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My thoughts on the DNA boycot/piracy movement.
7 years ago
General
I don't support it.
I'm not convinced that a boycott of DNA's comics will help. Whatever financial situation he is currently in with Voco, it appears to be as a couple (in whatever form that may manifest). I don't see how such a move could avoid hurting him, even if indirectly.
Further to that, I don't see how removing the last thread he has to the community will encourage him to reach out. And it runs the risk of him completely moving on to radio silence. This seems to be the opposite of the stated aims.
But whatever; people have the right to spend their money as they like, and ultimately I don't really know how the universe will play out. Maybe, somehow, cutting his income will 'bring him back'. This in itself is not worth writing a journal over.
But I do not understand, at all, what uploading his back catalog of comics for everyone to pirate is meant to achieve.
For one, it destroys the value of his entire body of work. Forever. It ensures that if he ever does 'come back', then there is nothing left for him to come back to.
For two, the optics on this just looks terrible. I'm not going to judge anyone's motivations here; knowing the people involved I can only believe that the intentions here are good. But by consuming his product, it can easily be read that you don't care about DNA and will gladly leverage this current situation to justify piracy. All piracy can and is morally justified.
Anyway, that's just my two cents on the matter. People will do whatever they think they need to. I don't expect my hot take will change anything.
On a separate but related note, I suspect the eyes of DNA will never see this journal; but in the remote chance that it is, then this next bit is for him.
I can't speak for anyone by myself, but for what it's worth, I'll be happy if I never see another picture from you if it means that you are pursuing your dreams. I know you want to move on from furry, and if this is the way in which you want to do it, then I wish you all the luck in the world. Your work, which for the longest time you shared for free, has already inspired pretty much everyone in this generation of the fandom. You owe us nothing. You have the right to pursue your life as best you want. Your successes and failures will be your own, as they are for everyone.
However it would seem, at least from your video updates, that you are still maintaining your comics to help fund the bridge between your old and new lives. That would be the smart move, as you have a paying audience which you have earned over more than a decade that can help you pay the bills until you get your big break.
I appreciate that this is unsolicited advice, so make of it what you will. But for as long as your macro comics can help your situation out, you need to market them. Because you've withdrawn so thoroughly, you have effectively closed your audience. It will will gradually be lost to attrition, let alone the added pressure of any boycott movement. There are people who are unaware your comics are still for sale. The next generation don't know what you are selling. You don't need to orient your life to this community; but if you were to engage enough to let people know, in your own voice, what you were selling and drive up the hype, then you would have a chance of steering fresh traffic to your store, as well as potentially assuage those who are currently pressing for a boycott.
Anyway, take that for what you will. You have asked us not to contact you; I have and will continue to respect that. I might have sent you a text when this all began last year; I was responding to the note you sent me on Patreon a month earlier. I apologise for that as you did not tell me, and I didn't yet know that you had communicated that in a journal. I wish you luck for whatever comes next. I'm not going to reach out to you. But you have my details if you ever want to hit me up for whatever reason. You will always be welcome to, be that tomorrow or in twenty years.
I'm not convinced that a boycott of DNA's comics will help. Whatever financial situation he is currently in with Voco, it appears to be as a couple (in whatever form that may manifest). I don't see how such a move could avoid hurting him, even if indirectly.
Further to that, I don't see how removing the last thread he has to the community will encourage him to reach out. And it runs the risk of him completely moving on to radio silence. This seems to be the opposite of the stated aims.
But whatever; people have the right to spend their money as they like, and ultimately I don't really know how the universe will play out. Maybe, somehow, cutting his income will 'bring him back'. This in itself is not worth writing a journal over.
But I do not understand, at all, what uploading his back catalog of comics for everyone to pirate is meant to achieve.
For one, it destroys the value of his entire body of work. Forever. It ensures that if he ever does 'come back', then there is nothing left for him to come back to.
For two, the optics on this just looks terrible. I'm not going to judge anyone's motivations here; knowing the people involved I can only believe that the intentions here are good. But by consuming his product, it can easily be read that you don't care about DNA and will gladly leverage this current situation to justify piracy. All piracy can and is morally justified.
Anyway, that's just my two cents on the matter. People will do whatever they think they need to. I don't expect my hot take will change anything.
