Pubik Vengeance
Smash Journeyman
I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for equality in the history of our Smash.
About four months ago, a great Japanese man, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, released Super Smash Brothers Brawl. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of people who had been growing tired of Melee and wanted something fresh. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.
But four months later, the Brawl player still is not free. Four months later, the life of the Brawl Player is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination.
Four months later, the Brawl Player lives on a lonely island of poverty
in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity.
Four months later, the Brawl Player is still languished in the corners of Smash society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.
In a sense we've come to our favorite series’ website to cash a check. When the architects of our game wrote the magnificent code of the games, they were signing a promissory note to which every Smasher was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all Smashers, yes, Melee Smashers as well as Brawl Smashers, would be guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Having fun playing the game they love without being criticized." It is obvious today that Smashboards has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of which game they play are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Brawlers a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds."
But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this series. And so, we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.
We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind Smashboards of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of Smash. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift smashboards from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all Smashers.
It would be fatal for the smashboards to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Brawlers's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Two thousand and eight is not an end, but a beginning. And those who hope that the Brawlers needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the smashboards returns to business as usual. And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in smashboards until the Brawler is granted his rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our boards until the bright day of justice emerges.
But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into flaming and trolling. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.
The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Brawl community must not lead us to a distrust of all Melee-ers, for many of our Melee brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.
We cannot walk alone.
And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.
We cannot turn back.
There are those who are asking the devotees of Brawl rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Brawler is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of Melee brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of playing Brawl all night, cannot gain sympathy in the boards of the smash. We cannot be satisfied as long as the Brawler’s basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto tournament to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by a sign stating: "For Melee-ers Only."* We cannot be satisfied as long as a Brawler in Mississippi cannot play in a tournament and a Brawler in New York believes he has nothing for which to go to a tournament for. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream."
I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from heated flamings from melee-ers. And some of you have come from areas where your quest -- quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of prosecution and staggered by the winds of Melee brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to smashboards, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.
Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the Smash dream.
I have a dream that one day this series will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all Smashers are created equal."
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Smashville, the sons of former SSB64 players and the sons of former Brawlers will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even New Pork City, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression; will be transformed into an oasis of competitive gameplay and justice.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the Smash game they play but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day, down in Final Destination, with its vicious Melee fanboays, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Final Destination little Brawlers will be able to join hands with little Melee-ers as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."
This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the smashboards with.
With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our boards into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.
And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:
My Smash game 'tis of thee, sweet game of Nintendo, of thee I sing.
Game where Roy died, land of the Fox main’s pride,
From every mountainside, let freedom ring!
And if Smash is to be a competitive series, this must become true.
And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of Green Hill Zone.
Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of Castle Siege.
Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Battlefield.
Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Ice Climber’s Summit.
Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of Lylat Cruise.
But not only that:
Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Yoshi’s Island.
Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Halberd.
Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Delphino Plaza.
From every mountainside, let freedom ring.
And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every stage and every level, from every website and every message board, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, Brawlers and Melee-ers, and SSB64-ers, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:
Free at last! Free at last!
Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!
About four months ago, a great Japanese man, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, released Super Smash Brothers Brawl. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of people who had been growing tired of Melee and wanted something fresh. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.
But four months later, the Brawl player still is not free. Four months later, the life of the Brawl Player is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination.
Four months later, the Brawl Player lives on a lonely island of poverty
in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity.
Four months later, the Brawl Player is still languished in the corners of Smash society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.
In a sense we've come to our favorite series’ website to cash a check. When the architects of our game wrote the magnificent code of the games, they were signing a promissory note to which every Smasher was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all Smashers, yes, Melee Smashers as well as Brawl Smashers, would be guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Having fun playing the game they love without being criticized." It is obvious today that Smashboards has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of which game they play are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Brawlers a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds."
But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this series. And so, we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.
We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind Smashboards of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of Smash. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift smashboards from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all Smashers.
It would be fatal for the smashboards to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Brawlers's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Two thousand and eight is not an end, but a beginning. And those who hope that the Brawlers needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the smashboards returns to business as usual. And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in smashboards until the Brawler is granted his rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our boards until the bright day of justice emerges.
But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into flaming and trolling. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.
The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Brawl community must not lead us to a distrust of all Melee-ers, for many of our Melee brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.
We cannot walk alone.
And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.
We cannot turn back.
There are those who are asking the devotees of Brawl rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Brawler is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of Melee brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of playing Brawl all night, cannot gain sympathy in the boards of the smash. We cannot be satisfied as long as the Brawler’s basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto tournament to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by a sign stating: "For Melee-ers Only."* We cannot be satisfied as long as a Brawler in Mississippi cannot play in a tournament and a Brawler in New York believes he has nothing for which to go to a tournament for. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream."
I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from heated flamings from melee-ers. And some of you have come from areas where your quest -- quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of prosecution and staggered by the winds of Melee brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to smashboards, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.
Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the Smash dream.
I have a dream that one day this series will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all Smashers are created equal."
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Smashville, the sons of former SSB64 players and the sons of former Brawlers will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even New Pork City, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression; will be transformed into an oasis of competitive gameplay and justice.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the Smash game they play but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day, down in Final Destination, with its vicious Melee fanboays, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Final Destination little Brawlers will be able to join hands with little Melee-ers as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."
This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the smashboards with.
With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our boards into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.
And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:
My Smash game 'tis of thee, sweet game of Nintendo, of thee I sing.
Game where Roy died, land of the Fox main’s pride,
From every mountainside, let freedom ring!
And if Smash is to be a competitive series, this must become true.
And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of Green Hill Zone.
Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of Castle Siege.
Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Battlefield.
Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Ice Climber’s Summit.
Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of Lylat Cruise.
But not only that:
Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Yoshi’s Island.
Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Halberd.
Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Delphino Plaza.
From every mountainside, let freedom ring.
And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every stage and every level, from every website and every message board, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, Brawlers and Melee-ers, and SSB64-ers, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:
Free at last! Free at last!
Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!
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