Topic on Talk:TV Tropes
I've read through all the edits so far, and I have no quibbles with any of them, save for one -- the second point under "Stop Having Fun" Guys regarding the tropers patrolling Made of Win for things to delete. I would like to see that retained. I also wanted to inquire about Umbire's edit of 11:35 this date -- the edit reason mentions moving entries to Trivia, but I see no such move. Was that a note about something you changed your mind on? Or is the new page simply still awaiting creation?
Now that that's done, I will admit here as I have elsewhere that I am responsible, at least in part, for any venom in this and any other articles referencing TVT. As I've told the other mods in our off-wiki discussion area, I hold grudges -- more than that, I treasure them, and clasp them tightly to my breast and nurture them for years, sometimes decades. That said, I was at the time of the 2GI the oldest continuous user of the site (and an ex-staff member); the claim was made around that time that I was the closest thing TVT had to an elder statesman. However by that point, Fighteer had already told me I was a "troublemaker" just because I objected to a change in ... something, I can't remember what at this late date, only that it was in my opinion a troubling departure from TVT's earlier values. For my part, I made it clear at the same time I viewed him as a jumped-up Johnny-come-lately. <grin> (And may I note that I remain amazed that he was never kicked from the wiki by the new owners for the legal hole he put it in with his ignorance of copyright law? In the nearly forty years I've been employed, a mistake like that would have gotten anyone fired with prejudice by any of my employers.)
Anyway, I saw the response of Fast Eddie and the staff to the 2GI as a combination of unbridled prudery and crass money-grubbing that betrayed what the site was originally about. Feddie made it clear that the wiki wasn't a community, but a money engine benefiting him and only him, and the users were the galley slaves who enriched him. And anyone who threatened his cash flow was to be ejected, wailing, into the outer darkness.
I took this all as a very personal betrayal, and that's fueled a lot of my vitriol against the site and Feddie himself over the years. (I understand that in return Feddie had some kind of personal hate-on for me, although I never found out why. Maybe because ATT was basically born in my forums, and it threatened to take away some of the captive userbase who made money for him?) It's also driven me to a few... interesting actions off ATT, including hinting to fellow members of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America that TVT was actively hostile to creators who didn't toe their line and suggesting they not only stay far away, but they let other creators know about it; and also planning an (as-yet unwritten) novel just so a No Celebrities Were Harmed version of Feddie could be used as a blatant Hate Sink.
Anyway, I wanted to explain a little and apologize for any bias I've injected into the wiki regarding TVT. I will do my best in the future to resist my urge to sling further Take Thats at them.