Everyone is dominant AND submissive. It is entirely situational.

     Oddly enough (or perhaps not so oddly) Gorean society seems to be based upon the concept that everyone has a natural place in the order of things, and that each is submissive to what is above and is dominant over what is below.

     I was involved in a debate awhile back, in which a slave addressed the question whether if, by kicking a male dog which bit her, she was proving herself to be non-submissive. Same answer. A female slave, a human being, takes precedence over a male non-human animal in the general order of things.

     Could a Master place that dog above the slave, giving it higher priority and ordering the slave not to kick it?

     Of course. But that is an example of the higher, more dominant creature (the male human Master) enacting a command upon the female slave. The actual place in society occupied by the dog has little to do with it.

     Strong men will naturally dominate weaker men. Most men can naturally dominate most women. And strong women will naturally dominate weaker women. On Gor, that is. And on Earth, also. Look around. And remember what grade school was like, and how the different strata naturally found their places, before the strange societal rules of Earth were pounded into our heads.

     It seems to me that to many, all of this online interaction is absolutely, irrefutably, 100% a game which people log online to play, and leave behind them when they leave whatever particular corner of cyberspace they habitually occupy.

     That is, of course, their prerogative. It is perhaps even fun; but what happens when the "game" eclipses the actual practice of the philosophy and concepts involved?

     One might create an Internet-based "game" in which all involved are soldiers and space-marines. One might create numerous codes, rules, and rank systems for it. But does that mean that those who bravely defend the galaxy while playing it are ACTUALLY soldiers and space-marines? Or that anything they do online, in the pursuit of defending the galaxy, has any basis in any actual accomplishment in the actual, offline world? Nope.

     Which is one of the reason that so many of we who take Gor very seriously in our lives are so adamant and vehement in our pronouncements against such online "gaming," and combat dice scripts, etc. Take the Arena channels over on aust, for example. Is it cool? I have no doubt it is. Is it fun? You bet! Is it very meticulously Gorean in theme, according to the books? I would say that it most probably is. All such simulations of that type which I have seen have been quite true to the written word of the books, according to how such things are practiced by Norman's Goreans.

     But where does it all end? What about the various spin-off Gorean combat channels, created by those who do not give a fig about the Gor books, which are effectively beyond their control? They have opened a door onto a particular type of game-based interaction involving Gorean subject matter, and it is probably great fun to take part in. I have, in the past, experimented with such things myself. But who can police such a thing and keep it Gorean? How long before other such simulations appear, run by those who are less knowledgeable about Gorean subjects, and take their place upon the "Gorean" landscape, claiming veracity?

     Another interesting point, here... when such simulations are used to "resolve" problems and disputes, though the resolution of such problems is left to the outcome of a "game," then what is actually solved? Actual disputes, real ones which impact the lives of those involved, are seldom resolved in such a fashion. The participants simply refuse to acknowledge the veracity of the game outcome or its effect to remedy the situation, as we have all seen in the past.

     In my opinion, the only sort of problem which can be effectively resolved in such a way is a "game" problem or a "game" dispute. When all of our problems are resolved in such a way ("Ha! You insulted my honor, and I have killed you for it!") then that reduces all of our interaction to the level of one big game. When pretend police enforce pretend laws with pretend nightsticks, the entire matter must obviously be, in effect, "pretend."

     This is not a dig against online gamers or their motives, I add. I have no doubt that most intend for their creations to simply be a way in which we might further enmesh ourselves in the atmosphere of the fictional environment of Gor. However, when we do so we again open Pandora's box, and again lose ground in our ongoing effort to establish actual Gorean practices in our lives which are resolved and forwarded in a more "real" manner.

     Plus, the IRC nets and chat-based media are, in my opinion, not very good media to play such games. There are far better simulations available, via Battle-Net, Ultima Online, etc., for such entertainment.

     Someone recently asked me why it had been so long since I placed a detailed article concerning Gorean life and customs on the S&S website, i.e my own page on the Wagon-Peoples, a street map of Ar, etc.

