It's been a week. No response. Host #1 said they were "high as a kite on pain meds." Host #2 promised a joint statement upon recovery from covid. The Worldcon organizers haven't said a thing. But some folks have accused me of being a deep-undercover Rabid Puppy, so I got that going for me. 🤣
It's just really sad. The inability to reflect and apologise, the apparent inability to pass lessons from one con to the next...
all of this is absolutely wild in a bad way
Indeed. :(
The lack of communication is just pathetic, honestly. They need to stand up and take responsibility. Promise to provide pronunciation guides following years ("I didn't get them" sounds like cover, I still think). This isn't hard stuff, even high on painkillers or with covid.
It's a different team each year, which explains the patchy record. (Bad 2020, good 2021-24, etc.) FWIW, I heard the 2026 Worldcon folks have read my essay and taken it to heart. But yeah, it's been 12 days since the awards ceremony... The best time for them to act would've been within 24 hours.
I think when whatever ‘histories’ get written about this are written the parallels between why it happened in 2020 and 2025 will be easy to see.
WSFS needs to get over themselves and professionalize the management of Worldcon. It's too important to leave entirely in hands of whatever bunch of randos happens to win the bid that year.
it's both different team each year and a lot of the same people each year to some extent especially when it comes to US-based worldcons
Why is it so hard to just say "You know what, you're right, I'm sorry and we'll do better" ??
My impression is the reason the parties haven’t managed to get a joint statement out is related to the reasons this stupidity happened in the first place.
💯
Rabid Puppies, famously known for caring about people with non-Anglo names
When a young child gets very upset, they use every bad word they know in their tantrum - anything at all to express their rage. Most people grow out of that.
Umm...No.
Which part? 🙃
You ain't no Puppy. The rest is post-Worldcon Charlie Foxtrot cubed.
During the old SFWA kerfuffle the author at fault wasn't responding I contacted him directly, got a surprise response. I tried that again and got a surprise response. A promise that they were discussing it. Then crickets. The silence becomes a conscious decision at some point. But what does it mean?
I'm sure they *are* discussing it. 🫤