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This is just adorable.
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Submitted by Fred Patten, Furry’s favorite historian and reviewer.

Civilized Beasts, Poetry Anthology, volume II, editor-in-chief Laura Govednik. Foreword by Jonathan Thurston Howl.
Manvil, TX, Weasel Press, August 2017, trade paperback, $8.00 (126 pages).

Well, this is a bargain. The 2015 Edition, volume I, was $8.99 for only 86 pages. This is only $8.00 for 126 pages. Let’s hope this trend continues.

This poetry anthology contains 84 poems of mostly one page or less. Several authors have two or more poems. There are many familiar furry fan names among the poets: Makyo, BanWynn Oakshadow, Thurston Howl, Televassi, Donald Jacob Uitvlugt, Thomas “Faux” Steele, Altivo Otero, Searska GreyRaven, Dwale, and Frances Pauli, among others. It is another charity for the Wildlife Conservation Society. “All proceeds from this anthology go towards the Wildlife Conservation Society.”

The poetry ranges from classic couplets to scintillating stanzas; from imaginative iambic pentameters to sparkling sonnets; from fantasy free verse to honorable haiku. (But do “rules” and “school” really rhyme?) The poems are divided by animal species: “The Carnival of Canids”, “The Festival of Felines”, “The Bolero of the Beasts”, “The Rally of the Rodents (and Rabbits)”, “The Aria of the Avians”, “The Circus of the Scales and Fins”, “The Interlude of the Insects and Arachnids”, and “The Menagerie’s March”.

As with the first volume, these are mostly not poems about anthropomorphized animals. They are more about the beauties of nature, or the probable thoughts of real dogs, cats, horses, deer, and others. In fact, only one is clearly about an anthropomorphic animal: “The Natural Order Disordered” by J. J. Steinfeld.

“What more evidence do you need?”

the well-groomed articulate fox says

to the slovenly tongue-tied hunter

with the newly-purchased rifle.

[excerpt]

Except for featuring a fox rather than a rabbit, it reminds me of an old Warner Bros. cartoon.

Anyhow, whether the animals – that’s any beast that isn’t a vegetable or a mineral – are anthropomorphized or not, for only $8.00, how can you go wrong? The cover by Darkomi is worth $8.00 by itself. And it’s for the Wildlife Conservation Society. Buy copies to send to your relatives and friends (like my sister did).

Full disclosure: I have two poems in this.

– Fred Patten

• Buy on Weasel Press

Like the article? It takes a lot of effort to share these. Please consider supporting Dogpatch Press on Patreon.  You can access exclusive stuff for just $1, or get Con*Tact Caffeine Soap as a reward.  They’re a popular furry business seen in dealer dens. Be an extra-perky patron – or just order direct from Con*Tact.

Cucumber Quest is a popular on-line fantasy adventure comic for young readers, written and illustrated by Gigi D.G. Now it’s been assembled by First Second into a new full-color graphic novel, Cucumber Quest: The Doughnut Kingdom. It goes like this: “What happens when an evil queen gets her hands on an ancient force of destruction? World domination, obviously. The seven kingdoms of Dreamside need a legendary hero. Instead, they’ll have to settle for Cucumber, a nerdy magician who just wants to go to school. As destiny would have it, he and his way more heroic sister, Almond, must now seek the Dream Sword, the only weapon powerful enough to defeat Queen Cordelia’s Nightmare Knight. Can these bunny siblings really save the world in its darkest hour? Sure, why not?” The first volume is available now, in hardcover or trade paperback.

image c. 2017 First Second

Shut up and take my money. "Rivals of Aether is an indie fighting game set in a world where warring civilizations summon the power of fire, water, air, and earth. Untangle the mysterious conflicts of the planet Aether in Story Mode or take your combat skills online and challenge your friends across the world."
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Hello Everyone!

We open this week's show with a discussion of a recent article in the New York Times concerning the rise of anxiety amongst American youth. We look at recent studies done that try to explain the sources of anxiety that we face in the modern day, as well as ways we can work to counteract it in our everyday lives.

Our main topic is on Communication Mismatches. After a discussion in our Telegram group concerning relationships where communication styles are not complementary (especially in regard to Nonviolent Communication), we wanted to go over this in more detail. What are the more common types of communication styles, how can they be improved on, and what do you do in a relationship where the communication styles are so different the relationship turns combative more often than not.

We close out the show with a question on breaking up. A younger questioner is blocked from talking to his boyfriend by potentially homophobic parents. Should he break up or not? 

For more information, including a list of topics, see our Show Notes for this episode.

Thanks and, as always, be well!

FA 091 Communication / NVC ability Mismatches - How bad is YOUR anxiety? How great are you at talking? Is young love forever? All this, and more, on this week's Feral Attraction!

Hello, Papabear.

Well,I want too say that I have a problem with my fathers,I`m gay and My fathers are very strict and they are too awful with this things and I don`t know if I can say them that I`m gay or what

I want they too still love but I dont know what to do

AGH!! I really need your help,pretty please

I already have my beautiful boyfriend

please ,answer me the most fast you can

Kiss and hugs papa bear

Bye!

Sater (age 17, Mexico)

* * *

Dear Sater,

Apologies for the slow reply. I am still behind on my letters.

Being gay in the USA is difficult, but I have heard it is even more challenging in Mexico because of the culture there. Anyway, my advice to you is that you need to find a circle of supporters. I would not advise you to try coming out to your father all on your own. You need help and resources.

You don't say where you live, specifically, but if you are near Mexico City that would be lucky because, in Mexico, that is where you will find the most community and government support. I recommend you do a little research and contact some people for advice in your native land. Here is a helpful link: https://www.angloinfo.com/how-to/mexico/mexico-city/family/lgbt/lgbttti-organizations that provides everything from legal help to community information.

Hope this helps!

Take Care,
Papabear

Tempo (Tempe O’Kun) is a furry author in North Dakota.

Art: Rattusdingus

~ ~ ~

If you support white supremacy…

If you play dress-up in the uniforms of genocide…

If you mock people who just want the same rights you enjoy…

…you don’t belong here. Not in my fandom. Not in my country. Not in my world. You cannot possibly play the victim enough for me to consider your murderous opinions valid. So cry all you want, but we’ll be here in the furry fandom having fun without you.

To the rest of you, to actual furries: this is our fandom, a place on the Internet that’s nobody’s but ours. We decide who gets to play here, and what the rules are. The offline world’s pretty messed up right now, but kicking the Nazis out of furry is a concrete, realistic, and powerful move toward justice.

I’M JUST HERE FOR THE TALKING ANIMALS

Let me tell you why to care.

I had one grandfather flee Germany before WWII and another fight his way in during it. Both were white, blue-eyed, straight Christians—yet they opposed Nazism in every form it took, because they believed every person had worth. They are dead and cannot tell you why Nazism isn’t safe to ignore. They are dead and I’d be a coward if I didn’t give you the lessons they paid for in blood spilled and horror witnessed. For them, I strive never to be a coward.

Until last year, I tried not to “bring politics” into furry. I consider the fandom a place for healthy escapism. But you can only afford to be “non-political” so long as the things you care about are safe. I’m making an exception because of these people we’ve been excusing in our fandom, who post comics crying about how black people want equality, who whine that Nazis “should be tolerated.” No. They are committing real-life terror attacks, literally murdering people on the street in the name of Trump. We would not allow open ISIS supporters here—we cannot allow neo-Nazis and KKK types here.

Sociologists call this problem a “tolerance paradox”—if you allow toxic people to twist your group’s tolerance to condone their hate, your group becomes less tolerant overall. Then more and more moderate people are driven out until only the hate group remains, having eaten your group from the inside out. This isn’t a flaw with tolerance. True tolerance is active. It’s sticking up for people with less power, attesting to their right to be different. Passively letting genocidal bullies take over your fandom others isn’t tolerance—it’s being a lazy jerk.

