Out of Control Staff Sunday Night

[justkitteh]

So... My convention was amazing, sans the last night, here's my story.

Sunday night my friend invited me to a room party, we went, and yes, there was some drinking, but I've spoken with staff, they just want to keep that out of the convention center. I was more than happy to oblige, I love Fanime, and I want it to go on unimpeded by idiots.

Eventually the party broke up, and we headed down to go outside and have a smoke. I brought my humidor which is basically a fancy cigar box with a lock. They are expensive. We were sitting outside and my friend asked what kind of cognac we had had. It was in my bag, where staff had said it was OK to keep, I slipped it out for a second to show him, then put it away. Perhaps in this instant someone saw, and told staff, but about 5 minutes later, they came directly out to us and started snatching bags and stuff. For those of you who do not know the law, this is illegal, a material witness is not probable cause enough to start searching bags.

They said something about weed, asked what we were smoking, I stepped up and tried to calm things down, i opened my humidor and let them smell, no weed. However... in that humidor was all the money for my room and gas and everything. They told us we couldn't have the bottle, I said that staff had told us as long as it was in a bag it was fine, and they were the ones who had it out and open. I then said I'd love to leave, Fanime had nothing to do with this, and I said that we would leave before anything happened. Staff told us we couldn't leave, and when I said they couldn't hold me (legally they can't) i was shoved back into my seat... that's assault.

SJPD eventually showed up, and I took all the drama away from everyone else. Of the two staffers, there was a woman, over weight, brunette, and I think she was wearing a red shirt? She was out to get me. It sounds stupid, but... I own a car... so CLEARLY I was going to try to drive around. She said I got in trouble last year, that she recognized my jacket. Yes, my jacket is very recognizable, it's very flashy, and it was very costly... however it's brand new from this year's Winter line and simply didn't exist last year, which means it being so recognizable meant she couldn't have seen it or anything like it! It was totally totally ridiculous.

So, I left with the SJPD (just to a quieter place, not arrested or anything) and while staff forced me to take my bag, because they knew it had questionable things (the bottle) they refused to let me take my humidor. After the SJPD decided this was stupid, they let me go back to my room with not even a warning. I was tired, this had taken a while and been stressful... however I did notice something interesting.

When I left the area with the SJPD and got my humidor back... the lock had been broken, and all the money for my room and gas had mysteriously vanished. As had a lighter a friend had gotten for my as a gift, and many of the cigars were crushed, as though the box had been searched. My losses are as follows:

$500 for the room
$150 for gas (freaking premium)
$70 for the lighter
$400 for the ruined humidor
$400 (EDIT: AFTER REVIEWING THE LIST I MADE BEFORE THE CON IT'S JUST OVER $600, AN ITEMIZED LIST CAN BE FOUND FURTHER DOWN) for all cigars ruined by crushing them, and others ruined by the humidor being broken open and the seal being destroyed (you must keep cigars at the right temperature and humidity otherwise they split, and can go through other nasty stuff).

