IS THE SYSTEM FLAWED?

Having joined in August of this year, I look upon myself as a “newbie” still and certainly haven’t been around long enough to understand, nor privy to any additional or special information that has enlightened me to the inner workings of the Sim.

I guess what I am trying to say is that at this point I really do not know why things are done the way they are or the history of evolution that the Sim has gone through and how much the “evils” of having to make a buck have played upon the rules of the game. In being a newbie, I find myself reading all I can in both the BTB and the forum and for the last few weeks have been following all the threads, and finding them very educational and most entertaining. What I have learned in the last two weeks, because of greed and petty jealousies, might have taken me months or years to figure out on my own and I am grateful. Plus I have never laughed so hard in my life.

But being basically an outsider still, I find the politics and the dynamics of the Sim very fascinating and I think in part, it is the complexity of the game and the diversity of people that keeps us all coming back and keeps it fresh. One thing I noticed was a common theme throughout many of the threads:  “the system is flawed.” My first thought was, what is new about that? Life is flawed, you better get used to it now and learn how to deal with it or you are going to wind up terribly disappointed. I understand that people interpret rules differently and that from time to time rules need to be changed or modified for the game to move forward. But it can and should be done without the emotional drama and the demonizing of people playing within the rules of the game. Even if it is not how you play or think others should play.

IS THE SYSTEM FLAWED? is a rhetorical question, because we all know it is. How can you make a big deal about the rules of 3-man and be OK with horses going into the record books having used bid/buy races at all?  Doesn’t that taint the “whole spirit of the sim” thing?  If you get down to it, I do not believe the bid/buy races were ever intended to be used as they are, regardless if that is how the company makes money.  I certainly have not read anywhere the company promoting this tool.  It is the community’s greed and people trying to gain some kind of an advantage that have stretched the rules to the limits and it isn’t just in here.  It is a problem all of society is trying to deal with right now. 

Should the rules be changed/modified is a question that I am not qualified to answer, just remember that more regulation of anything brings on problems of its own and I believe that whoever wrote the rules, wrote them vaguely the way they did, to add diversity to the game and to simplify inter-action with the game itself.  Personally I am just so grateful that the Sim exists, that if a person wants to buy his way into the record books and can feel good about it. So be it…So what if the system is flawed, because I am just happy to be here!!

TILL NEXT TIME…

HOPE TO SEE YOU AT THE RACES…