You remember that lawsuit the GamerGate-loving, feminist-hating “Honey Badger Brigade” was apparently going to file against the Calgary Expo (for tossing them out) and The Mary Sue (for saying mean things about them, or something)? You know, the suit that they raised more than $30,000 to finance from their angry and apparently quite gullible fans?
Well, apparently they’ve filed the suit?
I ended with a question mark because they’ve been a teensy bit vague about what exactly they’ve done.
Rather than go with the traditional press release, you see, the Honey Damsels Badgers have decided to let the world (and their donors) know about this new development by obliquely referencing it on Twitter, nearly a week after the fact, and then pretty much refusing to answer any questions about it.
Like, for example, what exactly they filed, and where, and how exactly they think they can sue a website headquartered in the United States for allegedly getting them kicked out of an expo in Canada. Especially if they don’t actually file a separate lawsuit in the US.
Here’s how things went down on Twitter.
We're waiting on @Calgaryexpo and @TheMarySue to respond. They now have 18 and 40 days respectively. https://t.co/CaSgh0qC0h
— Honey Badger Radio (@HoneyBadgerBite) September 6, 2015
Breech of contract, injurious falsehood; filed last monday @scbritton @Brackstone
— Honey Badger Radio (@HoneyBadgerBite) September 7, 2015
I asked a few followup questions, trying to nail down some details about the filing — if the disbarred lawyer they got to help them with “research” was involved in the filing, and whether they had filed a separate claim against The Mary Sue in the US because, you know, the Mary Sue is based in the US.
@HoneyBadgerBite @Calgaryexpo @TheMarySue What did you file and with whom? A Statement of Claim? Was Kopyto involved in writing/filing?
— David Futrelle (@DavidFutrelle) September 7, 2015
@HoneyBadgerBite I'm just asking what you filed. So I won't have t report, 'the HBBs said they filed something but won't say what."
— David Futrelle (@DavidFutrelle) September 7, 2015
@HoneyBadgerBite Also, the Mary Sue is American. Did you file in NY state?
— David Futrelle (@DavidFutrelle) September 7, 2015
Well, so much for that, I guess.
I also sent a note to The Mary Sue to see if they had any statement or if they had even been notified that the HBB had filed anything. I haven’t heard back from them yet.
Given this dearth of information and the HBB’s apparent unwillingness to answer questions, my best guess is that they filed a Statement of Claim in Alberta based at least loosely on the “Legal Draft” posted on the HBB website back in July, prepared by the aforementioned disbarred lawyer, Harry Kopyto.
In that draft, the HBB’s declared that they were seeking
damages in the amount of $50,000 jointly and severally against the Defendants Alberta Comics and Entertainment Expo Inc. and The Mary Sue for injurious falsehood and also against the Defendant Alberta Comics and Entertainment Expo Inc. for breach of contract and against The Mary Sue for inducing breach of contract.
The Legal Draft describes The Mary Sue as “a daily internet newsletter which promotes itself as the premier destination for entertainment geeks.”
How do you do, fellow entertainment geeks. Could you kindly direct me to the nearest daily internet newsletter?
And it goes on to declare that
the false and disparaging comments published by The Mary Sue also dissuaded persons from engaging in and refusing to have any contact or purchasing merchandise from the Plaintiff.
Can I get in on that? No one bought anything from me that day either, and I’m pretty sure The Mary Sue was to blame. I’ll settle for $60,000 or maybe just a fruit smoothie.
If the HBB’s actual filing looks even vaguely similar to this draft, it will be interesting to see how one goes about suing an American entity in a Canadian court for allegedly saying things that allegedly stopped alleged persons from buying Honey Badger merchandise at a convention in Calgary.
I’m no disbarred lawyer, but somehow I just don’t see this working out for them.
Oh, and how do you “dissuade persons from engaging in?”
Engaging in what?
And your icon is a dragon, so there you go.
Fun story time!
