Society

Election Day is November 8th, 2022

I hope you all voted by August 9th for the Primaries; now it is time for the General Election! Do you know what is on your ballot? Do you know how to find out? Did you even remember that there is an election coming up?

Well, there are a lot of elections coming up! Pulling straight from Wikipedia: “During this midterm election year, all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 seats in the Senate will be contested. Thirty-nine state and territorial gubernatorial and numerous other state and local elections will also be contested. This will be the first election affected by the redistricting that will follow the 2020 census” (2022 United States elections).

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 08

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 08

The adventure of cleaning up audio and improving show notes from previous panels continues in today’s episode of Justin on Panels. We are still working through MarsCon 2018, with the panel “Race and Culture in the Honorverse”. Please note: MarsCon 2018 was seven months before the release of Uncompromising Honor (HH14). Shadow of Victory (SI4) was the most recent novel in the current timeline.

Content Warning: Slavery does get discussed in this panel, and there are white men trying to whitesplain it away.

David Weber's Honor Harrington series presents a very diverse gambit of humans in a far future when race does not seem to matter as much as politics. Juxtaposed against our own realities, how does this fundamentally affect our perception of the Honorverse?

With: Justin Grays, Stephanie Stensland

August 9th is the 2022 Primary Election

2022 is a midterm year, and August is the Primary month for Minnesota. Plus, there is a special election for Congressional District after 1 U.S. Representative Jim Hagedorn died on February 18, 2022. So, get out there and vote. Be certain to vote down-ballot. Check both sides of the ballot. Research who is on the ballot before you go in. And make certain that you understand and ballot questions or referendums before you vote on them.

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 07

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 07

The adventure of cleaning up audio and improving show notes from previous panels continues in today’s episode of Justin on Panels. We are still working through MarsCon 2018, with the panel “Cleavage Optional: Gender, Cosplay, and Genderbending Cosplay”.

Content Warning: Blackface does get mentioned during this panel.

How is the cosplay experience different for women and men? Why is genderbent cosplay so popular? What fans aren't doing it and what characters aren't being genderbent? What does this mean for trans and non-binary characters and fans?
With: Bridget Landry, Justin Grays, Kris Heding

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 06

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 06

The adventure of cleaning up audio and improving show notes from previous panels continues in today’s episode of Justin on Panels. We are still working through MarsCon 2018, with the panel “Star Trek”. Please note: at the time of recording, only season 1 of Star Trek: Discovery had been released.

A talk about the last 52 years of Star Trek, 6 Shows, and the 13 movies. Yes there will be spoilers for Star Trek Discovery.

With: Tony Artym, Elizabeth Erickson, Justin Grays, Joan Marie Verba, Stephanie Stensland

Fanfic Writing Is Writing. - Minicon 2019

There were a couple of panels at Minicon 54 that I attended and wrote up in my retrospect post. Over the years, I have been referring back to that post and telling people which panel to look at. It has occurred to me that the panels that I’ve referred to the most need their own individual posts, and so I’m reproducing them here.

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At Minicon 2019, I attended a number of fantastic panels and took some notes at most of them. These notes reflect my thoughts as the panelists were speaking, and may not align with what the panelists meant to say.

Artificial Intelligence Best Practices—What do AI’s want? - Minicon 2019

There were a couple of panels at Minicon 54 that I attended and wrote up in my retrospect post. Over the years, I have been referring back to that post and telling people which panel to look at. It has occurred to me that the panels that I’ve referred to the most need their own individual posts, and so I’m reproducing them here.

—————

At Minicon 2019, I attended a number of fantastic panels and took some notes at most of them. These notes reflect my thoughts as the panelists were speaking, and may not align with what the panelists meant to say.

MNPoly Presents: Consent and Sex Positivity Panel

MNPoly Presents: Consent and Sex Positivity Panel

On April 18th, 2022, I was on a panel for MNPoly about Consent and Sex Positivity. You can listen to the audio of the panel on my SoundCloud. MNPoly is accepting donations through their PayPal link to support further educational social events. Also, MNPolyCon is back this year on July 24th.

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 05

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 05

The adventure of cleaning up audio and improving show notes from previous panels continues in today’s episode of Justin on Panels. We are still working through MarsCon 2018, with the panel “Gem Watch”.

Discussion of the recent episodes of Steven Universe. What are your theories about events on Homeworld? What will this bring to Beach City?

With: Kathryn Sullivan, mod.; Justin Grays

Content Warning - mentions of:

  • Death

  • PTSD

  • Stress

  • Toxic Masculinity

  • Toxic Relationships

  • Trauma

Spoiler Warning: Steven Universe

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 04

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 04

Over the last four years, I have been promising to finish cleaning up the audio from the various panels that I have been on and improve the show notes. Now that GraysMatter Podcast is up and running, I have taken the time to also revisit these panels. Please join me in experiencing Justin on Panels.

MarsCon 2018

Starfleet's Prime Directive is evidence that Borg, Dominion, & Klingons are not the only ethnocentric civilizations in Star Trek. Let's talk about how and why deciding what's best for another culture is problematic regardless of intentions, even in space.
With: Justin Grays, Stephanie Stensland

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 03

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 03

Over the last four years, I have been promising to finish cleaning up the audio from the various panels that I have been on and improve the show notes. Now that GraysMatter Podcast is up and running, I have taken the time to also revisit these panels. Please join me in experiencing Justin on Panels.

