01.06.11 - An Open Letter To The Vampire Community

An Open Letter To The Vampire Community At Large
January 6, 2011 - By Zerochan
*DISCLAIMER: This is a rant, and thus composed of opinions that may be unpopular.

Ten years ago, the vampire community experienced a schism, now known as the Sang/Psi wars over who could consider themselves a vampire. Over the years, many had considered the issue to be solved. Both sanguinarians and psychic vampires were vampires, and were free to use the term. This did not however mean that they were the same. Bad blood has boiled between the two groups for years, but never has it escalated into the “wars” again. Much of this comes from left over prejudices. Psychic vampires who experience no blood need will tell Sanguinarians that they are simply sucking energy, whereas some Sanguinarians will tell Psychic vampires that they are not true vampires.

I am Zerochan, a sixteen year old hybrid vampire (meaning I NEED both blood and energy) who was been awake for six years, part of the community for two. I understand both needs, and both sides of the story. I joined this community in order to connect with others like me. I did not join to learn how to survive, that was learned through reading, and experience. I thought I would be able to befriend other vampires in a peaceful setting, without having to worry about who feeds on what, drama, or politics.

Recent events have shown me that I was wrong. First, there was the "JS" fiasco, as well as a string of crimes supposedly committed by “vampires” reported in the media. This made us all very fearful, and I suspect contributed to the boiling of blood. Several articles were published in the media about vampires, most of which claiming we all suck energy equally. While this made sanguinarians and hybrids grumble, nothing more came of it. This was until, a psychic vampire by the name of Sappho Wolf published an interview where she claimed that psychic vampires were the only true vampires, and that all blood drinkers were mentally ill. On top of this, she posted, under the name of Robert Parratoe, a supposed “study” claiming that blood drinkers were unable to differentiate between blood and a placebo. The effect of the community was seismic. It looked very much like old battle lines were about to be re-drawn, and due to their blood need, hybrids sided with sanguinarians. Eventually Ms. Wolf left VVC, and Ryan Dube renounced his previous prejudice. All seemed perfectly fine, until recently when “The Infamous CJ!” published her article “A Sanguinarian Treatise”. In this particular article, very harsh words were used against both psychic vampires and hybrids, essentially claiming that they were not true vampires, did not deserve scientific study, and even went as far as to say that all metaphysics were inherently false. This caught a large portion of the community off guard, especially hybrids. Now it looks very much like the “wars” are about to start up again. In nearly every vampire forum, and even in the offline community, there is nearly nothing but drama between psychic vampires and sanguinarians. There is bad blood on both sides, as well as extremely harsh, uncalled for words, and a refusal to stop bickering. To this, I have one thing to say.

GROW. UP.

This is not preschool. This community was started so that vampires of any type could come together and share their experiences, to get the support they needed without fear of ridicule. If we cannot sit down and at the very least get along in a community full of bloody VAMPIRES, where can we? Honestly? Is our goal to become just as closed minded and unaccepting of any dissenting thought, just like the majority of mundanes around us? Don't get me wrong either, there are no innocents in this. WE. ARE. ALL. IN. THE. WRONG.

Why don't I simply tell each of us why by type since we all seem so fond of segregation lately? Now, not all of what I'm going to say applies to everyone. There are vampires of all types that are just as sick of this as I am, level-headed, generally down to earth, and cool people. No, this simply applies to those of you who would stir the pot.

Sanguinarians: I know you hate being called elitist, but when you suggest splitting the entire community, claiming the word “vampire” for yourselves, telling everyone else they're full of shit, and saying that you'd rather most boards be sang only, THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE BEING. You are NOT the only ones with claim on the word due to myth. There are PLENTY of myths out there where vampires sucked energy rather than blood. On top of that, it is wrong to try and “blame” every energy feeder for any discrimination you have faced. Plenty understand your point of view in things, and if they don't, then look to the minority of elders who taught them those views in the first place! Do NOT go after the newly awakened, or those who don't know better. Try to educate a young vampire who simply hasn't heard it from the horses map. If it's an elder who should know better? Sure, rip 'em a new one if you want to. But you still have NO right to tell energy feeders that their need isn't just as real as yours. You don't like it when the WORLD says it to you, so why the hell would you do it here? And if you don't believe in metaphysics, FINE. Stay OFF the metaphysics boards, and don't reply to their threads. It is not hard to simply ignore something that you don't like without trying to make those of us who do believe in it suffer.

