Things Zaq and Co. are no Longer Allowed to do in an RPG: 491-540

Turns out the last 50 was actually 40, so we're out of step.  Oh well...

Discrimination isn't Just Wrong, it's Stupid

Two weeks ago, I asked you to investigate the REAL justification for opposing discrimination.  For those of you who need a refresher, the dilemma proceeds thusly: When confronting topics like racism or sexism, many people will argue along the lines “Group A is just as capable as Group B, so it’s wrong to discriminate against them.”  This appears to be a good reason to reject discrimination, and is in fact a reasonable statement when the initial claim holds.  But when the initial claim falls apart – particularly when disabled people enter the picture – we find our argument falling apart.

 

Yet at the same time, most of the people who employ this argument when combatting racism or sexism will also insist that it is wrong to discriminate against disabled people.  Still more intriguing, these people are often extremely opposed to the idea that it would be okay to discriminate against, say, the Irish, even if it was determined that Irish people tend to have lower IQs, lower stamina, or weaker verbal skills.  If we take away the foundation of the argument, the assumption of equal capability, we find that many people are still against discrimination.  The question is, why?

What is Your REAL Objection?

Here’s the basic gist of what actually goes on in most people’s heads.  You hear some proposal, say someone suggesting that gay people should be allowed to marry, and for whatever reason, your subconscious doesn’t like the proposal.  But your subconscious never tells your mind the actual cause of this dislike, it just tells you that the proposal royally sucks.  So you voice your opposition.

Hiatus

Hey guys.  As you may know, I'm a graduate student studying physics.  I'm beginning the candidacy process tomorrow, and it's basically a 5-week ordeal that involves way too much work.  As such, I'm going to put the blog on hiatus until about the second week of June.

One of These Things is not Like the Others

My end-of-semester crunch has eaten up a lot of time, so here's a rather short but sweet post.  See if you can spot the outlier.  Remember, one of these things is not like the others.

Relationship Status

Things I would do if I wanted to form a strong relationship with you.	Have I experienced this firsthand from your deity of choice?
Ask you about your day	No
Mail you a greeting card	No
Email you	No
Call you	No
Text you	No
Visit you at home	No
Say “Wassaaaaaap!”	No
Visit you at work	No
Snail Mail you a letter	No
Send you a post card	No
Invite you to lunch	No
Invite you to dinner	No
Buy you a drink	No
Tweet you	No
Facebook “poke” you	No
Reality poke you	No
Skype you	No
Buy you a birthday present	No
Lend you five bucks	No
Help you move	No
Shake your hand	No
Hug you when we meet	No
Hug you when you’re sad	No
Invite you to my cookout	No
Invite you to my sleepover	No
Invite you to game night	No
Babysit your kids	No
Babysit your parents	No
Give you a ride	No
Bum a ride off you	No
Congratulate your success	No
Show you I’m not a hallucination by letting other people see me interacting with you.	No

My Easter Celebrations

Most Americans celebrate Easter by honoring¹ the sacrifice² of a flawless³ godling⁴ who died⁵ for your⁶ sins⁷.  But since I actually read the footnotes (hint hint), I’ve decided to celebrate Easter in a more insulting fashion.  So here’s my plan for the day.