On Gaymers and Cons

[Abomination]

Umm... I actually don't understand why the LGBT -community would need their own gaming convention. There isn't anything dickish about it though, and I don't see why that particular question even would be dickish.

From what I understand from this comic the Gaymer convention is going to take place in a secluded mountain temple and the activities will include homosexual pooping and peeing... maybe some application of makeup.

While I will not ever attempt to stop a Gaymer convention I don't see why one is needed. In almost every circle of gaming I interact on I have at least 3 homosexual friends and one trans(vestite/sexual)... I seem to attract them or something.

Certainly there are those who are disrespectful to homosexuals (homophobia is a terrible term, it implies an irrational FEAR, not petty malice and hatred) but I believe you will find them everywhere. Are there gay sporting events, gay debate clubs, gay chess clubs, gay boxing clubs? It just seems so redundant and self-segregating.

Would I be allowed to attend this Gaymer convention despite my sexual orientation? Do I require a homosexual escort while on premises? Do I have to be blindfolded on the trip there and back?

The problem is that it's self segregation. I can understand why they'd want to do it, but not convinced it's a good thing.

Read the epilogue text underneath the comic and then rethink your statements.
Here, I even found the relevant bit for you: "They ask why a minority pushing for acceptance and integration would "segregate" themselves. They're innocent questions, but they come from minds that, quite often, don't comprehend that being able to "fit in" (hoho) pretty much anywhere is one of the numerous luxuries that come with being straight. Indeed, feeling like you fit in is pretty much the entire point of going to a con isn't it?"

Also:

Would I be allowed to attend this Gaymer convention despite my sexual orientation? Do I require a homosexual escort while on premises? Do I have to be blindfolded on the trip there and back?

Yes. Why wouldn't you be able to attend if you were straight? Also your following questions are exactly the veiled dickishness that Cory/Grey are talking about. Don't be so naive/insultingly ignorant.

Also also:

Are there gay sporting events, gay debate clubs, gay chess clubs, gay boxing clubs?

Yes there are. Do you have any idea how gays are treated/shunned in the sporting world? It's slightly better than it was now but it's still not great. In a predominantly straight-male dominated event, it takes a while before change/equality comes along.

I am sorry but this entire thing is just "You don't understaaaaand!"

The question being asked is still - why is this required? What do they get out of the con other than a 99% guarantee that malice directed at homosexuals will not be present? If the intent is just to seclude themselves to avoid an uncomfortable situation I guess I can understand it... but it doesn't help in the grand scheme of things. I thought the ides was for gender and sexuality to be a complete non-issue. This is turning that idea on its head.

Is this just an escape con for homosexuals? Will there be certain agendas being discussed in reference to homosexuality being present in the medium and how one can go about incorporating it in a more tasteful fashion?

I guess it makes me feel uncomfortable that homosexuals would be ridiculed at a normal gaming convention... who is doing this ridiculing and why are they allowed to remain on the premises?

 

[OfficialJab]

Understand what situation? That people treat them in a shitty way at times?
So the solution to that is to separate the two groups altogether? That's just pointless.


Or is it that the regular gaming cons don't offer enough games that "gaymers" like?
Why not just make another con then instead of aiming it "gaymers" specifically?

I mean, you still haven't explained the issue to which the gaymercon is a solution to. You can't just say "you just don't understand", at least in a proper discussion you can't.

The segregation already exists, it's just not on paper, and many people that aren't victims don't see it. Straights are welcomed to this convention and (hopefully) won't be discriminated against at all, making it more inclusive than the standard conventions.

And I have explained it, and so have dozens of other people.
At Con A, these people feel uncomfortable
At Con B, they aren't, so they prefer this one.
There, explained.

Well I came here to ask those excact questions, since i dont think theyre ignorant at all, in fact i think they are quite important. I also dont like the double standard here, that its okay for people of a special sexual orientation to exclude people from an event, as long as they arent straight.

Well you didn't do much reading, because nobody is excluded from the event, and certainly not based on orientation.

