Remember, Remember the First of December

[Helvetica]

A great statement by a revolutionary man who cared more about this forum than most of the moderators did. I hope to preserve this declaration by posting it again, where it was conceived on this day.

 

(It's interesting to note that when I first tried to post this quote, the topic was removed without warning and no reason was given. Shouldn't this be a place of free speech? Maybe it's just all a facade created by the moderators.)

 

Hello, YCM.

 

I’m sure that after reading this you will know who I am. Not only that, but you will know who you are.

 

Looking back, we can see that in the past multiple things have happened that have shaped the forums. Sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. This will be one of those events. The outcome of it however, for better or for worse, will be up to you. Not the moderators, not the administrators. You. The members.

 

You see, without its members a forum is useless. There are of course those who will replace you. Silence is apparently impossible on YCM, but that’s not to say impact is unachievable.

 

It is common these days for users to wonder what happened to the “Good ol’ Days”, id est why the forum “sucks” more than it used to. Of course, it can be said that the porn spammers or others can be held accountable for this, but, truth be told, if you’re looking for the guilty you need only look into a mirror.

 

It is YOU who have caused these forums to be less than their former glory. Instead of merely reporting offensive posts, you POST IN THE TOPICS and allow others to view them. Instead of merely ignoring the porn raids and moving on, you CONTINUE TO TALK ABOUT THEM and let them linger within your society like the plague.

 

And yet… it is not the posters wherein the problem lies. On most if not all other forums, insufficient moderation is not an issue brought to the table by any members. What can this tell us?

 

This tells us that there is something very wrong with this administration. There is something so wrong that it corrupts those it should teach and purify. This administration is built on lies and attempts to cover up that which would oppose it, even when that which would oppose it is correct. They would even go so far as to attempt to spy on other forums. They will tell you that it’s all for the best interest of you and the forum, but in actuality, if they indeed had the best interest of the forum in mind they would not need to take such extensive measures.

 

Indeed, not only does the administration corrupt its workers, but anything and everything that would oppose, question, or otherwise bring out the truth regarding the moderation and administration is quickly and without question or consideration either deleted or locked and removed. Again, you are assured that this is in your best interests, but is it really? If there is no problem, why has one been presented?

 

The main evidence proposed by the administration is composed of chat logs and screenshots of things that can be easily spoofed. Example one: Any and all chat logs provided as evidence against a certain memeber regarding the porn spam. Surely you’re all very curious as to why these are irrelevant and unusable as evidence, so here it is.

 

Three days before the “raids” began, “SD Dueler” contacted a member via AIM. He told this member that he knew that member’s ban was nearly up, and knew that because that member was banned for attacking a mod that member would be a perfect scapegoat. He also told that member that he was an active member of the forums. Needless to say, that member was frantic. The member invited anyone and everyone he could think of to “raid” the forums with him in an attempt to discover who the real SD Dueler was. Looking back, this wasn’t the very best plan of action yet it was one that at the time the member felt was a solution to the problem. He apologizes to any of you who he had offended by sending you the file with the images he extracted from the first raid (namely Max / Almost_TotalObelisk) but it was crucial to his cause. Also, screenshots from 4chan aren’t worth anything. The guy from the topic presented didn’t use the member’s tripcode.

 

They will tell you that this is a lie. They will tell you that anything and everything I say is an attempt to brainwash you, and they will tell you I have already brainwashed others. I have friends. You may interpret my actions as you will, but know that I mean neither the forum nor anyone on it any harm.

 

Now, you must know that there is more than a man behind a keyboard at work here. There always has been, and there always will be. I am one in a line of those to come and those who have already come. As long as there is a problem, there will be one such as myself to address the problem and confront the administration about it as I have. Because while the truncheon may be used in lieu of conversation, words will always retain their power. You can kill the messenger. You can kill the speaker. You can kill the one, but there will always be the whole. An idea is what is truly at work here. You cannot kill an idea, you cannot destroy it, you cannot even touch it. It will live on forever until it is forgotten.

 

Today is not the day to forget. Not at all.

 

As has been said previously, there is a cycle that occurs on this forum. There will be an era of greatness and friendship between members. Pacts will form, bonds of friendship will be made and clubs that once were are no longer open to the public. Eventually, one of the members of these pacts will realize that something is not right. Suddenly, the pacts undergo a transformation into organized rebellions. They speak for what is right in their eyes and will in every way attempt to expose the follies of the administration and get things to change for the better.

 

Sometimes there is a success.

 

More often than not, there is a failure.

 

And this is where your beloved forum loses some of its glory. When the administration fails to either address why an option is not plausible or implement it, the members become unruly and their opinion of the administration is lowered. Eventually, they will leave. The next era of members will remember how awesome the previous era’s members were, but instead of getting better through acknowledgement and explained accept or decline of implementing new features, nothing changes except that a legacy has been lost. Hope and determination go down and the overall quality of the forum lessens. Thus is why the Good ol’ Days will remain old, and today will not be as wonderful as they were. Granted, some high administrations in the world follow the same policy of ignoring requests and petitions, but we’ve also seen how they have failed to appease the people.

 

So the life of the previous era is no longer there, and a morbid sense crowds the members. This is where you see the large groups of members leave the forums. Some will return, but those who don’t are the ones that you care about the most. Those who don’t are the ones whose legacy you need to remember.

 

Today is a day that you must always remember.

 

While today a member became part of this forum and a new era was born, today that era will also die. Today, the man who started that era will take his leave. And although he leaves, his legacy will live on. That man asks that you never forget his legacy or this day. He has been your silent guardian, but it is time for another to take his place.

 

So, members and administration of YCM, know this:

 

While I am merely one man, there is a whole. One head lacks the power of many. One head is corruptible. One head is removable. If you have a belief, then you must form your own whole. Alone you will fall, but when the “I” is no longer an “I” but a “we”, united you all will stand. None of you alone is as cruel as all of you together.

 

So I leave you to ponder, YCM. I may have told you a lie, I may have told you the truth. What you choose to believe is on your own accord, but you will most definitely know after reading this what I believe. A building is a symbol, as is the act of destroying it. Symbols are given power by people. A symbol, in and of itself is powerless, but with enough people behind it, blowing up a building can change the world.

 

What the administration has are bullets, and the hope that when your guns are empty, I'm no longer standing, because if I am... you'll all be dead before you've reloaded.

 

It is at this time that I meet my maker and to repay him in kind for all that he’s done.

 

Goodnight, YCM.

 

Sincerely,

 

Draco Straybyrn.

[.Requiem]

Wasn't there a mp3 file that went with this?

[Legend Zero]

(It's interesting to note that when I first tried to post this quote, the topic was removed without warning and no reason was given. Shouldn't this be a place of free speech? Maybe it's just all a facade created by the moderators.)

That's because this old news has no need to be rehashed, especially with it generating almost no discussion. Draco has been reinstated and now uses this forum like anyone else. Bringing this up gets locked every year, why should this be different?

[CinnamonStar]

You're late, he's been unbanned for a while now and apparently that was the only goal of the speech.

Now we can all be happy ponies.

 

International AIDS Day is important though, I hope you all gave a thought to these people.