The GOP (Republican Party) of Maine has recently launched a smear champaign against Democrat candidate Colleen Lachowicz for her "bizarre double life" as a level 68 female orc rogue (assassin) in the game World of Warcraft (WoW). They even went so far to launch a website called ColleensWorld.com to mock/expose her enjoyment of the game in question. Now this just brings me back to the crapfest we call politics. I would like to say this is ridiculous, but would the media reaction be different if it were the Democrat party exposing a GOP candidate for enjoying WoW? I think so. One of the things that fuels the vile bile spewing about Lachowicz's enjoyment (obsession?) of the game WoW are quotes such as "I stab things a lot. Who would have thought a peace-lovin' social worker and democrat would enjoy that?". In any party politic sh** slinging contest that quotes like this are just the Golden Christmas Poo of ammunition.
So let's agree here that when it comes to party politics it just degrades into the crapfest, but this brings up a few questions I want to consider. Please keep in mind that I am personally sick of the crap BOTH parties are throwing out.
So here are those questions:
1) In an age of online openness & limited privacy, can a public figure "get away with" crass behavior without scrutiny?
2) Is a child's game (sorry WoW fans, but it is) something a holder of public office (or a potential one) should be dedicating a significant amount of time to no matter the party? Average play time in WoW is about 20+ hours a week.
3) And how is crass behavior on a public forum such as WoW any different from similar behavior on a Facebook account or in spectator sport game?
The last question I think is particularly cogent since on Facebook and while watching a football game you are, in fact, living in a sort of fantasy world. The reality of the matter is that while both provide enjoyment and release, they are also not reality. So can a person in a public area behave in a way contrary to expected behavior and then expect to be exempt from any criticism resulting from such behavior? I get that WoW is a fantasy based game. I get there is fighting. Heck, I get the enjoyment from such games. Personally I don't play MMO's. I can't stand them. But that doesn't mean I don't occasionally go over to a friend's place and play a game or 3 of some first person shooter with him and some other buddies and not enjoy it. Still, if it is public is it fair game? Please, share your thoughts. I want this to be a discussion. I want to hear what you think. Please keep the commentary clean and civil. This commentary is not about political parties so much as it is about what should or should not count in the political arena. What is considered public and private. Stuff like that.
