Gary the Cryptofascist

In my life, I've encountered real racism — firsthand. I've dealt with school bullying, being denied housing because of my Asian name, and, oh yeah, someone once tried to… set me on fire. So I know a little bit about what actual racists are and why they're terrible. Unlike, obviously, the people who sling this label at me from the safety of their screens but are too cowardly to say it to my face.

Not only am I not a racist — I'm more of an anti-fascist than any of these people, because I'm not afraid to look the phenomenon of fascism in the eye and understand how it works. To understand the person who chooses that side, what makes their psyche tick, and then judge them. That's, in case anyone missed it, the whole point of Disco Elysium itself — a game that deconstructs ALL the major modern ideologies and explores how and why people arrive at them. I played the game and got that message. They clearly didn't.

Someone in the comments said we need to be "called out" for our art. So go on, call me out. I'm not afraid of you. You clearly haven't seen a tenth of the real racism I've personally faced. But you'll never actually do it. Because slinging mud from the shadows is one thing; openly debating a living, breathing person is another.

I was especially amused by the whole "dog whistle" concept. Have you all ever heard of the word "friend"? Many Gary fans know each other offline. And I will continue to support my friends.

In my life, I've encountered real racism — firsthand. I've dealt with school bullying, being denied housing because of my Asian name, and, oh yeah, someone once tried to… set me on fire. So I know a little bit about what actual racists are and why they're terrible. Unlike, obviously, the people who sling this label at me from the safety of their screens but are too cowardly to say it to my face.

Not only am I not a racist — I'm more of an anti-fascist than any of these people, because I'm not afraid to look the phenomenon of fascism in the eye and understand how it works. To understand the person who chooses that side, what makes their psyche tick, and then judge them. That's, in case anyone missed it, the whole point of Disco Elysium itself — a game that deconstructs ALL the major modern ideologies and explores how and why people arrive at them. I played the game and got that message. They clearly didn't.

Someone in the comments said we need to be "called out" for our art. So go on, call me out. I'm not afraid of you. You clearly haven't seen a tenth of the real racism I've personally faced. But you'll never actually do it. Because slinging mud from the shadows is one thing; openly debating a living, breathing person is another.

I was especially amused by the whole "dog whistle" concept. Have you all ever heard of the word "friend"? Many Gary fans know each other offline. And I will continue to support my friends.