I think it's fair to say that there are WOW male players whose avatars are female, and vice versa. Some of these roleplay.
What if someone wanted to roleplay as a gay character? Is that not allowed, and why not?
The article mentions that there have been gay MMORPGers for years and they've dealt with this shit, mainly by ignoring it and having a good time anyway - however, they shouldn't have to ignore it. What's wrong with them wanting to belond to an organization where they know they won't have to endure insulting language coming from their supposed 'mates'?
Using the word gay as a pejorative is widespread; trolls use it, I occasionally use it and you might use it as well. It's almost impossible not to blurt it out if you grew up in the American education system where it's as entrenched as tater tots and pop quizzes. I understand that. It goes beyond 'just' the word gay, however; it's a seemingly unending wave of dialogue that can only be described as "homophobic" at best and "hate speech" at worst.
The argument that it should be kept out of the game because this is supposed to be entertainment is invalid; if game only dialogue were allowed then there'd just be the raid leader screaming and everyone bickering over loot. The fact is that our everyday lives creep into this game as part of the natural draw of MMORPGs: social interaction, not isolation. If you want to keep it game only then don't allow for any player-to-player communication or play Elder Scrolls. Reading any guild's message board will lead you to the conclusion that people enjoy interacting on all levels: WOW has become a big part of some of these people's lives and the mixing of personal and "WOW" life is pretty common from what I've seen.
It's silly to say that discussion of one's sexual orientation in a non-insulting manner is not allowed. It's even sillier to say that discussion of one's personal life ought to be left outside of the game, because then you'd have to ban sob stories of boy/girlfriends and bitching about the domestic situation and that's not gonna happen.
Just as marriage doesn't seem to be a very sacred institution in America, WOW is permeated throughout with the often banal, sometimes amusing and always personal accounts of one's real life. Why limit that to heterosexuals? Shouldn't gay men and women, and the transgendered, and whatever other group you want to throw in there be just as miserable as the rest of us?
Finally, to address that tired old issue: it's a GLBT friendly guild, not a GLBT only guild.
I've long considered myself both a nerd and a jock. I was glued to AD&D source books and frantically backstabbing in many a MUD at the same time that I was playing four sports in high school. In the same way that I had a deep love for a wide array of academic topics - literature and history in particular, with dashes of science thrown in for good measure - I found that playing a different sport every three months (football in the fall, wrestling in the winter and track and field in the spring) as well as a year and life long commitment to hockey all made my life a little better.
I'm proud of being a nerd and hopeful that one day we can continue the peace process [theonion.com], and one reason I don't mind being called such affectionately is that being a nerd also means you're not exactly hung up on what others think of you or of what you should be doing. Ultimately, to me, that's always meant that the things I enjoy - whether it's reading slashdot, watching college football, laughing at WoW stamina jokes even though I've never played, playing hockey, contributing to wikipedia, etc. - are not mutually exclusive even though in some quarters they might be considered so.
Does being interested in open source make me any less of an athlete? Does being able to bench press 315 pounds make me any less a nerd? Does my posing hypothetical questions in this manner affect a butterfly's ability in Rhodesia to affect weather patterns in Salem, Oregon? I think the answer to all those questions are the same, though the cheeky amongst you will probably have a different one than me.
To me being a nerd is about not placing too much importance in what others may think of you and your lifestyle, and that's always implied a highly analytical approach to life and the optimum and most efficient avenues of existence. All my best friends are nerds who can play some mean puck. One is, quite literally, a rocket scientist. Another is studying to become a vet. Those who are smart realize that physical activity is conductive to and a part of excellent mental acuity. This idea of nerds being pocket protector wearing, weak limbed, pasty faced slobs has never held a place in my world. We approach our physical health the same way we do our mental well being: efficiently, and with the question of "How best to optimize my existence so that I may continue doing the things I love?"
It just so happens that for us, exercising embiggens our ability to play hockey, to drink, to drink while playing table hockey and to think clearly about how to alleviate/avoid hangovers so we can plan our next hockey/drinking/drinking hockey escapade with the highest level of operability.
Finally, the nerds I know who exercise (and there are a lot) approach it with an almost maniacal determination to get it exactly right. They're the guys who know at what intervals they should be hitting their sets, who have graphically tracked their heart rates and their maxes and exactly what days that spinning class is offered. And they definitely don't wear some of the ridiculous outfits I've seen on some of the more "health conscious" individuals at the 24 Hour Fitness on Sunset Boulevard and Vine; the term "functional clothing" has probably never entered those people's minds.
