What fun: watch creationist ideas get twisted into knots.
(Episode CCCXXII: Do we want to encourage this sort of thing?.)
Pharyngula
Evolution, development, and random biological ejaculations from a godless liberal
What fun: watch creationist ideas get twisted into knots.
(Episode CCCXXII: Do we want to encourage this sort of thing?.)
O,o
o,O
:(
–
Patricia:
Yay! Wonderful news, Patricia.
Patricia:
Awesome! I wish for the full recovery of your father :)
and TLC:
Sharp implements with cool animal designs on them?
OSSUM!
Happy to hear that, Patricia!
Just emerged from a long workday…off to read the last few hundred posts in this thread!
How are the Darkheart duckies coming along, Caine?
affghcblzrrty. What in the everlovin’ sweet fuckall does that have to do with gay rights?
We are being governed by ancephalics.
Niftyatheist:
Coming along, I’ve gotten more done on Bender’s Duckie, I’ll take another shot in a day or two. I haven’t gotten fuckall done today, it’s been a shoot day.
Thanks everyone! It was close, his kidney numbers were 7.4, that’s real close to failure. It’s been scary.
Free grog for everyone!
*whistles, confetti, champagne corks, grog soaked corn for the Pullet Patrol™*
Hurrah!
–
All I can figure is that she (and her husband) believe that the is somehow gayer than the various Peoples of Color. And that, denied the right to marry, the White Gay Men (but not the Brown ones, or the Black ones) will meekly marry women and make with the babbies.
–
*confetti* for Patricia and her dad!
Great news! I hope he continues to heal.
Patricia: *clenched tentacle*
Rey Fox:
A lot more dangerous probably than most of my field sites.
Cicely:
People who think like this scare me. Because they can’t actually think at all.
Patricia: More champagne and assorted happy occasion-associated things from A. R!
Totally threadrupt due to travel, but:
1. OH. MY. GAWD. Lynna, it’s completely unacceptable that you had a stroke. Honey, I am so, so sorry. Please let me know (you have my email) if there’s anything I can do and keep us posted on things as they come along? xxoo.
2. If anyone else has had tragedies or setbacks, I condole you (/Patsy Stone). No, for real. :)
Holy shit Lynna, sorry I missed your stroke news, so sorry!! I hope you are better, sending good thoughts your way. May you be as tough as an 84 year old! ;)
Yay Patricia! Great news! *looks around, finds no confetti, throws yarn instead*
Thanks everyone for the good wishes for my dad, the old atheist in a foxhole!
He gave the good Sisters of Providence quite a workout. Everyday he teased them about that poor guy nailed up on the wall (crucifix), from day one, “I think I feel like him” to last day , “I’m going to escape!” To their credit, they humoured him. (yes, I thanked the Sisters for that)
Patricia:
Woo hoo!
*looks around for confetti, finds none, flings a cat instead*
Duck, everybody!
{A. R sticks his head up to make sure the flying cat has landed}
scifi is going a bit concern trolly if anyone wants to tear into hir.
Krasnaya Koshka:
I know I did.
Caine, Sullivan was so beautiful. Of course, Siamese are beautiful cats: how could they not be? After all, they’re cats, have exquisite coloring, AND blue eyes. The first cat I ever got to know was a Siamese. She wasn’t mine, but I loved her anyway.
Thank you for sharing the Monster Dogs Being Silly Slideshow, the bee picture, and the rainbow slideshow. ♥ ♥ ♥
Cipher, *hugs*
Patricia, good news indeed.
I don’t understand the allegedly.
and the whole thing makes me stabby.
Thank you, Hekuni Cat. ♥. Yes, Siamese are serious special.
I have been wondering lately why I am still involved in the Boy Scouts of America, with its odious policies. Here’s the reason: if every single person like me resigns, there will be gay kids who will not have any sane adults around. There will also be no adults who will put a swift and harsh end to any gay bullying, which in my observation is a type of bullying which boys tend to get away with because the victims feel like they can’t go to the adults around them because (surprise!) the BSA has such hateful policies. And the atheist kids will not have anyone who can read the BSA’s Hooray for God policies and point out all the massive logic holes that make anyone who believes in the strong nuclear force a theist for the purposes of the BSA. Also, I enjoy the stuff I do with the BSA, think their educational materials, the overwhelming majority of which have nothing to do with either sex or theism, are fantastic, and know that this is a fight that we (those on the side of sanity and human rights) will win, even if the conservative trogledytes have determined that they will lose by inches as their nails dig into the cliff…
Tonight DaughterSpawn, the Other Mr. Mattir, and I were at a bluegrass bar eating dinner when the band that had been playing when we came in sat down at a table next to us. They had been quite good onstage, but then the band’s lead musician began using gay slurs to discuss a person he knew, in a very loud drunken voice. So we found the bar owner, told her about it, and suggested that she might not want to have a musician with a weekly performance slot to be using such language in her bar. She seemed to take it with appropriate concern. I think the guy was plastered drunk, but that only made it worse, since angry hateful drunks are really frightening.
I taught a spinning class this evening at which my student insisted that she wanted to learn the “right way to spin so she could spin like a princess in a Russian fairy tale.” I wasn’t really quite sure how to respond to that, except to think that wanting to be a fairy tale princess is a bad way to begin a craft.
That is great news, Patricia.
How to hoping that you soon have more time to spend here. You are missed.
*hugs*
Cipher, so sorry about your lost post! ARRGGGHH!
Josh! Hooray! I was wondering where you were – but just as I was about to ask last night, Dr Audley mentioned that you and she had just dined together. Hope your cold is better! (haha that sounded creepy, sorry – DR. A. Darkheart mentioned that you had a cold, honest!)
Dr. Audley, I’m glad to hear the morning sickness is over! Hip Hip Hooray!! I’m enjoying your posts about the Darkfetus’ development and your feelings – brings back memories! LOL I don’t know if you’d like a book recommendation besides Buddhism for mommies, but if you would like a decent, comprehensive, calm and sensible baby care book, I really liked Penelope Leach’s Your Baby and Child. Someone gave it to me when I was expecting my first baby (in 1987 lol) and I must say it was a great resource. I wasn’t much of a “by the book” mother, but since I had barely ever even held an infant before – and lived thousands of miles away from any family or close friends – it was a great thing to have.
*hugs* too.
And a serious request:
As you are aware, I have some intensely misogynistic wingmates at me school. Any suggestions for techniques of snark, or other means to hopefully improve the situation (probably won’t make much of a dent, i’ve been trying reason all year)?
thunk:
I recommend the five point palm exploding heart technique.
No, no, no. I kid. Just keep insisting that misogyny is misogyny, and not a bit of it is OK. And get lots of rest, cause that shit will make you tired.
AE: All right. Feels like bailing out the tide though. Some of them are seriously dabbling in PUA stuff *shakes head*.
Mattir,
Fuckin’ good reason, that.
(Kudos)
thunk,
Snark is an art, not a technique.
…
That said, the sneer* can be quite a potent weapon. :)
—
* It can even be subtle; a raised eyebrow (a la Spock) with a lightly-curled lip can work wonders.
(I speak from experience)
PS: o_O
John Morales:
If so, I have yet much to learn.
*How to body language?*
Thunk, start reading xkcd, it will be helpful on the snark front. Practice timing, delivery and tone. Droll to sharp sarcasm, as the situation suits. In the meantime, go with simple things, like simply stating that such an attitude/statement/whatever is stupid and sexist and you prefer intelligence.
Hit all those links I provided in the last incarnation, read up. The more you know, the heavier you can hit. Here’s some more reading:
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2010/10/boys_will_berevolting_misogyni.php
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2010/10/too_true_1.php
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2011/07/go_read_jennifer_ouellette_rig.php
http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2011/10/10/someone-took-the-red-pill/comment-page-1/#comments
Most of these are long threads (Red Pill, frinst., has 1,185 comments), but these are all excellent reading. You will not only learn a lot in general, you’ll learn excellent arguing techniques, good arguments and a metric fucktonne of effective snark.
Also, Thunk, start hanging out a bit at Manboobz. They cover a lot of PUA crap.
I’d just call them out on it every chance you get. I don’t know the specifics of your school, so care with the swearing etc. I don’t want you getting in trouble due to douchecanoes.
Snark is hard to master and unfortunetly, they make not be bright enough to understand saracism is being used to make fun of them.
It’s hard. I don’t have much useful advice. I try to do the same thing when I game online. Those communities are full of homophobia, racism and mysoginy. I’ve been reported, shunned, stalked and harrashed horribly over it. It’s tiring and I often stop playing due to it, but I can’t play a game and let it slide.
Just fight and take care of yourself so you don’t burn out. Care about your retorts. With this shit ingrained in us by society, I’ve caught myself saying some bad shit when I’ve gotten angry at them.
Cicely is the one who lost a post… But yes, still, hugs to her. Boo.
thunk,
Main thing, I think, is let yourself be honest.
(Very hard it is, to pretend with body language rather than with words)
—
As for words, consider the minimax* strategy (i.e. consider what the retort may be — at a minimum, if you can retort to yourself, then so can others).
—
* I’m being metaphorical, but I judge you will get my meaning.
(Which is rather a compliment)
*hugs* Janine.