Charlottesville is a wake-up call to any furry who thought Nazifur was harmless make-believe. Anybody who sticks with Nazifurs now is showing you their true character. Publicly associating with that community after the terror attacks means you’re okay with what they did, that it’s no big deal to you.

CAN’T WE JUST GET ALONG?

I believe in tolerance. We can’t live in harmony with people who want to kill us. “Tolerating intolerance” isn’t tolerance at all, it’s putting your comfort above somebody else’s safety.

I believe in compassion. You do not serve the cause of compassion if you let murderous thugs gain power. Bullies rely on our desire for peace and tolerance, which is why the cry about being persecuted when called out for persecuting others.

I believe in diversity. The fandom is lucky to have people from diverse backgrounds, and we benefit from their unique perspectives when solving problems. But listening to different viewpoints only makes sense when both sides have merits. There’s no merit to “let’s kill everybody who’s a different race/orientation/religion than me.” What would a compromise there even look like? Only killing some of those groups? Idiocy. It’s treating self-described wannabe serial killers as having a legitimate philosophy we should learn from. Again, no furries have argued to me we should “just get along” with ISIS.

I believe in harmless fun. But Nazis are murdering people in the streets because we’ve been lulled into thinking it’s a weird fetish we shouldn’t kink-shame. It’s not. It’s literally the idea we should murder everyone who disagrees with white supremacism.

I believe people can change—some already are. And I spent months talking to folks in that community. But, for all their claims of being reasonable and logical, I got led around and around, having every logical fallacy thrown at me in the hopes of tiring me out and having me slip up so they could claim victory.

BUT BOTH SIDES!

Black Lives Matters is not shutting down furry cons. Feminists are not shutting down furry cons. Communists are not shutting down furry cons. Anti-fascists are not shutting down furry cons, doxxing, swatting, or costing $10,000s in legal fees. Nazis are. Our minds love binary opposites, but we can find no symmetry here. Pretending some balancing force exists only keeps us from confronting the problem, since it allows us to tell ourselves the two will cancel out without our having to do anything. I wish.

The time for smugly saying “what about?” and “both sides!” or “I never see it…” or “it doesn’t affect me!” is over. Nazis love these supposedly “centrist” excuses. Refusing to condemn Nazis doesn’t make you a savvy centrist. It doesn’t even make you coolly detached. Let me tell you about apathy. Apathy is fearful rationalization. Apathy is an emotional defense mechanism—and not a healthy one.

“Everything’s fine…” Apathy purrs in addictive tones. “Because if it weren’t fine, you couldn’t justify doing nothing. You’d have to Do Something. And where would you start? It’s such a complicated mess. And ya might fail. That would suck. And you might look stupid for changing your mind. Better to do nothing. Better to crouch here with me, between good and evil, and hope that’s enough to save your pride and your life. It’s fine. Both extremes are the same, anyway. They have to be, right? They’ll cancel out. +1 and -1 equals zero. We’re smart here in the middle. Everyone else is just stupid. That’s why they’re worked up. It’s fine. You couldn’t change anything anyway. Everything’s fine…”

But it’s not fine. We are past the point where you can be “not into politics.” Every furry in every nation is responsible for who we are as a fandom. Stand up. Either you oppose white supremacy in the fandom or you’re fine with it. (No, I’m not over-simplifying. There are literally just two positions. You either believe some races as sub-human or you don’t.)

And you can’t just wait for it to blow over. This isn’t just another fandom spat. It’s not “just online drama” when real-life people are being murdered. The Nazis in the fandom and the ones out marching with torches are the same people. They visit Stormfront, worship Trump, make death and rape threats to minority and female furries, and participate in the coordinated attacks. Some of them even traveled to Charlottesville to join in the terrorist attacks.

If you’re different, it’s their stated goal to literally murder you—no matter how much they say it’s for the lolz. They aren’t real furries.

WHY DO THEY WANT TO BE NAZIS ANYWAY?

Basically: because it filled an emotional void for them, at least in the beginning.

In another life, I worked in a drug rehab center. Hate’s like a drug. It pumps you up, makes you feel sure of yourself, gives you a rush of endorphins. It’s a powerful neurochemical response, designed to help you fight off physical threats. And you can get hooked on it. It follows the same pattern as any other addiction. Back in rehab, we called it “the only addict story.”

– First, you think you can use it casually, socially. You’re just playing around. You can quit whenever. Whoever supplies you frames it as users versus people not in on the fun. You feel like you’re one of the cool kids. (In the case of hate, we’re talking about “non-PC” memes and jokes about minorities and women. If you’re older: Fox News and talk radio.

– Then your brain acclimates to those endorphins. You need more to get the same rush. you think you’re clever enough to outsmart their own brain chemistry. Nobody has ever succeeded. (Moving on to harder stuff: racist articles on InfoWars, Breitbart, Stormfront—racist videos on YouTube.)

– Next, your brain acclimates so much, you feel like shit at your natural endorphin baseline. You start building your day around the fix. You keep it on you. You sneak a little during other activities. (If you’re addicted to hate, you bust out your phone and cruise the Nazi image boards or chats. Older folks just leave Fox News on all day.)

– Finally, your friends and family start to notice you’re addicted and freak out. They try to get you to stop using. So you hang out almost exclusively with the one group who won’t ask you to quit: other addicts. You tell everybody who’ll listen that you’re a rebel, because really you’re surrendering control. On some level, you know this is a bad move, so you shut yourself away from anything that makes you feel bad about using so you don’t have to think about it. (You start only listening to news sources that validate your hate, no matter how flimsy or convoluted the logic has to be to do that.)

– Then you’re really in a bind. The cool stuff in your life starts falling apart, so you’re depressed and crave fixes even harder. People start really taking advantage of you, since you’ve got nobody reliable to fall back on. Plus, you’re super easy to manipulate since you’ve built your identity around the fix and your brain chemistry is all over the place. (You get roped into doing stuff the “old you” would’ve rejected because it’s stupid or fucking evil—online harassment, doxxing, swatting, and, in the case of our own local Nazifurs, actual real-life terrorist attacks.)

Some asshole always benefits from these latter stages, and it’s never you. Like I said, this is the only way addiction goes down. Ruthless people who know how this goes down can get money, willing pawns, or heck even cult members by hooking vulnerable people. Addiction is vital to recruiting terrorists, but, since we don’t think of hate like a drug, it can seem like only someone inhuman to start with could be radicalized. Cult leaders punish those who drop out or speak up. Again, you don’t see antifa furries doxxing people. Remember: the human mind is wired to see mirror opposites, even when none exist—just like it’s wired to see faces in the clouds or the moon.

I don’t hate addicts. If I did, I never would’ve gotten into the business. I feel bad for them—they’re using to offset something they’re not getting in their lives. But you can’t let addicts run the show. Eventually, nothing is important as their next fix. Not their job. Not their family. Not their friends. Not another human life.

Thing is, you can’t force an addict to get clean. Even if you lock them away from their fix (and other potential fixes) for a few months —i.e. rehab— so their brain chemistry normalizes and they build new habits, they’ll fall back into addiction unless they fix the underlying emotional problem they had. Only they can decide to do that.

In the case of Nazifurs, I’ve seen the same underlying causes a lot. These sync up pretty well to other terror groups.

