/flashbacks to 2019

[anghraine]

I'm appalled about the Hugo Award situation, and sorry for people who were arbitrarily declared ineligible and for the winners who now have to doubt the entire process that got them their awards.

But also, it's a little bit funny that literally the same people who were throwing absolute tantrums over AO3 users joking about winning a fraction of a Hugo and breathing down the OTW's neck about it are now wringing their hands about how nobody has any ability to do anything, now or ever, about a Hugo Award when the vote calculations are pretty blatantly fraudulent.

Like, it's critically important that the Hugo Award trademark be protected from random AO3 users. But also there's no intention or possibility of protecting it, actually. Um???

Comments

[chestnut_pod]

Honestly, though. Can't wait for the new slew of Hugo merchandise, now that it's been confirmed that actually, WSFS has no control over the mark at all and couldn't possibly enforce it!

[anghraine]

It's wild that so many people seemed to think we'd just forget!

[lizbee]

But also, it's a little bit funny that literally the same people who were throwing absolute tantrums over AO3 users joking about winning a fraction of a Hugo and breathing down the OTW's neck about it are now wringing their hands about how nobody has any ability to do anything, now or ever, about a Hugo Award when the vote calculations are pretty blatantly fraudulent.

And also many of the same people saw no problem at all with the awards ceremony being sponsored by Raytheon (which is not a problem to the same degree as fraudulent votes, but maybe points? at a cultural problem? which has gone completely unaddressed?)

[anghraine]

Yes, for sure! And it goes way back—over on bsky, Denise has been going through the minutes of various meetings over the years and 1987's minutes have an aside about one of the members showing up in an SS uniform.

The mixture of incompetence and turbowtf for literal decades is mind-boggling.

[lizbee]

I very quietly stopped supporting the Hugos or WorldCon after 2021, but every year I think, "Maybe it's getting better?" And every year they find a brand new way to tell me, no.

[anghraine]

Yeah. :\

Earlier, I was thinking of possibly getting a membership for the Seattle Worldcon (I live in the same state and it will probably never get closer to home for me), but it's impossible to support them as things are.