Line in the Sand

Fine, let's converse.
To understand my seething hatred right now, we have to set a baseline.

Read This First.

Now, my objections with that essay.

1. It implicitly calls me racist.

"because Fugie posted" ... "at least three racist comments" (Runquist, 24 September 2008).

Racist, as specifically defined by the University of Princeton's wordnet program (designed in long term to define every word in the English language) is "based on racial intolerance; a person with a prejudiced belief that one race is superior to others; discriminatory especially on the basis of race or religion."

All of any concern stems from one line:

"As the black man was once a slave to the white man, so now the white man is a slave to the island." (Black, 24 September 2008).

Look at the three baselines of being racist.

A. Based on racial intolerance.
This most certainly does not apply. First and foremost, this is historical fact, both halves of the statement. For those who doubt the historical impact, please refer here, here, and here.

B. A person with a prejudiced belief that one race is superior to others.
This implies that I behave and speak in such a manner as to intentionally put down others based on race, sex, or creed. Nothing I have written even remotely points to that.

C. Discriminatory especially on the basis of race or religion.
This is once again not the case. The first phrase is still a cold unfeeling fact.

That being said, in the article, reviewing the decks the consistent best players play, format be damned, continual success is based on the use of the Island. There is no getting around it. No matter the format, Islands always make a strong enough impact. To consistently be a good player, you have to play Islands. Be it Finkel's most recent pro-tour win (p1p1 Mulldrifter) to Buehlers CMU/Cuneo Blue, Islands are a defining part of every top eight in every format. Wizards has broken the color so bad, it can't be fixed.

2. It defines that freedom of expression is at the behest of one man.

" That doesn't change the fact that I feel the need to confront these issues head on when they come up." (Runquist, 24 September 2008).

This was designed to be a community. Now, all the rules and mores are at the behest of one man. One lone gatekeeper controls te flow of information. I live a daily life where I have to censor myself in my speech, my writings, and my actions. Not because I am bigoted, but because the first reaction of the several bigots in the world is to claim I'm a bigot first. This is a first strike method used in custody battles and competing lawsuits. He (or she, as that may now be construed as sexist) who strikes first, wins. The fact that there is one lone censor means our thoughts and ideas must now meet the approval of a lone authority. This has happened before in history. I don't believe I need to draw any parallels.

3. The world needs a thicker skin.

Most of my life, no one ever stood up for me. If I was ever the target of bigoted remarks, based on weight, sex, and race, I was told to suck it up. The rest of the world is given a pass based on some characteristic that they claim makes them victim to those different then themselves.

Newsflash - the majority aren't the ones stifling any dialogue.

4. I have let the GU become a hotbed of racism and intolerance.

I'd like to note some facts. Before I took the helm of the GU magic program, average attendance was 10 on standard nights and 12 on draft nights. During my one year stewardship, those numbers increased to an average of 30 on standard nights and 24 on draft nights. Was that accomplished by being hostile and exclusionary? If so I need to write a book. Upon my departure, the followup stewardship knocked those numbers back down to 10 on standard nights and 8-12 on draft nights, with 25% of the nights not having enough players to have the event sanctioned. After my return, we are back to averaging 20 per regular weekend event. This wasn't accomplished through advertising, but by people realising that it was about to be a fair and balanced and safe and welcoming environment once again.

I have heard about the alleged issues at the GU. The few who have even mentioned this didn't stand up for themselves. More importantly, they never came to me. There is no situation where people should ever believe I would allow a hostile environment. To not address these alleged issues, and not request my intervention, can only lead me to believe that the accusers are trying to make some sort of personal or political point.

If people do not believe I stand against all that bullshit, I point to the removal of Owen and the only man who crusaded tirelessly for his removal to better the program.

Now I address why this affects me so personally. It resolves about why I write.

I write to make myself a better wordsmith. I write to leave my ideas to review and posterity. I write to express myself in a semi-permanent medium. My writing allows me to further be a rock in the magic community. And the conduct of the blog as of late indicates I will not get any of the above points to relate to my work. Therefore, I have no place in this blog.

-Fugie