Well, found this surfing Rotten. It's good to know that if I ever murder someone for making fun of my HOBBY I can blame said hobby. Enjoy, and give me your thoughts everybody.
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DETROIT (Court TV) - On Oct. 27, 2004, James Flemons walked into work with a homemade samurai sword and slashed his co-worker to death.
Prosecutors say Flemons, then 30, was angry because of constant bullying by the victim, Anthony Williams, and other co-workers at Peerless Metal Powders & Abrasive.
But Flemons' lawyer says he is schizophrenic with a psychotic obsession with fantasy role-playing games, including Dungeons & Dragons.
Opening statements in Flemons' murder trial are expected Wednesday.
Williams arrived at his job the day of the killing armed with a homemade 38-inch samurai sword. Witnesses told police that Flemons appeared to hand Williams a piece of metal in a chivalrous manner, as if challenging him to a duel, before chasing him and stabbing him to death.
The medical examiner ruled that Williams died as a result of "multiple chop wounds to the neck."
Witnesses told police that, after the killing, Flemons bought a beer and cigar at a nearby convenience store. He then returned to the scene and positioned Williams' body as if on a cross. Then he opened the beer and lit the cigar as he waited for the police to arrive, his colleagues said.
In a voluntary statement to police, Flemons admitted attacking Williams in response to constant bullying about his fantasy game obsession.
Less than a month after Williams' death, Flemons was found not competent to stand trial and was sent to the State Center for Forensic Psychiatry in Ypsilanti for further evaluation.
To be declared competent to stand trial, an individual must understand the nature of the proceedings and be able to assist counsel in defending their case.
Under Michigan law, the state has 15 months in which to medicate and treat individuals de emed not competent to stand trial. If the person is still found not competent at the end of that period, prosecutors can file to have him committed to a mental institution.
Flemons' lawyer, David Roby, said his client was deemed competent to stand trial only two weeks before the 15-month deadline was reached.
"The doctors said that even though he's hearing voices out of the television that are directing aspects of his life and he's suffering from other mood-altering delusions ... 'he's made such progress we think he's competent,'" Roby said.
Roby said Flemons was obsessed with magic, fantasy, the occult, voodoo, Santeria, telekinesis and spirits.
"He played Dungeons & Dragons and was obsessive with games of fantasy, anything that helped him get away from people and hide from them in his own little cocoon," Roby said.
The defense attorney rejected any notion that Flemons acted in a cold, calculated way, saying instead that his client is "delusional and psychotic."
"This is a case about whether, as a society, we hold the psychotic responsible for every act they commit," Roby said.
Deputy Prosecutor Kam Towns said her case will focus on the testimony of former colleagues who witnessed the attack and that of a forensic psychologist.
Towns also said she hopes to introduce Flemons' 1998 conviction of felonious assault for attacking his uncle with a samurai sword. He also attacked the police officer who responded to the scene.
He was sentenced to two years' probation.
Roby said that although Flemons was deemed competent to stand trial in that case, the doctors who evaluated him said he "probably was suffering from a thought disorder, a delusional disorder, which is to say, schizophrenia."
Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Annette Berry is expected to rule before trial Wednesday on whether Flemons' prior conviction can be introduced at trial.
If Flemons is found guilty of first-degree murder, he will automatically be sentenced to life in prison without parole. A verdict of guilty but mentally ill, however, would mean a life sentence in the prison psychiatric ward.
If the jury returns a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity, Flemons would be sent to the state's mental health facility, where the doctors would maintain sole discretion over his fate. They could opt to release him at some point if they consider him well.
The jury also has the option of finding Flemons guilty of second-degree murder, which would require the judge to sentence him.
Flemons' trial is expected to last five days and will be aired live on Court TV
Gotta blame something in today's society. We can't possibly just say "hey, he murdered him because he's an insane s+$!head!" No, we have to find something "else" to blame, as we are a society of perpetual victims. Don't get me started on this or I'll have to go to the rant topic. D&D, death metal, anything weird makes a good scapegoat for the modern day witch hunters.
