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Microsoft bans a gamer from Fort Gay
OVERLY SENSITIVE GAMING OVERLORD Microsoft has apologised to a gamer that it banned from Xbox Live after he said Fort Gay was his hometown.
The gamer, Josh Moore from Fort Gay, West Virginia, found his account suspended and then received a threat of cancellation without refund after entering Fort Gay in his profile. Apparently Microsoft thought that this was in breach of Xbox Live's rules.
While one can understand this knee-jerk reaction, given the number of children that use Xbox Live, as Microsoft has some duty to ensure they are insulated from offensive terms, its treatment of Mr Moore is another example of political correctness gone mad. The gamer even phoned Microsoft trying to clarify the matter, saying, "I figured I'll explain to them, look in my account, Fort Gay is a real place." He even suggested to the Vole, "Google it - 25514!" referring to his town's postcode.
We're not sure if by mentioning Google Mr Moore had raised the Vole's blood pressure, but even the local mayor, David Thompson couldn't use his considerable political clout to get Microsoft to change its mind. He told the local news TV station WSAZ that Microsoft had told him the fact that Fort Gay existed didn't matter, rather it was the fact that the letters g-a-y appeared and was "inappropriate in any context". Perhaps it forgot that "gay" can also refer to a person being happy, and it can also be a name, but then again using Microsoft's products is not usually associated with happiness.
Not surprisingly Thompson was offended, saying, "It's beyond me. That's the name of our town! It's appalling. It's a slap in our face." Finally Xbox Live director of policy and enforcement Stephen Toulouse waded in to clear up this mess.
"Someone took the phrase 'fort gay WV' and believed that the individual who had that was trying to offend, or trying to use it in a pejorative manner. Unfortunately, one of my people agreed with that. When it was brought to my attention, we did revoke the suspension."
Toulouse also said that he would try to contact Mr Moore to apologise personally and said that "staying ahead of slang and policing Xbox is a constant challenge." Indeed, but when a customer rings up, offers a seemingly reasonable explanation and yet you fail to investigate, that challenge becomes all the harder for no reason.
Given Microsoft's new found sensitivity, we're not sure what it would make of residents from this sleepy little village in Austria. µ
Tags: Microsoft
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Gaylord, MI.
http://maps.google.com/maps?client=ubuntu&channel=fs&oe=utf-8&q=gaylord,+MI&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=Gaylord,+MI&gl=us&ei=04uOTMCPFtGLnQeVyvz4Cw&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CBwQ8gEwAA
and surprisingly little spam here, compared to zdnet.com for instance. Either well filtered, or spammers don't expect Inq readers to fall for their ruses. Well, unless they lure us to malevolent web sites, the impression having been created that we're probably going to see the result of typing yet another rude word into global Google Maps. "Here is a district of Smolensk called Priktiz! Ha ha, it sounds like it is the red light district... oh, it is? Ah. Okay then, 'Street View'... WHAT is she holding up there... I think she's written her phone number on it."
I contacted Microsoft ages ago as I cannot put my location as Whitley Bay, they just didnt respond, perhaps they thought is was Cockney slang for something else
Five identical posts under two different names ? That is not a slip of the mouse button, that is clearly comment spam.
Clean it up and ban both accounts, please.
Thank you.
There's also this place closer to us... http://bit.ly/bX4G6e
If he moved here he might have less problems.
http://tinyurl.com/2uyec4f
This news was out days ago could you please report the current news or no news at all.
Thanks
Well said Cosmin. I agree 100%.
The mere mention of the word "gay" is not going to harm children (or anyone else).
Even if it is mentioned in the context of sexuality (which it wasn't in this case) it's just a word that represents one aspect of some people's lives (and it's not contagious btw).
The author is just showing his own prejudice and ignorance.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&q=+twatt&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=Twatt,+Orkney,+Orkney+Islands&gl=uk&ei=f0mJTKbKMcLx4gad0JHSBA&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CBYQ8gEwAA
I hear that....
the Diving there is popular with the lads looking for a fun day out.
and that NOT-SO-Sleepy village in Austria has "The Hoff" living in the next village, well it is called HOFFS TOWN ;P
"While one can understand this knee-jerk reaction, given the number of children that use Xbox Live, as Microsoft has some duty to ensure they are insulated from offensive terms"
What's outrageous is that people like the author of this article think that the word "gay" is "offensive"
Are you still leaving in the 18th century?
the Diving there is popular with the lads looking for a fun day out.
and that NOT-SO-Sleepy village in Austria has "The Hoff" living in the next village, well it is called HOFFS TOWN ;P
the Diving there is popular with the lads looking for a fun day out.
and that NOT-SO-Sleepy village in Austria has "The Hoff" living in the next village, well it is called HOFFS TOWN ;P
the Diving there is popular with the lads looking for a fun day out.
and that NOT-SO-Sleepy village in Austria has "The Hoff" living in the next village, well it is called HOFFS TOWN ;P
the Diving there is popular with the lads looking for a fun day out.
and that NOT-SO-Sleepy village in Austria has "The Hoff" living in the next village, well it is called HOFFS TOWN ;P
So the inq feels it's completely understandable to 'protect' kids from the word gay? Do you have a screw loose?
Oh wait you can't read this since your protection software removes posts with the word gay, and screw too I guess.
the quite well known athlete Mr. Tyson Homosexual need not apply, either. (Look it up.)
I like show tunes as much as the next red-blooded male, but the usurpation of the fine old word "gay" always grates on me, and since it's effectively a pejorative now, was a foolish attempt to change minds by way of language, a little experiment in Newspeak that has failed.
And people, QUIT using "realize" to mean mentally notice, grasp, or understand. It's just wrong, because the word so clearly means "to make real", as to bring about a plan.
And you former Celts, Bretons, Angles, Jutes, Saxons, Picts, and Cymric, along with various more recent invaders, QUIT spelling "honor", "labor", "color", and others as your Norman conquerors do! Geez, it's been over 900 years. Throw off your chains, already. The French smirk, as they do *so* well, every time they see you obeying their orthography. (Malgre, je suis un peu Francophile, moi-meme.)
Anyway, get an *old* dictionary, and adhere to its usage!
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Muff,+Ireland&sll=52.749393,-1.162465&sspn=0.063072,0.181789&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Muff,+County+Donegal,+Ireland&z=15