Mattir – don’t quit those assholes, you are there for the kids that need you. I am going through the same dark patch at the veterans office that I volunteer at two days a week…why the fuck am I there??? the damned bible thumpers come in and poison the grief of the veterans and families with their Calvinistic screed, fuck them, I want to quit and stomp off, but if I do, what will happen to that one poor little widow, or veteran that needs help and sympathy without jezus? They won’t get help. They will get more guilt and grief. You hang in there, and I will too.
Thanks, everyone, for all the useful advice.
Caine: i do read Manboobz, and xkcd :) Both good.
People don’t really mind curse words at our school. It’s par for the course here.
JAL et al., the direct approach is something I use. I need to hone my arguments there; I’m easily frustrated.
I’ll mull over all this over the long weekend (I have 3 of those this month. Fancy that).
As for Mattir, nice to meet you, and good work staying within the Boy Scouts even though they have the dubious practices. They’s kids like me that were tangled in the nest of religion and homophobia, unlike me, and they need someone to lead them out of it. I appreciate that. *Have some cookies and hugs*.
#205 ibyea says:
Actually, most differential equations are, apparently, not soluble in closed form. Beginner calculus courses carefully refrain from exposing students to these, so they come away with the misapprehension that insoluble is the exception, when it’s actually the rule.
In particular, non-linear DEs are a bitch. Every once in a while some clever person manages to solve one of the ones of significance, but that’s a rare event.
I went to an excellent high school and a top notch university, but there’s an amazing amount of elementary math that I have only been exposed in the course of avocational reading as an adult. (Wait, scratch that: make it “as an old fogey”). Projective geometry and the hypergeometric function are two such areas of math, for example. Indeed, there’s an ancient Penguin on math that asserts that most of mathematics as we know it is really little more than the math of the hypergeometric function. Perhaps Andrew Wiles’ breathtaking proof of Fermat’s last theorem has changed this, as it tied together areas of mathematics theretofore thought to be unconnected.
ARGH! Thanks cipher – I think I just fixated on your new nym! Still here’s a (hug) if you’d like one!
Cicely, the hugs were meant for you, if that is OK. So frustrating to lose a day’s work like that!
Speaking of losing a day’s work, I worked most of today trying to rewrite the Wednesday bible study post I lost in that internet burp or whatever it was last Wednesday. Couldn’t look at it for a day or two because -UGHHHHH! – but I got to it this morning and the damn thing came together! If anyone is interested in my twisted take on Wednesday night Bible study here it is.
Caine, I love the bright green and blue on Benders duckie! :D That just looks so happy!
thunk,
Swearing, cursing, blaspheming and vulgarism are often conflated, to the detriment of precision.
(Such is the legacy of our religious societal norms)
Oh yes, I am with you there. When speaking to people in meatspace, I just get flustered, stutter and stumble, making me more frustrated. I have enough trouble telling people to knock it off online. I get frustrated and can’t even type a response.
So yeah, I’m in the same boat. I didn’t even start commenting here until I had been lurking for 3 years. It’s still a big struggle to express myself correctly.
If you find what works or any tips, I’d love to hear it. I could use it.
Props to you for fighting it and trying. It means a lot.
That is good advice. Please listen to that. I didn’t, and now I am having to climb out of a pit of exhaustion from being a chainsaw of atheism against my old fundamentalist faith.
Niftyatheist:
Thank you! Now, if I’m to resume stitching tomorrow, the spine & sciatic say “bed, now!” so off I go.
G’night all!
J_A_L, hugses, always.
Mr Mattir, I hear you on being conflicted re the BSA. On the one hand, one hopes to amke a difference from within the organization, but on the other hand, it is so hard to remain affiliated with an organization which has such overtly hateful policies. It sounds to me like you’re doing some good in the world as long as you are able to advocate for kids who need an ally in the BSA right now. Good luck – I am sure it is a difficult thing to navigate!
PZ, I note that the GAC promo is still in the right pane of the page.
Total squee moment over being quoted for something good by Patricia.
Yay. XD
I know that exhaustion well from personal experience. It fucking sucks. It also sucks when you can’t fight back in certain situations, like at my jobs (when I have one). That can totally wear a person down. It’s a balance thing. Hopefully, you find it soon to save yourself. We are always here for venting and support. This place is awesome for that. It’s nice to have a place where people understand and fight too.
Rodenberry went on record saying that if he could have gotten away with it he would have made Kirk and Spock lovers. IIRC one of either a draft or novelization of one of the movies even has someone ask Kirk if they’re an item.
Actually this higlights why I think MLP has it’s unexpected demographic. It’s stuff they couldn’t watch as children.
JustALurker – I’m having this meatspace problem too. We aren’t allowed to argue or question any clients opinion at the office. So I get to sit at my desk and hear Thumpers preach hellfire at the veterans & widows, and I can’t say a damned thing.
But the christians say THEY are discriminated against. Yeah, right.
{theophontes drives by at high speed. waves and lobs linky onto TET’s porch.}
Linky.
Sometimes I really hate this 500 comment thing.
I’m in catch-up mode with forgetting-to-refresh so I just spent 5 minutes doing “WTF? What happened?”
anyway
Caine #496
I ♥ your rainy pictures!
You have all that stuff flowering???
{{dig all those ORBS!!1!!}}
MLP: a toy-selling franchise.
Bah.
The title alone is stupid: friendship is not magic, it’s friendship.
(And now, watch as I pull a rabbit out of this hat — by friendship!)
True; it wasn’t around at the time now-adults were children.
(It’s also true that it is stuff children can watch as children)
—
Can you adduce a citation?
JAL – Oh my, I do save my best big bosomly hugs for Janine, but come sit by us and I’ll share a Walnetto with you if you can *twirl*.
Ing, forgive me for my ignorance, but did I read some time ago that you are planning a wedding? Is that the scary wedding you referred to earlier in this thread? Your own? If so, est wishes to you! When is the date?
Ooops! And BEST wishes too! lol
Hehe. I’d love too. I had to google what that was, I’d love to try it!
JM
Can’t find one, may be just porpogated apocrypha.
Also would you care for us to get off your lawn?
Yes scary wedding is my own. it’s on the 19ths and there’s still stuff to do and prepare
Seconded, and I think you are full of pullet shit, but I will say sorry if I/He is wrong. (Don’t think so.)
Thunk: Thanks. Were you lurking when I was showing the designs on my other tomahawk?
Anyways, regarding your other query, my advice is to be prepared for a pretty uphill battle. That PUA shit becomes popular among teenagers because pop culture tells them it’s ‘the’ way to get laid. Be prepared to have your manhood questioned, and to probably lose a few ‘friends’ (though rest assured they were most likely friends of the fair-weather sort), and so on.
Small potaters in the grand scheme of life, but it sucks hell when you’re actually going through it.
Perhaps also remember that you’re probably not alone even if it seems like it, that there are probably others who think like you do and are just as nervous about actually speaking up about it. Your time is precious, and probably better spent with people like that when and if you happen to come across them.
Ing is getting married?
(I should really try to do my EndlessThreading sober)
*biodegradableconfetti*
Where’s my invite?
May be mistaken, but this is the quote apparently in regards to Spock/Kirk
So I may be misreading that but what I got from that is that a romantic relationship between Spock/Kirk is not OOC in Roddenberry’s opinion, if social norms allow it.
Just-A-Lurker – Will you be at the FFRF Convention in Portland, Oregon in October? You could get a big bosomly hug there, well, if Janine doesn’t mind. *smirk*
I desperately want K/S to be official (not just because I ♥ my Spock, but because I have an ongoing friendly dispute going about it), but this is the closest thing I could find:
Roddenberry in Shatner’s biography
Aww, beaten to it. And I was so proud of myself too. *pout*
@Cipher
Yeah that’s it.
I misremembered, it’s not that he wanted to do it but couldn’t, it’s that he didn’t reject that interpretation.
Anyway the point was that Kirk isn’t exactly the role model RWAsshole there wants to assert.
Cipher beat me to it, too. But there’s an entire wiki page! A LONG one…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirk/Spock
@Pteryxx
Huh, apparently it might be considered the first example of slashfic.
Also here’s someone talking about the ST:TMP The Novelization passage a friend passed on to me
http://www.alternateuniverses.com/judygran/footnote.txt
Best I can do so late without actually tracking down the damn book. But it confirms the exchange existed in the novelization. Rumors of Spock/Kirk existed within Starfleet.
WHAAAT?! Ing is getting married on the 19th!
Gawd dammit how can knitters (or TATTERS!) be expected to get their needles & shuttles together on such short notice?!
That is 17 fucking days.
AAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGHHH!!!
Address, color scheme, are you pregnant? Your favorite fiber?
Ing:
By the power of Grayskull, I command thee to getoffa my lawn!
Ing,
Your point stands.
Phooey, Kirk was a horn doggy from day one.
@RFW
I was actually thinking of nonhomogenous second order linear equation when I thought that. Now that I know the process, it doesn’t seem that hard, but it is still super tedious. Also, I was thinking that in quantum mechanics, setting up Schordinger’s equation for harmonic oscillation gives out Hermite polynomials times some exponential function. Which I don’t know how they came up with that, but it looks complicated.