On a separate but related note, I suspect the eyes of DNA will never see this journal; but in the remote chance that it is, then this next bit is for him.
I can't speak for anyone by myself, but for what it's worth, I'll be happy if I never see another picture from you if it means that you are pursuing your dreams. I know you want to move on from furry, and if this is the way in which you want to do it, then I wish you all the luck in the world. Your work, which for the longest time you shared for free, has already inspired pretty much everyone in this generation of the fandom. You owe us nothing. You have the right to pursue your life as best you want. Your successes and failures will be your own, as they are for everyone.
However it would seem, at least from your video updates, that you are still maintaining your comics to help fund the bridge between your old and new lives. That would be the smart move, as you have a paying audience which you have earned over more than a decade that can help you pay the bills until you get your big break.
I appreciate that this is unsolicited advice, so make of it what you will. But for as long as your macro comics can help your situation out, you need to market them. Because you've withdrawn so thoroughly, you have effectively closed your audience. It will will gradually be lost to attrition, let alone the added pressure of any boycott movement. There are people who are unaware your comics are still for sale. The next generation don't know what you are selling. You don't need to orient your life to this community; but if you were to engage enough to let people know, in your own voice, what you were selling and drive up the hype, then you would have a chance of steering fresh traffic to your store, as well as potentially assuage those who are currently pressing for a boycott.
Anyway, take that for what you will. You have asked us not to contact you; I have and will continue to respect that. I might have sent you a text when this all began last year; I was responding to the note you sent me on Patreon a month earlier. I apologise for that as you did not tell me, and I didn't yet know that you had communicated that in a journal. I wish you luck for whatever comes next. I'm not going to reach out to you. But you have my details if you ever want to hit me up for whatever reason. You will always be welcome to, be that tomorrow or in twenty years.
Otherwise, it kind-of sounds like you know more of the aftermath than I ever did. I just remember trying to directly reach him myself, a very long while ago, and regretfully also got nowhere. …Are you saying he actually made video updates?
And yeah I'm sure his stuff is already pirated somewhere; but there's a movement to make that more mainstream going on atm. That's what I was addressing anyway.
I imagine a lot of people dont like to talk about it simply because there's not a lot of information to go by, and a lot of it is filled with speculation which isn't a great basis to speak publically on. I won't go into details because I don't know, and I dont like talking about what I don't know. I'm sure you would be able to find more specific accounts if you care to look.
DNA was a very famous macro artist for well over the last decade or so. He was very affable to say the least, and attended lots of cons and forged lots of relationships. My own relationship was very limited; at best we were acquaintances and so I cannot say I know the guy to any real depth. But i do know that he's long had dreams about a career beyond the furry fandom. But his sudden absence and silence has alarmed many, as well as his relationship with an individual many people have concerns with. This has lead to some actions which I'm addressing here.
If I buy DNA comics, and I was an avid purchaser of Boob Camp, The money is going to other said person. I'm not going to do that.
DNA is enabling a monster, and should the day come when he has had enough and drives said monster out of his life, I will be happy to support him and help him out of that pit.
I don't really follow a lot of popular furries, I guess. I found a page that might be the person you're referring to but it's deactivated, so... guess whatever this is has gone nuclear.
It probably was their page though! They have disabled it.
I'm ashamed to admit, but when I saw his gallery cleared out I panicked. I didn't have the money to buy any of the comics and I was scared everything was about to disappear forever. So I collected what I could find. I just couldn't stand the though of not having something from his legacy to look back on. But actively promoting the distribution of stolen work? That feels like it'll do more harm than good, for everyone.
As for boycotting his work, really, I just don't know. I've looked into the situation a few times, but I'm so much of an outsider there's no way for me to make a properly informed decision. There are for sure a few comics/packs I'd love to pick up, (and some I should properly acquire) but I just don't know what to believe.
I am surprised this is still ongoing. The last time I looked into it was a year ago and I thought it was more or less over then, but I guess I was wrong.
Thank you, Acheroth. I was beginning to think I was insane.
Because, if he wants to distance himself from furry stuff, then why Boob Camp, formerly involving girls simply growing huge with massive boobs, is not only still going, but is now involving a character turning into a weird unstable-bodied, multi-armed, multi-legged, dozen-of-boobs, bone-sticking-out-of-flesh monster who in the backstory also had a few pages of her child self from the past turning into a hugely-busted, hugely-butted loli craving for love and having some vore issues?
