RE: FF7 House


I'd like to take a little time out to explain an issue having to do with the previous owner of hojo.org. A few of you, or many of you, may know of FF7 House, which accounts for a bunch of internet drama stemming from the terrible behavior exhibited by the former owner's now ex-girlfriend. Since the whole ordeal is kind of a clusterfuck with a million waving arms, here is a slightly more concise summary.

For those of you who are already familiar with the mess, I want to make it clear that the accounts labeled "Kat's Letters" are not mine, though I do also go by the name Kat in other places on the net. My account is linked on the summary page, if you are inclined to inquire about it.

As for my own involvement, I've been remiss to share it with the rest of the net because it doesn't differ fundamentally from any other story up on the warning site. What's more important than me whining about my personal problems (although I have whined) on the internet is this.

There is a difference between appreciating a villain and attempting to recreate the horrible things that villain has done.

In fiction, villains generally serve as examples of how not to act.
There's nothing wrong with disagreeing with this school of thought, because not all stories are moral tales. However, in functional society, most people in the free world have agreed to these basic rights.

The right to individuality.
The right to intimacy.
The right to time.
The right to money.
The right to free will.

Jen has taken upon herself to abuse every one of these rights among the myriad people she has encountered. If it were just me she messed with, it wouldn't have mattered as much. Love for a fictional character should never infringe upon the personal rights of another human being. The trouble she has caused is a blight upon the already questionable Hojo fandom, and ruined the credibility of a good friend of mine. My view on this is not objective, so my opinions on this are biased and influenced by emotion, but it doesn't change the facts of what happened.

Doing things with other people to feel closer to a fictional character can feel very fun and rewarding when everyone is on the same page and consenting to it. There is nothing inherently wrong with cosplaying, larping, acting, role-playing or any other common household forms of escape, but to earn a person's trust and abuse it in the ways this person has done is something I personally consider criminal.

If my silence in this matter has made it seem like I had previously condoned this behavior, I'd like to make it clear now that I did not condone it before, I don't condone it now, and I will never condone it.

I do not care if you are someone who wants to marry Sonic the Hedgehog. I don't care if you believe you were a Na'Vi(tm) in a past life. I don't care if you disbelieve in any form of spirituality at all, if you're my best friend or if you're my worst enemy. What matters to me is that you treat your fellow man, woman or other with respect as you go on believing whatever it is that you choose to believe.

If someone tells you that you're a traitor for leaving a situation that is bad for you in mind, spirit, body or soul, they probably don't have the strength to get out of that situation themselves, or they don't know or want to believe how bad it really is. Others may be able to call you a traitor, but can you live with being a traitor to yourself, your own needs, and your own feelings? Your own plans for your own future? Think about that before trying to stay in a place where all of your thoughts come second to some leader or a lover that only cares for what they want to get out of you without giving anything back.

In conclusion, the most important thing in the matter is that people be excellent to each other. If you see yourself in a bad situation, there is nothing wrong with getting yourself out of it.

If these words seem to be the last thing you might expect out of a Hojo fan, I'd also like to let it be known that I think of myself as a person before I think of myself as a fan of something.

Thank you for your interest.

If you have reasonable questions concerning this matter, I will field them in my own time if you email me at too.dizzy.to.think [at] gmail.com.

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