My nerd life is healthy as can be, thank you. In fact, thanks to this nagging shoulder injury acquired from completely crushing my buddy during a pick up game of hockey, I could probably use a little more nerd and a little less jock right now. But that doesn't mean I won't pretend I'm paying attention in yoga - I've deduced it's the best way to stretch and get a great view of the female fauna so long as you're positioned optimally. Mirrors + understanding of angles of incidence and reflection = crazy delicious.
I live in West Hollywood and so I get excellent reception of the Santa Monica CC based KCRW [kcrw.com], mentioned in the article. KCRW is fairly lucky in that it's flagship show, Morning Becomes Eclectic [kcrw.com], has become one of the most influential music programs in Los Angeles in terms of generating buzz for unsigned or independent artists. If you're looking for some of the best in new talent, for something different and something very much eclectic than MBE at KCRW is one of the best places to turn to when you're in Los Angeles. As such, KCRW is very much in the thick of things in terms of the current artistic scene in the Southland and they get tickets to literally everything.
As part of their pledge drive they offer quite a few things to new and returning donors. Among these are tickets to normally sold out shows at places like the Whiskey A Go-Go, the Viper Room and the House of Blues. The minimum level of donation is $25 and for that you are eligible for a free pair of tickets every ninety days; if you're at all into sampling the local and not so local music scene becoming a member of KCRW is a no-brainer. As an added bonus, each session has a target goal and when certain numbers have been reached (100, half the target goal, the goal itself, etc.) they give away iPods, travel packages and pretty damn good CD or ticket packages.
The constant interruption in programming is still pretty annoying but KCRW does a great job of keeping you listening by dangling shiny, shiny things in front of you. I'm not saying the Eu Claire affiliate can do the same thing, but I am saying that pledge drives don't have to be the kind of thing that makes you turn the radio off.
Finally, I've found that those who donated to KCRW do so equally for the goods as well as for their genuine love of the content. My opinion is that while podcasting may potentially damage some of the business model, people are still going to donate even if they can listen at their leisure at their computers. Tickets are sweet but I donated because I cared to do so; KCRW has made my morning commutes (somewhat) bearable and you can't put a price ($25) on that.
Slashdot Mirror
"Ma-zo-ga: Light of my life, fire of my loins."
I'm surprised his character's name wasn't Pendleton Pendleton.
I think it's fair to say that there are WOW male players whose avatars are female, and vice versa. Some of these roleplay. What if someone wanted to roleplay as a gay character? Is that not allowed, and why not? The article mentions that there have been gay MMORPGers for years and they've dealt with this shit, mainly by ignoring it and having a good time anyway - however, they shouldn't have to ignore it. What's wrong with them wanting to belond to an organization where they know they won't have to endure insulting language coming from their supposed 'mates'? Using the word gay as a pejorative is widespread; trolls use it, I occasionally use it and you might use it as well. It's almost impossible not to blurt it out if you grew up in the American education system where it's as entrenched as tater tots and pop quizzes. I understand that. It goes beyond 'just' the word gay, however; it's a seemingly unending wave of dialogue that can only be described as "homophobic" at best and "hate speech" at worst. The argument that it should be kept out of the game because this is supposed to be entertainment is invalid; if game only dialogue were allowed then there'd just be the raid leader screaming and everyone bickering over loot. The fact is that our everyday lives creep into this game as part of the natural draw of MMORPGs: social interaction, not isolation. If you want to keep it game only then don't allow for any player-to-player communication or play Elder Scrolls. Reading any guild's message board will lead you to the conclusion that people enjoy interacting on all levels: WOW has become a big part of some of these people's lives and the mixing of personal and "WOW" life is pretty common from what I've seen. It's silly to say that discussion of one's sexual orientation in a non-insulting manner is not allowed. It's even sillier to say that discussion of one's personal life ought to be left outside of the game, because then you'd have to ban sob stories of boy/girlfriends and bitching about the domestic situation and that's not gonna happen. Just as marriage doesn't seem to be a very sacred institution in America, WOW is permeated throughout with the often banal, sometimes amusing and always personal accounts of one's real life. Why limit that to heterosexuals? Shouldn't gay men and women, and the transgendered, and whatever other group you want to throw in there be just as miserable as the rest of us? Finally, to address that tired old issue: it's a GLBT friendly guild, not a GLBT only guild.
