PETA Attacks Mario For Wearing Tanooki Fur - Forbes

PETA Attacks Mario For Wearing Tanooki Fur - Forbes:

'via Blog this'

My Facebook rant consolidated

I will worry about the plight of the animals when we humans get our shit together. When Tolerance and understanding is chosen over hate and warfare, when people are no longer denied lifesaving procedures and items that help protect against the spread of disease because of religious fallacy, when sexuality (as long as it involves consenting adults) is not considered an indicator of a person's character, when we start celebrating our similarities instead of being torn apart by our differences. THAT is when I'll be concerned about whether the chicken experienced any stress as it made its way to my plate. Others can think what they will as long as they don't stomp on other people to get their way, and I will respect their right to do so. I however plan to happily enjoy life being the omnivore that nature intended me to be.

Speaking one's mind is never a bad thing. Shouting in a person's ear is another. PETA does a lot of shouting, a lot of outright bullying and associates with known criminals that have hurt their fellow human-beings on purpose. It does so willingly and without a shred of remorse. Celebrities flock to their cause because it's easy. All they have to do is write out a check and BAM! They are an animal lover. So yes, I will eat the meat knowing that it would get stuck in a PETA member's craw. Knowing they would HATE me for it. That's just for tonight however. Tonight and beyond I will eat meat because it's damn tasty and my human body needs the proteins that reside therein. Simply put I'll forget PETA exists until they do something else cruel, mean-spirited, and small minded. I know I won't have long to wait.

In the mean time I will do what I can by voting for the causes I believe in, by writing to those who represent me to the greater world at large and speaking my mind, and yes, even by ranting here. I won't call anyone a murderer without just cause. I won't make mountains out of molehills, and I won't disrupt the lives of others by shoving what I hate down their throats. I will simply do what I can to make the world a better place and thank the Lord and Lady that I have been as lucky as I am. My brothers and sisters suffer, children die lonely, sick, and in pain, good people, children, are driven to suicide by those who love to wallow in their ignorance and hide behind books. All and all cows, chickens, fish, and pigs seem insignificant by comparison.

I thank everyone who posted in this thread and everyone who spoke their minds, I ask you to bear with the over-speaking of mine. Thank-you for reading this, if you've gotten this far. I wish you good luck and success. In the meantime, there's a bacon wrapped steak sizzling for me and I really should consume it so it doesn't go to waste.

-Cameron Myers

Thoughts on Feminism and the Media

http://www.nicovideo.jp/watch/​sm1328951

This is the video that inspired this, my latest rant. People responded to it in ways that surprised me. I actually posted this whole thing on Facebook as well, but since it's gargantuan and really represents what I think about the subject I thought I'd put it up here as well.

I am as feminist as or probably more so than the next guy. All of my step fathers were abysmal failures and male role models from my past I respect are pretty thin on the ground. I believe women should earn as much as men in the workplace, I believe women should be allowed to participate in whatever sport or profession they wish without harassment or discrimination due to their gender and I believe that women should be okay with their sexuality. That being said, I also believe that men should be held to those same standards. It's okay for both genders to be sexual creatures and its okay for both genders to admire certain qualities, whether they are physical, spiritual or emotional in the partners they prefer. I believe that works that emphasize these qualities should be available to adults of either gender. In other words I am as okay with this as I am with Zelgadis appearing in Women's lingerie in Slayers Wonderful or encountering the massive amounts of Kingdom Hearts (Or Harry Potter to be more current) yaoi that is out there. It doesn’t float my boat, but I can understand why those whose boat it does float would want to see it. (I get upset at the weird pairings sometimes, but that’s weabooism rather than sexism. The point is this is okay. No-one is being hurt, and no-one is being really degraded. The clip is at least respectful to the character featured and she is not being hurt or coerced in any way. It’s her wedding day. She’s feeling nervous and a little shy. It happens. Yes, I’m sure a lot of men had their hands in this game, but the representation of a blushing bride is not a new one. The fact that her dress is slit and has a plunging neckline is a matter of fashion, not exploitation. Now if she were getting married in a Brazilian sling or skimpy swimwear that would be exploitive. If she were in a teddy, that would be exploitive, as it is this is a picture of a beautiful woman in a beautiful outfit during a wonderful and happy occasion. Yes, it is geared toward those who like the female form (One of the people who liked the video is a lesbian who is engaged to be married to her partner.) but that’s okay. It’s no reason to argue on either side of the fence. If you don’t like it you are free never to click on the link again and I will not lose any respect for you. I just ask to be allowed to appreciate it myself and to let others who will appreciate it share it. All I ask is that people let it be what it is, which is simply beautiful.