When I was a wee little Paradox in middle school (fifth grade in the US, sixth year in the UK), I was lucky enough to go to a school with an AMAZING librarian, who I got along famously with. Consequently, this was also the same year the Harry Potter books debuted in the US, and me being my wee bookish self with a family who loved reading as much as I did, I got to read the first book because it was gifted to me by my grandmother.
So, that same year, my librarian started up the Harry Potter club for our schools mandatory clubs. Every student was required to be in a club for one half of the year, and then for the other half, you were in another.
I was lucky enough to get into the Harry Potter club, despite there being a HUGE list of kids who wanted in on it (I think it might have been the librarian playing favorites, but I don’t judge. 😉 ), and we had a grand time. So, the librarian, being her awesome self, delivered our acceptance letters by a stuffed owl (which blew my mind), and the acceptance letter also came with a personality quiz. I filled it out, and gave it back to her as soon as I could, because I was just so excited to see where I’d get placed.
Now, me being my lil’ eleven-year-old bookish self, I identified with Hermione in the books. She had frizzy hair like me, she was a bookworm like me, she was very studious like me, and I fancied myself to be rather clever for my age. So I imagined I’d be put in Gryffindor. Because I was just like Hermione.
The first day of clubs comes along. We got to ride on the “Hogwarts Express” (two shelves covered over with dark paper lined with seats), wear robes, eat jelly beans, all the way to the “Sorting Ceremony”. We sat on a computer chair in front of everyone else, got a big hat pulled over our heads, and we were spun round and round while the librarian recited a rhyming couplet she wrote for each student.
Imagine my shock and dismay when I get sorted into Hufflepuff, of all places. I felt cheated. I felt like I was wronged. But, I went through the rest of the club anyway and still managed to have fun. (We of course didn’t win the house cup or anything like that.)
Fast forward to the release of the last movie, and I’m no longer a wee little Paradox, but rather a slightly bigger, much older wee little Paradox.
I’m sitting on the couch, and I see the commercial, and I think to myself “Wow, already?”, and I think about re-reading the books because it’s been a while, and suddenly, I have a flashback to my time in the club.
Holy shit., I think to myself, She was right. I am a Hufflepuff.
And that’s the story of how I realized my true calling as a member of the noble house of Hufflepuff.
@EJ and PandaPool, I don’t really know what you’re talking about, and what you want to do exactly; but that code ain’t Java, it’s JavaScript, and here’s how I think you want to have it modified:
Hope this helps
The first comment should read
// replaces SJW by necromancer and SJWs by necromancers, with an S…@sff9
:OOOOOOO I’ll have to try that, thank you!
In honor of this thread, I went and did a quiz at the BBC website (mainly cuz it was the first one that popped up on google.)
Let me insert here that I never really thought about what house I would be sorted into even though I’ve read all the books and seen all the films AND I can tell you that my hobbit name is Lobelia Sandybanks. But while I was reading here, I figured I’d be either a Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff.
Buuut, apparently I’m a Gryffindor. Go figure.
All tests I’ve ever done have put me in Slytherin, but this test is said to be VERY accurate.
My personal score is 53% Ravenclaw, 37% Hufflepuff, 55% Slytherin and 51% Gryffindor.
I’m not very badger like. 😐
Oooh, I took that quiz Pandapool, and lookie!
62% Hufflepuff, 55% Ravenclaw, 49% Gryffindor and 38% Slytherin!
Also, I am apparently 97% more Hufflepuff than other people who took the test. XD
“59% Ravenclaw, 53% Hufflepuff, 40% Slytherin and 41% Gryffindor!”
*continues waving little flag* =P
I find it weird that I’m a Slytherin yet I scored higher as a Gryffindor than the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw here. I guess what people say about Gryffindor and Slytherin not being so different it’s true. lol
“56% Ravenclaw, 38% Hufflepuff, 48% Slytherin and 54% Gryffindor!”
Ravenclaw. Because someone in this school needs to actually, you know, learn something. High five, M!
