Furry Merry Christmas, media relations, RISK!, animal blessing… Newsdump (12/22/14)

by Patch O'Furr

Headlines, links and little stories to make your tail wag.  Story tips are always welcome.

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Around Furry fandom and in the media:

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A Furry Merry Christmas To One and All – from Tom Broadbent, documentary photographer.

Tom takes us to the Londonfurs annual Christmas party.  “Retro gaming was the theme and it was hosted at the Amber Bar in Moorgate.” (More about his art.)

London Furries Winter Ball

Fred Patten shares:

“The November 30 update to the 2014 Recommended Anthropomorphics List is now online, and Dogpatch Press is included among the year’s Recommended Anthro Magazines. If you know of something good released during 2014 and it isn’t recommended yet, hurry up and recommend it!”

PSUMeet the Penn State Furries! (Shared from FurryMedia.)

Author doesn’t know what to expect... finds a light, pleasant social experience.  Perfect.

What’s important to note about this group is that because their interest is so…unique, so is their friendship.

More followup to MWFF chlorine attack story, summarizing “As it happened.”

See a timeline of social media reactions.

Furries Set The Record Straight: There’s Nothing To Be Afraid Of.

In my opinion, this HuffPost article is better than the one below, using the same sources.

9 questions about furries you were too embarrassed to ask.

VOX rides the “furries” news spike that followed the MWFF attack. This is just a personal opinion but I have a problem about the approach. I feel it over-relies on the International Anthropomorphic Research Project to act more objective than it is. You could argue that this single source of a handful of Furry academics (not neutral ones) design info with advocacy, and do hobby research with “Scientist-sonas”.  Surveys are loaded with debatable premises that come from overbearing influence of fashionable trends, rather than results. Over-labeling is an example: “Species Identity Disorder” may be better called Make-Believe.

It rationalizes about sex- “Only” half of furries are somewhat or more influenced by porn (so not even a majority aren’t.) The topic isn’t bad – it’s just sex. It’s not a Slippery Slope to bad things. It’s just one preference in Collective Individualism.  (I try to avoid saying “we” when writing about furries to respect individualism.)

A fan outcast is remembered today by a mocking name (“Tumbles”) – can he get sympathy for another side of the story?

A witness remembers an infamous convention story.  Years after it faded into internet history – this is a good season to consider it more gently.

RISK! show personality retweeted the notice of This Furry Life podcast.

Kevin Allison is a sketch comedy veteran. His podcast is a hugely entertaining inspiration. It was so cool that he noticed a This Furry Life announcement.

Furry wishes from Andrew W.K.

Amazing Wolf fursuit triggers massive urge to hug.

Wild Life’s Wolf just sold for $5169 – news for a coming article about top auctions. More photos here.  (Send amazing fursuiters for future Newsdumps!)
wolf2

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Random fun

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Vice magazine goes to a Blessing of the Animals Mass in Paris.

The reporter talks to ​Monseigneur Dominique Philippe. The Mass annoyed some of his superiors, but he made a statement that animals have souls.

Top 10 Cutest Animals in Science 2014