TMO's Take On TSM

[Guest The Mysterious One]

This is my last article for TSM. And for it I'm going to Post an Interview with Dames the man who saved this Forum after it was abandoned by Scoot Keith and his bunch of losers.

 

Damian Gonzalez (Sorry if i spelled that wrong) is the man we all owe big time for this board. Awhile ago I did an interview with him. here in it's entirety it is:

 

I don't mind answering any questions at all. Hell, I'll even do a full interview if you ever feel like it.

 

I joined the old Smarks EZBoard in February of 2002 after lurking for a while and reading too much into Indigo Pleasure's fascination with porn. I didn't post often, but when I did, I used an old "gimmick" of mine where I'd always sign "Dames - *something funny related to the subject*". It didn't get over as much as I'd liked.

 

Shortly after, we became the Ikonboard and I still wasn't posting too much. I assume that was around the time that everyone split and formed WDI, but I probably have my timetable wrong which is funny considering how many times I've heard the story.

 

Not too far after that, I'd say in April or so I had started to post a lot more, yet wasn't well known. Then one day, Scott Keith had apparently decided that TheSmarks was going to merge with 411 and the old SmarkBoard would be left operational until the server stopped receiving payment...and the clock was ticking. A few of us, such as myself, Goodhelmet, Popick and Mike The Admin had decided that we were going to do something about it. We had a meeting and decided to make our own site.

 

Around that time, I had spoke one on one with the Admin and it came up that I was previously a mod at Wrestling Talks and I was asking him about some of the features that the board had. He started describing something to me and I couldn't access it being a regular member. All of a sudden, I was given the Super Moderator title, without my knowledge, by the Admin. That's when all hell had broken loose.

 

See, back when it was still TheSmarks, Cubano (Jay Bower) had appointed a few mods and had a vote for another, which Bps21 won. They were all considered regular moderators at the time so to see someone relatively new and un-ESTABLISHED~! jump to Super Mod status was probably a swift kick in the balls and they were upset and rightfully so. Jay Bower took it as a personal insult, raised all of the other mods to SUPER Mod status to "combat" my promotion and IMed me over instant messenger. He took me to task for a few minutes before I could even get a word in, at which point, I told him that I never asked for it and that I wasn't trying to cause the board any damage whatsoever. After shootin' the shit for a while, it came across as if he saw my point and we were cool after that. We still chat regularly as friends.

 

Funny side note to that story...an offshoot comment by Jay to the admin made the admin think that Jay was no longer associated with the board and took away his mod powers completely and reduced everyone (but me) to regular moderator status. Of course, being the only Super Mod left...I was blamed. Thankfully, that was taken care of rather quickly with me restoring Jay's powers and everyone elses.

 

It wasn't until about maybe a month or so later that the actual site came to fruition. We couldn't decide on a name and although we had originally chosen Vanilla Midgets, when it was time to register, the domain had already been taken. No one was willing to make a decision so because we didn't want to push back the site launch, I made a spur of the moment decision to go ahead with the number two choice, TheSmartMarks.com, purchasing the domain. Popick provided the first payment of the server because I didn't have the money at the time. The Admin then informed me of an upgrade to InVision and wanted to show me all of the cool features....so he made me an Admin. Now THAT got me some heat.

 

Started in February, Super Mod by April, Forums Admin by May/June. I'm the Kurt Angle of the SmartMarks Board.

 

A little bit after, Jay Bower quit his position as a mod of his own will. I wish he would have stayed, but he felt as if the board was moving on without him. He's always welcome here and is one of the few guys I'd make a mod without breaking a sweat.

 

There was a brief power struggle as Popick felt that he should be the "leader" of the board. A little bit after that, the OAOAST was born and took most of Popick's attention and I was basically made defacto head of TSM, even though I was already paying for the server monthly.

 

Goodhelmet (William Helmick) was my right hand man, so to speak, in terms of site content as I was a very young writer and I didn't really know what I was doing. Seriously....if you read my earlier PPV reports for say...Judgment Day or King of the Ring, they're GARBAGE. He really helped me develop as a writer and helped me grab the reigns.

 

In terms of the board, I didn't want to make a big shake up so I decided to keep all of the old mods and since none of them abused their Super Mod powers, I felt that they were responsible enough to keep them.

 

Since then, I've tried to help this place grow and keep it fun, bringing back the Flaming Folder and others that were deleted during the reign of SK. I hope I've done a good job of it. It seems as if I was thrown into this situation but to be honest, I took charge when no one really made a big effort to. Bottom line is that I didn't want to see the board die and I did whatever I had to do to make sure it didn't.

 

I know I've made mistakes and I'll probably make mistakes in the future but I'm man enough to own up to them and always ask for help.

 

As for the rules of the board, I KEEP ON Procrastinating with writing out an official policy statement. That's the one thing I regret. Basically, there aren't many rules but there are some that come to mind.

 

1. No Trolls Allowed. When I first got here, BradshawTheHoss took WAY too long to get banned....Trolls are done with quick and swiftly now. EXCESSIVE Spamming is considered trolling in my book.

 

2. No Nudity on the site. I know there was a porno folder at one point but I try to keep the viewer in mind. You can link to it, but I wouldn't want pics because of a few reasons. People sometimes access the board at work. Sometimes, parents or impressionable children are around and I wouldn't want them to be exposed to it and think that TSM was a "dirty" site.

