Jita Park Speakers Corner

So... now that the dust has settled a little bit, it's time to have an actual discussion around the topic of Ripard Teg's role in the recent scandal.

Do other CSMs, devs, candidates, and the community at large feel that it is acceptable for a current CSM to circumvent the usual process for petitioning violations of the rules in order to stir up a virtual lynch mob?

Here is what I think. I would be very interested to know what others think about the issue.

No CSM member had any part in determining what punishment any EULA/TOS violater incurred during CSM8 (obviously I cant speak for previous CSMs). The GM team are pretty robust in resisting any kind of pressure in that respect.

Also this talk of "holding CSMs to a higher standard" is invented *Snip* Please refrain from using profanity. ISD Ezwal.
No such requirement exists, even if we concede the dubious argument that calling out reprehensible actions is failing to hold a high standard. I would argue that the opposite is true. If for instance I found incontrovertible proof that another player was running a large bot network or was illegally accessing other people's accounts and looting them, what kind of "higher standard" would it be that made me keep silent?

Maybe it is not written down and not part of the EULA/TOS or the NDA you have to sign, but Ripart Teg's blog definitively crossed some invisible line in some "gray area". Or is this kind of argument only valid if the suspect is not a personal friend of some CCP staff?

The CSM are, first and foremost, players of the game . . .

and of the metagame.

That means we can blog, talk, campaign, scam, interview, be interviewed, whatever. There is no Higher Standard of play that we need to adhere to above that of other players. When it comes to the game.

Outside the game many of us hold ourselves to a higher standard of effort and communication. Of looking to the whole game. Of representing the players to CCP.

Ripard met that standard as well.

What he did not do is precipitate a banning, influence CCP directly, or create an incident where there was none. He reoprted on something that bothered him. He HAS done that before, just never with such a storm following. So do you blame the messenger or the message? Is a witness to a hit and run responsible if he reports it? Do you go after him for being a 'snitch'?

The fact that this blew up indicates the feelings of some of the player base (unless you believe Ripard has 400+ alts and manufactured the threadnaught all by himself) Seeing as someone else linked a podcast I will just add Ripards interview with Caps Stable here

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So as it happens, I'm not terribly keen on Jester's post either, though I'm also not calling for his blood and am aggressively sick and tired of these kinds of stupid threads. I'm going to be helpful in the naive hope that it prompts people to do something rather than whine. Here goes.

Jester's Trek is a registered fan site, which means it is required to adhere to a certain set of rules and of course, if you think those rules were violated, you're welcome to petition them.

Now please take that knowledge and go do something other than posting bad threads, tia.

In other words, you admit that this "higher standard" is something you imagined.

Ripard used more colourful language than he should have, but he was essentially correct: Ero1 broke the TOS and he deserved to eat a ban for it. Get over it.

*Snip* Please refrain from personal attacks. ISD Ezwal.

Okay, lets review some of your posts in the threadnught shall we?

https://forums.eveonline.com/default.aspx?g=posts&t=332182

From page 2



From page 3







and so on and so on...

Sounds to me that you didn't think Erotica broke the TOS in those posts, and now you seem to be white knighting in an arrogant manner. So Please tell us Mr. CSM what is your true position on this?

Proof that video game politicians flip flop Just as much as RL politicians. Hear that sound? That was all of your creditability evaporating.

I think I'm going to make my last statement on this now and call it good unless Ripard actually shows a little integrity and comes here to debate his position. Frankly I'm getting a little sick and tired of the whole thing and I'm ready to get back to spending my game time *) with miners and mission bears, since that's what gives me the most belly laughs per hour.

Yes, "holding CSMs to a higher standard" is a concept I invented, and one that I'm not even 100% sure that I am on board with. That doesn't mean that we shouldn't consider it, and have a public conversation about the idea.

The simple fact of the matter is that although Ripard Teg's intentions may have been acceptable, he handled this business in the sleaziest manner that he possibly could have. The guy wraps himself up in his white cape like he's the *) Lone Ranger or something, here to save us all from the evil griefers who are trying to take over the game, and that just pisses me off. Meanwhile *Snip* Please refrain from personal attacks. ISD Ezwal.
He isn't calling them out, even when they make Erotica 1 look like a saint by comparison, because they are the ones willing to whip themselves up into a frenzy for him when it suits his purposes.

The guy has done wrong, any reasonable person can see it, even if he hasn't violated any rules in doing so. He has attempted to wrongly brand an entire segment of the player base as bad human beings, merely because of the shenanigans we get up to in-game. This Erotica 1 business, for me, is just the straw that broke the camel's back. He has a right to say the things he does, but he doesn't have the right to expect that nobody will call him out for it in public forums and blogs *)

And it would be nice if CSMs and candidates who can see it too, plain as day, don't rush to pretend that he's such a great guy and they are behind him 100%. Show a little backbone already. Show a little integrity.

*)*Snip* Please refrain from using profanity. ISD Ezwal.

What a beautiful strawman. Pointing out that inventing your own arbitrary moral standard and calling for it to be applied *Snip* Please refrain from personal attacks. ISD Ezwal. does not automatically mean someone is also defending jester's post, no more than vehemently opposing the notion that someone should be banned on semi-arbitrary moral groups as Malcanis had been automatically equates to defending him.