An example of my writing for school, for the holy heck of it.

Taking one for the team

An article by

Cameron Myers

For: Programming Concepts

Instructor: CENSORED

07/20/2011

We, as “computer geeks” have a certain romantic (Yes, I used the words, “computer geeks” and “romantic” in the same sentence, please don’t let it shock you too much.) misconception placed upon us. The world at large tends to view us as lone wolves, a breed apart like the rogue scholars of old, sweating away in the dark attempting to wrest greater knowledge and accomplishments from a world that few sane people understand. We, through our seemingly arcane knowledge of the murky realms of code have been made into lonely wizards, jealously guarding our secrets from the interlopers who try to steal them from our hands, cold with the chill of the basements where we surely all lurk. We know this to be untrue, of course. The truth is that very few programmers and IT specialists can do EVERYTHING. Eventually, no matter how much it turns our stomachs to consider it, we must work with others.  The real question is how something like this is accomplished. What is different about working in a team compared to the sweet nectar of loneliness broken by occasional 16 hour breaks to play World of War craft? It comes down to one thing, courtesy.

            We aren’t really famous for our courtesy. We are, after all the same group that created internet trolls and the same regressives that inhabit 4chan.org and its infamous /b/ random board. The conception we have drawn around us is that we are snarky, growling, rabid individualists who desire only to destroy those who are disgusted by what delights us. The truth is no one is like this in the real world. It is only the fact that we are hidden by the masks of anonymity that allows us to create such atrocities. When people have to see our faces and hear our voices we tend to be a much more civil bunch, which is why most of us can work anywhere. That is right, we can be taught courtesy and we can apply it when we have to, we guess. Here are some areas where courtesy applies when creating professional code.

            First off we must be prepared to slow down a little bit. Creating courteous code is not as fast or efficient as creating code that only you will be required to work on. This is why we must practice courteous coding from the start. If we do it out of habit we won’t suddenly have to adjust our styles to accomplish it later, thus losing precious work time re-editing what we’ve already coded. 

            Writing courteous code requires a few things. It must be readable by all who work upon it. Not everyone is going to want to swim through long streams of code placed haphazardly all over the place just so they can figure out where to pick things up.  Use line breaks, proper tabbing and consider the feelings and eyesight of other when you code in a group.  Also agree upon and stick to a naming convention. This also allows everyone to stay on the same page and work together easily. We will also need to agree on what functionality to work with. Not every coder is as advanced as every other coder, and if a member of a team has to learn a new functionality it may cost the team precious time. Lastly we must remember to comment our code. Again this is just common courtesy. Explaining what each line of code does goes a long way to helping each member of the team write a cohesive piece of code that functions as it is supposed to. (Parsons, 2008)

            We must remember that we are working in a team and that we must be held to a team standard. We should be prepared for frequent meetings and sanity checks so that we can be kept on point and so that each member’s code can be reviewed and adjusted for the good of the team. We must be prepared to hear both positive and negative things about our code and to change it so that the project can move forward. (DWC, 2009) We must also learn to keep our lines of communication open in other ways and always be prepared to receive feedback and suggestions from our team members.  We must remember that this isn’t just our code, it is the code of everyone involved in the team and that we all succeed or fail together. (eLocal listing staff writer, 2009) Let us all try to succeed; despite the image the world projects upon us. That having been said, now it’s time to get back to raiding that Tauren camp.

References

DWC. (2009, May 25). How do you enforce coding standards on your team. Retrieved July 20, 2011, from stack overflow.com: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/906924/how-do-you-enforce-coding-standards-in-your-team

eLocal listing staff writer. (2009, March 15). Building development team communication. Retrieved July 20, 2011, from eLocal listing: http://www.elocaldevblog.com/building-development-team-communication/

Parsons, B. (2008, August 25). 5 things to remember when coding in a team. Retrieved July 20, 2011, from Do as I say, not as I do.: http://geekswithblogs.net/PTrippett/archive/2008/08/25/5-things-to-remeber-when-coding-in-a-team.aspx

Secularism and the modern holiday.

