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| Drama: Shmeng 2.0 |
Posted by
Devin on Sunday, July 06, 2003 - 02:28 PM PST
"The larger the group or the longer it has been in existence (without exclusionary measures to weed out the stupid), the more bland and uninspired it will become as a whole" - Monolycus
Guess what? We are changing the site now. And guess what else? We dont care if you like it or not.This is not the first time, nor the second time. The site has been collecting cluelessness again, and faced with the choice of starting a new site and leaving this one to rot, or reinventing this one and taking it back from the hands of the average - I have decided to try and salvage this one.
There will be much fire and brimstone. Poor little feelings will be hurt. You may or may not cry, but as I've mentioned before, this is my playground. I made it for me and my people to play in. This is not a public park. You have no inherrant right to play here. If you're not approved, then you need to find another playground.
This used to be a very cool place. I used to enjoy coming here every day and reading every little thing that was posted. Now I'm lucky if I can motivate to look at the pictures in the inbox. It won't be long before I just stop visiting altogether if things keep going like this. I do have a long enough memory to remember what this place was like before though. And as much as I like to run the site for the benefeit of the members, I have decided to change my policy and only run it for the benefeit of the approved members.
So what constitutes an approved member? Have I ever personally told you that you rock? Have I ever paid you a compliment of any kind (other than telling you that you're cute)? If so then you're probably approved. Are you on the Most Active Members Page? If you're on that page, you probably don't have much to worry about either. Otherwise, chances are good that you're one of the people that is contributing to the site's current mediocrity.
It also seems that either the age or the education level of the new members just keeps going down. The reason this isn't just another one of those stupid goth sites that you're not reading right now, is because it's a grownup site. The core members are all grownups. The approved teenagers act like grownups. The posts that get approved tend to avoid the trite topics and bad poetry that all of the similar sites stoop to. If enough people really want to post that kind of stuff, ask me and maybe I'll help you set up your own trite teenager site.
And for those of you who keep submitting your "cries for help" - Knock it off. we are not your mommy or your shrink. The brilliant people here can fix most of your problems if you listen to them, but are not obligated to do so - and it's rude to ask or expect it - you can hang around and read if you want to be polished up, and occasionally someone will take on a project and polish them up - if this happens feel lucky - if it doesn't, don't get pissy about it - we all dealt with our own issues (mostly before there was an internet) - you can deal with yours (and without whining).
Now the good part. You'll notice the site looks completely different. You'll also notice that you can't find a damm thing. There was getting to be so much stuff on each page that the pages were taking forever to load, and using up too much bandwidth with stuff nobody was looking at. I've broken the site up into sections. The links at the top are your friend. Only a few things have been removed - and nobody really looked at them anyway.
The block at the top left tells you which section you're in. It also has links to stuff in that section. If you can't find something you're looking for, you're just looking in the wrong section.
There are a few new goodies. I won't give them all away since that would take all of the fun out of it all. There are also still huge ammounts of bugs. It's been a long time since the site has had a change this major, and I'm still finding bugs left and right. Please send me a note if you find something not working right.
"if you have any questions, pray to your gods of choice - if you're an atheist, heh... you're fucked."
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Average Rating : 4.5
Total ratings : 17
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| Shmeng 2.0 | Login/Create an account | 83 Comments |
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by Shade (Shade@Gothcult.com)
on Jul 08, 2003 - 05:58 AM
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http://www.hotelshade.com
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Woo hoo! Raise that bar and carry us kicking and screaming into a new age and all that fun stuff! At least those of us who can help carry. I look forward to seeing how everything works out. So far the upgrade is off to a beautiful start.
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by Xaoswolf (Xaoswolfathotmaildotcom)
on Jul 08, 2003 - 08:46 AM
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http://Xaoswolf.tripod.com
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After ensuring that I am still on the Active members page, I am relieved to find that I still matter.
That being said, while I think the layout is a little weird(only because it's new, I'll get used to it) I do like it.
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by AloneSoul (AloneSoul@hurting.com)
on Jul 08, 2003 - 09:26 AM
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I admit, I've been a "lurker" during the past few months. I really haven't had the time to do much online. In fact, I was supposed to work on the FAQ but that never got done with my hands. *shakes his head* If asked (and given direction) I will help out with the site *this time I promise* and I’ll try to post more soon...intelligent posts mind you. Heh. So much eye candy...sweet. I really do enjoy the new look of the site. It’s got the looks, loads a lot fast than before and is easy to navigate...once you get the hang of it. Thanks Devin for a fabulous job done.
