some people only play to collect Achievements

[ironymaiden]

C's brother didn't complete his bachelor's degree in time for the graduation ceremony at the end of his fourth year of college. he still walked with his class, and there were gifts and hoopla.

i didn't attend, because i thought the whole thing was insulting to everyone who earned a diploma. C and i both graduated on time with double majors. what did our ceremonies mean, if you could get all the recognition without actually finishing?

* * *

around fifteen years later*, i know that it didn't actually take anything away from C, or from me. my achievements have not been undone.

tangentially, this brings me to Straight White Male: The Lowest Difficulty Setting There Is. i've been watching response to it. on the one hand is the "yay, a metaphor that avoids that now-loaded word 'privilege' and maybe we can have a nice talk!" on the other is "noooooooo, winning on Easy Mode doesn't really count! therefore i can't be on Easy Mode, and you are insulting me by implying that i am!" with bonus "let me explain to you about how i'm not really on Easy Mode!" and a side of "talking about Hardcore mode is causing Hardcore mode!"

Character Class and The Game of Life digs into class more, and does a nice job of looking at the economic advantages and disadvantages of equality.

so far, this is my favorite response about being a good user on Easy Mode:
You may feel that you have been kicked out of Goodness Town! But you were never actually there, because Goodness Town doesn't exist.
Instead, what has happened is that while traveling along Goodness Road, you have encountered some cowshit.






*i still think C's parents made the wrong choice in celebrating when it was convenient instead of when it was deserved.

Comments

[textualdeviance.livejournal.com]

Hadn't read those two responses, yet, but I did read through almost all the comments on the original post last night, and was headdesking so much I think I may have given myself a concussion.

Wrote my own couple of responses (yesterday (http://mediatedlife.wordpress.com/2012/05/15/life-as-an-mmo/) and today (http://mediatedlife.wordpress.com/2012/05/16/fun-and-games-with-straight-white-males-class-discrimination-edition/))--looks like I was on a similar track as some other folks.

I think class is a really hardcore contributor to tunnel vision, especially in a down economy, so it's not surprising that so many people were entirely missing the part where Scalzi said "yes, class matters" and thus ignoring everything else.

[e-bourne.livejournal.com]

There are a couple of things that Austin, who has found it interesting and enlightening being one of the few white + straight + male people at his school has learned. One is personal observation, the other is an anecdote.

Observation: it is difficult for many men to take seriously the opinions of women. There are many mechanisms that show, in a conversation, that the woman isn't being heard. We are so accustomed to them that we aren't aware of them anymore. Austin and I have had a number of interesting conversations about this.

Anecdote: Austin and two friends - a Russian I'll call Dimitri and an African American I'll call Rob - were talking about time travel ad what alternate time they would like to experience. Austin picked 1920s Europe. Dimitri picked 1960s SF. Rob said, "Time travel is a white man's game." That, of course, is true for women as well. It has made me think seriously about time travel novels and the assumptions they make -- as well as changed my views on steampunk, which is fantasy, I know, but I am beginning to find it problematic.

[caraeileen.livejournal.com]

As someone who graduated in Dec. rather than June due to studying abroad, I would have loved celebrating my college graduation at all. Instead, I got a phone call saying my parents didnt feel like sitting in the Ellensburg sun/heat and I could walk if I wanted to but they werent going to be there. Absolutely no fanfare of my accomplishments whatsoever. I think they might've taken me out to dinner or something. I am still somewhat disappointed in the entire situation.