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Somehow I found nice clean art on Artdecade’s FA gallery.

Artdecade is a furry artist who has strong words about bigots, nazis, RMFC, etc. Read what he thinks about the con’s demise and recent happenings in fandom. Or just enjoy his naughty art (NSFW!) He linked to Dogpatch Press, and it’s a nice compliment to get noticed by a furry titan who has drawn 10,000 dicks. He says:

i feel genuine sympathy for ppl that got involved with the furry raiders who were just looking for a local group of furs to hang out with. i don’t think all folks in that group are bad people by a long shot. the creators lied to people about themselves and their beliefs and used others that joined them to make themselves look like just an innocent group of fun havers. i urge members of the raiders that are upset with these people to start your own groups, free of nazi and bigotry influence.

please remember, it was not the people that called out the bigots that got the con closed, nor was it anyone’s intent to close the convention at any point. THEY shut down the con due to mismanagement and then blamed others for it. and now others are picking up the pieces they abandoned! local CO furs, check it out! https://www.denfur.co

Who got blamed for closing the convention? (From Reddit:)

I wonder which con this Dogpatch guy will try to kill next.

Kill the messenger before he strikes again!  Actually, ignore that noise and listen to smart furs who just want to be informed. It’s part of being a community. That includes dealers, artists and local Colorado furs who didn’t deserve to lose their con for the reasons that Artdecade said.

An independent voice can share critical stories others won’t.  A good way to make it possible is cold, hard cash. You can also do this for your local PBS station, but there’s a little difference if you support Dogpatch Press on Patreon.

It’s like a PBS fundraiser with Furry Porn.  Is that some kind of a tasteless joke? Yes, except it ACTUALLY HAPPENED in the 90’s and we have the story.

Supporting this crazy content is CHEAP.  $5 got Artdecade’s name in the headline.  Wait, it gets cheaper.  For just $1 you can read exclusive secret stories I wrote for you on Patreon.  Wait, it gets cheaper still.  You can get a headline here for FREE, because I’m just that willing to please.  Here’s the secret:  Submit your own story.  Guest posters wanted!  Check the About page for ideas of what to send. This isn’t just my site, it’s for the community.

Thanks to patrons who support Dogpatch Press right now: Spotti, Chrissy, Sylvan, Tau, Changa, Calico, Craig, Ren, artdecade, CBPS, Arcturus and Varek.

Furries + beer = heaven

Few people know that the site is hosted by generous donation of a fur in Mexico.  Those furs just helped me to send him a month worth of Patreon pledges to cover cost to renew the domain.

For those who still wanna be haters, please don’t act shocked as if there’s anything besides writing going on.  I’ll be shocked if some day, the site pays for the beers that make the articles better.

Thanks again to supporters of writing by furries, for furries, from opinions to book reviews.

Join us by visiting Dogpatch Press on Patreon.  And as long as I’m pandering, vote for the Ursa Major awards.  Voting closes April 30.  Help share your favorite furry works and show why this community is so creative.

– Patch O’Furr

Some new discoveries from the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books… including some things that maybe Man Was Not Meant To Know!  We met author Steve Hammond, who introduced us to his new science fiction saga Rise of the Penguins. “The War of the Species has begun. An ancient race of penguin has reemerged. From this race a powerful leader declares himself Overlord and unites the penguin clans of the world. His goal: to drive the human presence away from Antarctica and to exact revenge for the atrocities of the past against penguinkind. Through shadowy alliances and manipulation the Overlord launches a full scale war against the humans. The Overlord’s tactics are ruthless even against penguins under his command. Those who don’t conform to the Overlord’s ideals are pressed into obedience or worse. In the midst of bloody conflict against the humans a small Chinstrap penguin, Lavour, begins to see the folly of war and questions the motives of the Overlord. But can one penguin bring an end to the bloodshed and change their course of the war and restore peace?” No less than six books in the series are available now from Rockhopper Books, and a seventh volume is on the way soon. Visit the author’s web site to keep up to date. And remember to treat birds nicely!

image c. 2017 Rockhopper Books

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A nice fursuit music video from Wolvinny.
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• Original story: Rocky Mountain Fur Con backs neo-nazis, sex offender to intimidate critic
• RMFC closing statement by Sorin: rockymountainfurcon.com
• Flayrah: Rocky Mountain Fur Con canceled following neo-Nazi associations, tax irregularities
• Media: Denver Post, 7News Denver, Daily Beast, Rolling Stone, Nerd and Tie, Unicorn Booty, Lawyers and Liquor, Bleeding Cool, Wonkette (and followup)
• Extra links from the community at end of the article.

Sorin joins me for an interview as a devoted representative of RMFC, even after the con’s sad, surprising end.  It was a happening that Dogpatch.press had some part in, even if issues were brewing long before and carried forward on their own.  That makes it extra gracious of Sorin to be open and professional about talking.  Questions were prepared to build a formal article, then sent in live chat.  Sorin fielded them on the fly, with power to review before publication to keep his side as intended.  You will see probing opinions from one side, then the other side to make a dialogue.  (-Patch)

Hi Sorin. We’re only talking because of sad circumstances – maybe we can improve that. Can you introduce yourself briefly? What are you like besides having been chair of RMFC?

I’ve been part of the furry fandom since 1996, and have been attending conventions since 1998 starting with Confurence and Anthrocon, later Further Confusion and Rainfurrest. I’ve been a part of Rocky Mountain Fur Con since its inception, first as the Vice-Chair and later stepping into the Chairman position when the previous chair stepped down. I’m a social person and like the furry community for its openness and acceptance.

