It is no secret I am anti-gutter - during my years on the staff, I was one of the loudest and most vocal opponents of the gutter (right, Mikey? lol).
When I got wind of the gutter being shut down, obviously my first reaction was about damn time. But a day or so later, it really began to bother me for some reason. So much so I've read this thread twice, start to finish.
When NS extended the offer to allow anyone into the gutter last time this came up, I took him up on that offer. I've read TBGTE and a smattering of random threads throughout the gutter. Is it the giant monstrosity I believed it to be? No, not really. Does it contain material that isn't for the faint of heart or those who wear their heart on their sleeve? Yes, absolutely. This is not necessarily a bad thing, mind you.
This begs the question: Is MTGS better with or without the gutter? Ultimately, though I don't believe the Gutter is as bad as its reputation paints it, MTGS is better off without the gutter than with it, for one very important reason: it is perpetually an "issue", be it real or imagined, for a lot of people. Whether it is real or imagined is irrelevant, because real or not, here we are yet again discussing this topic.
If this is the case (and I am going to pre-emptively ask everyone to not debate this point because it's a waste of our collective time), then why does this decision bother me? Better yet, why am I opposed to closing the gutter?
Ultimately, it is the timing which I find most bothersome, for a variety of reasons.
1. Since the previous gutter drama, we have had no gutter related drama, so this timing feels arbitrary. Every time this topic came up during my time on the staff it was in direct relation to SOMETHING happening re: gutter. This catalyst is missing.
2. The reasoning put forth by the staff is, frankly, garbage and there's no way around it. There are more pressing issues facing the site than the gutter vis a vis their proposed vision. We have RLA, which I don't need to explain. We have the NSFW writing section with a porn story being written. I hope I needn't explain why this is troublesome or why this should be addressed first.
3. Az hit on a point that I really want to re-iterate:
Quote from-It upsets me that the management of the site is disregarding the promise that past administrators wisely made to have conversations with the gutter, instead of issuing fiats and ultimatums.
This is key for me. What the senior staff is doing is essentially throwing the doctrine of stare decisis out the window, willy nilly, which is frightening. For those not familiar with this doctrine, allow me to summarise: It is a legal doctrine, unwritten, whereby judges are obligated to respect established precedent. Stare decisis et non quieta movere: "to stand by decisions and not disturb the undisturbed.
Yes, MTGS is not a court, but this doctrine easily applies outside the legal world. Here, we are seeing just that: the staff disturbing the undisturbed. You break stare decisis when the situation changes. Having an anti-gutter set of admins doesn't qualify as a "situation change".
The staff, regardless of their intention, is disturbing the undisturbed. The gutter has not made waves, and the previous administration agreed to a framework with the gutter. This administration has summarily shrugged this off.
I mentioned this was frightening - why? Simple: Because it sends, in no uncertain terms, that our admins have no qualms whatsoever disregarding past agreements that other administrations have orchestrated. If this, then what is next? That kind of uncertainty is unhealthy and will do nothing but have the laypeople continuously second guessing the staff.
The staff has a right to make changes - please do not assume I am insinuating otherwise. But when you make those changes, you are also obligated to show respect for past agreements, and if you are to terminate those agreements, you do so with rock solid justifications.
You do not have that here. No matter your intention, you simply do not have a rock solid justification.
This decision should be reversed.
You want to close the gutter? Fine. Do so when/if the gutter causes another drama episode on the forums. That would be your justification, and although people will complain, you have solid ground.
I will reiterate: This decision should be reversed.
note: its 3am, so if this doesn't make a hell of a lot of sense I apologise.
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"Whatever doesn't grow, dies. And what dies grows the tarmogoyf."
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I MD'ed 1 and boarded 1 in my t4 states list and the card is phenomenal - an absolute house in the mirror match.
There's sufficient fixing, so it certainly doesn't get in the way.
Being able to hold up answers (counters/charms/whatever) and drop EOT thragtusks/spheres/planeswalkers is simply absurd.
The fact it doesn't allow just one spell to be cast, but all spells for the rest of the turn, makes it that much more over the top.
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Or, you can look at it like cars. A really expensive new car will get you from point A to point B just like a much cheaper one, but it's nicer.