Being upfront about my prejudices
Wil's causing a bit of a stir right now with some unflattering comments about furries. (Scroll down a bit; you'll find them. And then read the comments to really see the fur fly...so to speak.) While I don't get furryism, I haven't had the strong negative experiences that Wil seems to have. Mostly, I just scratch my head and say, "That's fine, but please take off the suit before you come back to the office, thanks." Not my thing, but if you want to go to a furry con and have a furry good time, that's peachy -- just don't expect me to play along.
Which brings me to the Klingons.
There are lots of very nice people who dress up as Klingons for cons and have a wonderful time. Awesome. Good on ya. There are also lots of equally nice people who seem to have a hard time leaving the Klingon behind when it's time to come back to the 21st century. Less awesome. Please to be keeping your fantasy life and my real life separate, thanks. It does not help that the Klingon-wannabes tend to be more aggressive (go figure) about their personae, bringing back to mind some of the least pleasant LARP clichés that were running around fandom in the '90s. Like the dingbat who insisted on going to the Whitewater trial dressed in a Starfleet costume (note: NOT uniform; it's a uniform when you're playing Starfleet with your buddies, but out here in the real world where the rest of us live, it's a costume), these people make the mundanes question the sanity of all fans.
So, to review: Furries, OK. Furries who forget they're wearing fursuits? Not OK. Furries who get in your personal space to try to get you to play along? Really not OK. Klingons, OK. Klingons who get in your personal space after you've expressed your refusal to play along? Really, really not OK. Furries and Klingons who leave the conventions and go out into the real world and want to be treated as animals or fake warriors? Psychologically unhinged; please seek help immediately.
Which brings me to the Klingons.
There are lots of very nice people who dress up as Klingons for cons and have a wonderful time. Awesome. Good on ya. There are also lots of equally nice people who seem to have a hard time leaving the Klingon behind when it's time to come back to the 21st century. Less awesome. Please to be keeping your fantasy life and my real life separate, thanks. It does not help that the Klingon-wannabes tend to be more aggressive (go figure) about their personae, bringing back to mind some of the least pleasant LARP clichés that were running around fandom in the '90s. Like the dingbat who insisted on going to the Whitewater trial dressed in a Starfleet costume (note: NOT uniform; it's a uniform when you're playing Starfleet with your buddies, but out here in the real world where the rest of us live, it's a costume), these people make the mundanes question the sanity of all fans.
So, to review: Furries, OK. Furries who forget they're wearing fursuits? Not OK. Furries who get in your personal space to try to get you to play along? Really not OK. Klingons, OK. Klingons who get in your personal space after you've expressed your refusal to play along? Really, really not OK. Furries and Klingons who leave the conventions and go out into the real world and want to be treated as animals or fake warriors? Psychologically unhinged; please seek help immediately.