Responsibility Rant

(Note, this rant originally appeared on the Half-Mind Catalog back in the early 2000’s)

This month’s rant at the Half-Mind Catalog (First, Do No Harm) is definitely worth reading…especially by webmasters! I’m not saying that websites should be taken down (nor is the author), but what we hashers see as an innocent butt-chug photo might be viewed quite differently by our co-workers, family, neighbors, or other groups we are members of. Imagine trying to explain to your boss on Monday (or your preacher on Sunday) that “You’re taking that photo of me drinking beer out of a man’s ass completely out of context!”

Some of the debauchery and adult humor has its place in the hash, and each hash has its own traditions. But we should all remember that “acceptable hash behaviour” in the U.S. usually isn’t fit for public consumption…or posting on the internet. Personally, I don’t think that every hash has to try and have an “Iguana-esque” circle in the first place. True, it is far easier for the American hasher to resort to using nudity and “adult behaviour” to entertain the pack every week than it is to come up with original ideas, songs, etc. But sometimes it’s refreshing NOT to see someone on the ice (the novelty wears off after about the 400th time) or hear the men chant for “tits out for the boys” every couple minutes (c’mon, are we really that hard up for a peep show?)…but that is MY rant for another time.

Cameras, both “official hash flash” and personal ones are at almost every hash nowadays. While most webmasters and hash flashes are pretty responsible folks; virgins, regular hashers, and even visitors to our hashes may not be so careful with compromising photos. It is still possible that a picture of you may get out. The first instinct in this case is to blame the photographer. While they may share some blame for letting them out or sharing them, I believe we ARE all adults and ultimately responsible for our own actions. Strangely enough, there are wankers out there who will deliberately pose or ham it up for pictures at every hash event and still be surprised and indignant later when those pictures surface. In short: Don’t act the fool in front of the camera if you don’t want the pictures to be seen later.

My own feeling is it all boils down to good risk-management skills and a sense of personal responsibility…which most hashers set aside just before Chalk Talk. The prevailing attitude in the US is that we can get away with a lot more at the hash than society or the law allows. It never even occurs to most people the gravity of the risks we take every time we run across private property, have a beer stop outside of a bar, hold circle on public property (or private property we don’t own), and yes exposing body parts to the pack. Behaviour that is completely unacceptable in your own neighborhood becomes standard, accepted fare at the hash. If a group of drunken strangers were disturbing your neighborhood, wouldn’t YOU want them to move on? Mightn’t YOU call the police and expect swift action? Of course you would. Yet when WE are the ones getting caught in the act, many hashers believe that it is our fascist government bullying a bunch of innocent hashers.

Even if there are no cameras around; our actions may have potential to get us in trouble personally, professionally, or legally. I am very aware of the risks I take at the hash, but I take them into account instead of ignoring them completely or letting them keep me from enjoying myself. I try to balance my desire to have fun with some common sense and judgment. I recognize that being at the hash does not give me carte blanche to act however I want. Just because trail goes over a 12’ chain link fence topped with barbed wire and posted “US Government Property, Keep Out” doesn’t mean I should go against common sense and hop that fence. The “But the Hares laid the Trail that way” defense probably won’t hold up in federal court. Mooning or flashing body parts in public is still a crime in most areas of the US, and I have yet to see an exemption for hashers. Just because we are in the corner of a public park or behind a building doesn’t mean we aren’t still in public. Sometimes, we as individuals need to make up our own mind as to what is right instead of blindly following the pack…and sometimes that means skipping the hash entirely.

I wish hashers would exercise the better judgment in advance instead of blaming everyone else later when cops show up, charges are filed, people are fired, marriages are ruined, etc. There can be no compromising pictures of you if you don’t act in a compromising manner. This is one of the reasons I have not brought anyone from my current or previous workplaces to the hash…the possible consequences to my professional reputation and standing are not worth it to me. Maybe someday I’ll meet someone at the office who understands both discretion AND how to separate social (like the hash) from work. Until then, I’ll keep playing it safe 🙂
-Guamarhea Balls
BALH3 RA