Ari is not happy.

[hackthis_archive]

The other day I got what I originally thought was a flame, except upon a second third fifth read I realized it was just an opinion. The person liked the story, and found it well-written (go team hackthis!) but didn't like the gay aspect. Or didn't like the porn part.

Now considering that the disclaimer on my profile says "writer writes SLASH!" I was a little befuddled... but you know, the person thought the story was really good except for the slash part. To which I eventually just said, 'Uh... okay, opinions are like assholes. I can respect that.' And yet, all I've heard this morning is that people think there's only one asshole to go around. There is only one point of view and if you don't agree well then you are evol and should be fed for the Minotaur! For the sanitary sake of all, I hope there's truly more than one asshole opinion to go around, but one more time for the people in the back who have the craptastic acoustics:

Dissent is not disloyalty

Disagreeing with someone's views, whatever the fuck they are, does not automatically make them a bad person. We can all wish it did, but it doesn't. Dissent doesn't make you a good person either. Slinging hash and saying that someone is a horrible no-good very bad person behind locked posts, because you're not going to step up and say it to their faces? Weak. So weak.

What really tears it though, is that it's really just one or two people that piss in the pool* and then everybody has to get out and wash off, and parents are upset and threatening litigation, and you know, that's just not the spirit we came here in. I thought the whole point of this social experiment called fandom was to bring the people who disagree and the people who agree and the people who don't give a fuck (normally, that would be me) together, so we can all hug it out and talk about the porn and give ponies and have a good time.

Can't we just kick it old skool, or what?


*If you want someone to piss on you, I have a friend that knows this ace dominatrix who can do it for a very reasonable price.


+ I dun forgot, I posted music the other day for the September Frankenstein Mix, in case anybody's feeling the need for some tunes.

++ I found this posting by amezri on fandom and forums and acting like you have brain which I enjoyed reading. *gacked from voleuse

Comments

[chinawolf.livejournal.com]

But has it really changed that much? I've only been around fandom for five years, most of it on LJ in addition to other communities etc., but I have friends who have been in fandom for 25+ years and say that it's always been the same, the internet in general only made interaction faster, but not different. Do you think that's not true?

[shoewhore.livejournal.com]

What?! You're crazy! That is BULLSHIT!! I SO don't even agree with that!

There is no way that the internet is not full of passive agressive assholes who think that having an "opinion" means only having THEIR opinion! No way... Never happens! I vehemently disagree!!

You suck, your writing sucks and I hate everything that you do... What, am I not allowed to have an opinion?!?!

(Oh my gosh, I am so fucking funny, I KILL me!)

PS - Long live Ari... I still can't believe the fucking season finale... Especially when I was watching the episode not REALIZING it was the season finale. I was very confoosled! Heh.

[sparky77.livejournal.com]

So is this the appropiate place to gain acceptance for my Orlando Bloom love?

And also, Yes! I love arguing about stupid shit. It's fun, but I always get the impression that in fandom, if I disagree with someone it equals not liking them. I guess it's because in fandom people are often not defined by who they are, but by what they like, so any disagreements end up equalling personal attacks. It's all just kind of exhausting and I wish we could all just roll around in the mud and have a good time.

[amberlynne.livejournal.com]

Okay, but if people have stupid bad wrong opinions, it's okay to judge them, right? RIGHT?!?!

[ethrosdemon.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I have a LOT of meta about the old timers vs the new kids on this one. They just don't know how to behave, baby. Obviously, you know I feel you here. In a big way.

But, hey, you know what? Jadon Momoa is still hot and there's always whiskey.

[aphelant.livejournal.com]

This is not the first I've heard of comments along the lines of: "This is really good, too bad it's slash". Sometimes they even ask the writer to redo the fic in a het pairing.

Um?

[angiepen.livejournal.com]

[Here from metafandom. [wave]]

Fannish feuds have a very long history, unfortunately, dating back to when people were flaming each other via the Postal Service or in the letter columns of various magazines and fanzines. If you think about it, online fans are a bunch of pikers at this -- it takes a serious jerk to maintain the white heat of sarcastic loathing over a period of months or years in a zine lettercol. [wry smile]

And for what it's worth, I'm with you. I'll argue my points until my fingers fall off and do my absolute best to convince people to agree with me about whatever, but when we've all aired our views and it turns out that some people still disagree with me? That's cool. I'd love it if the whole world agreed with me all the time, but I don't require it. My friends and I agree to disagree about this or that issue on a fairly regular basis and it doesn't mean we're not friends anymore. I feel kind of sorry for people who can only be friends with people who agree with them all the time about everything -- how boring, for one, and how incredibly limiting for another. I can't imagine they have many friends, or that they keep any given friend for all that long, because any two people are going to disagree about something eventually. The trick is realizing that that's OK.

Angie