I am announcing now that I will not be running for re-election.
If you're easily offended and like to be a forum-warrior, then by all means click the spoiler to read my reasons, but here's the TL;DR for those that like simple news without reading pages and pages of info
TL;DR It's not working out, and nothing has really become fruitful. Being a CR is just like being involved in RL politics in the way that everyone is hyped during and before the election season, but then right after no one really cares, or even wants to after all is said and done.
Spoiler
So, as far as my thing about people not really caring after the election goes, I'm seeing a lot of people (Cough OP cough) make threads, posts, etc. along the lines of this very thread: "Rageragerage I wanted to be a CR but didn't get it rageragerage", or something like "Blargh promises weren't kept ad;kjbsdfkgjb! Let me spout my rage and frustration on the forums to rile the populace into glorious revolution!". This being said, I have my reasons.
It's easiest said by providing the example of my NW Community Grievances Thread. I posted that literally within 3 days of being elected, without anyone even asking me to, hoping to get some sort of list of problems that needed to be solved, so that way it's not like a bored congress that just randomly makes laws so they can be seen as doing something. Sadly, ver few people actually submitted genuine complaints. By genuine, I mean massive community-wise concerns. We had a load of people shouting "Do something!" and not very many people saying "Do this!".... or, rather, providing an intelligent alternative to the current agenda emplaced by the FSE team. Most of the complaints on my thread and all following threads of it's ilk were along the lines of "Who is this person and why is he this!?" or "Why is this that way?". To put it simply, they were small fry problems, capable of being solved without any real CR congress on them. Now, I've been spectating most of the discussions on the House of Commons area (That's the name of the CR-Only forum section, I'm not certain you guys can even see it, but that's where we discuss issues) and let me tell you this: true, I have not posted a lot. True, I have not always shared my opinions or contributed, but do not ever accuse me of being absent as far as being informed goes.
I made sure I knew every problem, or at least knew the outline of it so that if it ever came that I should have to speak or make a point, I was very prepared. I read, or at least skimmed twice, most, if not all, posts on that forum. This brings me to my crescendo:
Now, I'm not here to cause strife between FSE and the community. I'm not accusing the community of letting the CR's down, but I am. The community seems to think that CR's have all the answers, but that's not what we're here for. We're here to try to give answers to your issues. But we CANNOT, and I repeat this: CANNOT, provide answers when no questions are presented in the first place.
To those who suggest the CR's are impotent, perhaps you should think of actually presenting serious, well written problems to them, via PM, post, or whatnot. Do not simply expect change because you're a bystander. If you are such a caped crusader of the community, and without naming anyone, as once more, I'm not here to cause strife, nor am I here to take sides, but if you are such a vigilante of Justice and Judgement, then for the good of all that is fried, please put your energy into something positive rather than simply dropping drama nukes onto this already slowly eroding forum in the hopes of getting some smear of attention, however positive it might minutely be.
Now, as my term comes to a close, I can speak for some of what I have experienced.
To me, it is true that the CR's are sort of under the FSE team. Being a CR really feels like you're just the sort of assistant secretary of the community or something. I personally felt like I was just simply wasting my time for the most part with trying to get most things done. I saw a fair bit of, once more naming no names, without creating malice or emotions, but facts are facts here: I saw a fair bit of people on BOTH the FSE team AND the CR's reviving issues with old counters and possibilities just before they were about to be resolved. It just seemed like a cycle of indecisiveness.
Conclusion:
CR's are a good idea. This is the "First Community Congress" that has graced this board. If you expect it to be perfect, then you surely don't understand how a democracy, or even a government works. Change is slow, politics slow things down, and usually very little is achieved over a very long time, but eventually it works as the wheels become greased and the system warms up. The indecisiveness of the 1st Community Congress is not the fault of anyone. It's not the fault of the FSE team, nor is it the fault of the CR's, or even the community itself. Everyone has a part to play. The CR's were created by the FSE team to help basically manage a boiling over community in a time of essentially a social meltdown. The CR's therefore were made to represent the community, but what happens when there is no community to represent? Who presented all the un-named and un-spoken of issues in the community to us? Barely anyone, if anyone at all. Did the CR's do their duty? Yes and no. They tried to work out small issues, but they didn't have a constitution to go by. Did the FSE team help? Yes and no. We're still figuring out the line between the powers of CR and the FSE gents, but that's not to say that there is some overpowering force that causes the CR's to become impotent. Did the community as a whole fail? In this man's opinion, it failed more than it succeed.
Only time will tell if the CR plan works out, and we can only tell if FSE and the community will ever be able to reach a sustainable equilibrium.
So, to top it off: All you hell-raisers, muckrakers, and yellow journalists: Congrats, you've accomplished very little yourself by pretending to be the bringers of truth. If you put energy into actually trying to provide assistance and unity, then maybe everyone might get along a bit better, but alas, everyone seems to just want to be more right than the next guy. I'm not running again. I'm not in despair, but I'm not specially inspired. The FSE team, the CR's, and the community as a whole need to stop being (for lack of a better word) twats and playing the blame game from what I've been reading and start being friends again.
TL;DR stop being twits and just f*cking kiss and make up, arguing (including seemingly "intelligent, friendly debate") solves nothing, and only a common friendship can really get everyone back on their feet. From the highest admin to the lowest pubber, stop being fuckwits.
Over & Out 1st Congress, Best Wishes and Tally-Ho to the 2nd. I'll ride out my term by keeping informed and an eye out for something worth an effort.
~Spearing.
