Think About Who You Want To Be

[Jericho 917]

I'm going to start this out with a very quick introduction for those of you who aren't familiar with me. My name is Kyle and I was a fairly prominent member here from 2010-2015ish (Season 22-42ish). During that time I was in my late teens and early 20s, and was fairly abrasive to people I disagreed with ranging from things like team rivalries to league policies to biased oversight. As I got older I've mellowed out quite a bit on less important issues and usually try and stick to things that matter. I've made several life long friends including @Devise and @Advantage that I wouldn't have met without the VHL. It is safe to say that the era I was here was very formative on the man I came to be.

 

One of the reasons I stopped coming around as much is because I met the woman who eventually became my wife. We originally dated long distance so there was a fairly big time commitment and I decided that putting time into making sure our relationship worked was a bigger priority. She is one of the most emotionally intelligent people I know and she opened my eyes to how unfair the world can be to a variety of different groups. She's a woman who lives in nerd culture/the gaming sphere who constantly gets tested by people who think they have the right to gatekeep her from their communities based on gender. She's also bisexual and feels the need to hide it from her family because of existing bigotry and homophobia out of her certain members of her extended family. Hearing her talk about this and seeing it for myself on a day to day basis really opened my eyes up to how unfair the world can treat you based on external factors you have no control over.

 

Now what does this have to do with today? Unless you've been living under a rock you may have noticed that the United States is entering what is by all accounts a civil war between it's people and it's government. Western culture has always had an issue with systemic racism, but this time enough people have started moving forward and speaking up and are demanding a change. Organizations are stepping up and taking a stance as well, because this issue isn't political as so many people seem to think. It's societal. The way the United States government treats it's citizens is unacceptable on a human level. You can't put more of a fight into battling peaceful protesters than you do into battling a deadly virus in the span of the same 2 months. We have to stand up and force the people responsible to do something and hold them accountable. Silence as individuals and as a group is still taking a side, and its siding with the status quo.

 

For anyone who still thinks they need to stay in the middle because some of the protests have gotten violent, or because there are good cops taking heat, you're missing the point. You can dislike rioting and looting while still standing for a movement who's core value is built around giving equality to everyone. You can still condemn a broken police system while still understanding that there are still good individuals in that system. You can still stand for a movement while acknowledging that you haven't always been the best ally in the past and do your best to fix it now.

 

If you feel the need to come out for cops in this time you're missing the point. Everyone knows that there are good cops who have lost their lives in the line of duty. For context, my father is a retired RCMP officer, and almost 6 years ago to the day we had a domestic terrorist in our city who was running around murdering cops with an assault rifle. We lost 3 officers and had 2 others who were heavily injured. At the time my father was not yet retired, and that was one of the scariest nights of my life, because at any given moment I had no idea if he was still alive. As a community we honour their memories and we thank those who jumped in to save us at great personal risk. The thing is though, that right now there is a group of people who need our help more, and that group is disenfranchised based off the colour of their skin.

 

You may be aware that it's Gay Pride month, and you may have also noticed that it's been largely absent from the news or from your twitter feeds. That is because the LGBTQ community recognizes that there is a group that needs our support right now, and they remember a time when that group was them. They aren't sulking about how nobody is paying attention to them on "their" month. They recognize that, while they are still struggling, there is a group that needs the resources and the help more right now, and they're extending that hand to them.

 

The point I'm getting at is that I hope each and every one of you are doing as much as you can to help with the fight individually, but the VHL as a community can do more. You've been taking in member donations for almost a decade now on a monthly basis to pay for league overhead, but you've also been running at a surplus that entire time. It wouldn't kill you to use some of that money to make a few donations. Try making a statement, and use the resources at your disposal to make a change and do some good. You might lose some members' donations because they don't want to contribute, but that's honestly a good thing. A community that is afraid of losing its member base at the cost of doing the right thing has its priorities in the dirt. If you come here for escapism and you don't want the real world creeping in to your escape, recognize that there are people who don't have the ability to do that (and haven't ever had the ability to do that). It's been a rough week for a lot of us, but that only highlights how rough of a lifetime it's been for the black community and people of colour.

