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TunaSpleen posted:Is there any reason why some fursuits have flat-out terrible color schemes? The typical grey and white husky dog is okay, or even a purple fox with a white tummy and paws isn't burning my retinas, but who the hell sinks a small fortune into a cappuccino-brown-and-lime-green cat and thinks "Yes, this is good, this is how I want the world to see me"? It makes me suspect that there's a higher rate of colorblindness in the furry population, except many of them are commissioning someone else to do it. Some of that's a holdover from raver culture and some of it's a desire to stand out and say "look at me" so they don't blend in with the other 30 or so cats in line. As for the giant body parts, hyper is still a thing, although not as big as it used to be. That said, I don't know what the hell the deal is with that giant tail. Maybe the floor really needed a sweeping or something.
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Jul 16, 2015 02:30
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TunaSpleen posted:Is there any reason why some fursuits have flat-out terrible color schemes? They're called "sparkledogs," and it's generally assumed that they're trying to be *unique snowflakes.* If some colours are good, then ALL of the colours must be BETTER! Shadow Catboy posted:I believe they're called confurvatives. Of course they are. You'll also find libertarians, SJWs, general conservatives, fundamentalist Christians, and dogmatic (ha) anti-sex crusaders, all under the same roof. It works out when people know when to shut up or let bygones be bygones, and blows up when people refuse to let their pet issue (ha) go un-addressed or un-ranted-about. In my dealings with geeks in general (including furries), I've found that politics or religion can become especially loopy or volatile when combined with social isolation and/or autism spectrum disorder (especially both). Re: sexual orientation, there's this running gag that someone will say, "I am straight, but my fursona is bi." Then, a while later, they'll say, "I am bisexual, but my fursona is gay." Then, some time later, they'll come out as gay themselves  .Re: gender identity, I've talked to people who basically used their fursona to dip their toe in the water and experience what it was like to present as their desired gender (albeit as a cartoon animal). They've told me that being able to do that, and then getting positive or neutral feedback for it helped them to come to terms with their identity and think about where they wanted to go from there. The research on how furries construct their sense of self and identity is just plain interesting. Tartarus Sauce fucked around with this message at 05:18 on Jul 16, 2015 |
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Jul 16, 2015 02:30
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Cockmaster posted:With this sort of thing, it's hard to tell if someone here is sincerely concerned for the kids' safety, or if they just think that blindly hurling accusations of pedophilia and bestiality is still Fixed. If we discuss furries and sexuality on every single page of this thread, then maybe we could talk about how this is not a good idea for kids. And yeah Michael Jackson was just a child at heart.
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Jul 16, 2015 08:38
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Vic posted:Fixed. What's "this" that isn't a good idea? There are pedophiles in all walks of life. I'd rather my kid spent time in the proximity of a pedophile in a giant attention drawing mascot costume, in public, while with me, than with a pedophile who was their teacher, scout master, family member or priest, alone, in private. That's the point vic, even if some of these fursuit wearers are attracted to kids, they are not an inherent danger to kids in those situations because they are not in a position of trust and they are in a large crowd in a public place. If we're talking about older kids, teens who are begnning to go out alone, make their own friends outside home/school and discovering their own sexuality, then that's a different thing, and something the OP has already gone into at some length. Yes in those situations being around a bunch of old perverts with poor boundaries in a sexually charged environment could lead to some bad decisions and unhealthy pressures. But your obsession with the idea of a man dressed as a purple wolf snatching toddlers is just daft.
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Jul 16, 2015 09:28
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Fatkraken posted:That's the point vic, even if some of these fursuit wearers are attracted to kids, they are not an inherent danger to kids in those situations because they are not in a position of trust and they are in a large crowd in a public place. I've seen it fair too often when not very socially adjusted people get too comfortable in whatever fandom they're in and start perceiving societal norms as being "limited" and project their own wishes into daily lifestyles, usually with some defense that "well it's not a real person" or "I'm not running off with them in a van". The worst cases are when they use their standing within their fan group to go ahead and commit illegal acts, and the fandom will actively protect them. One instance was of a person who fancied themselves a cosplay photographer. The rumors became true when it emerged that several years ago he'd groomed and slept with an underaged girl who pressed charges. He showed up to court dressed up as Tony Stark and pleaded that he not be barred from interstate travel as cosplay was his life. Sadly his guilty plea meant he was given a suspended sentence of a four year prison stint, set out to remain on a good behavior bond. I understand the community had a small headache to deal with as many were aware of his actions but didn't really want to believe them. He's been blacklisted from every major convention.
