The Insane "Social Justice" Thread II

[BugI02]

Here's my old thread on it. Obviously it's been dormant for a while, but the links in the OP... while copious... do try and sum it up. I looked back at the Forbes article there by Erik Kain, and I'd already forgotten about the "Gamers are dead" backlash/coordination between games journalists... how they all worked together and wrote similar articles on how the "Gamer" terminology is toxic and over. Really was a bunch of stuff that all happened at the same time that sparked the outrage.

Anyway - Searching for a definition on Google is going to net top results from the offending places... Gawker, Vox, WaPo, Wikipedia, et al... with their explanations of it. Nothing unethical there... no sir.

Admittedly it grew to encompass far more than just unethical practices in the games industry... and became an anti-SJW sort of thing. Though the SJW stuff grew pretty rapidly alongside it, so it makes sense.

Here's a Medium article summarizing some of the early events: https://medium.com/@KingFrostFive/gamergate-august-2014-revisited-3b41832c061b

A few really shady things get people digging, lot of "streisand effect" goes on, big names get involved, and the movement is born. I really should go back and rewatch some of those Internet Aristocrat videos on it... I find even my current recollections hazy on the details of the beginning, and more focused on where we are now.

Edit: Heh, here's a "GamerGate in 60 seconds"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fnRSL3d_xU

Thanks GP. I had been of the opinion at the time that it was not of wider significance, but it has a surprising staying power bubbling beneath the surface (like Benghazi does for a segment of the population) so I wanted to get as unbiased as possible a deep dive on the subject. I solicited your recommendations because in current times one needs to be able to reject so very many search results out of hand and I was not familiar enough with the gamespace to know whose opinions to value

 

[ArcadiaGP]

as unbiased as possible a deep dive on the subject

I can't say I'm completely unbiased, but I see it much like any other movement... we weed out the undesirables, and stay focused. Much how people on the other side of it will call it a "harassment group" by citing nasty tweets that had the hashtag in it... (not sure how that's evidence, but ok)... we could do the exact same regarding all the male feminists/SJW-types that have ended up being sex offenders/pedophiles/etc.

There are always bad actors when large numbers of people are involved. It's always easy to make the worst people the "face" of something, so you can defer attention from the actual concerns and points being made.

. . .

One primary goal of the whole thing was for the gaming news sites and outlets to have a higher level of integrity. A few of the GG-related victories reflect that:

The Escapist published details that they were putting themselves under review, and underwent policy changes.
The Fine Young Capitalists charity raised tens of thousands of dollars for encouraging more women to get involved in game development.
The #NotYourShield hashtag arose, representing minorities, women, and LGB people... as a response against the narrative that GG was just a "straight, white male" movement.
The reveal of GJP "GameJournoPros", a very informative confirmation that journalists were colluding to shape the narrative. I apprehensively thank Milo Yiannopoulos for that one.
Advertisers pulling support for less-than-ethical outlets.
A slew of new, fair gaming websites. One particular site that was birthed from the movement is still going strong, and is even followed by Elon Musk.
Called attention to censorship taking place on Reddit, NeoGAF (now defunct), 4chan, etc... Wikileaks talked a lot about this.
Disclosure of relationships - Some outlets have been more careful to disclose when they are being paid for reviews, have personal relationships with developers, etc.


Edit: Also... Gawker. I know most of that is Hulk Hogan... but we tick that box as a win.

 

[BugI02]

Don't sell yourself short. In reviewing the material, the only bias I can see in your work was just wanting people to take the issue seriously (which its very opacity to outsiders makes difficult)

GamerGate almost seems like a dry run for MSM behavior vis a vis Trump, accusations of awfulness reverberate around an echo chamber in an attempt to make astroturf seem like grass roots and allow journos to shape the public perception

It just seems like a pure power play by the journos, basically asserting that 'gamers/GamerGate are what we say they are' - always an ugly thing

 

[actaeon277]

Ocasio-Cortez’s Social Justice Goals In Her “Green New Deal” Proves She Lives In a Fantasy Land

Imagine that.
Someone that's never ran a business, had to generate power, or distribute power makes a list of "unicorn farts".

 

[printcraft]

https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/07/us/gucci-blackface-sweater/index.html

 

[Dead Duck]

https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/07/us/gucci-blackface-sweater/index.html

I see.
So we now have to buy "appropriate" colored ski masks for winter because we don't want to offend the morons.

 

[actaeon277]

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Thanks GP. I had been of the opinion at the time that it was not of wider significance, but it has a surprising staying power bubbling beneath the surface (like Benghazi does for a segment of the population) so I wanted to get as unbiased as possible a deep dive on the subject. I solicited your recommendations because in current times one needs to be able to reject so very many search results out of hand and I was not familiar enough with the gamespace to know whose opinions to value

I can't say I'm completely unbiased, but I see it much like any other movement... we weed out the undesirables, and stay focused. Much how people on the other side of it will call it a "harassment group" by citing nasty tweets that had the hashtag in it... (not sure how that's evidence, but ok)... we could do the exact same regarding all the male feminists/SJW-types that have ended up being sex offenders/pedophiles/etc.