1) They don’t feel as powerful as they think they’re supposed to. You see a lot of young men there because we have this idea in society that men should be impossibly tough, strong, and aggressive. It’s called toxic masculinity. It’s also why Nazis idealize masculinity and get really threatened by trans folks, powerful women, gays, and anybody else who doesn’t fit into traditional gender roles. Hence why you see so much “SWJ” hate. Ever notice why so many GamerGaters got drawn into voting for a pseudo-manly strongman and now into Nazism?

Society is more accepting than ever before. We’re starting to see gender and race not as absolute categories, but as spectrums. This is threatening to the almost uniformly white and male Nazifurs because they feel like they’ve had power stolen from them. They throw a tantrum when they’re not the star of the show—when we get female Ghostbusters or a black gunslinger or a queer X-wing pilot. The openly-idiotic doublethink of “white genocide” resonants with Nazifurs, since it justifies horrible acts since you’re suddenly the victim.

2) They feel like they don’t fit in. Remember being a teenager? Yeah, pretty much any of those reasons. Ever wonder why there are non-white Nazifurs? Because they don’t feel American enough (or whatever country), and white nationalism sold to them as a way to be more so. Of course, they’re still brown, so they can fall out of favor with their new “community” dangerously fast.

3) They have a mental condition —anxiety, depression, et cetera— and are “hacking” their brain chemistry with endorphin rushes. We call this self-medicating. (We all self-medicate to some degree, relaxing meditation or video games or whatever. When it’s healthy, we call it a “coping skill.” Or, you know, getting real meds from an actual doctor. That’s also better.) But hate is really difficult to manage, even by drug standards. Mental illnesses get worse, not better, when you’re pissed off all the time and not learning to deal with your problems.

You’re probably feeling bad for Nazifurs. You should. That means you have empathy. Being an addict of any kind sucks, but being radicalized with hate is super insidious because there’s no physical external drug to blame or even notice—just your own brain chemicals. Pity these guys. But don’t let them use that pity to manipulate you: deflections, excuses, playing the victim. (Addicts quickly learn to be master manipulators, helped by the fact that you’re nothing compared to the craving.) Don’t let them off the hook. They’re not smoking pot. They’re addicted to being pissed off—pissed off that Jews and black people are alive. That’s really dangerous, because the brain is wired for violent confrontation, not peaceful cooperation, when doped up on hate chemicals.

Here’s the problem: we can’t lock Nazifurs up to break their habit. We can only lock them out. And we should. They don’t have the right to hurt people. Letting addicts hurt others only pushes them deeper, because guilt catches up to them when they’re not using, so they use more. The good news is the furry fandom isn’t the entire world, so their family and real-life friends may notice they got booted from that talking animal thing the liked. Or they might have to get arrested. Addiction sucks like that. In the meantime: fandom quarantine is best for everyone. Seriously, they’re fucking around with their brains and obsessing over the idea of murdering people.

WHAT CAN I EVEN DO?

First off, follow AltFurryBlocker on Twitter. Install the blocklist. Even if you don’t normally like blocklists. Even if you aren’t seeing the problem on your feed. The more regular furries who use it, the quieter the Nazifurs get. They may not have targeted you, but you’re helping to protect women and minorities in the fandom. Right now it’s just a basic blocklist, but they’re updating it into an auto-updating one that adds/removes accounts as Nazifurs make alt accounts or have changes of heart.

Next, learn about how fascist groups work. For those who haven’t seen it yet, this short video is a very good analysis of how fascist groups work.

Don’t be scared off by the creepy preview image.

After that, talk to your friends. Tell them you can’t believe this bullshit. If they make shitty racist jokes, remind them who they’re associating themselves with. If you have a friend who leans right, make sure they know where the line is and if they cross it. A conversation with someone you trust is miles better than avoiding arguments on the Internet. Talk to the people in your life, even (or especially) if they disagree with you. You don’t need to debate them, you don’t need to “win” an argument. Just talk to them and empathize and get them to see you and your concerns. Your moment of bold empathy inoculates them against this sickness.

Don’t debate Nazis. They’re just going to string you along. It takes way less energy for them to spew talking points than for you to refute them—and by the time you do, they’ve moved the goalposts. And don’t let them fool you with their newest sanitized hashtag. Tolerating intolerance isn’t tolerance at all.

Block users who spread hate. Report them. Delete their comments. Oppose them on every platform you use. Stick it to them in a thousand little ways. It makes a difference. We outnumber the Nazifurs 10,000:1. They can’t stop us. And they won’t try. I’ve been bullied to hell and back. Bullies are cowards. Always.

Don’t give money to artists who celebrate or excuse Nazis. Don’t favorite or share bigoted art.

Write to your favorite furry conventions. Tell them to ban white supremacist gear from cons, if they haven’t already. Don’t let Nazifurs shut down any more of our cons.

And sign on with your local Indivisible group if you live in the US—there are now at least two in each US congressional district (see Twitter and Facebook). That’s never happened before, and it’s all happened since the election. You might have noticed the largest sustained protest movement in US history. That’s us. If you live in another country: vote, protest, and stop this hatred in your country. Get organized.

If you found this journal compelling, share it with your furry friends. Spread the word. The world changed and Nazis can play the victim no longer. The free people of the world won’t play those games anymore. We’ve seen them kill six million people.

WAY AHEAD OF YOU

If you’re already in this fight, I give you this:

– Resist them in the streets and parks—with bravery, with organization, with solidarity.

– Resist them in your daily life—with compassion, with tolerance, with humor.

– Resist them in your heart—with beauty, with love, with self-care.

You rock, and I’m in this with you. If you want a daily dose of Liberal Cowboy Activist Tempo, please see my Twitter: https://twitter.com/tempowrites

See you out there. #resist

– Tempo

~ ~ ~

Like the article? It takes a lot of effort to share these. Please consider supporting Dogpatch Press on Patreon.  You can access exclusive stuff for just $1, or get Con*Tact Caffeine Soap as a reward.  They’re a popular furry business seen in dealer dens. Be an extra-perky patron – or just order direct from Con*Tact.

I like this flow ... also I want whatever the animators were on.
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Rune’s Furry Blog showcases people within the furry community, issues and media plus personal blogging. Rune joins other guest posters here – Welcome Rune! – Patch

“It’s a sleepy day in the sleepy town of Fur City Bluff…” begins the narrative of ‘The Furry, Furry West’ within the ACFI con-book. It sets the tone, bringing us to a dusty town under the watchful eye of the Sheriff and his team, to a place where there is a fair coming up, and the looming threat of the Red-Mask-Gang.

Boots, badges, masks, and moneybags…this was the stage for San Antonio’s first-ever Furry Convention.

As someone living in Texas, I first heard of the San Antonio community back in 2016. I had just gone to a comic-con in Alamo City to meet the Power Rangers and I took my fursuit head with me. I thought this would be a great opportunity to suit for a little while, and get used to wearing my character in a crowded place…Needless to say that there were not as many furries there as I thought, and I quickly became intimidated. Long-story-short, this got me noticed (after the con) by a local who mentioned the furmeets happening within the area, and she asked me to add her on facebook so that she might invite me to said-events so I could attend.

While I was never really in the area to go to any of the meets (as I live over 2 hours away) I did research on them. This lead me to videos, and photos, to chatting with Adam King occasionally, and it really gave me an idea of what a Furry Community really looked like. Never did I think that such a tight-knit community could evolve into something so much greater…but after this weekend, I realized that myself along with 737 other people made history as we celebrated and experienced San Antonio’s new Furry Convention!

• Standing out from all the rest:

—Since there is already a Furry Convention held in Texas, a lot of people were wondering how ACFI stood apart. On the Official Website, their statement said: “We are working to bring more of the fandom to the state of Texas. We believe that by holding Furry Invasion on the dates we do, we will be offering more options to those that wish to participate in furry conventions rather than competing for attendees with limited time and resources.”

