Let's stop talking and do something

[Baron Sengir]

I just recently sent an article for the front page. I hope you read it. It goes into a little more detail on my feelings than I'm gonna go into here.

I am here to admit a wrongdoing. I stopped coming here as often as I should. The CPA is the culmination of a lot of people's efforts but I feel particularly tied to it since I was the one to first rally the 'troops.' I feel like I have neglected a child of mine.

I am here to say that I want to take a more active role again. Weekly articles (actually weekly, too) and I want to be PR man again. That was the official title I had for the longest time and I wrote most if not all of the announcements we sent to the other sites. I want to be PR man again and if no one has any objections, I will gladly take that responsibility.

It is time for action. If we need something, by god, let's get it. If something needs to be done, by god, let's do it.

I advocate caution, however. I don't want the feel of the CPA to ever change. I will fight tooth and nail to prevent that. We have so much fun here and I don't want to see that killed by bureaucracy.

Basically, it's three in the morning and I am really having a lot of revalations as to my responsibilities as a founder and member of this organization. I, along with many of our m.i.a. founders, neglected my child but now I am back to make sure it grows up strong and healthy. I would very much like to resume my duties as Public Relations for the Casual Players Alliance. Please accept my apology for my absence. I assure you it wasn't from lack of interest.

Let's keep it going strong.

I remain
The Baron
"Colleges give out too damn much homework ..."

[Edited by Baron Sengir (04-15-2000 at 02:54 AM).]

 

[TomB]

ALL RIGHT!

The Baron's back!

WOO HOO!

<font size="2" color="#FF6000">* TomB sheds a tear of joy...</font>

Nothing can stop us now!

TomB
CPA Member

 

[Lady Re]

Greetings everyone,

I want to suggest a "CPA Sanctioning" program so we all can locally start a grassroots movement of casual games (not nessessarily tourements, but it could include such) where we pass along our love of Magic for just the love of it, and not to be part of Wizards free advertising and recruitment programs. (Like Guru and Friday Night Magic...) I happen to prefer an unbiased way to teach and share our favorite game then a program intended primarily to promote sales. Those of us with lots of cards (as in an excess) could even bring our extra commons and uncommons and either help newcommers make decks or even as I've seen suggested long ago in an artical, premake some decks from your extras, and give them away at these gatherings...

What say you all???

 

[Gizmo]

Lady Re:
"Casual Sanctioning" - isn`t that an oxymoron?
Do we really need to structure our casualness?

Personally I think I am, by a significant margin, the most tech-headed pro-oriented player using the CPA. But that doesn`t mean I don`t already do everything you say (re: helping beginners).
I happen to be good at the game, and so I happen to win a lot of cards I don`t need or want - I just stock them up until I meet somebody new getting into the game but struggling to trade for their third Giant Growth, then hand over 2000 commons there and then. In fact I was under the impression that was what everybody did - although maybe because I win all my cards it makes it easier for me to give so much away (I think I`m still basically in profit on Magic over the last two years, apart from the travel costs for PT:Rome).

I`m currently quite concerned, as almost an outsider to the CPA, by some of the attitudes people have been displaying recently. I personally think that the CPA has done a fine job and can basically be very happy with where it is and what it is doing. Refine what exists, fine - change is usually for the best because tradition is stagnation and death (I`m English so I can see the evidence of that everywhere I look in my decaying society) - but the CPA should not attempt to become some form of aggressive lobbying organisation which some people seem to want.

WotC DOES listen to it`s customers, but you won`t achieve anything by threatening them except to piss them off. The CPA should be, as Lady Re suggests, player-orientated, it should be a pick up point for non-tournament players, for people who want ideas that do not include four Cursed Scrolls. Just because I don`t need that service doesn`t mean I don`t see the how much one is required.

Hmm, that started out on topic, but drifted into a 'role of the CPA rant'. I think I`ll go and repeat it where it should go.

 

[Baron Sengir]

No no no Gizmo. You misunderstand. We won't threaten anyone. As far as the political side of the CPA goes, if there is an issue enough of our members feel strongly about, we will take a vote and let WotC know our opinion. Whether they choose to listen or not is up to them but I really hope they listen. We don't want to threaten them, we just want them to know how the average player might feel about something. There's strength in numbers.

I love the way the CPA is right now and I am not going to advocate anything that would change how this place feels. But there is no reason our original purpose cannot be worked in to this group.

I remain
The Baron
Freezing cold right now

 

[Gizmo]

I didn`t mean that was what you were advocating - but there has been some rather aggressive posturing from people in this 'role of the CPA' debate that is currently raging. The trouble is that it is in the very nature of democracy that power and influence will flow to the extremists with predetermined agendas whilst the majority remain silent.
I fear that the CPA risks becoming such an extremist group, and so destroys what credibility it has with WotC. I happen to know this respect is great because you don`t go throwing your weight around, and the WotC guys appreciate how conscious the CPA has been to avoid moving into direct lobbying.

 

[Baron Sengir]

I understand your concerns Gizmo, as they are my concerns as well. I want to find a way that the CPA can get its voice heard without resorting to becoming a military camp. I assure you, there will be no aggressive throwing of weight. We are a casual group. Those of us pushing for a return to the original mission of the CPA just want WotC to know how they feel. The CPA attitude will not change. I, for one, will not support anything that will change the feel of this group. We can let WotC know how we feel without screaming at them.

I remain
The Baron
A mosquito has just as much chance of getting noticed as an elephant.

 

[Apollo]

Lady Re:

First of all, this should probably have been a seperate topic. But other than that... Well, I would like to all get together and play (although you'd probably all hate me in person ), we all live quite a ways apart. Some of us are teens (myself, for example) or in school, and couldn't afford a trip across the country to meet a bunch of people we know only via a website.

Apollo

 

[Spiderman]

boy oh boy oh boy...

I have no idea if it actually applies to me, but since I pretty much brought up this whole thing I'll assume it does (if it doesn't, please ignore me or tell me):

First, I was merely wondering if the CPA was intending to stick to its original mission of actually telling WOTC its opinion about varying issues.

If not, that was fine. Just change the mission statement.

If so, I *merely* thought that perhaps something should be done to actually get to that point.

But not in an aggressive way. I envisioned it as merely taking a poll (do you think Dark Ritual should have been banned) and getting the results to WOTC ("54% of the CPA feels that the decision to ban Dark Ritual was &lt;blank&gt; (hasty? uninformed? I don't know) and we feel another look is needed to determine if it is actually necessary"). Something like that.

NOT what the Dojo put up: "you &lt;bleepity bleep bleeps&gt;, I can't believe you banned DR, what the &lt;bleep&gt; were you thinking, you &lt;bleeps&gt;"

Perhaps others felt more aggressive (personally, I haven't gotten that impression from ANYBODY). But all I was really advocating was taking a look at the CPA and evaluating its direction. Such a simple request...