Sunday, May 27th, 2007
Issue: 25   Editor: Air


Corruption Part Deux fastfoodfranchise
I couldn't help but notice comments in a freelance article last issue that I feel were directly pointed at me, then again maybe that's just my famous ego talking again. Yes, I was one of the ones screaming corruption and I didn't see any "big names" backing me up so there is fault number one in that freelance. There were a small handful of average players saying it. None of US were particularly noteworthy. I will address other issues one by one.

Now, moving on to the heart of the matter. I will never deny Sabin and Air work incredibly hard. In fact, I even said as much in my FBF staff evaluations (still located in my profile). I gave 5litre a bit of grief in said column but several sources advised me he does a lot of other things. Keep in mind those evaluations were from a player standpoint, as are most things I post. Maybe he does do a lot more, if he doesn't want the grief then perhaps staff should explain their responsibilities, so the players can understand what staff does. Any way you look at it, staff performing as DJs on the radio, does take time away from them performing their job functions. And as hard as they work, there is still a lot to do.

The anonymous writer of that article said I should start my own game and then judge them. My rebuttal to that is maybe I will, but that won't change my opinion that staff should be working not playing. Should I have a game, I will not play unless all of my other responsibilities are caught up and the fact is there were a number of admin queue help desk tickets that needed to be answered and bugs to be addressed, therefore staff should not have been playing.

The next issue I have, is bootradio, which is fantastic, should be operated by the players, for the players. Sabin, Air, and 5litre are staff, not players. Staff already run most of the game and this unofficial feature should be a player feature NOT a staff one. For those that don't know what I am talking about, Bootleggers has an unofficial radio station found at www.bootradio.com. If the DJs are going to be 100% honest when voicing opinions, they should not have to worry about staff and by having Bootleggers staff on bootradio staff, it takes away from opportunities for other players to enjoy this feature, even if Sabin, Air and 5litre all do a great job on the station.

Finally, I come to the points issue. While I support the idea of giving away money and points on the station, they should be money and points donated by the Bootradio staff or the players. This was where I screamed corruption. Many players, like myself, purchase points with real money. If a staff member creates points, they should not be able to give them away on the station. Allegedly, the points they are giving away are points they purchased from playing the game, but there are also some that were acquired by selling casinos that were confiscated. Staff should not be able to sell confiscated property then turn around and give away their points. To me, this is the same as if they made the points, as they were originally acquired by the staff member while utilizing staff privileges. If Sabin, or another staff member acquires points the way any other player would, then I have no problem with their give aways. It would save much aggravation and accusations, whether true or false, if the staff member advised where the points being given come from.

The bottom line is yes, the staff works hard, but they need more accountability and should keep the average players, like myself, informed. I want to understand and support staff but when they hide things or don't inform players, then they are subject to assumptions and accusations. Just like any company, communication with your people is key. I hope this clears up my point of view.

Also, I would like to publicly apologize to Sabin for calling him out on an honest mistake. I should have informed him privately rather than attempting to make him look bad. Yes, the man I refer to as the great God and dictator, Sabin is human. He made a mistake. A mistake that any of us could have made and probably will make. The difference is I sunk to subhuman standards when addressing it and am now pulling myself back up and saying... I'm sorry Sabin. And to those that read what I say here, in FBF, or on the forums, remember it is not gospel. It my opinion, from a players standpoint, based on the information that I have at the time my comment is made. And for lack of a better closing, this is Franny Being Franny.