There were other ways in which ACFI tried to distinguish itself as well. First was with a narrative: not just the one written in the con-book…this was a “live narrative” that followed the story from the con-book and would pop up during events around the convention. It followed the takeover of the town by the Red-Mask-Gang and the efforts to stop them. It ended with a ransom being collected to free one of the staff at the closing ceremonies, and then ended with a cliff-hanger when we learned that someone had taken the safe-box. This narrative would then pick up at ACFI 2018. Also, to set itself apart… the con-book was also made to be something like a yearbook. Attendees could have people sign their books or use the spaces to fill in their favorite memories. All of which I thought was an amazing and unique idea that would appeal to a large amount of those going.

(Top left): Avisiris Minnowgulper/ (Top Center): Captain/ (Top Right): Rune/ (Bottom Center): Escap’e

Benefits of a brand-new convention:

• –There are several benefits to participating in a newer convention. Some reasons might be more selfish than others but it’s still fun to think about. I think the more ‘selfish’ reason is that you get noticed a lot more and its much easier to be social in a smaller crowd. One thing I noticed about TFF was that there was already established ‘groups’ of friends… and there was so much going on, it was often hard to get pictures, harder to stop and socialize, and it was much harder to stand out. But, with a smaller convention… you get noticed more often which means more pictures, more hugs, more people you actually get to talk to and get to know. But, the main reason that I like the idea of a new and smaller convention is because you get to see how it will change! You get to see the convention grow and evolve into something bigger, something better, something greater than you ever imagined… and you do so knowing what the first-ever convention looked like. You are written in as part of that convention’s history, and it’s something really neat to think about. I think it makes those memories in particular stand out all-the more.

Fursuit Parade- Group Photo 2017

• Breaking records:

–ACFI ended up placing 2nd place for first-year attendance. There were 737 furries that attended this convention with 100 fursuiters. We raised over $1000 for charities, and this all stemmed from only 200 people originally being invited to the con. So, while we may not have placed first, there were still records broken which ACFI should be proud of!

• Helping Charity:

–This year, ACFI chose a local charity called: Pets Alive! Their mission is that they are a life-saving organization that only rescues cats/dogs that have been selected for euthanasia. They are working hard to make San Antonio a no-kill community which is something I think we can all get behind! This organization provides a neonatal kitten nursery, parvo-ward, ringworm ward, medical clinic, foster and adoption programs, and a transport program- as well as other amazing things! ACFI was able to raise over $1000 for charity and if YOU would like to help too, links will be provided down below.

Rune giving high-fives

• Bringing smiles to people’s face:

—I have always said that while Furries have become more normalized than they were before, there is still a lot of stigma surrounding the fandom. That is why I think that conventions are really important. It is a chance for us to mingle with the general public… to show them what we are about, and to really make a positive impression on the surrounding community. I loved walking off the elevators and the hotel staff asking for pictures. I also loved all the kids running around, asking for hugs and high-fives. I always love seeing the smiles that fursuits put on everyone’s faces. It shows me that we are setting the right example and really putting the fandom in the right light. Furries, to me, means fun and happiness… that is why I love dressing up in a fursuit for conventions such as this one.

• Scheduling Errors:

—Since it was a new con, one has to expect that things like scheduling might get a little out of hand. I guess that there was an issue with the schedule being printed in the book versus what was on the website. The schedule of panels that was posted on the website was correct, but, the schedule posted within the con-book were incorrect. This lead to a lot of people missing their events as well as some events having been cancelled that people were trying to attend (as well as events overlapping and such). It was not so much ‘bad’ as it was inconvenient… and luckily, we still managed to make most of what we had planned to do.

• Very Small and Understaffed:

—New Conventions are very small, and so one can not predict what may or may-not be there. At this con, there were a few vendors, but nothing on the scale of TFF or Anthrocon. Same as with the panels. They were small and kept simple. There are not so many rooms to utilize at the El Tropicano so panels were few and far in-between, but what they did have to offer was still fun and would still appeal to a majority of their attendees.

However, the bigger problem was the fact that ACFI was obviously understaffed. I often saw people running around like crazy, there was mixed-info on what was happening at any given time, and sometimes the staff did not know what was happening at all. The Fursuit Parade was one of the biggest examples where the time got pushed back twice, and staff did not know what to do with us in the meantime. People in suit were getting hot and had no idea what was happening… and no one really had any answers for us. There was a booth where they were asking people to volunteer for teardown, and my wife and I (as well as my group) put their names down because they really had no one and we did not want to think that they would be there all night working if they did not get a little more help. Short staff and poor communication between the staff was also apparent in the closing ceremonies where, they asked for shaving cream pies and a tarp… only to then get the pies but no tarp because: “No one asked for it”. Small mistakes, but things that can definitely be improved upon for next year.

(Left): Captain/ (Center): Escap’e/ (Right): Rune

• Etc:

—One thing I find that was also poorly coordinated was the group photo for the fursuit parade, and then seating for the dance competition. When they smooshed us all together for the group photo, my buddy and I already knew we would not be seen. There was no lift for the photographer so there was no way that everyone was getting in. The room was much too small. Sure enough, when the group photo was released…people were sad because they were nowhere to be found.

The same could be said (in a sense) for the dance competition. My wife was standing behind my chair and though she got to enjoy the show, I saw more of the judges than I did the dancers until finally enough seats opened so that I could move in closer. The room was just too small for all those chairs… and it made it very difficult for short people like me to see. This same scenario could apply to the opening and closing ceremonies. I thought the narratives were hilarious but I could not see them and could barely hear them. I could barely see people getting a pie in the face at the closing ceremonies even though I was near the front.

Another small complaint happened before the convention… I was told via the team that there was nothing I needed for the convention except an ID card. I asked them whether I needed a confirmation e-mail (and whether I would get one) and they said ‘no’. But, the first day that I arrive, I am asked about a confirmation e-mail and whether or not I had one. Then I have to go through a registration process AGAIN just to get my badge and bag. It seemed like this took a lot of unnecessary time and, I feel like this is something they should fix for the next convention. Also, I contacted the department about the use of “props” – I contacted the team via their website and through the facebook page which said they typically reply within an hour. I even messaged Adam King himself since I had friended him on facebook. I got no reply from any of the 3 outlets. The question about registration I had received in a day… but a question about props got no response. So, if they are not going to respond to questions about it, they need to at least include cosplay props and such as a section within their code of conduct since I could not find it anywhere.

• Suggestions:
  
  —The Headless Lounge needs to be bigger or at least needs more water and more “trees” for the fursuit heads. One is just not enough.

—Seating for the Dance Competition should not include chairs unless they are in the back- suiters should be warned of this ahead of time so they can make whatever adjustments they need.

—People doing the narratives need a microphone, and narratives should maybe just get their own panel or their own little event? Just seemed weird how they were shoved into opening and closing ceremonies, although the ransom thing was hilarious.

—I think next year should focus on getting more staff and working to make better communication between the teams.

—Code of conduct needs to include a section on cosplay props ( as there currently is none.)

—ACFI needs to work on getting back to people messaging them through the website with questions (and messaging their facebook page as well). Also, I was given some false information which made my process of getting through registration longer than necessary. This is also something that needs to be fixed for next year if possible.

Mummy Furs! (From Left to Right): Rune, Escap’e, Captain, @thatstupidsnowfox

• Favorite Memories:

—ACFI really was a blast, even with all the snags. I have a lot of amazing memories from it, so it is really hard to narrow down my favorites. My biggest and most favorite memory would have to be the Drag Show! Slay Queen was amazing and it was so much fun!!! I was grinning like a goober the entire time and I really hope they continue to bring them back for years to come!!!

