We've Seen The Future, And It's NSFW

[Elate]

Who really cares if someone wants to do that? Or, more to the point, why do you care?

This is pretty much my reaction. Who gives a damn, and why does it bother people so much? What business is it of yours if someone wants to be referred to as a cauliflower or whatever, you don't have to associate with them, and yeah, I have to say due to the rather open nature of this comic it does kind of lump transgender people in there too, unintentionally, but that isn't exactly an excuse.

NAMES, PRONOUN USAGE & DESCRIPTIONS

-Always use a transgender person's chosen name.
-Whenever possible, ask transgender people which pronoun they would like you to use.
-If it is not possible to ask a transgender person which pronoun he or she prefers, use the pronoun that is consistent with the person's appearance and gender expression.

The recent Facebook and Tumblr changes enable the third point.

There's kinda three rules for making fun of something and not catching flack for it:
a) Everything is fair game. There are no sacred cows. (Including yourself)
b) Don't make the victim/victimization be the punchline
c) Look in a mirror. (eg, does this look bad coming from you? Think about who you is following/friends with you. Think about what law enforcement would think with only the context of your joke.)

If you live in 'merica then free speech is a free license to hurt people with words. It is never a joke to threaten someone, because that is you making someone a victim, even if you have no intention of carrying out the threat. "It's only a joke" is a cowards defense against taking responsibility for the consequences.

Unless someone presents you with a pronoun/label to use, you're pretty much stuck with using "they" or their name. If they want to treated as an extraterrestrial by picking confusing or unpronounceable pronouns then that's their own business. Don't expect anyone to take those pronouns seriously then. It will always be seen as being a dick to someone if you use a pronoun opposite from what they want. So the safest way is to just use "they", as it has no opposite.

You are one of the few people in this thread who has made a valid point and isn't making this black and white. Just wanted to acknowledge that. As a side note, I'd say that if you can't ask a person their preferred pronouns (and it isn't brazenly obvious) to try and use gender neutral ones, some people don't pass well and it can be a rather hurtful reminder when others use the opposite pronoun.

 

[ERaptor]

And honestly, how would you tackle making the comic less open to interpretation? A bottom line saying "It's a joke!" or a specific sideline that this isnt aimed specifically at Group X? I think the Author made it pretty clear that it's aimed at the more...questionable Tumblr-people.

I'd look to Penny Arcade, who very much make their point exactly known and if it's in any way open they usually have attached a several paragraph-long blog post to sum up the thought process and circumstances under which the strip was created. I don't even like Penny Arcade, but I'm impressed by their brash, to-the-point demeanour. There is never any doubt as to what Penny Arcade is saying with their jokes.

While that'd be an approach, I think its overkill JUST to clarify your stance everytime you do a comic. I Like PA's Blogposts as well, but I dont NEED them to know that PA isnt parading around hateful Propaganda. I seriously think people default to the "author probably an asshole"-impression a tad to quickly, which is especially silly if that author has a long list of previous content, or actually expresses himself elsewhere. Doubly so if the Comedy-Context is made very obvious. Its also a doublestandard if people only get angry once the content gets aimed at certain groups. Its the equivalent of a swiss audience at a comedy-gig, laughing at jokes about italians, french, germans, whatever. But getting up in arms once the guy on stage jokes about Switzerland. And this happens a lot on the Web.

Also, "It's only a joke." isnt allways a cowarldy defense. That implies that everyone complaining about comedy is immeadeately in the right, which imho isnt the case in a lot of situations. Sometimes a joke is indeed just a joke, and sometimes complaints about the subject matter are just whining. No side is right by default, it depends heavily on the context.

 

[KisaiTenshi]

Also, "It's only a joke." isnt allways a cowarldy defense. That implies that everyone complaining about comedy is immeadeately in the right, which imho isnt the case in a lot of situations. Sometimes a joke is indeed just a joke, and sometimes complaints about the subject matter are just whining. No side is right by default, it depends heavily on the context.

It tends to be used as a defense when the joke has backfired or been taken way too far and consequences are inevitable. I'm speaking from personal experience on the receiving end of such a "joke" (death and rape threats are not a joke, it's intimidation.) Character assassination is also not a joke, there are a few exceptions like when someone is being "roasted", birthdays, and wedding receptions where you're in the company of more friends than strangers (who may also be inebriated) and the few people who don't have the context of the joke need to be reminded it's joke time.

http://www.thevine.com.au/life/thoughts/context-offence-and-landing-a-rape-joke-20130620-236968

Regarding where, many (generally male) comedians have presented the blunt, blanket argument that in comedy there is always a place for everything, and anything less is censorship. Various feminist writers, and another slew of both male and female comics agree that censorship doesn't belong in comedy, but careful consideration of your subject and of your joke's potential social effects does.

blunt comedy works within two general theories ? the Freud-originated notion of laughter as a cognitive and physiological release, and the newer theory of humour through something termed benign violation.

The second comedic theory, benign violation, attempts to explain the humour that can arise from crossing (violating) a moral or social line, in a non-threatening (benign) manner. A tactile illustration of this theory is the act of tickling - an ultimately harmless bodily breach that results in fits of laughter. Insulting or offensive jokes where moral codes are purposefully shattered and worldviews toppled, with comic effect, can be deciphered using this theory.

The problem with "the internet" especially places like 4chan, reddit, and tumblr, is that you are never among friends and anything mean spirited you say has immediate consequences. SJW momentum comes from removing the context for maximum offense. So you can't go "I was only joking" after it's been reblogged/retweeted once.

