Worst New Staff Member

All staff? I'm pretty sure that would be the entire membership excepting Faceman and Tasvir.

See, I think you're looking at it backwards. As you say up front, the large number isn't a problem. So what is there to gain by trimming it down?

As for the pros of a large mod team, a couple I see:

More people to help. Fixes that used to take weeks or even months, now get worked on almost immediately by one of the three tech admins. Backups are happening daily instead of yearly. Instead of every 3-6 months Shelter threads are released daily (when there are actually threads to release). A spammer filter that wouldn't be cleaned for months (keeping some potential new members out) is now cleaned daily. Mod actions like moving a thread posted in the wrong room, fixing a thread title etc that used to take hours or even a day for someone to get around to is now handled in minutes. When a spammer does make it through they get zapped quickly.

More diversity of opinion in the Shelter. Instead of the same people who have been mods forever we have a mix of experience and fresh ideas resulting in a wide range of opinions. This deep pool results in better decision making capabilities.

Less dependent on a few key staff. In the past, due to the small size of the staff and their huge role, certain people were able to do just about anything they wanted. The larger staff pool means that that kind of behavior doesn't have to be tolerated. If a staff member is habitually crossing a line they can be removed, no big deal. Conversely, people can quit at any time without worrying that the board will crumble.

I don't see why you don't just replace them all with Tamar.

OK. I gotta admit, I'm curious. Not curious enough to spend the 20 minutes or so it would take to figure it out but just how many people are on "staff"?

I see we generally have 10-17 posters online at any given time. And we've got 15 staffers that are new alone. How many staffers are there overall? Is this like Nazi Germany where everyone was reporting on everyone else?

Yes, it is exactly like Nazi Germany. For a while, I tried to tell myself that it was only a bit like the Weimar Republic under Emergency Governement, but ever since John started designing skins by request and Mrs A has been rearranging smileys, I think it has become obvious that full-blown national socialism is the only valid comparison.

Show me yoah paypahss!

KEEP TRYING!!

Please.

Volpone has jumped the shark. The cool RL guy behind the persona needs to retool.

Face, you should do a "Most thin-skinned new staff member" poll too. I suspect that would also be a horse race between Gul and Anc as well.

Speaking of thin skinned new staff members... Are you ever going to tell us why you had a hissy fit and quit being a staff member? I think that was you, wasn't it?

I remember when the staff was different and they were always preaching that we needed to be above acting like trolls and should be held to a higher standard but the minute they finally got control they suddenly embraced that staff should be like everyone else in the Red Room and happily troll and take shots at members whenever they like.

So quickly the worm turns!

You're saying this to Volpone.

I think I just figured out why I'm losing this poll