I am passing on an important item from Michelle Belanger, which is in
response to Blackheart's accusations of plagiarism in her newest
Black Veil revision. This is relevant because Blackheart is heading
an effort to produce an independent document of similar intent.
There are also some other matters at hand here (which not all was I
aware of), so read on to get the whole story.

The G_V_N (Global Vampire Network)'s url is
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/G_V_N

I have reposted Michelle Belanger's message below:

=========================
From: "M.A. Belanger <setanankhu@...>" <setanankhu@...>
Date: Wed Jan 22, 2003 12:19 pm
Subject: Response to Allegations (and a heads up if membership
explodes)


To all within the community:

It has come to my attention that there is an allegation against my
honor which I must answer. Ordinarily, I would ignore this issue and
let it drop. I do not think it is appropriate for community leaders
to air their private disputes in public, nor should they attempt to
involve the entire community in those disputes in an attempt to get
people to take sides. However, I take heart in the fact that I am not
the one who started this issue, and I have had too many private
emails from respected friends urging me to say something in my
defense to rightly ignore.

I would expect that all of you have good enough judgment to do a
little research on your own and verify the things you are being told.
As issues like this arise quite frequently in the politics of our
community, I am certain that you have all learned by now that the
person who complains the loudest typically has the most to convince
you of. And I further believe you are all discerning enough to at
least eventually see the true motives behind a person's actions when
those motives are being falsely represented to you.

However, those who have emailed me privately are afraid that judgment
and discernment may be lacking, and that an unjust claim, when
presented loudly and frequently enough, may obtain some amount of
credibility simply through repetition.

For these reasons, I offer the following statement, along with a
timeline derived from posts to the G_V_N list at yahoogroups which
any of you can sign up to and read for yourselves.

In October 2002, I began a revision of the Black Veil. I had not been
happy with the most recent version for some time, and having seen the
growth and change in the community, felt it urgently needed to be
updated.

Because it had frequently been stated that the Black Veil did not
adequately reflect the values of the majority of the community, I
made a post to the GVN list on October 21, 2002 asking for
suggestions for a rewrite. I pointed out that previous requests for
suggestions had gone unanswered, yet people still complained that the
Black Veil did not reflect their values. To that end, I asked for
people to offer their criticism, however brutal, so long as they also
offered alternatives for revision. My post, which has apparently not
been included in other timelines presented to people is #2478 on the
GVN list and was made at 10:30 pm on that day.

A full ten days later, Blackheart posted to that same list "Why the
Black Veil Does Not Work". This is message #2545 and is time-stamped
Nov. 11, 2002 10:15 pm. Immediately after this message, Blackheart
then posts "OK.. we get rid of the Black Veil... Then what do we
use?" This is time and date stamped Nov. 11, 2002 10:47 pm and is GVN
message #2546. Included in this second post is a very wordy and rough
list of ideas Blackheart would like to see replace the Black Veil.

I very reasonably assumed that Blackheart's post was inspired by and
written largely in response to my message from October. He has
however argued rather condescendingly on that same list that my
revision of the Black Veil was inspired by *his* writing. This is
inarguably false, as clearly my post for requests for the revision
predates his suggestions for why the document should be scrapped.
Further, I engaged in conversation with several people in New Orleans
during Endless Night to get ideas for a revision, and I
started "blackveilrevisions" and "neutral-ground" lists on Nov. 5th
2002 upon my return to further generate ideas and collect input from
as many experienced individuals involved in the community as I could.

On Nov. 13th, I posted a rough outline of my brainstorming session to
the GVN list. This is Archive #2559. It is the precursor to my final
rewrite of the Black Veil.

Now, strangely, in message #2564, Blackheart comments on my
guidelines and says, "Good ideas, we will use them in the
New "Vampire Advice" document." Now, I did not solicit him to use my
ideas for his document -- I was clear in my posts from the beginning
(once again, pre-dating Blackheart's New.Doc initiative by a full ten
days) that I was working on a rewrite of the Black Veil, wanted
community input of what they would like to see, and was taking all
posts in that thread into consideration for the final document.
However, by so clearly stating that he would use my own ideas for his
document, at this point Blackheart establishes that the cross-
pollination of ideas between the two documents is not only fair but
to be expected.

