Dogpatch Press

Fluff Pieces Every Week

Category: Opinion

September 25, 2014

Furries are breaking through. Obama and the Oscars like you. Now you’re on a federal stamp.

by Patch O'Furr

Ruddy Ducks, by Jennifer Miller - postage stamp contest winning art.

Ruddy Ducks, by Jennifer Miller – stamp contest winning art.

What’s next – a fursuit campaign for president?  I’m half-joking… but these are real events recently:

And this week:

From Dronon on Flayrah:

Congrats to the artist we know as Nambroth for winning the U.S. Federal Duck Stamp contest!

Read the rest of this entry »

Leave a comment
September 17, 2014

Facebook’s “real name” controversy, Drag queens, and furries

by Patch O'Furr

hug-in-303

Facebook closed my account. There’s a wave of furry victims of this ill-planned policy. Did it happen to you too?

Behind the fursona, there’s deeper issues, like the way internet trolls enjoy gay-bashing and compromising safety for participants of certain live club events. These names are positive statements. Forcing you not to use yours is a negative statement.

When I organized a “hug-in” coinciding with a protest threat from Westboro Baptist Church (of “God Hates Fags” infamy), it was meant to be a positive thing of it’s own… but also to answer them with positivity.  (They didn’t show- all we did was hug.)  Facebook’s policy jeopardizes people’s safety to speak that way.

Read the rest of this entry »

Leave a comment
September 12, 2014

Why I Fursuit – a Burning Man story from Vignette Hyena

by Patch O'Furr

Vignette has a great post from Burning Man:

I wear my suit because I like being a pretend hyena sometimes, and a little dust in my fur isn’t going to stop me from doing it.

The video makes it’s own statement. It’s from Death Guild Thunderdome at Burning Man, where Furry burners also have a long established presence.

Leave a comment
August 16, 2014

Is this the year furries gain respect?

by Patch O'Furr

Furry wrestler pic courtesy of JCs Fluffytail

Furry wrestler pic courtesy of JCs Fluffytail

Pro wrestling is fake! Anyone with “good taste” sneers at it, right? But if wrestling is fake fighting, they do real falling. That’s tough performance. As Roger Ebert said, the sport isn’t real, but the activity is.

“The Wrestler”, 2008 movie directed by Darren Aronofsky, impressed me more than 99% of movies I’ve ever seen. It earned about as much love from pro movie critics. It impressed me by showing the humanity of a despised “bad taste” subject. It wiped sneers off faces and put a headlock on your heart. (Ha.)

Low culture

I love furries the same way. Wrestling doesn’t get much respect, and neither do they. But some “Low culture” thrives when it’s disregarded by the mainstream. Freedom comes with insulation from notice. Wikipedia names: “escapist fiction, kitsch, slapstick, camp, toilet humor, yellow journalism, pornography, and exploitation films”. Comics used to be considered trash. Add wrestling, and Furry.

I’d love to see furries treated as worthy characters for a movie that’s even remotely as well done as The Wrestler. Is this the year it’s starting to happen? Are furries getting more respect… at least as a niche demographic for movies?

Read the rest of this entry »

4 comments
August 7, 2014

I love Finsterworld. This tragicomic movie with a fursuiter is a treat for smart watchers.

by Patch O'Furr

Finsterworld_poster_225
A DELICATE REQUEST:

A stranger approached the Furry community to get this movie review. He was a journalist for a European film festival, seeking our perspective. When he said “fursuit fetish”, he was greeted with dislike for media exploiting our thing.

But I found the question respectful, without cherry-picking responders. I sent a response that I might be a good match, because I organize fur meets in San Francisco (where fetish gets more tolerance than most places)- plus I work on movies professionally. This is my thing!

It can hurt to lump together all of the dreaded media (hiss!) as exploiters. “Furries are hiding stuff- it must be bad.” Journalism is important, and the difference between Euro movies and Hollywood is like the difference between types of journalism. This journalist made the kind of approach that any storyteller would take to learn about a subject. FINSTERWORLD approaches it’s audience sincerely, too.

IN THIS MOVIE:

Read the rest of this entry »

1 comment
July 29, 2014

Furry news of the week: Pseudo-furries past and future (7-28-14)

by Patch O'Furr

It’s the regular feature of news bites, scoops, and Snausage links. Tips welcome- I’d love to post yours!
Only minor stories got my attention this week, so I threw in a few topic starters.
______________________________________

– Technology’s Rainbow Connection – Silicon Valley’s Embrace of the Gay and Lesbian Community
The NY Times article relates to a general conflict about keeping subculture “weird” vs. inviting mainstream attention. (For example- A sex educator has trouble understanding why people wear costumes to gay pride parades, especially Furries.) Thanks for the shout out, Tristan!

