Penny Arcade says, "Rape culture is hilarious!"
Has anyone else been following the Penny Arcade Dickwolf Controversy (as I've taken to calling it)? The whole thing started with this comic, posted in August, which many readers took offense to due to an unfunny rape joke. The argument was revived with new fervor recently, and it's still ongoing. Personally, I'm finding it really difficult to enjoy the comic lately, because of the way this whole thing has been handled.

A better and more thorough write-up than I could ever hope to put together has been posted here.

Edit: Via seiberwing: An interesting protest movement has arisen on Tumblr.
Edit again: A couple of comments have indicated that the Tumblr linked in the above post has malware, so tread lightly.

Edit 3: Via lady7jane: This isn't the first time that Mike has exhibited douchebaggy behavior. "I don't know, Love Systems doesn't seem so bad to me."

Edit 4: Via airawyn and alexa: Jerry responds.

Edit 5: Via number13baby, Mike calls for the discussion to end.

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	ianthefira 2011-02-02 02:05 am UTC (link)
	I read Penny Arcade for over a decade. Not any more. (Reply to this)(Thread)

	quantumreality 2011-02-02 04:46 am UTC (link)
	Me too. Damn, but they managed to scrape so far down past the bottom of the barrel they're in the Earth's core by now. (Reply to this)(Parent)

alexa
2011-02-02 04:24 pm UTC (link)

Yup. I've been reading Penny Arcade since I was in middle school (I'm almost 23). I bonded with my first boyfriend over PA strips. I linked to it from my web site for a long time. I thought their charity work was great, and that it's helped to begin dispelling the stereotype of gamers (/geeks in general) as insensitive, clueless basement-dwellers.

And while I know this issue is much bigger than my own baby-soft feelings, I'm hurt that PA (and Mike in particular) went so out of their way to insult and belittle fans who didn't immediately rally behind them and their right to make jokes involving rape (as long as they were "funny") and dismiss all criticism.

I know they and their supporters want to believe that the "vocal minority" in question is a brood of angry feminazis who came out of nowhere just to ruin their fun, but a lot of them are long-time fans and supporters--who genuinely wanted to believe that Mike and Jerry were good people--and who still feel there is absolutely no excuse for the way this situation has been handled.

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	ianthefira 2011-02-02 06:30 pm UTC (link)
	Yeah, same deal. It's the fact that they're digging themselves into a hole here, and just being damn awful in treating and labeling the people who they offended that's officially turned me away. I read that chronology and was appalled. (Reply to this)(Parent)

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