Friday, May 04, 2007

PTC: End of an Era

This past Monday, Ross Fynmore, aka Argyle, announced he was stepping down as the head of the PTC interfed and from the site altogether.

The resignation post

The timing caught me off-guard, but this was something I had been anticipating for a little while now. Despite GTT6 moving along at a relatively brisk pace (something I attribute to the judges getting their shit together), a lot of interfed events have been sidetracked and delayed due to the real life constraints of all admins involved, especially Ross. I knew that with every PM I got from him telling me about how hectic his life was/is that he wasn't going to have the time to continue.

This isn't a bad thing for him. Let's face it, for those of us past the undergraduate level in college, time for eW is at a premium. It's selfish for anyone of us to expect someone to operate at a high level while expecting them to give us allowances for our real life happenings. Ross spread himself as thinly as a good coat of paint in order to keep things going. He's endured several incidents of plagiarism, people bitching at him for GTT results, controversy between one of his admins and a member fed and hell, he owned a site at which Jeremy J. was allowed to post for an extended period of time. That last one in and of itself is grounds to have him canonized.

So let's give Ross a good sendoff. He did well during his time as lead administrator of Primetime Central.

At the same time, we need to scramble and find a solution to keep PTC going. The hub is too important to the hobby for it to go by the wayside. The interfed activities have to continue, but the question is who is going to run it and still deal with the message board bullshit? Pete Speer, the other admin, is also severely lacking for time. He can't be expected to do it all. Thankfully, Ben "Pants" Morrow and Andy Hewitt have taken over the running of the Unified Title and IG divisions respectively. The interfed bases are covered. There's no need for the i-fed to disband. I think that Pants and Andy will do a fine job, but to whom will they answer? Does Pete have the time to administrate that as well?

Honestly, I think Andy and Pants should be left alone to co-moderate all the interfed dealings until they feel they can't do everything by themselves. That would leave Pete to scan the message board and be the superadmin. If he can't do that by himself, then there are plenty of great candidates to take the job. Ben (Stephen Caldera) and Dean (BraveHeartFan) are two ideal ones. Some people may point to former admins... some may even suggest RJ (Hanshi no Shikaze) could do an adequate job.

It's true, he was always on the boards and he caught everything. You could even say that if he was around now, there wouldn't be a problem. However, RJ was too polarizing a figure, and if he were given the reigns, then I can guarantee you that at least one fed, if not three, would have bolted from the i-fed. PTC would have died or been greatly diminished. It's a case of damned if you do, damned if you don't, but I think PTC can pool together fine now.

So while we bid a fond adieu to Ross now, we must make sure that PTC survives and thrives into the future. The world of creative writing based RP feds needs to have a hub like wrestling promo based RP feds have FW and the angle feds have W3:16. All of us have to work together.

But I think we can. I think we will succeed.

11 comments:

Unknown said...

PTC run by Ben/Dean would be great. They both share a passion for the community AND the hobby, which I think is an ideal requirement for taking over the reigns.

There are some out there who are giving kneejerk reactions to 'stepping up' and helping out, which is noble, but more often than not the wrong choice. I would really like to see Dean/Ben be given a chance with the ball, and see how far they can run with it.

Excellent post, Tom.

SamLandry said...

A lot of Jeremy J bashing around PTC lately...heh

Anonymous said...

I admit I was one of the ones that complained to Ross about GTT results, but even still, I got nothing but respect for the guy and he's a total class act all around. Hopefully his hiatus will not be a permanent one and we'll see him around in the future.

Anonymous said...

I see no reason for PTC to disband with guys like Ben and Dean willing to step up. Both are dedicated, and more importantly in my eyes, both are fans of the game. Either one of them, or the combination of them, have my full support to lead PTC. And realistically, why is PTC so close to falling apart? Ross was a great leader, but there are other capable people who have expressed their willingness to take the reigns. Lets turn a negative into a positive.

- David (handler of Jason Snow)

Anonymous said...

However, RJ was too polarizing a figure, and if he were given the reigns, then I can guarantee you that at least one fed, if not three, would have bolted from the i-fed. PTC would have died or been greatly diminished. It's a case of damned if you do, damned if you don't, but I think PTC can pool together fine now.

Given that PTC owes RJ more than RJ owes them, I find that an interesting statement. Given that he was strong armed out by politics behind the scenes after having been one of the most productive admins in the interfed...eh...whatever.

