[SUBMITTED 16/1/19] Dead Gay

[Candlewhisper Archive]

THIRD DRAFT:

TITLE:

Dead Gay

VALIDITY:

Homosexuality illegal, NO absence of copyright
Adult


DESCRIPTION:

Shock! Horror! Posthumously unearthed diaries have revealed that @@randommalename@@, a beloved composer of patriotic big band anthems, was secretly homosexual and had engaged in illegal homosexual relations. In retrospect, the titles of some of his compositions (such as "I Stand Behind The Sky", "Come on, Christopher" and "Bent But Unbroken") may have contained clues to this.

OPTION ONE

"So, @@surname(1)@@ was a deviant, eh?" muses Minister of Standardising Deviation, @@randomname@@. "If he was a kinky voyeur or a sexual predator, there'd be no question about rejecting his works. Being queer is as bad as those things, so we have to adopt the same attitude. Condemn him, ban his works, bury him in an unmarked grave, and salt the earth. Damn his filthy perversions!"

OUTCOME:

hummers must be careful about what comes out of their mouth


OPTION TWO

"That's not enough," interjects your Minister for Cultural Heterogeneity. "The entire genre of big band music is likely harbouring other closet homosexuals. We must ban that genre. In fact, we must ban any genre of music that is revealed to have homosexual influences in it. Straight music only, that is the path to cultural purity."

OUTCOME:

all music has been banned


OPTION THREE

"I'm not sure why I should be penalised for someone else's perversions," complains @@malerandomname@@, president of fan society The Big Band of Brothers. "For sure, gays or their inheritors should no longer be allowed to profit from fame, but we should still get to play their music. Seize all his compositions and place them in the public domain, and we get the right combination of punishment and preservation of culture."

OUTCOME:

the government maintains a public access archive of camp disco music


OPTION FOUR

"Look... if someone as well-respected as @@randomname(1)@@ turned out to be gay, then maybe not all gays are so bad," suggests your uncle, without looking up from his Musical Revue Monthly magazine. "He was decent enough to keep his private life private. Maybe we should say that people should be allowed to be queer if they want, as long as they don't make a song and dance about it. Ooh, look, they're talking about bringing Avenue Cute to @@CAPITAL@@. How fabulous!"

OUTCOME:

when it comes to real men it takes one to know one

SECOND DRAFT:

TITLE:

Dead Gay

VALIDITY:

Homosexuality illegal
Adult


DESCRIPTION:

Shock! Horror! Posthumously unearthed diaries have revealed that @@randommalename@@, a beloved composer of patriotic big band anthems, was secretly homosexual and had engaged in illegal homosexual relations. In retrospect, the titles of some of his compositions (such as "I Stand Behind The Sky", "Come on, Christopher" and "Bent But Unbroken") may have contained clues to this.

OPTION ONE

"So, @@surname(1)@@ was a deviant, eh?" muses Minister of Standardising Deviation, @@randomname@@. "If he was a kinky voyeur or a sexual predator, there'd be no question about rejecting his works. Being queer is as bad as those things, so we have to adopt the same attitude. Condemn him, ban his works, bury him in an unmarked grave, and salt the earth. Damn his filthy perversions!"

OUTCOME:

hummers must be careful about what comes out of their mouth


OPTION TWO

"That's not enough," interjects your Minister for Cultural Heterogeneity. "The entire genre of big band music is likely harbouring other closet homosexuals. We must ban that genre. In fact, we must ban any genre of music that is revealed to have homosexual influences in it. Straight music only, that is the path to cultural purity."


OUTCOME:

all music has been banned



OPTION THREE

"Look... if someone as well-respected as @@randomname(1)@@ turned out to be gay, then maybe not all gays are so bad," suggests your uncle, without looking up from his Musical Revue Monthly magazine. "He was decent enough to keep his private life private. Maybe we should say that people should be allowed to be queer if they want, as long as they don't make a song and dance about it. Ooh, look, they're talking about bringing Avenue Cute to @@CAPITAL@@. How fabulous!"

