Since ABOGJ was revived a little over a week ago, I have been careful to avoid an official stance on the GamerGate scandal. Not because I or the other authors don’t have stances on it – we all do – but because declaring one stance is both reckless and against the very reason this site was created. If we say we’re pro-GamerGate, then we risk being labelled a bunch of misogynists; if we’re anti-GamerGate, then we become associated with Social Justice and the “end of gamers.” So we have avoided taking a stance altogether, instead choosing to watch and analyze, allowing the chips to fall where they may, and holding the same standard of quality and ethics we’ve had even before this site came to be.

However, I feel that I can comment on recent events with relative safety, as the subject matter is far more cut-and-dry than the rest of GamerGate. Though before I continue, I must stress that the rest of this editorial does not reflect the opinions of the other ABOGJ authors. I have consulted with none of them during the writing of this editorial, and this admittedly very spur of the moment. That being said, let’s continue to the controversy du jour: IntelGate.

Yesterday, it was reported that Intel had pulled advertising from the video game publication Gamasutra. This change was in direct response to the very, very pro-GamerGate articles being published in the past few weeks. And immediately they were accused of “[buckling] to an anti-feminist campaign” and the hashtag “#MisogynyInside” was born. Which is a pretty wild theory, considering that this is a company whose president is, in fact, a woman. But feminism aside, this isn’t about GamerGate; this is about good business.

Politics is politics. Business is business. Business is not politics, nor is politics business. By advertising through a politically charged publication, you are inherently cutting everyone with a different opinion out of your consumer base. Just ask the advertisers who pulled ads from Rush Limbaugh’s radio show (and good on them, he’s an ass). It’s not smart to advertise with political radicals, on either side of the spectrum. Yet the same people who actively campaign to pull ads from Rush Limbaugh and applaud those who do are decrying Intel for making essentially the same decision. The only difference is that it’s to a publication whose views are in line with their own.

Only the foolish have but one opinion. Discussing, analyzing, and arguing are the ways we, as humans, grow. It’s what this website was founded on. And by only reading those who agree with you, you close yourself off to growth. And if we stop growing, we stop thinking. And if we stop thinking, we fail. So be open, be challenged. Be willing to let people choose for themselves. And for the love of everything, stop supporting websites that have only one stance on an issue.

Disclosure: The preceding comments are solely those of the author, and do not express the opinion of ABOGJ or it’s other authors. However, both ABOGJ and the author are: pro-equality, pro-logic, pro-discussion, pro-freedom-of-speech, and this author in particular is anti-Rush Limbaugh.