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Some pretty untoward allegations against Zak S have come out.

Started by Arkansan, February 11, 2019, 01:07:26 AM

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Arkansan

#15
February 11, 2019, 08:05:10 PM
Quote from: S'mon;1074407Is there such a thing as a male Hollywood pornographer who is a fine upstanding person? Upstanding in the moral sense, at least.

 This is only anecdotal, but I've known a few people in the porn industry and everyone of them were an absolute cluster fuck of a person.

SHARK

#16
February 11, 2019, 08:05:49 PM
Quote from: Arkansan;1074466I'm not gonna lie, I laughed at this, I felt dirty about it, but I laughed.

Greetings!

Arkansan, I'm with you, brother! I laughed like crazy!

Good observation, Mhensley!

Semper Fidelis,

SHARK
"It is the Marine Corps that will strip away the façade so easily confused with self. It is the Corps that will offer the pain needed to buy the truth. And at last, each will own the privilege of looking inside himself  to discover what truly resides there. Comfort is an illusion. A false security b

Lurtch

#17
February 11, 2019, 08:10:17 PM
Trust Fund Marxist can get fucked. I hope this ruins him. He is a racist and can, again, get fucked.

Franky

#18
February 11, 2019, 08:32:02 PM
Quote from: SHARK;1074443Greetings!

S'mon, I read their blog statement. The Gauntlet thinks that this should be the "end of the line for Zak S. in the TTRPG industry." Their whole menu of actions and policies they are embracing...is just wow, you know? Stalinism indeed! HE MUST BE ERASED FROM RPG HISTORY! I mean, damn. All of this drama for *one man*? It seems over the top to me as well.

Oh, and S'mon? Who the fuck is The Gauntlet, anyways? I've never heard of them.

Semper Fidelis,

SHARK
Stalinism and Romanism.  The Romans called it Damnatio Memoriae.  Of course Stalin could not come with anything original.   Few blood soaked thugs can.

A one way trip down the memory hole, this seems a fitting punishment for a piece of work like Zak.

I've never heard of The Gauntlet either.  I will have forgotten about it by this time tomorrow.

Mordred Pendragon

#19
February 11, 2019, 08:45:36 PM
Like I said, Zak S. is a major league asshole and I'm not surprised at all by his behavior.

I don't believe in erasing someone from history, but that doesn't excuse Zak's atrocious deeds.
Sic Semper Tyrannis

SHARK

#20
February 11, 2019, 08:49:06 PM
Quote from: Franky;1074472Stalinism and Romanism.  The Romans called it Damnatio Memoriae.  Of course Stalin could not come with anything original.   Few blood soaked thugs can.

A one way trip down the memory hole, this seems a fitting punishment for a piece of work like Zak.

I've never heard of The Gauntlet either.  I will have forgotten about it by this time tomorrow.

Greetings!

Hey Franky! Nice commentary, for damned sure. I'm certainly not defending Zak S. His behavior as attested by his girlfriend...of many years--and also his attitudes and behavior online, well, I've felt for many years--from the beginning when I first heard of him, that he was a SJW trainwreck, you know? I don't understand all of the worshippers and sycophants he has had for many years.

I knew right from the beginning that he was an SJW Trainwreck. His whole caustic, abrasive persona showed me all that I needed to know about him, crystal clear.

Having said that, the whole trainload of punishments, judgements, and stipulations made by The Gauntlet, well, besides Stalinistsic and such, it just bothers me that they are not merely eager to stand against Zak S, which is fine--but their chest-thumping about *anyone* that has much of anything to do with him, in even the remotest of fashions--blogs, co-authors, CONVENTIONS--it strikes me as disturbing, you know? I can't quite put my finger on it, precisely, but I don't like the whole attitude of trying to be a financial, business, moral, and thought police over anyone and everyone--that may otherwise associate with Zak S, for any number of reasons. None of which necessarily includes them approving of or supporting him being a worthless jackass.

