OK, my regular pre-writing Twitter session is over now. I’m trying to cut it down to two hours now lol. Speaking of Twitter, if you’ve been on there recently, you’ve probably heard about a petition that developer Mark Kern started up. It takes aim at Kotaku and Polygon over their role in all this negative press we’ve seen recently, with SVU, Nightline, the media offensive last fall, etc. Some people on our side say the petition is too weak, and that it’s a setup for a peace deal that we shouldn’t help facilitate. I understand those concerns, and it’s one reason I haven’t taken a position on signing it. But examine the discord it’s causing among the journo class before you get too upset about it.

Here’s the founder and current publisher of VG247,  Patrick Garratt. Regardless of what you think about the petition (now updated)…just take a look at how this guy comes unhinged at the mere suggestion that we put any heat on Polygon, Kotaku, and their ilk:

So what if a TV show says some gamers are nutters? It’s true, and it isn’t Kotaku and Polygon’s doing. Some “gamers,” based on the events of the past year, really are dangerous, violent, sexist idiots operating on the wrong side of the law. They belong in jail. That’s a fact. I can easily see a future in which some of the morons who’ve found a cosy home within Gamergate actually kill someone, and, hopefully, get locked away for life. The events of 2014 in relation to the feminist gamer movement, “Gamergate,” and threats made towards certain individuals, are not the fault of the fan-facing video games press. To suggest so is truly bizarre. It’s like calling the BBC responsible for the failure of Unkrainian [sic] antagonists to observe a ceasefire.Selection_999(315)

So, not only is this creep against the petition, he also seems to think that the SVU episode was totally fair. He says he can “easily see a future” like that? Well, in the future I see, hacks like him are out of work and on the unemployment line. The whole article is just dripping with contempt…as if this scumbag has actually ever done anything. At least Kern is making a move. Fuckers like Garratt are content with seeing our pastime slimed and possibly damaged forever. I see where Nathon Grayson gets his inspiration from now. This thug even issues a veiled threat at the end of the column:

As was made blatantly obvious by Gamergate, the last thing the gaming community needs at the moment is more ill-informed bigots getting angry on the internet. Think before you sign. It may be very difficult to erase the ink.

“Don’t mess up and express your beliefs. I’d hate to see your career ruined.” How is there any other possible way to read that shit? VG247 ought to be ashamed of themselves for running this trash. I’ll let the readers decide for themselves whether or not to back the Kern petition, but I’m glad it’s happening. When the other side is getting exposed this badly, it’s always a good thing.