There’s this… phenomenon… I’ve witnessed in several fandoms, where a particular blog gets really popular within a fandom.
And suddenly that blog will start getting people literally asking them for permission to hold certain opinions. I don’t mean someone just asking “hey can I get your feelings/opinions on this subject” but “is it okay if I think/do xyz?” like some child asking their parent if they can go somewhere.
Worse, is when these blogs start taking these questions seriously and feeding them answers. Like they suddenly start believing that they truly have this authority. I mean it’s bad enough when people do this and the blogger is just like “well I have my own opinion but don’t ask me” but when they start to actually act like they can tell other people what they are “allowed” to do.
This I the creepiest fucking thing on tumblr I swear.
Why would you give some random stranger on the internet that much power over your mind? Why would you be so afraid of forming your own opinions that you have to ask someone else to give you opinions to hold?
And so often they end up with a rabble ready to crucify anyone who doesn’t do as they are told, and that’s when I really run for the hills…
It probably looks a little egotistical to reblog this post, as someone who relates to having the “particular blog gets really popular within a fandom,” but I deeply agree with this post from both sides. It has been suggested to me privately that my opinions hold sway over people and I have a responsibility to answer a certain way so that the other fans aren’t led astray, that they are so gullible that they take my every word as fact. I sincerely hope that this is not the case.
I refuse this responsibility bc that’s not the kind of blog I want to have. I don’t want anyone taking my opinions as an authority, or the Law of the Land or whatever… *~popularity~* shouldn’t give me any more authority than anyone else!
Please don’t feel like you have to literally ask anyone for permission to hold certain opinions. I’m happy to share my ideas, but they are only my ideas. I’m a random stranger on the internet! I love my followers, the interactions we’ve had, the messages you’ve sent me publicly and privately over the past few years have kept my blog alive, and I can’t thank you enough for that ❤
But! If I can just paraphrase from the above, Do not give some random stranger on the internet that much power over your mind! Don’t be so afraid of forming your own opinions that you have to ask someone else to give you opinions to hold!
Please do not become part of some random stranger on the internet’s rabble ready to crucify anyone who doesn’t do as they are told!
Not sure how to put this coherently but in regards to anti shipping/fiction reality discourse i feel like a lot of the main argument comes from assuming that people view fiction as wish fulfillment. This to me reads as very Freudian/psychoanalytic. e,g the concept that all dreams are somehow wish fulfillment no matter how disturbing. this is quite clearly bullshit as a lot of Freudian ideas are.
A lot of anti shipping rhetoric comes from the idea that somehow you can tell a lot about a person by what they like in fiction, and through that you can tell what kind of person they are (good/pure, bad/demonic (which isnt weirdly christian at all eyeroll))
the fact is people like horror and disturbing content. this doesnt mean people want to expierence this shit irl, but rather fiction is a safe way to explore intense feelings and difficult scenarios. Stop armchair analyzing people based on what they read or write. its not helpful.
There’s this… phenomenon… I’ve witnessed in several fandoms, where a particular blog gets really popular within a fandom.
And suddenly that blog will start getting people literally asking them for permission to hold certain opinions. I don’t mean someone just asking “hey can I get your feelings/opinions on this subject” but “is it okay if I think/do xyz?” like some child asking their parent if they can go somewhere.
Worse, is when these blogs start taking these questions seriously and feeding them answers. Like they suddenly start believing that they truly have this authority. I mean it’s bad enough when people do this and the blogger is just like “well I have my own opinion but don’t ask me” but when they start to actually act like they can tell other people what they are “allowed” to do.
This I the creepiest fucking thing on tumblr I swear.
Why would you give some random stranger on the internet that much power over your mind? Why would you be so afraid of forming your own opinions that you have to ask someone else to give you opinions to hold?
And so often they end up with a rabble ready to crucify anyone who doesn’t do as they are told, and that’s when I really run for the hills…
It probably looks a little egotistical to reblog this post, as someone who relates to having the “particular blog gets really popular within a fandom,” but I deeply agree with this post from both sides. It has been suggested to me privately that my opinions hold sway over people and I have a responsibility to answer a certain way so that the other fans aren’t led astray, that they are so gullible that they take my every word as fact. I sincerely hope that this is not the case.
I refuse this responsibility bc that’s not the kind of blog I want to have. I don’t want anyone taking my opinions as an authority, or the Law of the Land or whatever… *~popularity~* shouldn’t give me any more authority than anyone else!
Please don’t feel like you have to literally ask anyone for permission to hold certain opinions. I’m happy to share my ideas, but they are only my ideas. I’m a random stranger on the internet! I love my followers, the interactions we’ve had, the messages you’ve sent me publicly and privately over the past few years have kept my blog alive, and I can’t thank you enough for that ❤
But! If I can just paraphrase from the above, Do not give some random stranger on the internet that much power over your mind! Don’t be so afraid of forming your own opinions that you have to ask someone else to give you opinions to hold!
Please do not become part of some random stranger on the internet’s rabble ready to crucify anyone who doesn’t do as they are told!
The fanartist in question is Avimedes, a Taiwanese fanartist who draws primarily for Undertale. On May 10th she posted on her Plurk (warning for images with blood, needles) that she was given cookies as a gift; she ate one and a needle pierced her tongue.
Here is a translation of her post:
Warning, these photos contain a lot of blood.
I’m very sorry that I haven’t had a chance to say my thanks (for the convention?) and I am venting. But I received a needle in my dessert gift from the convention. Thank you, I have one more piercing now.
I am not trying to ask for comfort, I am only trying to tell everyone how serious is this matter, so do not comfort me.
This matter is unable to be investigated and hopeless to be investigated. This matter has made me lost of trust towards something, but from today onwards, I will not be accepting any more handmade food by others.
Any more follow up and notice will be posted(if there’s any), thank you for your attention.
From discussion (Twitter, Reddit) it seems likely that she was given these cookies because she draws Sans/Frisk art, and a “fan” decided that drawing a ship they didn’t like was worthy of attempted murder. Had Avimedes swallowed the needle it could have done considerable and possibly irreparable internal damage.
So I will say this again: DO NOT HARM REAL PEOPLE OVER FICTIONAL ENTITIES. I don’t care what the content is. These purity crusades need to STOP. The amount of vitriol and anger that the anti-shipping circles not only accept but encourage is dangerous, unhealthy, and unless stopped will lead to more people being hurt. There’s already been at least one incident of an artist being harassed into a suicide attempt.
Your moral indignation/righteous anger/upset feelings DO NOT justify the injury or death of other people. You have every right to protect yourself from viewing objectionable content, but that right stops far, far short of hurting other people. Going on these crusades DOES NOT HELP against the sort of issues that are purportedly being championed; it only causes more harm. We need to break away from this mindset, from purity culture, before someone is permanently injured or dies.
FICTION =/= REALITY STOP HURTING PEOPLE
Things like this makes me loose faith in humanity
Hall of Shame
rational people: hey maybe don’t literally attempt murder on someone over shipping drama that’s one of the least okay things you could do with your free time
slime mold at a keyboard: i mean that’s debatable but it really depends on the ship
antis are confirmed sociopaths atp
but GOD FORBID MURDER
I’m reblogging this again because wtf
Just Anti Things: this
Also I feel like we really should make an anti hall of shame for stuff like this
I-want-my-IWTV 