Fandom: Blogging Bag Ladies

[stewardess]

After reading the responses to a friend's post on sponsored accounts, I decided it was time to point something out.

SUP said from the get-go it acquired LiveJournal for international expansion. The American chunk of LiveJournal is not important to SUP's long range plans.

LiveJournal USA, since its humble beginnings (as Jason Shellen used to say

Comments

poor analogy

[egretplume]

Here via metafandom.
I enjoy an extended metaphor as much as the next person, but this post seems very insensitive about the real problem of homelessness. When I see people living on the streets, I don't really think of them as enjoying their alternative entertainment in fanfic collectives. I appreciate the concept of "homeless fic" banished and unwanted, but the comparison you make here is so callous that I find it hard to take your actual argument seriously.

Excellent analogy.

[chvickers]

It's an excellent analogy. No matter how sad or wonderful or whatever YOU think the homeless are, to the business community they are an unmitigated Bad Thing that in their minds is full of evil and wrong and should be harassed out of existence. To us fandom is wonderful, but to SUP we are an unmitigated Bad Thing that in their minds is full of evil and wrong and should be harassed out of existence.

Re: Excellent analogy.

[parsimonia]

Yes, because a website you use for free not catering to your every whim is exactly the same as being homeless.

If people were actually being censored, or being banned left, right and centre right now, the analogy might have some credibility. But as it stands, it comes off as very callous and rather entitled.

Re: Excellent analogy.

[holyschist]

I think it's a good analogy from the point of view of the business community, but that doesn't make it not insensitive or problematic from the point of view of the homeless people. Homelessness is a problem to be solved (according to most people), not something (like fandom) that we think is good and should be protected.

Writing smut for a hobby is not equivalent to sleeping outside in freezing weather and not having enough food. Implying that it's equivalent, yeah, it bothers me and interferes with the effectiveness of the analogy for me (and others, it seems).

Re: Excellent analogy.

[babydraco]

Good grief.

I'm pretty sure she didn't mean they're actually just like each other, like "oh, fandom is just like being homeless". She meant "in a world where LJ was a department store, fandom would be *like* the bag ladies" but LJ is not really a department store and nobody thinks it is, so I doubt she was trying to say fandom's problems wiht LJ are *as bad* as being homeless.

*stares*

Good grief.

Re: Excellent analogy.

[holyschist]

I'm sure she did, too. That doesn't make the analogy not alienating to a bunch of potential supporters.

What's so terrible about suggesting people be thoughtful about potentially offensive analogies? Why does this offend you so much?

Re: Excellent analogy.

[ms_maree]

I think perhaps the *context* should be looked at before jumping to conclusions. My five cents.

Re: Excellent analogy.

[holyschist]

I think you're missing my point, but hey, I know when not to beat a dead horse.