[techhelpbb]

As someone that's had to speak to people whose aspirations were derailed long before Einstein due to communications problems...

It bothers me tremendously that this problem had to reach this level of momentum at any point ever.

Let alone a point where the issue is on display at the Championship and that Dean and Woody have to feel obligated to help.

It occurs to me that this problem has existed for some time. That had FIRST not finally been pinned to the wall with this problem they may never have admitted that it fully really exists.

Now the very same people that often demanded that the robots were the fault are often quite literally ordering us to have absolute confidence they are doing everything they can to solve this.

I have seen FTAs and other field personnel in tears over this. I am not placing blame on their valiant efforts. You guys are brilliant and deserve my undying respect (and some of these people are people I mentored). I am making the point that they to are trapped in a system that should never have allowed this to happen.

It greatly concerns me that there are other problems. That effect other teams. That are just as important to their survival at competition. That these problems will now loose attention because FIRST has now shifted priorities for their resources to this. However, this didn't get priority before because it just wasn't important enough despite literally tilting the balance of the competition. So what stops the next problem from not being important enough?

What decides a problem is important enough for the full attention of FIRST? A failure of this proportion? A few people? A few seriously stuck robots? A broken competition? A friend in the right place? Something that finally grabs enough people's attention it can no longer be kept quiet?

No, this needs to stop. This is not about the field people who went down fighting. It's not about devaluing FIRST. It's about making sure FIRST realizes what it's doing to itself.