Bad parenting? Too complicated, gotta find a quick fix scapegoat....D&D? Okay, that works.
I always love it when you read something like this, and they lightly dance past the part where the man hears voices talking specifically to him from the television, and skip straight to mentioning D&D.
"Well, yes, he was schitzophrenic, but he would have been fine if it weren't for that damn D&D. The voices from the television only told him to do nice things, after all."
Good. F%+@ing. God.
The man in question has bigger issues at hand than the fact that he plays D&D. Did they bother to figure out why this man has an obsessive personality in the first place? Did they stop to consider than the man's freakin' hobbies are just that - freakin' hobbies? Do we go around and cast suspicion on a person because they play golf? Or pool?
Why, oh WHY do people always jump to conclusions when video games or RPGs are involved? What the f&#$? "Wait, this person rolls oddly shaped pieces of plastic with OTHER PEOPLE?!? And they PRETEND together?!? This is CLEARLY UNHEALTHY. Oh, and video games - they're NO GOOD EITHER and are clearly destabilizing our society and corrupting our YOUTH!!!!"
Now I gotta go and play Bully, so I can piss off Jack Thompson. >:(
Haha! Bully is the shiz! Jimmy is my hero. It makes me wish I could be 14 again and be a complete prick to everyone.
Gotta blame something in today's society. We can't possibly just say "hey, he murdered him because he's an insane s~*@head!" No, we have to find something "else" to blame, as we are a society of perpetual victims. Don't get me started on this or I'll have to go to the rant topic. D&D, death metal, anything weird makes a good scapegoat for the modern day witch hunters.
Bad parenting? Too complicated, gotta find a quick fix scapegoat....D&D? Okay, that works.
Maybe I didn't understand the article, But I think it stayed well away from the 'D&D turned this guy into a homocidal maniac' thing. Aren't you reading too much into this?
Aren't you reading too much into this?
Probably ;)
Maybe I didn't understand the article, But I think it stayed well away from the 'D&D turned this guy into a homocidal maniac' thing. Aren't you reading too much into this?Gotta blame something in today's society. We can't possibly just say "hey, he murdered him because he's an insane s~*@head!" No, we have to find something "else" to blame, as we are a society of perpetual victims. Don't get me started on this or I'll have to go to the rant topic. D&D, death metal, anything weird makes a good scapegoat for the modern day witch hunters.
Bad parenting? Too complicated, gotta find a quick fix scapegoat....D&D? Okay, that works.
I agree with Chef's Slaad on this one. I mean D&D was only stated 2 or 3 times. How many times did they let us know that he used a SAMURAI sword? I think the blame should fall on Japan. Never did trust those swinty eyed basterds in the first place!!!
The article does reference to D&D several times, and you can read it in a way that this implicates that D&D is the cause of the obviously very disturbed mind of this man. But overall, it is said that he is mentally disturbed, so much so that he tried to get away from the real world and tried to live in a fantasy world. I don´t really think they try to blame it on D&D here. I think "hearing voices from the TV" is much more disturbing than "he played D&D", even if the latter is referenced several times.
We know that it is just a hobby easily misunderstood. I don´t think anybody will call a witch hunt on D&D anytime soon based on this single incident where some ignoramus jumped to a conclusion that D&D might be resposible. Don´t overrate this.
Stefan
Obviously the fault lies with television, and by extension, anything electronic. I will now get my claymore (or should I use the tanto to stay in theme here?) and proceed to destroy all electronic devices in my house.
Seriously, though, I don't think the reference to Dungeons and Dragons was really necessary, but it didn't do to much harm. This isn't something I expect to gain any national footing to launch Mazes and Monsters II, but I do feel sorry for gamers in that local area. They're likely to be under a bit more of a stigma for a while.
In the end, crazies will be crazies. It's only a question of "what" they'll latch on to; the actual object isn't really that significant at the end of the day.
Also, I think that the article isn't doing to much blaming. They said the man was unfit to be tried, but doctors have now treated him enough to change their opinion. The defense attorney seems to be the only one trying to shift the blame here and, well, that's kind of his job and only option in this case. It's not like he can try to prove his client's innocence of the crime.
