Over a year ago, my blog-surfing led me to a blog named Your Dungeon Is Suck. I scanned a few of the top posts, and quickly dismissed it as immature, anonymous mudslinging of the uninspired type. Then I moved on. Since then I've seen this blog mentioned here and there, and I've also read a post or two. It stays true to form. It sometimes puzzles me that this type of garbage attracts an audience, then I remember that the internets are full of losers, bullies and piss-ants.
Had Your Dungeon Is Suck at least been written by someone with enough integrity to put his own name, and maybe even a picture, to his profile, I might have been inclined to look for nuggets of satire in the steady stream of filth. It is not. It is instead an example of the bad side of the web -- the side where the inadequate feel empowered by their anonymity, and where they use this power to see how much they can hurt other people.
I cannot respect the person hiding behind Your Dungeon Is Suck, nor can I respect the cackling choir that seems to frequent that particular digital dung-heap. He and his followers represent the absolute low of this community.
Very well put. I've also looked for the value I felt must be there for someone to put so much time in, and maybe there is a purpose to it all. But even if there is, I'm not sure the hurt it's doing can be worth the gain.
ReplyDeleteI steer clear and your not linking now seems to me to be a good approach, leaving it to its own devices, perhaps dropping by sporadically to take a fresh look.
I fear looking in six months will only reveal what looking six months ago did. Unless of course the blog dies, which would be the best thing that could happen over there. Then again, haters will be hatin' and trolls will be trollin'.
ReplyDeleteI just felt it needed saying.
The internet has never been a place where high premium was placed on civility, unfortunately.
ReplyDeleteIts single worst offence is bullying one blog out of existence - http://unknownzine.blogspot.com/2011/07/see-you-around.html
ReplyDeleteThis alone speaks volumes of the damage this kind of puerile, anonymous tripe can do.
To be honest I'd forgotten about YDIS until there was some chatter on the Interwebz the other day, but then reading Christian's admission today just really got my goat.
Thanks for your post, I share your sentiments. I have been kicking around penning a lengthy post on the nature of internet communication and the intentional communities that form on the web.
ReplyDelete@ Trey:
ReplyDeleteTrue that. I am quite content with ignoring such asinine and uninspired vitriol most days, but sometimes someone needs to say, "it's not fucking ok, you dick." Today that was me.
@ Flea:
Yup, that's what got my boxers in a bundle as well. Christian must do what he feels is right, but I'll be goddammed if I'm going to stay mum about such wanton obloquy.
@ Padre:
While I'm sure such a post would be an interesting read, I fear that the guy hiding behind YDIS and his ilk would either a) not read it, or b) fail to take the point completely. Still, speaking out against such behaviour is the only option we have, apart from just simply ignoring those who partake in it.
I'm just sad that Christian's blog is gone, I always enjoyed his writing.
ReplyDeleteAnd it's equally sad that there are people who feel the need to spend time and energy writing such dross. But I bet that he's all like "whoa, I'm just stating my opinion here"...which is an easy thing to do from behind your keyboard.
Its funny how bigots and muckrakers tend to be the most outspoken advocates of Freedom of Speech. Freedom does not mean obligation, and it's not a holy cow. But you're right, hiding behind a made up name and an anonymous icon makes some people mighty bold.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comments Harald and all. I certainly don't expect irresponsible jerks to take account for their words. I think calling them out, supporting the slandered and trying to limit the soapbox of the malicious is about as good as one can do with the internet. I try to make it a point not to surrender my time or energy to things that are hateful and petty, YDIS comments fall into that category.
ReplyDeleteI agree completely. I debated whether or not to write this post -- there's that thing about not feeding the troll. By and large, YDIS is an extremely low-brow site, but this latest stunt was of such an extreme and unacceptable nature that I didn't feel like I had a choice.
ReplyDeleteThe way I see it, YDIS is a bully. Simple as that, and I wouldn't be surprised if I attract some flak from that corner, but that is quite frankly of minimal concern. There are people who's opinion I respect and value, and then there's the other kind.
I'm sorry to see Christian is gone, and I hope he returns. Or at least, stops by to visit us from time to time. He's a good egg, that one.
ReplyDeleteHeh, a good egg he is.
ReplyDeleteI've said this on other blogs, but I just want to put it on mine as well: Christian, do not let the bastard bring you down. You will be missed.
Anonymous bullying too...ugh.
ReplyDeleteThe internet has never been a place where high premium was placed on civility, unfortunately.
And likely never will given how entrenched this behavior is. The only defense is cultivating a thick skin--and holding yourself to better sadly.
Aye, it is an ugly thing. Hopefully some good may come from this. One can only hope.
ReplyDelete@ Harald " Had he not been so obnoxious, I would have felt sad for him."
ReplyDeleteI have to say this is going down as one of my favorite comments I've read in a long time. I am still chuckling over it.
Though Christian is back, I still stand by every word in this post, it's comments, and in related comments on other blogs. I must say that I am impressed by how people reacted to today's little drama.
ReplyDeleteThe Moral of the Story:
If you laugh when the bully commits his act, you are in effect aiding and abetting. I hope that people will ignore YDIS in the future. That we wont visit or comment on his site, make excuses for his behaviour, and ideally, that we'll do our best to forget his very existence.
Does the troll flame if no one reads it's posts?
@Harald
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I'm also impressed by how the gaming community responded. There are more good people blogging about gaming than bad.
Sometimes it is amazing to me how a man can still be a man and have so little penis. I mean seriously, an anonymous attack over the tubes for the love of Pete? How tacky and cowardly can you get? So immensely pleased that someone stood up and ripped that dickless wonder a new virtual asshole. Well done!!
ReplyDeleteWell said, and I'm glad in the event that Christian is back.
ReplyDeleteIn regard to the last line "He and his followers represent the absolute low of this community." I don't consider YDIS part of "this community". Honestly, I have a hard time defining what the (or a) community is in terms of gaming blogs, and often I just think it's lie that we tell ourselves to make us feel like we have more friends than we really do, or whatever. But then there are times like this where folks actually step in to help somebody out and call bullshit on people, and then I can say, "Well, yes there actually is something real among some of us, as diffuse as it might seem. There is a bona fide community." So maybe that's the real good that came out of this.
@ Spawn of Endra:
ReplyDeleteI agree that the term community doesn't fit perfectly in context, but I would still argue that there is a community. Yesterday was actually quite interesting in that regard, as it brought out a lot of people you don't normally see in the same place. Have a look at the comment-field of Christian's "So then I chilled" post to see what I mean.
I would argue that the community is based around the OSR-concept. There are a few bigger blogs with a lot of traffic. Through their blog-rolls, these divert traffic to smaller blogs, like my own -- apart from Google, my biggest traffic-sources are six of these big-blogs. In that manner, the network template applies to the blogosphere.
YDIS is part of that network, for better or worse. It is read by the people who visit our blogs, and by people who write some of the blogs we read.
But you are right in that this is not a community in the traditional sense. Then again, how do you define traditional on the internet?