Also, 'ignorance' and 'importance' aren't related. The thing is, this con shouldn't really be an 'important' topic in that way. The fact that it is becoming such a dramatic issue with some people should make its validity self-evident. In fact, tons of events and conventions surrounding different populations, minorities, groups, and so-on occur all the time. Doesn't it get your gears turning when one that gets this much special attention, it's from the straight gaming community that 'don't understand it'?

 

[Erttheking]

To be perfectly honest I don't really go to cons at all, and I don't think my friend would go this new con (I could be perfectly wrong here) he doesn't seem like the guy who goes "HEY EVERYBODY! I LIKE MEN!" he seems more like the type of person that goes "yeah, I like guys. So?" Really they can go to this con if they want to, but in my humble opinion it's a little stupid. It just seems to imply that there's no way that the LGBT community and the straight community can co-exist and the only solution is to separate ourselves. Call me whatever you wish, but I can't help but feel that this is going to send the wrong message.

I might have to reiterate myself here. We're not banning the straight folk from going to this thing. The straight folk can absolutely come too and be supportive. It's another choice of venue, not a segregation tool.

I know that you're not, I have no problem with this, I just can't seem to wrap my head around it. Maybe I just fall into the category of thinkers that just ignoring a problem doesn't do anything to solve it and that we need to face it head on and not just run away from it.

 

[OniaPL]

Why make it a gaming event then? If you need pats on the back and loving acceptance then just make a therapy group or something.

Are you serious? Are y--was that a thing you just typed? Why shouldn't we have an event that celebrates a certain facet in the diamond that is gaming culture? It's not like we'd ban anyone who wasn't LGBT, you can totally go too, cuz you're totally supportive of the LGBT folk, right?

Right?

I don't go to cons anyways, so I think I'll pass.

And it seems like you are taking this as a some kind of assault against the rights of the LGBT community. I just don't personally understand what the effin' point is in this. LGBT community isn't special; they are just another group of people. I fail to see why a certain group would need to organize their very own convention.

And the desire for acceptance isn't just a reason enough for me, and honestly I would despise people who'd attend a con just in hopes of acceptance.

 

[Deathfish15]

Okay, I have to say it: The lady in the 3rd panel with a pipe between her legs instead looks like she's got a grey dildo being shoved up her bush. I'm just saying that the pipe/sink could either have been better repositioned, or could have been removed entirely (unless it was fully intended to be an inferred dildo?).

 

[Sparrow]

Sooo, if innocent questions are all fine and dandy, what is there at a gay con there there isn't a straight con? Isn't the draw of most cons to promote and show off new and unreleased games? I don't know of many gay focused games coming out in the near future, so... what do gay cons have that straight cons don't?

 

[stonemaskstoryteller]

Yes sexuality and games may be a far cry from each other, but it's not about homosexuality AND games. You'd be hard pressed to find many games with gay main characters after all...rather Gaymer con sets up an ENVIROMENT in which gay people and same-sex couples can discuss games, walk around around with their partners, or hold hands while they que.

Also Gaymer con isn't "segregated", anyone and everyone is allowed to join regardless of their sexuality. The only difference is that you'll proberbly find a more open and welcoming crowd...and more gay people in the open. In an ideal society there wouldn't be a need to make a separate con and we could just go to regular game con, but in an ideal society, no gay person would have to be careful never to mention their partner or to mention that they think any same-sex game character is attractive. I mean, when has ANYONE ever gone to a convention and not at least once mentioned who they they think is the most attractive game character? It'd be nice to do that without people staring at you like you're a freak.

To be honest, when it boils down to it. Most Gaymers are just trying to have fun like everyone else, geek out, discuss games and go to a convention as well as feel safe and welcome to discuss their relationships and their lifestyle if need be. All without the funny looks. We're not asking much. =/

 

[OniaPL]

And I have explained it, and so have dozens of other people.
At Con A, these people feel uncomfortable
At Con B, they aren't, so they prefer this one.
There, explained.