I don't really see how making even kinkier furry stuff is "moving away from furry stuff".
By moving away from furry, I don't mean in terms of the content he may be creating for tge community. I mean in terms of the community itself. As in, not making furry art at all and instead starting a career in a professional studio.
In my view DNA left to get away from the DRAMA surrounding furry as to me that seemed to be his biggest complaint and what frustrated him, he liked drawing the furry art that he did but hated the drama that resulted from such as many others would complain about not being able to get art from him or he was never able to please everybody. Voco latched on to those feelings and manipulated him in such a way that he was able to get DNA to quit the fandom and backstabbing many of his old friends (folks that lead the charge to get Voco booted from the fandom), thereby getting revenge on them while still getting DNA to draw furry art but in a manner that only Voco enjoys.
I'm a professional animator who is involved in the fandom, so I know this is the case.
However I'm not DNA. This is how he has chosen to move forward. I don't know why he has chosen to handle it this way; but he has. I'm just dealing with that reality.
I thought he had moved on and was doing good. didnt know some movement has started to,what i imagine from your post "agressivly get him back?".
In fairness feels like it has been a while since ive heard anything from yourself. so I hope you too are doing well?
Hope DNA finds his feet and can move on the way he wants. you could tell laterly that DNA was falling out of the furry side of his life as his art lost the certain flare his older works had, wasnt bad work just felt tired if you know what i mean?
His last Journal made everything make sence at least. Cant believe people are suddenly going against his wishes...
I wonder if the generation of macro furs that were in DNA's group are just not able to move on to new and possibly upcomming tallents?
Regardless of what anyone thinks of his life choices and situation, his body of work is HIS body of work. If you feel the need to intervene in his situation, messing with his business isn't the way to do it. That's just extra punishment, freezing him further out of a community he's already distancing himself from.
Moving away from furry and trying to bridge lives by selling furry comics is merely acting as a crutch. I wish him and his partner the best in building their new lives, but I can't help enable a break from furry by ENABLING furry. (If that makes sense)
On another front, I deep-down don't believe the excuse. When I meet up with people, I try to make connections outside of furry. To be actual friends, confidants, someone they can always call and just talk about ANYTHING with. That was starting to develop but then completely disappeared.
I've seen that behavior before and trained psychologists will point that to "bad actors" as its origin. So no, I don't believe this is a good situation.
Truth be told, should the furry art wellspring dry up, I'm not convinced his partner wouldn't just leave DNA right then and there at this point, as I have seen no actions that would speak to the contrary.
HOWEVER, that is my view from what I've seen and from my past experiences. Nothing more. And it's not DNA's responsibility to convince me otherwise. I just want him to be happy.
PS - People, if you want to see DNA comics. Buy the frieking things. NO ARTIST, PROGRAMMER, DEVELOPER, WRITER, ANYTHING deserves to have their work pirated, especially when the funds are going to the artist themselves (however indirect). If someone didn't pay you for your work, you'd be pissed. DON'T DO IT TO OTHERS!
If he wants to stay in touch that's fab he knows where we are! If he returns someday that's fantastic! If not then I take comfort knowing that he's still out there living his life.
If I'm understanding the basics of things properly, because DNA is in a relationship with someone others in the fandom don't approve of, everyone is not only boycotting DNA as an artist here, but putting all his existing for sale art out on the internet for free, thus cutting him off from any small amount of income he might receive from new community members (who, like myself know nothing of this horrible person DNA is involved with) or his own fans who don't yet own all his works, unless they are exceedingly honest and refuse to touch the offered artwork.
If this is the case, how does it make ANY sort of sense? There are a lot of members in this fandom who *might* be connected to something or someone that others might not approve of. Since DNA has been driven from the fandom entirely, how can anyone know for sure what's really happening? And yes, this is the thing that gets to me the most. When someone who is a member of a fandom that has described itself as the most open and accepting environment anyone could ever hope to find literally drives someone off... usually because they don't approve of something that person is doing or saying more than there being anything inherently wrong with those actions (not liking what someone says, for example, as opposed to a person committing a crime, which would make more sense).