 

I'm going to leave you with a message from another prominent member from my time. His name is Noah, but these days he runs a youtube channel with 724k subscribers. He risks his lively hood to use his platform to try and do some good, and has since the inception of his channel. He has a lot more to lose than the VHL does if his audience implodes, and he also has access to a lot more people. Follow in his footsteps. Ask yourself what kind of person you want to be. Black Lives Matter.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUhAzkwM6aI

[diamond_ace 3,112]

11 minutes ago, Jericho said:

I'm going to start this out with a very quick introduction for those of you who aren't familiar with me. My name is Kyle and I was a fairly prominent member here from 2010-2015ish (Season 22-42ish). During that time I was in my late teens and early 20s, and was fairly abrasive to people I disagreed with ranging from things like team rivalries to league policies to biased oversight. As I got older I've mellowed out quite a bit on less important issues and usually try and stick to things that matter. I've made several life long friends including @Devise and @Advantage that I wouldn't have met without the VHL. It is safe to say that the era I was here was very formative on the man I came to be.

 

One of the reasons I stopped coming around as much is because I met the woman who eventually became my wife. We originally dated long distance so there was a fairly big time commitment and I decided that putting time into making sure our relationship worked was a bigger priority. She is one of the most emotionally intelligent people I know and she opened my eyes to how unfair the world can be to a variety of different groups. She's a woman who lives in nerd culture/the gaming sphere who constantly gets tested by people who think they have the right to gatekeep her from their communities based on gender. She's also bisexual and feels the need to hide it from her family because of existing bigotry and homophobia out of her certain members of her extended family. Hearing her talk about this and seeing it for myself on a day to day basis really opened my eyes up to how unfair the world can treat you based on external factors you have no control over.

 

Now what does this have to do with today? Unless you've been living under a rock you may have noticed that the United States is entering what is by all accounts a civil war between it's people and it's government. Western culture has always had an issue with systemic racism, but this time enough people have started moving forward and speaking up and are demanding a change. Organizations are stepping up and taking a stance as well, because this issue isn't political as so many people seem to think. It's societal. The way the United States government treats it's citizens is unacceptable on a human level. You can't put more of a fight into battling peaceful protesters than you do into battling a deadly virus in the span of the same 2 months. We have to stand up and force the people responsible to do something and hold them accountable. Silence as individuals and as a group is still taking a side, and its siding with the status quo.

 

For anyone who still thinks they need to stay in the middle because some of the protests have gotten violent, or because there are good cops taking heat, you're missing the point. You can dislike rioting and looting while still standing for a movement who's core value is built around giving equality to everyone. You can still condemn a broken police system while still understanding that there are still good individuals in that system. You can still stand for a movement while acknowledging that you haven't always been the best ally in the past and do your best to fix it now.

 

If you feel the need to come out for cops in this time you're missing the point. Everyone knows that there are good cops who have lost their lives in the line of duty. For context, my father is a retired RCMP officer, and almost 6 years ago to the day we had a domestic terrorist in our city who was running around murdering cops with an assault rifle. We lost 3 officers and had 2 others who were heavily injured. At the time my father was not yet retired, and that was one of the scariest nights of my life, because at any given moment I had no idea if he was still alive. As a community we honour their memories and we thank those who jumped in to save us at great personal risk. The thing is though, that right now there is a group of people who need our help more, and that group is disenfranchised based off the colour of their skin.

 

You may be aware that it's Gay Pride month, and you may have also noticed that it's been largely absent from the news or from your twitter feeds. That is because the LGBTQ community recognizes that there is a group that needs our support right now, and they remember a time when that group was them. They aren't sulking about how nobody is paying attention to them on "their" month. They recognize that, while they are still struggling, there is a group that needs the resources and the help more right now, and they're extending that hand to them.

