(no subject)

Stuff like this is such a perfect example of the answer to "why do we still need feminism" that I kind of want to frame it, except that it makes me furious to read. Essentially: great article about the sexist creative minds behind Gears of War, and all the comments are BAWWWWWW I'M RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT OF THE SEXISTIST DOUCHETRUCK OF ALL TIME, VOTE FOR ME.

Seriously. I cannot single a comment out. Shall I go with:

Have we forgotten that this is a video game that takes place on a fictional world and culture? Who are we to impose our cultural thinking on another culture? Isn't that the whole idea behind cultural sensitivity?

Or perhaps:

It is a blessing that spoiled brats in this nation have the time and ability to whine and complain about "sexism" in the fantasy land of video games instead of having to worry about being brutalized the way women in so many other nations are. What a great nation we have.

Or maybe!:

And I hate News Post like these that always has to complain about some stupid rights or something. 'Why aren't there more strong-willed girls? Why do all the girls look like sex-toys? Why is there no black people? Why is there no gay people? Why is there no emo? Why-Why-Why?' I'll tell you why: Because WE DON'T CARE, that's why! Football games don't have women, why should gears? Just to make some feminists happy? News Post like these make me dislike women so much sometimes, that it makes me want to be gay.

Or try out my favorite excuse, which shows up repeatedly: "Oh no, gender inequality in a fictional setting! Someone must pay for this travesty!"

Seriously, folks, take your pick. This is why we need feminism. Not only do people who think this stuff exist, they do so in such large amounts that they come out in droves in response to a sensible article and drown out any poster with more than two braincells to rub together**. These people actually think they're making a good point.

Then I realized it was linked on Kotaku, and oh, well, that explains a few things.

Still, the constant "but it's fiction!" refrain is what does me in. Yes, it's fiction, which is exactly why it shouldn't be so bone-crushingly sexist. The fact that it is doesn't reflect a creative process of "okay, let's make a world where women only pop out babies and men fight." It reflects "yeah, people fight! Oh... and I guess women... uh... pop out babies." These are two totally different processes, and they speak volumes about the creators. The article writer wasn't talking about Gears of War as some world that exists in a bubble in a vacuum, she's talking about the creators who made the world.

Stuff like this makes me realize that no matter how vile a sexist I make a character in my stories, they are still too logically sound and too nice to be realistic, because this is what sexism looks like from "ordinary" people. If I wrote about characters who actually sounded like these commenters, they would be catapulted into the sun and the audience would cheer because such blatant sexism (insert -ism of choice) in fiction is generally a tag for an antagonist. You know, the character who shows up and is -ist so you can see how the protagonist is a good person because they're not -ist.

I don't understand how the majority can look like a caricature. It'd be funny if it weren't so depressing.

**If you require renewed faith in humanity, the comments past the halfway point are better. See this one by Maverynthia: "Wow, a good number of these comments are simply sad and reek of the reason why these games are "broken" in the first place. *blahblah*I' a liberated male *blah* sexist bullshit spewing from my mouth that proves I'm lying *etc* right down to: "u iz 'tarded." I see everyone of these posters as being messed in the head." So not all the comments are made by wastes of space, which is something.