That is a lot of commitment. I bet these events were pretty personal to you.

They were.

Hopefully other organizing brings a new con.

Sensational news spreads far, and I think the news about RMFC introduced people to internal debates that usually stay behind the scenes. It makes a negative picture. But that’s not fair, because any con exists because of the wider community and a staff of selfless volunteers. Can you talk about the good that RMFC did over the years?

Despite all the unfortunate happenstances that surround RMFC and it’s cancelation, I’m really proud of a lot of things. The fact that, at least for a while, it really helped bring the Colorado furry community together.  The fact that we survived a really rough start to any convention, managing to put on 8 more conventions. The $15,000+ we raised for various charities over many years. And the fact that I had so many dedicated staff members who were putting in long hours trying to keep the convention alive, and who continue to work to help us close down operations as smoothly as possible, despite the end of our organization.

Let’s get into why the con is over. Are you interested in setting the record straight about any topics we can dig into? 

In the end, the convention was canceled because of drastically increased security costs, provoked by threats of violence from many different avenues. With a sudden increase in costs, and the inability to find another venue that could work with us during our dates (or even close to them), there was very little that could be done to salvage the convention.

Cost is a big deal with a nonprofit organization… did the security demand hit you by surprise?

Yes it did. We had been approached by our hotel only 3 weeks before the convention was canceled with the new costs, and that was the first we had heard of them, or even the possibility. We started investigating other venues, which we had hoped to be able to move to, when the issue with the C&D broke.

The story on Dogpatch Press did not contact you for a statement. It was done on the fly with a hot item about the C&D sent to Deo about her speech, and I felt that partly, it spoke for itself about a side. But on your side, what was your gut feeling when it was published?

The sending of the C&D letter is a very hot topic right now, but something that I feel the convention could have worked out – if it had not been a matter of also dealing with a loss of venue, and the increasingly aggressive and violently-worded conflict within the local furry community, and really the community at large. Hindsight being what it is, I can say that the C&D was a mistake, both how it was drafted and the fact that it was drafted at all. It was at the time what the board thought was a reasonable action to a situation and culture we just were not prepared to handle. I can see now that that was not the issue, and the C&D was directed rather hastily at the wrong focus.

Hindsight is 20/20 and it’s hard to be in the middle of a bunch of sides and figure out what to do.

Is it fair to say there were internal problems as much as external?

In hindsight, what we should have done was reach out to people to discuss the matter, rather than seeking any sort of legal means to address the issue. But the Board had been under fire from a lot of different directions. To see someone referring to our convention as Nazi Con and talking about coming to do violence there, someone who was not even registered to attend, really triggered a reaction that was probably not very well thought out.

It’s also fair to say, that yes, there were internal conflicts on how to address issues relating to the convention, and how those issues were to be handled.

1/27/17 – The same day as Deo’s infamous Twitter post about punching Nazis. Hers wasn’t widely seen until April so few may realize the connection.

Is it fair to call this a continuation of the Furry Raiders drama that happened in 2016?

I don’t think it’s that simple, but yes on the surface I think you could say that it was a continuation of the drama that started around the Furry Raiders in 2016.

How much farther would you say issues go back? To 2008? Is the stuff about taxes and Kahuki’s record integral to the story, or did it just generally add a little more negativity to what outsiders saw?

I would say it just added to, and confused the issue.  The stuff about taxes has been overblown and really miscommunicated. As for the issue with Kahuki, I would prefer not to comment on that.  It’s not my place to comment on his past, or anything else outside of the direct operation of the convention, which has not been in his hands for many years.

Let me throw an outside view at you and see what you think. This will be long. I have been closely in touch with locals and done a lot of digging. I have seen a lot of blaming, and people trying to ride this for attention or to push agendas. It’s very divisive.  BUT, personally I sense that there aren’t equal sides between the “AntiFA” (isn’t it more of a leaderless philosophy than a group?) – and the Furry Raiders (a group with active leadership to point out).

Here’s what seems like the possible deep story to me.

1. Kahuki, the CEO, may have carried lingering resentment over having to step down in 2008.
2. Scorch enabled that, and both joined sides when there was controversy about them leading MAAAC (the con parent org).
3. In comes the Furry Raiders in 2016, serving Kahuki’s resentment with a license to troll.
4. I’ve read Scorch describing a dilemma between banning 150 raiders, or letting a list of 150 complainers stay away. It sounds like a false excuse. Why not ban Foxler and a few key ones? 
5. Lack of taking control by con leadership let things decay in the community, so objectors felt provoked to push back on their own.
6. The Raiders escalated with attitude about bringing guns.
7. It set the stage for Deo’s speech, the C&D letter, and all the rest blowing up, with the cost of security being a death blow. 

Is any of that close to the story?  Were the Furry Raiders threatening the con, and Scorch/Kahuki using them as pawns? Did you want to ban Foxler?

Well let me address your points one at a time:

1) I know Kahuki was upset at having to step down at the time.

2) I’m in the same boat with Scorch as I am with Kahuki.  I did not know his mind and was really too busy trying to deal with the convention to look for any greater machinations. I honestly don’t believe there was any sort of plot or scheme afoot, just some bad decisions made by various members of the board and convention operators, including myself.