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Jul 16, 2015 10:20
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WebDog posted:I disagree there is a huge amount of trust put on the idea that someone who hidden in a costume should behave appropriately around a kid, especially when in something a kid would consider interesting to approach. Was this in Australia?
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Jul 16, 2015 10:50
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Yes it was.
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Jul 16, 2015 11:10
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Fatkraken posted:But your obsession with the idea of a man dressed as a purple wolf snatching toddlers is just daft. The strawman aside, I'm not sure how you can just handwave the whole situation as being alright. Maybe some parents sat down their 5yo kids and explained to them what a fetish is, or told them who these people really are in general, but I doubt it. Introducing kids to the concept of furries as an harmless fun activity seems like a terrible idea. Here we have the OP who's an adult telling everyone how damaging this was to his life, but let's take the kids and introduce them to these (predominantly) socially stunted young male adults in costumes and their totally awesome lifestyle. This reluctance to be critical of anyone's lifestyle choices is exactly the unhealthy mindset furries seem to have adopted. LGBT community be damned, furries now wave the pride flags with a wolf on it. Next up, grown men in diapers parade float.
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Jul 16, 2015 11:56
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Sure, are you also concerned about theme park mascots? Furries in public are basically just mascots. No one's taking kids to drug fueled furry sex raves. Also, calling out a straw man then using a slippery slope argument.
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Jul 16, 2015 12:26
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Megabound posted:Sure, are you also concerned about theme park mascots? Furries in public are basically just mascots. No one's taking kids to drug fueled furry sex raves.  The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask / Tell > Ask me about being a bitter, angry former theme park mascot. EDIT: In case of edits 
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Jul 16, 2015 12:52
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There was that amusing Disney case where a performer was accused of touching a kid in a Pooh costume - which was then worn in court as evidence to show that it was physically impossible for him to bend his arms.
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Jul 16, 2015 13:07
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Vic posted:
Why would he edit that, you weirdo?
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Jul 16, 2015 13:22
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Statistically speaking, children are much more likely to be exploited or abused by an adult they know, like a coach, pastor, neighbor, parent, or other relative. People don't like to think about this, so they project their fears onto "strangers." (Interestingly, I've noticed that Europeans are generally much less worried about pedophiles than Americans are. Wonder why that is?) What you really need to worry about is adults creeping on teenagers, because that definitely happens, both online and offline, and I think it's a problem that sometimes goes overlooked. It's not just about creeps within a given fandom or geek community, either, as outsiders will also approach teenagers when they're in fursuit or cosplay. At a convention, a friend of mine had to confront a non-attendee who was aggressively flirting with a young fursuiter in a hotel elevator, and fortunately, it just took the magic words of "She's fourteen, bro," to get the guy to flee the elevator. Funny aside: There are some teenage and twenty-something fursuiters are very vocal about HATING children, and will bitch about youngsters always "bugging" them when they're in suit. Huh, I wonder why? WebDog posted:There was that amusing Disney case where a performer was accused of touching a kid in a Pooh costume - which was then worn in court as evidence to show that it was physically impossible for him to bend his arms. Well, and that's the thing--you're often more of a threat to fursuiters than they are to you, because of their limited vision, hearing, movement, and proprioception, and their limited ability to grasp and hold objects in their hands. Of course, people become more unwieldy, disoriented, and clumsy as they become hot, sweaty, and tired. If you want to get away with something really sneaky and nefarious, a fursuit generally isn't your best bet. I've had to help people up inclines and sidewalk curbs, and I've seen suiters walk right into lightpoles and sliding glass doors, and trip over steps, dogs, and little kids. (This is why handlers are essential.) A bank heist is not in the cards here. Also important to keep in mind: the mean age of the furry fandom is 20. This means that there are a lot of furries who are under the age of 18. So, it's important to remember that when you're talking about "those furries," whatever statement you're making is also including, say, 14-year-old girls who go to cons with their mom. (In the past couple of years, I've begun to see tons of families and lots of kid-parent duos at major furry conventions.) Tartarus Sauce fucked around with this message at 14:12 on Jul 16, 2015 |
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Jul 16, 2015 14:01
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Oh for Christ's sake, not again.. I'm not going to engage with the paedo stuff, as I've typed more than enough about it over the past month. However, Webdog, your comments about he community protecting wrongdoers does have merit- for example, the bestiality poo poo at the upper levels of the fandom that is an open secret at best.
