Journal of No. 118

 Turtles all the way down is a young adultish novel that I picked up at the Enigma book swap a while back.

Part young romance, part teen buddies mystery solving, our main character is also distinguished by obtrusive thoughts and other OCD symptoms that get in the way of her life. Apparently the author (probably best known for The Fault in Our Stars) also suffers from OCD, so the descriptive elements ring true to life and are fairly terrifying. I wonder whether people with OCD would be helped by reading a sympathetic treatment or harmed by echoing their own difficulties in a feedback loop.
Well-drawn characters and interaction, but even if the mystery was not really the reason for the book (the real treasure was the friends we made along the way!) the resolution of the mystery was pretty lackluster.

 Callahan's Crosstime Saloon: Time Travelers Strictly Cash is their policy. Lay your money on the bar, name your poison, step up to the line drawn on the barroom floor, and after drinking make a toast and throw the glass into the fireplace.

So there's been a bit of a kerfuffle.

The enigmachat email list has, over the years, died down in frequency to near moribund levels. But it perked up again with the campaign and questions about ballot initiatives. I gave my opinions. And there was a little back and forth. And then Darnell stuck his nose in with his usual flat-affected poorly-expressed stupidity. Now, I've only met Darnell in person a couple times, and nothing of much note occurred, but most of his email conversation has been repugnant and poorly thought out and expressed, as was this instance. So, because for me, he is only an object of disdain, detestation, and occasional humor, I tried to elicit further commentary from him, hoping to hear him express more poor, repugnant opinions for the edification of all (i.e. so that everyone would know he's an idiot with repugnant views).

But things took a turn. thefayth went off. "I am deeply distressed by the email I received today on the EnigmaChat mailing list by Mr. Darnell Coleman that continues a cycle of inappropriate statements and behavior over the last 5 years." [my emphasis]

For better or worse, this message hit me before dawn, before coffee, and the first couple responses I saw firmed up my impression, also influenced by certain whispers and gossip, that this was not just about ideas and words, but behavior. And then I fucking went off.

There was a blinding flash of crystal clarity that, although I saw Darnell as an object of ridicule with stupid ideas, and that (only in comparison, mind you) I could be Vol-fucking-taire in amusing myself in showing him up... in actual fact, he was causing harm to people. And so:

Thanks, Faith.

I detest Darnell. I have only met him once or twice, so most of my interaction has been online. But that has been quite enough to last a lifetime.

His opinions are usually offensive, and always poorly thought out and expressed.

Current leadership will have to decide whether his poisonous contributions to the club require action within the guidelines of the group.

I am sensitive to the issue of viewpoint discrimination. I wouldn't want him to be removed simply for holding, or even expressing, unpopular beliefs. But it may well be that his behavior has reached a point that necessitates action.

Looking back, Enigma has from time-to-time had its own little basket of deplorables. From the painfully socially inept, to the gropy, to the political morons, to the religious bigots, to the anti-religious bigots (hi!).

The (rarely used) solution has generally been to encourage the deplorables to 'self-deport'. Make it clear that many people in the club don't want them there. And maybe the best way to make that clear is for many people to actually express it to him.

For the sake of our inboxes, people should write to Darnell personally. However, it might be useful as a record if you could also post a comment in Faith's post to the Enigma Facebook group, so that the powers that be can gauge the sentiment of the members.

But while I have the floor...

Darnell... go away and don't come back. I don't want you in my club. Your negative presence distresses many members and detracts from their experience. I fear you may be a psychic vampire who derives some sick pleasure from distressing others; if so, please find help. Or at least find some other group to infest, because the villagers here are sharpening their stakes. If not, just go already.

I realize (both before and after coffee) that this was an extreme and extrajudicial step. But it was also clear to me that the judicial process had been tried, and those who had complained had received no satisfaction. I do feel for the people in leadership of the club, who are in a difficult position. But I mouthed off.

And pretty soon it was clear that the leadership was taking this seriously, and I tried my best to shut the fuck up, and let them work.

But the response to my incendiary post, and a few like it, was fascinating to me.

>>***: I think using a public forum to do this is unjustifiable and unnecessary, and I don't want to be a part of it.

>Thank you for saying that, ***. I agree fully that such an extremely public discussion is, at the very least, unkind.

Aye ***, well spoken sir.

My visceral reaction to the middle comment was: "Absolutely. Yes, it was unkind. I would be mortified if I was accidentally that unkind, no-- rude, to someone. This was calculated and intentional."

But the weight of these comments coming together in a row finally gave me some insight into what it is like to be 'gaslighted' to use the common parlance.

Maybe I was wrong for backing up Faith. Maybe going through official channels was the best way to deal with it. Maybe I was wrong to be intentionally and publicly rude to Darnell. Maybe this is a witch hunt, and for once I'm the torch-bearing idiot.

Then alpiyn dropped a nuclear bomb. As much as I was feeling gaslighted for picking on a moron who had done nothing worse to me than be a moron, how much worse or more alienated would people feel who had actually been harmed by this moron?