Well, that is reasonable I guess. I suppose it just irks me that people get uncomfortable so easily and hold their own little party to escape it.
But that has nothing to do with the topic at hand, meaning conventions or "gaymers", so I accept your reasoning.

 

[Sepko]

I am sorry but this entire thing is just "You don't understaaaaand!"

The question being asked is still - why is this required? What do they get out of the con other than a 99% guarantee that malice directed at homosexuals will not be present? If the intent is just to seclude themselves to avoid an uncomfortable situation I guess I can understand it... but it doesn't help in the grand scheme of things. I thought the ides was for gender and sexuality to be a complete non-issue. This is turning that idea on its head.

Is this just an escape con for homosexuals? Will there be certain agendas being discussed in reference to homosexuality being present in the medium and how one can go about incorporating it in a more tasteful fashion?

I guess it makes me feel uncomfortable that homosexuals would be ridiculed at a normal gaming convention... who is doing this ridiculing and why are they allowed to remain on the premises?

Why should you care? If you're not interested why should you give two slivers of a crap about anything that the LGBT gaming community is doing in the the slightest? It really sounds like you're worried this is somehow the beginning of a hostile takeover or something. It's an alternative venue for a facet of gaming culture and their supporters to attend. Nothing more. It's not going to stop us from going to all the other cons that we've always been going to since the dawn of time.

Also yeah, there'll totally be gay agenda talks about our 12-month plan to replace all gaming with butt-humping simulators.

 

[OfficialJab]

And I have explained it, and so have dozens of other people.
At Con A, these people feel uncomfortable
At Con B, they aren't, so they prefer this one.
There, explained.

Well, that is reasonable I guess. I suppose it just irks me that people get uncomfortable so easily and hold their own little party to escape it.
But that has nothing to do with the topic at hand, meaning conventions or "gaymers", so I accept your reasoning.

And you know what? I accept your and Abomination's point that it appears as an "Escape Con". That's how it's largely being marketed, anyways. But its more like a "Sensible Humans Con", where loudmouthed bigoted morons are made to feel uneasy instead. There will also probably be a large helping of panels/shops etc. targeted at the titular demographic, but that's not really harmful anyways.

 

[Susan Arendt]

It's hardly "segregation" - it's an option. Gay people can attend any con they like, straight people can attend GaymerCon if they like. We should deny people the option to go somewhere that they can feel comfortable because...why, exactly?

I'm not arguing against GaymerCon, people are free to do as they please and market forces will determine the success/failure of the event, just as any other. And, of course, I don't begrudge or deny anyone a specifically tailored event if they feel they don't fit in well enough to the "main" group.

Looking over the event roster, they've tailored the discussion around gay issues, which I'm sure hardly (if ever) come up at a "regular" convention - so, you know, that's cool and warrants its own convention just to get those topics aired so in this regard I think it's great.

However, that's not the basis on which you made your initial comment and really is what I was attempting to reply to.

Perhaps because of how my gay gamer friends are, I don't see how it's hard to fit in at these events. Just like I wouldn't walk around a convention talking to people about how I like to have sex with women, they wouldn't walk around talking about having sex with guys. And that's the only way in which we differ (except in dress sense, I'm always so jealous of the great business suits one is always buying). So, I don't get that point. I don't see gays skipping through the street holding flowers and singing "la-dilly-la" all day, so, how do they feel excluded or out of place? They're just people, like everyone else - where's the issue?

If you really, truly, don't see the issue, then that means you haven't really seen the everyday bullshit that gay folks have to put up with, and that's actually a wonderful thing to hear. It's not really all that unusual to see people sneering at a gay couple holding hands, or see someone actually move away from them as though "the gay" is contagious. As a previous poster has already said, terms like "fag" and "oh, that's so gay" get tossed around constantly, and while that may not bother your friends (and, indeed, doesn't bother many in the community), it does bother many others. It's hurtful and a constant reminder that "I don't accept you."

