Topic: GOP of Maine attacks Democratic Senate Candidate for playing World of Warcraft

[Ratty]

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2012/10/candidate-for-maine-state-senate-attacked-for-warcraft-character/
Someone didn't get the memo that video games are mainstream and most people find the violence in them cathartic. WoW indeed lol.

[uzo]

I'd be more concerned with how dumb she sounds in those posts, than with the fact that she plays WoW.

[Ratty]

Sounds like a fairly normal down-to-earth person/gamer to me in the posts. But as a politician I suppose she should have foreseen this, letting your hair down in any public forum is a mistake in that profession.

[uzo]

I'm not sure down-to-earth is really the description I would use for someone who says 'I'm lazy' and 'I wish I was leveling my orc all day instead of working right now' and 'I love killing virtually, no prison time!'. It honestly sounds like she blows off work, and spends her days at work on facebook and forums.

None of these qualities make me want to vote for her (if she was running in my state).

[Ratty]

I'm not sure down-to-earth is really the description I would use for someone who says 'I'm lazy' and 'I wish I was leveling my orc all day instead of working right now' and 'I love killing virtually, no prison time!'. It honestly sounds like she blows off work, and spends her days at work on facebook and forums.

None of these qualities make me want to vote for her (if she was running in my state).

Sounds like a regular WoW player to me, but that's why I've never found MMOs appealing. They are an addiction after all. I'd say it's a giant leap to assume she blows off work just based on those comments. The people I've known who blow off work and post about it usually post about the things they're actually doing when they're supposed to be working, not what they wish they were doing. Stuff like "Wow just got a great deal on some nice skirts at at Goody's! Can't decide on fish or Mexican for lunch." - on a Tuesday at 10AM while they're on the clock miles away. And like I said the "I love killing virtually" comment is echoed by the vast majority of gamers, we and millions of people like us have found virtual violence cathartic to one degree or another, doesn't mean we're bad at our jobs.

[Lelygax]

That only shows to us another chapter of the ignorance from politicians. They bash games while bandits are free on the streets.

[Inccubus]

I'm not sure down-to-earth is really the description I would use for someone who says 'I'm lazy' and 'I wish I was leveling my orc all day instead of working right now' and 'I love killing virtually, no prison time!'. It honestly sounds like she blows off work, and spends her days at work on facebook and forums.

None of these qualities make me want to vote for her (if she was running in my state).

No offense, but it sounds more like you're buying into the propaganda. Everyone that has ever posted anything on an internet forum for a significant amount of time has posted something stupid or regretful at one point or another. You can't judge someone's character based on a carefully selected set of posts. Doing this is no more meaningful than trying to use statistics. And worse, it's shameful and pathetic of the Republican Party of Maine to stoop to such a childish and irrelevant attack.

[Gunlord]

I'm with Uzo on this. Sure, "most people" play games, but most people aren't running for public office, either. Serving the populace of an entire state is an immensely time-consuming job--I don't play WoW, but I do play Dark Souls a lot, and I certainly wouldn't have enough time to do so if I was in public office. And yes, most people say stupid stuff online, but again, most people don't run for public office. To use myself as an example again, would you vote for someone who said "prunyuu~" all the time and thought he was a cat? XD

[Ratty]

I'm with Uzo on this. Sure, "most people" play games, but most people aren't running for public office, either. Serving the populace of an entire state is an immensely time-consuming job--I don't play WoW, but I do play Dark Souls a lot, and I certainly wouldn't have enough time to do so if I was in public office.

So what public officials aren't supposed to have any hobbies? How is this significantly different in terms of impacting her job from her playing golf or tennis, or any of the myriad obsessions politicians enjoy?

And yes, most people say stupid stuff online, but again, most people don't run for public office. To use myself as an example again, would you vote for someone who said "prunyuu~" all the time and thought he was a cat? XD

If I thought you could do the job, sure. No one is perfect, but I like people who are honest about themselves and frank about their opinions. Also you literally think you're a cat or just in a roleplay way, basically - otherkin or furry?

