Aussiecon 4 Masquerade - Who to Blame

[dalekboy]

Some of you will have heard about the kerfuffle at the Aussiecon 4 Masquerade. Without going into the details as to why things blew up the way they did after the event (that's something for another post), I just wanted to talk about who was to blame for it.

The person to blame is me. No one else, just me.

I'd like to make that 100% clear.

I'm big on people taking responsibility for their actions, and while Nick is the person who delivered the line one member of our audience seemed to find so very offensive, the reason the anecdote was told was me. In an unscripted moment (we had run out of material quite some time before), I essentially grabbed a gun, loaded it, cocked it, then tossed it to my friend, and it went off in his hands. The amount of control he had over the situation at the time was minimal.

That an individual found the line hurtful is unfortunate, was certainly never intended, and I am sorry that it has caused him pain. However, his choices over how to present what happened, who to demand apologies from, and who he was upset at I have found rather perplexing, hence this post to clear up who should be attacked over the incident.

So, to make it absolutely crystal clear to anyone - Rose and Perry weren't to blame and neither was the Aussiecon 4 ConCom, the hundreds of audience members for laughing at the time, or Nick.

The blame is mine and I'm quite prepared to wear it.

I should also point out that Nick doesn't want me taking the blame, but I am insisting, and have told him to refer anyone hassling him about this issue to me. I will not stand idly by and see him blamed for my mistake. Especially when it's by people who weren't there and are basing all their opinions on hearsay.

I would ask that anyone you see discussing the situation also gets pointed to this post.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

[GregT] Worth adding that the remarks of the individual concerned ( http://twitter.com/sguod ) don't make the situation any better.

I absolutely don't follow the logic of, "This comment was offensive because of the way it attacked and vilified a community without sensitivity or discrimination, and, because it was said, AussieCon 4 and all of its members are bad people."

Reading down past the source of this particular drama to his earlier Twitters that night provides some much needed context.

[dalekboy.livejournal.com]

There's no doubt he was ready to blow before we'd said anything.

Only just seen this since most of my day yesterday was taken up, so a request - if any of you follow the link and read his Twitter, don't comment to him, or try to correct him. He's not going to listen, and as he's made clear, he's only going to use it to fuel his idea that Aussiecon 4 was not a safe WorldCon.

Further upsettting him helps no-one.

[(Anonymous)]

[GregT] LJ sadly doesn't have an "edit post" option for anonymous commentors but if you have that ability feel free to edit or delete my post above containing his Twitter details.

[dalekboy.livejournal.com]

Don't worry about it. You make some good points and I'd actually be quite surprised if anyone did hassle him.

[(Anonymous)]

[ManicSpider] As (mostly) usual, I'm in agreement with GregT. I have been reigning in my gut response to the comments against the MCs as I didn't wish to inflame the situation, but I would like you to know that you both have my support and that I strongly believe that this has been blown out of all proportion.

On a related note, I told my sister, she laughed and said "Oh no! I laughed! I must be homophobic! Quick, someone go tell my girlfriend!"

[dalekboy.livejournal.com]

LOL

I mean that literally, I really did Laugh Out Loud.