MarsCon 2018

In society and in the media, a number of myths have revolved around polyamory. Though polyamory is becoming more generally accepted, the media shows it as a white phenomenon. Explore and discuss how the polyamorous experience is portrayed and how it differs from reality.
With: Kyle Andrew, Justin Grays

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 01

Justin on Panels - Season 2, Episode 01

Over the last four years, I have been promising to finish cleaning up the audio from the various panels that I have been on and improve the show notes. Now that GraysMatter Podcast is up and running, I have taken the time to also revisit these panels. Please join me in experiencing Justin on Panels.

MarsCon 2018

Creating actual diversity requires a great effort to avoiding unintentionally tokenizing your characters. Tokenism, even when unintentional, is what leads to adding "diversity” for the sake of diversity. How do we engender true diversity in sci fi and comics?

With: Justin Grays, Rob Callahan, S.N. Arly, Tyler Tork, mod.

Content Warning:

  • Mention of the slur for Romani people

  • Transracial/Transcultural adoption

GraysMatter Podcast - Season 1, Episode 05

GraysMatter Podcast - Season 1, Episode 05

In this episode, we discuss topics ranging from conventions and politics to COVID-19 and memes.

This episode is not sponsored. We are not medical providers, and nothing we say should be construed as medical advice.

Hosted By:

FaeBun (she/her)
Justin (xe/xem) - https://www.justingrays.org/
Michelle Chmura (she/her) - https://twitter.com/avocadabro & https://residentialrobot.tumblr.com/

Content Warning - Mentions of:

  • Aging

  • COVID-19

  • Death

  • Fibromyalgia

  • Military

  • Physical Therapy

  • Richard Dawkins

  • Weight & Weight Loss

Justin on Panels - Season 1, Episode 01

Justin on Panels - Season 1, Episode 01

Over the last four years, I have been promising to finish cleaning up the audio from the various panels that I have been on and improve the show notes. Now that the GraysMatter Podcast is up and running, I have taken the time to also revisit these panels. Please join me in experiencing Justin on Panels.

CONvergence 2017

The desire for realism is high in the cosplay community, but when does it go to far? Is it okay to change skin tone to emulate a character of a different race? Is it necessary? What is the difference between looking like another race and another species?

Panelists: Justin Grays, Stephanie Stensland (mod), Sarah Molasky, Morgan Strickland, Charlene Holm

Content Warning:

  • Blackface

  • Racism

GraysMatter Podcast - Season 1, Episode 04

GraysMatter Podcast - Season 1, Episode 04

In this episode, we discuss topics ranging from COVID-19 & Recreational DNA Testing to Education & Multiple Intelligences.

This episode is not sponsored. We are not medical providers, and nothing we say should be construed as medical advice.

Hosted By:

FaeBun (she/her)
Justin (xe/xem) - https://www.justingrays.org/
Michelle Chmura (she/her) - https://twitter.com/avocadabro & https://residentialrobot.tumblr.com/

Content Warning - Mentions of:

  • COVID-19

  • Medical Procedures

  • Murder

  • Serial Killers

  • Ted Cruz

MN Poly Presents: ENM Communication Panel

MN Poly Presents: ENM Communication Panel

On March 22nd, 2021, I was on a panel for MNPoly about Ethical Non-Monogamous Communication. During the panel, we discuss different communication styles, including proactive communication, direct communication, and radical transparency. Also, we talk about what Informed Consent looks like, what is Checking In, and when should one start checking in during a relationship.

2020 General Election - Other States and Third Parties

I’ve been making these posts about the 2020 Elections in an effort to help people research their candidates and to take downballot elections seriously. Most of my posts are Minnesota-centric as I am a resident of Minnesota; however, I am aware that each state has their own electoral system. That means that not every state will have all of the same candidates - in fact, as I alluded to on my post about the Minnesota Presidential Election, there are only three candidates on all 51 [Note 1] ballots this year: Biden/Harris (Democrat), Trump/Pence (Republican), and Jorgensen/Cohen (Libertarian). This means that parties can have multiple people running for president or vice-president, have people running as a political statement, or have people run as a spoiler vote.

2020 Downballot Races (Minnesota)

When you vote, do you remember to check the back of your ballot to make certain that you voted for everything that’s happening? Sure, you know about the President, Congress, and State Offices. But what about your local courts, mayors and city council members, and park commissioners? Each of them play a vital role in how your city, county, and state works. Statewide and local elections can determine our rights.

2020 General Election - Race for Congress (State - Minnesota)

This year is an election year for the Minnesota State Legislature. With the spectacle and glamour of the federal government, people tend to forget that the state governments have a lot of power - state legislatures hold the keys to the civil rights of America’s citizens. The United States Congress isn’t taking major action on guns, on abortion, or on minimum wage - all of that is being taken on by state legislatures. Also, in many states, state legislatures draw new US congressional maps every 10 years after the Census.

But a number of these races are left uncontested, which is unfortunate as laws are passed more frequently at the state and local levels than they are at the federal level. That means state legislatures do a huge amount of work while no one is looking, and they don’t have anybody to challenge them to make certain that they keep in touch with their constituents. If you want action on laws in regards to abortion, marijuana, public safety, or anything else, then you need to pay attention to your state legislatures. Remember that one vote can swing an election - don’t leave us in the fuck barrel.