 

The point I'm getting at is that I hope each and every one of you are doing as much as you can to help with the fight individually, but the VHL as a community can do more. You've been taking in member donations for almost a decade now on a monthly basis to pay for league overhead, but you've also been running at a surplus that entire time. It wouldn't kill you to use some of that money to make a few donations. Try making a statement, and use the resources at your disposal to make a change and do some good. You might lose some members' donations because they don't want to contribute, but that's honestly a good thing. A community that is afraid of losing its member base at the cost of doing the right thing has its priorities in the dirt. If you come here for escapism and you don't want the real world creeping in to your escape, recognize that there are people who don't have the ability to do that (and haven't ever had the ability to do that). It's been a rough week for a lot of us, but that only highlights how rough of a lifetime it's been for the black community and people of colour.

 

I'm going to leave you with a message from another prominent member from my time. His name is Noah, but these days he runs a youtube channel with 724k subscribers. He risks his lively hood to use his platform to try and do some good, and has since the inception of his channel. He has a lot more to lose than the VHL does if his audience implodes, and he also has access to a lot more people. Follow in his footsteps. Ask yourself what kind of person you want to be. Black Lives Matter.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUhAzkwM6aI

As one of the people implied in your first paragraph - for selfish reasons I've wanted you to come back. Player-wise, those days are over it seems, but if you're ever going to pop in and make a statement, this is one hell of a statement. True as hell, and important. Probably the single most important thing going on right now. 

 

[Advantage 2,891]

Great message.  My boy.

 

 

[Jericho 917]

@Quik @Beaviss

You guys need to use your positions to do something good. The VHL has done a lot of good for the people inside of its community over the last 13 years. It's time for it to do some good for the rest of the world. Donate the excess money to good causes. Be a benchmark other communities should strive to emulate. Make a difference.

[Advantage 2,891]

31 minutes ago, Jericho said:

@Quik @Beaviss

You guys need to use your positions to do something good. The VHL has done a lot of good for the people inside of its community over the last 13 years. It's time for it to do some good for the rest of the world. Donate the excess money to good causes. Be a benchmark other communities should strive to emulate. Make a difference.

@Beketov falls under this too

[diamond_ace 3,112]

3 minutes ago, Advantage said:

@Beketov falls under this too

Just brought it up in Board. Come weigh in

[Devise 4,475]

13 minutes ago, diamond_ace said:

Just brought it up in Board. Come weigh in

 

I brought it up privately in the Blue HQ Discord but was met with varying degree's of the this is too political take or that the VHL doesn't pick and choose charities to donate too. Personally, to me this is bigger than a political cause or a charity and I think Jericho lays out a solid foundation as to why. But it's not that hard to do a quick google search and literally see medics and other peaceful protesters getting attacked and harassed by what has become the equivalent of a police force. While it is true we don't pick and choose charities to donate to, when we had members pass away recently we donated in their honor. When Covid happened we added masks to our store with all the money going to charity. To me this cause supersedes that of picking a side or researching a wide charity and is more about and overall awareness to an issue. It's paramount that the people who provide escapism also provide truth during this time. Your seeing it widespread, everyone even the shittiest brands are trying to make sure this message is everywhere because America is not going to stop being on fire until there is systemic change. 

 

I find it absolutely hypocritical of the league and just...a wild state of our current dystopia that America is literally burning itself with this issue on the streets and we could have members in here from that very Country, with this stuff going on around them wondering or worrying about whether or not their VHL point task got in this week. Escapism is fine until escapism becomes the point. We have escaped for far too long. This battle is everyone vs racists now and I am absolutely okay saying that people should feel uncomfortable with the idea of BLM or the ending of police brutality to be concepts that are being too shoved down their throats. Good, it should be everywhere, if you find yourself uncomfortable with these concepts when all these houses are literally on fire you need to reflect on why you think that is. Anyway I advocated for what I could in the Blue Discord and I look forward to seeing maybe if the BoG can push it further. I don't think we need to do much to show support, but being absolutely silent on it like the league has been to me is embarrassing. 