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by feralucce on Jul 08, 2003 - 10:02 AM
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I am REALLY impressed with the new lay out... and I would like to suggest that we should impliment some kinda troll judging system... I dunno... but I agree with the commentary about the past... The lack of crud made this place fantastic... and the crud seemed to be cloggin the filter...
BTW... thank you for the mention of the "You Rock" commentary...
I killed someone's groove thing... but it was an accident...
Feral
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by Monolycus on Jul 08, 2003 - 03:22 PM
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Let me tell you all a little story. I was a member of a college Quality of Life Committee a few years back and there was a motion on the floor to disallow unrestricted access to what passed for our computer lab. They wanted to lock it up and have student "guards" posted during restricted hours because they were afraid that people would vandalise the crappy equipment inside. I opposed this. I was the only one who got up and made the case that people could be trusted because they would only be hurting themselves to ruin this equipment, and if you treat people as adults they will act like adults. Despite the fact that I was the only one on the committee who felt this way, they decided to give the students a chance because of the impassioned case that I had made for student rights. Of course, later that week, a student went on a mad spray-painting spree and cost the college a few hundred dollars. Needless to say, they slapped a padlock on the lab that night and I ended up looking like an idiot for trusting people. Again.
My first posting on this site was in defense of people who had screwed up and submitted pictures they had stolen from other websites. I said that we should be as inclusive as we could and people would not be disruptive if they were nurtured and brought around. We should explain to people that what they did was wrong, but we should not attack them personally as this would just keep them from learning from their mistakes. "If you treat people as adults " I argued,"They will act like adults." Well, they didn't. Shortly after my plea (which I took some initial heat over), more people hopped on the idiot train and went on a stolen picture posting spree. I ended up looking like an idiot. Again.
Anyone who wants to bust me on an ethical inconsistency charge now has the opportunity to do it (and if they catch me in a good mood, I might give 'em a cookie), but I am no longer defending the Stupid. There are enough places for the Stupid to go that getting shut out of here is not going to be the end of the world for them. Frankly, I'm as fed up as anyone else with seeing the same juvenile crap (and I am not one of the editors and only get to see what they've already filtered through!) Now I am saying: if you treat people like adults, most of them will make you live to regret having done so.
Bottom line: I am no longer against the idea of being an elitist. I have no idea if I am one of the "approved" here or not, but it doesn't matter. I understand the need to restrict the influence of the Clueless in one's life, and I support Devin's decision to do that. I myself am down to a smallish handful of folks that I am willing to respond to, and those are from an only slightly larger pool o' people that I am still on speaking terms with. I think that weeding the garden is necessary from time to time and hopefully this will make everyone's life run a little more smoothly. The site has a nice new look, and with proper cultivation it should have a nice new feel. I am
your faithful servant,
~M.
(Incidentally, nice quote up at the top of the article. I might have to put that on a t-shirt. *insert smiley face here*)
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by VampCourt (Morbidchic@hotmail.com)
on Jul 08, 2003 - 04:30 PM
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I am glad it got a makeover. seriously. To be quite honest i was getting really bored with some of the stuff in here. i remember when this place first started.. there were so many great articles and whatnot.. then it just started to sink.
now it looks great and clean and fresh. i hope that inspires people to do some good writting.
Loverly job devin!
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by Schizo (Aranea@spidersdance.com)
on Jul 08, 2003 - 05:37 PM
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God, I'm damned glad I'm a member of the Pantheon, and have been here since nearly the bloody beginning, because otherwise I think I might be executed as a lurker! I know I haven't contributed much recently, but blame that on the busy schedule and the complete lack of energy, plus a new and burning desire to read books instead of look at computer screens in my rare, spare time. But a new format and a new policy, (especially a controversial one!) may change my mind! Welcome Shmeng the New! We needed a jolt!
