[quote=vancexentan] Yes some people have bigger issues broken bones (like the girl's sister who pm'd me on the other site I wished her sister a good recovery and understood why she couldn't continue), bigger seizures than my own, or what have you. But the topic on my post that seems to rile people up is that I'm expecting to much from people. I'm not really asking more than what I'd do for anyone else personally. If someone doesn't post in a week and is in the hospital then so be it. Maybe they'd need to drop everything to recover. [b]I'm fine with that as long as I get a notification from someone or the player wasn't in an important spot.[/b] If they can't do so so be it. Tell me in later that you were in said hospital and I'll apologize readily for whatever and take you off said shit list mentioned above and if possible allow you to keep playing. It happens. I'd gladly ask one of my pals or family members that I injured myself in some way shape or form, that's if I was in some sort of state that would allow me to do so, to inform the people whom I do stuff with on this site or another that I'm inoperable. I view myself with a sense of professionalism, not just in roleplaying in real life I carry myself with expectations as well and readily admit when I have failed or will fail at something, and view it as an obligation to at least tell people why I am inoperable. Why? Because that's how I do things. I don't want people to wait on me if I can't do something and neither do I want to be that one guy everyone needs to do something then not show up. Do I take myself too seriously? It's very possible that I do take myself way to seriously. It's also possible that I have too high of expectations for others. Does this mean I won't adapt? No but I expect the common courtesy of being informed when stuff happens. [/quote] This was not in your original statement. Your original statement was entirely dickish (usually I'd use seemingly, but this manages to remove that for me this time). I'm sorry, but when someone is facing an emergency my first thought is how to make sure the player doesn't feel alienated from the thread as they have enough to deal with. You have much better alternatives to how you seem to portray how you handle these things rather than being (insert appropriate expletive of choice). You are entirely capable as GM to solve a problem with missing players that does not involve making those with situations outside their control feel awful. You could use the exact same tools you would use as if they had informed you they'd be gone to deal with the situation, because knowing and not knowing is frankly irrelevant. All you have to do is utilize these [b]SAME TOOLS YOU'D USE IF YOU KNEW ANYWAY[/b] when someone is missing for X amount of time and you need to move it along. You may see your attitude as professionalism, but it isn't. You are making a conscious choice to create an entirely toxic environment by putting someone on any form of 'shit list' for not posting when they have a serious conflict that draws them away. Each person needs to deal with these conflicts differently and any 'I have experience in X' is a false equivalency - they have entirely different breadths of experience and methods of recovery or coping than you. To kick someone when they are likely already down because of some guise of professionalism is horrid, absolutely 100% horrid. Your original position isn't remotely defensible, even with your inane ramblings of trying to. Your comparison to most games is incredibly irrelevant because as a GM you can control the situation. No player should ever be considered to be on a 'shit list' when they are gone. Deal with it. If they don't have a reasonable explanation when or if they return, then remove them. But to think ill of someone not knowing their status is improper. I always assume someone has a good reason for being absent unless I know it is a chronic problem because I'd rather give them the benefit of the doubt than kick them when they are down. HOWEVER, it is rude when they do that and continue to be active on the site, but I stress this is ENTIRELY different than your original statement and not what I am addressing.