Read the rest of this entry »

Leave a comment
June 11, 2014

Furry news of the week: new E-zine, Buzzfeed, dolphin experiments (6-11-14)

by Patch O'Furr

New Furry e-Zine – Buzzfeed on Furries – Documentary movie: trippy 1960’s dolphin experiments – More
Here’s the regular feature of news bites, scoops, and Snausage links. Tips welcome- I’d love to post yours!
______________________________________

– FURRY AND FUZZY MAGAZINE
2nd issue of monthly e-zine released in web hosted flipbook and PDF download. A quick review finds inner-focused fan articles and art, covering:
– Featured artist (a welcome feature for better introduction than random web browsing.)
– Interview with a Furry (skippable for casual browsing due to length without focus. The series started long before the zine.)
– Movie reviews
– Stories
– Advice (from a familiar fuzzy face: Ask Papabear.)
– Furry Things and Places (vehicles, buildings… it shows creativity and humor I could see getting a humor/general interest place in a non-fan publication.)
Minor criticism: the cover graphics so far say “zine” to me, with underdeveloped art backgrounds. Favorite feature so far: #1’s “Furriest shirts from The Mountain” article brings refreshing humor about t-shirts with wide familiarity.

– 11 EYE-OPENING MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT THE FURRY FANDOM
Buzzfeed writer takes a trip to Califur.

Read the rest of this entry »

Leave a comment
May 31, 2014

Furries, self-esteem, and identity: perspective from a psychologist

by Patch O'Furr

‘If everybody’s doing it, it’s probably wrong’.

From The man who destroyed America’s ego: How a rebel psychologist challenged one of the 20th century’s biggest – and most dangerous – ideas:

“FOR MUCH OF HUMAN HISTORY, our beliefs have been based on the assumption that people are fundamentally bad. Strip away a person’s smile and you’ll find a grotesque, writhing animal-thing. Human instincts have to be controlled, and religions have often been guides for containing the demons. Sigmund Freud held a similar view: Psychotherapy was his method of making the unconscious conscious, helping people restrain their bestial desires…”

Furries: Do you like your fursona? Do you have higher self-esteem, and feel happier and better with it?

Or do you represent “bestial desires” of a “grotesque, writhing animal-thing?” Are you fundamentally bad, and need to restrain what you are inside?

The 1960’s brought an alternative movement of self-esteem, dedicated to boosting “unconditional positive regard” for the self. Education and public policy has now become deeply supportive for this. But there are dissidents to this, too. Meet Roy Baumeister.

ego
Read the rest of this entry »

5 comments
May 24, 2014

Talking animals topic betrays culture-blind critics

by Patch O'Furr

Realistic (left) and anthropomorphic (right) illustrations for research study

Frontiers in Psychology research study illustrates realistic and anthropomorphic animals

Last year, a Flayrah news article drew outsiders who had never encountered Furries.
One wrote: “You all need therapy!”
I answered: “This IS our therapy, silly!”

Friends at Flayrah just reminded me about it. Dronon posted:

Chair of the Canadian Education Committee thinks that talking animals in children’s books are detrimental to education. …Aw darnit, scratch that – It’s a fake, satirical article. Well done!

Fred answered:

Some believe that the report of the Chinese banning “Alice in Wonderland” in 1931 because “talking animals are false” is an urban legend. Nobody can find such a law as having been passed.

Rakuen Growlithe added:

Dronon, there’s actually a bit of truth underlying the satire.

The topic led me to find that, although it may be satirized… yes, it has some truth. Read the rest of this entry »

4 comments
May 22, 2014

Renegade fursuiting is BEST fursuiting: chat with Sakura Fox – Part 3

by Patch O'Furr

sakura2
Continued from Part 1 and Part 2: Sakura fox tells more about “renegade fursuiting” in public. I’ve previously written about “Street fursuiting”. Sakura’s convention panels and journals about it are recommended reading (see bottom.)

Patch:
I think public suiting is way better for candid photos than conventions, because it’s outside of predictable space. I love seeing surprised bystanders, or people drawn into furriness for the first time! Do you end up with a lot of photos afterward? Do you get photos taken by people you bring, or find them from searching randomly on the web? Do you have a favorite photo moment?

Has media ever picked you as an attraction to highlight? (It seems to happen to our meets a lot when San Francisco furries do street fairs. Even just to add incidental color to a story.)

Sakura:
Agreed! Photos from public events are always very dynamic and full of surprise.
Read the rest of this entry »

Leave a comment