don’t think it should be impossible to un-ban them if they’ll want back.

I suggest a good ending to this episode:
Shrapnel, please allow the banned guys back. Give them a temp ban on the condition that they agree to abide by the rules - although they’ll likely always push the limits, they are overall positive and an important part of this community, we don’t want to lose them.
Sombre et-al, I hope you’d reconsider not wanting back here. You’re not punishing Shrapnel or the modds by doing that but rather the vast majority of dom players who frequent here.
Let’s all open a new page