Datapanik
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(10/28/07 8:27)
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From Whence My Knowledge Cometh
A few days ago, your humble narrator—whilst perusing the Gorean Public Board—ran across a highly amusing remark pertaining to yours truly.
A board member named Rosemaree posted an item entitled "To catch a predator." The entry basically summarized Dateline’s program of the same name which lures suspected pedophiles into traps by having adults pose as underage children. Arrangements are made for the pedophile to meet with the kid, usually at the child’s supposed house, and the trap is sprung. Not only are charges lodged against the pedophile, but his face is broadcast to an audience of millions.
Rosemaree’s point was to warn online Goreans of the potential danger their declared lifestyles may produce—her argument being that many underage children play in Gorean chat rooms, usually lying about his/her age. She takes exception with the predilection self-proclaimed Goreans to raise their children with values drawn from the John Norman novels—including the ever present misogyny of this so-called philosophy. Rosemaree assures Goreans that it’s probably just a matter of time before they’re found out by Child Protective Services.
As might be expected, the usual suspects piled onto Rosemaree—TiberiusAr, SkyRich, Kimveri, and numerous others. The responses to her allegations were invariably snide and insulting, not an unusual form of address for Gorean lifestylers toward those who question their lifestyles. As a matter of course, the Gorean Public Board insists that all members must address the post and not the person who posted—in essence, there are to be no ad hominem attacks. However, that rule quickly goes by the wayside when anyone not cleaving unto the Gorean way surfaces. Then one finds nothing but ad hominem attacks. And such was the response to Rosemaree.
For me personally, the funniest entry came from the redoubtable Pantheus, owner of the GPB, who wrote the following:
We have to ignore Rosemaree .. . she knows not of what she speaks ....
She was trained in the Julian Fox / SiliverFox [sic] school of Gorean DIS-information.
At one time, Julian Fox was a pseudonym I used online, and silverfox@antisocial.com was my e-mail address. Another alter ego was Nathaniel Fox, and when the #silk&steel crowd finally found me out, it was under one of these names. Neither is my real name, nor even close—either in terms of inheritance or heritage. By the time my mask was ripped away, I’d been presenting myself as a Gorean master, and a former Air Force officer. Such misrepresentations allowed me access to the most hallowed recesses of #silk&steel.
Prior to that—on such programs as the now-defunct PowWow, dalnet, austnet, and bondage.com, ICQ, and a multitude of other clients—I’d variously represented myself as a Gorean kajira, a Gorean free woman, a panthergirl, and a full-blown Gorean master. Each persona allowed me to investigate different aspects of the Gorean experience, and to gain a fuller understanding of how Gorean interaction changes with one’s declared status. This experiment ran from 1996 to 2003. Afterwards, I avoided most direct interactions with the Gorean lifestyle crowd, except for a very short-lived involvement with the now-defunct Gorean Fellowship forum. The time period from 2003 until the present has been largely consumed with re-reading the books (that is to say, all 26) and researching Websites.
Therefore, Pantheus’ claim is nothing but a farrago of puerilities. I arguably know as much about the so-called Gorean lifestyle as any Gorean. I’ve read 24 of the books cover-to-cover, made copious notes, and viewed from the perspective of my training in literary criticism. That I reject the Gorean worldview is most assuredly not a function of any ignorance; quite the contrary, it arises from a far-ranging body of direct knowledge. I’m also trained in philosophy (specifically logic), and view any alleged philosophy extended by John Norman as singularly devoid of logic or any meaningful philosophical content.
With regard to this tin-pot philosophy, Goreans will endlessly harp on the notion that it has nothing to do with "slavery," but is rather a mode of thought that encourages honor, integrity, and commitment to principles. In fact, these elements (or mandates, in many cases) are nearly ubiquitous in other, more respectable philosophies. It is, for example, the cornerstone of secular humanist thought (my own preference). One finds it articulated in Islamic teachings, and in the Judeo-Christian scriptures. The very foundation of existentialism rests upon these alleged Gorean principles. The list goes on, almost ad infinitum
This being the case, the Gorean philosophy is no different from most others, except in its insistence upon female subjugation. Said another way, the only condition that separates Gorean thought from any other school of thought is that of "slavery." Therefore slavery—within the context of always-dominant men vs. always-submissive women—comprises the one singular instance of departure from other philosophies. Therefore, any assertion that the Gorean lifestyle is "not about slavery" falls entirely flat. For over 11 years, I’ve heard every disingenuous argument that can be advanced by Gorean apologists, and found each utterly devoid of meaningful content.
Pantheus, by claiming the Rosemaree "knows not of what she speaks," followed by a remark as to her training in the "Julian Fox / SiliverFox [sic] school of Gorean DIS-information," is completely fatuous. I do not claim to know more about the Gorean philosophy than Pantheus; I do, however, claim to know at least as much. And, naturally, this is an ad hominem attack upon both Rosemaree and myself, despite Pantheus’ very own admonition against such behavior. In addition to being gravely wrong about male and female dynamics, Goreans are also capable of gross hypocrisy. So much for honor and integrity—though one obviously cannot question the Gorean’s commitment. A commitment, that is, to ignorance and denial.
The bottom line is this: Much of Gorean thought, vis à vis the issue of female subjugation, is dangerously reminiscent of such fundamentalist totalitarianism as Wahhabism, the Taliban, and Salafism. It is no secret that these sects or presumed governments routinely subjugate the females under their aegis, and virtually reduce them to the status of slavery. Women under these retrograde influences cannot seek higher education, appear in public unaccompanied by a male relative, or adopt western style clothing. They are hidden behind veils and burqas, not unlike the free women depicted in John Norman’s narratives. One thing that does not happen in fundamentalist Islam, but often occurs in the stories of Gor, is the in-fact reduction of women to chattel slavery. In this sense, Goreanism is a more egregious worldview than that of the worst fundamentalist régime.
At the moment, the United States is thought to be at war with this brand of what’s called Islamofascism. Whether one takes seriously al-Qaeda’s complaints of western disrespect for sacred sites, or one stands by the US right or wrong, Islamofascism is seen as a threat to the freedoms the western world is thought to enjoy—particularly the freedom typically afforded women. (Whether or not these freedoms actually exist is fodder for another essay.) In fact, Islamofascists point to women’s liberation as a particular offense, in much the same way I’ve seen Goreans on the GPB bemoan a woman’s right to vote, to serve in military hotspots, and to hold a supervisory position. That Goreans idealize the bankrupt philosophy contained within the Gorean chronicles is a testament to their innate hostility to the modern world. This is not unlike the Muslim extremist against whom we are presently at war.
My love for you is eternal, my wife.
Thank you for your partnership.
"The only characteristic freaks share is our knowledge that we don't fit in. Anywhere. It is for you, freaks—my loves—I am writing, and it is about you." |
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