On November 21, 2002, I posted to the GVN list the Black Veil 2.0 and
solicited comments and criticisms. It is posted to several other
lists at the same time with the same requests.

Amazingly (at least in light of current allegations), Blackheart's
response is this:

From: "Blackheart" <lordblackheart1313@y...>
Date: Sat Nov 23, 2002 6:51 am
Subject: Re: Black Veil 2.0

--- In G_V_N@y..., setanankhu@a... wrote:

> For those interested in this project:
>
> Here is the newer, sleeker version of the Black Veil I developed

Not to bad actually. I just hope that it helps to break away from all
the rubbish that I have seen in many a court. It seems you kept the
titles part but said that they aren't important. I wonder if they
shall listen. I just hope this isn't an attempt to keep the BV just
to keep it going. Once you have done something it can be hard to let
go of it, even when it is time to. Good luck.

Blackie

****************************************

There is nothing in this message about plagiarism, and one would
think that there should be if my version had borrowed heavily from
the list of guidelines Blackheart was spearheading. As one of the
main people working on the "Vampire Advice" document, Blackheart
would have seen any plagiarism right off, shouldn't he? So why does
Blackheart instead give my document the thumbs up here and only later
begin crying "foul"?

I have included at the end of this email Blackheart's wordy advice
document, my brainstorming session, and my final revision of the
Black Veil. You now have the timing for when these each were made
public on the Internet, and I have listed the GVN list because anyone
can sign up there and check the archives for themselves.

In comparing the works, I think anyone with half a brain can see that
these two documents bear almost nothing in common, especially
creatively. My ideas are short and concise. Blackheart's are wordy.
The arrangement is radically different, and the main thrust behind
our words are very different. I imagine both Blackheart and I were
working on our individual lists of rules for many days prior to
actually posting. My guidelines were sketched out in a notebook on
the airplane coming back from New Orleans, Nov. 4 (caught a typo --
this previously read Nov. 1). An earlier version had been hashed out
much earlier in October, somewhat prior to my original post #2478.

I do not consider it unusual that there is cross-pollination between
the two documents. First of all, there is the fact that Blackheart
himself states that he intends to use my ideas for his own work.
Secondly, our community is a creative movement, like the Romantic
Movement or the Symboliste movement from the nineteenth century.
Anyone familiar with history will know that movements such as this
have many aspects of expression, from poetry to philosophy, and the
strength and life's blood of a creative movement is the sharing and
development of ideas through the communication of people within the
movement. Artists who are both friends and enemies influence one
another's work, and through things as simple as chance conversations
in bars, ideas are cross-pollinated, expanded, and passed along, to
be later expanded upon by yet another individual in the movement who
sees a finished work and is inspired by that to create a work of his
own. This same dynamic is at work here, and by suddenly deciding to
lay claim to ideas, Blackheart is not only showing his own ignorance
of what we are all involved in, he is actually trying to stunt the
growth of our community and interfere in the natural evolution of a
creative movement.

From the timing of his two posts on his replacement for the Black
Veil, I think it's fair to assume that Blackheart wrote out his ideas
before they were actually posted. How long before is not knowable,
but it would not surprise me to learn that he and I were working on
our respective projects at roughly the same time. As I'm sure
everyone on the Internet has noticed by now, the timing of ideas
within a community like this is often synchronistic. Further, both
Blackheart and I chose the times we did to post these ideas to this
list because the development of these guidelines had finally
generated enough interest to get actual community response. I in fact
had made the post back in October to hopefully drum up that interest
so I could introduce the ideas I had been working on and get
legitimate feedback.

Now, I do not want anyone to think I am writing this to defend or
promote the Black Veil. Although I wrote the most recent version, as
well as the revision that predates it, I could care less if you like
the Black Veil, hate the Black Veil, follow it, ignore it, or use it
as toilet paper. My job in regards to the Black Veil was simply to
write it so it was clear, concise, eloquent, and attempted to
represent the changing needs and values of a large portion of the
community.

