I thought we were having a pretty reasonable intelligent conversation. I'm not sure where that is coming from, but whatever...
I was basically telling you the history of the board, and that if new members want to be treated well, they have a responsibility to do their own homework first. That includes reading the FAQ and using the Search function. Common courtesy goes more than one way. I tried to suggest that collectors shouldn't really care about the "value" of their collections... speculators do, but collectors shouldn't. Then I got a sob story about the BST forum.
As a new guy I did not understand the sub-culture of the board. Noone will until they jump in head first and start dealing with the people here and hitting the shows/events to put a face to the name and of course always maintain toy etiquette when trading or selling. I had a totally different view of this board when first joining because I lurked which I think is a problem. Lurking only allows a person to "scratch the surface" of the board because you dont have that personal contact in pm and such. I also didnt understand why people seemed so hostile, well its something these folks love and want to protect while maintaining its original undoctored intent. Contribute and dont be a jerky and your good. Type goofy things and ask allot of self answering questions or easy to find answers to said questions, and be prepared for the wrath. This is what I have learned at least.
Read and comprehend. I didn't say anything about common courtesy did I? My point was- If you cannot take some heat from some people on a toy messageboard and allow it to scare you away, that's pretty weak. Also in the back of my mind was- why change the selling requirements to support people who are too weak to realize they shouldn't buy from someone with 12 posts of "Nice custom." and "LOL OMFG"
I know the way the board started out and the culture that went with it. But quite a lot has changed since then. We've seen so many people who couldn't or didn't want to deal with the noobie hazing and overall vibe, so they just took off. Some new folks have come in and stayed, sure. But what I'm saying is, you want to be more supportive of new members, to grow the hobby, not prune it at the door. At the end of the day, that's a very good thing for the shops and e-stores that sell new kaiju. By fostering a more welcoming vibe here, I seriously think you could double or triple the size of the neo-kaiju collector base.
Very true and a sound point andy. But growing the fanbase reduces the available supply, of already limited toys, for the existing collectors. * like Loco said.
Great comment. This is a subversive hobby best enjoyed by subversive people. Maybe that is all one needs to understand. Let sensible, friendly Joe Average collect Coca Cola and Elvis memorabilia, and leave we Skullbrainers the hell alone. I think I am having a breakthrough here.
I understand limited release size has always been an underlying motivation for keeping new collectors away. I can't say I agree with the tactic fundamentally, but in any case, the landscape has changed over the last few years. For the most part, these toys are far less limited than they used to be, at least when it comes to releases by the "largest" neo-kaiju companies. A lot of the really limited stuff (Bemon, Anraku, etc) isn't widely sold outside of Japan anyway. At the end of the day, a community thrives by growing, not by discouraging new membership.
Oh brother! Can we form a hippie drum circle now? As it is, there have been a large number of "noobs" coming over from the KR board after each SDCC... all excited about something they saw, and have to buy up some insta-collection of Gargamel or RxH figures. We've seen it all before. They get all excited, drop stupid money on things they could get much cheaper if they were patient. It's not about encouraging or discouraging as a tactic on this board... the demeanor of the board has been consistent with a new wave of "oh let's be nicer to the noobs" sentiment every now and again. As it has been stated so many times I've lost count already: Noobs get bashed because they aren't reading the FAQs nor are they using the Search function and that is going to draw a negative reaction from the board regulars. There's no subversive plots. There's no ulterior motives. It's the same as it's ever been: People who are lazy or idiots get bashed. Give the conspiracy theories a rest, and just get a freaking clue. Oh boo hoo... let's turn this into something it's not.
You're already tipped your entire hand. Why do you continue pretending otherwise? This is all about keeping prices low and availability high for the toys that you want. Do you think that if you just keep repeating your same pathetic 'defense' of indefensible practices that they are suddenly valid? Newbs DON'T just get attacked for the things you say regardless of how many times you repeat this as Fact. You may only attack in certain circumstances, but you're not the only person who posts here.
Nice attitude LM. Just a few posts ago, you wrote, "Cuz it isn't hard enough getting the limited releases as it is?" I've read many posts over the years about people trying to keep the barbarians out of the gates. Elitist BS, if you ask me. The notion that the only reason new collectors are hazed is because they haven't read the FAQs is a crock. There are a number of people here who just thrive on finding things to hate about other people, and new members make the easiest targets. That's why they head for the door, not because of the cost of the toys. I know that's nothing new, and I'm not looking for a kumbaya moment, but the more you alienate new (as well long-time) members, the worse off things will be for the hobby as well as the stores trying to sell this stuff. I do think there is a correlation.
Oh you're onto us... the conspiracy is out in the open! What shall we do? No, I'm not saying that noobs don't JUST get attacked for what I've said, but for the most part it's true. The others are just idiots who post moronic conspiracy theories and then wonder why we don't take them seriously.
And you STILL don't understand sarcasm... but to a degree, the supply already doesn't meet demand. But your "we can double or triple" comment was nothing more than pure speculation based on nothing. Yeah, I'm the harshest person on the board, and I NEVER help new people out. Andy, the truth is that there are just some people who are just going to post moronic crap that's going to get them bashed regardless of whatever board they post on. You can think that's mean, but it's the truth. People on this board are under no obligation to be nice or patient. You've been pretty reasonable lately Andy, but if you're going to get all "us vs. them", then you're going off the deep end again.
I think it went something like this: I was a Fresh Meat once. I stuck around. Met cool people. Some people however. Are assholes. Are idiots. Are noobs. Are ALPS. And then there's the LB. We're all here for toys. But if you want to be part of the community, don't be stupid. Fuck it, I forgot what I was talking about.