Good morning
Well, at least we slept better last night
kristinc
Unless your son had fitted a bowling ball into the helmet before he smashed it, I doubt it took damage. As John Morales said, the physical forces involved in a real acsllcident play in the grown-up ballpark.
Patricia
That’s good to hear.
Ah, I’d love too but I’m stuck in hellhole AZ for, well, it looks like forever. lol
JAL, angels in hell-holes?
(Should be an idiom!)
Re-reading the Red Pill thread was rather fun. Thanks.
How on earth did I manage to produce that?
Does anybody remember a commenter who goes by the “nym” of “…” (yes, three dots)?
I must have seriously hurt hir fee-fees, yet I have no clue who they are. My memory for names is bad enough…
This made me laugh, Audley. I don’t know if it’s the same in your neck of the woods, but over here pitbulls are strongly associated with violent, antisocial and disaffected, testosterone-driven and often seriously dangerous men, quite often with NDL sympathies, (well it’s not the pitbulls’ fault, obviously. Poor dogs. They also get used as penis-substitute-type weapons a lot). So the juxtaposition with The Complete Buddhism for Mothers looks quite … incongruous.
::starts cutting up confetti for Ing::
Giliell
By acsllcident? ::ducks and runs::
Opposablethumbs: That mindset always pisses me off. Dogs are capable of some pretty amazing things when treated properly. Pitbulls are no exception.
A friend of mine has an absolutely adorable pug X pitbull dog, a silly round-headed creature with a perpetual stupid grin on his face. No real desire to attack anything. Plays very well with other dogs too.
Ing getting married makes me feel ridic. self conscious about the fact that me and my girlfriend aren’t. It probably shouldn’t.
I don’t feel like looking for an MLP version of teletraan wiki, so here’s an older version.
http://tfwiki.net/wiki/To_sell_toys
We already know, we just don’t really care. You can’t be an adult and not know this. Faust agreed to work on it at least in part because she knew whether she did or didn’t, it would be made, and made to sell toys. She just wanted it to be good in spite of that (Which IMO is actually not really hard to do.)
…Yeah that’s a unique lesson. Fuck, when does outright violence ever work for Kirk? There is never a problem he or picard can over come with brute force; hence why Warf is one of science fiction’s biggest jobbers.
TLC
While that’s absolutely true, it’s also true that dogs were bred for certain traits. And some breeds were bred for agressiveness and biting power. That doesn’t make any individual dog of that breed dangerous, it sure means that those dogs shold only be kept by very experienced people and handeled with care.
Good morning everyone. I’m feeling marginally better (at about 80%.) I called in sick (had to use LWOP) and basically just sat around my apartment doing nothing in particular yesterday. It was a slight upgrade from “sit around work doing nothing in particular all day.” I think I’m feeling better because I had an opportunity to make jambalaya – no work means I can start on a dish that takes a couple hours to make and I’d be eating at a reasonable time. Now I have five days of leftover jambalaya.
Thanks to all who shared *hugs* and words of consolation. I love all you people (even those of you who sometimes bug me.)
Sigh. Sometimes, our mass media science reporting is so very dismal:
The release: JUICE is Europe’s next large science mission
The reporting: Mission hopes to find fish on Jupiter’s moons
Round the Epiphanes household, we use the similarly imprecise term, “potty language”‘ or more popularly “fucking potty language”. We also fastidiously excuse ourselves whenever we have belched and do not place our bare feet on the supper table. Frankly, I find these niceties confining, but the heir to the empire seems to think that “manners are nice”.
Also, the last thing I did before falling asleep was to read a comment by John Morales, and the first thing I did as soon as I could keep my eyes open this morning was read a comment by John Morales. When you do the math, this seems to be a more pregnant indicator of how little sleep I got than it says anything about J. Morales’ internet habits and presence.
Fuck this grading shit, knowumsayin?
Gotta pack lunch for the heir to the throne.
On this day in 1945, Cap Arcona carrying 5000 concentration camp prisoners was sunk.
SS Cap Arcona (1927) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Cap_Arcona_(1927)
Good Morning, All! I left abruptly last night – one of the niftyspawn is down with the flu. He will be fine (his brother had it over the weekend) but I hope he will be fine quickly! We leave for parts southerly tomorrow at noon for second niftydaughter’s college graduation!
Ing, I thought I had caught that news somewhere along the line a few weeks ago! Well, best wishes to you! It is an exciting time :) Ask everyone you can to take a lot of photos (and if you can have someone do a video, let them: everyone moans about wedding videos, but the truth is most people cannot remember a thing about the day and later would like to have had one). I wish you sunshine, light breezes and everything going off without a hitch!
Good Morning, Katherine Lorraine, I am happy to read that you are feeling better. And yay for several days worth of jambalaya! :D
Antiochus – “heir to the empire” LOL!
Nifty:
Yay! I’m a little worried that I was boring everyone to tears, but the whole pregnancy is just so weird to me, you know?
I will definitely look into that book, and I’m also thinking of ordering Let’s Panic About Babies! :D
Opposablethumbs:
Yup, here too. We have a problem with dog fighting rings. :(
However, my mom’s pitbull was a rescue when he was a puppy. He was from a severly overbred litter– at two years old he’s only 35 pounds and he’s already had three surgeries on his left hip. He’s just a happy, full of kisses, sweetheart. Poor little guy.
I was very amused that his opinion of the Buddhist parenting book seems to be in line with my own. XD
Crap, italics fail!
Also,
Ing:
Woo hoo! Congrats and just remember to breathe– the wedding planning will all be over soon.
Kat:
*hugs and coffee* Glad to hear you’re feeling a little bit better.
Ok Americans. Man Vs Food. Why?
Louis
And also, Kat. Good job on feeling better.
Louis
Audley: Your mother’s pitbull is an awesome literary critic.
Opposable Thumbs, pits have the same associations over here, but all the ones I’ve met have been very sweet and affectionate. I don’t know if you’re familiar with the very old TV show Our Gang (a/k/a Little Rascals), but the children’s mascot dog, “Petey,” was a pit.
Socialization is the key. If they were all put down, as some people insist they should be, thugs would just move to a different breed. Though Giliell is correct in that, due to its jaw power, a pitbull requires more-cautious and more-experienced handling.
Patricia, I’m glad your dad is doing better. And that the nuns had a sense of humor.
Caine, my apologies, but I had to.
(It’s based on, of course, this macro, which arachnophiles may not want to view.)
I think the “logic” goes like this:
Cicely, I don’t think they ever consider that some people of color are GLBT. Because, to privileged idiots, everybody is slotted into one group of “others.” Which is why you have morons like Chris Matthews positing that “women” and “blacks” are two separate groups, and assholes like to sneer about concepts like “disabled Polynesian lesbians of color.”
Ing, I really wish Roddenberry had actually said that. The screaming of homophobic, misogynist fanboys would have been heard for miles. Especially the ones who (according to an older acquaintance) used to police the distribution of slashfic at conventions, because it was “perverted,” then sputter when asked about men watching watching lesbian porn that it was “just different, OKAY?!”
And, yeah, Kirk/Spock was the pairing that gave “slashfic” its handle.
From the anti-MLP quote you provided:
Which, of course, denigrates womanhood/femininity by comparison. But that’s typical of wingnuts.
Congrats again on the wedding! Are you and the partner able to do any sort of honeymoon at this time?
Kitty, I’m glad you’re feeling better.
Someone sent me this Skeptical OB link last night. I’m browsing the comments and I see this, which I thought people here would appreciate:
I used to have the Star Trek: The Motion(less) Picture novelization, and remember the passage about Kirk/Spock somewhat well, though I can’t quote it verbatim.
There’s a footnote where Kirk muses on the rumors about himself and Spock being lovers, and says something to the effect of: he’d be pretty frustrated if he had a lover who only mates once every seven years.
It’s been interpreted as an attempt to stop all the K/S slash, but it didn’t even slow it down. (I believe the reasoning goes something like: Spock only has the *urge* to “mate”, i.e. reproduce, every 7 years. It doesn’t mean he can’t or won’t have plain old non-reproduce-y sex in the meantime.)
Not a slasher myself, though I do write fic and hang out with ficcers, and am familiar with the myriad ways they have to get around/ignore canon.
For fuck’s sake.
s/arachnophiles/arachnophobes
Also,
Oh, and *hugs* and conga rats all around to those who want/need/deserve them.
(Can I just say to the person who coined “conga rats”: whoever you are, I love you for that image?)
Louis 99: Food has been asking for it from day one, acting all delicious and shit.
Whatcha gonna do now, Food?
I’m sorry :(
It’s just a small insane thing with a friend MCing. *wrings hands*
Which I might point out didn’t actually DENY feelings, it just said that Kirk couldn’t handle a lower sex drive.
——————————————
On pits. I actually have been attacked by a pitbull but hold no ill will to the breed. They are big dogs and when big dogs snap it generates notice.
Food? You want me versus food? Man, I’ll have food for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack, and elevensies!
