I started out on SHMBs in Houston on ASPD back in 2000
San Antonio barely had a presence.....
Dallas was the the land of WK Wusses....
Austin was.... Well ... Austin was wierd....
Maybe it was those early "board wars" that occurred during the "board splits".... But somewhere along the line Houston gained a reputation for being a "Tolerate no shit town"
It also seems to have spawned some legendary assholes (a term I use respectfully)
So lately, as anarchy sets in in other cities, the answer I've heard more than once for the changes is "The Houston Effect".....
It was suggested that the board was "too far gone" to be Moderated any more and that focus was being maintained on simple housekeeping and the enforcement of the "nuclear" rules.....
It kind of disappoints me to hear as one of the more entertaining aspects of controversial threads is watching the real masters of words gently nudge idiots over the edge and into territory that would get them edited, warned, pointed and banned.
Only to come back and whine about how evil those kind of posters are!
Now... Some areas definitely have MODs that are at the opposite end of the spectrum and only those that know how to stay within guidelines are able to get away with shit. Lots of mindless sheep out there that stay slapped when slapped down.... never thinking they may have the right to appeal the sanction imposed by the MOD that knows about as much about the guidelines as he/she did......
So if the "Houston Effect" is truly on the rise.....
I would like to hear from the masters...... and yes... even the minions should take the opportunity to whine a bit....
1) What do you see it as being?
2) Who pioneered it? When?
3) Who are the true Masters of Mayhem here?
4) Who do you feel walks the inter-highway of ECCIE with impunity?
5) Who takes it on the road and has infected other cities?
6) Where has it spread to? What areas are unaffected?
Personally...
I may have had a little to do with San Antonio losing their way.... I guess I was a "carrier" of "The Houston Effect" without knowing it and infected a few....I did live there a few years and participate in a few minor squabbles.....