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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Dragonblade" data-source="post: 8152021" data-attributes="member: 2804">Indeed, genetic ancestry doesn't necessarily confer any sort of authenticity on any cultural or historical topic. Its absurd that this has become a thing. Especially in today's globally connected world where people of all cultures and ancestries mix freely. Anyone of any background can embrace a culture or educate themselves to become an authority on any topic. This should be celebrated, not condemned.I speak Japanese, half of my family is Japanese by blood (though I'm not racially Japanese myself, I'll leave that one for others to puzzle out), one of my degrees is in Japanese history, language, and culture, and I lived and worked a portion of my life in Japan. Though, I'm 20 plus years removed from my studies, there are topics related to Japan that I'm more educated in than even many native born and raised Japanese, and at the time would have been better qualified to write about should I have chosen to do so.Likewise, a gamer friend of mine that I grew up playing D&D with is ethnically Korean, speaks Korean, and grew up in a Korean household, yet loved Celtic culture. Studied the Gaelic language, Scottish and Irish history religiously, even adopted his own tartan.I considered him a greater authority on Scotland and Celtic lore than myself and anyone in my immediate native family (who actually has Celtic ancestry). If he ever decided to write a gaming supplement on fantasy Scotland or Ireland, you could rest assured that he was an authority on that topic, and his personal genetic ancestry should have no bearing on his qualifications.</blockquote>

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