If I have to hear about how FUSE was somehow 'wronged' by RJ, I can back it up by stating that RJ was a staffer in GCWer right around the time when Max and others tried to poach GCW talent. FUSE's current Universal Champion was supposed to be working a feud with me over the GCW US Title right around the time he took time off. Then he beat Ryan in GTT6...and the next thing I know I'm hearing from our talent relations person that not only is Kris not coming back...he's going to FUSE who we had problems with for a long time.

I don't really care if RJ is polarizing. He worked hard for PTC and got fucked because he was not with the in crowd.

And had FUSE left PTC, they would have had more problems than they would be willing to admit. Would they have gotten Ryan? What about people like Al who is now handling Hoyt Williams?

RJ's been thrown under the bus, and quite frankly...that's bullshit.

TH said...

Well, you're one to talk about throwing people under the bus, seeing as you take every turn to do just that to Ben. But it's alright when you do it, isn't it?

Honestly, there are two sides to every story, and you're too quick to believe one side of things because RJ gave you a shot in GCW. That's fine, but to sit here and say that he's not polarizing is an out and out lie. I never once said in my entry that he was the reason behind the FUSE blow-up. Looking back now, there's blame to be passed around on all sides, but to say that RJ was thrown under the bus when he played a huge role in turning the incident in question from a misunderstanding to a controversy is absolutely absurd.

All that should have been was a misunderstanding, that's all. FUSE volunteered to have the match on their card, not realizing at the time that they already had a ladder match on the card being built towards. All it would have taken was a reschedule or someone to bend a little after some reasonable discussion. However, that possibility was lost when RJ flipped out at them like they all just plagiarized Jason Snow's GTT6 RP series. I'm also not the only one who saw this, and I'm also not the only non-FUSE party who saw this either. Yes, FUSE could have been the bigger party and walked away, but they escalated things. If they didn't, maybe it doesn't turn into anything more than a minor incident and people just go back to muttering around off the boards about RJ. Still, he did start it.

Yes, RJ did a lot for PTC. He kept the rabble in order (even if sometimes the rabble included people who didn't deserve to be kept in order), and he did a lot of IT stuff. He ran a title division. That's great, he busted his ass. That doesn't mean he was the best fit for a position that includes dealing with people. The way he acted with his power was the way a child acts with a new toy, wanting to play with it all the time, even if the time wasn't appropriate. There were better uses to put him to. If he ran the Global division and did all the IT stuff and that's all, that would have been fine, but he was misfit for his role as a site admin. Disagree with it if you want, but you'd be one of the only ones. To use a theoretical example, I could work hard at pumping out segs and being all over every PRIME show, but if I couldn't RP worth a shit, then should I be considered over the more talented folks on the roster who may not put in as much segwork as I do, but have amazing balance?

Also, FUSE may not have gotten Ryan, but if you think it would have hurt their recruitment numbers had they left, you're insane. I'm pretty sure Al still would have gone there, PTC or not. You act like PTC is the be-all, end-all of eW, and it's not. It's a great hub, but it's a great hub in a sea with other great hubs, many of which I can't even begin to cover here.

And as for poaching talent... get over yourself on that regard. You sound like a disgruntled member of the WWA.

Nothing against RJ as a person. I'm sure if he were a regular member of PTC or if he at least wasn't in a position where he had authority over other people, he'd be palatable. He's probably a nice guy otherwise. But don't make this out to be that he's some martyr. He's not. He made his own bed.

Anonymous said...

To make a further comment on RJ, I have to say that since my return, I've had three major situations brought to my attention that were bordering on crisis (feds leaving etc), and every one of them had RJ in the middle. It's probably true that many of the situations weren't entirely his fault, but how he handled them (the Extreme Title Match in particular) was in the poorest of taste. In my opinion, he single-handedly ruined the division after that, as half the community suddenly had no interest in competing. And as Holzerman said, that was all over a simple misunderstanding. There was no reason for it to get escalated, and it wouldn't have had RJ not lost his temper and started slinging insults.

He wasn't "strong-armed" out because of politics. He blew up for the millionth time over nothing, and the majority of the community agreed that something needed to be done about it. In that Extreme Title match thread, there were very, very few people defending him, if any. And the point was brought to me privately a few times, and I think it's a valid point, that some members of the community did not want to be part of it with RJ as an administrator.

As for talent poaching with people jumping from GCW to FUSE, I don't know the situation, but I have to think it had more to do with the feds involved than some underhanded politics. I can't see a guy leaving a fed for another unless he thought it would be a better fit for him.