Suggested Soundtrack for this post: Mr. Krinkle and The Antipop by Primus.
Hello dear readers, it's good old Reverend Cam-Cam again with some thoughts on secularism.  You will hear it in both spring and winter, the discordant tune of confused members of the herd mooing, "Give us our holidays back!"  It takes many forms from, "It's Merry Christmas, not happy holidays!", to "Back in my day they made us stare at crucifixes and told us horror-stories about what they put Christ through, nowadays they just shove a bunny in a kids mouth, give them a pat on the head, and send them on their merry way!" Despite these complaints however, it is no secret to anyone that the major Christian holidays, already rife with Pagan symbolism due to the absorbtionist policies of the early Catholic church, have become more and more secular as society has become more and more secular.
     I, personally, do not see anything wrong with this. Secularism happens, mostly because most people don't want to be religious and can't be bothered most times to even be spiritual. Holidays however are fun, and a good opportunity to fleece the flock for a little extra wool, if you catch my drift. So, what used to be times for quiet contemplation or thankfulness and joy in your beliefs becomes a gigantic chocolate fueled cash-grab. You know what though, if others are fine with that, so am I. Do you know why? Because it doesn't really matter.
      I don't know when people forgot that humankind is a group of individuals. We may form a social structure .We may like to gather together and do the same dance and walk the same walk and talk the same talk, but we do not have to. The greatest of us, as a matter of fact, don't. It is those who refuse to walk with the herd that are not devoured when the farmer gets hungry. It is the goal of our current shepherds, industry, politics, and organized religion, to keep us fattened up so that we may be consumed at leisure and holidays provide the perfect chance to savor a bit more of the fat of the herd.  That's okay though, that's their job, that's what they do, that is what we, as a vast majority who outnumber them, but are still scared shitless of them, are allowing them to do. All of us, every one of us, even the ones that bleat the loudest, are letting this happen, excluding the few that have come to a great revelation. It doesn't need to happen for them.
    No matter how much some people complain, the way things currently work isn't going to be changing any time soon. It's too profitable for the big-whigs, too easy for the proles, and makes perfect grist for the mills of the religious. That's right, you heard me. The churches love the secularization of the holidays, and I'll tell you why, because they can complain about them and stroke the egos of their congregations for remembering "The true meaning of the Holiday." and when they do that it puts butts in the seats and when there are butts in the seats there is cash in the donation boxes or collection plates.  Your local religious organizations make more money when holidays are secularized than they ever would if they weren't. They don't want to change a thing. You can trust me on this. I am, after all, a fully ordained minister.
    So if you can't trust the churches to keep holidays well...holy...who can you trust? The answer is simple. No-one but yourself and those close enough to you to buy your line of reasoning.  YOU make your holidays. No-one, NO-ONE says you have to follow the herd into secularization and no-one says you have to pay an organized religion money to make you feel self-righteous outrage over the direction in which the herd is being led.  If you don't like easter baskets, and chocolate rabbits and colored eggs, don't buy them. If you don't want a big ol' ham with all the fixins on the table, by all means, no-one is holding a gun to your head and forcing you to put one there.  If you want a spiritual holiday filled with contemplation on the inspiration of the day, rather than shaped peanut butter or chocolate, no-one will give it to you but yourself.  Complaining does nothing but put noise from the air, cause people to laugh and sneer at you and distracts you from the very meaning that you are trying to capture within it.
      So in closing. I would like to say enjoy your Easter, or your Beltaine (Coming on May 1st, I know, but you know how often I blog. I may miss it.) or whatever spring rites you would choose to celebrate. Make it great and make it your own. Life is too short to worry about how others view your beliefs, live and let live and  allow others to enjoy the holidays the way they would have them. It will make for a more peaceful, yet less controlled world in the end.
         Thanks for reading,
-Cameron

Thoughts on Suicide

Here is my whole suicide diatribe, originally posted on facebook after a friend who frequently threatens suicide jumped off line after I told her she needed help that I could not give. Over my lifetime I've seen a lot of people threaten suicide, I've tried my best to help them as well as I could. Things are different now though. I'm older, sadder, and some days only the responsibilities I have to others keeps me alive.  This, sadly, is the best advice I can offer any more.