I doubt that D&D will play a large part in the televised trial. As I doubt Santeria, occult interest, or any of the other things they mentioned will. His defense attorney has the 1998 case where the court evaluation suspected schitzophrenia, which I'm assuming went untreated as the article doesn't mention the defendant being under a psychiatrist's care or on any medication. It's much easier to convince a jury that he's schitzophrenic with that history and given the symptoms he's displaying now that it is to go with a sensationalist defense of "one of my hobbies... pick any one you like from the list... made me do it." My guess is, that's more the sensationalist slant of the reporter than it is an actual defense tactic.
Moral of the story... don't piss off a twitchy eyed mentally ill guy off his meds that owns a replica sword collection.
Actually, I agree. I don't think that the article was trying to make D&D responsible. I wasn't happy with the fact that it was mentioned several times as opposed to other aspects of the story only coming up once, and I tried to figure out what bothered me about this.
I think I finally have stumbled upon it. In the 80's, when we had people saying "D&D is the cause of X," it was a stand up fight. They would say whatever they thought about D&D, we could throw in the facts about the game that they ignored, and for the most part, we were happy because at least we could argue the point.
This article is more subtle, in that it doesn't use D&D as the cause, but it already assumes that its a "strange hobby," completely sidestepping any debate on the topic. No, it may not cause the problem, but its a symptom. Its thrown in to support the fact that the guy is acting irrationally. And if we say, "D&D doesn't cause this behavior," the person citing it as a symptom can easily deflect by saying they never said it did, they were just citing the subjects behaviors.
Its more of a clandestine, embedded predjudice, and it almost makes me miss the days of the well meaning but unable to support their case fanatics, because you could refute and dismiss them fairly easily with an open mind.
Of course they won't list golf or stamp collecting or fantasy football as hobbies, becasue if he was interested in any of these, they don't support the "crazy" image.
of corse didn't you know that D&D was the spwan of satan? in a christian contry like this where that faith makes all the laws anything outside that ideal is wrong and guilty!!!!....
But seriously i kinda laughed, at least he challanged him to a duel i mean the guy ran like a coward anyway, and the psyco dude was not a paladin hell yeah chop his neck when his back is turned!! :P
**"He played Dungeons & Dragons and was obsessive with games of fantasy, anything that helped him get away from people and hide from them in his own little cocoon," Roby said.**
Anyone else notice the above quote?
When I play DnD, 4 to 5 of my frineds usually show up too. I'm not sure how one can " get away from people " while playing DnD.
Also, they need to stipulate whether he was playing video games or what? (not that it makes a difference - crazy is crazy).
I have run across people who say, "Oh, you play DnD? ... Me too!" and they describe some online game or even DnD miniatures or something that is not DnD pen and paper.
The darkside in me must also say: Maybe the other guy should not have made fun of the crazy dude.
You play D&D?
Hmmmm. You must've dressed up and camped in front of the theatre for the Star Wars movies.
You probably have never kissed a girl.
Can you tell me how to make a chainmail braissiere?
Dont cut me up with a samurai sword, ha ha ha!. . .shakes head in dismay. . .
Are there any other hobbies out there that are subject to such an immediately implied prejudice?
SCA or any kind of historical re-creation/recreation. It is worse for DnD players though.
SCA or any kind of historical re-creation/recreation.
Unless you're a Civil War re-enacter in the Southeast U.S., in which case you're almost as cool as a Nascar driver (unless, of course, you're stuck portraying a Yankee, in which case you're roadkill).
I think the reason for mentioning D&D over many of the other hobbies was very relavent. D&D was the hobby that he was being attacked for by his co-workers, according to the prosecutor. If that is the case, then whether he played D&D becomes relevant, not that there is anything wrong with it, but that the actions of his co-workers then provoked his attacked.
All that said, you would never hear someone site baseball as someones hobby even if they did club their wife to death with a baseball bat.
Sean Mahoney
I wonder if he actually played D&D with anyone...bet his players right now are thinking "see dude, told you that some day he'd actually use the swords instead of just threatening to chop our heads off" ..."Yeah, prees will probably blame d&D for the crime anyways.."
