Shaken & Stirred: Just Say No

April 26, 2008

Just Say No

The thing that really strikes me about Open Source Boob Gate* is its echoes with the previous discussions about the SF community's groping problem. What a tin-eared approach to any kind of empowerment, given the history (and ignoring the fact that the whole thing was fraught with idiocy from the get go).

The LAST thing we need in science fiction is more groping. PERIOD.

(Sorry to have been MIA, but there's a lot going on and I didn't even realize this was happening until a day or so ago. And I think that's pretty much all I have to say.)

*Good list of links at the end of this post.

Posted at 12:42 PM in Scientifiction | Permalink

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I think that the group that 'invented' it were not up to date with the groping issues in the larger community. Or at least I really really hope they weren't. (I tend to assume the best about people.)

Posted by:Celia | April 26, 2008 at 01:36 PM

I'm sure it was well-intentioned, but that doesn't make it any less troubling for me. And I really, really don't understand how no one in a decent-sized group of friends who apparently attend SF conventions with some regularity could be completely unaware that groping has been a problem. And if that is true, it's only a reminder that such behavior is often brushed aside.

Not to mention that the person who posted about it has said some pretty offensive things "defending" himself and the "project" -- things which mute any sympathy I might have had.

Posted by:Gwenda | April 26, 2008 at 02:40 PM

What struck me about it was it's enormously high school nature - this is what a bunch of adults think needs to happen in the world to make it a better place?

Just by referring to breasts as "boobs" they revealed themselves to be incredibly immature.

I'm very disappointed by the many people who think it should be defended on any level. It's not that I think this was harrassment for those who willingly participated; I just can't get pass how stupid it is.

A bunch of adults came up with this? I love comics alot and SF a lot but giggling over breasts is not how mature people spend their time. This reflects poorly on Con attendees everywhere because sadly, a lot of folks who have heard about it thinks it is descriptive of comics fans/SFF fans/etc. and don't realize that no - it's just the work of a few fools.

Posted by:Colleen | April 27, 2008 at 03:15 AM

Precisely!

Posted by:Gwenda | April 27, 2008 at 08:31 AM

About

Appendices

Read Read

E. Lockhart: Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, The
You might think the world doesn't need any more boarding school novels, but if you haven't read this one then you're wrong, wrong, wrong. E. Lockhart has surpassed herself with this fable of a girl coming into her own and challenging the boy's club at her prep school -- while falling in love with its members at the same time. Lockhart never simplifies or skirts gender issues and power dynamics, and lets Frankie be realistic instead of a treatise disguised as a character. The sly omniscient narrator tells the story perfectly, and leaves hope that maybe one girl can change the world. More novels as funny and true and perfect as this one, please.
Kathi Appelt: The Underneath
Appelt's first novel is a beautiful, magical fantasy for younger readers that will instantly become a classic. Seriously. I can imagine this book being in classrooms right alongside Charlotte's Web in a hundred years. The writing is poetic in the good way, and there's a lamia. Children are going to absolutely fall in love with Appelt's equally kind and brutal universe, where love conquers most, and it can take millenia to come to your senses.
Jincy Willett: The Writing Class
With her second novel, Willett matches the perfect pitch and execution of her brilliant short stories. Every writer will want to read this novel--very little wincing is involved, but expect a great deal of laughter. C and I found ourselves reading pieces aloud, after howling provoked the "what's so funny?" question. As with any good writing workshop or class, the characters become more appealing as you get to know them, and ultimately what she has pulled off is a satisfying mystery, and a satisfying exploration of humanity. Amy Gallup is a character to remember.
Karen Joy Fowler: Wit's End
A new novel by Karen Fowler really is something to be excited about, unlike many of the writers for whom such praise gets bandied about. (If you're smirking because you think you know something about her work from the title--not the book--The Jane Austen Book Club, please go sit in the corner and read any of her novels. You're welcome.) This is an unmystery-like mystery, concerned not so much with dead bodies--though there are plenty--as with the mysteries of healing and the heart, politics and people. How is it that a writer gets a lens on the present that's as revealing as the one she employs in historical fiction? Now that's a mystery. Highly recommended.
Steve Erickson: Zeroville
Steve Erickson novels are often like dreams, or revelations, or discovered artifacts, or written just for you. Zeroville's no different, although it is perhaps the most readily graspable example of his work to date. The Rosetta Stone is there; the secret decoder ring is a film projector. The dizzying Hollywood confidential stylings will make your inner film geek happy, but the uncovering of a truly mythic cinematic story--since cinema has existed forever--of sacrifice and redemption is even more memorable. See also: this review.
Ursula Dubosarsky: The Red Shoe (Neal Porter Books)
Set in Sydney during WWII, this wonderful novel travels between the view from inside each of three sisters. Dubosarsky perfectly captures the differences that come from being the younger, older, or middle child. Perfectly conjuring the period, and yet creating a completely accessible story, the narrative contrasts chapters focusing on the family with interstitials from the Sydney newspapers of the time, stories of polio, the H-bomb, and a defecting Russian spy (who happens to be in hiding next door). Nothing here is heavy-handed. Everything is perfectly balanced. It's a beautiful, beautiful novel. See my full take here.