It seems that
PZ Myers has found a reason why Vox Day is going after Scalzi so much. Scalzi is about to end his term as president of the president of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.
Vox is running for president himself and he's running Scalzi down in the process. Myers links to a blog of a SFWA member who is having
none of it.The first person to announce his candidacy for SFWA president was Theodore Beale, aka Vox Day. Steven Gould has also tossed his hat into the ring. I knew Gould as the author of Jumper, among other things, and we’re on at least one mailing list together. Beale’s name was vaguely familiar, but I couldn’t remember where I had heard it. So I went looking…
What I found raised some concerns.
Boy howdy! Yeah. He lists what he's found and he's got every reason to be concerned!
Among the many things listed:
Beale also has a history of referring to current SFWA president John Scalzi as “McRapey.” In case that was too subtle, he also titled his first such post John Scalzi is a Rapist. (Beale also talks about how rapists are more likely to vote Democratic, because one third of all forcible rapists are black.)
I wonder if the SFWA will be concerned that their current president is an admitted rapist or if they’ll take the approach towards him that NOW and the other feminist groups did towards Bill Clinton. Of course, unlike Scalzi, Clinton never admitted to being a rapist … Wait, he claims his confession is satire? Well, that might fool anyone unfamiliar with the concept of blown cover as cover.
Yeah. Remember Vox's own views on rape?
Jim concludes:
The president of SFWA has to be able to work with others on the board and within the organization. I’ve seen nothing to suggest his ability to do this, particularly when others disagree with him. Nor do I trust him to treat members with respect, particularly if those members happen to have the “wrong” chromosomal pair.
As president, Beale would be the public face of the organization. He would have to work with a board made of up people who might not be white or male or straight, and who might not always agree with him. And my sense is that this is a disaster waiting to happen.