Audley:
I think pregnancy is weird to everyone – amazing, wonderful (if chosen) and all that, too – but it’s definitely kind of freaky! In fact, after Ogvorbis’s reference to the startling sights on his wife’s belly, I could not resist linking to this
Also here is a link to the book I mentioned. Seriously, if you do not want to panic, this is hte book. I loled to myself last night as I was htinking about having recommended it to you – realized that my 1987 pregnancy advice, to you, would be like someone’s 1962 pregnancy advice to me – hardly advice I thought would be valuable to me at the time! :D But honestly, I have the updated version (I may have grandbabies some day, you know! :D) and it is as excellent as ever – I used to be a health issues moderator on a multiple pregnancy board (so lots of issues) and Penelope Leach kept up and continues to be the greatest resource. Her writing is calm, reassuring that you are perfectly capable – and full of the practical advice you actually need for baby care! I had five (including preemie twins) and I can tell you, she thought of everything, but it is well-presented, enjoyable to read and simply very useful.
OK, I’ll stop now! I just realized that I am still SUCH a fan of that book! HAHA
Giliel, I missed your post about scarlet fever yesterday while i was up on mount Moriah considering the wonders of Yahweh’s love – I am glad you got some sleep last night. I hope the little one is doing much better soon! There are few things more anxiety-ridden than nights with a sick child! (Hug) offered.
Well, that’s gotta help, right? Glad you’re feeling better.
Because world sucks.
appropos of nothing:
Every time I enter data into my field project database, I have to re-convince Access that “AMKE” is not a typo for “make”. It is, in fact, the four-letter AOU abbreviation for “American kestrel”.*
* While I am enough of a bird geek to use these abbreves, I am not enough of a bird geek to capitalize species names.
Mattir,
As someone who was one of the gay not-quite-gender-appropriate shy awkward kids, thank you from the bottom of my heart for sticking it out with the BS.
I wish there had been an adult like you around when I was a kiddie.
In other news:
I made soup! I took random stuff I had in the back of my fridge/freezer, threw it in a pot together, and the end result is delicious. It has chicken, turkey, veggies, gnocci, and orzo in it.
Conga rats on the upcoming wedding, Ing. May you have every happiness.
Esteleth, can you pour a little of that soup into my USB for the niftyboy upstairs? Just mash up the chunky bits or just send broth – I hear its great for flu! Thanks!
Warning: possible rage trigger
“Mother Faces Decades In Prison For Scaring Off Abusive Husband With Gun” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/02/marissa-alexander-florida-stand-your-ground_n_1472647.html
Florida, the flaccid, unwashed Schlong of the North American continent.
Sure thing, nifty.
Let me dig my food processor out. Soup will be coming out of the USB in about 5 min.
Hope the niftyboy feels better soon.
P.S. I second Lies Down to Reason’s shout out to whomever (?) invented conga rats. That makes me smile every time I see someone post it. :D
Indeed.
Thanks!
I see that Natalie has blogged about this here, but I am so sad and angry over the CeCe McDonald case.
A transwoman of color was brutally attacked by a group of white men and defended herself.
One of her attackers died. He had a lengthy rap sheet for violence and a swastika tattoo.
Logically, she was charged with murder.
Due to a judge who ruled that the dead man’s criminal record was not relevant for admission in court and seemed unresponsive to her lawyer’s attempts to introduce evidence regarding what it means to be a trans person of color (like, just the statistics of the murder rate), she pled to a lesser charge.
So now she’s facing 3.5 years in a men’s prison, where she’ll doubtless be abused daily.
I am so horrified by this. Appalling.
Is there any chance at petitioning for a pardon?
Possibly, Ing. Not sure. This is Minnesota, so maybe.
I’m guessing, however, that probably the most that is actually achievable is getting her put in a women’s prison.
Apparently, policy in many states is that trans people get put in gen-pop until there is an “incident” and then they get put in solitary for their own protection. As if that’s a fix.
There is a campaign to send her nice letters (and such) while she’s in jail. Hold on, digging up the info on that.
Nifty,
Thanks! It’s very reassuring to me to have your recommendation, ‘cos I have no freaking clue what I’m doing here! :) I just need some good, solid advice and that book sounds like it will fit the bill.
On pitbulls:
I have no doubt that they are bred for aggressive traits, however, having known a lot of pits in my time, with the right training and socialization, they can definitely be “normal” happy dogs.
I would not recommend them to anyone who can’t devote almost all of their time to care and training, though. As my mom is finding out, they’re not an easy dog at all (even the sweet ones).
And in other news, I just fixed a leaky vacuum hose on one of the fleet vans. *flexs muscles!* I feel like I can do anything (but I’m going to sit here and eat a muffin).
Clicky for a blog all about her and her case, including info on what can be done.
Ing, congratulations!
@TLC #87
I know. I really hate it that there are a lot of stupid mean idiots deliberately training them to be as aggressive as possible. It’s people like that who give dogs a bad name – same for rottweilers, they can all be fantastic to live with if only people would treat them properly.
@ Audley #96, yup we have that shit with dogfighting rings going on a lot here too. Heartbreaking the way they treat them and the way the dogs end up. And all they get is a fine – I’d like to see deliberate animal cruelty for human “entertainment” treated a lot more seriously.
Second Dog (currently under my desk) is a rescue too (found abandoned on the street as a puppy, taken to rescue centre), and an absolute sweetheart (though we’ve never been able to completely get rid of a nervous streak)
@ Daisy Cutter and Giliell, yes pitbulls and similar often do better with an experienced handler. Got to give them plenty of consistency and know what you’re doing. I probably wouldn’t try to take one on, but a friend who runs that dog rescue centre has done brilliantly with all sorts including pitbulls and rotties (she’s fantastic with dogs).
@ niftyatheist # 95 second niftydaughter’s graduation? Yay and conga rats to her! That’s very cool indeed.
Glad Patricia’s dad is OK, but commiserations to both Giliell and niftyatheist with sick kids to deal with … oy.
I haven’t really been keeping track of TET lately, but did I read something about Ing getting married?
Congratulations Ing!!!
Esteleth, #117, that is horrifying!! WTF is wrong with society?!
Dr. Audley – “I feel like I can do anything (but I am going to sit ehre and eat a muffin). LOL!!!:D
hekuni cat, I saw mention of Siamese earlier – did you lose yours? If so, my sympathies. My mother had three Siamese cats (sisters and an elder) who “talked” to her all the time (not in a woo-ish way – they are very vocal I understand, and Mom’s really were!). The night my mother died, al three sat vigil outside the bedroom door. :( They were very shy, usually (well, Cleo was sociable, but Pasht and Ming were extremely nervous – you could visit for a week and never see them!), so this was very unusual and very indicative of the relationships we can have with our pets.
opposable thumbs, pitbulls frighten me – not because they are bad in themselves, but because they are often poorly raised and/or abused in our area in exactly the sort of fighting circles described above. :( Ugh. Those poor dogs. There seems to be a campaign to raise awareness – billboards have popped up around my area, for example – so hopefully, the problem will be easing and pitbulls will be left in peace to live healthy, stigma-free lives.
Also, thanks for the conga rats (lol) – she has gone forth and studied SCIENCY stuff! Graduates on Saturday with a degree in Physics! I am proud enough to burst my buttons – though what it all means, I cannot tell you since I had trouble even spelling physics there right now. ha
Niftyboy is up and eating! Must be Esteleth’s amazing soup! (plus two ibuprofens and a good long sleep).
nifty,
What is wrong with society is that it teaches that PoC, women, and those that transgress gender roles are subhuman.
CeCe, by being guilty of all three, had a target painted on her back. She was expected to die like an animal. How dare she fight back and assert her right to live?
yes. :’-( which makes me just repeat over and over in my head: WTF is WRONG with bloody, vicious society?!
IRT bicycle helmet damage, there’s this from the Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute: Bicycle Helmet Inspections
FSM almighty, do I hate Human Ape.
Daisy, I was nodding along with humanape until that last bit. WTF?
Ms Daisy #129…seconded. Yup dup, (pats Christie on the head) I’ll just tell you what you’re right about and what you’re wrong about – and I’ll be a smugly heartless smirking fucker about it too!
Only caught up till comment *calculates* 610.
Good Morning tea. With blackberry leaves and fennel among other stuff. Good. I’ll post the composition later. Unlike Happiness tea it needs to be sugared a little.
Yesterday evening I boiled out the bag of Happiness tea the fifth time. The resulting tea was ridiculously weak, but the taste of cocoa was still detectable! I used most of that tea to clean the honey glass, though, so it tasted of honey and little else. :-)
*new round of hugs for Kat*
Ah! I must get that episode from somewhere. :-)
Heh.
I like that.
You have to remember I think of this in four dimensions. There’s cladogenesis, and there’s anagenesis!
You have nothing to lose but your chains, or something.
Ecce homo,
qui-i e-est faba…
…what? :-)
(…No, I don’t ever sing along. I don’t sing alone either.)
I did, for I have drunk from the Pffft! of All Knowledge.
…erm. Sleep first, exercise later.
:-o Awesome!
I read textbooks in the breaks.
I was taught the derivation of, uh, derivation. It was so hard that I didn’t want to learn it at all and was perfectly happy to take the rules as a black box.
Starfire?
Stars brightly burning, boiling and churning, bode a returning season of doom.
Too bad I can’t listen to this before I get home.
It helps, thank you!
:-)
They don’t really scare privileged little me, but… yeah. They’re clearly not used to using their brain.
LOL!
FTW.
…How old was she?
That’s a surprise.
A what?
Linky.
