#GameDev #NotYourShield #GamerGate @Grummz @Muckbeast @GMShivers @TenNapel

The following is just a response to an individual's claim that Brianna Wu, Zoe Quinn, and Anita Sarkeesian are seeking to expand diversity within the gaming industry, and not trying to censor anything. They seemed genuinely curious why anyone would think otherwise, so I decided to write up my personal thoughts. I focus on Anita Sarkeesian, in particular, simply because she's the largest proponent of the ideology in question. If that bothers you, however, just replace her name with Jonathan Mcintosh; he co-writes the show and pushes the same, exact, ideology.



You don't have to flat out admit that you want something censored in order to accomplish that goal; you can just as easily demonize it, thus shaming and intimidating people into censorship through a manipulative rhetoric and amassing angry supporters who have swallowed your ideology. This has been done throughout human history by many different authoritarian movements, typically religious but not exclusively so; it's why so much of our history and culture has been lost.



Anita Sarkeesian claims that modern gaming is riddled with sexism and misogyny, thus contributing to the oppression of women within reality. By doing this, she's unjustifiably attaching negative repercussions in reality to the indulgence of controversial forms of entertainment within fantasy.



This causes people who support her ideology to demand that these forms of entertainment are abolished in order to save people from the, perceived, repercussions in reality. In turn, this causes the creators of this type of entertainment to feel restricted and fearful that if they do not obey...they have an angry mob to face. Some of these content creators swallow the ideology themselves and start believing that what they are doing is wrong, even if there's no evidence to support it.



This ideology has already caused slight censorship of "Grand Theft Auto 5" and has also targeted the games "Hatred" and "Huniepop." Both of the latter games were saved by the efforts of gamers (Men, Women, Minorities, etc...) who are greatly opposed to this ideology, not women, and do not believe the claims made by Anita Sarkeesian: that these forms of entertainment turn you into a rapist or mass murdering psychopath.



To say that she is not pushing this narrative is false because of the negative claims she's attaching to these types of stories and tropes. She's blatantly demonizing these types of games...thus, she's pushing for censorship. Those who swallow this ideology, which is just new-wave feminism in general, are supporting the push and writing up demands to see these games restricted, censored, banned. You'll see this happening in all branches of entertainment right now, but only gaming has stood opposed to the push with such a passion. You'll also see this ideology targeting comics, pornography, and pretty much all forms of entertainment.



This is what #GamerGate is fighting against, not diversity and not women; it's fighting an extremist ideology driven by political authoritarianism that has corrupted the gaming media...thus resulting in the unethical practices that this all began with. Instead of addressing the accusations, the gaming media turned on the consumer and began the downward spiral into blatant libel...worsening the situation significantly.



You do not need to burn books in order to have a diverse library. There was never a massive consumer revolt against games like "Mirror's Edge" and "Portal," they were just great games that were very different from everything else out there. These DID add to the industry...and no one tried to demonize what was already out there to do it; they just made the games. These games were welcomed and VERY well received by the gaming community...and they are still enjoyed by many to this day.



Now, back to Anita Sarkeesian's claims.



http://www.polygon.com/2014/9/12/6141515/do-violent-video-games-actually-reduce-real-world-crime



An increase within our indulgence of violent video games correlates with a reduction in real world violence. Please note the irony of using a polygon article here; I'm chuckling, you should be too.



http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/28803/title/Porn--Good-for-us-/



An increase within our indulgence of pornography correlates with a reduction in real world sexual assaults. This is important because pornography is typically considered as extremely sexist and exploitative of women by this particular ideology...more so than even gaming.



http://www.ted.com/talks/steven_pinker_on_the_myth_of_violence?language=en#t-24168



Our increased indulgence and ease of accessing controversial forms of entertainment correlates with an increasingly peaceful society as a whole...despite what it may look like right now. The internet has brought this all to our fingertips...and yet, we're still progressing forward towards a more peaceful society and have been for quite some time.



Now, correlation doesn't necessarily mean causation...but this shows that, at the very least, our indulgence in controversial forms of fantasy-based entertainment doesn't seem to impact real life on a negative level. If the correlation is a sign of causation, however, then that would mean that Anita Sarkeesian's goals are actually DETRIMENTAL to the progression of our society because she is seeking to censor these forms of entertainment rather than diversify and expand. Ask yourself, do you hate women...because most of you reading this are, undoubtedly, gamers exposed to the very type of entertainment she implies warps our mind into becoming that of sexist pigs seeking to prey upon women.



If she would have came to the table with the desire to make alternative games, and not demonizing what's already out there along with those who enjoy these forms of entertainment, no one would have batted a lash. However, what her and those who have adopted this ideology are doing is no less than an attempt at a modern age book burning, the only difference is the medium being tossed onto the fire. You'll be hard pressed to find anyone of intelligence that would suggest book burning was ever a good idea.



Hope this helps you understand my point of view, at least.



...but what do the women, minorities, transgendered folk, homosexuals, feminists, anti-feminists, etc of #GamerGate have to say? I mean, I'm only a gender-fluid male who doesn't outwardly express this fact beyond my personality...so I guess I don't, technically, count?



Well, if you would stop listening to the politically corrupt gaming-media, pretending that these individuals don't exist, and start actually asking those on this side...you might find that out. Calling them inferior human beings, sock puppets, dumb, or whatever other derogatory terminology you can muster up, however, is a good way to get your name trending globally like Mr. Schafer...in all his stupidity.



Disclaimer:



I am but one individual within a massive consumer revolt. When I say things like, "This is what #GamerGate is fighting against" I'm speaking in regards to my own perceptions of my peers rather than speaking for them. We're a massive consumer revolt with a wide range of different people who, potentially, have varied views on the fine details regarding the situation at hand. However, we all come together under a common goal: ethnics in gaming journalism.



Thank you for taking the time to read; some minor edits have been made from the original response to the individual in question, simply because I wanted to gear this iteration to a wider audience. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the individual, who I initially directed this to, was quite receptive and very cordial upon reading through my rant...hope you're the same, whoever you might be. Take care!

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