Good one, Ben
Originally posted by Ben Frain
1--Whether you like it or not, despite the words of 'fairness' and 'discussion' the actions here say 'sellout'. Articles in PGI speak of 'gun cheats' - not 'gun enhancers' - be man enough to swallow the whole pill. If you have no problem with gun cheats, and want the revenue from their promotion here then endorse them. But you can't blur the lines when it suits you and expect no one to be a little shocked.
2--This is a purpose built 'cheat' chip, regardless of it's possible use for legitimate reasons. It is being advertised on a tournament paintball site, the majority of the active posters here play in tournaments. The majority of tournaments around the globe are semi-auto affairs. Draw your own conclusions as to just how valid an argument that is.
3--I also think the seperation of PGI from p8ntballer, whilst valid to a degree (from your point of view) is not seen by your customers. I consider these forums the 'live' discussion area of the publication and the areas it reports upon. It even says PGI online at the top - what are we supposed to think?
4--Furthermore, every top end electro out there can ramp like a mofo straight out of the tin (no add on chips/software required). Timmy's DM4's Angels etc etc. They can and do all do it. The manufacturers know this. We know this - so why do we need a chip that does the same? We all know why, because it will let you get it past the chrono judges undetected.
5--Mods - what do you think? Do you care about gun cheats or not? Let's have an answer yes or no.
6--What you say DOES matter - stop shirking your moral responsibility.
Merry Christmas 
1--couple of points here. 'Gun cheats' is a semantic, catch-all for the variety of ways markers are modified or set-up to circumvent tourney rules. The situation vis-a-vis P8ntballer and the Advantage ad only reek of sellout if the issue in question is a moral or ethical one and that having made one decision, a separate course of action is taken contrary to that decision. In which case you would be correct and Furb's use of hypocrisy in this instance would be justified. But I don't think you can make that application in this context. (Btw, it isn't my purpose here to support PGI, do or die. I'm simply offering my opinions on the subject.)
Re: articles in PGI. I think you will find the one I was responsible for served the purpose of informing the general PB public of the nature and, in my view, hazards of gun cheats to the health and future of PB as sport. In that you can certainly infer I have problems with gun cheats generally--and I do. The article's adjunct interviews offered the opinions of well-known PB figures when asked some fairly direct and pointed questions relevant to the issue.
Now tell me if that provided a positive service to the readers or not?
Further when I have written about them in a different context it's very apparent what my perception of the issues are.
The point is I was careful how I presented the article cus it's purpose was different than the purpose one of my rants is aimed at.
In every instance my goal is always to provoke the reader into thinking seriously about one PB issue or another--not to tell them what to think. In the process it's usually clear what my views are.
If your point is that it potentially sends a mixed message then that's a fair call worthy of consideration and that's why I distinguished between the website and the mag. Here, the communication runs two ways and there is ample opportunity to do precisely what we're doing now, debating the issue. The mag on the other hand is simply "out there" and on that basis I would likely give the ad a pass. That is, of course, easy for me to say as I'm not responsible for the "health" of the magazine which opens a whole separate but related moral consideration as to which duty takes precidence to those who are responsible.
2--I will grant you that argument if you are prepared to apply it across the board and accept the ramifications. It's easy to draw a line at the Advantage board but less easy when it comes to top end guns. Are you prepared to give yours up? Or Dale his Angel? It's plain to me the manufacturers produce guns with the broad parameters for settings available to fascilitate players using them in illegal operating modes so mustn't they go too?
3--fair enough. I've always viewed it differently and acted accordingly. As to what you're supposed to think you're not "supposed" to think anything--you are free to draw whatever conclusions you want.
4--so are you drawing the right vs. wrong line at the effort to defy detection or at the used purposefully to cheat the game line? If the issue is "cheating" then the distinction between a top end gun misused and the Advantage board is merely one of degree--both are equally wrong, aren't they?
And why is it that the magazine should be viewed as some monolithic single entity when it plainly isn't? Must the magazine have a moral code that everyone involved must adher to? I know it's easy to demand a black or white view of emotionally weighted issues like gun cheats but a PGI practicing a PB version of PC isn't the answer. Seriously.
5--Of course I care about gun cheats but that's not the same context you are trying to demand of PGI.
6--The bottom line is I think there is a substantive and important difference between personal and corporate morality. (And by corporate I don't mean a business, I mean a collective as in staff, writers, etc.) The former I believe in whole-heartedly, the later is an absurdity on many levels.
And the only hypocrisy would be in ranting against the evil of gun cheats and then using them yourself.
One of the real virtues of PGI is that I am given both the opportunity and the freedom to say whatever I want without censure. On the boards this applies to the rest of y'all (except in rare instances where moderation is called for or anything Kyle posts) as well. That is a far greater good in my estimation than any perceived moral high ground the mag might take in the eyes of some.
