Starting a Revolution

I posted this over at Special Ops, but I have a blog and I'm not afraid to abuse it. So, I post it here too. It's a direct response to the PSP announcement, as seen in the last blog post.

My theory for this is simple. The banning of teams and players is a knee-jerk reaction to what happened. I also believe that it's a reaction that happened because it hit PSP in the wallet, and for no other reason. MANY years ago the All Americans sprayed paint all over a stucko wall at a hotel, and the league at the time didn't bat an eye.

However, we not have a situation that's requiring action becasue it threatens a lot of players. If Marriott does indeed decide to blacklist all paintball players, the ramificaitons are pretty severe. People have recomended we write to Marriott as players and tell them we're not all like that. The letter-writing campaign to Marriott is a good one, as it tells them that most of us are not going to repeat that performance.

I also believe that this is a good time to talk to the powers-that-be in paintball, and express our outrage. It may fall on deaf ears, it may start a movement in the sport. There's no way to know other than to tell people what we do not like what we see. Many people asked me "What can I do?" You can be heard.

One of the ways to prevent this kind of behavior is to have the teams sign what's called a "Code of Conduct". It's a legal doccument that outlines behavior that is expected from the people that sign it. A good code of conduct will outline behavior that is not acceptable (trashing a hotel room) and the expected punishments that the league will give to teams and individuals who break the code. This can include things like fines, manditory sit-outs at events and even banishment from the league.

This way, a player and their team can not say "You never told me that." As the paper is in writing, with their signature on it, they can not use ignorance as a defense. PLUS it shows people outside of paintball that the sport is serious about how it's players act off the field, as well as on it. Believe it or not, all major sporting teams have codes of conduct worked into the contracts of the players.

This is the letter I wrote up to send to the people at PSP, NPPL, and sponsors of teams and events.

--- begin ---

To: Paintball Sports Promotions, NPPL Super-7, sponsors and promoters of these events
From: (Your name here)

Dear Sirs,

I am writing to you today in response to the recent incidents of the Paintball Sports Promotions event, the 2006 PSP Texas Open. I applaud the actions taken by the PSP thus far in publicly condemning the players responsible.

However, it is also obvious that this is a "band-aid cure" to solve the immediate problem and not create a long term solution. Even with banishments and suspensions, there is nothing in writing that says the players know the league, or sponsors, will not tolerate these type of actions. The behavior seen at 2006 PSP Texas Open can, and more than likely will, happen again.

I write this e-mail to urge the PSP, NPPL and major team sponsors to adopt a written code of conduct that can be used to tangibly punish teams that act in a way that reflects badly on the sport. Other professional sports require their players to sign similar "codes of conduct", so there is precedent for this type of action. This code needs to be separate from the official rules, and handed by a separate body than the rules committee. Items covered by the code of conduct should range from on-field behavior to off-field decorum.

This kind of document would provide the league and companies that sponsor them a solid method of punishing players who perform the acts as seen at the 2006 PSP Texas Open. Having a written, and signed, code of conduct would also be a first step in mending relationships with larger corporations as it would show a level of commitment from the players and the tournament series to clean up the sport.

As a paintball player, I urge you to take this one small step in legitimizing the sport of paintball.

Thank you for your time,

(Your REAL name)

--- end ---

Now, the fun part. Who do you send it to? Let me say this first. DO NOT MAILBOMB!!!! One copy to each person / company will get the point across. This is NOT a harrassment campaign, this is the players telling the industry "We want to see action." Another point, do not send it to a personal address. So sending it to "Bill@whoever.wha" is not good, but sending it to "media@whoever.wha" is good. The reason is basic, the right people will see these things if you send them to the right place.

First, take the letter above and copy it to a text editor of your choice. put YOUR REAL NAME at the bottom and top. NOT your nickname, but the name you were born with. If you wish to add your own comments to it you can but be respectful. Nothing will get your e-mail deleted faster than profanity.

Now go to the PSP website, and fill out their form. It's annoying, yes, but it's also the best way to get them mail. If the web page won't load for some reason, wait a while and try again. Make sure you put in your e-mail and name in the top as well, and that the topic is "Suggestions".

Next, open your e-mail client. If you want to save time add multiple addresses to the letterhead. I also reccomend using the "BCC", or "blind carbon copy", feature. The reason is it looks cleaner, and it doesn't create problems when they reply to you.

Here are the best e-mail addresses to send this to :

NPPL Rules : Rules@nppl.tv
NPPL Sponsors : info@kingman.com, sales@wdp.tv, chronicman@zappaintball.com, customerservice@severepaintball.com, techsupport@pminetwork.com, HR@nationalpaintball.com
PSP Sponsors : empire@empirepaintball.com, sponsorship@smartparts.com, sponsorships@dyeprecision.com, odile@adrenalinegames.com

Still need to find : Tippmann, Draxxus, Eclipse. The DYE E-mail may not work, I'll look for a better one. Of note, NPPL & PSP share some sponsors, so overlap has been ignored for the sake of this e-mailing. I also did not include ALL the sponsors of the PSP or NPPL series, as many of them are one-product sponsors or "Offical whatever" sponsors. I'm choosing the MAJOR sponsors. As above, copy & paste the letter and send it to the e-mail addresses above. I titled mine "PSP / NPPL players code of conduct".

I want to repeat this. ONE LETTER per person is more than enough to get the point across. DO NOT send multiple copies of this letter to these people!

Now, what's the overall goal? We want to say to the "powers that be" that we would like to see them hold their players (through promotions or through sponsorship) accountable for their actions with a legal document. It's a very real possibility that they will ignore this. In that case, there's really not a lot else we can do but move on from there. Hopefully, they will listen.

Some time ago people asked me what theye can do to make paintball better, or to fix what's wrong with the game. Now it's time to do something. Be heard. And if they won't listen, we'll go from that point.

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