RE: [HOE] Gamers Beware! A word of warning!!!

["Clint Black" <cblack@ohtinc.com>]

>>The difference here though is that I think it is possible White Wolf is
>>trying to instigate the situation.  Just look at their Father Ramos site.
>>I found it offensive to Christians
>
>Y'know, I don't really get this sentiment.  Honestly, I don't understand it
>(I'm not trying to cause an argument here.  Picture me scratching my head
in
>curiosity.).
>
>It seems pretty obvious, to me anyway, that the White Wolf Father Ramos
site
>is intended as a parody of Jack Chick's infamous tracts, which are
Christian
>only in the loosest sense of the word.
>
>So what's offensive about it?  It's a parody of an offensive fringe
lunatic.
>I'm not sure I'm getting where the snag is.

Understandable and not a problem.  First off, did you go through the whole
site or just the "sermon" and the tract?  I think if they had just done that
it might not be so bad, but look at some of the other links.  The day care
where they say the children are taught the dangers of homosexuals, Jews,
Catholics, gaming, etc.  A lot of churches/religious organizations (like the
YMCA) run daycares and take care of children outside their own particular
faith.  I don't think they'll take too kindly to the idea that they
indoctrinate children to their beliefs.

I think the one that really got me was the section on dealing with
bereavement counseling.  It had absolutely nothing to do with a "parody" of
Jack Chick or his attacks on gaming.  Maybe it's me, but I think it's
offensive to mock someone's faith as it relates to the death of a loved one.

Like I said, if they had stuck to just satirizing the attacks on gaming, I
would probably be cool with that.  Actually, if they had done a true parody
instead of a satire, it wouldn't be such a problem.  They made their site
look *too much* like a real Christian church with bereavement counseling,
daycares, and nursing homes.  It makes it look as if the church around the
corner is involved in hatemongering.  And while we can look at it and see a
Jack Chick satire, there are very few people outside the gaming community
who know who Jack Chick is.  To them, I think it will look like an attack on
Christianity in general.


>As for the game itself, it's been hinted at somewhat strongly that there
>were Demons in the WoD for some time now, particularly in Hunter.  I don't
>imagine White Wolf to have intentionally developed a game about Demons
>simply as a publicity stunt any more than I think that Steve Jackson Games
>developed a version of In Nomine for cheap thrills.

I tried to make this clear in my first post but obviously wasn't successful.
I don't think the *game* was designed as a publicity stunt; I think someone
in *marketing* may have come up with the idea after the game was already in
the works.  Like I said, I hope I'm wrong, but I can't help but be reminded,
"there's no such thing as bad publicity."

Or maybe I'm just in a cynical mood today.  :)


Clint Black

"You smell that? Do you smell that? ...Ghost Rock, son. Nothing else in the
world smells like that. I love the smell of ghost rock in the morning. You
know, one time we had a hill bombed, for twelve hours. When it was all over
I walked up. We didn't find one of 'em, not one stinkin' Yank body. The
smell, you know that sulphurous smell, the whole hill. Smelled like...
victory. Someday this war's gonna end..."