Well, believe it or not, I’m back. Astounding, I know. But, I felt compelled to vent a bit of frustration at the animation studios, today. It all stems from a brief discussion I had with a fellow worker, this morning. We somehow got onto the topic of childrens’ shows and how they’ve become too adult in nature.

It seems to be a widespread viewpoint within the animation industry that children shouldn’t be treated like children these days. There are all sorts of grotesque references to bodily excretions, crude sexually oriented humor, and foul language that pops up here and there… in CHILDRENS shows! I’ve even seen references to such methodology hidden within the hallowed halls of Disney, itself! Walt would no doubt stand up out of his grave and take a 9-iron to the staff at his beloved organization if he could.

The inherent problem lies in modern society’s obvious distaste for innocense. It seems almost like an effort to instill a “magical” belief in the fairy-tale world of a child’s imagination anymore. Society wants to gut any belief in make-believe characters, traditional figures and a child’s right to BE a child, anymore. The faster they can discredit such notions and push children toward adulthood…the better they like it.

They degrade once humrous cartoons that people took with an unattached sense of humor, and have chopped them to pieces for the sake of Political Correctness. And, without missing a beat, will broadcast a cartoon where a child makes reference to eating dog feces. Yes, I’ve actually seen it myself. And today’s kids are soaking up this televised mess! Sexual inuendos, ebonic urban lingo, an almost unilateral saturation of rap & hip-hop themed music, and crude subject content are what makes a cartoon these days?? Give me Johnny Quest, Speedracer, Looney Tunes, Scooby Doo, Transformers, Gi Joe and Garfield. That is…if they haven’t butchered them into a mangled mess of PC crap, as well.

It’s truly a terrible thing to rape the innocence away from our young generations for the sake of intollerance of its mere existance. Children should be allowed to be children. They shouldn’t be thought of as merely a “grown-up-in-training”. Stop ripping away the cover on reality at a younger and younger age. They have the rest of their lives to witness the cruel reality that we all must endure. At least have the human decency to let them have a time of wonder and happiness. It may very well be the only thing that allows them to cling to sanity later in life. It’s been consistently proven that an unstable, unhappy, violent or neglectful experience as a child tends to lead the individual to similarly associated behavior, later on in life. Conversely, I’ve yet to see a single person ever arrested or jailed for dropping an anvil on another human being like Wile E. Coyote… just to see if they’ll walk off, sounding like an accordian. Give kids credit for some common sense. They sometimes exhibit more intelligence than those in mass media do.

Y'all be good… more later.

Greetings patient ones! Yes, believe it or not… I have, at long last, returned to entertain the masses with my somewhat skewed sense of humor. You may be asking yourself what has taken me so long to work up enough ire over a topic to post my annoyance about it in this beloved blog.

Well, suffice it to say that there have been several recent events that have taken place which have diminished my disgruntlement to a degree. Now, don’t mistake a lapse of entries for a negation of my tendencies. I’m still the same analytically opinionated person I’ve always been. But the events in question have been very hard to work through. I won’t expound on them here for sake of time and space. But suffice it to say that they shook my world to its very foundation. Well, without further adieu, I will introduce you to an experience that has somewhat confounded me to one degree or another. It’s not necessarily all bad… but it does tend to make me, and possibly will make several of you, go “huh?”.

A few years ago, some acquaintances of mine recommended an online gaming system to me, knowing how computer-based I tend to be. Now, I’m no genius or computer hacker by any means. But, I do enjoy a bit of escapism from the perpetually dim reality I seem to be faced with on a daily basis. Sometimes I can take the escape instinct a bit far. But, then again, so do several other people. So, while fundamentally it may still be wrong… I gain a small bit of comfort from the fact that it seems to be a widespread issue, and not just one that I indulge exclusively.

The online gaming system is one that millions have subscribed to, for one reason or another. Some, for simple entertainment. Some, for the pursuit of romantic endeavors (however odd this may seem). And still others seek financial rewards for manipulating the system, as is done with almost any medium whereby actual money can change hands.

The gaming system I’m referring to, of course, is Second Life. Several of you may already know about it. Some may actually be fellow players. Others may have only heard about it, or may have no idea what it is.

Second Life is a worldwide phenomenon, to date. It is a three-dimensional world, created online, in which you can make a playable character (or “avatar”) that you use to interact with objects and other avatars in this world. You can shape them, clothe them and color them to your liking. Many tend to recreate themselves in the Second Life world, adding clothing and objects that they may or may not already own. Some participate in role-playing scenarios, while others tend to gravitate toward musical or social venues to interact with many other users.

Quite literally, the sky is the limit. Because there are any number of things you can “buy” or build inside this world. If you can think of it, it can be made or bought. And most of what you can think of already exists there. There are several obvious differences between real life, and the gaming system of Second Life. Firstly, the ability to fly is exclusive to Second Life. Not with an airplane or rocket… but as in Superman flying. Another is the ability to quickly transfer to various distant locales by merely “teleporting”. There are other differences, but let’s cut to the chase here.