[Gunlord]

So what public officials aren't supposed to have any hobbies? How is this significantly different in terms of impacting her job from her playing golf or tennis, or any of the myriad obsessions politicians enjoy?

If I thought you could do the job, sure. No one is perfect, but I like people who are honest about themselves and frank about their opinions. Also you literally think you're a cat or just in a roleplay way, basically - otherkin or furry?

How many hours does one play golf compared to WoW or even other games, like Dark Souls or LoL? I wouldn't vote for a politician who talked about wanting to spend more time at a golf course than at their job. Now, you'll say "most people say stupid stuff like that online," but again, most people aren't running for public office; I'd want someone in government a little smarter than 'most people.' This lady hasn't really displayed that level of caliber.

No, no, I just like joking around and stuff. I just say 'mew' and *purrs at X contentedly* all the time, it's just one of my cutesy Gunlordisms, like "prunyuu~" and calling everyone "-sama." XD

[Beaumont_Belmont]

"But seriously, what kind of weirdo still plays WoW when Team Fortress 2 is free to play?"

In all seriousness, this is ridiculous. I'm far from being a Democrat (Libertarian here) but the Maine GOP's stance here reeks of the kind of "you play an evil character, therefore you're an evil person" BS that informed so much of the 80's anti-RPG madness. I played a vicious Gangrel in VtM that took pride in shredding enemies with his claws. Doesn't mean I want to rip people up IRL.

I guess video games aren't a proper politicians' hobby like using taxpayer money for vacation and hookers.

[Inccubus]

How many hours does one play golf compared to WoW or even other games, like Dark Souls or LoL? I wouldn't vote for a politician who talked about wanting to spend more time at a golf course than at their job. Now, you'll say "most people say stupid stuff like that online," but again, most people aren't running for public office; I'd want someone in government a little smarter than 'most people.' This lady hasn't really displayed that level of caliber.

You's be surprised. Golf is not a fast thing you do. And besides that what does it matter what she does in her leisure time as long as it isn't illegal or immoral? This is exactly the kind of nonsense that gets thrown around in politics to get your attention away from the accuser's shitty record. I'm sure if this lady is dedicating the time it takes to run a political campaign she isn't spending irresponsible amounts of time playing video games. Plus when were those comments posted? Are they recent? I want more details, not out-of-context finger pointing. They might have well have put out an add saying, "OMG she spends all her time playing chess! She probably doesn't have the time to run the state if she's always playing chess. Oh, and by the way here are some posts she made 4 years ago that have basically no bearing on the amount of time she plays, but you'll probably find shocking maybe. And never mind that we have no actual idea how long she spends doing anything in her private life."

[Lelygax]

They need to learn to dont mix things, you can do what you want in your free time. Things like that only shows that GOP use their free time to invade people social life and make gossips instead of taking care of their own business.

[uzo]

No offense, but it sounds more like you're buying into the propaganda.

The propaganda is geared mainly toward the fact that she plays games, and enjoys fantasy worlds. That's not my point. It's the message these quotes send. People can have any hobby they wan't within reason, but the sheer volume of these comments portraying her as some creepy WoW addicted lazy annoying hyper-mouthed girl, is a little concerning. You DID see the actual full compilation site with all the quotes, right? If not, go read the whole thing, or at least a large sample. You'll know what I'm talking about then.

Gunlord summed it up pretty nicely though. No sense in repeating it.

[TheouAegis]

And if you play golf, odds are you're a drunken pig. Since she's a girl, I don't know what girls become when they get drunk on the golf course. But yeah, not only does golf take up a lot of time, it makes you a drunk. I'd rather vote for a gamer than someone I knew was a habitual drunkard who liked handling a shaft and playing with balls (... unless it's a girl candidate who said she liked handling a shaft and playing with balls -- she'd get my vote instantly just for saying that and being quoted on it).