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Jul 16, 2015 14:41
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In addition to the bestiality and alleged kid-diddling, how prevalent are Bad Dragon products at these conventions? Have you ever seen a horse-dragon-owl-fairy furman with with the matching Bad Dragon phallus hanging out of his zipper? Additionally, are there people openly selling obvious fetish gear/yiffing aids?
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Jul 16, 2015 15:49
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Lord Girlyman posted:In addition to the bestiality and alleged kid-diddling, how prevalent are Bad Dragon products at these conventions? Have you ever seen a horse-dragon-owl-fairy furman with with the matching Bad Dragon phallus hanging out of his zipper? Fetish gear is usually on the list of things that will get security at a con to yell at you these days, but there was a time where people would do just that. Usually on their ugly-looking huge-boobed fursuit that had Bratz eyes and giant pouty lips. There is usually a Bad Dragon booth smack dab either in the corner or in the center of the dealer's den, and it's usually behind a partition or a set of curtains where they check your badge to see if you've got a minor sticker before they let you in. Surprisingly responsible, but it's still all over the goddamn place more or less.
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Jul 16, 2015 15:55
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What's the single most exotic piece of hardware you have seen sold at one of those booths? And while we're at it: what is the most exotic piece of hardware you've seen being toted around by a furman? How common is it to see a fine young fellow walking around with a realdoll/inflatable dressed up like his 12 year old anime waifu?
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Jul 16, 2015 16:13
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Lord Girlyman posted:What's the single most exotic piece of hardware you have seen sold at one of those booths? And while we're at it: what is the most exotic piece of hardware you've seen being toted around by a furman? A dildo that had a port for an air pump. The most exotic thing I've seen someone toting around openly was just a big dildo, really. I didn't look too hard, too busy with booze and video games. Not really, but I did see someone being Talked To Sternly because he was walking around with a blowup doll shaped like one of the my little ponies.
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Jul 16, 2015 17:34
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Vic posted:The strawman aside, I'm not sure how you can just handwave the whole situation as being alright. You seem extremely angry about dorks in dog suits
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Jul 16, 2015 18:09
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If you like to do sex things, you probably are a pedophile and want to gently caress a dog
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Jul 16, 2015 18:23
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I'm pretty sure that most fursuits/fursonas are recognizable enough that if a suiter went and diddled a kid the person's real identity would be revealed immediately. And then it's straight to the olde sex offender registry, where they belong. As for the giant tails, I knew a guy who had a fox tail that was 6 feet long. He would wear it to outings and no matter how diligent he was about keeping it up off the ground, that poo poo was nasty. Machine washable but thanks to all the stuffing it took forever to dry, and had a really lovely musty smell. Speaking of smells, let's talk about musk. It's exactly what it sounds like. There's a creepy old dude named Bungie Skunk who used to carry a vial of skunk musk with him to cons. When he saw someone he liked, he would put a bit on his hands and give them a hug or a pat on the back. He got off on "marking" people. I don't know if he still does it. He got in major poo poo at a convention a few years ago for doing it and almost got himself banned. Now he runs a massage chair in the dealers den. Because that's a great idea.
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Jul 16, 2015 18:30
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So you've answered this a little but is there a specific event that made you decide you didn't want to be part of the fandom any more? And do you actively regret becoming a part of it? It sort of sounds like without being a furry you didn't have a social life - and this brought you out of your shell. When I read your OP it really sounds like for the most part it's been good for you rather than bad!
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Jul 16, 2015 18:38
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Control Volume posted:You seem extremely angry about dorks in dog suits Hm... I agree. But who is your favourite pony?
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Jul 16, 2015 19:36
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Paladinus posted:Hm... I agree. But who is your favourite pony? all of them
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Jul 16, 2015 19:59
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Please do not talk about my little pony or its fans though, Vic is already stressed enough about pedophiles
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Jul 16, 2015 20:01
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bathroomrage posted:A dildo that had a port for an air pump. That port was likely for a pressurized imitation (or real) semen spray. Did that coincide with that massive bull semen theft? Also, for any of you fine furmen, since your community seems to be infested with various kinds of horrible right-wing folks, is there a sizable subgroup of Christian furries? There seems to be a whole poo poo ton of christian-themed furry art floating around the worst parts of the internet. Finally, would anybody like to take a crack at the perception that Sonic the Hedgehog is some kind of ungodly gateway drug to the furry lifestyle.