Edited June 4, 2020 by Devise

[Devise 4,475]

Also @Jericho awesome to see you back and posting, and while it may only be for this holy hell did you ever topple any hope of a "devise post" from me in this thread. Kudos. You should lurk more or maybe even give one last player a shot?  Come on @Advantage we need to get a Pajodcast reunion back for one last time while we still can haha!  

[solas 1,951]

Fantastic post, glad to see you back even if it’s just for the time being.

Obviously I have no influence within the decision making process but I’ll add my voice and say I’d definitely love to see the VHL community in some way come together for what is an extremely important cause.

[Gustav 6,407]

19 minutes ago, Devise said:

I brought it up privately in the Blue HQ Discord but was met with varying degree's of the this is too political take or that the VHL doesn't pick and choose charities to donate too. Personally, to me this is bigger than a political cause or a charity and I think Jericho lays out a solid foundation as to why.

 

I mean, who says it has to be political? Helping out people in need is objectively good and can be done without bringing politics into the equation. If we want to stay away from politics, then maybe don't donate to an activist group or anything...but there are plenty of places the league can put its money to make an impact on underprivileged communities without also making some sort of a statement.

 

All in all, not sure if you'll see this, but well said @Jericho. I get that the league isn't saving any money for its own gain but I'd love to see something happen.

[Devise 4,475]

3 minutes ago, GustavMattias said:

 

I mean, who says it has to be political? Helping out people in need is objectively good and can be done without bringing politics into the equation. If we want to stay away from politics, then maybe don't donate to an activist group or anything...but there are plenty of places the league can put its money to make an impact on underprivileged communities without also making some sort of a statement.

 

All in all, not sure if you'll see this, but well said @Jericho. I get that the league isn't saving any money for its own gain but I'd love to see something happen.

 

This has been one of the major takes I've been seeing coming out during this whole thing that it's nice to start seeing more of. I don't think people realize that there are tons of bad faith "protestors" poising as looters to make the peaceful protesting seem more violent. The fact that is happening on both sides, constantly gets brought up by people whose aim it is entirely to fix the point of contention and topic from the peaceful protests and the legitimate cause to other things. It's the same with the AllLivesMatter counter to the BlackLivesMatter post and there are tons of great memes and education out there listing why that's a bad response, the "All Houses Matter" one for example. 

 

Nobody is saying rioting and looting are right, we are instead saying that the status quo has forever hid behind the horrible consequences to poor decisions to shift the topic to avoid making any serious changes, which to me is entirely why being silent and think your "staying out of it" is part of the problem right now. There is a whole lot of response takes to the effect of "yeah but rioting and looting challenges our laws and the peaceful society we should all be working towards" without realizing that the whole reason the peaceful protests are happening is because there is a class of people, mostly minority races who don't live in a peaceful society already. The status quo is absolutely the problem. I know I said it above but I don't really think people get how wild it is to see other Countries protesting in favor of American change. That doesn't just speak to the widespread nature of Americana culture it speaks to the fact that many pity seeing America in such a broken state structurally and socially. Anyway I've probably said all I need to on this matter but I really do hope overall league stance on this goes up and that personally people reading this get more aware. Appreciate the support though Gus and Solas! 

[Baozi 1,658]

Wait you guys live in the nerd gaming sphere and don't hang out with us here when we play so many games????

[mediocrepony 1,216]

If you told me that this was going to happen(COVID, George Floyd, Economic collapse) in 2019, I don't know what I would of done. At protests against police brutality, police are being extremely brutal to mostly peaceful protesters. We are basically living through the 1918 influenza, the Great Depression and 1964-68 all rolled into one. This is one of the darkest moments in America's history. And with a racist, sexist, homophobic president that is completely incompetent, this is crazy.