That fits incredibly well.
BTW, over here, the lilacs are in full bloom. =8-)
:-o
:-O
*Jadehawk’s® Totally Biodegradable Confetti®*
*facepalm* X-)
Truly, the Pffft! of All Knowledge.
ROTFL! Subthread won!!!
It’s the Smurfette Principle.
See also The Chick.
Nah. Star Trek is quite clear that Vulcans lack all sexual urges when they’re not in pon farr.
Of course that doesn’t rule out the Platonic relationship alluded to above. Kirk is implied to get enough sex elsewhere, isn’t he?
Part 1 of 2.
Only caught up till comment *calculates* 610.
Good Morning tea. With blackberry leaves and fennel among other stuff. Good. I’ll post the composition later. Unlike Happiness tea it needs to be sugared a little.
Yesterday evening I boiled out the bag of Happiness tea the fifth time. The resulting tea was ridiculously weak, but the taste of cocoa was still detectable! I used most of that tea to clean the honey glass, though, so it tasted of honey and little else. :-)
*new round of hugs for Kat*
Ah! I must get that episode from somewhere. :-)
Heh.
I like that.
You have to remember I think of this in four dimensions. There’s cladogenesis, and there’s anagenesis!
You have nothing to lose but your chains, or something.
Ecce homo,
qui-i e-est faba…
…what? :-)
(…No, I don’t ever sing along. I don’t sing alone either.)
I did, for I have drunk from the Pffft! of All Knowledge.
…erm. Sleep first, exercise later.
:-o Awesome!
I read textbooks in the breaks.
I was taught the derivation of, uh, derivation. It was so hard that I didn’t want to learn it at all and was perfectly happy to take the rules as a black box.
Starfire?
Stars brightly burning, boiling and churning, bode a returning season of doom.
Too bad I can’t listen to this before I get home.
It helps, thank you!
Part 2 of 2.
:-)
They don’t really scare privileged little me, but… yeah. They’re clearly not used to using their brain.
LOL!
FTW.
…How old was she?
That’s a surprise.
A what?
Linky.
That fits incredibly well.
BTW, over here, the lilacs are in full bloom. =8-)
:-o
:-O
*Jadehawk’s® Totally Biodegradable Confetti®*
*facepalm* X-)
Truly, the Pffft! of All Knowledge.
ROTFL! Subthread won!!!
It’s the Smurfette Principle.
See also The Chick.
Nah. Star Trek is quite clear that Vulcans lack all sexual urges when they’re not in pon farr.
Of course that doesn’t rule out the Platonic relationship alluded to above. Kirk is implied to get enough sex elsewhere, isn’t he?
May I pick the horde’s brain for a moment? A while back someone made the point about Xian apologists making the claim that atheists must prove everything or know everything in order not to believe in gods – I have no idea who said it (probably several people over several posts) and no idea to search for such a vague idea. Anyone care to sum up this particular bit of vomitus for me in a quotable quote? I would really appreciate it – am trying to write a refutation of a campus ministry Effer who lays a version of that lie on some kids in an obscure video I found. I hate to give the jerk any views, but the video is so real – so much exactly what happens to these kids on campuses around the country (do you all know that CCC is a billion dollar
businessministry? Of course you do – I probably learned that here.Anyway, I am trying to write more about atheist youth. It is a nightmare out there in universities – even public universities. My first niftydotter went to a Jesuit university and had no proselytizing (the XIanists must have a reciprocal agreement – no horning in on each other’s territory, perhaps?) but 2nd niftydotter, at a public college, has been blasted from all sides for four fucking years. Even as a physics student(!).
Anyway, because I am not asscience literate as I would like to be – and that particular excrementalist “argument” for gods and creationism etc seems to be quasi-science based, I would appreciate being pointed in the right direction for a succinct quote.
nifty
Thanks for the good wishes. As expected, I took #1 to the pediatrician today, too. Fortunately we caught it very early (I mean, seriously who checks their child’s tongue every day?), so at the moment they’re only miserable about being confined to the home. And since I’m in good standing with our pediatrician I got the “can return to kindergarten on Monday” slip without having to present her again on Monday)
Congratulations to the niftydaughter and good wishes to the niftyson. How many little nifties are there?
Ing
One piece of unsolicited advice: If you want music during the ceremony, make sure that a competent friend is in charge of it. We handed our cd to the clerk who married us and she messed it up.
Got married to “Message in a Bottle” instead of “Fields of Gold”. I had a hard time not falling off the chair laughing.
beatrice
Read it and it’s such a fucking injustice. Hard to find words
Me as well, which made me double check since agreeing with that arsehole is not a comfortable feeling.
I know someone who was a funeral when a song by Gracie Fields(*) was to played. The song should have been “Sally”, but the one that got played was “Wish me luck as you wave me goodbye”.
The funeral had to put on hold for five minutes so people could stop laughing.
*. Grace Fields was a northern musical hall singer from the mid-C20th.
Please note that the religious apologists who use this will fall back to the god of their religion by default.
niftyatheist, the Siamese we were discussing was Caine’s. Although I have a great fondness for Siamese, I have never owned one. My present cat is a gorgeous Calico.
Siamese cats are beautiful!
I don’t have one. My cat is what is referred to as a “domestic shorthair,” which I’m gathering is the cat equivalent of “random mutt” for dogs.
Janine, I know! UGH! That is what I am trying to refute. I’d like to take down the entire lying sack of steaming mind-fucking that this proselytizer was laying on the kids in the video- maybe formulate some kind of “how to” post as in “how to recognize lying sacks of shit”. The jerk was bascially shaming the kids and telling them (in that oh so studied “friendly” and fake “hip” youth minister style, of course) that they are being arrogant and unskeptical etc if they do not believe in his god. You know thekind of BS, the “you just argued lahblah blah…and here is my trap…blahblahblah” because you know that a well-trained “youth minister” is fairly and honorably “debating” with vulnerable 18 year olds away from home for the first time!
>:-(
Hakuni cat – my mistake! thanks!
Esteleth, I agree about Siamese cats being gorgeous. :) We can’t have cats here because of allergies (not mine, lucky for me). My daughter has a gorgeous white and grey cat she got from a rescue center – my daughter is a fantasy writer and she named the kitten (now 4 years old) “Freya”. I feature her on my blog every Friday because “FreyaDay” (obvioiusly! :D)
Niftyatheist, just point out that the people who push that line of bullshit are not following their own advise.
niftyatheist, congratulations to niftydottir.
P.S> Oh typos, why do you plague me so?
obviously (obviously)
Hekuni cat – thanks! And thanks for showing me the correct spelling of dottir! :)
Janine – oh yes, I will do that. (grimly turns back to take-down post)
Lies down, I cannot decide which is worse: fic writers who ignore blatant WoG like “Vulcans only get horny once every 7 years” and “Elves are psychologically incapable of desiring anyone other than their spouse” or Mary Sue inserters.
OTOH, creators who say shit like “There are no gay people in the Star Wars universe” deserve to be ignored. Because seriously.
Aw, my very first blockquote fail! :-)
I never understood the Xander/Spike shippers.
nifty:
The notion that the lack of a scientific answer automatically means God wins is stupid. Lack of evidence for one proposition does not automatically mean a different proposition is true. Each must be supported independently and stand on its own. Even if we don’t have evidence for a science-based answer, a God-based answer is actually less justified.
You are not a true phyrangulite until you have blockquoted every single previous comment in the thread by mistake.
*spit-take*
Ah well, then there’s a Legolas/Treebeard that I found once. Title was something like “Pliant wood.”
Skrello everyone!
The JUICE mission makes me squee with Jovian delight! It’s a shame that NASA decided it not worthwhile to search for life on Europa.
And good wishes to everyone and their spawn :)
Esteleth, oh, that title. It is even worse than the Legolas/Treebeard hook up.
Thanks, Richard Austin – I’ve copied that! (and your nym, for credit).
Janine, would you like the cherry on top of the sundae?
Legolas was the bottom. And very uke about it, too.
Well, the majority of Mary Sues are from young or beginning writers who don’t realize that if fanfic readers wanted to read about original characters, they wouldn’t be reading fanfic. It’s a phase that many fic writers go through. If they’re any good, they’ll grow out of it.
Ignoring WoG, OTOH (hmm, alphabet soup, tasty) sometimes seems like a point of pride. They’re “stretching” or “reinterpreting” the canon. OK, they can do that. But the ones who *insist* that X and Y are *obviously* totes in love, and if you can’t see it, you’re either blind or homophobic… grrr.
Lucas actually said that?! WTF?
And of course Hitchens famous quote “extraordinary claims etc”
It’s the pernicious suggestion that an atheist is making absolute claims – the toadying tone (“Im just trying to have a friendly conversation here!”) and the smirking -“You have to know everything about the entire universe in order to deny my god” (you arrogant atheist you – or is that actually – I’m moving the goalposts for YOU, but they do not apply to MY god-belief) UGH! that is so annoying.
Important announcement.
Although the Senate just voted to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, Republicans in the House have hit back with their own version of the Bill, HR 4970, which would reduce protections for undocumented immigrants who are victims of domestic violence.