If you've ever said "oh, she's cute" out loud, you're expressing your sexual preference, albeit in a very understated way. If you've ever said "Yeah, I saw that movie with my girlfriend last week," you're stating your sexual preference. You don't have to be having a conversation about how you specifically like sex with women in order to be stating a sexual preference; it happens in lots of little ways just in everyday behavior. And many people respond to that behavior in ugly ways. You may not give a damn who someone's shagging, and that's absolutely fantastic, but you are, sadly, not necessarily typical.

 

[Sepko]

Why make it a gaming event then? If you need pats on the back and loving acceptance then just make a therapy group or something.

Are you serious? Are y--was that a thing you just typed? Why shouldn't we have an event that celebrates a certain facet in the diamond that is gaming culture? It's not like we'd ban anyone who wasn't LGBT, you can totally go too, cuz you're totally supportive of the LGBT folk, right?

Right?

I don't go to cons anyways, so I think I'll pass.

And it seems like you are taking this as a some kind of assault against the rights of the LGBT community. I just don't personally understand what the effin' point is in this. LGBT community isn't special; they are just another group of people. I fail to see why a certain group would need to organize their very own convention.

And the desire for acceptance isn't just a reason enough for me, and honestly I would despise people who'd attend a con just in hopes of acceptance.

It may not be reason enough for you, but who are you to pass judgement on what cons people can or can't create/attend based on their reasoning?

 

[Deathfish15]

I find the demand for a GaymerCon to be a bit worrying, actually.

If it's all about "feeling like you fit in", what do straight people have to do to make gay people feel like they fit in with everyday life? Clearly, we're doing a bad job.

Stop saying everything is "gay" that you* don't like as a bad thing. Quit calling people "faggots" just because you* dislike them or what they do. Stop verbally assaulting people who are different than you* and making fun of people for their life's choice. That all would be a very well minded start.



I think it would help if developers would discourage misbehavior a lot more and start to adhere to their so called "Terms of Service", which calls for suspensions and bans of people that use foul language and derogatory statements towards fellow gamers. I report on an almost daily basis without any result, sadly enough.




*The "you" in the first paragraph was entirely towards gamers in general as a statement to what they do to make others feel like outcasts.

 

[UniversalRonin]

I am sorry but this entire thing is just "You don't understaaaaand!"

The question being asked is still - why is this required? What do they get out of the con other than a 99% guarantee that malice directed at homosexuals will not be present? If the intent is just to seclude themselves to avoid an uncomfortable situation I guess I can understand it... but it doesn't help in the grand scheme of things. I thought the ides was for gender and sexuality to be a complete non-issue. This is turning that idea on its head.

Is this just an escape con for homosexuals? Will there be certain agendas being discussed in reference to homosexuality being present in the medium and how one can go about incorporating it in a more tasteful fashion?

I guess it makes me feel uncomfortable that homosexuals would be ridiculed at a normal gaming convention... who is doing this ridiculing and why are they allowed to remain on the premises?

Why should you care? If you're not interested why should you give two slivers of a crap about anything that the LGBT gaming community is doing in the the slightest? It really sounds like you're worried this is somehow the beginning of a hostile takeover or something. It's an alternative venue for a facet of gaming culture and their supporters to attend. Nothing more. It's not going to stop us from going to all the other cons that we've always been going to since the dawn of time.

Also yeah, there'll totally be gay agenda talks about our 12-month plan to replace all gaming with butt-humping simulators.

You just reminded me of an old Oatmeal comic strip. http://theoatmeal.com/comics/literally The bottom panel about the Gay steamroller.

 

[TilMorrow]

Either way, I still think there was a ridiculous amount of money raised for this thing that doesn't really seem to have any clear purpose. I mean what's the difference between a Convention about video games and this *sigh* Gaymer(Why?) X 2013 Convention? I mean they're both about games and the only difference with the latter Convention is that it seems to want to primarily attract a crowd made up of gamers whom are homosexual.
...
...
At least I hope the second one is about games. Anyway... Just seems a little silly is all.

 

[stonemaskstoryteller]

I find the demand for a GaymerCon to be a bit worrying, actually.