---

Now, I'm an old fart. And there's a new generation that's taken over. And that's as it should be. But I find it strange that I have (ok, had!) this idea that the younger crowd are much more up-to-date on this shit than the old fart brigade. We old farts roll our eyes at, "Do I have your explicit consent to nibble your left earlobe?" And we old farts who adore the First Amendment are a bit leery of the new guard's desire to curtail unpleasant speech. But I had this idea that the little pupal SJWs of today are out trying to make 'safe spaces' for everyone to enjoy. And at least in this case, it turned out to be a bunch of crap.

But at least I was right about the fuckdoodly First Amendment cuntborking.

When the official response came, part of it was this.

1) Many of these grievances spawn from online interactions and statements from this individual. In particular, many of them come from threads in the enigma-chat emailing list that is primarily populated by older alums of the club. The individual has been removed from these lists, as well as blocked from this group. That being said, it must stated that some in the officership were unaware of the existence of this list, and we believe that many of the current members who attend weekly meetings were also unaware of its existence. In light of this, we wish to formally disavow the enigma-chat list and leave it in the hands of the alumni. The enigma-chat list will remain as an opt-in option for all members, but we will not be responsible for its content. The transition of moderator responsibility shall take place in the coming week.
2) As for the individual’s continued membership in the club, we have yet to reach a verdict. We are speaking with our advisers on the best course of action to take to avoid repercussions.

Now again, I realize the leadership is in a tough position, and everything does have to be done in accordance with the guidelines (as I called for in my original rant), and this may take time. But I still think it's sad that the old farts on the email list get unceremoniously shitcanned, while judgment is reserved in the case of the malefactor. To be fair, this message was released before alpiyn unleashed hellfire.

It's also interesti.. no, infuriating, that some of the messaging has been that all of the complaints have been about just ideas and words. But Faith's message does mention behavior. My message explicitly protects ideas and expression, but draws the line at behavior. Again, I hope that the official response, when it comes, takes into account whether it was merely expression of unpopular views, or if it was behavior that created a hostile environment.

But getting back to one of the shortest of the many soapboxes I've stood on in this rant, enigmachat is too full of the free discourse of ideas and poopoo words to be a part of what the club wants to be in this day and age.

So in conclusion...

Fuck you in your fatherfisting cloaca!

/mic drop

This is what 45 looks like.



[For reference, this is what 40 looks like.]

The comment there about 'Sunday was lazy football watching and pizza making' remains fairly apposite, as here is dinner:



Prosciutto, broccolini, onion, olives, jalapeño, capers...

Yes, it was very, very good.

But I do not taunt you aimlessly, (maybe).

As I alluded before, a year from today will mark the completion of my 46th year. Twice 23. 23 years (arguably 92) since the events of 23 Skidoo occurred.

So I officially announce 23 Skidoo Times Two. September 13th, 2015 -- hopefully some of you will survive into September 14th.

This live game is not literally a sequel to 23 Skidoo -- especially since only a handful of people 'survived' -- but I'm certainly open to continuing lines.

My basic ideas...

The setting
Date: 1946
Place: Vienna, Austria
Venue: An auction of rare items and curiosae, much of it no doubt liberated by the vicissitudes of WWII.
Characters: to be written by players, and then adapted as needed by moi.
Primary filmic reference: The Third Man. Not that the game will necessarily be anything like this, but you must watch this peerless film, and thank me later.
Theme: Lovecraftian references will no doubt be present, and possibly of primary importance, but not necessarily overpowering. Postwar malaise. Black Market. Greed. Lust. Wrath. Other Deadly Sins.

The game: theater-style live game. In many ways an ode to the Enigma games of yore, but informed by the past few decades.

The players: I hope and trust, a great many of my friends, old and new, from Enigma, Wyrd Con, and beyond.

The details: In general.... TBA.

And so I ask... who's in? Contact me publicly or privately with your ideas, suggestions, concerns, etc.

In some months a more official announcement will appear, but for now this serves as an announcement of intent.

---

"Appendix D of The Lord of the Rings says that our New Year's Day (January 1) corresponds "more or less" to the Shire's "January 9", and in standard years our September 14 and the Shire's "September 22" [i.e. Bilbo's and Frodo's birthday] both fall 256 days after that date."

I jetted back down to get in on a Dresden Files LARP run by a troupe based in NYC. Sunday morning is a difficult time, and I was by no means the most weary.

But we got sorted out, prepped, and game on. My character was somewhat tangential to the main plot, but I had no problem getting into things. A few good lines, some good back and forth, a time to shine (and show up my mentor) and tried to help a few other people get their own stories out. It really was a good group of role-players, and it gave me the same good feeling as Foundations at the first Wyrd Con. I had no expectations going in, and it turned out fabulous.

That led into the closing ceremonies where everyone got thanked and awarded. Costume and prop awards. The lackeys, er minions, for their hard work. And the dedicated con staff. And then some thought for Wyrd Con 5. At long last, it's coming to LA (one of the LAX hotels). This makes me so happy for perfectly selfish reasons. Unfortunately, the date chosen was Memorial Day. This conflicts with the traditional date for Maxicon. So there was some grumbling amongst the Enigmans. And some of the East Coast folk were not looking forward to the prospect of travel on Memorial Day weekend.