At the moment, VAWA provides multiple routes to legal immigration status for undocumented victims of domestic violence. Those who are abused by their US citizen or permanent resident spouse, intended spouse or parent can file a “VAWA self-petition”, which, if they meet certain requirements, allows them to apply for lawful permanent resident status (a green card) without the cooperation of their abuser. Alternatively, those undocumented people who are victims of certain serious crimes (including domestic violence), and have been “helpful” to authorities in investigating and prosecuting the crime, can apply for a “U visa”, which gives them temporary immigration status and the opportunity to apply for a green card after three years.
This bill will make it much harder to apply for immigration relief. Among other things, section 801 of the bill raises the standard of proof for VAWA self-petitions to “clear and convincing evidence” – meaning that victims who can’t produce sufficient documentary evidence of the abuse they’ve suffered will be denied relief. It requires petitioners to attend an in-person interview, and adjudications will be moved from the Vermont USCIS service center (where adjudicators are specially trained in domestic violence issues) to local USCIS offices around the country. And, most worryingly of all, section 801 of the bill also requires adjudicators to consider evidence submitted by the abuser – making it easier for the abuser to delay the process and hurt the victim.
Likewise, HR 4970 would roll back the U visa program. Under section 802 of the bill, victims won’t be eligible for a U visa unless the relevant crime is “actively” under investigation or being prosecuted – so where law enforcement authorities have decided to drop the charges, victims will have no protection. The bill would impose an arbitrary time limit on applications for U visas, requiring that the victim report the crime within 60 days of its occurrence – excluding victims from protection if, for instance, they delay reporting the crime because they are afraid of reprisals from their abusers. And the bill would also deprive U visa recipients of the opportunity to become lawful permanent residents.
This is a really bad bill. Please, please (a) pass this information along to other people, and (b) write to your member of Congress and ask them to oppose the amendments made by HR 4970, and to support the (much better) reauthorization bill passed by the Senate.
Esteleth, sounds like a tree version of tentacle porn.
*slowly backs away*
Something along those lines. I think it was in response to people asking for same-sex romantic options in one of the games.
Of course, I think he has backed down from this.
But I forgot who pisses me off more: real person fic writers. Who insist that they are absolutely right.
Any sufficiently detailed simulation of the Star Wars Universe will have actual gay people.
xD
Explanans:
*my defense of philosophy is often crushed by would-be allies*
*adds to bucket list*
Pretty much, yeah.
Of course, what bugged me the most about it at the time is that the fic describes Treebeard as being a willow tree.
*shakes head*
(Sorry to disrupt the thread – but this is really important.)
Walton, you know that you did not disrupt the thread. Do not apologize.
Yeah, RPF is where I draw the line. I put myself in the celebrity’s place too much to not be creeped out by it.
That does not count as an interruption, Walton! Thanks for spreading the word.
I’m glad to say that my rep has already signed on as being pissy about the very things you note.
LDtR:
Actually, if they have decided that X will male-impregnate Y, and Y will lay eggs and their lovechild will hatch from one of them, and then X and Y will use the yolk as lube for their next buttsecks session, nothing will stop them from writing them as such.
Esteleth, people will play with canon as they wish. It’s harmless. And, sometimes, it provides massive lolz. Such as this story. Start on page 2. Don’t be eating or drinking anything.
Myself:
And mpreg. Except for laughs.
Heh, I actually was composing my last post about mpreg when you posted that. Wow, this thread is moving quick. Wonder if I’ll be able to get anything done today?
Oh!
My!
Fucking!
Non-existent!
God!
Lol… i tend to disrupt threads all the time. Nobody talks about the things I do :p
Oh, mpreg.
*sighs deeply*
___
Oh, Walton! I’ll be in Boston on the 18th. Are you busy?
(That goes for others in Boston as well)
W
Does it count if I caught it before I hit ‘submit’?
=====
Walton:
Not a disruption.
As soon as I get home, I will fire off an email to my house representative. I expect nothing (this is the same one who wants to make my job and family stronger and more secure by eliminating my job) because this asshat got himself elected by forcing through a city ordinance which made it illegal to do any sort of business with any undocumented immigrant.
No idea what that stray ‘W’ is doing at the top of my last comment. Is anyone missing a ‘W’? What about you, Illiam? You need one?
A bunch of comments appeared for me belatedly. I wanted to echo the distaste for RPF. The exception would be historical fiction in which the characters and those who knew them would be dead by now. RPS is even worse. The people who write it should, at the very least, lock it down really hard.
Esteleth, Walton, etc.: I live near Boston. What time of day were you thinking of — evening meetup?
Yeah, the people who write RPF (especially RPS) seriously creep me out.
When the go so far as to send hate mail to the SOs of their chosen couple (this actually happens), they have crossed the line.
Esteleth:
I know, I’ve heard about that w/r/t Supernatural and other shows. Boundaries, some people lack them.
Janine:
Optimus Prime had DISNEYLAND IN HIS ASS!!
Thank you. And I’m sorry to hear your representative is a racist asshat.
Sadly, things are looking worse and worse for immigrants at the moment. It doesn’t look like the Supreme Court is going to strike down much, if any, of SB 1070 (though it’s impossible to tell at this stage). Nor does it look like Congress is going to pass immigration reform (even the DREAM Act, which is itself a very mild compromise measure) any time soon. Immigration enforcement has been ramped up, with the Obama administration deporting 400,000 people a year, and more and more people being arrested through the Secure Communities and 287(g) programs and put into ICE detention in shitty conditions. Congress apparently thinks that sexual abuse of detainees in ICE custody is no big deal. And now evn immigrant victims of domestic violence are being screwed over by idiot politicians.
Chigau:
Yes, can you believe it? It’s because we didn’t have winter. Even my peonies are up and they don’t usually surface until June.
Daisy:
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha! :falls over laughing:
Ing, just keep breathing. It will be okay. Don’t do what I did, and have a fit of uncontrollable laughter at a crucial point. It took me 20 mins to choke out “I do”. (And we eloped.)
Also, I should mention that “ComicsNix,” the dude who wrote that R2D2/Optimus story, is a total troll. But a harmless, hilarious troll.
Daisy, I’ll be leaving Boston relatively early in the evening, I’m afraid. 7 ish is when I head out. But I’ll be there most of the day.
Alternatively, I’ll also be there the weekend of the 16th of June. A co-worker heard that Boston is totally rad ans so we’re going. Plans include going to the aquarium and Legal Seafood. More fish-related stuff is a possibility.
meta:
Okay, if that’s an *actual* Xtian apologist tactic in common use, then I can see how the MLP ep “Feeling Pinkie Keen” could be shoehorned into service of it. That ep was just on TV here (thus refreshing my memory) and it represents the skeptic position as “I don’t believe anything I can’t explain” and “I don’t believe anything I can’t see with my own eyes”. Both of which are blatant misrepresentations – plenty of scientific theories rely on broad bodies of evidence that don’t need to be personally verified by every single individual; and evidence can and often does demonstrate a phenomenon exists and even that it’s predictive without any explanation for *how* it works. While the episode is about woo – specifically, Pinkie’s version of precognition – the lesson given is “having faith” and “choosing to believe”.
Walton, hello! and thanks. I’ll get right on that, after the 2nd cuppa tea.
I might be free on the 18th, but I’ll have to check (I’ve got a parent visiting around that time, but not sure of date of arrival).
What is this I don’t even
I have only read one fanfic (although it references some of the common tropes mentioned above), so I link to it here:
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5782108/1/Harry_Potter_and_the_Methods_of_Rationality
It is kinda uneven (especially at first), and drags a hella lot (85 chapters! And it’s still only Harry’s first year! And it’s still incomplete!), but I find it compelling nonetheless.
Say no more. Just to be sure not to forget I went straight on to http://www.house.gov/ found my representative’s page, filled out the contact form and gave him what for. I hope tons of people do this. I am a little bit hopeful because our representative (a Republican locally-claimed to be “moderate” – if there is even such a thing?) and yet also a guy who was endorsed by the tea party and THEN lost the primary to an even more right wing candidate – maybe just maybe, the guy will actually say Fuck it, I’m out anyway so I will be the moderate I’ve been credited with being and actually stand up for a principle for a change! Could I be hoping for too much?
Esteleth, I can actually meet at any time during the day on the 18th, as it turns out.
As for your June trip: Legal Seafood is a rip-off; so is Anthony’s Pier 4, in case someone recommends that to you. I just searched Yelp for “hidden gem” seafood restaurants in Boston; here’s a list. (The North End, I should mention, is home mainly to a lot of high-end Italian restaurants, so expect high prices there.)
Owlmirror, “HPatMoR” is a mixed bag. Clever, but I’ve always found it kind of smug.
Walton, I’ll drop my congresscritter an email, but I doubt it’ll do much good.
Walton, I’ve written to my representative.
pteryxx 187, I’m looking for support for the idiocy of the claim that atheists are claiming to know everything in the universe (or slightly differently – that in order to back atheist claims, atheists must first know everything in the universe).