News fails their Gather Information check.
News succeeds on their Perform (Drama) check.
Audience fails their Sense Motive check.
Bit of a perfect storm.
EL 20 if ever I saw one.
BUT, we could rack up some solid XP if we made our own Perform (Drama) checks to counter. Kinda like Bards do. With the Bard Song. Counter things.
News fails their Gather Information check.
News succeeds on their Perform (Drama) check.
Audience fails their Sense Motive check.Bit of a perfect storm.
EL 20 if ever I saw one.
BUT, we could rack up some solid XP if we made our own Perform (Drama) checks to counter. Kinda like Bards do. With the Bard Song. Counter things.
That allmost made sense... *shudder*
Are we so desperate to control what they think of us?
Actually, I agree. I don't think that the article was trying to make D&D responsible. I wasn't happy with the fact that it was mentioned several times as opposed to other aspects of the story only coming up once, and I tried to figure out what bothered me about this.
I think I finally have stumbled upon it. In the 80's, when we had people saying "D&D is the cause of X," it was a stand up fight. They would say whatever they thought about D&D, we could throw in the facts about the game that they ignored, and for the most part, we were happy because at least we could argue the point.
This article is more subtle, in that it doesn't use D&D as the cause, but it already assumes that its a "strange hobby," completely sidestepping any debate on the topic. No, it may not cause the problem, but its a symptom. Its thrown in to support the fact that the guy is acting irrationally. And if we say, "D&D doesn't cause this behavior," the person citing it as a symptom can easily deflect by saying they never said it did, they were just citing the subjects behaviors.
Its more of a clandestine, embedded predjudice, and it almost makes me miss the days of the well meaning but unable to support their case fanatics, because you could refute and dismiss them fairly easily with an open mind.
Of course they won't list golf or stamp collecting or fantasy football as hobbies, becasue if he was interested in any of these, they don't support the "crazy" image.
When you think about it, D&D IS a strange hobby in our society. THe People who play are of above average intelligence, doing something that is using the purest form of imagination, cunning and teamwork. In society they pay some big Roid Monkey millions of dollars for throwing a ball really hard That is strange! What do you mean this game is on paper? Where is the Controller?Remember, mindlessness is the norm, conformity is the rule, society is little more than apes with laptops.
Are we so desperate to control what they think of us?
When I grew up in a time that my Father branded me a Satanist because I played D&D? Yes we need to control what they think of us. Otherwise Ignorance rules the day.
Not to downplay such a tragic event, but it's kind of scary. It just goes to show that you can pretty much kill anyone with anything (eg a home made katana)if you have the will to do so.
And if you talk to sword afficionados they tell you that factory-made wallhanger swords can't be used because they bend and/or snap and can't cut anything, and that if you want a functional sword you have to pay thousands of dollars for a folded steel masterpiece. Just goes to show that when it comes right down to it, a sword is pretty much just a sharp piece of metal with a handle.
I blame Quentin Tarantino for this guy. Damn him and his hip modern re-imagining of the samurai genre!
My mom has a "wallhanger" ceremonial sword she used for highland dancing. You actually can't hurt people with it. It's metal, but it's hollow and too thin to sharpen.
Factory sword < hand-made sword as, somehow, factory swords are cheaper.
But my father has made dirks by hand. They're so ghetto; unpolished, no crossguard, two pieces of wood lashed together for a hilt... But you can use them to chop down saplings in a single swing.
Go figger.
Not to downplay such a tragic event, but it's kind of scary. It just goes to show that you can pretty much kill anyone with anything (eg a home made katana)if you have the will to do so.
And if you talk to sword afficionados they tell you that factory-made wallhanger swords can't be used because they bend and/or snap and can't cut anything, and that if you want a functional sword you have to pay thousands of dollars for a folded steel masterpiece. Just goes to show that when it comes right down to it, a sword is pretty much just a sharp piece of metal with a handle.
I blame Quentin Tarantino for this guy. Damn him and his hip modern re-imagining of the samurai genre!