3) I really can’t speak to this. I would be lying if I said that I knew any of this to be true.

4/15/17 meet at Scorch and Kahuki’s house, on the weekend after the con was canceled.

4) I do feel that Scorch actually believes that banning one group is the same as banning another and was not moving on some sort of agenda. And in the end I don’t feel that banning specific people would have resolved anything. The calls were not to ban the leadership but the Furry Raiders as a whole which then just opens the discussion of who else do we ban just because people don’t like them?

5) If by they, you are referring to the board, I would only say that it’s expensive and difficult for a child project to attempt to take control of a parent organization, even if that were something we were looking to do. If you’re referring to the Raiders, I have to say that I continue to find it rather naive that people would somehow think that it was our responsibility to police the community at large.

6) I agree that the threats of weapons were an escalating factor, but we were unable to confirm that it was anyone associated with the Raiders, and not just someone wanting to escalate things for their amusement. And frankly, all of the groups were responsible for the escalation.

7) The C&D was in response to the escalated violence and the increased security. It was an attempt by the board (and a short-sighted one) to try and show that we were addressing security concerns, in hopes that the hotel would rescind it’s cost requirements.

Would it be fair to say this could have been avoided by dealing more strongly with the Furry Raiders in 2016?

No, I don’t think so.  I feel that anything more we could have done would have set a bad precedent for the convention, and would have led to its demise in the long run anyways.

Richard Spencer: white supremacist and inspiration for headlines and memes when he got punched on 1/20/17, a week before Deo’s twitter post.

As for if I wanted to ban Foxler, I really have not given it much thought. I did not think it would actually resolve anything, since the people that wanted him banned would focus on another target, and beyond that I was so busy trying to keep the convention together that I really did not give it more thought than that.

How malicious was it of the Raiders to do that room block takeover in 2016… and didn’t all the community reaction just follow that?

I can’t speak to how malicious it was of the Raiders to take a portion of the block, and had they held it, there might have been more of an argument for banning them. The fact of the matter is though, that they replied to our request to release rooms, and did so. The fact that there were less rooms to be rented at that hotel was not the fault of the Raiders or anyone else, just of the smaller venue. Do I agree with what the Raiders did? No, though I won’t lie and say I knew it to be malicious or not, because I don’t.

How would you characterize the Furry Raiders now?

I really try not to think about them, or interact with them or their members right now. I think that whatever it was they set out to do originally has been corrupted by a handful of bad apples, and if they really wanted to do something for the community, they would bow out gracefully.

If people feel they are a threat, are people being oversensitive? Or could we say the room block takeover can be considered a threat? Wouldn’t the con suffer or die if rooms were reserved, but then released too late for people to make travel plans?

I think they are giving the Raiders to much credit to call them a threat. That being said, people have a right to believe what they want. As far as conventions are concerned, yes it would be a threat if they had done that, and if they had refused to release a large portion of the block then we would be having a very different conversation.

In your final statement, did you have a certain focus in mind for the “against one another” part: “This cost increase stemmed directly from the very public threats of violence against one another by members of this community, as well as the negative backlash from misinformation spread about the convention, its staff and attendees”. Does that apply to the Raiders or you just don’t know?

It was simply attempting to convey that that cost increase and in the end the cancellation of the convention were the result of people using the internet to threaten and attack using the web’s anonymity. It was not directed at just the Raiders, or the AntiFA, but everyone who felt that the convention was a good platform for attacking people.

Thanks, I think it mostly speaks for itself then.

The way the story came out on Dogpatch Press, then blew up all over, it seemed to work like a little nudge that caused a big topple. It made me sense long-ongoing issues I had no idea about before the con cancelation 12 hours later.  Is there some good in blowing up the con to make a clean slate?  (Not forgetting this is most of all about the dealers, artists, and community who didn’t deserve this.)

There probably is, though this is not how I would have liked the convention to close up shop. It’s very hurtful to all the people who put so much time and energy into helping it grow.

Theme for the canceled RMFC 2017.

Have you followed the mainstream media notice about this?

I have a little.  I’ve spoken to a few of the media outlets too.

Who told the story the worst? What’s the best thing you want to happen to counter balance it?

I’m not sure I want to critique any media outlet by name, especially in print. I will say that most of the mainstream news outlets that have actually approached us and spoken to myself, or my Marketing Director have given an overall fair portrayal of the convention and it’s closing, at least on a very surface level.

I’d love to ask more about where do we go from here to make things positive. First – let me throw a curve ball.

I have seen a mainstream topic about punching nazis, where some argue there’s a place for civil-disobedience to oppose actual ones like Richard Spencer. (That doesn’t mean violence without consequences, necessarily, but that the social order isn’t enabling nonviolent opposition to do enough). In other words, fighting nazis after they get violent isn’t enough, and being passive might invite them to get bolder.

the lesson learned from WWII should not be "you have to let the nazis get in power and do everything they want before you fight back"

— Colin Spacetwinks (@spacetwinks) April 17, 2017

Also, actual, real nazis are now watching this story, and I don’t think it’s good. Remember some of the very worst stories about Furries (Vanity Fair, CSI etc.) – even when they made furries look terrible, it inspired some people to become furries.  Any attention can make the distance shrink a little. 

What should we do about this situation as a community?

I think that we as a community need to do more to try and understand each other. Understanding does not mean agreement, or even all believing the same thing. Right now, people are so loudly opposed that they have not even thought to stop and try to understand each other. I’m not saying anyone is right or wrong, but the Furry community started out as a place where acceptance was it’s defining factor, and the beginning of acceptance is understanding.