DNA is a nice person. He drew me free art long ago without my even requesting it, and we would often have discussions about the nature of being a macro in a 'normal' sized world. Her seemed intelligent and friendly at all times, even when we disagreed, which is rare these days. I sincerely hate to think this fandom is treating such a good person badly based on not his own actions (since no one actually knows what he's doing right now) but on the *chance* that he might have some connection to someone people don't like. It's like me randomly hating on people because they *might* support Trump, with no solid evidence one way or another.
If it's this other person people say is controlling DNA's life right now, I'd wish that people would just report it to the authorities in his area. If nothing else, people's suspicions of this person using DNA's social security number for their own purposes is a federal offense. If they got caught doing it, it would very rapidly remove them from the picture. Not to mention all the credit card fraud that must also be going on, if what I've been able to find to read is in any way real.
Again, my problem is DNA seems to be getting blacklisted because of who they associate with, rather than any actual negative actions they themselves took. And any attempts to make a living off of their own work is being *completely* scrapped by people trying to lash out at someone else. Not a single person has said anything about trying to stop the exploitation; just take advantage of it. What if the reason no one is hearing from or seeing DNA is this other person has killed them and assumed their identity?
The issue here is simply that, despit my best efforts, people do not quite grasp the tightness of Voco's grasp around DNAs neck yet.
Vocos extortion has been going on for longer then SIX years. Time in which his progress on chipping away at his victim went mostly unnoticed. Him moving in his house is simply the last phase.
DNA works a full-time job to support both of them. The money from the comics HE draws essentially is lost on the spending habbits of his captor. That is why the boycotting has started in the first place.
Personally, those public linking of a share are not really a good move but I hope the above at least clears up peoples motives; Any money made on these comics is essentially a plus on the money the household needs to sustain itself and as such is not going to benefit DNA.
How do you know that's where the money is going?
DNA shut himself off from the fandom, so the fandom has to make a guess at what is happening. And given the track record, that is the current conclusion.
I didn't even know he had made videos or that he was still selling comics. At all.
I was extremely disappointed to see his gallery wiped, and even more disappointed when his account was disabled, and found out what happened only long after everything had transpired after having looked all over the place for ANY piece of information.
If he indeed wants people to stop maliciously speak of him and his mate, then he has to step forth and make his stand. Until then, it is strongly unlikely that anything is gonna change.
I was tempted to read more about this drama but I've learned that the less I know about the dramas of people I don't know, the better. It's their lives, they will take their own decisions and suffer/enjoy the consequences; there's nothing you can do about it if you're not a close friend.
And finally, that advice about promoting his work? Yes, good advice. I didn't even know DNA had anything for sale, I'm not his fan but if I had been I would have missed it! When 5-D went radio silence in the community I would have bought a pack of his stuff if it had been for sale...
I hope you're doing good!
What I'm hearing, which is the point, is "We don't like DNA's boyfriend, so we're going to make him miserable until he breaks up with said boyfriend and starts doing art for us again."
Just who the fuck do these people think they are?
"For one, it destroys the value of his entire body of work. Forever."
Out of all the piracy cases I have seen, not one has had this effect on intellectual property. If anything, it gives free publicity and winds up adding value to the work because a much wider audience has access to it. That, in turn, ends up leading to more customers.
If this logic were to hold up, we wouldn't have a gaming industry. We wouldn't have a music industry. We wouldn't have a movie industry. Guess what? Things have never looked better for all three.
Unless there is a very peculiar detail being left out here, I have no reason to believe otherwise.
I wholeheartedly agree with what you said, about this kind of things makes one wonder what exactly there is worth coming back to? It just seems like doing such a thing is just taking the artist and their work for granted. What kind of friend could possibly say that this is what DNA actually wants or needs?
I agree with a lot of the rumors I've been hearing, seeing as they come from people whom knew both DNA and the person people suspect, and/or lived with them. And how it seemed just prior to all this happening, DNA was getting ready to get involved on twitter and keep in better touch with his audience and friends. The timing of his departure couldn't be stranger.
But if DNA is truly isolated and only hearing anything through this person, then there is no way to force him to 'wake up.' It seems to me the logic here is to make the perpetrator feel like DNA has been rendered useless and thus someone to move on from, but if that came to pass, why would he suddenly come back to the people that turned their back on him 'for his own good?'
Sorry for the wordy reply, but this current situation seems very juvenile and more selfishness-motivated than altruistic.