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Jul 16, 2015 22:49
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That's like calling meth a gateway drug
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Jul 16, 2015 22:53
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ShadowCatboy posted:
I knew a kid who was a confurvative during my year of being pre-med. There were a lot of conservatives in my health sciences colleges, and his major reasoning was that he was Catholic and hated abortion. I was apparently the first person he was comfortable "coming out" to. He was really into symphonic music, and last I heard he had a boyfriend who was also into classical music. So they're not all bad.
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Jul 17, 2015 03:25
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constantinople posted:I knew a kid who was a confurvative during my year of being pre-med. There were a lot of conservatives in my health sciences colleges, and his major reasoning was that he was Catholic and hated abortion. I was apparently the first person he was comfortable "coming out" to. He was really into symphonic music, and last I heard he had a boyfriend who was also into classical music. So they're not all bad. I don't understand this logic at all. You realise that lots of bad people like classical music, right?
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Jul 17, 2015 08:44
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Control Volume posted:Please do not talk about my little pony or its fans though, Vic is already stressed enough about pedophiles Finally someone who understands me!
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Jul 17, 2015 12:07
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constantinople posted:I knew a kid who was a confurvative during my year of being pre-med. There were a lot of conservatives in my health sciences colleges, and his major reasoning was that he was Catholic and hated abortion. I was apparently the first person he was comfortable "coming out" to. He was really into symphonic music, and last I heard he had a boyfriend who was also into classical music. So they're not all bad. Ah yes, because all classical music is pure and good and no classical musician was ever liked by bad people. Lord Girlyman posted:That port was likely for a pressurized imitation (or real) semen spray. Did that coincide with that massive bull semen theft? I asked, it was for an air pump. I don't know for sure, I've never bothered to inspect a whale-dick-shaped dildo in detail. There IS a subgroup of Christian furries, and it's really just as funny as the non-furry Christian insanity on the internet. More mascot eyes, more or less. As far as Sonic being some awful gateway drug, well, it's a convergence of 'funny animals', extreme amounts of anime and video games that makes it as potent as it is, and it is oh-so-potent from the trends I've seen.
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Jul 17, 2015 13:32
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Lord Girlyman posted:Also, for any of you fine furmen, since your community seems to be infested with various kinds of horrible right-wing folks, is there a sizable subgroup of Christian furries? There seems to be a whole poo poo ton of christian-themed furry art floating around the worst parts of the internet. I actually looked some of this stuff up out of boredom and morbid curiosity. Some of the more insane Christian furries have been featured on SA as ALOD, like Molatar Seth Pyrargent, the dragon-werewolf-ranger hybrid person-thing. His old website was a pretty nice goldmine of hilarity. "This site is dedicated to spreading the Gospel in the werewolf and furry communities. It is my hope that many trans-species people will accept Jesus as their Savior through this ministry." Another fine gent is Crusader Cat, some dude who admitted to performing bestiality when he was a teenager and "it wasn't easy because they would claw... they weren't declawed yet." It's basically like when really dysfunctional people can't deal with their own lives, so they dive into religion to escape the inanity. Except they decided to go all Furry too. I'm sure there are some well-adjusted Christian furries, but obviously those don't make the rounds since they're not crazy enough to air out their crazy like that. ShadowCatboy fucked around with this message at 13:46 on Jul 17, 2015 |
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Jul 17, 2015 13:40
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constantinople posted:I knew a kid who was a confurvative during my year of being pre-med. There were a lot of conservatives in my health sciences colleges, and his major reasoning was that he was Catholic and hated abortion. I was apparently the first person he was comfortable "coming out" to. He was really into symphonic music, and last I heard he had a boyfriend who was also into classical music. So they're not all bad. I'd hope once he was out he stopped the anti-abortion Schick, otherwise he's still vast majority bad.
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Jul 17, 2015 14:21
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Lord Girlyman posted:Finally, would anybody like to take a crack at the perception that Sonic the Hedgehog is some kind of ungodly gateway drug to the furry lifestyle. Disclaimer: This is pure speculation. I'd say it's something to do with the coincidence of the popularity of the frachise and the average age of furries. I imagine that Sonic would have been the most popular cartoony animal mascot character when many furries were growing up. Also, autistic people seem to really love Sonic because of the simplicity of the story/emotions and the big cartoony faces (kind of like Thomas the Tank Engine). Not saying all furries are on the spectrum, but there must be some kind of crossover
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Jul 17, 2015 14:26
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1000 Brown M and Ms posted:Not saying all furries are on the spectrum, but there must be some kind of crossover In fairness, there does seem to be a disturbing lack of self-awareness in the furry community.