People in our community are too quick to hate and judge, and too slow to try and understand. The loudest among us set the tone for our community, our politics and our social decisions. I’m not arguing for the Raiders, or the AntiFA’s or any other group that pops up. I’m just arguing against these snap judgements, attacks and creation of slander just to set someone else apart.

Definitely agree about acceptance. I notice though, you commented up there about the Raiders, “if they really wanted to do something for the community they would bow out gracefully.”

By that I mean that I don’t think they can fix their image anymore than RMFC could.  It’s time to let the community move on, and if they actually have good intentions, let those that want to do good go regroup later.

I don’t think I can ask anything more of you, except let’s get back to the positive stuff.  Is there anything you can say for the dealers, artists, and community who don’t have a convention right now?

I would say that I’m sorry. I’m sorry that the state of the convention had to come to this, and I’m sorry that social politics caused the end of what was once a great staple of the Colorado Furry Community. Despite all the allegations flying around regarding the convention, in the end, we all tried to do our best to make a great con, to operate legally, and did so with very little resources, volunteering our time with very little to show for it but the convention.

Thanks a ton for putting so much effort into this.

Thank you for taking the time to speak to me about it.

Credit is due to Sorin about info in the previous Dogpatch Press article, where we confirmed that the C&D letter was official.  We don’t want to overstate his personal approval apart from RMFC, and apologize for that impression. 

UPDATE: One lawyer’s opinion.

/2 the type of statement I'd advise a representative of a non-profit client to make in this circumstance, if they had to make a statement.

— BoozyBarrister (@BoozyBarrister) April 25, 2017

Here’s perspective from around the community that contributed to questions.

• Deleted FA journal by board member Scorch (archived): “In mid February 2017; a MAAC board meeting was scheduled for the specific reasons of discussing what we should do about other people who decided to have a problem with the furry raiders including their petition to boycott RMFC if we refuse to ban 160+ furry raiders who are people who actually do help and support the furry community… This was primarily a discussion of our commercial concerns of judging the pros and cons such as: Ban 150+ Raiders and set this precedent of banning an entire class of furs because other furs decided to have a problem with them. Or simply not worry about 150+ furs on the petition (decided to have a problem) who would merely boycott (stay away from) RMFC. It was decided to simply allow the people who decided to have a problem to simply stay away”

• Foxler makes a video confession of paying to join a neo-nazi organization. On 4/21/17, Foxler also threatens to wear a swastika and: “I told board 3 months ago if they didn’t stop bring up Raider in their soical media post. Con would face failure” [sic]

• DrummingRaccoon on FA: “Hitler would be super proud of you Nazi fur guys, carrying on his legacy by dressing up in animal costumes with your little red arm bands and marching around a hotel lobby surrounded by hundreds of gays, trans folks and people of color that you totally have to coexist with now… I know for a fact now that there are some of you extremely self-contradicting furs out there who actually take the National Socialism thing for real.”

“I commented on a friend’s post regarding the RMFC drama saying something basically like “Fuck yeah, punch the Nazis!” and then a handful of these motherfuckers came out of the woodwork posting pictures of their guns saying ‘THIS WHAT YEW GON GET IF YOU ASSAULT ME, YOU SUBHUMAN ANTIFA COMMIE FUCK.’ … Their Facebook posts got deleted, but I still remember a few of their names. What we need to be concerned about is that real Neo-Nazis have taken notice of this shit now…”

• Nazi/white supremacist article about Foxler and furries pointed out by Furry News Network.

• FA journal: Rocky Mountain Fur Con 2017 Canceled, by ColoradoFurs – Comment by LucanShepherd to Scorch: “Deo and her actions are not the only influence on the sequence of events. The Raiders and upset Colorado locals and other people were involved. Both before and after Deo had any involvement… Yet you continually defend the Raiders.”

Comment by Fyzgal to Scorch: “so you’re literally trying to say it had NOTHING to do with a NeoNazi organization member threatening to conceal carry weapon to the hotel when it doesn’t allow it?”

Comment by Turgius to Scorch: “Perhaps some of this mess can be cleared up if you or others on the board can release documentation of the hotel’s requirement for the increased security and associated costs as well as the convention’s good faith effort to negotiate it. I imagine the DPD would have provided a verifiable invoice for their off duty services. Perhaps more transparency regarding what happened can help resolve this situation rather than accusations from either side.”

More to the story about blaming Deo: A false rumor about RMFC is repeating history from the Burned Furs.

To support independent furry writing, from opinions to book reviews by all of the team, please visit Dogpatch Press on Patreon where you can access exclusive stuff for just $1.

Once again we have Animation Scoop to thank for this bit of news: David Hale Hand, the son of Disney Legend David Dodd Hand, has a new new Kickstarter campaign up and running to restore his father’s Musical Paintbox series of animated shorts, as well as to update and enhance the Animaland series of shorts (which have previously been released on DVD). If you are not familiar with the elder Hand, check this out: “David Dodd Hand was an Animator and Director, and best known as Supervising Director of Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs (1937) and Bambi (1942). He was also Studio Production Supervisor while he was at the Disney Studios from 1930 – 1944… Leaving Disney, he was creator and Managing Director of Gaumont British Animation (GBA), a J. Arthur Rank Studio, where he created the 19 films about which are the focus of this project.” Those 9 Animaland shorts introduced us to new characters like Ginger Nutt (and his girlfriend Hazel), Oswald Ostrich, and Digger the Platypus. Anthropomorphic characters made their presence known in Musical Paintbox too — a series about the quirky British countryside and its many legends. The Kickstarter campaign has only a couple of weeks left (as of this writing), and contributors will receive digital copies of the restored films, so visit soon.

image c. 2017 GB Animation

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We're back! Today we're talking about Syria, Spicy Spicer, United airlines, and more!! Episode -5 - Sharkflight overbooked!