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by WorthlessLiar on Jul 08, 2003 - 06:39 PM
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Damn Devin, more power to you, and let this site evolve with the groggyness of its creator.
but I don't see the neccessity of interviewing those who wish to join. you could always write a code that deletes unused accounts. but you know better.
thank you very much.
nicky
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by angel_of_tigerbear on Jul 08, 2003 - 08:57 PM
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http://geocities.com/got_baby_69
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In the past, all I have done is come to Shmeng to enjoy reading most any posted comments. This is my first real comment on an article because of this fear of rejection complex that I believe I have. Parinoid that any single screw up that I will be judged as an idiot of some sort, in addition to my use of my knowledge. I know I use to be really intellegent for my age, and now, I feel as if it is all slipping. I know that when I do come here, I feel comfortable. I hate changes, but I love how this one has turned out. This site is amazing and I am hoping to have been one of the welcomed because I know I am pleased to come. To conclude, Devin, you are a really great person. I hope to speak again with you soon. Maybe one day my comments will become more interesting.
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by Anonymous-Coward on Jul 09, 2003 - 12:07 AM
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Thank you! *sings halleluja*
To everyone who worked on this superslick layout and are providing the proverbial boot in the seat to booring mediocrity, thank you. I'm glad to see that the guns are manned, and that the drama/dramatists are on their way out, with the door happily slapping their asses after. I don't think I've been "active" on this site in months, and even then it was hit or miss. It comes down to the fact I was sick of posting as I usually did and having someone I don't know freak out, expect me to explain myself, expect me to know their issues and how it somehow remotely relates to a comment I made, and then retract it, which I refuse to do. Instead of heated debates or just plain out conversation or laughter, or a twist on things that made the gears in your head screech to a halt, it was drama drama drama. All I ever got back from reading anything was a sense of being stripped of my I.Q. for merely having it on my screen (and editors, I don't know how you sift through it and retain your sanity or your intelligence. Are there special helmets I can get for that?). So I opted for silence instead.
I (as many other people here) remember when this site had a member list of 5 people. FIVE. And between five to ten people and a few wayward lurkers, they managed to come up with at LEAST one new, interesting, and relavent article a DAY. I couldn't keep my hands off the computer. Then the member list grew, and grew and grew, and oddly enough the articles were fewer and fewer, and less and less interesting and relavent. Oh, and more irritating.
I'm glad to see that you've taken the situation by the balls and given it a good hard twist. And a makeover. MAD props guys.
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by Domkitten (saradevil@saradevil.com)
on Jul 09, 2003 - 12:51 AM
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Heh, leave it to Devin to write an article that will make all the stupid people come out of the woodwork in defense of themselves.
That's the great thing about the stupid: You can present a general garment and they will claim it is cut to fit them. Easy way to figure out who to pic as target practice.
The new site, if of course, fantastic, and I am looking forward to really enjoy it once again.
Again, Dev, you rock.
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by Squire-of-Gothos (Brian0049@hotmail.com)
on Jul 09, 2003 - 08:58 AM
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It takes a small man to say that it takes a big man to admit he's wrong, and then proceed to admit his wrong doing, but still I feel at fault. As of late I have probably contributed to the mediocrity of the site, but It's a built in defense of mine. If I suround myself with ediots, I begin to exhibit ediot qualities, and vice versa. So I think the enema that the site has been given, which in a way is like an Ice Age, will be a good thing. A massive change in social climate should kill off the weak and leave the strong to adapt and survive. So yeah, masterful work Devin, it looks slick, it works smooth, and I hope I don't make myself look like an ediot on the new baby you've birthed.
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by Sticupus (sticupus@hotmail.com)
on Jul 09, 2003 - 09:06 AM
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http://www.obolisk.com
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I read this article and the links above over and over in excess. I toured through the site and I love the changes. Though I must admit, I find this article, and changes of this site and the feelings behind it all depressing. I really enjoy coming to shmeng. I have always respected that it wasn't my site, and I would obey all of the rules and respect the people who deserve it. I love reading the articles. I love to think, discuss and bitch in the forums. But I'm sorry I grew to like it so much, because this is not my site. This is my home page. I come to it and read hourly if not daily. It has become a comfortable routine. I always have my source for good discussion, thought, and silly fun. Now I have a headache. I’m sorry Devin.
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by Anya (Enternamehere@enterhosthere.net)
on Jul 09, 2003 - 04:51 PM
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http://kirashi.envy.nu/index2.html
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I'm not totally sure where I am placed as far as approved members, but I try to contribute whenever I can.
More or less, I enjoy the changes. I do not see why Devin should not upgrade the site like he has.
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by callei on Jul 09, 2003 - 07:27 PM
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I just have to point out that this article has gotten more comments that the last say 10 put together. I love that.