(I don’t like this test. It works on a four-axis system rather than a two-axis system, meaning that it’ll throw up a lot of ambiguous results like mine in which I’m very nearly Gryffindor despite not being much of one. I think the maths of it could be done far more cleverly.)
Yeah, I thought I’d be in Ravenclaw. My Results: “63% Ravenclaw, 51% Hufflepuff, 38% Slytherin and 37% Gryffindor!”
Apparently my peers are usually in Slytherin or Gryffindor… I scored higher than 95% of my peers for Ravenclaw. Of those who took this test anyway.
@EJ
Well, considering that unless the Sorting Hat REALLY thinks you need a certain House, you can pick one. I’d imagine the Sorting Hat, in your situation, would wonder if you should belong in Ravenclaw or Gryffindor and you can put your two cents in.
Like, for instance, Harry Potter. The Sorting Hat wanted to put him in Slytherin but he would be equally good in Gryffindor, so when Harry said he wanted to be in Gryffindor more, the Sorting Hat placed him in it.
Then there’s Neville, who wanted to be placed in Hufflepuff, but the Sorting Hat knew Gryffindor would be better, and you know what? Neville ended up being a big player in the Wizarding Wars AND got to draw Godric Gryffindor’s sword from the Hat, meaning he was a true Gryffindor all along! Neville was likely not as Hufflepuff as he was Gryffindor, not that Neville would had admitted it, so that’s why the Sorting Hat and he had such an argument.
Then there’s Hermione, who was a hat stall, according to Pottermore. The Sorting Hat was up in the air about putting her in either Gryffindor or Ravenclaw for, I think, 12 minutes or so when it settled on Gryffindor. Likely, Hermione didn’t input anything until the sorting got a little long for her.
So Paradoxical CLEARLY belongs in Hufflepuff, while I likely could have likely picked between Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Gryffindor. SFHC should be sorted into Ravenclaw, but the Sorting Hat would have probably considered Hufflepuff. You, EJ, would have likely been able to choose between Ravenclaw and Gryffindor yourself.
“61% Ravenclaw, 51% Hufflepuff, 48% Slytherin and 40% Gryffindor”
LIES! ALL LIES! I regularly drink expired dairy products on behalf on my demon overlords! I make rude remarks about people who wear clothing of any color! I have also once thought about tipping a cow!
TAKE IT BACK!!!
On a side note the test did seem a little easy to figure out how to place yourself, but I decided to be honest about it. I guess that is a strike against my Slytherin ambitions (but every other Potter test I took told me otherwise!).
At least my clear hatred of ‘good’ guys stood out! MWAAA HAAA HAA HAAA! (I only do this when I am being evil. My RL version is really incredible 8p)
@Pandapool Whoa there manipulation master, who put you in charge of sorting out all the houses? We are not here to do your bidding (yet)!
@reallyfriendly
I think the fact that you thought Slytherin was the eeevvviiiillll house was your downfall. I mean, Merlin was a Slytherin and Quirrell was a Ravenclaw.
The only house that hasn’t had a dark witch or wizard in it is Hufflepuff, but, let’s face it, there’s going to be a Knight Templar in their ranks anytime now.
http://38.media.tumblr.com/2b4d6a01dbc1dd4d16dc3f3c16173758/tumblr_n9th0j43hG1r8kbpjo1_500.gif
I just took the test, and it’s official: I’m a snek.
61% Ravenclaw, 31% Hufflepuff, 63% Slytherin and 44% Gryffindor!
Panda, put me down for another Slytherin. And yes, I see them as (potentially) closely related to Gryffindor, in that both houses are achievement-oriented. Gryffindors evidently favor “glory,” which means that they need their achievements to be highly visible. Lockhart would be the extreme case, a Gryffindor who didn’t even care if he had real achievements as long as he was *seen* to. Slytherins favor something more like “influence,” as seen by Slughorn, who is happy when he feels responsible for the accolades other people earn.
