As an original owner in the BSA, there's very little in this forum that seems to grasp what is going on in this world. We have a core group of owners who were original owners. Many of us also played together in GD. We're not buddies, we're not friends, we've just played against one another on WIS for a long time. So we're probably a little more personal than some worlds (which makes as many guys not like each other as like each other). It is also typically the favorite world of those said owners and the one they world invite their friends to play in. Which makes those owners even more protective of this world. So when some of those owners start threatening to leave because of one guy, it leaves it in the hands of the commissioner to do something. Instead of making a decision on his own, he asked the veteran owners in the world for their input. This is the sitemail I got from Mike:
Hello Gentlemen,
I have chosen all of your as our veterans in this league. First off, let me say that while I started to make this list I was amazed at how many amazing long term owners we have and I proud to have played this game with you for so long.
The issue of ginobili is what we need to discuss. His attacks have been out of control this season. He has attacked me personally, but I let that one slide. His attack on Glen was completely uncalled for and offensive to me, let alone how I know Glen felt. I have spoken with him in the past about controlling his outbursts in the chat and how he can be offensive. He does not seem to care. If it were up to me I would ask him not to return at the end of the season. But I don't want this to be about me.
That is why I am sending this to all of you. I want you to vote on if we should allow ginobili to return to the league next season.
You should also know that the result of this vote could lead to others not returning should he stay. I ask you to take the health of the league into consideration when you send in your vote.
If you have anything to say to the group, please reply all to this sitemail and we can keep an open discussion. But please, take this vote seriously and let me know your thoughts.
Thank you"
From my perspective as a long time player of all WIS games, my thoughts are:
- This isn't how mlownds should have handled this. While we have asked the long term owners for input in matters before, we have never voted an owner out. In my memory, we have only kicked out one owner and that was for blatant tanking. This was unprecedented so he did what he thought was best, but clearly there is a better way.
- You can't actual fight fire with fire in spite of the old saying. If you kick someone out for being inflammatory, guess what they are going to do when you kick them out? If anyone is surprised this is the result, they weren't paying attention to what Gino was doing all along.
- Gino crossed a lot of lines. He crossed lines even when the commissioner asked him to stop. It's not like Gino didn't get warnings, so he also should not be surprised that a league that keeps warning him would eventually respond in some way.
- I'm the one who suggested probation. Gino is a good owner and I for one am not confident his replacement would be. But if the league has tired of him, publically draw the line in the sand and let everyone know what is going to happen.
- Gino is not the only one who should have been disciplined if that was the decision. I also raised the point that someone was leaving our world because of the owner Gino insulted and that he should be up for the same vote if we're being fair. You can't have a rule and not apply it to everyone.
- Finally, mlownds is too nice and took this too personally. That's the core of this "problem". He doesn't want to discipline and definetly is not going to do it of his own volition. He was offended by Gino's collusion comments, which were absurd as Mike didn't even get the better end of most of those deals, and so that caused him to take this too personally. Another dust up with another owner had him sensitive and worried that the league was going to really be hurt by this and he was trying to prevent that. He had good intentions and just handled some of it wrongly. But to diminish his job as commish overall is short sighted. This is a very good world. It's why Gino wants to stay in even when some of them want him out and why he returned to it in the first place. It is why the others want him out because they fear he might scare away other owners. It is why after all this drama and the talk of how bad some of you with no experience in the world think that it is, that there are only 2 openings at rollover and I think we'll be down to one soon enough. Only one first year owner who inherited a bad team will leave after all of that. Some of you might say that's because we're all idiots and that's fine, you're obviously entitled to your opinion. But the truth is that those who are apart of the world know that is a great world with great owners that had a childish internet fight get very personal and the commish didn't handle it in the best way.