Join the unfurled crew for a fun filled episode of laughs Episode -6 - Shark things

April 2017 brings us a second Book of the Month. (This is totally not because we skipped the BotM post in March.)

Our second Book of the Month for April is GENMOS: Gathering Storms, a young adult science fiction novel by Stephen Coghlan.

I’m writing this letter to you because I want to tell you how my family, the Genmos, became recognized as living beings.

It all started years ago, when my dad used a government contract to create super-soldiers for his own needs. After almost a decade of providing limited success, the project was canceled and we were ordered destroyed. Unwilling to kill his children, dad hid us throughout the country, splitting us up from each other.

Just after my eighth birthday, my oldest sister’s guardian died, and she was forced to live on the streets. After several witnesses reported seeing her, it sparked a race to recover her, and my other siblings, between my father and the agency that had ordered us destroyed. That night began my people’s fight for our rights, our freedom and our very lives.

I’ve collected writings from my siblings and have tried to put them into an order that I hope makes sense for you. This is our story.

Gathering Storms is published by Thurston Howl Publications and is available in paperback from Amazon.

Submitted by Fred Patten, Furry’s favorite historian and reviewer.

Payu’s Journey, by R. Lawson Gamble. Map.
Los Alamos, CA, Rich Gamble Associates, November 2016, trade paperback $19.98 ([4 +] 91 pages), Kindle $2.99)

This is an oversized 8½” x 11” All Ages book, which means that it is written for Young Adults but will be of interest to adults. As the cover by Krista Lynn shows, it is set in Australia and features Australian animals – and a human baby.

“Payu wandered through softly falling darkness across the barren desert emptiness, her heart choked with grief. Every step brought a jarring reminder from her milk-swollen teats.

Payu was a dingo, the wide land she traveled Australia’s Great Sandy Desert where the sparse vegetation sent long roots deep into the cracked earth in search of any scant moisture, where small patches of hardy bunch grass clung to crumbly soil surfaces. Here and there a desert pea or acacia shrub cast a long spindly shadow.” (p. 1)

Payu’s mate has been killed at their den by humans while she was out hunting, and her pups stolen. Wandering grief-filled through Australia’s northwest, she comes across two human campers, a husband and wife, and steals their infant.

“Payu watched the little one feed and considered her situation. Somehow she had made the decision to keep this tiny human. Yet in the hostile environment of the desert it could not survive without more support. She could not hunt for food and at the same time protect a hairless, defenseless pup. Not without a mate or the support of a pack.” (p. 4)

Payu’s Journey is her adventures looking for support.   At first she goes to a large dingo pack, the Red Sand Pack, with which Payu and her mate had had friendly relations, sometimes hunting together. But Ruwa, its alpha male, fears the human retaliation that is sure to follow.

“Payu stepped away from her bundle. ‘The humans took away my pups. I have taken a pup from the humans. I come to seek your support.’

A look of surprise crossed Ruwa’s face, followed by anger. ‘You have acted thoughtlessly. The humans will follow you. They will come to take back their pup and they will punish all of us. You must leave now and take the human pup far from here.’” (p. 5)

She comes across a lone dingo, Ngur, who offers to help. She is startled when he brings a red kangaroo to meet her.

“Still she stared as they smiled and watched. When Payu spoke again, it was all in a rush. ‘But how did you two … you know … dingoes and kangaroos don’t usually …’ Her voice trailed off.

Ritta laughed loudly, a high-pitched whoop of a laugh. Her big brown eyes gleamed with amusement.

‘Yes, it’s true,’ she said. ‘Crazy, isn’t it? It’s quite unusual for natural enemies like us, may I say historic enemies like us, to cross species lines, so to speak. It’s not expected, it’s not accepted. Like Ngur here, I don’t follow the rules, I go my own way, I don’t follow the mob. If you want to survive in this desert you’ve got to have friends here and there, you’ve got to have allies, you’ve got to have folks you can call on in an emergency. You’ll see, you’ll learn, now that you’re on your own too.’” (p. 12)

Ritta carries the human pup, a boy whom they name Yawa, in her pouch so the tracking human dogs will not find any scent to follow. The three set out for the far north, where the desert gives way to a green and lush jungle with plenty of fruits and water.

They encounter both friends and enemies: Death, the Desert Death Adder; Camu the camel, descendant of 19th-century human attempts to introduce camels to Australia’s deserts; the Panka outlaw wild dog pack; Aptaca, the Goanna lizard; Kinta the brown eagle; Mika, “the foxy lady”. Some have to be escaped from, while others aid them, and some join their Motley Pack. Dangers include a savannah wildfire, a deep river with crocodiles, constant human hunters in helicopters, and an apparently impassable cliff.

Payu’s Journey comes to a definite conclusion, yet it also ends on a cliffhanger with a promise that her and Yawa’s journey will take a markedly different turn in the next book. This is Book 1 of the Tales of Yawa trilogy.