I collect swords, and every piece I own is a wall hanger, and most would snap if used, but a few of them are full tang 440 stainless steel and razor sharp. If someone was to break into my house, I know that one of these "Wall Hangers" could make this situation look like an episode of "Highlander". Don't dismiss how dangerous these swords are. most of what I own are made of stainless steel and are sharp. Even if the handle breaks, I still wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of that one shot. BTW 440 stainless steel is the grade that is used in making surgical tools including scalples.
So along the lines of the subject matter of this thread... anyone watch the History Channel's show on the History of Vampires last night???
They covered all the standard highlights... ancient legends, Elizabeth Bathory, Vlad, Bram Stoker, Ann Rice... then they do a segment on the modern day Vampire sub-culture, focusing mainly on the New York scene. I don't know enough about that to comment on the validity of what they were saying, so I won't, but then they mentioned everyone's favorite LARP... Masquerade.
And that Masquerade is a way for modern day vampires, (yes, as in people who REALLY think they are vampires and are potentially dangerous... History Channel's words, not mine) to connect and network.
And then they mention some murder case from the 90's (I'm not familiar with it, some of you may be) where this guy "after two solid years of playing Masquerade thought he really WAS a 500 year old vampire" takes his three disciples and drives 12 hours to his girlfriend's house, kills her parents, and drinks some of their blood.
Of course, they also had people on the other side saying Masquerade is a harmless RPG, where creative and intelligent kids get together and challenge their imaginations to have fun. But that wasn't what was emphasized, and that's not what people who aren't familiar with LARPs or RPGs will remember.
I am HIGHLY disappointed in the History Channel for resorting to sensationalist pseudo-documentary for the sake of a "cool" Halloween run.
I did watch the history channel show as well, but I didn't walk away with the same take as you. Perhaps it is because I have been disturbed by some of the people I see LARPing and have made a very conscience effort to stay away from it. There are definately those who COULD be mentally unstable in my opinion. Of course, there are also (the majority) that would be just fine and are upstanding members of society... but how many rotten eggs does it take? For me, the rule that you don't want to game with anyone you wouldn't hang out with holds very true.
Sean Mahoney
Aren't you reading too much into this?Probably ;)
Heh we just remember "the burning times" of D&D which gave us gems like these.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCRBAE8qeME
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogrwfW1rsA4
had he been a hardcore drug user it probably wouldn't have been mentioned once.
STOP MISSING THE POINT!
Witnesses told police that Flemons appeared to hand Williams a piece of metal in a chivalrous manner, as if challenging him to a duel, before chasing him and stabbing him to death.
If it HADN'T been for D&D he would have just food processored the the guy to death right then and there, but his 60th level Paladin Jinx McDiddle taught him that the honorable thing to do was to offer his foe a weapon with which to duel. The foe fled and was struck down accordingly. How many serial killers out there arm you and warn, "Ready?"
If anyone takes my post seriously I will show up to where you work and challenge you to a staring duel. I can avoid blinking for like... ten minutes. The secret is to just keep your eyes fixed on your opponent and roll your head in wide circles in order to wet all but the front of your occular weapon. It really creeps out dogs and bank tellers.
STOP MISSING THE POINT!
If anyone takes my post seriously I will show up to where you work and challenge you to a staring duel. I can avoid blinking for like... ten minutes. The secret is to just keep your eyes fixed on your opponent and roll your head in wide circles in order to wet all but the front of your occular weapon. It really creeps out dogs and bank tellers.
Man Jade I'm impressed, I've never met anyone else that knew that trick.
Your duel is accepted... There can be only one......
I think the man acted accordingly. I mean, I heard the voices tell him to do it!
I was beginning to wonder why our new player "James" wasn't making the games lately. He was our best LARPer.
Man Jade I'm impressed, I've never met anyone else that knew that trick.Your duel is accepted... There can be only one......
Unless we never meet, in which case there can probably be two. But if we meet at Gen Con, expect red tearing eyes before, and especially after, our duel. SHALLONGE!!!! ;)
Heh we just remember "the burning times" of D&D which gave us gems like these.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCRBAE8qeME
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogrwfW1rsA4
had he been a hardcore drug user it probably wouldn't have been mentioned once.