When did I become this cold? This ill? I used to fight harder, shout louder and stomp my feet with more resounding success. Now I barely even care. It comes down to this. If you are considering suicide REALLY and TRULY considering suicide do it. Don't struggle or cry out for attention, be a selfish bastard or bitch and end your fucking life, leave a note if you must.

                   If you have listened to me before and if you value your life and the light you bring into other's lives, then get the professional help you need. There are hotlines out there to call and people out there who can help you, really professionally help you. I can't. I'm not a doctor or a psychiatrist, I'm only a man who can only offer the same thing I've told you time and time again.

        If you have listened to me before however and value your life, seek help. There are people who can help you, professionals who know what you are going through and who are trained to get you through whatever it is that's eating you.

        I can't help you any more. I can barely keep myself alive. I'm doing everything I can to make it to the next day and sometimes even I fail. Get help. It is out there, if you value your life and the light it brings to others, get help, I beg this of you.

              If you are REALLY that tired however, really THAT fucking beat down, then have the fortitude to do it quietly at least. Stop trying to make it my fault. 

                   You're a good person, no matter who you are, if you are my friend you are valuable and deserve light love and happiness. It is out there, but it isn't easy to get. Suicide is selfish,and frankly stupid. It ends all hope and it does not create the kind of hurting sorrow most believe it does.

                     Please consider getting help. If you won't then please go silently into that good night, thank-you. 

             

Quick thoughts on the easter bunny.

Excerpted from a recent conversation I had on AIM.


I say put the bunny in a mecha suit and have him wielding a meat-cleaver blade jammed clumsily into a carrot and ask them whether they have the same opinion on the first picture.
-and people wonder why I'm unemployable-
I think the easter bunny should be slightly pissed. He's getting a bum deal as a holiday mascot. The major activity of the holiday is eating him in effigy. He breaks his ass delivering colored eggs only to sit back in horror and watch as people devour him over and over and over again. Santa clause at least gets left milk and cookies. What does the easter bunny get, nothing but veiled threats.

A handy guide to one off LARP rules

I spent a year as the head of Anime Punch's Traditional/Tabletop gaming department. It was an awesome experience and one I would have considered continuing if I could have afforded to invest the time that was necessary into it and I hadn't had my driver's license suspended. One of my more popular events during my time serving in this capacity was my "Escape the Colony" LARP.  I wrote (Pretty much) original rules for it and had a blast playing it multiple times with a great group of enthusiastic players. One of those players is taking over the position and was interested in adapting the rules into a LARP of his own. Considering that the original rules died with my former laptop and I cannot find a hard copy for the life of me I chose to e-mail him this handy guide instead which details the ideas behind the rules I wrote.  Considering the fact that posting something to this blog is as secure as hiding it in Fort Knox when you consider the number of readers it gets and that I'd kind of dig being the "father" of a trend of one shot LARPing. I am posting that guide here. If it ever gets read I hope it is enjoyed and inspirational.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Writing a LARP like this is really easy if you follow basic story telling conventions.
     The first thing you need to do is establish your main source of conflict. In the Gundam RP there were two. The background threat of the colony collapsing and the main threat of the traitorous crew member.  I highly recommend having a "Traitor in the midst" for LARPS as it is a great plot device and provides another layer of complexity and pressure on the players. There of course needs to be an over arching conflict that provides a reason for the characters to be there in the first place, but in most circumstances this can take a back seat to the traitor as a primary threat.
    Next we need complications. Complications serve two purposes. They extend game play beyond "Beat the badguy and get the heck out" and they give each character a bit more character.  The characters for a one off LARP should not be very complex right off the bat so that players can add their own quirks to them, but complications and advantages should be written to provide a little info for the players to build those quirks from.
    Next come advantages. These serve not only to help inspire the players to build the character's personality, but also to give the players the idea that there is some hope for survival in the game.  This should be a false hope however. No single advantage should be game breaking. All of them should give either a very minor edge if they can be used more than once or have only a single use if they give the player a major edge. All of them should be circumventable by the Gamemaster/Storyteller.  It is a good idea to have one of the characters, usually a sweet personalitied woman, pet, or little girl know the identity of the traitor as this not only provides great drama but also lends an extra bit of motivation for the other characters to protect them if they are perceived as vulnerable and cute.
    Beyond that there should be an odd number of players each game (Ideally an even number of good guys and one traitor) and the rules should be flexible enough to be adapted should something go wrong.
    I hope this guide was helpful and will provide you with inspiration for creating your own rules and characters. Good luck and don't hesitate to write if you have any questions.
-Cameron