Gamble writes a straightforward yet sophisticated story. He makes several characters stand out by their distinctive voices. Ngur the white dingo: ‘Mah bad paw is actin’ up. Sometimes if ah push it too hard, the tendon pulls tight and ah have to rest it.’ Death the adder: ‘Sssstop, cur, or I will sssstrike the baby.’ Ritta the Roo: ‘Oh my goodness, how terrible, how frightening, how worrisome.’ Camu the camel constantly swears by his mother’s hump, and he belches and his stomach rumbles. Aptaca the Goanna talks with an educated accent. These are blended smoothly into the adventure. Payu’s Journey is, if not for All Ages, certainly for middle schools on up through all adult ages. Readers of this Book 1 will want to read the next two books of the Tales of Yawa when they are published.

Payu’s Journey is obviously inspired by the famous Australian case of a two-month-old baby girl who was stolen by dingoes from camping parents in 1980. The true-life adventure was much less happy; the human parents reported her theft by dingoes to the police, but when the authorities could not find anything, they convicted the mother of murdering her daughter. She was imprisoned for three years of a life sentence before the remains of the eaten baby were discovered in a dingo den, and the parents were exonerated.

–Fred Patten

• Buy on Amazon

If you would like to support writing by furries, for furries, please visit Dogpatch Press on Patreon. You can access exclusive stuff for just $1, and support all of the team, from opinions to book reviews.

Nuka joins us once again for some awesome psychology talk and furry survey updates. Then we do a quick roundup and jump into news involving drunk animals. Wait.

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Watch Video Interview:

Dr. Courtney “Nuka” Plante (he’s a kitty!) from FurScience.com joins us once again to discuss the project. After compiling several years of results we discuss some of the findings, their new freely downloadable book, and future plans of the project.

Link Roundup:

• Spawts puts out a Q&A video
• Mika Brzezinski Confuses Easter Bunny with Furry Fetishists, Traumatizes Morning Joe Team
• Paradox’s favorite desktop wallpaper artist
• Anthrocon #2 convention in Pittsburgh
• Mailman delivers package to strange name
• Ontario license plate “Paradox” but it’s blue

News:

• Hero Squirrel Attempts To Eat Taco Nearly The Size Of Its Whole Body
• Loner Crayfish Can Handle More Alcohol Than Sociable Ones
• Drunk Fish Convince Sober Ones To Follow Them Around
• What Really Happens When You Drink The “Shaman Drink” Ayahuasca?
• Psychedelic Drugs Induce A Higher State Of Consciousness

FC-264 Designated Swimmer - Nuka joins us once again for some awesome psychology talk and furry survey updates. Then we do a quick roundup and jump into news involving drunk animals. Wait.

Nuka joins us once again for some awesome psychology talk and furry survey updates. Then we do a quick roundup and jump into news involving drunk animals. Wait.

Download MP3

Watch Video Interview:

Dr. Courtney “Nuka” Plante (he’s a kitty!) from FurScience.com joins us once again to discuss the project. After compiling several years of results we discuss some of the findings, their new freely downloadable book, and future plans of the project.

Link Roundup:

• Spawts puts out a Q&A video
• Mika Brzezinski Confuses Easter Bunny with Furry Fetishists, Traumatizes Morning Joe Team
• Paradox’s favorite desktop wallpaper artist
• Anthrocon #2 convention in Pittsburgh
• Mailman delivers package to strange name
• Ontario license plate “Paradox” but it’s blue

News:

• Hero Squirrel Attempts To Eat Taco Nearly The Size Of Its Whole Body
• Loner Crayfish Can Handle More Alcohol Than Sociable Ones
• Drunk Fish Convince Sober Ones To Follow Them Around
• What Really Happens When You Drink The “Shaman Drink” Ayahuasca?
• Psychedelic Drugs Induce A Higher State Of Consciousness

FC-264 Designated Swimmer - Nuka joins us once again for some awesome psychology talk and furry survey updates. Then we do a quick roundup and jump into news involving drunk animals. Wait.

Nuka joins us once again for some awesome psychology talk and furry survey updates. Then we do a quick roundup and jump into news involving drunk animals. Wait.

Download MP3

Interview:

Dr. Courtney “Nuka” Plante (he’s a kitty!) from FurScience.com joins us once again to discuss the project. After compiling several years of results we discuss some of the findings, their new freely downloadable book, and future plans of the project.

Link Roundup:

• Spawts puts out a Q&A video
• Mika Brzezinski Confuses Easter Bunny with Furry Fetishists, Traumatizes Morning Joe Team
• Paradox’s favorite desktop wallpaper artist
• Anthrocon #2 convention in Pittsburgh
• Mailman delivers package to strange name
• Ontario license plate “Paradox” but it’s blue

News:

• Hero Squirrel Attempts To Eat Taco Nearly The Size Of Its Whole Body
• Loner Crayfish Can Handle More Alcohol Than Sociable Ones
• Drunk Fish Convince Sober Ones To Follow Them Around
• What Really Happens When You Drink The “Shaman Drink” Ayahuasca?
• Psychedelic Drugs Induce A Higher State Of Consciousness