You can like RJ, and even defend him, but I don't think anyone can say he's not a polarizing figure. Polarizing is about your effect on the people around you, not necessarily if you're right or wrong in the things that you do.

Graymalkin said...

Okay... I'm going to step in here, because I'm tired of reading this stuff, to be honest.

I'm Kat, some of you know me, some of you don't, whatever. I'm also, for those of you who may not already know it, really close to RJ, someone who at one point, RJ was calling his little sister. RJ's mentored me through a lot of rough times in my writing career, and has been a good friend to me for several years now. I say this to preface what I'm going to say with a little background, not to get all up in shit and be over-defensive about RJ.

RJ is definitely a polarizing figure. RJ himself knows that he is a polarizing figure.

But in this case, I feel like the fight's a little unfair. The guy left PTC of his own accord because he did not want to see it harmed by FUSE leaving, which they said would happen if he stayed. Whatever happened other than that is something that is the domain of the admin boards, and conversations between Pete, RJ and Ross, who were the only people in that position at the time, and are the only people privy to that information.

Can we just leave it at that? Basically, what's going on here is speculation about why he's gone. Yes, he was strong-armed. No he wasn't. It doesn't matter why RJ left, he's gone. He's gone and we're moving on here, at least theoretically. So it doesn't matter in the least whether or not RJ was a good fit for the admin position- the bottom line is, whatever happened behind the scenes, he made his choice to leave, and made his choice also to ban his own account so that there would not even be the slightest *temptation* for him to come back and start trouble. Whatever else you think about what blame he shares (and there is undoubtedly blame to be shared), he left the community in a manner that can deserve no complaint- maturely, without causing a stir, leaving well enough alone.

I kind of think everyone should take that tack. And I say that here as an appeal from somebody who cares about her friend very much, and knows that he would probably be upset if he saw this. He's moved on with his life... and I think PTC should move on with its life as well. He's not here to defend himself, so this is pretty much taking potshots at an unarmed man right now. Can we please let it rest?

Kat

TH said...

Honestly, I don't see how anything that was said here was a potshot at RJ. I think things were truthful and even-handed.

However, you're right, talking about the past isn't conducive in this situation, so please, I ask that all comments directed towards RJ stop.

Anonymous said...

Hmm... Kat pointed me here.

I'm only going to say this once. I know it's not PTC but again only once.

1) I left due to situations in the back that I did not agree with. They were between me and Ross and no one else at the time I decided my 3 year tenure as an admin was over.

2) whether or not anyone else thought I was good for the job or not other then Ross can all kiss my ass as far as I'm concerned. If I wasn't right for the job I would have been out of it a long time before I left. I've run large call centers of people doing technical support, I've run websites communities for years. And I WAS dedicated to e-wrestling. I've been on a hiatus for a few months now.

3) I don't dwell on the past. But I can assure you that even if someone paid me I'm not coming back to PTC. Sadly I burnt my bridge when I left. And it would be hypocritical if I did come back. I hold my integrity and honor above anything dealing with an internet hobby.

I don't want it brought up again anywhere. IT was between Ross and myself and I chose the path that had the greatest chance to SAVE PTC.

IF no one can respect that, then well Noah Hanson has a device you can use.

Am I polarizing? I'm fucking human. But


-RJ

TH said...

First, a warning to those who might see this as an opportunity to air dirty laundry towards RJ due to incidents at PTC. Do not take this as an open invitation to flame him or bitch at him for something he may have done to you during his time as an admin. If you have an issue, address it civilly. If you can't, don't address it at all.

Secondly, RJ, I appreciate that you've come to answer this post and these comments here. It takes a lot, believe me I know. Despite the perception of ill-will that you may see me having towards you, any disagreements over things you've said/done during your time at PTC were strictly related to the hobby and not at you as a person. I'm not going to pretend to know you on a personal level like someone like Kat does, and in that vein, I don't harbor any personal animosity towards you.

Thirdly, I'm glad that you've been able to run call centers and such in the past, but I feel as if doing something like that and running an Internet message board are two different things. What might work there might not work on a message board, especially when you can't put faces to names. Especially in that case, people don't feel like they should have to respect authority, and I for one can't blame them if it's weilded incorrectly.

Still, like you said, past is past, and there's no point in dredging it up again. I'm sorry that you feel like you can never go back, but that's your decision alone. Please don't take anything said on this blog as a slight though. I've only gotten personal once here, and I deeply regret it because the target did not deserve it.

However, I still do stand by any statements made concerning the hobby and PTC administration, so if that means we have to agree to disagree, so be it.