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by Meranda_Jade (Meranda@mymind.com)
on Jul 09, 2003 - 10:12 PM
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I love what has been done with the site. I fully realize that a few times a year it needs to be cleaned up, and the trash thrown out. Every time this has been done, what has been thrown out has been old ways of doing things, and new, refreshing ways of doing things have come about. It's mostly about a facelift for the site in general. It's good and helpful every time it's done. It is also stated that there will be a clearing out of certain members. Every time this statement is made, people start immediately thinking that they just have to be one of the "undesireables" because, face it, I think that everyone from the most silent lurker to the Deity himself has suffered from crippling low self-esteem at least once in their lives, and feeling like garbage to be thrown out generally does bring out strange reactions from people. Everyone here who has responded to this article saying, "Um.... I think I'm part of the problem... but I really, really hope not..." or "I don't want to be a part of the problem, and here are my ways of trying to prove that I'm not really a problem." probably were needlessly worrying to begin with. The time to worry about it is after the cut has been made, and you see whether or not you've made the cut. If your self-esteem issues do cause you to start worrying, and you post something about it, especially anything that seems in the least inflammatory or wishy-washy... well, every time this happens, tempers flare, and the wolves come out of the woodwork to feast on the crippled victims. What I'm saying here is, do not worry. Do not whine, and do not give them a reason to eat you. This will all calm down in a week or two, and most of you will be posting away once more. Also, have I ever mentioned that people being mean and nasty toward one another makes me physically ill? There are some very frightened and insecure-feeling people out there. Be kind.
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by SeraphimSilence (webmistress@silent-oblivion.com)
on Jul 10, 2003 - 03:27 AM
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http://www.silent-oblivion.com
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Wow, comment interface has really really changed o-O;
Anyway. I commend Dev on the new look and the new input, (I think that sleep dep has me a little out of place on my words, so bear with me.) While I'm not entirely sure where I stand on the approved members list, I am trying to come up with new ideas for submissions to the site, work has kept me pretty busy, and my creative genious has been dragged into making journal layouts for people. Not to mention my own. As far as other things go, I'm in the middle of typing another chapter to The Porcelain Mask, it's just my collection of short stories I type, but it's been writer's block that's kept me from typing up what I want to say.
Keep up the good work Dev, and hopefully when my mind isn't gunking out I'll have something spiffy and shiny for you to juggle with. =P
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The Gloves are off!
by Shade (Shade@Gothcult.com)
on Jul 10, 2003 - 06:53 AM
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Wow, I'm sitting here at work, making a vague attempt to look like I'm doing anything worthy of a paycheck while I camp Shmeng and watch the comments come in and the thing I keep thinking is "the gloves are off, finally!" I remember the time when if someone said something stupid, Callei or Bettie would quietly cut them into little pieces, pick their favorite piece, and explain to that quivering chunk of flesh what they had done wrong. There was none of this worry about insecurity or people's felings, there was; quite simply, a sink or swim mentality.
The word "elitism" in it's many forms has been thrown around an awful lot lately. And the thing I keep coming back to is, when did that become a bad fucking word? Yeah the site is elitist, yeah the site is all about who can fit in with the elite crowd, yeah it's all about the cream floating to the top, and the rest being flushed. And to stave off any further prodding of the metaphor, the "floaters that I'm sure someone is going to ask about are fished out with a wire basket and chucked as soon as they are identified. Or at least that is the way it used to be.
There came a time when the site had grown to such proportions that a few of the "elite" had adopted pets if you will. Those who were showing so much potential that they were willing to ask the others to back down a bit and not turn them into so much wet pasta. The pets were nurtured, given a really miniscule amount of time to swim around in relative immunity, ad then set loose. At which point they too either sank or swam.
Nowhere is the saddest part. We actually have so many truely cool members now that confusion began to set in. The Elite had too many pets to keep track of and suddenly the pets had pets, and the elite were leaving alone the other people who should have been fricasseed, flambeed, roasted, toasted and turned into shredded beef for Bettie to turn her cute Vegan nose up at; all because they thought that person must have been someone's pet.
To return once again to the point that some of you might be missing. The trial by fire was very real, and out of it came some very strong, very cool people who have risen to top and have maintained their position there. In the last two days, I have seen a return to the old ways by Bettie and Callei that warms my heart and quite honestly puts alot of the sex appeal back into the site as well. The cries for tolerance and caring for our members are what brought this site to such depths that it needed a complete revamp and now is creating a hell of alot of work for the admins in terms of sweeping the remnants of someone else's party out the door.
