You can't really paint all furry's with the same brush. They're a subculture just like any other subculture and just like any other subculture, some people will take it too far. Generally though, it's a good thing and you can't just give random generalizations about something you don't really know anything about because a lot of them aren't just in it for the porn and fursuits. It's a live and active community on the internet just like this one and the only thing that seperates us from them is our interests. You can say the same exact things for Trekkies (as mentioned), Otaku, and even pre-internet subcultures like Goths and a million other subcultures and fandoms. The fact is they've all got their dark side.
SomethingAwful isn't exactly the best source of information for anything. They find the worst there is to find in every internet subculture and throw it out for all the world to see because, hell, it's funny. That's their job. I'm sure they could even feature these forums on their weekend web segment if they dug deep enough and looked hard enough to find stupid statements and make us look like idiots. You wonder why furries conceal themselves? Well when half of the internet is devoted to making them look bad you wouldn't want people to know you were one either. I don't go around telling people I'm a "trekkie" because of the invented stigma that goes along with that, you're naturally afraid someone is going to poke fun at you for it.
I've known several people, in real life and not just the internet, who consider themselves furries. The fact is they're normal people who like the art, community, and escapism that they're offered on the internet. Most of them were very creative and artistic and not fursuit-sex having weirdos like websites such as SA would like you to believe. So whatever floats your boat. Making fun of furries is just beating a dead horse. It was good shock humor at first when nobody knew what they were but now no one cares anymore, not even them.