Code Select Expand

10 - 5 Vegas Classic Churchill
10 - 5 Vegas Gold Series Churchill
10 - 5 Vegas Series 'A' Apostle
14 various - The Acid collectors tin.
1 - 5 Vegas Gold Series Toro
1 - CAO Gold Robusto
1 - Carlos Torano Casa Torano Toro
1 - CI Legends by Puros Indios
1 - Cusano 18 Double Connecticut Robusto
1 - Fonseca 5-50
1 - Gurkha Symphony
1 - Gurkha Gran Reserva Connecticut Robusto
1 - La Aurora Cameroon Robusto
1 - La Tradicion Perdomo Reserve Champagne 'R'
1 - Romeo y Julieta 1875 Bully
1 - Rocky Patel Connecticut Toro
1 - Camacho Corojo Limited 08/22
1 - CAO Italia Positano
1 - Cusano 18 Double Connecticut Robusto
1 - Don Pepin Garcia Blue Generosos
1 - Gurkha Legend Aniversario
1 - Indian Tabac Super Fuerte Toro Maduro
1 - Joya de Nicaragua Celebracion Consul
1 - MAXX By Alec Bradley 'The Fix'
1 - Oliva Serie 'G' Toro
1 - Padilla Signature 1932 Corona Gorda
1 - Power by Felipe Gregorio Triple R
1 - Rocky Patel Sun Grown
1 - Vegas de Fonseca Sobrino
1 - Romeo y Julieta 1875 Toro
1 - Don Diego Toro
1 - H. Upmann Toro
1 - Montecristo Platinum Toro
1 - Onyx Reserve Toro
1 - Romeo y Julieta Reserve Maduro Toro
1 - Santa Damiana Toro
1 - Royal Jamaica Maduro Toro
3 - El Mejor Emerald Robusto
3 - El Mejor Espresso Robusto
3 - 5 Vegas Gold Robusto
3 - 5 Vegas Classic Robusto
A tin of 5 Vegas Shorty (8 to a tin I think)
15 - Gurkha Master's Select Robusto #4
+20 various others I had in another box I forgot to count but found just before the con.


Seriously, I know Fanime isn't as well backed as cons like Expo, but random nerds as staff isn't going to cut it. People who have probably been beneath everyone else for most of their lives suddenly getting power over everyone else? I'm honestly not surprised that there are people who would do this, but I am appalled that Fanime would let them on staff.

I've had issues with Fanime authority in the past, some crap with an ex mod, and there's been a group of people, though it's a pretty small one, who's been against me ever since. Perhaps this is related? Even so though, this is totally ridiculous, many of my rights were violated, and though I love Fanime to death, this is really it, and I don't know if I'll be attending again.

[SOawesomeness]

D: Sorry to hear that... Some staff/vols just aren't very nice. D:
But a lot of them are. (:
(edited because the wording really did suck >.> )

[Sheepy]

I'm really sorry this happened, and I apologize for the lack of respect some of our staff have, even though at this point apologies don't help.
I wish you come back next year.

Yes, some of the vols and staff have power issues and over abuse their powers : (.

[justkitteh]

Yeah... I don't want to miss it... but I want some assurance that staff will be screened somehow to make sure they won't be crazy. I need to figure out rent this month too as now I had to pay for the hotel room in it's entirety and gas and everything.

[spinny]

Of the two staffers, there was a woman, over weight, brunette, and I think she was wearing a red shirt? She was out to get me.

The staff memeber in question was blonde and had her hair up I believe, and my friend believes she may have been wearing red but we are not sure.

same staff member?

sunday night i do remember some staff being a bit strict about stuff outside the B&W Danceroom (my friends and i were trying to get people to do the caramelldansen) but i think it was all just regular black-shirts. and their reasoning was valid... even if their timing could have been better T.T (we had just gotten some people to join us)

was there some late-night staff party on saturday to make cranky sunday?

[Sunara Ishi]

Did you get the name of the staffs that took your humidor? I say you message one of the heads so they can try to track down the people involved. Seeing as money and stuff went missing; that's theft. The people involved should be held accountable.

[Steve.Young]

Were they SOS staff? If so please PM me with their descriptions and I will find out about them.

We've had a lot of problems during con that many may not notice or care to want to know. SOS does the best it can to make sure nothing goes wrong but we did have a few staff members take it too far. It's been handled.

[justkitteh]

Of the two staffers, there was a woman, over weight, brunette, and I think she was wearing a red shirt? She was out to get me.

The staff memeber in question was blonde and had her hair up I believe, and my friend believes she may have been wearing red but we are not sure.

same staff member?

sunday night i do remember some staff being a bit strict about stuff outside the B&W Danceroom (my friends and i were trying to get people to do the caramelldansen) but i think it was all just regular black-shirts. and their reasoning was valid... even if their timing could have been better T.T (we had just gotten some people to join us)

was there some late-night staff party on saturday to make cranky sunday?

