I appreciate the idea behind this thread but am opting to shut it down because literally nothing productive can come out of people who actually enjoy their time here fighting with someone who doesn't. I realize there are many problems and things to be improved on, but this thread itself isn't going to get us anywhere.

However, I will briefly respond to some of the comments because that's what I do.

1) It's important to remember the importance of moving to PokeCheats beyond just drawing old members from PokeCheats. Honestly, if one had looked at the site prior to the merger, it would be immediately evident that there was not a large active community to draw in. However, be moving we gain access to an already established site, consolidate the things Garth has to keep track of, move away from the outdated SuperSkarmory image, and revitalize the forums by getting a fresh start. Things have slowed down somewhat from the initial boom but this can be attributed to school starting up and many basic get-to-know-you threads being created already. The community as a whole IS more active than prior to the move, however.

2) Sticking to one topic obviously works for some places, but one of the nice thing about PokeCheats (and formerly SS.net) is that the community itself consists of people with a variety of interests. Many people on the internet don't JUST like Pokemon or JUST like anime and are able to discuss their varied interests and lives in a fairly safe environment with like-minded peeps. I believe that this is invaluable to the people who do appreciate it, though it obviously may not appeal to everyone (which nothing REALLY can).

3) I actually do go through and look at all new users just to verify if they're bots whenever possible. I'd say I ban about 50% of new membership, but this is not represented in the numbers. One of the unfortunate things about the merger is that there are TONS of inactive accounts that existed prior to the merger that would be near impossible to go through manually. It would be possible to create some sort of program that would go through and eliminate all users fitting certain criteria, but doing so doesn't particularly benefit anyone and really just puts more work on Garth. Additionally, we gain nothing from setting up unnecessary hoops for people to go through to become part of the community.

4) I get that it's very easy to say that there's a limited number of people active on the forums from the staff, but it's important to also remember that a lot more goes on that isn't visible. Most reddits and forums are NOT primarily staff involved, with the user base making the significant majority of posts and the staff working on moderating and doing stuff behind the scenes. Although there are arguably a few staff members who do less work than others, everyone contributes in some way and has been kept for a reason. Reducing our numbers really does nothing except for create potentially bitter people who won't want to be involved anymore.

5) We do have rules??? Although we may not be constantly running through people's posts and deleting each singular one that maybe isn't worthy of post count or points, we do attempt to our best extent to keep a watchful eye for anything that may be destructive or harmful. If people do not report when things are offensive to them or hurtful (WITH THE PROPER REPORT FUNCTION), then there's usually little need to go in and intervene. We trust the small but steady community to self-regulate to an extent and to avoid really toxic behavior. Were I to see something really awful, I have and would take action against it in whatever form I saw necessary.

6) You're not in exile, but no one is forcing you to be a part of our forums either. If you want to go enjoy that DBZ forums, awesome! We're happy you've found someplace you enjoy. However, there is no place here for people that hate being here. Hate is contagious and horrible, and just as there's no use in insulting a person you hardly know about all of the flaws you find so horrific, there is no need to casually walk in and **** on the forums. We're constantly attempting to improve, with the home page slowly (thanks to Zach) becoming a decent source of information, and with things like the RP and Mafia being revitalized thanks to some supa cool members. If you do not enjoy your time here, you do not have to come, but do not take out your dislike of the forums by continually returning and turning against the members. We will continue to improve, and if our speed or changes don't fit your taste, then I'm sorry. I hope you find somewhere that you do enjoy.