I certainly never expected that my position in the Hearthstone community would lead to me making a statement on sensitive topics regarding international relations, but I have always viewed my strange place as a public figure in gaming as an opportunity to try to make the world a better place in whatever way I can, so here we are.Here are the facts as I understand them.After finishing his final match of the second season of the Asia-Pacific Hearthstone Grandmasters, Hong Kong player Ng “blitzchung” Wai Chung appeared on the official Taiwanese Hearthstone stream for his post-game interview wearing a gas mask. He lifted the mouthpiece and shouted, in Chinese: “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our age!” – a rallying cry of the ongoing protests in Hong Kong.On Tuesday, Blizzard announced their ruling, claiming that Blitzchung violated one of the Hearthstone Grandmasters rules against “engaging in any act that, in Blizzard’s sole discretion, brings you into public disrepute, offends a portion or group of the public, or otherwise damages Blizzard image.”The penalty they imposed was expelling Blitzchung from the Grandmasters league entirely, including retroactively revoking the prize money he had earned throughout the season, and additionally banning him from competing in events for a year. They also announced that they would no longer work with the casters involved in the controversial interview.I want to start by saying that I feel what Blitzchung did was very brave. He knew that his actions would likely have serious consequences, not just for his future in Hearthstone but possibly even for his personal safety, and I commend him for the fortitude that takes.Even so, I do think that Blizzard was correct in issuing him a penalty for his actions. They do not want to set the precedent for their official broadcasts being used as political tools. The players agreed to particular rules for behavior, and he violated those rules.I have seen many deions of the situation claim that Blizzard took action against Blitzchung “for his support of the Hong Kong protests”, but that’s not an entirely accurate deion. They did not penalize him for his political stance – they penalized him for breaking the rules by using their official broadcast to promote that stance.Anyone who pays attention to my social media feeds knows that I am not someone who shies away from politics. I am frequently quite vocal about my views about what’s going on in the United States. I have kept a deck titled “Election 2016” in my collection for the past three years, full of cards like Corruption, DOOM, and Validated Doomsayer. I would rather risk alienating those who disagree with me rather than stay silent on matters I consider important.But when I am on the desk for an official Hearthstone broadcast, I leave those views at home. Maybe I’ll make a subtle snide remark on occasion, but I know that I am representing Blizzard in addition to myself. If I were to close a show with speech about how I feel like Trump should be impeached, I wouldn’t expect to be invited back for future events.All that having been said, there are additional factors at play here. The punishment meted out to Blitzchung is incredibly harsh. I could understand a fine, or even a short suspension from competitive play, but removal from Grandmasters, clawing back the prizes he already earned, and banning him for a full year seems completely overboard to an extent that feels completely unwarranted and unfair.I won’t pretend to understand either the intricacies of the geopolitical situation in China and Hong Kong or the full extent of Blizzard’s business interests there, but to me this penalty feels like it is deeply rooted in both. The heavy-handedness of it feels like someone insisted that Blizzard make an example of Blitzchung, not only to discourage others from similar acts in the future but also to appease those upset by the outburst itself.That kind of appeasement is simply not something I can in good conscience be associated with. When I learned about the ruling, I reached out to Blizzard and informed them that I no longer feel comfortable casting the Grandmasters finals at BlizzCon. I will not be a smiling face on camera that tacitly endorses this decision. Unless something changes, I will have no involvement in Grandmasters moving forward.However, I want to make clear that not everyone involved in GM has this luxury. Do not take your anger out on the other casters, or streamers, or employees of Blizzard. This is not the kind of decision that comes from the rank and file. Most likely they’re just as angry as you are. I know I am.
모두 해석하긴 너무 길고 대충 요약하자면

1. 난 내 개인 SNS 계정에 정치적인 발언을 하는것을 서슴치 않는다. 내가 견지하는 시선에 불편할 누군가 때문에 침묵하는 것은 바람직하지 않다고 생각한다

2. 하지만 블리자드를 대표하는 공식석상에서는 정치적인 발언을 일절 하지 않으며 선수들도 하지 않는게 맞다고 생각한다. 이는 Blitzchung에게도 해당된다.

3. 그럼에도 불구하고 블리자드가 Blitzchung에게 내린 처벌은 과도하다고 생각한다. 개인적인 처벌을 넘어 하나의 본보기이자 누군가를 달래기 위한 처사라고 밖에 보여지지 않는다.

4. 이러한 행태에 가만히 있는 것은 내 양심이 허락하지 않으므로 블리자드에 그마 대회의 캐스터를 하는것이 불편하다는 의견을 피력했다. 나는 카메라 앞에서는 웃음기를 빼어 블쟈의 행보를 지지하고 있다는 일말의 여지도 주지 않을 것이다.

5. 마지막으로 블쟈 직원 모두가 나처럼 여유가 있는것이 아니다.이는 상부의 결정에 관한 것이며 직원들 대부분도 나처럼 화나 있을 것이니 이해해주기를 바란다.

+) 킬포: 1번에 관한건데-> 나는 '2016년 선거'라는 덱안에 종마리, 부패, 파멸등의 카드를 넣고 3년동안 삭제한적이 없다.


씨발 쓰고 보니 다 번역한거 같네.