Obryn
Hero
Well, I for one, am relieved that you've moved from implication to straight-up support of fascism.We can have a well functioning society with maximal levels of intolerance. Happens all the time.
Confronting them is not engaging them on their terms. Ignoring them and letting them direct the conversation is ceding the battlefield and letting them control the conversation.I'm really not thinking of the idea of letting them control the conversation. Which is actually why I'm opposed to how Mearls confronted them; he's effectively handing control over the conversation to them, rather than controlling it himself. They can take his tweet in any direction they want, as we've seen limited examples of on this thread. There are other methods of countering them without directly engaging them; focusing on the positives of Kate Welch as a start, for example. Including more diversity-oriented articles on the DnD website. Basically, instead of engaging them on their terms, keep forcing them to attack on WotC's and act to make them irrelevant by not even including them in the official conversations and continuing to celebrate and do the very things they hate. Basically, rather than give in, double-down as a massive middle finger to them, then don't even really give them space to reply to it beyond what they already have.
As for Kate Welch... I haven't addressed what she should do because there are no right answers. Basically, she has to choose between equally-awful options. She can sit back and passively take it, in which case they get a free shot at abusing her. She can engage them head-on, but that risks getting doxxed and both her and any family she has harassed in real life (not to mention the threats and worse). Or she can sit back and let someone else defend her, effectively surrendering her empowerment as a woman for a meeker traditional role... and the possibility that all that will happen is someone else suffers the doxxing and other problems. So, basically... there's no good options for her. I have no advice for her because no matter what I recommend I will be telling her to do something horrible. This is a complex situation where she basically has to choose what sacrifice she is willing to make. She has my empathy, and my remorse I don't have any better answer.
And your final paragraph is nonsense in so many ways that I am having trouble picking out which things I am angriest about. So here's a quick list.
(1) The implication that this is just the way things are and that there's no way to change it.
(2) The implication that other people engaging on her behalf is somehow 'surrendering her empowerment as a woman for a meeker traditional role' - okay this is the worst thing you said. I picked one, this is it.
(3) Still focusing on the trolls and the guys, and letting her wellness be an after-thought you're merely sad about.
(4) More surrendering and giving up ground to the trolls by insisting there's no good options for her.
(5) And the other worst thing of all - how in two paragraphs you're setting up a catch-22 wherein nobody can publicly support her lest they anger trolls, and publicly supporting her is somehow robbing her of power.
You're providing comfort and rhetorical shelter to misogynists. If I was feeling generous, I'd say you don't realize it, but damn - after that last paragraph I'm all out of generosity for you.