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Jul 17, 2015 19:42
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ShadowCatboy posted:It's basically like when really dysfunctional people can't deal with their own lives, so they dive into religion to escape the inanity. Except they decided to go all Furry too. I'm sure there are some well-adjusted Christian furries, but obviously those don't make the rounds since they're not crazy enough to air out their crazy like that. The squeaky wheel gets the grease, as they say. I can think of a handful of Christian furries off the top of my head who've all struck me as very nice, low-key, genuinely-decent human beings--but, because they're low-key and nice, they often get less attention than the people who are balls-to-the-wall insane. I'd say a lot of people in the world are just looking for some place to belong, and want to feel like they're seen, valued, understood, and appreciated. The furry fandom is a very open and tolerant place (for good as well as for ill), and people are often very welcoming, huggy, cheery, and effusively nice (often just superficially, and sometimes truly and earnestly). For people who haven't felt that sense of support, validation, and warmth before, attending a fur con or gathering can feel like the rain after the long drought. So, the furry community can be wonderfully healing and validating for people, and it can also be dangerously enabling and hugboxy, depending on how people use it, and who they choose to socialize with. There's also the drama-laden side of the fandom, which mostly consists of people being as snarky, gossipy, defensive, and snippy on the Internet as they are sweet and nice in person. 1000 Brown M and Ms posted:Also, autistic people seem to really love Sonic because of the simplicity of the story/emotions and the big cartoony faces (kind of like Thomas the Tank Engine). Not saying all furries are on the spectrum, but there must be some kind of crossover That makes sense. From the IARP research: "Perhaps most interesting, however, was the prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder (in particular, Asperger’s Syndrome, or high-functioning autism) within the furry fandom. Approximately 4% of participants indicated that they had been diagnosed of Asperger’s Syndrome. Given that estimates of the prevalence rate of Asperger’s Syndrome in the general population differ immensely, it is difficult to know exactly how much more prevalent this condition is in the furry fandom than the general population. However, the most conservative estimates suggest that, based on the obtained data, furries are at least 2.25 times more likely to have Asperger’s Syndrome than the general population, even after controlling for different sex ratios in the furry fandom. Additionally, there was a small, but significant positive relationship between the extent to which participants identified as being furry and having Asperger’s Syndrome (B = .083, p = .023)." Furries who become particularly fixated on Sonic, Pokemon (especially Pikachu) and, to a lesser extent, Digimon do tend to ping my personal Asper-dar a bit more strongly. I'm also personally leery of people who seem to have a particular fixation on Sonic or Pikachu, because something about those two characters in particular seems to attract the crazy. (Natch, I'm sure there are plenty of non-crazy people who like Sonic or Pikachu, too, and aren't totally obsessed with them.) quote:Also, the long-awaited Furry Force Part III is finally up. Poor Victor Vivisector. You can't help but feel for the guy. The fursona of a guy I know is one of the background characters, too. Ha! Tartarus Sauce fucked around with this message at 20:08 on Jul 17, 2015 |
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Jul 17, 2015 19:48
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Lord Girlyman posted:In fairness, there does seem to be a disturbing lack of self-awareness in the furry community. Hey guys, I just noticed. We're dressed up like cartoon animals 
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Jul 17, 2015 19:53
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Also, the long-awaited Furry Force Part III is finally up.
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Jul 17, 2015 19:53
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http://www.vice.com/read/ten-years-ago-mr-hands-got-hosed-to-death-by-a-horse-716
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Jul 18, 2015 05:56
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Dienes posted:I'd hope once he was out he stopped the anti-abortion Schick, otherwise he's still vast majority bad. Since I stopped talking to him after a year, I don't know if he ever gave up on that. A lot of people in that school were conservatives, and these are the people whose fields of study will eventually lead them to handing out birth control/morning after pills and deciding whether a transgender patient needs treatment for their illnesses first or a trip to psychiatry. So that much should leave everyone a little cold. I don't know whether him discovering that he was bisexual changed some of his more conservative opinions, but I can hope it did. He was just pretty religious, but was a nice if very shy person and had pretty intellectual tastes. Not that the latter means anything, as other people have pointed out.
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Jul 18, 2015 19:11
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