Probably? I'm not going to lie, I was very much shocked and confused by everything, between a few drinks and a cigar, then everything exploding, it very well could have been, i remember the red shirt for sure, hair might have been blonde though.

Were they SOS staff? If so please PM me with their descriptions and I will find out about them.

We've had a lot of problems during con that many may not notice or care to want to know. SOS does the best it can to make sure nothing goes wrong but we did have a few staff members take it too far. It's been handled.

They wouldn't tell me who they were. I just saw staff badges... I'll PM you though.

[billgoku]

Damn, these guys were seriously out of line, and then most likely stealing all your belongings...wow, this years staff members sucked.(not all of them). I think I've spoke to 2 dozen people who had bad experiences with the staff this year. Makes me think twice about even wanting to join the staff for next year.

[SOawesomeness]

Damn, these guys were seriously out of line, and then most likely stealing all your belongings...wow, this years staff members sucked.(not all of them). I think I've spoke to 2 dozen people who had bad experiences with the staff this year. Makes me think twice about even wanting to join the staff for next year.

Join Registration!
I have yet to meet any "sucky" staff (except for the people who never showed up, ever).
(:

EDIT:
OMG I just remembered, but on (I think) Friday, there was this SOS staff lady who was totally rude to attendees while doing Line Control. Not to hit on SOS staff, but she was really just rude, saying like "Go over there" and "Hey, pay attention" with a rude tone in her voice... And Saturday's SOS were lazy, they just sat in their chairs instead of doing proper line control to direct attendees to the line area, especially when there was a big group.
Sorry, Steve. :0

[Reinna]

This from one of the Volunteers staff, I'm sorry you had such a bad experience with another member of staff. v___v  It's a pity you didn't get a name or badge number so you could file an official complaint.

[Kaura117]

It's good you brought this to light, JustKitteh.

The way everybody should deal with bad staffers is the way we should all deal with abusive authority figures- Leave Paper Trails. Get their name, their badge numbers, notable features and witnesses if you can swing it. Stuff that leaves paperwork, or threatens paperwork. The system ain't broke- the lone example of an authority figure run amok doesn't mean that all authority figures are bastards. With great privilege comes with even greater consequences- and the leverage for you to bring it to bear.

[crazychichi]

Hey hopefully I got good reviews as a SoS staffer, cause a lot of the attendees waiting for An Cafe Tickets, Registration, etc, thanked me, gave me hugs, and even tried to bring me Starbucks (sorry, not that open for very tempting bribes, but its a honor nonetheless  ;D)

If you have any physical descriptions/names/badge numbers of the Safety On Site staffers who seemed rude or lazy, please let me know by sending me a email(mercenangel (AT) gmail (DOT) com) or pm.  I'm working for detailing a "what we can do better next year"  for the heads, so feedback would be great. 

[Zog]

Holy crap justkitteh... that freakin sucks.

I've said it before, I'll say it again, the behavior you experienced from the staff is absolutely unacceptable and intolerable. 

Now, I'm a member of SoS (you mighta seen me around working one of the lines in a black suit with Elvis shades on and a big goofy grin), but I'm also a cigar aficionado, and OH MY GOD I AM SO SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS.  What label d'ja have in there?  None of that should have ever happened- to anyone anywhere on con grounds.

I like to think of myself as a responsible staffer- I attended all the training sessions (minus one because I was sick as a dog) for SoS even though I live in Santa Cruz, At the con I made a special effort to not only be polite to everyone in line but to have a party with them (if you were in line for the Masquerade- I'm the Wave guy, if you were in line for An Cafe, I'm the Can-Can guy), and I take it -personally- when I hear about screw-ups like this.

During our training we are told explicitly to be kind and courteous to congoers- SoS is (kinda) the face of the convention; we are one of if not the most direct link most attendees have to the Powers That Be, and if one of us (or lets face it, any staffer) messes with any of you guys it reflects poorly on the whole convention.

And then ya'll say you won't come back...  :(

I would like to stress that this kind of behavior is the exception, not the rule- yeah this is a freakin horror story, and whoever is responsible for this (and they're probably responsible for a lot of other crap too) will BURN FOREVER for this, but otherwise the convention was a good time ...right?