However, as I have been notified by several people, Blackheart is not
at this point attacking the Black Veil. He is attacking me. He is
accusing me of stealing, among other things, and this is an attack
upon my honor and my very career. This is nothing less than slander,
and I take it quite seriously.

I am writing this statement to assert that the Black Veil 2.0 is my
writing. The data presented above should make it very clear that,
although there may have been some cross-pollination between ideas
that were in development at the same time, the actual words of the BV
2.0 creatively and stylistically are mine. That is what I do for a
living: I craft words, and I do it well.

The ideas the new Black Veil is predicated upon are common sense, and
there is no copyright on common sense the last time I checked.
Blackheart himself made it clear that he had no compunctions about
using my own ideas for his document, which certainly implies he
should have no problems if his ideas also influenced my own.

I took suggestions from numerous people -- many of whom were offering
the same suggestions for both the "Vampire Advice" document and the
BV 2.0. I certainly admit that Blackheart's urgings to do away with
leaders and elders influenced the new bit I put in on elders and
leaders, but I had gotten feedback that was steering me that way long
before Blackheart wrote anything, and notably, even Todd had directly
stated to me that he wanted to do away with a lot of titles and the
political stickiness that they inevitably generate while I was in New
Orleans for Endless Night.

As I said to Blackheart in a December IM conversation we had in an
attempt to resolve this matter, he would have objected to the new
Black Veil just as loudly had it *not* reflected some of his
suggestions, so he has me in a lose-lose situation. Ignore his
suggestions, and I'm creating a document that does not accurately
reflect the needs and desires of the community. Ergo, he runs around
crying to anyone who will hear how the Black Veil should be reviled
because it fails to reflect the needs of the community. Take his
suggestions, and he's still running around crying to anyone who will
hear how the Black Veil should be reviled -- and me along with it
now, because he has to claim that I stole his ideas.

In the same IM conversation, I defined plagiarism for Blackheart.
Seeing as I am a professional writer and have been writing for
publication for over a dozen years now, I have to know what
constitutes plagiarism so I can avoid it in my own work and recognize
it in others.

To my knowledge, anyone who takes a basic composition course in
college is taught the definition of plagiarism, but as Blackheart
himself still seems ignorant of it, forgive me if I insult your
intelligence by belabouring the obvious.

Plagiarism is when a writer takes another's work *word for word*
without giving credit to the original author. Further, those words
that are not directly the author's own should be set aside in
quotation marks. As every college freshman learns when writing his or
her first thesis papers, it is officially *not* plagiarism when a
writer takes an idea and presents that idea in his or her own words.
If such a thing were plagiarism, then the diversity of books on a
single topic would not exist, for every writer would be seen as
plagiarizing the work of the first author who originally thought to
write a book on the topic. As an example, there are many books on
Wicca. Most present the same basic ideas. However, as these ideas are
presented in the author's own words, each book is unique and is not
plagiarized. Some of these books have clearly been influenced by the
ideas put forth in books which preceded them. This is still not
plagiarism. If someone were to take whole passages out of Scott
Cunningham's book on Wicca for solitary practitioners and present
that writing as if it were their own, THAT would be plagiarism.

I asked Blackheart to give me examples of where I plagiarized him,
word for word, and I offered to change my work if he could show me
that I had indeed plagiarized passages. He could not, and still
demanded that I not release my writing. I asked if he would be
appeased if I listed the names of everyone I knew who had contributed
to the brainstorming sessions that helped give birth to the final
version of the Black Veil. That was not acceptable either.

From the IM conversation, Blackheart made it quite clear that nothing
less than my withdrawal from my association with Todd and complete
retraction of my writing as the new version of the Black Veil would
appease him in any way -- he was willing to accept the work, so long
as I joined him and abandoned Todd. It was clear from that
conversation that Blackheart was less concerned about the Black Veil
2.0 and much more concerned with the fact that it was associated with
and would be published by Father Todd. In light of all the other
evidence I have presented here, what does that say?