See, living in Europe, I've never met anyone who has a bias against D&D because of movies or news stories like that. Actually, roleplaying games are pretty much unheard of. Instead, when I explain my hobby, I can refer to stuff like Tolkien and, yes, Harry Potter.
See, living in Europe, I've never met anyone who has a bias against D&D because of movies or news stories like that. Actually, roleplaying games are pretty much unheard of. Instead, when I explain my hobby, I can refer to stuff like Tolkien and, yes, Harry Potter.
Same here!
Although just sometimes a person might remember the old cartoon from the eighties and say how much they loved it in a patronizing fashion.
Aren't you reading too much into this?Probably ;)Heh we just remember "the burning times" of D&D which gave us gems like these.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCRBAE8qeME
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogrwfW1rsA4
had he been a hardcore drug user it probably wouldn't have been mentioned once.
Living in MA and NY I've experienced no gamer bias other than the occasional smirk. Movies like Mazes and Monsters accomplished little more than sparking LARPS around here. The weekend after it premiered I was in either 8th and 9th grade and a bunch of kids were asking me how to play.
"Show me how to play Mazes and Monsters!"
"D&D?"
"No. Mazes and Monsters!"
"You just want to go get lost in caves, don't you."
"Hells yeah!"
I knew one feller whose mom burned all his D&D books.
And my grandmother was all worried about it because she learned it was evil at church.
Sorry to hear that. :\
Organized religion in the US seems to find D&D threatening. Pantheons of gods, magic, evil characters. In places where the church holds more sway there is probably more gamer bias.
There are always exceptions of course. D&D can easily be tailored to accomodate crusades and a single god. It can be tailored to anything, really.
A co-writer and friend of mine wrote a juvenile market manuscript about a boy who found himself hexed. Scholastic told him they couldn't publish it because a plot hinging upon a magical gypsy or voodoo hex was not reflective of their christian outlook etc.
Does the church hate Harry Potter as well? Was there ever a beef there?
Yes.
Yes.
http://www.pawcreek.org/articles/endtimes/HarryPotterAndTheAntichrist.htm
G*& d+%ned, m#$&^% f&^%$*g, paranoic, schizophrenic, manipulative, Nazi-istic B@$!@*DS!!! You want to talk about blasphemy? THAT is blasphemy to the very text they cling to like some type of bladed crutch! Imagination is evil? Please tell me that somewhere, there is a law against someone who believes that from raising children! You want to find the blight of humanity? Look no further than a religious fanatic. Sickening rage is all that can describe the feeling within me when I read such small minded, decietful, hypcritic s@*~. Pardon my language; i know it doesn't behoove one to deride others in such a fashion, but I think the members of this board understand my feelings. Gah, my head is about to explode.
Y'know, maybe the reason it's so much fun for other people to pick on RPGers such as ourselves is because we're so darn defensive about our hobby. All it takes is D&D to be mentioned in a less than glowing light by anyone in the news media and then it's off to tangent town! Population: us. Case in point: Senor Samurai. And probably any number of the guys written about on the "DM horror stories" thread.
Let the ignorant clutch their rifles in the fallout shelters and await armageddon. Let the disparraging have their fun and let the curious come to our tables where they may roll our dice and be welcome into the fold.
Y'know, maybe the reason it's so much fun for other people to pick on RPGers such as ourselves is because we're so darn defensive about our hobby. All it takes is D&D to be mentioned in a less than glowing light by anyone in the news media and then it's off to tangent town! Population: us. Case in point: Senor Samurai. And probably any number of the guys written about on the "DM horror stories" thread.
Let the ignorant clutch their rifles in the fallout shelters and await armageddon. Let the disparraging have their fun and let the curious come to our tables where they may roll our dice and be welcome into the fold.
This is maybe the only time in history I'm not in full agreement with you. I think some aspects of pop culture make fun of us for the reason you list, but fear of difference and loss of control seem to me to rank higher. It isn't gamer self defensiveness that causes churches to come down on us or their followers to burn our books. Then again, do they still burn our books?