YouTube - Top 10 Bad Cosplay Ideas For Fat People

YouTube - Top 10 Bad Cosplay Ideas For Fat People

Ah, Cosplay. A tried and true part of any fandom. From the Trekker's home-made (Or, professionally made) uniform to the furry's attempt to make a Sonic the Hedgehog fursuit with quills that actually bristle Cosplay has been with geekdom from the beginning and will carry on as long as there are people obsessed with certain elements of pop-culture. Some Cosplay can be very well done and can look incredible! Some Cosplay....Not so much. It really does depend on the skill of the costume designer/maker and the level of care/detail they put into the costume itself. As with any geeky outlet however there has been a ton of discussion about Cosplay, most of it, sadly, disparaging. Cosplay is a matter of taste and taste is not something that members of any fandom can seem to agree upon.

The above video (Really, a Power Point presentation shot on video and then sped up slightly) is living, breathing, infuriating example of this. In a category of fandom where no-one seems to agree what is good and what is bad taste these screw ups have dared to try and become taste-makers. The backlash, I daresay, is mighty. Rightfully so, I might add. Humans are, at the base of their hearts and souls, herd animals. The trend, the very instinct of the human race is to try and huddle together for warmth and stay as deeply within the crowd as they can so that the predators will have eaten their fill before they can get to them. Individuality, especially in today's face paced homogenized McWorld is something most people would not encourage. This is why each aspect of individual expression is important. Some may not be the best idea and indeed individuality that is hurtful to others should be discouraged, but choosing to change one's pelt does not constitute a harmful act. Cosplayers are attempting to be unique snowflakes in a rainstorm, and for the sheer audacity that takes they should be applauded. This video is wrong in stating that some choices are inherently bad for those of a bad body type. Cosplay is a form of artistic and individualistic expression and as long as it is done well it should be appreciated for what it is.

That having been said, lets get real. There are certain frontiers that those with certain body types are not meant to cross, for instance I can count on one finger the number of people who would appreciate seeing me in a Speedo and well, she's my fiancee so there is an amount of bias there. I could have the sewing skills of a god but if I did not take my body type into account when creating say a Kuja from Final Fantasy 9 or a Kenshiro from Fist of the North Star Cosplay the results would be comical at best and traumatizing at worst. I, personally would be terribly uncomfortable dressed as either of these characters, or really anyone else with that level of skimpiness to their costumes. I would be laughed at, even by my fellow geeks for even making the attempt. I know this and am unwilling to face that ridicule. Thing is, that's just me. I prefer to Cosplay characters like Larva/Lover from Vampire Princess Miyu or Il Palazzo from Excel Saga because they are hidden behind voluminous robes or capes and I can for a time suspend disbelief and mask my extra fuel tank in the fabric. Again, that is just me though. Cosplaying is an exercise in individuality. It is not about how others judge you, but how you judge yourself. People, especially strangers, are going to be cruel, particularly online where they have less of a chance of getting their faces bashed in. How you react to that cruelty should be what determines your Cosplay choice, no matter what your body type. Your cosplay should be of the best quality you can achieve (If you're going to do something you should attempt to do it as well as you can.) beyond that however the choice is yours. If you are confident enough in your individuality, in your body, and in your ability to take abuse you can be anything you want to be. Just be prepared to endure videos like the one above and the hateful, hurtful words of your fellows if others do not share your confidence. This is not to say your detractors will be correct, but it isn't to say they'll be incorrect either. It is a matter of taste after all and as I stated above, even in the most close knit fandom taste is as individual as it's members.

So there is my take on Cosplay. I thank you for taking the time to read these thoughts and encourage you to respond to them. Good day to you all, dear readers, and may your own journeys take you far away from things like the video at the beginning of this post.

-Cameron