It's been said better by a few of the other members, and best by Devin, so I'll just quote him "I made it for me and my people to play in. This is not a public park. You have no inherrant right to play here." This site is not an outreach program, it's not a social planner for the socially inept, it's not anything but what it is. And that is the coolest site around. And Smeng is the coolest site around because it used to, and I think, is again, run by the God, for God. The Elite get to play because this is in fact a popularity contest.
Goths bitch and moan about how the goth movement is all about equality and fair trade of ideas. This ain't a goth site. as a matter of fact, this isn't a site that can be defined by over generalization. That's part of what made it so marvelous. I have seen article that runthe range from political commentary that really made you think, to the weirdest questions i have ever been asked. I've seen and heard things that would make your skin crawl, and in the last few months. I've seen more slush pile posts, with more "hopefully they will improve" and more "Damn there was nothing else to post, but there are nearly a hundred articles waiting and this is the best of the lot" posts than i have seen quality. The response
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Re: Shmeng 2.0
by Arthegarn on Jul 14, 2003 - 12:45 PM
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Somewhat late has at least Arthegarn a little spare time to hail and praise Devin the Divine, blessed he be in all that he changes and all that he keeps, intone his particular mea culpa about the site's degradation and tell a little long boring story.
I hate the "You are right and I have little more to say" posts almost as much as I hate teen angst and/or WIG posts (though I think a little of the later can be fun and refreshing) but that's just what I want to say. The same thing has happened to several fori in which I used to write, specially to Cultura Gotica.
Cultura Gotica used to be a very special forum in Spnish. It was started by several friends of mine, with a MUCH worse layout than this. In the beginning there were a little more than a dozen or so of us, all of them extraordinary individuals, keen minds, sutile discoursers and careful, stylish writters. And all grownups, too, much like Shmeng was when I first arrived. And, guess what happened: before we knew, in a year or so, every goth in Madrid used to read Cultura Gotica. We had thousands of visits yet most of them were just lurkers, no one dared to post, and some of us found that a little annoying. We encouraged them to post, to give their oppinion, to join the debates. And that was the end of Cultura Gotica.
Before we knew some goth newbies started posting incredibly anodine stuff. They were not just the usual trolls shouting about their extremely painful lifes, their solitary adolescence, the unfairness of God, life and the world and so forth. No, some of them weren't even that interesting. they would talk about what they did last weekend, or copy/paste entire opinion articles and claim to be the authors, or even just repeat what some of the "elders" said with different words. We couldn't understand that attitude until we started hearing that almost everybody in Madrid knew about Cultura Gotica, and that it was a "must" to talk about the latest posts and opinions. More shocking to us was to know that some of us, who used to round up for drinks, were considered the cultural elite of the Scene (not that the reputation was unwarranted, of course, ehem, ehem) and that newbies just wanted to get close to us and kiss the proverbial borders of our mantles.
The debacle came, and this is what this is all about, when suddendly writting in that forum was a way to climb steps in the ladder of Madrid's gothic hierarchy. People started writting with absolutely nothing to say, our conversations and debates were lost in all that noise, and the shine of the grownups' wits was soon an exception amongst the cries of teenagers (of course some of these teenagers were 25-year-olds, if you get my meaning). Some people just stopped writting. Others tried to "redirect" Cultura Gotica to what it used to be.
We Spanish share something with Germans: a black fascist past. Germans, even with all their nazi past complex (one of these days I should post about that) at least haven't had a fascist government for over half a century. But I was born under Franco's regime. It's much more recent here, much more alive than it's in Germany and even though the regime was so MUCH milder, the nowadays results are the same: if you try to do ANYTHING that has to do with limiting someone else's freedom, even if it's just a call to self moderation, to responsibility, to ask people to think before theyt act, you are accused of being a fascist, you are reminded of the Internet's (alleged) absolute freedom of speech, thought and expression and in general put down with arguments that were obsolete 25 years ago and made up of the worse demagogy, but that no one who hasn't got a case of cucurbitacean genitality* would dare to oppose. The site administrators weren't strong enough, they weren't fast and decisive enough, they didn't dare to "cut by the healthy" the gangrene that was corrupting Cultura Gotica, and the forum faded slowly into what it is today: just another common thing.
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