—My second favorite moment was actually making a new friend! We ran into @thatstupidsnowfox and he asked to tag along with us. Then we ended up spending a huge majority of the con together and he made for some amazing company. He is an artist and his work is amazing, so if you wanna check it out, his Twitter will be listed down below!!! But it was really great meeting someone new, and really developing what could be a lasting friendship with someone else in the fandom. We had a lot of laughs and adventures together, so here’s hoping we can meet up at cons in the future!

—My third favorite memory was getting to be mummies. There was a panel where people volunteered to be wrapped up as mummies and the other people did the wrapping. In Rune, I got covered in paper towels and toilet paper and then attempted to walk in it. Everyone got a lot of giggles out of it, and we all had a blast walking around like monsters! My wife, Captain, and even my new buddy Nick got to be mummified. We all got a kick out it!

• Least-favorite Memories:

—I can not really say that there was a part of the convention that I “didn’t like” because there was nothing that was really ‘bad’ so much as it was probably just short or poorly planned. So, this one was really hard. But I guess if I had to pick something, I would say my least favorite part of the convention was actually the fursuit parade.

So, usually the parades look better on YouTube… people add music and make them seem magical and fun. But, in reality they are quiet, kind of awkward if no one is cheering, and they tucker out the fursuiters. But this one was silent, awkward, and also extremely short. Not to mention it got delayed a lot… so it just made for a lot of unnecessary confusion. But I think that is something that will be fixed in the future, and it will be better once we get more attendees to go, and there are more suiters participating.

(From Left to Right): Captain, Omnom, Splat, Rune, Escap’e

• Conclusion:

—It was amazing laying in bed after the convention and looking at my wife as we talked about all the things that made this convention special. This was her first convention with me, it was also her first time being in a fursuit, and that’s when we realized that we were part of something special. By being there at that first convention, we were part of ACFI’s history. We both agreed that this convention is something special, and, we can only see it getting bigger and better in the future. We already plan to attend for 2018 and we wanna see what new things it brings to the table. We want to support this convention and really help it grow. We want to keep making memories and look back fondly to this time when it was all new and all starting out.

So, if you’re in the Texas area, ACFI is worth checking out and taking the time to see. The El Tropicano is great hotel, and as the convention grows, we can only imagine what new venues might host us in the future! Give it a go and I think you will have a lot of fun.

As always… what do YOU think? Did you go to ACFI? What was your first impression of the convention? What did you love about it and what did you dislike about it? Where do you think they should focus their improvements? Let me know your thoughts and opinions in the comment-section down below. Also, if you got any pictures of myself (Rune), Escap’e, Captain, or our friend Nick… feel free to link those to me in the comment-section as well.

Rune & Captain

Thank you all so much for reading. I will see you all in the next blog

LINKS:

1. Alamo City Furry Invasion (website)
2. San Antonio Furries (facebook group)
3. Alamo City Furry Invasion (facebook page)
4. @thatstupidsnowfox Twitter (click to see awesome art!)
5. Captain’s FA / YouTube
6. Rune’s FA / YouTube / Facebook
7. Pets Alive Website / Twitter / Facebook / YouTube

Like the article? It takes a lot of effort to share these. Please consider supporting Dogpatch Press on Patreon.  You can access exclusive stuff for just $1, or get Con*Tact Caffeine Soap as a reward.  They’re a popular furry business seen in dealer dens. Be an extra-perky patron – or just order direct from Con*Tact.

WE REALLY LIKED THIS ONE. No, seriously, we hope you enjoy it as much as we did. DON'T FORGET, LIVESTREAM FRIDAY the 27th, 8pm Central! We really want to get 100 watching at once. Tell your friends! It will be here: https://www.youtube.com/user/DraggetShow Our Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/thedraggetshow Telegram Chat: https://t.me/draggetshow Also mentioned: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/cobaltfoxie/ ep. 177 - Pius Peter's Pumpkin Pizza - WE REALLY LIKED THIS ONE. No, seriously, we hope…

So this weird thing just showed up and it's the right season for monsters and chocolate! I couldn't find a more primary source for this so I really can't say what hell this is. So enjoy 공포으| 초코-줌폐폐흥왑샨
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High profile fur R.C. Fox is in legal trouble. When interviewed by police outside his home, “he admitted there ‘might be some’ child pornography on his computer” and “he has ‘a very small interest in’ pornography depicting children and admitted to having about 50 videos containing it on his computer.”  R.C. was known for meet organizing and media appearances that bring a spotlight now. Here’s a long video about it by Ragehound. The case is in court.

It brought in a reader tip – (thanks Meow Mix):

Recently there’s been some furries involved in meets and cons popping up in the news for pedophilia and child porn. There’s the RebelWolf/LupineFox ring, and more recently R.C. Fox has been charged with child porn possession. (Location/photo/birthdate in the news matches R.C. Fox).

These sorts of charges have come down on furries before, and the fandom has in the past welcomed such people back, only for them to offend again. One of the more well known cases is Growly, convicted in 2001 of having sex with a 14 year old, and after release was banned from furaffinity for a conversation with a 16 year old. Despite this, he still is allowed to volunteer for conventions and furmeets.

"This looks bad for furries because he was a popular person!"

Two Words you can use to respond:

Jimmy Savile.

— Boozy Badger (@BoozyBadger) October 17, 2017

I haven’t posted about the Lupinefox/Rebelwolf ring since 1) Wikifur has the basics 2) It’s still in court 3) I looked but didn’t find new info 4) A victim may not want overexposure. There’s been one guilty plea so far. I hope they do justice to anyone involved with something as heinous as abusing a kid.

For context, as far as I’ve heard, people who went to meets in common with them were horrified to learn the story when it came out. And while fandom is having strong growth, it can proportionately raise such issues the same as anywhere. It would be extra worrisome to find higher-up coverup (Catholic church style) but that’s different from a few friends hiding stuff with each other.  So far it seems most fit for courts and mainstream news handled by pros.

R.C. Fox is out on bail and can use the internet. He tried to delete his Wikifur page on 9/22, perhaps following a 9/19 arrest. On 10/17 after this got a lot of fandom attention, his twitter account was deleted. That case is still in court too but so far it looks open and shut. One guy reportedly admitted doing something wrong and will have consequences depending on court findings.

Child pornography in violation of 18 PACS § 3612.

— Boozy Badger (@BoozyBadger) October 18, 2017

There have been similar stories in the past with Frank Gembeck, Alan T. Panda, and Mitch Beiro. They were high profile and made furry news without getting ignored, excused or welcomed back. I haven’t seen issues with those beyond what the courts decided, or with reoffending, or deeper fandom connections beyond problems people have everywhere. There can be another side to these issues as well, with a case of alleged injustice related to a minor impersonating an adult in the @SaveOurSisk story.

The Growly story is a rare case of someone back in fandom and raising concerns over a decade later. He put out a statement after finishing parole in 2007 about pleading No Contest to one charge of sending a nude pic. Contrary to rumor, that isn’t a guilty plea or a finding of worse. Perhaps the older person involved (who has since died) was more responsible and the court found the one charge to be low level since they don’t go easy on that stuff. The claim about chatting a 16 year old may seem shady but the facts are debatable, trolling happens, a real person hasn’t complained and I’m not a lawyer. About volunteering for events, 10 years after finishing parole, the issue isn’t hidden and he’s being treated as a person who did the time and is wanting to make amends under watch of organizers. There are myths about reoffending when it can be less likely than with other crimes. Part of the issue is how understaffed cons rely on those who step up, so if you go to cons, they’re serving your demand. One way to mitigate concerns is to encourage more people to volunteer so they can be more selective.

It’s complicated. 