[Live] Designated Swimmer

Took ’em a while, but Dreamworks have finally brought us more adventures with Spirit, star of the 2002 2D animated feature Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. Animation Scoop has a recent article introducing us to Spirit Riding Free, a new DreamworksTV animated series coming to NetFlix on May 5th. The story and characters are considerably different from the animated feature this time around: “When city-turned-country girl Lucky meets a wild mustang named Spirit, she feels an instant connection to the untamable horse. A courageous and natural-born leader, Lucky navigates this new world with her two new best friends, Pru and Abigail by her side. The trio embark on thrilling adventures, find genuine friendship, and discover what it means to be free!” No sign of Matt Damon to be found. Anyway, visit the article to see a trailer for the series.

image c. 2017 DreamworksTV

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Fursuit friday! "Another year of fun and entertainment with friends in Atlanta, Georgia! The night dances were spectacular this year and was a real treat to capture that on video for you guys to see. And of course, the dance competition was amazing. Some of the best that the fandom has to offer!" ...yeah purple is awesome. Kiba Wolf on FA [1] [1] http://www.furaffinity.net/user/kibamal
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Submitted by Fred Patten, Furry’s favorite historian and reviewer.

Love Match, by Kyell Gold. Illustrated by Rukis.
Dallas, TX, FurPlanet Productions, January 2017, trade paperback $19.95 (378 pages), e-books $9.99.

Kyell Gold is arguably the best author in furry fandom. He has won many literary awards inside and outside the fandom. Even those who do not like adult explicit writing have been won over by the high quality of his fiction.

Many of his books are set in what is loosely called his Forester University world. The best-known are the five “Dev and Lee” novels, chronicling the meeting of Devlin Miski, tiger football star, and Lee Farrel, fox gay activist, during their senior year at Forester U.; their becoming homosexual lovers, at first secretly and then openly; and their graduation from college and their first year out. Dev becomes a professional football player and Lee becomes a professional football talent scout to stay with him. Readers of the five novels became immersed in the details of professional football as Dev and Lee firmed up their personal relationship.

Now Kyell Gold has started a new series, projected at three novels. It is superficially similar, except that the sport featured is tennis, not football; and the main characters are, at the beginning, too young to have a sexual orientation. There are references to the Dev and Lee books.

Love Match is narrated by Rochi N’Guwe, a black-backed jackal from the African nation of Lunda who is brought to America the Union of the States with his mother on a scholarship from the Palm Gables Tennis Center. Rochi is immediately nicknamed Rocky by the other students, including Marquize, a cheetah from Madiyah who becomes his best friend. The Palm Gables Center, a leading tennis institution, has scoured the world for promising young players, and has brought Rocky and his mother to the States when he is only 14. (Probably. Lunda is casual about recording births.)

The novel begins with a brief prologue set in the present (2015), then drops into a book-length flashback to 2008 through 2010 for Rocky’s experiences in Palm Gables. This begins with his being introduced to the States and Palm Gables by Marquize, who is also 14 but has been in the States longer. Rocky does have some observations:

“Coyotes unsettled me because they looked so like jackals and yet the colorations were different. They had many of our mannerisms and the muzzles and ears matched exactly, more closely than the other canids at the school, none of which I’d encountered back in Lunda. Foxes were skinnier and more flamboyant, wolves stockier. I’d never met a maned wolf, but there was one named Veronica in our class and she looked like a fox who’d been stretched out. She and Kim [a coyote] hung around together a lot, but she was quieter; every now and then she would drop in a single smart comment. (p. 51)

Rocky also develops a dubious relationship with the older Braden Longacre, a dark-furred cross fox who is one of the Center’s top alumni but, as Rocky puts it, “He’s also kind of a jerk.” He and Braden get off on the wrong paw from the start:

“The sharp tone of Coach’s voice always brought us to attention. Marquize and I looked up to see him staring at us. ‘You three,’ he said, waving a paw. ‘Go start your practice games. You’re not getting time.’

Marquize and I hadn’t thought we were going to anyway, so it wasn’t that big a deal. But Braden was looking right at me, and so I paused and looked back as Marquize turned to go, and before I knew it, Braden had put a paw on Coach’s shoulder. ‘Now hold on,’ he said. ‘Why don’t I play a little one-on-two to warm up?’ He reached out a long, dark finger. ‘The coyote and cheetah there?’

‘I’m a jackal,’ I said loudly.

Coach’s big white ears swiveled. ‘Rocky and Marquize? They’re frosh –‘

‘It’s okay.’ Braden pulled his lips back in a smile. ‘It won’t take long.’” (p. 37)

But Love Match isn’t all tennis and Rocky’s school experiences. He has many short reminiscences of growing up in Lunda, which were often mixed with a long war there. His father was killed when he was too young to remember him. Rocky is devoted to his younger sister Ori, who could not come to the States with him and his mother; and he is shocked when she tells him when he phones home that she is being betrothed by their Aunt Kamina in an arranged marriage, at age 13.

“[I] hung up, then went inside to where Ma was sitting on the couch reading. ‘Ori’s getting married,’ I said, standing there with my arms folded.

Ma flicked her ears and turned the page in her book. ‘Already?’

‘You knew about this. You told Kamina to do it.’

‘No.’ She shook her head slowly. ‘I told Kamina to take care of Ori as best she could. She thinks Ori should be married, and I’m thousands of kilometers away. I’m in no position to argue, and it wouldn’t be good for Ori for me to argue.’” (p. 48)

Rocky (who is just 14) feels that he must earn enough money to bring Ori to the States where he can somehow take care of her.