 

3. No Bigotry or Racism. I don't care if its in NHB, I think this is just a fundamental rule. It had nothing to do with the fact that I'm a minority or whatnot, it's just something that won't be tolerated here.

 

4. Flaming. Keep it at a minimum in the regular folders. If you feel that it's going to reach serious levels, take it to NHB. Excessive flaming will grant you a warning first, a ban the second time.

 

5. Banning. If you're banned, you can't come back. If you do and we find out, automatic ban. Idiots like The Brain and Smarkzone have made this rule what it is today.

 

6. OBEY THE MODS. ALL of the global mods here are very fair, objective people who don't make hasty decisions, regardless of what people have claimed in the past. I'll defend them til the boards death, unless given a reason otherwise. That's not to say that they have a free pass, but more likely than not, they'll show the proper judgment. If you have a problem, go to one of them. Myself and Areacode (Webmaster) are Admins and you can also come to us for any questions and/or mod related requests but it would be best to approach a mod first.

 

As for a list of banned names, TMO....that would open up another huge can of worms that I'd rather not deal with.

 

That's basically my story. Hope it did something for you. It made me cry.

 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Dames I want to thank you for Saving The Smart Marks. Now after TheSmarkls.com is dead we are still around and prospering. And it's thanks to you. No one else could have run this place with as much style or class.

 

I may be leaving now But when/if I return I know you'll still be running things and TSM will be bigger than ever.

 

I want to thank not Only Dames but Popick (Yes we kow you saved the forum), Goodhelmet you've done a great job, and all the mods and admins.

 

 

Without all of you this place wouldn't even be here.

 

 

Thank you.

[Guest goodhelmet]

we'll miss you CWM...er TMO...

 

i have always maintained that cobainwasmurdered was one of my favorite screennames, not necessarily because i believe it, but that someone still has the conviction ten years after the fact to not let it rest.

 

as for dames, maybe you should pin these rules to the top of the board or somewhere so there is a clearly defined set of rules that people can refer to without having to search for this thread. oh, thanks for the props.

 

peace!

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

bah. goodhelmet is a fae better name.

[Guest Texas Small Arms 09]

CWM - You are one of my favorites. You knew when to joke around and when to be serious. In the middle of all the flirting (and you did) you are a sweet guy and by far one of the most remembered names on TSM. Your take no shit attitude and your drive to be the best on the board is what made you stand out. You spoke what was on your mind and you have had my back. I thank you for that and I thank you for being such a great guy. With this new adventure I hope you succeed and I hope it brings you all the happiness. There will always be a spot here at TSM for you. No one will ever be able to fill your spot, or your love of the "Ban Agnes" pleads. You have craved your niche here at TSM and you will be missed. If and when you do return, I'm sure you'll pick up right where you left off. Enjoy your new endevour and I wish you the best of luck.

 

Jennifer

 

Just to let you know, you do get the 10 beer salute as well

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

thank you TSA. I love you too!

 

*most definetly a non-ghey hug*

[Guest Texas Small Arms 09]

You hugging me would definately be non-ghey, you would just have to watch your hands

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

I'd watch them yes. But not as you think

[Guest Texas Small Arms 09]

Oh I'm sure your hands would wander all over.....and I know you wouldn't give a damn

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

I'd care

[Guest Texas Small Arms 09]

Yes but would you do anything about it?

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

yes but what I'd do is not what you'd think

[Guest BRUCE]

This is nothing more then ass kissing garbage.

 

Thanks for wasting the 3 minutes of my life I could have used drinking a beer.

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

This is nothing more then ass kissing garbage.

 

Thanks for wasting the 3 minutes of my life I could have used drinking a beer.

Look you fucking peice of shit it's not asskissing since I'm FUCKING LEAVING. Dames is all i said he is and more.

 

If you're gonna bash this you should just fucking leave now

[Guest Texas Small Arms 09]

He could have been talking about us

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

fuck him anyway. He's a god damn fucking peice of shit

[Guest BRUCE]

Actualy you are both right. I wasn't bashing the site. I was bashing the ass kissing mentality of this thread.

[Guest Texas Small Arms 09]

Well since he is leaving tomorrow and he is a loved poster we'll do whatever the fuck we want to and if your ass doesn't like it, then you can get the fuck out

[Guest BRUCE]

Well since he is leaving tomorrow and he is a loved poster we'll do whatever the fuck we want to and if your ass doesn't like it, then you can get the fuck out

Did I ever say that you couldn't do what you wanted?

 

No I didn't. All I did was say there was alot of kissing ass going on in this thread.

 

This is an open forum, isn't it? That means I can state my opinion. My opinion is that there is almost enough ass kissing in this thread to constitute salad tossing.

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

well so what? we do what we want

[Guest EI Cubano]

A little bit after, Jay Bower quit his position as a mod of his own will. I wish he would have stayed, but he felt as if the board was moving on without him. He's always welcome here and is one of the few guys I'd make a mod without breaking a sweat.

 

It wasn't that I thought the site was moving on without me, it was that I figured you would be best off without a Smarks admin seeing as though you were trying to bust out as a non Smarks entity of your own, I didn't want to hold anyone down or keep any strings remaining attached to the old Smarks. Thanks for the nod though, I appreciate it, you guys certianly have gone on to create one hell of a cool thing over here.

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

JAY! You fucking 0wn good sir.