Monday, July 7, 2014

Keep It Off My Wave: What Really Matters

Soooo, how 'bout that Sunday Times interview? Wow. Once again, the tidal wave of giddy good vibrations was hiding a shark. I was as annoyed as everybody else when I first read it and though I'm at a point now where I'm just kind of shaking my head that an editor actually passed it there are two things that keep coming to mind for me.

1. It's going to happen more and more often and there's nothing we can do about it. Some people don't get fandoms, and not just us as evidenced by Ms. Gold's sneering at Barry's Fanilows in an article that has nothing to do with them. There's been a really interesting conversation going on for quite some time about misogyny and fandoms. What we each CAN do is decide how that affects us. Are we going to let someone who can't be bothered to do five minutes of research about something that IS searchable -- like whether the play that the actor you're patronizng interviewing is starring in is public domain before you say it in front of millions of people because that would be a cub reporter's mistake and not something a seasoned professional would do, right? -- get under our skin and shame us about who and what we love? Or how we behave? Or anything else? Because I think we shouldn't.

2. This appeared on my Facebook feed today and you know what? Exactly.


This fandom isn't all roses and ice cream, we know that. We don't always get along but we do, mostly, get each other. There are people in this fandom who I adore as human beings and I would never have met them otherwise. There are people who I don't adore, too, but they at least give me something to think about, another point of view to consider, and that's invaluable.

So what's Tanya Gold really sneering at here? A bunch of sad, "innocent" losers or an international group of people who can manage to put their differences aside to come together to laugh, to create, to SpReAd The Love, to support each other in times of crisis and to celebrate the success of the dude we're all kind of sweet on? Gosh, we should all be deeply ashamed, shouldn't we?

I think some Soundgarden is in order here because I can't think of anything more appropriate at this moment. Have a great night and don't let the shitheads get you down.



17 comments:

  1. You are a wise woman, my dear. *bows head*

    (Hey, you said you're sweet on him. AHA!!!!!) ;)

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    1. Dude, I officially said "uncle" back in December sometime. :) Thanks for commenting!

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  2. Dunno. I don't disagree with you that it's not important, but the thing that will probably continue to enrage me until I die is the abuse of the consumer in a capitalist system. To me this is a bit like buying makeup -- they insult you to get you to buy more. Well, after that happened to me twice I quit it with the makeup. I don't feel like I have the same choice here, so although for minor irritants I have learned to ignore it (Daily Mail), I am going to keep calling it out when it really bothers me or the person involved was smart enough to know better.

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    1. I'm not saying ignore it or don't call it out. I just needed to reestablish my own equilibrium. And play some really loud Soundgarden.

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    2. I forgot to say before thanks for commenting!

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  3. "Me, too!" and ummm, "Me, too!" and oh, yeah, "Me, too!" ;)
    Nicely said, Jazzy, as ever. Thanks!

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  4. :) The critic with low self-esteem? I thought that they suffer from megalomania . Anyway, she may kiss me in the left half of my..peach!;)

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  5. I'm not going to let a snarky fool's display of ignorance and disrespect spoil things for me, but neither am I going read anything more from the Daily Mail. Any periodical with editorial standards that poor belongs in the recycle bin with the rest of the tabloids.

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    1. Hey, Leigh, thanks for commenting and welcome to the blog! ITA with you about the editorial standards. They can't afford a fact checker? And how would she know if Into The Storm is schlock? Has she seen it?

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  6. Thank you, thank so much for creating such a positive response to these negative articles. I like to wear my rose coloured glasses most of the time.Yet Tanya Gold's "opinion column" really did make me angry. Too angry to think positive. You are right that this will happen again.You are right that we are big enough of heart to hold our heads high. Cheers!

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    1. Thanks for commenting, sara. For me this isn't optimism, it's realism. I'm going to do what I do regardless of what Tanya Gold and any other sneering dipshit thinks and she and they are going to think what they think regardless of what I do. When they get things that wrong they absolutely deserve to be called out -- the responses from Serv, Gratiana Lovelace, Fedoralady, Perry, Zan, Marlise Boland, Cat Winchester and others all had me nodding my head and they all made fantastic points -- but I needed to say "fuck off" in my own way. Plus Kim Thayill throwing a beer. :)

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  7. This! I'd put my signature under your post without any further qualification, Jazzy. Or reblog it (if I were on Blogger)!
    You are so right about choosing what to feel affected by and how to respond. I sometimes wonder whether we are giving the negativity too much room by responding to it. OTOH, mistakes have to be called out, too. Luckily *I* know what the fandom is like. A negative interpretation can and should not touch me...

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    1. Thanks for commenting, guilty! I loved your graphic the other day comparing what the fandom was in the beginning and has become for you and I absolutely agree with it.

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  8. Dear Music Lady: Sorry to go off topic, but switching to a much better topic, can you identify the music in the Esquire video (please, baby, please baby, baby, pleeeeease)? It's been driving me crazy all day. Thank you.
    Armitage Besotted

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    1. I'm guessing "the one NPR uses as bumper music" is not what you're going for here? :) It's driving me up a wall, too, because I know the music but am spacing on the title.

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Thanks for commenting!