OUTCOME:

when it comes to real men it takes one to know one


OPTION FOUR

"Is anyone else wondering if there might be homosexuals hidden all around us?" asks Matt Hopkins, police Director of Probes and Deep Investigations, narrowing his eyes and gripping his truncheon suspiciously. "The possibility of closeted perverts all around makes me feel sick. We need a dedicated police force to investigate those of suspected aberrant sexuality. As for the punishment - burn them at the stake. Let unclean flesh turn to ash."

OUTCOME:

everyone loves a flaming homosexual

FIRST DRAFT:

TITLE:

Dead Gay

VALIDITY:

Homosexuality illegal
Adult


DESCRIPTION:

Shock! Horror! Posthumously unearthed diaries have revealed that @@randommalename@@, a beloved composer of patriotic big band anthems, was secretly homosexual. In retrospect, the titles of some of his compositions (such as "I Kiss The Sky", "A Rainbow Over @@NAME@@" and "Bent But Unbroken") may have contained a clue to this.

OPTION ONE

"So, @@surname(1)@@ was a deviant, eh?" muses Minister of Purity, @@randomname@@. "If he was a kiddy fiddler or a sexual predator, there'd be no question about rejecting his works. Being queer is as bad as those things, so we have to adopt the same attitude. Condemn him, ban his works, bury him in an unmarked grave, and salt the earth. Damn his filthy perversions!"

OUTCOME:

hummers must be careful about what comes out of their mouth


OPTION TWO

"That's not enough," interjects your Minister for Culture. "The entire genre of big band music is likely harbouring other closet homosexuals. We must ban that genre. In fact, we must ban any genre of music that is revealed to have homosexual influences in it. Straight music only, that is the path to cultural purity."


OUTCOME:

all music has been banned



OPTION THREE

"Look... if someone as well-respected as @@randomname(1)@@ turned out to be gay, then maybe not all gays are so bad," suggests your uncle, without looking up from his Musical Revue Monthly Review magazine. "He was decent enough to keep his private life private. Maybe we should say that people should be allowed to be queer if they want, as long as they don't make a song and dance about it. Ooh, look, they're talking about bringing Avenue Cute to @@CAPITAL@@. How fabulous!"

OUTCOME:

when it comes to real men it takes one to know one

[Jutsa]

I envy you your issues, CWA. Brilliant.

[Hediacrana]

Is this Tchaikovsky-inspired? I remember reading once that his Romeo and Juliet work possibly reflects his own experiences of forbidden love.

That as an aside; it looks good to me and I don't really have suggestions for improvement. Apart from the thought that maybe it would be interesting to have some zealot investigating @@Leader@@'s speeches for clues to the same effect.

[The Sherpa Empire]

all music has been banned

Best effect line.

[Candlewhisper Archive]

Is this Tchaikovsky-inspired? I remember reading once that his Romeo and Juliet work possibly reflects his own experiences of forbidden love.

Absolutely, yes. Specifically the assertion by Putin that Russia can't be homophobic because they love Tchaikovsky.

That as an aside; it looks good to me and I don't really have suggestions for improvement. Apart from the thought that maybe it would be interesting to have some zealot investigating @@Leader@@'s speeches for clues to the same effect.

Hmm... that's potentially amusing. Maybe something the lines of a witchfinder general, looking for homosexuals, with the speaker acting suspicious of LEADER? Plenty of wordplay opportunity there with faggots, rooting out, flaming homosexuals. Will think on that.

[Candlewhisper Archive]

Okay, option 4 added in second draft. On second thoughts, steered away from joking around "faggot", as it's pretty offensive as slurs go, and the joke would be circular and weak anyway, given the (probably discredited) theories about the slur's etymology being related to burning gay people.

[Valentine Z]

all music has been banned

Best effect line.

I'm just scared that one day we will actually go there and ban all forms of music just because of one incident.

For the issue itself, I like it so far! I think there could be another option to go further than Option 3? Maybe instead of just tolerating homosexuals, maybe encourage it. Though... saying this doesn't make much sense compared to what I have in mind.