If it's all about "feeling like you fit in", what do straight people have to do to make gay people feel like they fit in with everyday life? Clearly, we're doing a bad job.

Just don't freak out or give us weird looks when we discuss which same-sex game characters are pretty hot. Or if we decide to bring our partners along and hold hands.
It's as simple as that. =)

Though sadly it's not simple enough for some folks =(

 

[Alcaste]

I know that you're not, I have no problem with this, I just can't seem to wrap my head around it. Maybe I just fall into the category of thinkers that just ignoring a problem doesn't do anything to solve it and that we need to face it head on and not just run away from it.

Precisely. This is doing something about it by making the culture more well-known to everyone involved. It's GOOD that people are asking these questions about 'why' its required. It allows them to then look inwards when they get their answer (whether they immediately accept the answer or not is up to the individual). It may not be your most preferred method, but it is a method, and it might just work.

 

[bunji]

Well you didn't do much reading, because nobody is excluded from the event, and certainly not based on orientation.

Also, 'ignorance' and 'importance' aren't related. The thing is, this con shouldn't really be an 'important' topic in that way. The fact that it is becoming such a dramatic issue with some people should make its validity self-evident. In fact, tons of events and conventions surrounding different populations, minorities, groups, and so-on occur all the time. Doesn't it get your gears turning when one that gets this much special attention, it's from the straight gaming community that 'don't understand it'?

To be fair I didn't, but my point still sort of stands - there is a double morale here, propogated by events like these, and while I understand the need for a "minority" to have something of their own, I feel they may just be creating more issues for themselves by pulling stunts like these. I'm not straight myself, but nothing made me loathe people who identify as having a diverging sexuality than the pride parade.

To clarify, I dont say that these kinds of events shouldnt exist, I just question whether or not they aren't just creating more waves unnecessarily.

Also, I follow alot of game-related news sites and I havent heard any vitriol for this gaymer con, honestly (as with people hating on Halo fanboys) i hear the complaints about the complaints alot more than i hear the actual complaints.

 

[Abomination]

I am sorry but this entire thing is just "You don't understaaaaand!"

The question being asked is still - why is this required? What do they get out of the con other than a 99% guarantee that malice directed at homosexuals will not be present? If the intent is just to seclude themselves to avoid an uncomfortable situation I guess I can understand it... but it doesn't help in the grand scheme of things. I thought the ides was for gender and sexuality to be a complete non-issue. This is turning that idea on its head.

Is this just an escape con for homosexuals? Will there be certain agendas being discussed in reference to homosexuality being present in the medium and how one can go about incorporating it in a more tasteful fashion?

I guess it makes me feel uncomfortable that homosexuals would be ridiculed at a normal gaming convention... who is doing this ridiculing and why are they allowed to remain on the premises?

Why should you care? If you're not interested why should you give two slivers of a crap about anything that the LGBT gaming community is doing in the the slightest? It really sounds like you're worried this is somehow the beginning of a hostile takeover or something. It's an alternative venue for a facet of gaming culture and their supporters to attend. Nothing more. It's not going to stop us from going to all the other cons that we've always been going to since the dawn of time.

Also yeah, there'll totally be gay agenda talks about our 12-month plan to replace all gaming with butt-humping simulators.

And who is being the dick now?

I CARE because I want to know what has prompted this, I want to know the cause for such a thing.

As Susan stated maybe I just happen to live in an area of the world where I do not see homosexuals being discriminated against? And she is right, it is awesome it's like that where I live.

I care that this is a thing because it has actually come to this. I thought gamers that had the income and desire to attend a con would be more refined and accepting individuals, it seems my faith was misplaced.

So no, I don't view it as a "hostile takeover" or whatever absurdity you're suggesting. I care because I love homosexuals. I care because I'm ashamed it has come to this in the medium I support. I want to know the reasons for this so I might be able to do something to prevent this type of event from needing to occur in order for homosexuals to enjoy the medium as much as I do.

The comic comparing it to a Martial Arts/Meditation Temple or a Woman's Bathroom is entirely missing the point of my concerns about the event.