Thread: A statement on recent and past events

There's been a lot of confusion around our removal from BMG and many Staff are also unaware of the series of events that have led to this.
We do not know the full extent of the accusations levied at us. They have not been shared with us in the interest of protecting the reporters/victims, and I respect that. However, it also means that we are unable to accurately assess our own guilt or innocence in any of the specific issues.

This statement comes from the best of my knowledge on the matter. I know my name comes up frequently in the reports made and I am aware of some of my own guilt.

In my very early days of URPG, I engaged in behaviour that was crude and hurtful towards another member and was classified as sexual harassment. I received an infraction on the BMG Forums. I was not banned from URPG for this and I won't comment on if this was the right decision or not. There were others who were guilty and we were all punished in the same manner. Out of all of us, though, I am the one still here and the one that has gone the furthest. I was later promoted and gained prominence in URPG to end up where I am today - hopefully on the merits of my work and contributions, but it appears to be the opinion that this was done without correctly factoring in my negatives and transgressions. I believe this is one point of contention regarding the failures of URPG Staff, which I also cannot comment on. There have been times when I tactlessly made fun of the fact that I received this infraction, further hurting the member. When I realised the effect my conduct was having, I apologised and ceased doing so, to the best of my ability. I do not dispute any of this and I am sorry for it.

I have been led to believe there are also reports of other, recent events for which I am allegedly guilty. I do not know what these events are, or who may have been hurt by something stupid or tactless that I have said or done.
I can't plead guilt or innocence, I do not know the context, but I am sincerely sorry to anyone I have hurt. It pains me to think that people have been hurt while I remained blissfully ignorant that my actions may have been causing harm. I wish I could give personal apologies, but whoever these people are, I respect your right for anonymity.

I'm a bit of a ****head, I’m sarcastic, and I tend towards a crude NSFW-ish sense of humour. I'm sure you're all aware of that. For a long time I too have been aware of my faults, and I always aim to keep that in check with the help of other mods calling me out on any particular comment as we would for other members. I slip up from time to time. We’re all normal people.

This is a list of other events that I am aware of which have occurred in URPG's history while on BMG relating to sexual harassment, and my knowledge of how we have responded:

- The "revenge porn" incident listed, I believe refers to LS sharing pictures of Alaska. LS was banned from the URPG.
- MaverickKaiser was reported for harassing multiple, underage members and writing explicit fanfics involving himself and these members. He was banned.
- A member named GraylingMurdoch joined URPG, for which we found compelling evidence that he was facing court charges for inappropriate conduct towards minors. He was banned.

Recently, there's been a few other issues in our community ranging from hostile rivalries to toxic hate for other members, and Harry has made a statement on these issues here:
http://forums.petalburgwoods.com/sho...l=1#post132031

As URPG’s Second, I have invested a lot into this game. I’ve spent a lot of time and effort acting as a problem solver and a mediator. Listening to people and finding compromises. Trying to ease and repair hurt feelings. I often grant people the benefit of the doubt based on the belief that their actions were made with the best intentions for URPG. In retrospect, I sometimes wonder if this benefit was given too willingly and I’m unsure if that counts as my failure or theirs. Certainly, people have and are criticising our handling of some matters – all I can say is that we acted how we believed was right and fair. The one accusation I believe is baseless is one of favouritism.

I don’t excuse the mistakes I made in the past. I don’t know what mistakes I may have made recently. What I will defend - my decisions as Head Ref and Second were all made with the best intentions for URPG and its members. I will continue to do my best to support, lead, rebuild and move this community forward while you, our members, still wish to have me do so.