So this entire pronoun thing, is easily seen as a joke if you have the entire comic for the context, because using -any- word as a pronoun opens up the possibility of offensive language to be used, therefor putting someone in the awkward position having to use NSWF language... at work. The last panel can be interpreted a few ways, but the same word used as a profanity is also used as an synonym for "badass."

 

[JimB]

I think all this talk about whether the use of alternate pronouns is a good thing is missing the most important part of the comic: the first panel. Erin's cheekbones are pink. What's up with that? Is she wearing rouge at home?? This is the great mystery of our time!

 

[Korolev]

Not being called a pronoun of your choice is not a real problem. It's a made up, self-engineered problem that people have concocted so that they can feel that they have a problem, because it's "cool" and "edgy" to have problems and to feel "oppressed". Oppression is sexy these days, and if you're not actually oppressed (like political dissidents in Iran or China) there's nothing stopping you from creating an imaginary problem so you can claim to be oppressed. Most of the people who demand to be called things like "sail" or whatever they want, are teenagers who are going through changes and want to feel different or special.

I can respect Transgender folks who want to be called He or She, because I can conceptualize the problem they face - some neurological circuits in their brain developed the wrong way, and they feel that they should be a different gender. Okay - I get that. I respect that. Maybe something went a little funny during gestation and their brain developed the wrong neurological circuitry and as a result, they feel a mismatch between their brain and their body.

But no one is a goddamn boat. There is no conceivable biological explanation for why someone would honestly feel like a boat or a dragon. "Sternselves"? What? Really? Or when people demand to be called "Dragon-kin" or whatever it is the kids get up to these days - it's just silly. It's just made up, pretend problems, dreamed up by affluent kids who don't have real problems but desperately want to jump on this "misunderstood, oppressed" bandwagon so they can feel like the world is against them, in order to actually inject some romanticism into their life. Better to feel oppressed and misunderstood than to feel bored and normal, I guess.

I repeat - Transgender issues are NOT silly, because there could be a biological basis for people feeling that their brain is mismatched with their body. But OtherKin nonsense and demanding to be called "sail" or whatnot? Very silly. It's not a real problem. Well, I mean, people who demand to be called "sail" or who honestly think they are a dragon HAVE a problem.... just.... not the one they think.

 

[ERaptor]

Also, "It's only a joke." isnt allways a cowarldy defense. That implies that everyone complaining about comedy is immeadeately in the right, which imho isnt the case in a lot of situations. Sometimes a joke is indeed just a joke, and sometimes complaints about the subject matter are just whining. No side is right by default, it depends heavily on the context.

It tends to be used as a defense when the joke has backfired or been taken way too far and consequences are inevitable. I'm speaking from personal experience on the receiving end of such a "joke" (death and rape threats are not a joke, it's intimidation.) Character assassination is also not a joke, there are a few exceptions like when someone is being "roasted", birthdays, and wedding receptions where you're in the company of more friends than strangers (who may also be inebriated) and the few people who don't have the context of the joke need to be reminded it's joke time.

http://www.thevine.com.au/life/thoughts/context-offence-and-landing-a-rape-joke-20130620-236968

Regarding where, many (generally male) comedians have presented the blunt, blanket argument that in comedy there is always a place for everything, and anything less is censorship. Various feminist writers, and another slew of both male and female comics agree that censorship doesn't belong in comedy, but careful consideration of your subject and of your joke's potential social effects does.

blunt comedy works within two general theories ? the Freud-originated notion of laughter as a cognitive and physiological release, and the newer theory of humour through something termed benign violation.

The second comedic theory, benign violation, attempts to explain the humour that can arise from crossing (violating) a moral or social line, in a non-threatening (benign) manner. A tactile illustration of this theory is the act of tickling - an ultimately harmless bodily breach that results in fits of laughter. Insulting or offensive jokes where moral codes are purposefully shattered and worldviews toppled, with comic effect, can be deciphered using this theory.

The problem with "the internet" especially places like 4chan, reddit, and tumblr, is that you are never among friends and anything mean spirited you say has immediate consequences. SJW momentum comes from removing the context for maximum offense. So you can't go "I was only joking" after it's been reblogged/retweeted once.

So this entire pronoun thing, is easily seen as a joke if you have the entire comic for the context, because using -any- word as a pronoun opens up the possibility of offensive language to be used, therefor putting someone in the awkward position having to use NSWF language... at work. The last panel can be interpreted a few ways, but the same word used as a profanity is also used as an synonym for "badass."

If someone reblogs or reposts something without Context, then hes at fault. There isnt even a defense needed, either provide the context or outright ignore the shitstorm as Spam. Most of these Outrage-Blogs or sites function like some of the worse Newspaper we know in reallife. Pull out sentences or statements entirely out of context and without background and watch the tide roll. Easily fixed by clarifying the statement by providing the missing information and ignore the illiterate retard banging at your door. Heck, its even easier on the Internet, as in RL.

Im well aware that some people pull the "Im'a just joking, Brah"-shield once they get backlash from something said. I just wanted to point out that it isnt ALLWAYS the case. Most people on the Web these days, as I said above, allways assume and interpret the worst in any given situation, so they can be outraged about it. Its annoying, its unnecessary and a lot of it is just glorified spam in the name of "social justice".

 

[Grande McCokle]

Plural and McDicks