     Examine some of the Gorean gaming sites, online. You will notice that much of my past work, produced simply to inform and delight anyone who was interested in Gor and to aid in our understanding of Gor and how it functions, has been adapted into source material for such online gaming. I find this rather annoying, since by doing such, those who have done so have rather effectively classified me, Marcus, to be a fictional character in a fictional society which can only exist within the confines of a game environment.

     That is simply not true. I am who I am, and despite my fanciful allusions to Gor and my "Gorean" aspects, disseminated as a source of amusement among my comrades, I am not simply an amalgam of game rules.

     To imply that any man's personal philosophy, one which he lives to the best of his ability on a day-to-day basis, is simply an artificial construct or "player character" woven from the whole cloth, is, quite simply put, an insult to that man and to all he holds dear.

     Q: What's the difference between a Gorean Male and a Terrorist?

     A: You can negotiate with the Terrorist.

     A good question, one which is often asked among those who study and emulate Gorean thought and custom. Frankly, mine is not to randomly decide who is more Gorean than so-and-so; all I have ever tried to do is to clue others in on what the books DO say. And if we all read and understand the books, and try to apply what we learn to our lives, how can we not be richer for it?

     I have long held to the belief that the actual Gor books remain our only unified form of reference and the only applicable basic by which to judge what Gor does and does not entail. I suspect that, if all those who came online purporting to be Gorean were to understand the Gor books and pay attention to what was written there, a lot of the ongoing arguments and flamewars would evaporate.

     With that in mind, I provide my services to the greater Gorean community, both online and off, in the attempt to bring everyone who is interested to a more detailed and informed knowledge of what Gor is all about.

     As long as my work, and that of Norman, is treated with a modicum of respect, I will go to any lengths to see that it is disseminated to those who wish to view it.

     Many of the current complaints which arise from Gorean IRC are indicative of the strange situation which has come about in much of our offline world, and which has been the situation online since day one: namely, we are living in a world where not only are many not required to be responsible for their actions, but they are tolerated only because the rest of us are compelled to exist beneath a veneer of enforced civility.

     Those who know me understand my feelings in regards to the shambles which much of the "Gorean" internet has become. It pains me deeply to see so many persons out there abusing the trust of others; and yet, the same can be said of our offline society, as well. The only major difference between the two is the fact that, in the nameless faceless void that is cyberspace, cowards tend to put on airs and act far bolder than they would were the situation a face-to-face confrontation, offline.

     My solution is this: if a person refuses to accept the basic Gorean precepts set forth in the books, those which pertain to honesty, decency, and responsibility, then I have no further use for that person, either online or off.

     The other day while online I was approached by someone who asked me if I was aware of the latest outrage performed by a certain person who has been making trouble in Gorean circles since she first blundered across them. I admitted that I was. They then went on to ask me if I was not upset about the matter.

     "No," I responded, "why should I be concerned about the actions of Earthlings, when I am attempting to interact with my fellow Goreans?"

     "But," cried the other, "This is a Gorean we are discussing!"

     "Is it?" I asked.

     The other person had no ready answer for that.

     There are Gorean Masters, and Gorean slaves, and Gorean males, and Gorean females... and there are also those who don't happen to be "Gorean" ANYTHING.

     I submit that a lot of strange people can lock themselves in their basement and stomp around claiming to be hungry dinosaurs; however, what that has in common with an actual herd of saurians from the prehistoric period is not even worth considering. Nor are most of those who run around online, claiming to be practicioners of a personal belief system they do not even understand.

     Personally, I have a rather extensive /ignore list full of such people. And between you and me, you wouldn't believe some of the names that are on it.

     I suppose what I am saying, in regards to the weirdness that has always been a part of the online Gorean situation, is simply this: if they can reach out and push your buttons, and upset you, then they have already won the only battle they are capable of fighting: the war of being annoying.

     Fleas on a larl. Ignore them, and every so often, scratch one off if it gets too insistent.

     Let the dogs bark as they will; the caravan rolls on. Let them feed on our scraps as we leave them choking in our dust.

     That has always been our way, and what has kept so many of us around for so long.

     "No, I would not try to reform man by pretending that my wishes for him were the wishes of Priest-Kings, even though this might be effective for a time, for the wishes that reform man, that make him what he is capable of becoming, and has not yet become, must be his own and not those of another. If man rises, he can do so only on his own two feet."