Furries aren’t alone. Hollywood has a wave of abuse stories right now, and furry animators have told me about the climate making them quieter about their hobby. Meanwhile in fandom, these stories can ignite drama.  Is it sensational to simply publish facts? Of course not. But is it sensationalizing to connect furry to the stories?  Do they do that with Star Trek fans?

Yes, last decade a supposed Star Trek/pedophilia connection got a lot of press. This Popmatters article takes it apart; comparing bad logic to a blind person aiming a shotgun at the topic, making an “intellectual blender” about sexual minorities, and “analytical style that seems the most pathological, paranoid and desperately seeking the sexual in the textual for the pure sake of finding it there.”

But furries have a unique community. You might do Spock Eyebrows if 2/3 of Star Trek fans were LGBT, and 80% of those find relationships with other Star Trek fans. That’s a survey finding by the IARP about furries meeting furries. The point is that having a real community can make it part of conversation about events connected to members. It’s all part of larger fandom and deeper talk about toxic aspects or how to improve them. We could also mention how DragonCon was founded and run by notorious child predator Ed Kramer, or the Geek Social Fallacies. A furry issue is just one of many we can talk about like grown ups.

Still, it’s complicated to publish crime info because:

• There’s a risk of collateral damage with a group where outsiders have done real sensationalism, and members are closely linked. Would it affect a fursuit maker to link their very recognizable work with this story?
• The whole fandom shouldn’t be associated with encouraging or being a slippery slope to crime that happens in any group. If people act on their own to exploit it, that shouldn’t be treated like giving them a license to do it… unless it really is.
• There’s a risk of falsely conflating crime with harmless fetish or sexual minorities. Curiousity and acceptance comes with an average age for group members that coincides with experimenting and being young adults. Positive support they give each other shows responsibility about it.

The Furry Raiders and license against consequences: “1’s and 0’s on a hard drive never hurt anyone”

When the stories are complicated, it’s good to focus on individual doers and the power they have. A story might not need more exposure if it’s an open and shut case for mainstream courts and news. But it might if there’s another layer about toxic attitudes and leadership. That’s why these were published here:

• Rocky Mountain Fur Con’s sex offender CEO, Kahuki. His record forced him out of the con chair position, but 8 years later, he still owned the con behind the scenes.  It caused a critical problem for rule enforcement when apparently the board couldn’t overrule him. Mismanagement ultimately shut down the con when he made an illegitimate “Sovereign Citizen” threat against another fur – on behalf of a toxic fringe getting favored (and on staff.)
• That fringe is the Furry Raiders, who target kids with grooming and recruiting. Their founder Foxler had so much access to the leadership of RMFC that he was trading advice about their public relations while threatening to escalate problems.
• Furry Raiders had a meet with astonishing language about minors and porn, at Kahuki’s address matching his entry on the sex offender registry.

Foxler’s Wikifur entry

Those are real examples for how toxic leadership intensifies bad personal choices.  Not by furry fandom, but in a rejected cult-like fringe.  Here it is on display with the R.C. Fox story, from altfur/Furry Raiders member Dionysius. (See also additional screenshots.)

not that this is shocking really but

Dionysius "ones and zeros that compile explicit images of children never hurt anyone" Tragos, everyone pic.twitter.com/RSPFy6oZ45

— delay enthusiast (@edgedestroys) October 18, 2017

Less than an hour after Dionysius excused owning illegal files, Foxler made him a Furry Raiders admin, then went on to promote him as doing charity for kids.

The Furry Raiders don’t just put antisocial behavior in charge of their group, they have a habit of trolling cons with it (in this case while ghosting.)

"Time to call the police, I'm being oppressed by a piece of paper!" pic.twitter.com/oGGTJYhV83

— KodyWulf (@KodyWulf) October 7, 2017

At Furreality, people were worried about the Raiders putting up cameras looking out of their hotel room because that’s what the Vegas shooter did days earlier. (Then 10 days after this event, an altfur threatened to do mass murder, egged on by another member, resulting in an FBI report and account ban.)

There’s a clear problem when a group ethic comes from bad leadership. It isn’t just one weird example, it’s a pervasive pattern of license against consequences:

Such Sovereign Citizen attitude about laws is how people find themselves in news about breaking them.  There’s more to this, too.

Kahuki, the ex-CEO who sent SovCit threats on behalf of RMFC, had a partner Ivan Otter on staff of the con. In 2011, Ivan was convicted for a child pornography offense. A Colorado fur with an organizer role alleged to me that the files were actually from the collection of someone close to Ivan. Kahuki posted about it:

Shifting excuses.

Kahuki’s own sex offense has many defenses that vary radically from one person to the next. This 2008 podcast dates to when he was forced to step down as RMFC chair. It repeats a sanitized story (at 5:30) that he was 23 and his boyfriend was just under age of consent (in fact he was 30 when convicted in 1993). When the topic revived in 2017, his roommate Scorch said it was old news and there was no sex (a comment claims something else was hushed.) Other versions come from Furry Raiders Telegram – and a private message sent to Deo:

There’s a whole other topic from vocal defender of the Furry Raiders, 2 Gryphon. His video about them complains at length: “at least have the common decency … to find out what you’re talking about.” That makes sense… when it means asking people who tell a consistent story in good faith. So now consider the time when 2 found himself in a similar predicament with a partner. Here’s where it gets more and more interesting to see who he picks to attack and who to defend. (Supposedly this stuff comes from a comedian, with no punch line in sight.)

In 2012, 2 Gryphon posted a journal declaring that molesters are “the saviors of their own victims.” It trashed victims of child predator Jerry Sandusky for acting like “grown men turned into blubbering, sobbing children” who should move on and get over it. Then, within a day of the posting, like a miraculous voodoo prophecy, there was an FBI raid for child pornography at his home with his partner Toast Rabbit.

Apparently in 2012, the FBI raided his home or studio on a CP warrant. He laughed about it at the time because they found nothing.

— Matt (@m_m_myers) April 14, 2017

Middle: 2 Gryphon, Raiders Foxler and Kody

The story returned with a vengence in 2016, when 2 Gryphon found himself defending Toast on his youtube channel. 2 claimed that the FBI had recently arrested Toast for child pornography because he mistakenly downloaded one zip file of “shock” images that he “deleted immediately” and had no interest in.

In his video, 2 protests the legal system for “ruining people’s lives that don’t deserve it”. He attacks “the SJW’s out there” who he fears will judge Toast and himself with “a wave of hate”.  He says “I want to get this out there now, about what happened, so that there actually can be a record of officially what’s going on.”

The problem is, the story about one mistake download falls apart when compared with court documents. They charge Toast with distribution of illegal files in December 2011, and receipt of files months later in February 2012. Files depicting child pornography were found on multiple devices. The documents claim it didn’t happen just once, and distribution before receiving is hard to call a mistake. Was 2 Gryphon being a blubbering, sobbing child about consequences?

That's exactly my point. Everyone is making up bullshit. Nazi this and pedophile that. Oh, look! There's a witch! ...We don't know shit. https://t.co/wvjHS59u0Q

— 2 Gryphon (@2_gryphon) April 11, 2017

From April 10, 2017, the day I published about RMFC and Kahuki and the con closed 12 hours later. We know this shit:

From 2’s defense story.

Furry Raiders at Kahuki’s house.

To recap: ex-CEO Kahuki and his partner Ivan Otter and the Furry Raiders and their founder Foxler and admin Dionysius and their defender 2 Gryphon and his partner Toast Rabbit were all vocally excusing or involved in child exploitation. Furries may oppose it and understand consequences, but something smells bad with a fringe group that has shady fascination with teens and does projection about others excusing it. It’s like they come with problems as firmly attached as their armbands.