There are always bad actors when large numbers of people are involved. It's always easy to make the worst people the "face" of something, so you can defer attention from the actual concerns and points being made.

. . .

One primary goal of the whole thing was for the gaming news sites and outlets to have a higher level of integrity. A few of the GG-related victories reflect that:

The Escapist published details that they were putting themselves under review, and underwent policy changes.
The Fine Young Capitalists charity raised tens of thousands of dollars for encouraging more women to get involved in game development.
The #NotYourShield hashtag arose, representing minorities, women, and LGB people... as a response against the narrative that GG was just a "straight, white male" movement.
The reveal of GJP "GameJournoPros", a very informative confirmation that journalists were colluding to shape the narrative. I apprehensively thank Milo Yiannopoulos for that one.
Advertisers pulling support for less-than-ethical outlets.
A slew of new, fair gaming websites. One particular site that was birthed from the movement is still going strong, and is even followed by Elon Musk.
Called attention to censorship taking place on Reddit, NeoGAF (now defunct), 4chan, etc... Wikileaks talked a lot about this.
Disclosure of relationships - Some outlets have been more careful to disclose when they are being paid for reviews, have personal relationships with developers, etc.


Edit: Also... Gawker. I know most of that is Hulk Hogan... but we tick that box as a win.

Don't sell yourself short. In reviewing the material, the only bias I can see in your work was just wanting people to take the issue seriously (which its very opacity to outsiders makes difficult)

GamerGate almost seems like a dry run for MSM behavior vis a vis Trump, accusations of awfulness reverberate around an echo chamber in an attempt to make astroturf seem like grass roots and allow journos to shape the public perception

It just seems like a pure power play by the journos, basically asserting that 'gamers/GamerGate are what we say they are' - always an ugly thing

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Jamil, you might like this. Sam Harris on JRE today talking about a Norm McDonald saying "retarded"

[video=youtube;xJNfC2l1uLo]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJNfC2l1uLo[/video]

 

[DoggyDaddy]

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to actaeon277 again. Sorry comrade. I tried, but apparently there are others that deserve it more than you. You understand of course.

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Tim Pool will be on JRE tomorrow

 

[1DOWN4UP]

Equality for 1000 people.https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/t...000-a-month-chicago-city-council-ameya-pawar/

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Adidas pulls all-white sneaker created for Black History Month after Twitter backlash

This **** really is tiring.

 

[Dr.Midnight]

Adidas pulls all-white sneaker created for Black History Month after Twitter backlash

This **** really is tiring.

You really can't win anymore. I can only imagine the horror if they had produced an all black sneaker.

 

[KG1]

Some people just get all worked up for anything anymore.

 

[jamil]

Imagine that.
Someone that's never ran a business, had to generate power, or distribute power makes a list of "unicorn farts".

Well. Cow farts.

 

[Mongo59]

It's a contest. The people are trying to take away freedom faster than the political leadership. The first to cause total collapse wins and those who win, lose...

 

[jamil]

Jamil, you might like this. Sam Harris on JRE today talking about a Norm McDonald saying "retarded"

I’m looking forward to hearing the whole podcast. I did listen to some jre clips including that one.

I’m a little dissatisfied that he didn’t rant more about how retarded it is to assume that someone is talking about your loved one when you call stupid **** people say, retarded. People who get all bent out of shape about it should get an earful similar to the following.

“What? C’mon. You’re not that stupid. You know ***damn well my invocation of the term has nothing to do with special needs people and that this AINT about YOU. But instead YOU wanna get all narcissistic about it and find some way to be offended on behalf of people who aren’t the subject, and make it about YOU so that YOU can have a heapin’ helpin’ of that delicious righteous indignation. Well stop it; that’s retarded.”

 

[rhino]

Being offended on behalf of other people is now a competitive sport.

 

[jamil]

Being offended on behalf of other people is now a competitive sport.

People get a feeling of rightness when they do that. It’s a like a tribal cause. Us good people against those bad people. We’re in the right. We’re the moral ones. We’re standing up for the defenseless against your immoral behavior. We’re standing up for social justice. Yeah? Well **** you and your narcissistic fake morality. If you want to be a good person and defend the defensless, protecting them from people who aren’t harming them isn’t being a good person. It’s taking the easy path to fake moral intoxication.

If you see someone bullying a special needs person, step in. Stand up for them. You might get yer ass beat. Take a risk to protect the defenseless against actual harm. The risk is part of what makes it virtue. But not everyone has the courage to put themselves on the line for someone else.

It’s easy to sit back on your couch with your pink macbook on your lap, and post a “spread the word to end the r-word” meme on your facebook page. And then feel like you’re changing the world. But that’s not virtue. Real virtue isn’t free. You have to earn it. And earning it certainly isn’t as simple as participating in a mob to shame people for using a ****ing word.