Am I making sense with that? LOL

Semper Fidelis,

SHARK
"It is the Marine Corps that will strip away the façade so easily confused with self. It is the Corps that will offer the pain needed to buy the truth. And at last, each will own the privilege of looking inside himself  to discover what truly resides there. Comfort is an illusion. A false security b

Fergurg

#21
February 11, 2019, 08:52:17 PM
Quote from: S'mon;1074439https://www.gauntlet-rpg.com/blog/the-gauntlets-statement-on-zak-s

I don't know who these people are, but I don't like the sound of

We will not work with people who work with him. For example, Codex will not publish an artist or author who is actively working with him. For folks who have worked with him in the past and now regret it, we will need to be satisfied they are no longer working with him before we can have a professional relationship with them.

It all sounds incredibly Stalinist. I'm A-OK fine with boycotting Zak, but boycotting everyone who has ever worked with him sounds pretty OTT.

It gets crazier than that. Anyone who has worked with him and, anyone who has ever defended him without publicly disavowing him, and any convention that does not explicitly ban him are all going to be boycotted, and the Gauntlet also stated that they will use their influence to get him de-platformed. Interestingly enough, they are also demanding that DrivethruRPG de-list his works.

I would feel bad for him, maybe, because there is something not quite right about the accusations. Namely, why did she come forward now? What triggered it, because something did, but with all of the details she gives, she doesn't give what the last straw was.


But the thing about Zak S is that he is a shit-spewer who is now being held by his own standard. He openly calls for boycotts against people who don't agree with him or have earned his ire.


As far as I'm concerned, if The Gauntlet wants to wipe him out, I'm ok with that. I'm not so ok with the idea that they will also try to wipe out anyone who doesn't go along with them.

oggsmash

#22
February 11, 2019, 08:58:28 PM
I know we have the google machine, but could someone give me the readers digest version of who this dude is?  Anything he produced or worked on I would know?

SHARK

#23
February 11, 2019, 09:04:19 PM
Quote from: Fergurg;1074475It gets crazier than that. Anyone who has worked with him and, anyone who has ever defended him without publicly disavowing him, and any convention that does not explicitly ban him are all going to be boycotted, and the Gauntlet also stated that they will use their influence to get him de-platformed. Interestingly enough, they are also demanding that DrivethruRPG de-list his works.

I would feel bad for him, maybe, because there is something not quite right about the accusations. Namely, why did she come forward now? What triggered it, because something did, but with all of the details she gives, she doesn't give what the last straw was.


But the thing about Zak S is that he is a shit-spewer who is now being held by his own standard. He openly calls for boycotts against people who don't agree with him or have earned his ire.


As far as I'm concerned, if The Gauntlet wants to wipe him out, I'm ok with that. I'm not so ok with the idea that they will also try to wipe out anyone who doesn't go along with them.

Greetings!

Exactly, Fergurg! Yeah, I'm bothered by how The Gauntlet wants to treat anyone and everyone who has whatever kind of association with Zak S. Just because Drivethru sells Zak S. game books...does not mean that they support or approve of Zak S.'s *PERSONAL* life. I'm surprised that idea doesn't bother MORE people, you know? Think about if every individual business, every business owner, could decide who they will do business with, and who they won't--based on the other person's *personal life*? I'm not comfortable at all with taking such a sweeping, broad brush approach.

Maybe I'm not understanding something, but The Gauntlet seems somehow, as S'Mon described it, to be going way over the top. I agree with that. The Gauntlet's sweeping response--to anyone remotely associated with Zak S. or anything ever written or produced by him--just seems draconian and wrong, somehow.

Semper Fidelis,

SHARK
"It is the Marine Corps that will strip away the façade so easily confused with self. It is the Corps that will offer the pain needed to buy the truth. And at last, each will own the privilege of looking inside himself  to discover what truly resides there. Comfort is an illusion. A false security b

Ratman_tf

#24
February 11, 2019, 09:36:35 PM
Well, since we have an official thread-

I mostly don't care. At first glance, it seems like a domestic issue that Mandy and Zac should deal with on their own.
The only reason I'm paying attention past that is because I'm sure the usual suspects will use this opportunity to climb on top of Mandy's post and generate all kinds of internet drama over it. Hell, it looks like they've already started.