As I mentioned a moment ago, I was a member of Second Life a year or two ago. Well, due to the limitations of both the Second Life system and my computer… I abandoned the game. At one point, as either the direct result of one of Second Life’s “updates” or a computer virus… I lost my entire C:\ drive. I had all but abandoned the notion of returning to Second Life (SL) due to these prior issues, but I was recently assured of the fact that things had vastly improved since my last unfortunate and irritating experience with it. Reluctantly, I agreed to come back and experience the “new” SL.

After approximately a month of visitation, I can assure you that things have vastly improved… but certain problems tend to persist. Unless you are running a top-end PC with copious amounts of RAM, processor speed, graphics capabilities and and DSL (or better) connection… your experience with SL may be lackluster, at best. The game tends to have lags, where objects and every person in it jerk about and move slowly. It’s somewhat akin to having a minor epileptic seizure during game play.

This, I assume, is primarily due to communications difficulties between individual PC’s and the main server. Though server issues have, indeed, contributed to some of the lag sessions witnessed by hundreds. In the past week, alone, my character has inexplicably floated through ceilings while jumping… sunken into the earth up to his nose, only to pop back up on his feet like a whack-a-mole game… and go into aggravating (yet somewhat humorous) jerking fits.

If this weren’t enough to contend with, all in the name of entertainment, then the next thing I tell you about may make you question my sanity even further. Some of you, who have a very full schedule of events…people…lifestyle choices…and drama to stomach in your FIRST life may wonder why I’m even going to expound on this. You would be justified to suggest that the problems with this system already warrant a decision to leave it be. Well, never let it be said that I’m not the most stubborn and tenacious person you’ve ever met. I’m still there.

But, here’s the meat of the whole issue. So sit back and enjoy (if you haven’t already fallen asleep by now). I am a member of a role-playing group within Second Life. The theme of the role-play is set as an 1800’s era western town. There are time-authentic three-dimensional buildings, wanted posters, train tracks, saloons, brothels, bandits, sheriffs, cowboys and flapper girls. There are six-shooters, rifles, horses and the whole lot. It is a veritable cornucopia of authenticism (as far as a computerized 3D world can get, I suppose). But, recently, some matters of absurdity have given rise to what I can only call… blind modernism.

Several, if not the majority, of the fellow players make certain that their avatars are dressed in time-period clothing. Cowboy hats, gun belts, etc. But there is a group of somewhat deviant people that live their lives (real lives) in the peculiar delusion that they are somehow part animal. Now stick with me here, because we’re about to plummet off the cliff of level headed thinking. These animal-fetish people are commonly called “furies”. Imagine, if you will, a person who dresses in what amounts to a sports mascot suit (squirrel, bunny, fox, etc) and parades around at “furry” venues to socialize with other fellow furies. Yes, the practice does exist. As odd as this may seem… it gets worse. Now, they’ve taken the…uhm, “lifestyle”…into Second Life.

If gays weren’t enough of a political equality issue, now the furies want to lift a hand…or paw, as the case may be. It’s to the degree that owners of certain areas of Second Life have taken to the view of siding with their “rights” to play in these role-playing adventures…as furry avatars. Yes, you’re getting the picture now. We’re talking about places where there may be 100’s of regular human avatars milling about…and 5-foot tall squirrels and bunnies milling there with them. Now, I’m not openly judgmental of individual likes and dislikes. I have my opinions and beliefs (much to the surprise of my readers, I’m sure). But, I tend to respect peoples’ rights to do as they wish…as long as it isn’t harming others or detracting from someone else’s rights.

However, this issue isn’t about basic rights. This issue is about continuity of theme. Recently, there was a user-wide notice sent out to everyone who participates in this “old west” role-play group. In it was a seriously toned decree that all furies, which wish to play in the scenarios, will be allowed to play AS furies in said scenarios, for the sake of avoiding discrimination. Ah yes, the great evil… discrimination. Unmitigated avoidance of it places untalented hacks in with professionals, the tone-deaf in with great musicians and buffoons in with intellectually competent individuals. Let’s all just mingle.

So… what we have now, kiddies, is a posse of 12 men…all on horseback…guns loaded…hats tipped down in the dusty western sun…ready to pursue the bandits that just robbed the store. Well… 12 men and one 5’ tall rabbit named Mr. Bucky. I’m quite certain that John Wayne, facing the request for an actor to accompany him on screen in a bunny costume for a serious movie scene, would have probably shot the bunny and broken the kneecaps of any objecting persons around him. I can’t, in good conscience, role-play out a scene of any seriousness whilst a boob in a squirrel outfit and cowboy hat tries to participate in the conversation. It’s annoying…absurd….comical, at best.

Honestly, people… am I alone in my view that role-play ought to involve a decidedly common theme? Am I to assume that those of you who have played cowboy-and-indian, as children, ever accepted the guy down the street who wanted to play…as a spaceman?

Injun-Joe and Sheriff Pete never had to contend with Spaceman Spiff, I’m sure. The other kid went along with the theme of the play, or he didn’t play. It’s neither rude nor discriminatory. It’s not sexist, racist or any other IST. It’s “common sense”. Something the world is in dire lack of these days, it seems. And this is just another nail in the coffin of decency within our social structure. When even a make-believe world must be adversely affected by politically correct motivations…it’s become a sad state of affairs.

Them’s my 2-cents worth, folks… hope you’ve enjoyed my rant. As always; more later.