However, if that episode of MLP actually can be shoehorned in, I would be thrilled to be able to use something unexpected. ‘Cause I’m cool like that ;-) (lol – that’s just me channeling the niftypersona, horde, ignore my foolishness). Seriously, though, it might be an idea which would help my thing speak to a few kids. I’ll go look that up, thanks
niftyatheist: Uh, I meant “Feeling Pinkie Keen” could get shoehorned into Xtian apologism, because it promotes uncritical faith (and makes skepticism look bad). That’s how it was mentioned originally – someone (Ing?) had been told this MLP ep was an argument for God, or some such. I wouldn’t use the episode for anything, unless you think you can draw the distinction between evidence for something existing without explanation, and *lack of evidence* for something existing in the first place. The episode muddles it.
If anyone’s interested in seeing for themselves, here it is:
youtube link: Feeling Pinkie Keen
Did anyone else watch Hawking’s Brave New World on SciChannel last night?
pteryxx, I just came back from youtube and nooooooo that won’t do for my post. lol
Rereading your post I see you accurately represented it (“choosing to believe” etc). That is exactly what I am hoping to offer advice on how to fight off. Ugh, did you see they even inserted “faith” into it several times? Leap of faith – yours faithfully. DIsappointing because I know this series has a big fan base. :(
pteryxx – haha I had gone to youtube already while you were posting and included that link! I watched the 8 min clip starting from when the hydra comes up out of the swamp just as Twilight is declaring s/he only believes things s/he can see.
BTW, I do see the appeal! Too bad the message (in this episode at least) was so toxic.
cicely! Thank you for posting a comment on my Barmy Bible Study – Abraham post! (gleefully spins around the kitchen) :D
Apparently al-Qaeda hates Fox News too?
Neat, Daisy!
I’m passing through Boston to go somewhere else on the 18th. One of the goals for the day is picking someone up at the airport. We talked, and we agreed that driving in Boston = bad, and she doesn’t have a lot of luggage, so she can get away from the airport on the t and meet me elsewhere. I figure that if I have to be in town anyway, and have time to kill (Logan and air delays being what they are) I may as well just plan to spend the day. But to get to our destination at a reasonable hour, we’re leaving (Alewife, which is where the Estelethmobile will be) by 7. So, let me know when you’re free, and there can be Stuff.™ I was planning on arriving noonish. So lunch or something similar will do.
As for the June trip, the co-worker wants to have seafood, specifically lobster (being from a place where there is no such thing). So non-ripoffs sound good to me.
Let me know if you’re free, Walton.
For added hilarity, go to google maps and ask for walking directions from The Shire to Mordor. It is Teh Funnie.
Yah nifty, you see – it’s good fodder for dissecting the fallacies, but not much else. FYI, Twilight’s a she – the Mane Six characters are all female.
Quite all right, nifty; I don’t mind sharing my hugses with Cipher.
:)
(Abraham and Isaac don’t look Middle Eastern at all. Surprize: I duzn’t haz it.)
–
Huh. The radio is going to tell me, sometime in the next ten minutes, how many people expect that the world is going to end in their lifetimes. This could be interesting.
Ah. Worldwide, 14%; USA, 22%. No citations.
–
Looks ‘nymable; “Patricia, Chainsaw of Atheism, OM”.
:D
–
Re theophones’ linky: That is not dead which can eternal lie on the front porch, smoldering in an eldritch fashion.
*wiggling fingers under chin in a way both squamous and rugose*
–
*hug* for Kitty. Glad that you’re feeling better, even if marginally. Now for that remaining 20%….
–
Context suggests that shod feet would be acceptible?
–
Not to be repeating yesterday’s mistake.
*copy/paste/submit*
A.R. Faux News can easily spin that in their favor. Trust the news network that al-Qaeda hates.
Janine: Yeah, they’ve already done that. A quick Googling reveals how fast they can do it.
Okay, Daisy, I made it through the Optimus Prime/Leia/R2D2 story without choking on my seltzer. But I haz a disappoint… clearly, Optimus should vibrate.
Audley, would you be interested in a Harry/Snape story? Snape is Harry’s sex slave (and loves it) and there is mpreg. Snape learns the joys of Babies Ever After™ and BDSM.
It is so bad that it was listed on TVTropes.
Almost affraid to ask: is this a new graphics format? I mean, has someone actually done the imaging for Snapes/Potter? Or video for it? Or am I missing something obvious?
haha! I wondered if that would slip under the radar for most people but you noticed right away! I have to force myself not to post snarky (asides) constantly when doing this stuff. Seriously, my desktop is littered with photos, links and books etc which are REAL things–totally unironic – and one could just point to it with a verbally “raised eyebrow” all day long. I just settled for pointing to one aspect of the epic failery by saying “Now that’s what I call love” because otherwise I would spend all day digging through the layers of incomprehensibly effed-up WTF of it all.
Oggie,
I am so, so sorry.
Mpreg is short for “male pregnancy.”
*buries head in hands*
And knowing is half the battle. >_>
Og – mpreg is male pregnancy.
E,
Depends. Does Harry vibrate?
(Seriously, I’m good on the slash fic.)
Harry does not vibrate, no.
He does abuse poor Snape most terribly.
And later he does get a vibrator.
Docs reveal Hitler farted, received sex injections, craved cocaine
niftyatheist: Hey, JT’s currently arguing evidence and reason with a couple of Xtians on his blog, to provide examples for the rest of us to use. This is a long post but he covers ways of evidence that aren’t intuitive, such as analyzing optical illusions.
http://freethoughtblogs.com/wwjtd/2012/05/03/7150/
From comments:
Esteleth, lunch is fine. What do you like to eat? Because, well, there’s just about everything, depending on what neighborhood you’re in. Only caveats are, I need to keep costs reasonable, and my foot is still mending (I’m in a walking cast now).
Audley, I’m impressed that you got through that story without inhaling your drink. As for your suggestion, perhaps you should leave “concrit” (constructive criticism) for the writer on FanFiction.net? ;D
Both of you: Topless Robot also has Harry/Draco scat stories, one involving a coffee enema.
I’m just sayin’.
Excellent, thanks pteryxx. WWJTD is one of the sites I’ll source.
Daisy, I’m pretty equal-opportunity when it comes to food. I’d also like to keep costs down, as the next few days will be expensive for me.
Hi Horde,
I’m sure you can help me out here. A friend asked me today for some good atheist rock/pop/modern songs. I was embarrassed that all that sprang to mind was
Jill Sobule’s “Letting Go of God” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJKCofjjoJI
the nicely blasphemous NOFX “Seeing Double at the Triple Rock” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9d9D_W1PbQc
and Tim Minchin’s stuff… any more suggestions gratefully received.
Agreed. So very wrong, in so manymanymany ways.
:( :( :( :( :(
–
Kirk is implied to get enough sex everyelsewhere.
McCoy to Kirk in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, after the apparent-and-sole-female prisoner lip-locks with Kirk: “What is it with you, anyway?”
–
Hail, Blockqyote! And Hail also Tpyos, xis co-equal Enabler.
–
nifty: “Just because humans didn’t used to understand where the thunder come from, doesn’t mean that the Greeks were right in assigning credit to Zeus.”
After all, the existence of thunder never was evidence for the existence of Zeus…or Thor…or Teshub…or dwarves playing nine-pins….
–
O,o
–
Threadrupt and out of time.
So, this happened yesterday: J.T. Ready, Neo-Nazi and One-Time Pal of Russell Pearce’s, is Shooter in Gilbert Massacre (w/Update)
An Arizona ‘militia’ border patrol asshole with apparent neo-Nazi ties shot four people, including a toddler, before offing himself.
Daisy,
XD
Really, I’m good. I don’t want to spend the rest of my day trolling fanfiction.net*.
*Okay, yes I do. But I shouldn’t do it.
Grumps, the alt.country singer Robbie Fulks has a song called “God Isn’t Real” — which is actually a parody of a Louvin Bros. song called “Satan is Real.” Here’s Fulks performing it live. I can’t view YouTube at work, but I’m guessing this is a fanvid set to the studio version. If not, it’s a cover.
The horror is, despite the cheesy presentation this is pretty spot-on about their theology:
Banned Mormon Cartoon http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0a3eJC3qAFU
Parody: U Can’t Touch Mormon Jesus http://youtu.be/46PXaJxzuDE
What Jehovah’s Witnesses Actually Believe http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzSwBsgHHXI&feature=related
Audley, once you’re done with fanfiction.net, you can head over to adulffanfiction.net, where the sexually graphic fic is stored.
o_O <– the only way to describe 90% of it.
mpreg is a trope some people like, wherein writers have male characters go through pregnancy and give birth. Personally I avoid it, as it ain’t my cup of tea, but I have flicked through a couple out of train-wreck fascination and sadly they don’t seem to come within parsecs of any realistic experience of pregnancy. Seems to me that (in a roundabout way) they’re actually very gender essentialist – inasmuch as they conform to tired old gender stereotypes, which is precisely what slash is an interesting vehicle for critiquing/exploring/analysing and avoiding.
adultfanfiction.net, even.
What opposablethumbs said.
Also, 90% of them get downright bizarre and/or disgusting when the time comes for the baby to born.
It seems to be about 50/50 between “the baby comes out the ass” and “a magic hole opens elsewhere.”
Brownian,
Fuck.
That is some messed up shit, especially since the FBI is involved and there’s, what?, explosives scattered around the property.
Jesus Christ. I don’t even know what to say.
<singing>
Your body is a Wonderland….
</singing>
–
No problem, nifty!
