Subject: RE:Girls in Magic
Date: Tue, 09 Jun 98 00:11:44 PDT
From: "Matthew Champagne" <mchampagne@aisp.net>
To: fkusumot@ix.netcom.com

To respond to Catherine Niocloff's posting about Girl's in Magic I 
just have a few words to share.  She had many well grounded arguments 
but I found she left out one of the most obvious, and important when 
it comes to the number of female participants in this game.  The fact 
is very few girls play the game in the first place.  In my own 
experience I have met 5 women of different ages who play magic, and 
around 70 men.  So what I suggest is,  don't wait for the Wotc to 
come along and fix it.  We can all get more female players interested 
in the game if we just teach them how to play.  Go ahead, teach your 
daughters, teach your sisters, teach your Grandmother.

I would also like to reflelct on the Myths,  she commented on:

1. "Magic is a game of skill" I understand what she meant by saying 
winning is luck, but I think the terms she put it in weren't completly 
accurate.  Winning takes alot of skill.  Luck is important, and I'd 
much rather have luck on my side than all the skill in the world, but 
you can't really win on just luck.  If you lukily draw your Rainbow 
effreet, and tap out to cast it, luck can't save it from being pinged 
by a fireslinger.

2."Girl's aren't compettive"  Well, whether were talking about the 
instinctual nature of girls or just the M:tg playing style there's 
only one thing I can say.  COMPETE!  If its true that girls aren't 
competitive, then they should try to compete.  If you can dish out 
as good a game as anyone else in the tournament, I don't think anyone 
will complain about your competitiveness.  In reality everyone is 
competitive, its human nature, but some people just get more into it 
than others.  If your the type (male or female) who doesn't  like to 
compete, then I don't think Magic is the best hobby for you.  Its a 
game and games are competitive.

3."Winning is a proof of skill"  I totally agree that this is not true.  
The only thing winning proves is that you won.  Knowing what Metagaming, 
or 187 means can't protect any player from a bad draw.  The only proof 
of skill available is the ability to learn, to test, and to win most of 
the time.

Finally, the part about women not getting respect stuck me as a 
powerful statement.  Yes there are disrespectful youths, and older guys 
that think of you as the sales clerk at K-Mart...but hey, us guys aren't 
all bad.  The best way to silence the ones that are is to win.  So all 
the girls that are just starting out, stick with it, read the Dojo, and 
when you sit down across from some trash-talker, kisk his.....ummmm....
i guess i should censor this........booty!

Matther Champagne
mchampagne@aisp.net

P.s.  Can anyone teach me to write less stuff?