To clarify the question about fandom connections: the issue isn’t whether someone is popular, or even has a bad past if they make amends. The issue is how it’s treated by a group ethic and it’s leadership.

2 Gryphon’s “Kill yourself” message (which he often denies making) brings up a footnote. In September 2017, yet another furry was implicated by a suicide note describing being caught for illegal files and having no escape. There’s a topic for another day about better solutions that allow redemption, but in this case, the guy didn’t stick around to lie about it.  It seems that even dead people understand cause and effect better than one small fringe of fandom.

What a web it makes when altfurries, the Furry Raiders, and friends keep springing to the defense of exploitation and child pornography. It’s more than relatively petty SovCit contrarianism like refusing to register your car.  It’s more than just loyalty to their own friends who keep getting caught up in it. While they conflate “SJW’s” and things being “too PC” together with the issue of respecting laws, what’s behind it all is a stance that only their rights matter, and nobody else’s. Including children’s.

This isn’t about furry fandom, but it’s in the shadow of it. If you love furry stuff and don’t support this, make your voice heard with your local meets and cons. And consider using the Altfurry Blocklist as a pro-active solution. Times are changing while the fandom is having healthy growth, and the too-small-to-bother, stuck-in-the-90’s ways are passing.

Perhaps I will be attacked for naming a group who troll for attention until it’s more than trolling. So let me add a personal note about why I don’t care if they try. While researching this I found dark stuff I won’t link because it adds no new info, just a risk of misuse. There was a 2009 news article with many furries saying “we’re not like that” about a predator, which seems unremarkable, until you realize the cover photo is someone else named here who just went to jail, pictured years before they were caught. Then there’s a closed gallery of photos I was able to get in and look at. Nothing explicit, just pictures of a child victim at their birthday party, surrounded by fursuiters and in their own small suit being carried by the abuser. Those 1s and 0s hurt me a lot and it wasn’t even someone I know. Now consider attention-getting power and what it’s good for.

UPDATE: click through for an excellent thread about child grooming by the Furry Raiders.

off and on I've spoken to a 16 year old they brought into their fold to try to coax him out and the shit they've put in his mind is scary

— delay enthusiast (@edgedestroys) October 23, 2017

Thanks for reading and supporting the site. Come back for lighter stuff soon like a TV animator interview you should see if you like cartoon werewolves.

R.C. Fox arrested for child pornography, furries question fandom connections.

There’s an interesting new hardcover book coming soon called Toys Talking. Here’s what they say at Drawn & Quarterly: “Always there to comfort and listen, stuffed animals provide a reassuring presence in many a childhood. With Toys Talking, acclaimed illustrator and author Leanne Shapton explores their inner lives, to reveal that their thoughts and feelings are just as complicated as our own. The concerns of these bunnies, bears, and ducks range from the mundane to the existential, and with each new pairing of character and text, we see a deeper portrait of their pensive, quiet world. Shapton holds a mirror to our own lives, to our insecurities and concerns, by revealing that the objects who comfort us have worries of their own. This board book brings Shapton’s gorgeously minimal brushstrokes to a younger audience, and will leave children and parents alike brimming with the beauty and melancholy of self-reflection.” Marketed for children, it’s more a sort of visual poetry. Look for it in November.

image c. 2017 Enfant

As most are aware, nations often have a symbolic or emblematic animal. Fred Patten decided to edit an anthology with GOAL Publications based on this theme for a furry audience. The theme is wholly unique and is a good reading of “furries around the world.” This review will look at all the stories in the collection.First is Roz Gibson’s “Didus ineptus Linnaeus.” This is a story about humans corrupting an anthro utopia, and Didus the dodo works with a terrorist organization to push the humans out. The story excels with its attention to setting and world-building. While I didn’t get the “national” aspect in this story, it had a very enjoyable plot.Next is BanWynn Oakshadow’s “A Poor Uncle’s Apprentice.” In a time of chaos and troubled assumptions, some lynx travelers struggle to find meaning. Poor Uncle Pasha and his apprentice Luca learn to deal with it in their own way and find their place in the world of the Romani. As usual with Oakshadow’s work, he is attentive to creative plots that will not let you down, and he nails the emotional aspects that make you wonder why the story didn’t spawn a whole novel.“Remembering the Forgotten” by H.J. Pang looks at the wolf as a symbol of Rome and its impact on all of Italy. As Patten says before the story, this is a “mood piece.” However, the story struggles with having much of a plot. It almost seems like a creation story of a tale of the gods. Too short to actually have an effect on the reader. But, I will say that I have never wanted to go to Rome as badly as I did upon finishing this story.“The Moon Like an Unhatched Egg” by Mary E. Lowd is about gengineered birds being used as potential astronauts to Mars. They have to compete against each other, using the Moon as a training ground, to see who will be selected. As usual for Lowd, a spectacular and innovative story. I would have liked a bit more sensory description, but also, being aware of the fast-paced genre and plot of the piece, I think it works well as it is, too!Jako Malan wrote “Crossroads the Namib” from a point of cultural accuracy, being from Africa himself. The gazelle protagonist goes back to his ancestral roots, away from the life of business, and finds himself anew in the African deserts under an oryx guide. Paws down, the best story in the collection. I felt that sense of nationality. I got the sense of pride. I want to go there now, screw the heat. No, it’s probably not the most creative (genre-wise) story in the collection, but you’d better damn well believe Malan delivered with this story.“Sdani White Wings” by Jennifer Sowle is an interesting addition to the anthology. More or less, it is just an origin story, reading more like a fairy tale than “a furry story.” Now, I would never in a million years be the type to say “This is a furry story, and this isn’t,” so I appreciate the attention to animal detail throughout this story. However, it does stand out as the least anthro in the collection.Frances Pauli wrote “The Scent of Lantana” to deal with the Spanish bull as a wrestler! A very fun premise! Pauli writes an enjoyable plot here, and readers will be dying to keep turning that page. Personally, I would have liked it to slow down a bit. I often found myself forgetting these were indeed anthro characters. Granted, we got into the characters’ heads often with real introspection, an often neglected facet of writing.What happens when conservationists integrate human genes into animals to preserve them? This is the dilemma at hand (paw) with Televassi’s “Huitaca.” This story is both evocative and beautiful in prose. Probably the most well-told story in the volume, it brings up a lot of questions about animal ethics, conservation philosophy, and even what we are willing to do to preserve our nation’s symbols.H.J. Pang’s second story, “To the Kingdom They Come,” creates a whole mythos around the national animal by having two new national animals come into contact with other older ones. Easily the longest story in the collection--unless I’m just bad at counting, which is a distinct possibility--this story has a rather gripping and unique plot. I would have loved more description of our main characters, as I could not envision them super well. But again, that plot was spot-on and pulled me in from page one.“Bread and Butter” by Allison Thai tells the tale of the water buffalo of Vietnam, named Nam. Thai tells a compelling story with well-described characters. Plus, they were evocative. My only large critique is that I wanted more!Huskyteer’s “Lion of the Low Countries” handles the Belgium lion emblem trying to shape the future of lion symbols everywhere at LIONS INTERNATIONAL. At points funny, at others sad, this story generates some serious feels. It is a fun story that has larger messages for us all about national pride and how we take that pride into the future.To speak a little on Patten’s notes and introduction, I find myself at odds. His introduction sets this up to be a book about national animals, but, half of the time, it feels like stories just happen to have animals that have been national animals before, but it’s not really relevant to the story. The theme genuinely gets lost in the anthology at points. With some stories, Patten’s prefatory notes had more to do with the nation than the story itself. Sometimes, I found his notes to be giving away too much about the story. If I have a synopsis of the plot in front of me, I’m probably not going to read it. I found myself reading the story and then going back to read the note, rather than the intended use. However, the introduction was a solid idea for a great anthology.On the whole, the anthology was beautiful. There were editing errors and formatting errors, and the cover is questionable. But the authors...I see so much passion in their writing, and I can tell a lot of these authors had fun with their themes. Many of the stories left me wondering about how I view patriotism and national pride, and that’s a great thing for such an anthology to accomplish. I highly recommend this anthology to anyone interested in our culture’s fascination with animals as figureheads for our nations.