Pass the popcorn.
The notion of an exclusionary and hostile RPG community is a fever dream of zealots who view all social dynamics through a narrow keyhole of structural oppression.
-Haffrung

jeff37923

#25
February 11, 2019, 09:45:49 PM
Is it just me, or does the Gauntlet's proclamation sound like something said by the House UnAmerican Activities Commission?
"Meh."

moonsweeper

#26
February 11, 2019, 10:31:08 PM
Quote from: jeff37923;1074483Is it just me, or does the Gauntlet's proclamation sound like something said by the House UnAmerican Activities Commission?

Totalitarians are gonna be totalitarians...
"I have a very hard time taking seriously someone who has the time and resources to protest capitalism, while walking around in Nike shoes and drinking Starbucks, while filming it on their iPhone."  --  Alderaan Crumbs

"Just, can you make it The Ramones at least? I only listen to Abba when I want to fuck a stripper." -- Jeff37923

"Government is the only entity that relies on its failures to justify the expansion of its powers." -- David Freiheit (Viva Frei)

mhensley

#27
February 11, 2019, 10:32:07 PM
Quote from: Arkansan;1074467This is only anecdotal, but I've known a few people in the porn industry and everyone of them were an absolute cluster fuck of a person.

Yep, I think it's pretty hilarious that people are shocked to find this out after idolizing these people.  Ooh, they're so hip and cool and edgy.  I liked gaming better when only actual nerds played.

Motorskills

#28
February 11, 2019, 11:00:47 PM
Quote from: SHARK;1074443Who the fuck is The Gauntlet, anyways? I've never heard of them.

Quote from: Franky;1074472I've never heard of The Gauntlet either.  I will have forgotten about it by this time tomorrow.


That's because you have decided to bury your heads in a tiny, obsolete, corner of the RPG hobby. I recommend you get out of your basements and look around, it turns out that in 2019 there is a lot of good stuff out there.  ;)

Joking aside, it is kinda hard to stay up with everything that's going on (G+, FaceBook, Patreon, Twitch, etc), but it's worth the effort.

Fear of a Black Dragon, the OSR podcast mentioned above, originates from The Gauntlet, as does a lot of other stuff, including online and FTF conventions.

The Gauntlet have been pretty fearless in their efforts to develop the hobby, so it is hardly a surprise that they have apparently some history with Zak S.
"Gosh it's so interesting (profoundly unsurprising) how men with all these opinions about women's differentiation between sexual misconduct, assault and rape reveal themselves to be utterly tone deaf and as a result, systemically part of the problem." - Minnie Driver, December 2017

" Using the phrase "virtue signalling" is \'I\'m a sociopath\' signalling ". J Wright, July 2018

jhkim

#29
February 12, 2019, 12:08:53 AM
Quote from: oggsmash;1074476I know we have the google machine, but could someone give me the readers digest version of who this dude is?  Anything he produced or worked on I would know?
Zak S has written and illustrated,

- A Red & Pleasant Land: a twisted setting for Legends of the Flame Princess
- Several other LotFP supplements
- Maze of the Blue Medusa: a dungeon for 5e
- Vornheim: a city module for multiple fantasy systems (D&D + OSR)

Plus, he's known for his blog "Playing D&D With Porn Stars" (ref)

cf. https://rpggeek.com/rpgdesigner/39331/zak-smith

He's been a poster on these forums before. I argued with him a bunch when he was calling for a boycott of Anna Kreider a while ago.

-------

Also, replying to comments on the other thread (ref).

Quote from: jan paparazzi;1074433The reactions and all the virtue signaling under his kickstarter make me sick. He is still innocent untill proven guilty and all in all I just want a good game. I think it's a damn shame Demon City is now likely to get cancelled, because that was right in my wheelhouse and I liked a lot of the GM advice in that game. Fuck #Metoo! I just want a fucking game! /rant
Quote from: S'mon;1074441I can just imagine the reaction of all the metropolitan types when the Harvey Weinstein revelations came:

"Fuck #MeToo! I just want a fucking well produced costume drama with left-liberal social mores!" :p

For the most part, I don't care about a designer's personality or politics within some reasonable range - i.e. within mainstream politics. But if someone is guilty of something criminal or the equivalent, then I care. It sounds like this is in the latter category, though I'd want to get some info.
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