When I was a child, I was puzzled about why Hermione didn’t go to Ravenclaw, but I accepted it when I decided that Housing is about values more than traits. Hermione is very intelligent, but she’s not especially intellectual. In book 7, for instance, we find out that Ravenclaws have to solve a riddle to get into their common room, not memorize a password. I find it hard to imagine that Hermione would find that amusing.
Oh, and amusingly:
You scored 31% on Hufflepuff, higher than 3% of your peers.
You scored 63% on Slytherin, higher than 97% of your peers.
I is apparently very snek.
@aniexist
You’d be a hat stall for sure. 😛
@Orion
I think you mean she’s intelligent but doesn’t like to be held back. She’d likely not want to waste her time solving a riddle when she could be studying or getting something done. That’s the Gryffindor in her, not one to sit all day, pondering mysteries, but rather gain knowledge and apply it to things.
@Pandapool Hey, I can dream right? I did feel that one of the faults of the Harry Potter series was how they placed all the ‘bad guys’ in Slytherin other than Peter Pettigrew which I always felt to be too unrealistic (even for children fiction). Also gave people the general impression that Slytherin is ‘evil’.
I was actually glad of the eventual reveal about Severus Snape proving them wrong. It was a good subversion (though obvious) of the overall theme of the series that kinda justified all the undue heat the Slytherin were getting. I feel that a richer and more interesting story was missed here due to their stereotypical framing of the other houses apart from Gryffindor (who has a full range of characters covering all types of personalities)
And also in regards to the trio of heroes I was mostly annoyed with the boys who seem to rely very heavily on their luck rather than their ability to overcome their difficulties. I questioned the value that the series goes to try and make us sympathetic to them when I really couldn’t get behind their antics.
@reallyfriendly
There was only, like, five reoccurring Slytherins in the whole book series, all that hung around Malfoy while Harry Potter was a Gryffindor. I think it had less to do with consciously trying to stereotype a house and more to do with the fact that Harry Potter, the main character, would spend more time around Gryffindors than Slytherins.
(That’s kinda why I want another series around Albus Severus being sorted into Slytherin. o3o)
And, yeah, Hermione was really the only competent one of the bunch.
I have to admit, my favorite characters are Hermione, Draco, Snape, Quirrell, Lucius, Narcissa, Bellatrix, Voldemort, Trelawney and Lupin, in no particular order. They are either interesting characters and/or got shit done. Or they’re just really badass. Pff.
Hmm, I do agree with the fact that she doesn’t outright write “Slytherin is EVIL” but I would also point out some important instances in the story where there was a clear opportunity to show otherwise and they don’t take advantage of it to make this clear:
In the last book when they are organizing the defense of Hogwarts the Slytherins are all excluded on THEIR own choice. That was too broad in my opinion – surely there would be a few that would disagree with the overall decision, regardless of peer pressure. Do they not have any ties at all to members of other houses? Do they have no loyalty to the school itself and the staff members? Is every Slytherin associated with Death Eaters in some shape or form?
When describing the Quidditch matches she always writes like Slytherin doesn’t care about being unsportsmanlike and aggressive in their games. No obvious dissent from any of the Slytherins (recurring or background). So Slytherins seem to have a very weak idea of how actual athletics should be like. In contrast the international matches seem to favor the non-Slytherin style of play. They seem to have this narrow view of this sport all to themselves.
When Harry creates his own Dark Arts class in book 5 (I think) no Slytherin takers? For real? I would think that if they had their own ambitions that there would be some outliers that would take up the offer. There could be a valid reason for Harry to keep them out for the sake of secrecy but since this is NEVER addressed it frames it poorly for Slytherin.
So while it is fair to state that the author may not openly discriminate against Slytherin, she does write in a manner which is highly unfavorable to Slytherin where she really didn’t need to. And as she only focuses on the rather unpleasant behavior of Slytherin people over and over and over again, she does belabor the point that yes, unpleasant people exist in Slytherin.