It is my belief that Blackheart expected his "Vampire Advice" to have
much more support than it did. He only begins to criticize my BV 2.0
after it has gotten glowing and very positive comments from a number
of community leaders. As this runs counter to Blackie's agenda, he
did the only thing he could think to do: attack not only the document
but also the person writing it in an attempt to quell community
support of the new Black Veil so that he can then continue to promote
its replacement with his own pet project.

And what is Blackheart's agenda here? Anyone who has followed him on
various lists will know that he has an almost pathological hatred of
Father Todd. There is some bad blood between the two of them, and
I've heard only one side of the story, so I can't really judge. But
it has been clear to me from the rabid way in which Blackheart will
attack anything related to Todd that the man has some very deep-
seated issues.

Throughout this whole fiasco, Blackheart unctuously declares that he
is not in charge of anything. He, although he's the advice document's
loudest proponent and certainly writes and behaves as though he is in
charge of its development, is against the idea of elders or leaders,
or any person who tells others what to do or what to think. He says
this especially to dinstinguish himself from Father Todd who, it is
implied and frequently outright declared by Blackheart, perniciously
influences the weak-minded members of the community to want to
conform, be part of a hierarchy, and convince themselves that they
are vampires when, in Blackheart's opinion, most of them are not. At
once, Blackheart will attack Todd and the Sanguinarium for promoting
cliquishness and exclusivity, and then make statements that are
obviously cliquish and exclusive, breaking his own rules. From this
recurrent behavior, it's pretty clear to me that Blackheart's real
beef with the Sanguinarium is that he's not running it himself.

Folks, there is nothing worse in this world than someone who will use
the pretense of moralizing to forward his own goals, especially when
those goals actually corrupt the same morals he is supposedly
espousing. How hypocritical is the man who objects to the rule of a
tyrant simply because he cannot be a tyrant himself? How contemptible
is someone who decries habits in others that he himself secretly
seeks to indulge? Such a man who will continuously claim to be
speaking out in the name of righteousness when he is in fact
forwarding his own selfish goals, is perhaps the most dangerous
cancer we can have in a community, for when he succeeds in toppling
the people he has so righteously cried out against, he will then only
replace them with himself and further outdo them in any wrongs he
accused them of committing.

It is the sad truth that with the "Vampire Advice" document,
Blackheart, despite his many protestations to the contrary, really
did not want to make a better list of guidelines to help the
community. Although he will expound incessantly upon the evils of
Todd and the Sanguinarium (and now, by extension, myself),
Blackheart's true objection is not a moral one, but a purely personal
and selfish one.

Rather than trying to help the community and fix something that
needed revising, Blackheart was simply trying to come up with his
own "Black Veil" so he could replace the one supported by Father
Todd. There is no altruism in this. Blackheart's efforts here are
entirely motivated by his unrelenting and pathological jealousy of
Todd. In short, he was hoping to undermine Todd's work and set
himself up as the new Father Todd, so he could indulge his desire to
enact all the abuses that he has heretofore accused Todd of.

Blackheart should not couch his attacks of Todd in self-righteous
rhetoric and claim that he's only watching out for the community.
What's between the two of them is their business, and neither of them
should seek to drag anyone else into it. Yet, when Blackheart goes on
and on about Todd, as he frequently does on the many elists he's
signed up to, saying it's nothing personal and that he's doing the
right and noble thing by being a conscientious objector -- well, he's
either lying to you or to himself, and I honestly haven't figured out
which. For the first, I'd find him contemptuous, and for the second
piteous. In truth, I look at him right now with a little of both.

I do not expect everyone to see what I do in this situation. For
that, I will wait on time, for it is time that reveals people like
Blackheart. I have been an active and contributing member of this
community for over a dozen years now, and I have learned that
consistent behavior over time is the true measure of a man. For that
reason, I know I have nothing to worry about despite what allegations
Blackheart might make or how many people believe him because his is
the only side they have been able to hear. One can only maintain a
facade of credibility for so long, and the sheen of falsely assumed
righteousness quickly fades.