I've long considered myself both a nerd and a jock. I was glued to AD&D source books and frantically backstabbing in many a MUD at the same time that I was playing four sports in high school. In the same way that I had a deep love for a wide array of academic topics - literature and history in particular, with dashes of science thrown in for good measure - I found that playing a different sport every three months (football in the fall, wrestling in the winter and track and field in the spring) as well as a year and life long commitment to hockey all made my life a little better.
I'm proud of being a nerd and hopeful that one day we can continue the peace process [theonion.com], and one reason I don't mind being called such affectionately is that being a nerd also means you're not exactly hung up on what others think of you or of what you should be doing. Ultimately, to me, that's always meant that the things I enjoy - whether it's reading slashdot, watching college football, laughing at WoW stamina jokes even though I've never played, playing hockey, contributing to wikipedia, etc. - are not mutually exclusive even though in some quarters they might be considered so.
Does being interested in open source make me any less of an athlete? Does being able to bench press 315 pounds make me any less a nerd? Does my posing hypothetical questions in this manner affect a butterfly's ability in Rhodesia to affect weather patterns in Salem, Oregon? I think the answer to all those questions are the same, though the cheeky amongst you will probably have a different one than me.
To me being a nerd is about not placing too much importance in what others may think of you and your lifestyle, and that's always implied a highly analytical approach to life and the optimum and most efficient avenues of existence. All my best friends are nerds who can play some mean puck. One is, quite literally, a rocket scientist. Another is studying to become a vet. Those who are smart realize that physical activity is conductive to and a part of excellent mental acuity. This idea of nerds being pocket protector wearing, weak limbed, pasty faced slobs has never held a place in my world. We approach our physical health the same way we do our mental well being: efficiently, and with the question of "How best to optimize my existence so that I may continue doing the things I love?"
It just so happens that for us, exercising embiggens our ability to play hockey, to drink, to drink while playing table hockey and to think clearly about how to alleviate/avoid hangovers so we can plan our next hockey/drinking/drinking hockey escapade with the highest level of operability.
Finally, the nerds I know who exercise (and there are a lot) approach it with an almost maniacal determination to get it exactly right. They're the guys who know at what intervals they should be hitting their sets, who have graphically tracked their heart rates and their maxes and exactly what days that spinning class is offered. And they definitely don't wear some of the ridiculous outfits I've seen on some of the more "health conscious" individuals at the 24 Hour Fitness on Sunset Boulevard and Vine; the term "functional clothing" has probably never entered those people's minds.
My nerd life is healthy as can be, thank you. In fact, thanks to this nagging shoulder injury acquired from completely crushing my buddy during a pick up game of hockey, I could probably use a little more nerd and a little less jock right now. But that doesn't mean I won't pretend I'm paying attention in yoga - I've deduced it's the best way to stretch and get a great view of the female fauna so long as you're positioned optimally. Mirrors + understanding of angles of incidence and reflection = crazy delicious.
I live in West Hollywood and so I get excellent reception of the Santa Monica CC based KCRW [kcrw.com], mentioned in the article. KCRW is fairly lucky in that it's flagship show, Morning Becomes Eclectic [kcrw.com], has become one of the most influential music programs in Los Angeles in terms of generating buzz for unsigned or independent artists. If you're looking for some of the best in new talent, for something different and something very much eclectic than MBE at KCRW is one of the best places to turn to when you're in Los Angeles. As such, KCRW is very much in the thick of things in terms of the current artistic scene in the Southland and they get tickets to literally everything.
As part of their pledge drive they offer quite a few things to new and returning donors. Among these are tickets to normally sold out shows at places like the Whiskey A Go-Go, the Viper Room and the House of Blues. The minimum level of donation is $25 and for that you are eligible for a free pair of tickets every ninety days; if you're at all into sampling the local and not so local music scene becoming a member of KCRW is a no-brainer. As an added bonus, each session has a target goal and when certain numbers have been reached (100, half the target goal, the goal itself, etc.) they give away iPods, travel packages and pretty damn good CD or ticket packages.
The constant interruption in programming is still pretty annoying but KCRW does a great job of keeping you listening by dangling shiny, shiny things in front of you. I'm not saying the Eu Claire affiliate can do the same thing, but I am saying that pledge drives don't have to be the kind of thing that makes you turn the radio off.
Finally, I've found that those who donated to KCRW do so equally for the goods as well as for their genuine love of the content. My opinion is that while podcasting may potentially damage some of the business model, people are still going to donate even if they can listen at their leisure at their computers. Tickets are sweet but I donated because I cared to do so; KCRW has made my morning commutes (somewhat) bearable and you can't put a price ($25) on that.
Quiche++?