Quote Originally Posted by Souku View Post
people need to realize that the council members aren't meant to be our representatives, because if they were then we would have been the ones to pick them through an election of some sort. they are just people that Sapience (and i assume others at Turbine) think will be useful for whatever purpose. if you aren't happy with who was chosen, don't take it out on the people who were picked for the council because it isn't their fault that they were picked.
I have a sneaking suspicion that it wouldn't have improved the situation if we had elected the council members. People would then claim that is was nothing more than a popularity contest. There might even have been some truth in that. Small groups with very specific interests would probably not be represented any better than they are now, since they wouldn't have enough voting power to carry the elections.

Given the choice, I would have selected the members similar to the way Turbine did. They appear to have made an honest attempt to choose a group of dedicated players representative of multiple, if not all, play styles. It makes no sense to apply some nefarious motive to the selection process. For one thing, even within a group of carefully chosen members, there are bound to be some wildcards; people who will put their foot down or spill the beans if things don't go the way Turbine has proposed them. That holds the real potential of turning into a PR nightmare.

Turbine is taking a chance by creating this council. Just the fact that they have done so has placed their own feet to the fire in many respects. It only makes sense that they would do this if they truly believe the potential benefits outweigh the potential pitfalls and expense. And, the only way that could be true is if the council turns out to be what Turbine purports it to be -- an honest attempt to improve relations with the playing community by allowing us to be heard, and as a way to garner concrete, timely, and useful feedback from the players that can be used in directing future development.

That's my take.

IMHO