You all now have the timeline as well as archive numbers which you
can go and look up for yourself. Sign onto the GVN list and read
everything in that thread. You should find it all very interesting.
Compare for yourselves the documents attached below, and keep in mind
what is plagiarism and what is the natural cross-pollination of ideas
that occurs in any creative movement.

I thank you for your time, and ask your forgiveness for troubling you
with such a long dissertation in my defense.

Michelle Belanger
Founder of House Kheperu
author of "The Vampyre Codex"

*******************************************************

Blackheart's Original (and long-winded) list of ideas posted Nov.
11th (GVN message #2546):

On Behavior:
Keep in mind that what you do and say will reflect on how people
think of you. Be a good person. When you encounter others be they
vampire or not give them the benefit of the doubt. To go on rumors is
a bad idea, find out what a person is like for yourself. Keep in mind
it takes a lot more than just seeing a person in a club a few times
to get to know them. Everyone is different, it is what makes the
world go round. Respect other people as you wish to be respected.

On feeding:
A vampire feeds because they need to. If you blood feed be careful,
there are many nasty deseises out there. Make sure the blood is
clean. When you do feed do it in the least damaging way to your
donor. Ifr someone has agreed to give you blood, they are doung you a
HUGE favor. Have to be thankful of that. It really takes a person
with an open mind to do something like that. Again, blood feeders
should know first-aid very well. Psi feeders, don't drain them till
they pass out. If they are ok with you doing that, make sure that
they are in a safe and comfortable place. Feeding is something that
we do which is unique from what a non-vampire can do. Keep in mind no
matter how hard you give a hickey you will not get blood. Skin is
made to be water tight, other wise we would leak all over the place.
Sweat comes through special glands, these glands do not give blood.
If they do the person is soon to be in the dead book. If you don't
believe me ask any doctor. That and if you bite someone, you are not
going to open their skin and get a lot of blood. Nor will the skin
magically heal. You will get a little blood and they will most likely
be left with a small circular scar if you do it right. Again, make
sure that your donor is OK with this BEFORE you do it. I think the
idea of consent barely needs to be mentioned, it should be common
nature.

On being:
Keep real. Just because you are a vampire doesn't mean that you are
such a special person more than anyone else. Be happy with who and
what you are, but do not think that it makes you some super magical
being. That is best left for fantasy writers and the people that need
to escape reality by becoming disillusional.

How to be to other vampires:
Givebenefit the benifit of the doubt, with a fellow vampire you do
have something in common, the need to feed. However, this does not
mean that all the vampires you met will be wonderful people and you
have to love them like family. Just like with any other will be some
willbe cool, some will be assholes. That and you will met a good
number of people that say they are vampires when they are not. Just
keep an open mind.

Where we live:
People move about, look at a situation when you get into it. Listen
and then speak. just because everyone does things a certain way
doesn't make it right. Ever been told that old phrase by your
mum... "If everybody jumped off a bridge, would you?" Be respectful
of other opinions, don't be afraid to disagree however. If a person
is full of shit they are full of shit, no matter who they are. If
someone is kind enough to invite you to their home, be respectful. If
you know of a fellow vamp that you got to know through the net or
letters, why not put them up for a visit if you can. It is a matter
of how much trust you feel. There is much talk of "havens", what I
described is more of a haven. Meeting in a coffee shop secretly, that
can be a haven. A haven is not some club where you have to pay to get
in and there are passes that are printed "VAMPYRE CLUB HERE" which
are distributedefinitionblic. By deffinition a safety is a placthe
safty, look in ther dictionary if you don't belive it.