You do have a point though, because when I let people know I'm a gamer, if they smirk, I just play along in a self-depreciating manner because I find doing so causes the next time I bring up gaming to garner a respectful and knowing nod. I shouldn't have to perform this way, but in my mind the end justifies the means. I guess I consider myself a bit of a gamer PR man.
On a seperate note, thanks for the link, Sexi.
Honestly, I think that now the crazies are more worried about Harry Potter (as our comrade the Sexi Golem informed us) or the prospect that homosexuals will one day have equal rights as tax paying citizens (which would be a cornerstone of their six hundred and sixty six point plan of making the American landscape resemble the last days of Pompeii by getting married) more so than our epic, amazing hobby. We may get a mention now and then, but with World of Warcraft, Lord of the Rings and such assimilating into the popular culture, D&D's standing has nowhere to go but up.
And I've met some clergymen that played (or still play) D&D (or Diablo or something similar). I bet they want to play anything, ANYTHING but the cleric.
You do have a point though, because when I let people know I'm a gamer, if they smirk, I just play along in a self-depreciating manner because I find doing so causes the next time I bring up gaming to garner a respectful and knowing nod. I shouldn't have to perform this way, but in my mind the end justifies the means. I guess I consider myself a bit of a gamer PR man.
Hear hear. There's no reason to be uptight about stuff, especially something you enjoy.
You know what, I think there's something vaguely ridiculous about a grown man pretending to be a hero of legend, and I can own up to that. I can laugh at myself for being a gamer, and I think I should. It doesn't mean I don't love gaming, or that I'm ashamed of it. Being able to laugh at yourself is a valuable thing for letting off steam. I mean just look at old mate in the news article: "HOW DARE YOU LAUGH AT MY HOBBIES! I'LL KILL YOU!!"
I'm a silly, silly person in many ways but it's better than being a violent fanatic.
Honestly, I think that now the crazies are more worried about Harry Potter (as our comrade the Sexi Golem informed us) or the prospect that homosexuals will one day have equal rights as tax paying citizens (which would be a cornerstone of their six hundred and sixty six point plan of making the American landscape resemble the last days of Pompeii by getting married) more so than our epic, amazing hobby. We may get a mention now and then, but with World of Warcraft, Lord of the Rings and such assimilating into the popular culture, D&D's standing has nowhere to go but up.
And I've met some clergymen that played (or still play) D&D (or Diablo or something similar). I bet they want to play anything, ANYTHING but the cleric.
Yeah, judging from the good hearted satirical ribbing of Patton Oswalt on Reno 911 or Stephen Colbert's lighthearted asides it seems that a D&D witch hunt wouldn't gain much ground these days, but somehow I wonder if such a thing is still regional.
I mean it was just last year in Splendid Willow, Alabama that five members of the board of education cannabalized a DM in order to cleanse his spirit. A-1 Steak Sauce moved in to buy the movie rights. Just disgusting.
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I was being discussed at with some Yahoo how Christmas and Easter and Halloween shouldn't be celebrated because they're all Paganed up. So I start trying to convince him we need to do something about the names of the days of the week, seeing as they are all named after Norse Pagan Deities and the Sun and the Moon and all.
I says, "Wednesday is named after Odin, the Norse allfather. That just isn't going to do. We need to start calling it Mosesday or something."
I was being discussed at with some Yahoo how Christmas and Easter and Halloween shouldn't be celebrated because they're all Paganed up. So I start trying to convince him we need to do something about the names of the days of the week, seeing as they are all named after Norse Pagan Deities and the Sun and the Moon and all.
I says, "Wednesday is named after Odin, the Norse allfather. That just isn't going to do. We need to start calling it Mosesday or something."
Monday is Mosesday.
Tuesday is Jewsday. (remember where half that bible came from)Wednesday is Amenday
Thursday is Myrrhsday
Friday is Titheday
Saturday is Madhatterday (Charles Dodgson was a reverend, right?)
Sunday is Sunholyghostday