Love Match is about Rocky’s mid-adolescence in Palm Gables, growing up with his tennis-playing classmates, and his stern-but-loving Ma. Other important characters are Frio (ferret), the Center’s assistant tennis coach; and Coach Murphy (white rabbit). His classmates are his pals, but they are also his rivals. Frio trains them all to play their best, and that means to study each other sharply for their weaknesses. These are mostly funny-animal scenarios, but Gold emphasizes the animal nature of the characters when he can:

“Pom had great footwork and speed and he used his tail for balance better than any other fox I’ve seen since then, except for one (a lot of players keep their tails curled around them; some let them flop around).” (p. 144)

Rocky’s classmates are Bret, a cougar; Yu, a panda; Pom (red fox) and Dom (arctic fox); and Malik, a Geoffroy’s cat; among others. And of course Marquize. Rocky and all the boys discover Internet pornography together. Rocky goes from learning theoretically what gay romance means to developing a solid gay relationship with Marquise. Braden, who has already graduated and gone on to tennis stardom, appears just often enough to not be forgotten; his role as Rocky’s mentor/enemy will grow in the sequels.

Love Match (wraparound cover and over a dozen interior illustrations by Rukis) comes to a satisfactory conclusion but leads right into the next stage of Rocky’s life. It is a bravura addition to Gold’s Forester U. world.

– Fred Patten

• Buy on Furplanet
• Buy at Bad Dog Books

So this happened. Warner Brothers Animation decided to mash up the original Gene Wilder Willy Wonka film with Tom and Jerry for ... reasons? So it's now official and they have lost their 'effen minds. The trailer here is a wonder to behold and this is an abomination of so many levels. I think this storyboard artist put it best: I have been sitting in my office for 30 minutes like pic.twitter.com/2rQM3z01mw [1] — Sam King (@SamanthaCKing) April 18, 2017 [2] [1] https://t.co/2rQM3z01mw [2] https://twitter.com/SamanthaCKing/status/854468952163889152
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Dear Papabear,
​
Last year because of Donald Trump many people from Islamic countries have been deported back to their home countries. They were forced to board planes leaving from New York, Nevada, Florida, Arizona, and California after being arrested and detained by Immigration Control Enforcemen—or ICE—agents. What can I do to prevent further deportations of people from Islamic countries from happening?

Sergie
 
* * *
 
Dear Sergie,
 
Excellent question. I think, in truth, this is the first time Papabear has ever received such a politically hot query (conservative "Ask Papabear" readers might be offended by what I am about to say, but oh, well). Even though the outright ban on immigrants from several countries ordered by Trump has been stayed by a federal judge, border security prejudice against Muslims and deportations have increased significantly. A witch hunt like this has not been seen in our country since the anti-Communist McCarthy era of the 1950s. The election of Donald Trump has brought back a flood of racist feelings in this country. Hateful people feel empowered by his being elected and are coming out like cockroaches when the light of justice (forgive me for sounding like Po here) has been turned off.
 
Americans have a long history of that here, including prejudice and mistreatment of African Americans, Native Americans, Chinese immigrants, Irish immigrants, Japanese Americans, Communists, LGBT people, and now Muslims (especially if they are from the Middle East; many Americans are too dumb to realize many Muslims are not from Arabic countries, even sometimes confusing Sikhs for Muslims if they are wearing turbans). In short, our country thrives by hating other people, it seems. Politically, inciting a people to hate a certain nationality, ethnicity, or religion as an "outside threat" is used to unite people behind a government striving to stay in power. Americans talk a good game about being lovers of freedom (I remember in grade school how they tried to convince us we were a "Melting Pot"--lies), but we are just as prejudiced as any other country. Controlling people in this manner is better achieved, too, when the people are uneducated, which is why our public school system has been deliberately dumbed down by politicians and religious extremists.
 
But there is some hope. 
 
Slowly, over the centuries, America has experienced some encouraging waves of liberalism and open-mindedness. Since the 1970s, especially, we have been making some significant progress in gay, women, and minority rights. What sometimes happens (as we are seeing now) is that "conservative" whites, when they see this kind of evolution in civil rights taking place, become defensive and fearful that "their way of life" is being threatened (meaning white Christian "American" values). When this happens, there is a backlash of conservative paranoia, resulting in sympathy towards Christian televangelists, neo-Nazis, the KKK, and more subtle groups that pretend not to hold those values but really do.
 
What can you do about it? The above problem arises when liberal and progressive thinkers become lazy and complacent (this is why Hillary Clinton lost the election--she assumed she would win and this resulted in her making many serious mistakes, such as assuming she would win Wisconsin and Michigan, therefore, not campaigning enough there). So, what you need to do is:

1. Know your legal rights. This makes it harder for police and government officials to take advantage of you.
2. Get involved politically; campaign for politicians who hold your values (even if you are not eligible to vote, you can still help the right politicians with their campaigns).
3. Keep informed. Knowledge empowers.
4. Keep thorough records on anything that seems to target you and other Muslims. This is your ammunition.
5. Get the word out about Islam. Unfortunately, the U.S. media is doing little or nothing to share news about Muslims who are NOT terrorists and who do NOT support terrorism. The result is increased fear among Americans against terrorists (the media does this because they care more about ratings than the truth because ratings = money). You could start a blog, write your newspaper, and be active on social media about the true spirit of Islam.

 
I hope that helps. Fight the good fight, my furiend.
 
Papabear

​P.S. Below is a helpful book I edited about Islam that should clear things up for many people.