[mediocrepony 1,216]

Great article, @Jericho

[CowboyinAmerica 2,889]

 

9 hours ago, GustavMattias said:

 

I mean, who says it has to be political? Helping out people in need is objectively good and can be done without bringing politics into the equation. If we want to stay away from politics, then maybe don't donate to an activist group or anything...but there are plenty of places the league can put its money to make an impact on underprivileged communities without also making some sort of a statement.

 

All in all, not sure if you'll see this, but well said @Jericho. I get that the league isn't saving any money for its own gain but I'd love to see something happen.

 

Copy/pasting myself from a work newsletter I write up and send out:

 

Quote

There are a number of different ways to help from afar, both to achieve justice and rebuild aching communities, but I wanted to highlight a few. The Lake Street Council is soliciting direct donations to rebuild South Minneapolis businesses at the heart of this past week’s protests, while the WBC and Northside Funders Group is doing the same for the less publicized, but still hard hit North Minneapolis businesses. I’ve spent a lot of time in both areas—my wife has spent many a weekend volunteering in Midtown Global Market’s pop-up medical clinic. But today these businesses, disproportionately owned by people of color and immigrants, were already reeling due to the effects of COVID-19. Damage sustained during protests could represent a death knell.

 

Put it in the name of the Minnesota Storm or something. I don't know.

 

I could write an essay here, living in the Twin Cities during all this. But I won't. Jericho's point is very well put.

Edited June 4, 2020 by CowboyinAmerica

[DMaximus 1,046]

I can't thank @Jericho enough for having the strength to make this post.

 

I understand the difficulty of a community comprised of disparate individuals choosing an organization to provide a donation to. We could have members suggest charities and bring it to a community vote? Or maybe instead of picking a single organization, the VHL could commit to matching member donations to organizations of their choosing (up to a certain dollar amount)? I know there were a ton of donations during our last drive, so maybe that's not feasible either.

 

Money aside, I hope everyone in this community takes time for some self reflection. When dealing with systemic issues, we all play a part. Looking at yourself and identifying your own biases, especially unconscious ones, is a great start. Understand what privileges you were granted at birth and how they benefit you in society. Seek opportunities to connect with others outside your normal circle and grow. Speak up if you hear or see someone espousing any form of racism. 

 

 

 

[probably not noah 346]

Hey all... Long time no see. Jericho messaged me and told me about this thread, and I thought it was important that I come over and give my two cents as well. 

 

A little about my history with the VHL if you guys don't know: I joined in S10, and like Jericho spent a lot of my adolescence and my early adulthood here. I was on the mod squad for a time, and I was the one that proposed the Thunderdome. I had some incredible times, and honestly making sigs here was part of what gave me the graphic design chops to start my YouTube channel. To this day I still use a ton of graphic design skills that I learned making signatures here. Every few months I think about coming back and re-joining you guys, but unfortunately I have a lot of projects on the go. Some day I may pop back in and catch up though. 

 

Really, none of that matters right now. Right now, what I want to talk about is the myth of apoliticism. There's this idea that it is possible to "not be political" and "stay out of things." I get it. Politics are sticky, difficult topics that can lead to a lot of uncomfortable conversations, and we do all want (and deserve) to be able to just blow off steam sometimes. So a lot of people think that by not weighing in, they aren't getting involved. But as Devise said: silence is a political statement. I think this is always true, but it's particularly true right now. Silence is, by its nature, acceptance of the status quo. There's some topics where that's totally fine, there are some pretty great things about the status quo. But right now the status quo is authoritarian rule rising in the United States. It's a president threatening to march the military against peaceful protesters. And for too long, the status quo has been police officers abusing and murdering minorities free from consequence. 