Elders and leaders:
An elder is an older person, supposedly learned. The present
contruencies of the community disagrees with this. Time for change.
The idea of elders ,Calmea, Fledgelings or anything else that speaks
of ranking is rubbish. Listen to what people have to say, respect is
something that is EARNED. Usually a person that is older than you
will tend to be wiser. (we are not talking a year or two, we mean an
actual age difference.) This is not always the case. Listen first,
think about the advice that is given and what a person has to say. It
is then that you can decide if you want to look up to them or they
have earned your respect. If a person is full of shit, don't be
afraid to say it to them. Tell them politely and honestly to their
face though, not behind there back. For those of you that don't know
how to do this it goes something like this; "ummm... you know, I'm
sorry I really don't agree with what you are saying.". Try to get
along with them. This won't always be possible, don't be afraid to
dislike someone. Just have the courage to be up front about it. This
applies to the idea of leaders as well. lots of people will try to
tell you what you should do, don't be a blind follower like a sheep.
Think for yourself.

************************************************

On Nov. 13th, I posted a rough outline of my brainstorming session to
the GVN list. This is Archive #2559 and reads:

Community Guidelines Brainstorming

OK. Here's what I've got from what I've read so far. Keep min mind,
these are rough - just ideas to brainstorm about - and presented in
no particular order:

Do no bring anything illegal into our homes, our businesses or our
gathering places.

Educate yourself about risky activities, then always act with an eye
toward safety.

Share what you are with only with those with the wisdom to understand
and accept it.

Find that path that is right for you and uphold this freedom for
others.

Strive to nurture and improve our community and support those who do
the same.

Always speak and behave responsibility, knowing that each of us
represents the community in another's eyes.

Respect the person, not the position.

Treat those who give of themselves to you with gratitude and respect.

OK. Tell me what you think.

***************************************************

On November 21, 2002 at 9:04 pm I posted GVN message #2621

Black Veil 2.0

The Sanguinarium is a community for those eighteen and older. Our
members are expected to adhere to their countries' regulations and
laws. In addition, Sanguinarium members agree to uphold the Black
Veil:

DISCRETION
Respect yourself and present yourself so that others also respect
you. Take care in who you reveal yourself to. Explain what you are,
not to shock, but to teach and to inform. Do not flaunt what you are,
and know that whether you want them to or not, your actions will
reflect upon the rest of the community. Share your nature only with
those with the wisdom to understand and accept it, and learn to
recognize these people.

DIVERSITY
Among us, there are many different practices and many points of view.
No single one of us has all the answers to who and what we are.
Respect each person's individual choices and beliefs. Learn about
them and share what you know. Our diversity is our strength, and we
should not allow misunderstanding to weaken our community. Find the
path that is right for you and uphold this freedom for others.

CONTROL
Do not allow your darkness to consume you. You are more than just
your hunger, and you can exercise conscious control. Do not be
reckless. Always act with a mind toward safety. Never feed because
you think this makes you powerful; feed because this is what you must
do. Be true to your nature, but never use it as an excuse to endanger
those around you.

ELDERS
Give respect to those who have earned it. Anyone can claim a title,
but a true leader will prove him or herself through dedication, hard
work, and great deeds. Even so, leaders should be guides and not
dictators. Look to them as examples, but always decide for yourself
what you must do. Respect the person, not the position, and
understand that your choices are always your own.

BEHAVIOR
Know that there are repercussions to every action, and that you alone
are responsible for your decisions. Educate yourself about risky
behaviors, then always act with wisdom and common sense. Do not allow
others to abuse you, but also, do not selfishly abuse. Respect the
rights of others and treat them as you would be treated.

DONORS
Feeding should occur between consenting adults. Allow donors to make
an informed decision before they give of themselves to you. Do not
take rapaciously from others, but seek to have an exchange that is
pleasant and beneficial for all. Respect the life that you feed upon
and do not abuse those who provide for you.

COMMUNITY
Reach out to others in your community. Exchange ideas, information,
and support. Be hospitable to others, and appreciate hospitality when
it is extended to you. Do not engage in illegal activity, for this
can endanger us all. Seek to nurture our community and support all
those who do the same.

--Michelle

************************************************

Read, learn and discern for yourselves. Question everything.
=========================

--Sanguinarius
Sanguinarius News and Updates (Special Edition)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sang-news

Sanguinarius.org for Real Vampires /
Sanguinarius: The Vampire Support Page
http://www.sanguinarius.org/