Psi Vamps: You do not drink blood. You feel no blood need. SO STOP TELLING BLOOD DRINKERS WHAT THEY NEED. You know about as much about blood drinking as a five year old knows about rocket science! Oh, you drink blood to feed on the energy? GOOD FOR YOU. It doesn't mean that the rest of us are doing the same thing! GROW A BRAIN! Don't sit there on a talk show and say that blood is a rudimentary way of taking energy, don't publish books saying that we're psis on training wheels, and biggest of all, don't claim that you're the only true vampires! You're being just as bad as the sangs that do it, if not worse because most of you act appallingly stupid to the point where the rest of us would throw you in a pit with JS. On top, do not, EVER, in a million years, claim you are facing discrimination from the rest of the community. There are psi-only boards, psi only covens/houses, psi only gatherings; but if anyone else does it you scream discrimination? Sit down, shut up, and stop trying to tell everyone else who they are.

Hybrids: Get your shit together! We're tired of being excluded, but you know why we're excluded? Because we sit there and let it happen! We need to decide who is, and who isn't a hybrid, start our own boards, write articles, and get our own damn representation! I'm in the process of writing a hybrid manifesto. To me, we NEED both blood AND energy. A psi vamp who feeds on blood, or a sang who learned to suck energy is not a hybrid. They are adaptive, meaning they have conformed to their environment. You do that and want to call yourself a hybrid? Better back yourself up in a damn good way. Go to the media, explain to others what it means to be a hybrid, what it means to need both. Make theories about WHY we need both (I have a couple), and discuss them with other hybrids!

Donors: I have no beef with you guys. You're amazing, and the only ones I'm sorry to see caught up in all this. You don't deserve it, and your vampires should know better.

All in all, we need to learn to get along. You think you're right for what you're doing, EXPLAIN WHY without pointing fingers. Pretty sad when we only have three main groups and can't even cooperate. Look at the Otherkin community! They're much younger than us, have HUNDREDS of different groups/schools of thought, and they still manage not to de-volve into a huge eff-off flamewar every couple of years. If they can do it, why can't we? There is no good reason why we can't. None at all. We are all acting like whiny children who need Mommy and Daddy to look over their shoulders and keep them from fighting with the other children. I used to be rather open about who I am, but thanks to you freaks acting like it's the end of the world if little Billy sucks energy and practices metphysics, and if little Sally drinks blood, I'm more in the coffin now than I ever was! Especially when you've spread this misinformation in the media! You expect the mundanes to accept us if we can't even band together amongst ourselves? Without a united standpoint, they will RIP US APART. And by united, no, I don't mean being all PC and saying we all suck energy. But I am saying we should unite as vampires because that's what we are! We are vampires because we must feed from other living sources in order to survive. Be it blood, energy, both, whatever! The blood drinkers are not sucking energy, hybrids are proof of that, and the energy feeders are not lesser vampires. We need to set our differences ASIDE and accept that though we might not always agree, we are still all in this together. I hate the Black Veil, but one of it's rules does apply to this situation:

“We are, all of us, a family, and like all families, various members will not always get along. However, respect the greater community when having your disputes. Do not let your individual problems bring emotional strife to the family as a whole. Settle your differences quietly among one another, only seeking out an elder's aid in mediation when no other solution seems possible. Never bring your private disputes into public places and never draw other family members into the issue by forcing them to take sides.
Like any normal family, we should always make an effort to present a stable and unified face to the rest of the world even when things are not perfect between us.”

Is that not exactly what we're doing? Are we not forcing all the other vampires to take sides in each petty argument between us?

If you need to drink blood, FINE. You are still a vampire. If you need to take energy, FINE. You are still a vampire. If you need both, THAT'S FINE TOO! Why is it so difficult to get together, accept our differences, and help eachother! You think that just because you're of a certain type you can act holier than you? Well move over Archimedes! I wasn't aware that you could have the secrets to life, the universe, and everything conveniently shoved up your ass.

If all the community wants to become is a place full of drama, politics, and who should watch their backs, then as soon as the war breaks out again, I'm out of here. I want no more part in this, and I will certainly not direct the newly awakened to it, at least until things cool down. Because you know what? Not only do you hurt solitaries with your media crusade, but you hurt the newly awakened even more. All they will get at this point is misinformation from both sides of it, and that if not fair. Not at all. If you would like to act worse than children, go ahead. I'm sick of being told I'm undecided, should just suck energy, or am not enough of a vampire. I'm sick of taking flak for being a vampire who happens to like the goth scene as well. If you can't accept that others have different ideas than you do, then there is a problem.

Especially if it's happening, of all places, in the Vampire Community.