This year was better than last year was better than the year before.  All we need to do is get rid of these -morons- on staff, make it a bit more professional, and we're squared away.  And the best way to do it is, like Kaura117 says, leave a paper trail.  Get their badge number, get their name, get a picture, get whatever, and make a formal complaint with their division head or whoever you can get.  That way we can blacklist their name and make sure they never ever ever come anywhere near our con again.

[toqer]

Hi, I'm toqer from the 7 Bamboo Karaoke Lounge in San Jose jtown.  As a favor to my friend Izzy at Farout Toys, I was sound engineer (I make crappy singing and bgm sound OK)

In regards to security, this is just my opinion from working 10 years at a liquor filled chaotic semi famous watering hole and reading the responses above.  I don't think you guys should do it.  A guy wearing cat ears is not going to be taken seriously.

I'm a chain smoker.  Despite any opinions on smoking, as a 35 year old man, it's my god given American right to do so. Friday, Saturday, Sunday night I would go from my sound station, out on the balcony, and smoke. Sunday night I had some kid with cat ears and a tail run (like full sprint) up to me screaming in my face "GET OUT OF HERE, GO INSIDE!"

My friend who was with me isn't as confrontational as I am sort of tucked tail and walked away, I just followed.  We went on the loading docks to smoke, and when we finished I went straight back to kitten ears and gave him an earful.  A few of the DJ's watching me came up to the door too and we all set him straight.

I don't think Fanimecon has any expertise security wise.  I didn't have a badge.  I just walked around in plain clothes, going wherever I wanted.  In fact, the convention center itself has almost zilch security at 4am.  Izzy and I were kind of shocked when we realized our 1000's of dollars worth of sound equipment could have been wheeled out, without anyone giving it so much as a second glance.

So here's some advice from a guy who's had to deal with security issues the last 10 years at a club with drunks every night.

You don't detain people for non-violent crimes.
Make sure the appearance of your security people get them taken seriously (no cosplay security)
Hire dedicated security that knows how to handle situations delicately.
If you want cheap, maybe talk to the SJSU Judo team. (Our bouncer is one)
If someone is out of line, has dangerous items, or drugs, it's not your job to bust them, it's just your job to report it to the cops.

For people that got stuff ripped off, detained, whatever, here's my advice to you.
Be LOUD.  Be selective in what you're being loud about.  Say things like "STOP TOUCHING ME! GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME!" Also threaten to call the cops, or yell for someone else to.  Try not to use colorful metaphors(cursing). 

Also if anyone tries to confiscate your property, just scream out "IM BEING ROBBED! THEY'RE TAKING MY <insert item here>"

I'm not advocating making a scene unless you have to.  Use good judgement.

Other than the scary lack of security (or the misuse of it) I had a pretty good time.  I'm sort of a closet anime fan, and I felt like I had discovered long lost relatives there.

--toqer

[Zee]

Agreed, Toqer.  I did security for SakuraCon once and let's just say there's a reason I never signed up to be security at another con ever again.  The lack of proper training was horrifying, not to mention the fact that we were understaffed, didn't have enough walkie-talkies, and one of the head security guys thought it was a great idea to give some of the security staff a couple of "martial arts" lessons so they could take people down if necessary.  As someone who'd taken a couple years of jujitsu at the time (and therefore knew better on so many levels), I was ready to walk out for that one alone.

It's probably important to say that I think Fanime is quite a bit better in the security department than SakuraCon, but the lack of proper screening and training still bugs me.  The whole volunteer security thing leaves way too much room for bad eggs and bad news.  Getting volunteers for general staffing is fine (minding the doors, keeping the lines in order, taking tickets, etc), but for actual security issues, like making sure people aren't getting into fights or stealing, I think there needs to be some kind of real security force that can be called upon post-haste and diffuse the situation without resorting to committing crimes like theft and assault.

