...I know about the elitism thing.
...PO isn't doing itself any favors though.
Maybe we could make our own server on PO (and a CAP PO server) so our elitist stigma prevents noobs from getting onto the server?
The first and only server I ever used was Smogon's, ever since I was a "noob." Sure, I wasn't using stuff like Blast Burn Charizard, but I was still very rusty and I learned to play by suffering defeats of much better players than I. I'm pretty sure Smogon's philosophy does not include rejecting beginners, no matter how bad they are. If you want better players to face, rally people onto PO, but let the new players stay. That's what the ladder system is for - when they learn and get better, they'll move up and become more skilled battlers.
It is nonsensical to take the ravings of a random small-time poster as the word of an entire community. Claiming Smogon is elitist because a few crazed users spout nonsense is equally as crazy as what they do.
I have, and always will, prefer PokeLab to PO because of its interface and simplicity. PO is just too gaudy for me. That said, Smogon's staff is evaluating PO for the possibility of creating an official server there. If that happens, the public will be informed.
You're missing the point. Obviously that is not Smogon's viewpoint, but these "random small-time posters" are the same people who jump into battles and troll endlessly. The fact is that people take offense to this behavior and associate it with Smogon as a whole, despite the fact that it is not the view of the community as a whole. This is similar to how small branches of Islam and Christianity spew hatred, and people associate this hatred to the whole religion. Okay, this is Smogon and not religion lol, but you get the point.