The coastal city of V-town is burning, and it’s up to one dalmatian to save it.Will Hamish, the dalmatian assistant chief of one of V-town’s fire stations, is happy with his busy life. He works hard, and keeping his city safe is more than enough to keep him content. That is, until he answers an odd personal ad in the local paper. This leads him to meet the beautiful and mysterious Anne, who shows him that he might be missing more in his life than he realized. With Anne holding the leash, Will is drawn deeper into the tangled net of corruption surrounding his city and the shadows pulling the strings. As unrest and arson both reach critical levels, Will must confront and battle the darkness that has taken root in the heart of V-town.On the whole, this book was a very enjoyable read. I loved the strong characters, the mysteries, and the attention to the details of firefighting that the author provided. It was a delight to immerse myself in the world that F. Gibbs has created. To be honest, I was a bit disappointed when the book ended. There were a few questions that were left unanswered, and as a stand-alone book, I wasn’t happy about that. However, this is just the first book in a proposed trilogy. I’m absolutely looking forward to reading the next installment and spending more time with these characters.Fire Branded Leather has a lot of appeal. While it does have references to BDSM culture, they are not overwhelming, and the author actually does a good job of introducing these ideas: Like Will, the audience is led into these things gradually, without a lot of shock. Because of the BDSM narrative, there are some adult themes, but I strongly believe that furries and non-furries alike will both really enjoy reading this. It’s a fantastic start to a series that I am personally looking forward to.

Welcome to guest poster Summercat! October is Furry Book month (better late than never). -Patch

Started in 2016 by an alliance of Furry Publishers, Furry Book Month is about showcasing the written word from the Furry Fandom. To support the efforts I decided to write up a list of Furry books I’ve enjoyed in recent years that are currently available for sale. These are just short blurbs rather than full reviews, and are in no particular order. 

Otters in Space, by Mary Lowd (Furplanet, Rabbit Valley)

Otters in Space was suggested to me a few years back at Further Confusion, and I picked up the first book in the series then. After reading through it that night, I went back the next day and picked up the sequel. The books are an enjoyable action-mystery where anthropomorphic animals are living in a world that humans left behind, with Cats and Dogs living on Earth, and Otters in space.

Sixes Wild, by Tempe O’kun (Furplanet, Rabbit Valley)

While I am friends with Tempo, our relationship started out as fanboy and author as I sought to praise him for his wild west novel Sixes Wild: Manifest Destiny. While the first book in the series has some rough edges, they are not so rough as to detract from the interesting world and characters that Tempo has created. The second title, Echos shows a lot of improvement and polish, as well as going into a bit more detail about the wider world. For more details, you can check out Fred Patten’s review on Echos.

Windfall, by Tempe O’kun (Furplanet, Rabbit Valley)

Another Tempo novel, this time an Adult Paranormal Romance. Windfall manages to weave the growing relationship between the two main characters alongside the investigation of weird happenings in the town. Also it has an otter as a main character. I can’t resist that! For a second opinion, Fred Patten reviewed it as well.

Intimate Little Secrets, by Rechan (Furplanet, Bad Dog Books)

I recently reviewed Intimate Little Secrets and gave it a positive review, so it is no surprise I would again recommend this collection of slice-of-life stories with erotic heterosexual scenes.

The Tower and the Fox, by Tim Susman (Furplanet, Rabbit Valley)

I called this the novel from Kyell Gold I’ve been waiting a decade for, and I was not let down. Set in the late 1700s in a magical alternate New World, I recommended it in my review. I want to encourage Kyell to write more non-erotic fiction, so please go buy it!

Freelance Familiar, by Daniel Potter (Amazon)

One of those “The magical world is just hiding behind a veil” settings, the series follows Thomas Katt after he ends up on the wrong side of the Veil and transformed into a non-anthro mountain lion familiar, and his attempts to going back to being human – oh, and solve some mysteries and stop the end of the world. Fred Patten called the first book a “winner”, and I enjoyed both it and the second book in the series.

The David Birkenhead Series, by Phil Geusz (Amazon)

The David Birkenhead series is a military scifi series following the titular main character – a genetically engineered rabbit – through his career in his nation’s navy, facing prejudice along the way.

What about you? Do you have any recommendations? We welcome your feedback in our comments section! – Summercat

Very good recommendations!

Most of em are available from us with 15% disscount too: https://t.co/ChUFWsCLPn #FurryBookMonth https://t.co/KdWz7oQ3Q2

— Fusselschwarm (@Fusselschwarm) October 22, 2017

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Hello, Papabear. 

I am a 23 year old furry (I have been a furry since I was 5 years old). I am saving up for a fursuit and planning with some friends to go to a con once we all have gotten our fursuits. However, I am a bit scared since I need glasses too see (I can't have contacts since they irritate my eyes) and I can't really find a suit maker who could make the head a few inches bigger to fit glasses under. What shall I do? 

StuffyFluff

* * *

Dear StuffyFluff,

You and I are in the same boat. I, too, cannot wear contacts and have to wear glasses. But! I found a fursuit maker who could accommodate my needs and she made my head to take my glasses into account. She goes by the name Beastcub. If she can do it, I'm sure other fursuit makers can, so I would keep looking (I'd suggest Beastcub, but she has a waiting list a mile long and it would take about 18 months at least for you to see your fursuit done).

I would put the call out to your friends and on furry sites and Facebook or other social media sites that you are looking for a fursuit maker who can accomplish this task for you. Like I said, Beastcub can't be the only person able to make a fursuit head for your needs.

A couple of things to note about wearing glasses while fursuiting (and while getting a fursuit made):

1. Make sure that your viewing field for the head is adequate for your needs. It is really important that you adjust the head appropriately and line up the eyeholes just right with the eyeglasses in mind. The solution Beastcub made for me was to put black mesh under the eyes to provide better vision. If the head doesn't work right the first time, don't be afraid to go back to the maker and ask for adjustments.
2. Because glasses can fog up, have the fursuit maker include a small, battery-powered fan in the head. To power the fan, use lithium batteries. Regular batteries die too quickly.
3. Buy an eyeglasses strap (also known as an eyeglass retainer) to help keep your eyeglasses from slipping off your face from sweat.
4. In addition, I actually tape the eyeglasses to my head by the bridge of the nose and at the temples.

Anyway, keep looking. A little diligence and good communication with the maker should help you get what you need.

Happy Fursuiting!

Papabear
​ Black mesh around the bottoms of my fursuit's eyes provide expanded range of vision.

We got this from Animation World Network: Although the second Paddington live action/CGI film won’t hit theaters until early next year, Studio Canal have announced at MIP Junior that they already have a new Paddington animated series in development for television. (Of course there was already an animated series back in the 1970’s. It was scripted by Paddington’s creator himself, Michael Bond, and animated with stop motion and paper cut-outs.) Studio Canal hopes to have the little bear’s new series available in late 2018 or early 2019.

image c. 2017 Studio Canal

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While I'm not buying a Mercedes-Benz ... they really did get my attention. "How to tame a lion: the new S-Class with ENERGIZING comfort control. In the animal kingdom, he is undisputedly at the top of the food chain – there is no living creature that does not fear him: the lion. But even the strongest alpha animal has a bad day, as the new S-Class film by antoni proves in a very humorous way."
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