[Australian rePublic]

Option 3- don't you think the effect line makes light of burning people alive?

[The Free Joy State]

all music has been banned

Best effect line.

I agree. That effect line made me laugh.

Concerned about the use of the phrase "kiddy fiddler" in an issue. It may be just me, but I don't like the idea of referencing paedophilia in an issue this overtly at all. I worry it opens the door to "it was done there, why not in my issue" arguments.

I'd personally be happier if that was cut and the line was rendered "if he was a sexual predator".

EDIT: Other than that concern, really love this issue.

[Gnejs]

Funny stuff right there. Impressive that you can keep it up and maintain quality.

[Candlewhisper Archive]

I'm just scared that one day we will actually go there and ban all forms of music just because of one incident.

My main worry is that new bans require new policies generally, and there's a ton of issues that would need a validity check against that ban. Still, will worry about that if we get there.

For the issue itself, I like it so far! I think there could be another option to go further than Option 3? Maybe instead of just tolerating homosexuals, maybe encourage it. Though... saying this doesn't make much sense compared to what I have in mind.

That's a great thought, and did consider that. What swayed me away was player population demographics and selection bias. That is, to get to this issue you need to be a nation that has actively chosen to ban homosexuality. That in mind, we probably don't need to present more than one option that reverses this position, whereas options that reinforce or modify that position need to have a greater presence.

[Candlewhisper Archive]

Concerned about the use of the phrase "kiddy fiddler" in an issue. It may be just me, but I don't like the idea of referencing paedophilia in an issue this overtly at all. I worry it opens the door to "it was done there, why not in my issue" arguments.

Yeah, honestly the line in my head was "if he was a pedo or a rapist", but obviously that would have been too much.

I'll change it to a "kinky voyeur or a sexual predator". Will modify draft 2 rather than putting a new draft for that change.

[Candlewhisper Archive]

Funny stuff right there. Impressive that you can keep it up and maintain quality.

Viagra, mate.

[Caracasus]

Perhaps refer to the musical theater loving uncle as a 'confirmed batchelor' as that tended to be the expression used to describe those chaps who never seemed to settle down with a woman, but chose instead to share their dwellings with a dear friend from school. It'd be in keeping with his general outlook on stuff as presented. A sort of don't ask don't tell attitude.

[Candlewhisper Archive]

Perhaps refer to the musical theater loving uncle as a 'confirmed batchelor' as that tended to be the expression used to describe those chaps who never seemed to settle down with a woman, but chose instead to share their dwellings with a dear friend from school. It'd be in keeping with his general outlook on stuff as presented. A sort of don't ask don't tell attitude.

Could do that, though I'm not sure that's needed: it's pretty apparent already that he's secretly gay.

[Caracasus]

Perhaps refer to the musical theater loving uncle as a 'confirmed batchelor' as that tended to be the expression used to describe those chaps who never seemed to settle down with a woman, but chose instead to share their dwellings with a dear friend from school. It'd be in keeping with his general outlook on stuff as presented. A sort of don't ask don't tell attitude.

Could do that, though I'm not sure that's needed: it's pretty apparent already that he's secretly gay.

Oh yeah, apologies I wasn't thinking that the character's sexuallity needed telegraphing any more, merely that it'd add more authenticity to the character's situation and what he's calling for. Legalization of the status quo.

I'd also suggest making it clear that the issue isn't his homosexuality, it's that he emgaged in homosexual acts. Perhaps have it that he had a gay lover. Even in real life seriously anti gay countries, homosexuality is very rarely illegal on paper. Rather taking part in homosexual acts is the criminal offense.

[Candlewhisper Archive]

Could do that, though I'm not sure that's needed: it's pretty apparent already that he's secretly gay.

Oh yeah, apologies I wasn't thinking that the character's sexuallity needed telegraphing any more, merely that it'd add more authenticity to the character's situation and what he's calling for. Legalization of the status quo.

