From: coram@ed.ecn.purdue.edu (Chaosmage)
Subject: Philosophising (was Re: Ego Tripping)
Organization: Shadow Walker's Anonymous
Reply|to: coram@ecn.purdue.edu (Chaosmage)
Distribution: na
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1993 18:04:11 GMT

In article <1993Jan11.211443.14003@spdcc.com> pentangl@spdcc.com (Scott Moir) writes:
[Actually, it was Ruby@Furry]
>picking on a group of people they perceive as inferior. Their egos
>NEED that.  Whats the matter, all you TS prudes? LIstening to your
>parents too long? Sex is BAD, say mom and dad. "Oh, YES!" you chime.
>Sex is BAD. Let's make fun of furries. After all, they have VIRTUAL
>sex, and WE don't , and we are BETTER, right mommie? ;) We need those rude
>muds to put people like that on them, to keep them out of MY face.

I quite agree that the 'holier-than-thou' attitude many people take is a
really sad turn of events.  And I'm NOT trying to defend such people here.
What I'd like to say, is not everyone on the MU*s who have 'conservative'
attitudes are just parroting mommy and daddy.  I grew up, kinda checked over
the baggage they left me with, and selectively threw out some things while
keeping others.  The 'ethics' I have that resemble theirs is MINE, not a
reflection of them.  It's just that we happened to agree on some points.

What's my point in relation to your article?  Beats me.  But I felt a little
offended that you seem (note that this is how *I* read this, and not necc.
what you intended) to think that everyone who is a bit prudish is stupid/
immature.  

>Aw, sorry, all you TS prudes and jokers. You don't understnad that TS is about
>as inconsequential as saying, "Yozduk waves hello to you"...it's just as
>INconsequential, just as SILLY as *smiling* at someone in VR!  You just have 
>sex hangups left over from your mommy and daddy. And do you like to belly up
>to gain approval and make yourself feel better by picking on furries?
>Everyone has at least thought about having TS. Isn't that the same as
>doing it? It's not REAL. You're making fun of something that ISN'T REAL. 

I have to disagree with you here.  Reality is in the mind. It is NOT what is 
around us; it is how we perceive what is around us.  If I smile at you, it
is because I'm happy (or feeling malicious, depending on the type of smile :)
Why is that silly?  How is that not real?  You are perfectly justified in
thinking that I at least like you if I smile happily when I see you.  And if
you think I like you, then I do, at least in your mind.  And that is what
is going to influence your reactions to me and what I do.  How does a
smile on a MU* differ from a real one?  I'm going to react the same.

I used to think that MU*ing is 'just a game,' but I can't anymore, since I've
started making friends on the MU*s.  I have a pretty solid grip on where
VR and RL divide, and even *I* find things having RL emotional impact from VR.
Maybe that means I should stop MU*ing.  Maybe it just means that I'm a little
wiser now than I was before and realize that MU*s (esp. social ones) are no 
more a game than LIFE is a game.  Not where emotions are concerned.  I have
to be careful about the feelings of the other players, because I'll never
know how seriously they will take things.  I find myself taking things 
seriously sometimes; how do I know that everyone else won't take them seriously
ALL the time?

About TS and parents:

*I* don't do TS anymore.  I tried it, and decided that it was messing with 
my head too much.  Sex can be very dangerous, and it's not something to play 
around with casually.  There are too many emotional effects.  And I don't 
believe you (all of you, not just the author) if you say there aren't, 'cause 
I think you're lying to yourself.  What's that got to do with TS?  Just this: 
VR becomes real in the mind of the player very easily, and so TS has some of 
the same emotional effects that RL sex does.  (Some, not all).  It did for me, 
anyway.  So I have reasons for not participating that aren't just echoes of 
my parents.

And I'll leave it at that.  I refuse to try to 'convert' others to my opinions,
and I won't judge anyone by their participation in TS.  You do your thing,
and let me do mine and lets not fight about it.  The REAL immature people
are the ones who WOULD fight about it; on either side.

>And I Really WANT to know, dearies,  who you try to impress by walking
>around pointing at the furries and laughing? I mean,  *I* laugh at furries, 
>like I laugh at myself and life in general. BUt I don't make my own "sly" 
>jokes and then jab the ribs of the next RL-impaired intellect:
>
>[look at them furries! Rated R, people, watch out!!]
>
>{Har har}

I have no idea either.  And that extends to people laughing at ANY group of
other people.  For anyone who thinks it is funny: GROW UP!  Being generally
amused by how silly humans can be is one thing, as long as you include your-
self, and are not cruel about it.  But trying to make one group look inferior
and the butt of all your jokes is stupid and immature.

--
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| Kevin C. Coram | INTERNET: coram@ecn.purdue.edu | CompuServe: 72567,2201 |
| "Don't tell me I'm nuts.  I know.  It keeps me sane."                    |
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