 

Being able to feel that silence is "not getting involved" is coming from a place of privilege. Now, this doesn't mean you haven't had it hard. We've all had it hard in our own way, especially lately with the god damn apocalyptic pandemic dropping on all of its head. What it means is that when I see a cop car, I don't immediately fear for my life. It means that if I got caught using a counterfeit $20, it would be a funny mistake and I might get a fine or get let off with a slap on the wrist. George Floyd didn't get that.

 

I have a fond memory of a drunken night in university walking home with a friend. It was garbage day and we had seen table legs lying on the side of the road. Being 21 and blindingly drunk, we decided to swordfight with them and then brought them home as souvenirs for the night. On our walk home, we were pulled over by two cops, who saw drunk kids walking around carrying blunt objects on their shoulders. We could barely even walk straight, and my buddy couldn't string a sentence together. Know what the cop did? He laughed at our story and drove off. Know why? Because we were both white. If we were black, if we were indigenous, I have no doubt that's not how this would have gone. 

 

There are broad systemic issues here, and they need to change. The only way that change comes is through solidarity and through the voices of the community standing up. I know for a fact that these issues run in the VHL as well. I don't know how things are now because I haven't been around for a while, but I know I was complicit in sexist, and racist behaviour in the past. I don't think that makes me, or anyone else a bad person. We're socialized that way. But I think it's important to recognize that and break out. And I think one of the most powerful things that we can do as people in positions of privilege is to use that privilege to speak alongside those who are fighting for equal treatment. We can use our resources to amplify black and indigenous voices, and to push the world for change. 

 

At the end of the day, that's just my two cents, but this community has meant a lot to me, and when Jericho told me I thought I could help provide value to this conversation. I want to leave with one thought, on the nature of riots. I'm not here to litigate everything, but I do think there's an incredible passage by Martin Luther King in his challenge to the nation's social scientists: https://www.apa.org/monitor/features/king-challenge. If you really want to educate yourself on the topic, this is a good place to start. 

 

I'll also amplify https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/, which gives a ton of resources and ways you can help.

 

I'm sorry that my grand return to the forum had to be like this, but I think this is a topic that is of the utmost importance right now. We're standing on the precipice of history. I know that when they're teaching my grandkids about this in history class and they ask what I did, I don't want to say "well I tried not to get involved because it was too political." 

 

 

Edit: Also I love coming into the forum and seeing that the Seattle Bears are the reigning champions. Da Bears for life. 

 

Edited June 4, 2020 by probably not noah

[sterling 1,997]

As of today, the VHL will match donations up to $500 made for this cause.

 

Since we've got a heavy contingent of American and Canadian members, the resulting donation will be split evenly between an American charity for the black lives matter cause and a Canadian Charity for Indigenous issues.

 

Take care and remember to be kind to one another regardless of the shit going on in the world.

[Kyle 667]

As someone who is living in Brooklyn now and in the center of all this as well as the COVID epicenter, thanks for your take on this. Hope you’re well. 

[sterling 1,997]

Also, please post your donation in this thread, amount and transaction ID and I'll confirm it. You can use that to claim your reward.

 

For reference

[Quik 4,113]

14 minutes ago, sterling said:

Also, please post your donation in this thread, amount and transaction ID and I'll confirm it. You can use that to claim your reward.

 

Just a note, we will be making an announcement shortly, and will include a specific thread for donations to these causes. Please use that thread to post transaction IDs

 

Post Transaction IDs in this thread

[Jericho 917]

Considering the conversations have already shifted to doing this regularly to some extent, I'm glad to know I came to the right place and to the right people. I honestly thought this was going to be a huge struggle and a lot of arguing but the people here have clearly grown a lot. Stay classy VHL

[eaglesfan036 4,603]

13 minutes ago, Jericho said:

Considering the conversations have already shifted to doing this regularly to some extent, I'm glad to know I came to the right place and to the right people. I honestly thought this was going to be a huge struggle and a lot of arguing but the people here have clearly grown a lot. Stay classy VHL

Come back and recreate now classy man!