[justkitteh]

It's good you brought this to light, JustKitteh.

The way everybody should deal with bad staffers is the way we should all deal with abusive authority figures- Leave Paper Trails. Get their name, their badge numbers, notable features and witnesses if you can swing it. Stuff that leaves paperwork, or threatens paperwork. The system ain't broke- the lone example of an authority figure run amok doesn't mean that all authority figures are bastards. With great privilege comes with even greater consequences- and the leverage for you to bring it to bear.

What can you do when they won't tell you who they are though? :/ SOS I'm sure keeps track of who's working, but they should have some kind of file on each person... description, picture, etc, etc...

Now, I'm a member of SoS (you mighta seen me around working one of the lines in a black suit with Elvis shades on and a big goofy grin), but I'm also a cigar aficionado, and OH MY GOD I AM SO SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS.  What label d'ja have in there?  None of that should have ever happened- to anyone anywhere on con grounds.

What a list it was...
10 - 5 Vegas Classic Churchill
10 - 5 Vegas Gold Series Churchill
10 - 5 Vegas Series 'A' Apostle
14 various - The Acid collectors tin.
1 - 5 Vegas Gold Series Toro
1 - CAO Gold Robusto
1 - Carlos Torano Casa Torano Toro
1 - CI Legends by Puros Indios
1 - Cusano 18 Double Connecticut Robusto
1 - Fonseca 5-50
1 - Gurkha Symphony
1 - Gurkha Gran Reserva Connecticut Robusto
1 - La Aurora Cameroon Robusto
1 - La Tradicion Perdomo Reserve Champagne 'R'
1 - Romeo y Julieta 1875 Bully
1 - Rocky Patel Connecticut Toro
1 - Camacho Corojo Limited 08/22
1 - CAO Italia Positano
1 - Cusano 18 Double Connecticut Robusto
1 - Don Pepin Garcia Blue Generosos
1 - Gurkha Legend Aniversario
1 - Indian Tabac Super Fuerte Toro Maduro
1 - Joya de Nicaragua Celebracion Consul
1 - MAXX By Alec Bradley 'The Fix'
1 - Oliva Serie 'G' Toro
1 - Padilla Signature 1932 Corona Gorda
1 - Power by Felipe Gregorio Triple R
1 - Rocky Patel Sun Grown
1 - Vegas de Fonseca Sobrino
1 - Romeo y Julieta 1875 Toro
1 - Don Diego Toro
1 - H. Upmann Toro
1 - Montecristo Platinum Toro
1 - Onyx Reserve Toro
1 - Romeo y Julieta Reserve Maduro Toro
1 - Santa Damiana Toro
1 - Royal Jamaica Maduro Toro
3 - El Mejor Emerald Robusto
3 - El Mejor Espresso Robusto
3 - 5 Vegas Gold Robusto
3 - 5 Vegas Classic Robusto
A tin of 5 Vegas Shorty (8 to a tin I think)
15 - Gurkha Master's Select Robusto #4
+20 various others I had in another box I forgot to count but found just before the con.


Going back over my list, my estimate of $400 seems quite low, I'll go look again...

Hi, I'm toqer from the 7 Bamboo Karaoke Lounge in San Jose jtown.  As a favor to my friend Izzy at Farout Toys, I was sound engineer (I make crappy singing and bgm sound OK)

In regards to security, this is just my opinion from working 10 years at a liquor filled chaotic semi famous watering hole and reading the responses above.  I don't think you guys should do it.  A guy wearing cat ears is not going to be taken seriously.

I'm a chain smoker.  Despite any opinions on smoking, as a 35 year old man, it's my god given American right to do so. Friday, Saturday, Sunday night I would go from my sound station, out on the balcony, and smoke. Sunday night I had some kid with cat ears and a tail run (like full sprint) up to me screaming in my face "GET OUT OF HERE, GO INSIDE!"

My friend who was with me isn't as confrontational as I am sort of tucked tail and walked away, I just followed.  We went on the loading docks to smoke, and when we finished I went straight back to kitten ears and gave him an earful.  A few of the DJ's watching me came up to the door too and we all set him straight.