I'd also suggest making it clear that the issue isn't his homosexuality, it's that he emgaged in homosexual acts. Perhaps have it that he had a gay lover. Even in real life seriously anti gay countries, homosexuality is very rarely illegal on paper. Rather taking part in homosexual acts is the criminal offense.

Fair point. Have added "and had engaged in illegal homosexual relations."

[Candlewhisper Archive]

Last call on this one. Any other thoughts, anyone?

Have tweaked draft 2 minimally, to give the speakers better job titles. Also changed some of the song titles in the opening, and had the policeman (now male) grip his truncheon.

[Sacara]

I really like this issue. It's a fun premise, and we need more issues for the Heterosexual policy. Good job.

[Trotterdam]

I wonder why artists turning out to be bad people should lead to boycotting their art, if it was actually good. I mean, just that you were bad doesn't mean that everything you did was bad. Maybe there'd be an issue about not wanting disgraced artists to continue making money off their fame (though that's not so much of an issue posthumously), but that can be solved by forcibly releasing the works into the public domain.

[Chan Island]

I wonder why artists turning out to be bad people should lead to boycotting their art, if it was actually good. I mean, just that you were bad doesn't mean that everything you did was bad. Maybe there'd be an issue about not wanting disgraced artists to continue making money off their fame (though that's not so much of an issue posthumously), but that can be solved by forcibly releasing the works into the public domain.

These are my thoughts too. Maybe the nation could adopt a kind of "well, we're not all perfect so let's enjoy the music but condemn the man" or some variation around it. A 1984 rewriting of history to make it seem like the composer was straight and destroying the journals is a particularly sinister variation that comes to mind.

[Sacara]

I can see the points of the above two comments, and I think the addditom a revisionist option would be okay, but I like the issue as it is. If this did happen, especially in a society that goes as far to ban homosexual marriage, this would utterly ruin his reputation, hence the issue. I think it’s solid as is, personally.

[Hediacrana]

FWIIW, I also think this is quite nice just as is.

[Candlewhisper Archive]

I wonder why artists turning out to be bad people should lead to boycotting their art, if it was actually good. I mean, just that you were bad doesn't mean that everything you did was bad. Maybe there'd be an issue about not wanting disgraced artists to continue making money off their fame (though that's not so much of an issue posthumously), but that can be solved by forcibly releasing the works into the public domain.

Fair point, but real life seems to indicate that when someone is exposed for being, for example, a paedophile or rapist that tends to take their work out of circulation pretty rapidly. For example, while nobody has censored Gary Glitter, the revelation that he was a kiddy fiddler dropped his airplay down to zero in a matter of weeks. Likewise, you don't hear Lostprophets on rock stations any more, and Last Train Home remains a hell of a good tune, just one sung by a really unpleasant person.

Forcing into the public domain isn't a bad idea as an option, likewise the rewriting of history, but I wouldn't want five options. Which option would you replace, do you think? Option 2 could possibly go, though I do like the "all music has been banned" outcome. Option 4 is probably less direct in addressing the issue, and could also be cut.

Thoughts?

[Trotterdam]

Fair point, but real life seems to indicate that when someone is exposed for being, for example, a paedophile or rapist that tends to take their work out of circulation pretty rapidly. For example, while nobody has censored Gary Glitter, the revelation that he was a kiddy fiddler dropped his airplay down to zero in a matter of weeks. Likewise, you don't hear Lostprophets on rock stations any more, and Last Train Home remains a hell of a good tune, just one sung by a really unpleasant person.

I guess. I'm really pretty clueless about modern pop music. What's on my mind is a controversy in classical music that's vaguely similar, but not really the same.

Option 4 is probably less direct in addressing the issue, and could also be cut.

Yeah, option 4 does seem pretty redundant. It's mostly affirming what the nation has already decided (homosexuality bad), and just being draconian about it is covered by option 1.

If you do want something like option 4, it should at least be made more relevant to the narrative, as in "how did we not catch that this guy was homosexual before he died, given those hints in his song lyrics" - which would also tie it into option 2.