I liked the Dresden Files game so much, that I have some of the GMs luggage in my car. No, I didn't steal it, but storage room in their arranged transportation was at a premium. Probably some time not too far from now, it will be collected and taken away to the airport for their flight back.

Subtitled 'Scientific Discoveries and Explorations in the Psychic World', this is the kind of book that makes me sigh with pain every few pages. But I was curious, since Dr. Moss carried out her quasi-unofficial parapsychological studies at the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute. And some of us met her quondam star psychic, Barry Taff, when he came to Enigma to see if there was interest in his ghost hunting exploits.

Written in 1974, the book offers a breathless glimpse at the state-of-the-art of academic parapsychology at that moment. Moss travelled to the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe to look at psychic happenings behind the Iron Curtain, and a conference in Prague seems to have given her the idea to write the book. Here's a taste of the conference:

Professor Alexander Dubrov, Soviet academician ... discussed his research into "biogravity," which he defined as "the ability of living organisms to generate and detect gravitational waves."
...
With wonder in his voice, he told us that in mitosis of a cell one can observe "an energetic radiation of photons," visible as a weak luminescence. At the same time, there is present a radiation of ultrasonic waves at a high frequency ... And, during the process of mitosis, the liquid of the cell converts to a crystalline structure. "Imagine," he repeated with excitement, "the liquid of the cell turns into crystal!" For those of us whose juices might not be stirred by this fact, he pointed out that these characteristics tend to confirm his hypothesis that "biogravitational waves" emanate from cells, which in turn could account for such phenomena as telepathy, the movement of objects at a distance, and perhaps even levitation.

Give me a moment for my eyes to roll back into place.

You may think I'm attacking low-hanging fruit, but like with Science and the Paranormal, one of the interesting things about the book is how much time it devotes to things that even the true believers (but not the true true believers) have discarded long ago: Uri Geller, Samuel Soal, Kirlian photography, Ted Serios...

More alarming still is the very favorable treatment all of these things get. I mean, believers and skeptics will argue about whether Ted Serios' 'gizmo' was evidence that his 'thoughtographs' were fraudulent, or merely a perfectly innocent plastic tube that he liked to press against the lens of the camera. But Moss does not mention the gizmo at all.

This and other things I know about made me mistrust the things I didn't know about.

The second Wyrd Con is wrapping up about now. I only went Saturday, but packed quite a bit in. I wanted to show up for the LGL brunch this morning and hang out with friends old and new, but couldn't face the thought of driving to the OC and back twice today (since we're having dinner with Dad later today).
( spoilers & war stories )

SomethingAwful provides a nice list of "The Least Essential Wikipedia Pages"

Just keep in mind that all of these, from Judaism in Rugrats to the List of animals with fraudulent degrees is more notable than Enigma, though possibly Enigma could be merged with the article on involuntary celibacy. Zing!

Ran a session of Casino Arcane for Metacon. This is my goofy poker-with-Tarot cards game, with minimal live game appendages. For some demented reason, I set it in 1937 and used a bunch of authentic people for the characters, from Senator Truman of Missouri to Clara Petacci.

mewatson triumphed as Signorina Petacci, displaying her brutally fascist qualities by not only keeping in the game, but taking out Senator Truman and Sir John Ellerman in fisticuffs. The Fool 'only' had $2.2 million this time at the end of the game. Although not a winner of money, Admiral Yamamoto wound up with plenty of souls. I see a more prosperous future for the Axis (at least the Italo-Japanese portion - the lame Nazi was a total bust) but perhaps the game in 1944 will alter things again...

Players new and old seemed to enjoy it. I think with some more streamlining and a rehaul of the Major Arcana points, it could be marketable.

I even had a momentary vision of a 'league'. Perhaps souls would have in-game 'always on' effects, making them more valuable (and making sales of them more interesting/lucrative). Better players would soon amass a storehouse of souls. Better players would also improve their Major Arcana rank. At a league-sanctioned event, they could choose which soul (only one) to wager at the game. Step 3: profit.

This weekend is the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the founding of Enigma. An almost ridiculous milestone. I've been a member of Enigma for so long that it wasn't even Enigma when I joined. 19.5 years ago, I joined what was then known as Attempted Escape in the fall of my freshman year at UCLA. One of the first orders of business was to choose a new name for the club. It's funny that both Robert and I distinctly remember S. Michael Price (as he was known then) supporting Enigma because then the journal would be called Enigmata (pronounced in affected English schoolboy Latin cadences).
In any case, Rebecca and I battled the rain Friday evening to get to Nova Express for the kickoff of the Enigmaversary. Clearly the perfect venue. It was awesome. We owned the place for four hours. I personally acted as bouncer and turned someone away. We had music, slideshow, continuous food, drink and people.
( It only goes downhill from here )