I don't think Fanimecon has any expertise security wise.  I didn't have a badge.  I just walked around in plain clothes, going wherever I wanted.  In fact, the convention center itself has almost zilch security at 4am.  Izzy and I were kind of shocked when we realized our 1000's of dollars worth of sound equipment could have been wheeled out, without anyone giving it so much as a second glance.

So here's some advice from a guy who's had to deal with security issues the last 10 years at a club with drunks every night.

You don't detain people for non-violent crimes.
Make sure the appearance of your security people get them taken seriously (no cosplay security)
Hire dedicated security that knows how to handle situations delicately.
If you want cheap, maybe talk to the SJSU Judo team. (Our bouncer is one)
If someone is out of line, has dangerous items, or drugs, it's not your job to bust them, it's just your job to report it to the cops.

For people that got stuff ripped off, detained, whatever, here's my advice to you.
Be LOUD.  Be selective in what you're being loud about.  Say things like "STOP TOUCHING ME! GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME!" Also threaten to call the cops, or yell for someone else to.  Try not to use colorful metaphors(cursing).  

Also if anyone tries to confiscate your property, just scream out "IM BEING ROBBED! THEY'RE TAKING MY <insert item here>"

I'm not advocating making a scene unless you have to.  Use good judgement.

Other than the scary lack of security (or the misuse of it) I had a pretty good time.  I'm sort of a closet anime fan, and I felt like I had discovered long lost relatives there.

--toqer

PROTIP: Listen to this man, he's very right. Once I was able to talk to the police everything went smoothly. I did not make a big deal because they said they had called the police, and because everyone out there was either staff or in trouble. Once the police showed up I took staff and the police with me away from everyone else because I knew my rights, etc, etc...

That said, one of the cops was pretty out of line himself, the other seemed to notice this and take over though. They say that of the people with this certain mental disorder, most are either criminals, or police. That's why I agree wholly that if you find security, you need to find normal people who aren't volunteering for power, especially not at a con full of geeks. Some of these people have been at the bottom their whole lives... give them a badge and of course they're going to abuse that power!

[Steve.Young]

The problem is with our safety staff is that we get all kinds of people joining our department and not participating in the training meetings.

They show up, and make a lot of mistakes. Not to mention the volunteers who are supposedly only there to do Line Control.

If you PM me the description of this guy in cat ears, I will see that it gets taken care of next year. Actually, I probably know who you are talking about and that issue has already been handled, but it couldn't hurt to have another full description.

And at 4 A.M., our safety staff is quite limited to a graveyard/skeleton crew that is taking care of other things like medical emergencies and the like. It's hard to be everywhere at once with limited staff.

Again, I apologize for the stress that you all encountered, and hope the whole weekend didn't completely go to crap for you all.

[TC X0 Lt 0X]

This is complete bull shit.

I cant believe that something like this happened.

As your post suggest, it seems that the staff people got away with this. Again, complete bull.

I wonder? How did you get home without your money?

[justkitteh]

This is complete bull shit.

I cant believe that something like this happened.

As your post suggest, it seems that the staff people got away with this. Again, complete bull.

I wonder? How did you get home without your money?

Credit cards are amazing. :P My limit is much higher than most con attendees, so it wasn't a problem... but rent, and paying off my credit card bill is going to be. I want some kind of resolution to this and soon. Simply asking those people not to staff anymore isn't going to be enough in this situation. I just want what was lost back... shoot, if Fanime wants to try and find all the cigars listed and replace them and try to find a humidor of comparable quality for less, etc... then go for it. But I need that cash for rent and stuff, and this is completely retarded...

Fanime has no dedicated channel through with I can lodge a complaint, they have email addresses for everything but that. I sent my complaint to the general address ([email protected] or something) and have yet to receive a reply! Last time I had a problem in 2005 (not the same kind of thing as this at all) they never got back to me and never resolved the issue either.