WALKIN' ON SUNSHINE

Gran may have a problem with one of those female squirrels if her name is Rocky.... (Explanation: a cartoon series over here featured a flying squirrel named Rocket J. Squirrel, who went by the nickname Rocky. The character was voiced by a woman named June Foray. Well, one artist/fan named Taral Wayne suggested that the character who was always addressed as male in the show was actually female and that the J. stood for Jasmine...)

On our side, CNN stands for Cable News Network and we see a video dealing with the parallel convention you asked about called Anthrocon. (From anthropomorphic, which we define [basically] as animals with human characteristics: most specifically intelligence and learning beyond that required to merely remaining alive.) I am at the convention as is the webcomic artist who keeps us 'up to date' on the goings-on in Domain. There are over 3500 people here which makes it the largest convention in the world of this type. However, that means that about one-thousandth of 1% of the US has come here (and there are persons from other countries present). Contrast that to our world's population which is 2000 times as large as the US and we are a very small number indeed.

What do we do here at Anthrocon? Basically, have fun. Artists create art that deals with either real or imagined animals. I regret to say hedgehogs are not among the most popular. That distinction goes to either the big felines like lions, leopard and cheetahs and the vulpines (wolves).

Some people make costumes which we refer to as fursuits. Despite the name, they are made of artificial materials like Nylon or Dacron or vegetable materials like cotton. The only animal by-product that might be used is wool and, as your friend Corrie Dale has shown numerous times, getting wool does not cause the sheep to die.

We talk, make friends and do other normal things. Some people even spend the weekend playing video games which they could play at home. (Don't ask me to explain that, it doesn't make much sense to me either.) Some of us even spend excessive time on the Internet while we're here. (I may be guilty of this, but this is being typed before any official con activities start.)

The only 'instinct loss' I see on our side may be among the attendees themselves. Normally, humans are wary of new members of a group while this segment of humanity accepts them immediately. As an old and practiced cynic, I'm not sure that this is always a good thing...

I saw much of the CSI episode. I didn't watch the whole thing because it was so far removed from the reality of what I've seen I could not suspend my disbelief.

First, the dead fursuited raccoon: they didn't realize at the scene that he'd been shot because his suit was containing the blood. That means that he'd lined his suit with some material that was, effectively, waterproof. That also means that it would retain heat. In Las Vegas, any fursuiter who's outside for longer than 15 minutes will be suffering from heat stroke... if not dead already.

Second, furpiles: I've gone to furry cons for around 15 years. I've never seen one. Those fursuits are expensive running as high as $2000 to my knowledge. (Some may be more expensive than that.) No one with any brains is going to allow some idiot to put some kind of liquid on their difficult/next to impossible to clean fursuit and lick it off.

Are there 'intimate activities' going on? I'm sure there are... in private. The con does not and cannot control what people do privately. Publicly, however, the rules at Anthrocon are quite strict: nothing in public more intimate than a hug or quick kiss. Let me put it this way: the people who run security for the con bring their children and grandchildren to Anthrocon. There are other cons they will not let their families attend.

One other thing: the CSI episode had both people killed as a result of a marital argument gone bad. In other words,something that could happen to pretty much anyone. (Well, with the exception of being shot because you were mistaken for a raccoon.) Other 'fringe' groups like the vampire subculture were true murder cases. In that one respect, we got off somewhat easy.

And finally, my apologies to Reynard. My head just wasn't working as well as usual when I messed up on Lupine/Vulpine. I blame it on lack of sleep, among other things,

Define 'lesser,' Ken. Inherent in the concept of 'anthropomorphic' is the assumption that, somehow, creatures that operate currently at an instinctive level most of the time have gained 'intelligence' and 'logic' enough to communicate and share their world-view with us. (Note the quotes.) In some respects, you could say that we're looking for 'people' like us to talk to who see the world differently. Not 'pretend [we're] not the dominant species' as much as try to imagine a group who would be our equals... and what their differently-wired minds would see and change. In short, an entirely different perspective.

When dealing with 'real' animals as opposed to the unfortunately non-existent anthropomorphs, we try to treat them with the respect they deserve as part of the natural order and to assist them to live naturally where possible. This year, Anthrocon raised thousands of dollars for a group that attempts to rehabilitate injured animals to return to their natural existence. They do not always succeed: one such 'failure' is a barn owl named Martha. Her wing was broken and had started to heal (incorrectly) before she came to their shelter. She will never fly again... but she has fostered three orphaned barn owl chicks who will be released into a natural habitat.

So, most of us in the furry community look at the situation two different ways. Anthropomorphic creatures are great fun, but are not real. Real animals are offered respect for what they are, their place in the Circle of Life and are basically left alone. I hope this at least helps to explain the situation.