–
Well, crap. Just gonna change my handle now to Audley Darkheart, troller of fanfic.
I approve of that idea, Audley.
I tried
maybe trolling a bitgiving constructive criticism there for a short while. People don’t except constructive criticism very well.except -> accept
So much about commenting on other people’s grammar.
I even previewed.
Audley, are you familiar with AO3 aka Archive Of Our Own?
Except?
Sorry, I laughed.
I would have too.
Since I wrote it, I will just hang my head in shame.
This thread is getting a bit long, isn’t it?
Opposablethumbs,
No, I’m not.
*Sigh* How deep does this rabbit hole go?
@niftyatheist:
Looking at this, it occurred to me that the problem might be an old strawman depiction of atheism: claiming to know that God does not exist; gnostic atheism.
Emphasize that atheism is not absolute certainty that there is no God, but that there is no good reason, from evidence, to believe that there is a God.
The burden of proof is on those making the claim. They need to define God, and show the evidence that what they are defining exists. Without evidence of what they are claiming, there’s no good reason to believe it. You don’t have to know absolutely everything; just about reality as we can observe it. Are they trying to claim that God is hiding in a corner of the universe somewhere? Playing hide-and-seek, perhaps?
Tangential thought: You need to be a bit cautious about definitions, because you might run into a pantheist (the universe, and everything in it, is God). But if they don’t define God as a person; a personal God, then how are they different from an atheist (denying good reason to believe in a personal God)?
The rabbit hole is probably infinite. AO3 has an interface that won’t make your eyes bleed, though :)
Some good Shakespeare fic, if you hunt a bit!
Off to eat now, bisy bakson. ::waves::
So, having heard of the argument but not actually knowing what it was, I looked up Russell’s Teapot.
I laughed. Out loud.
My co-workers think I’m strange.
But my question is this: does the teapot contain tea?
It seems to be about 50/50 between “the baby comes out the ass” and “a magic hole opens elsewhere.”
I’m not an OB, but confronted with a 40-week pregnant cis-man, I’d probably go straight for the magic hole that 30% of women use to give birth known as a c-section.
Dianne,
“The attendant performs a c-section” is something that I have never seen in an mpreg fic.
Wait, I stand corrected. There was one where they were going to do one, until Gandalf (yes, Gandalf. It was LotR) stopped it and said that a magic hole was going to open.
Some have had, uh, creative answers to the “a cis man’s pelvis is the wrong shape to give birth” problem.
IIRC, the “Harry and Snape do BDSM” fic that I mentioned above solved the problem by having Snape use massive butt-plugs in the weeks leading up to the delivery.
Oh, and he was capable of walking.
This fan-fic thing is definitely in the top ten of weird discussions I’ve read on TET.
I don’t bother with fanfiction.net. When I want fic, I go either to an archive for the specific fandom I’m into, or look around LJ communities, or AO3.
Nutmeg, you are going to have to believe me when I tell you that we haven’t even scratched the surface of the sheer WTF-ery that exists in the fanfic world.
FF.N hasn’t been the same since they kicked out the NC-17 stuff.
And yes, I remember when that happened.
Some stuff that I wrote may or may not have gotten removed at that point.
*looks shifty*
What?
I believe you. I’m not brave enough to go looking for it myself, though.
@Esteleth:
Auuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh!!!!
Katherine, dare I ask what, specifically, you are responding to there?
Well, he’s a Magic Man.
–
Threadrupt (always)
Hooray for Patricia and Dad!
I started crafting because I wanted to be Laura Ingalls.
Just keep at it the best that you can. I was in some pretty brutal online battles with a couple I know regarding feminism. Less than 3 months after our last one, we were working together to stop anti-choice legislation. That’s not to say that they were blatant misogynists before. More misogyny apologists as long as the misogyny wasn’t “too bad.” They still hate Rebecca Watson to this day, but progress has been made. Although we may be starting out a bit more reasonable than your wingmates (not that I would’ve conceded that point back at Xmas—those two seriously drove me up the wall; but then I think that’s a reasonable reaction to the dude letting his friend call me an Amazonian cocksheath with a sandpaper vag on a thread entirely unrelated to me or anything I’d ever said, weeks after an argument that had ensued when I said maybe joking about kicking women in the ovaries as a way to end antivaxx was a bit sexist).
Congratulations, Ing! It’s y’all’s day. Have fun with it.
*rage*
Obligatory Cracked link on fanfic
Walton, thank you for sharing. My understanding is that this bill has multiple things wrong with it in addition to screwing over immigrants.
But don’t they still have some pretty explicit stuff under M rating? I thought most people just put their NC-17 fics under M now.
Wait, I stand corrected. There was one where they were going to do one, until Gandalf (yes, Gandalf. It was LotR) stopped it and said that a magic hole was going to open.
Well, given the apparent state of medical care in the LotR universe, hoping a magic hole will open might be a sensible solution.
So who was pregnant? Dare I hope it was Aragorn after Arwen decided she’d had enough of being the one always taking the pain and risk of childbirth?
Maybe, Beatrice. I haven’t been to ff.n for years. They didn’t use to have an M rating. They up and kicked out all the stuff rated NC-17, oh, *thinks* … *hangs head, mutters wtf I’m old* 12 years ago. If they’ve let mature stuff back in, it is news to me.
The benefit of ff.n deleting it is that the stuff I thought of as “sexy” when I was 13 is off the internet now. *grin*
Oh, no. This was mpreg.
Legolas was pregnant. I cannot remember who the, uh, father was, but I think it was either one of the twins or possibly Haldir. I do remember that Elrond was the birth attendant.
@Esteleth:
Your #248.
Katherine,
You mean you aren’t turned on by the idea of a pelvis-smashing buttplug?
This was mpreg.
Ah. Does mpreg imply a man getting pregnant by another man? Missed that. Two men making an embryo seems even more implausible than a man being pregnant. Where are the mitochondria supposed to come from if the embryo is formed of two sperm? The magic hole of birth just isn’t in it for implausibility.
@Esteleth:
Auuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh!!!!
Well, most mpreg authors do not go the seahorse route (i.e. the female laying eggs inside the male), so yes. Mpreg is usually male/male.
Most also don’t explain the biology at all.
I started crafting because I wanted to make stuff.
Actually I can’t remember starting crafting. I think I always did.
fanfic
Ah, I see that stuff hasn’t gotten any better. What really made me lose interest in the slash stuff was that the sex was always completely unmotivated and unreasoned.
And by that I don’t mean “oooh, but they didn’t love each other”, but really like “why are they suddenly fucking each other?”. It often was like:
*”Duh, we’Re in a cave and have to stay here for the night, duh”
-“Duh, yeah, everybody will think we had sex, duh”
*”Duh, right, means we have to fuck, duh.”
Usually while one of them was severely wounded and they were hiding from Orcs…
Speaking of fanfic, I’ve just received two pr0nzy fanart commissions.
And when I went to look at the one on Y-gallery, I came across (not bad) art of Romney “whipping up some santorum in Santorum”.
Really disgusting …
… it was taking place in the Oval Office. The thought of either guy residing there makes my stomach turn.
Nope. But the ones who do are usually the ones who can actually write.
It ain’t complete unless, after fucking, they realize they are in love and want to stay together forever.
Oh god, fanfiction. While there are good ones, checking random ones just made my brain want to melt. How can people suck that bad at writing?!
Someone has apparently written a Twilight fic based on Fifty Shades of Grey.
The fandom just divided by zero. Head shall begin exploding shortly.
Subject line in email from Ebay:
Me: “Huh? I’m pretty sure I can’t see the Automated Transfer Vehicle from the ground. And anyway, there isn’t supposed to go one up now, is there?
Now the conversations make sense.
Er.
Um.
Okay, then.
Does that explain why TJ Hooker always looked about six months pregnant? Or was that just because he, like me, tends to build up the old belly fat?
When the caterpillars show up, offer a smoke. If xe accepts, you are getting closer to the bottom.
No, it ends just past the caterpillar.
Considering where it is, the tea would be freeze-dried by now.
Has anyone kept track of the strangest sentences ever used on TET? This one may be the all time winner.
Sounds like someone has read too much Something Positive. I guess the Redneck trees are due for a comeback.
Ms. Cutter,
I love you, and I want you to lay your eggs in me.
Owlmirror #243 that is a good reminder about the strawmanning. Noted, thanks. Burden of proof also in there – I actually posted a video from someone far more succinct than I on that the other day, so it’s good timing)
Esteleth, Russell’s teapot (and his Why I am Not a Christian) was one of the earliest things that made me go “eureka! I can explain it!” as I was on my way out of pretending god-belief. I think, to answer your question – of course it contains tea. Constant Comment, in fact. What? You can’t PROVE it doesn’t!!
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/05/03/indonesian-atheist-jailed-after-posting-god-doesnt-exist-on-facebook-page/
Nifty, why would the teapot be filled with something as nasty as Constant Comment?
Don’t question what I know in my heart is true, Esteleth! And besides, it may seem nasty to you, but the pot works in mysterious ways – nasty is tasty, evil is good, death is life! You can’t prove I’m wrong, therefore, Constant Comment!
Esteleth:
Even worse. Freeze-dried Constant Comment.
Tea-cuppists will boil for eternity in the water we definetly don’t use to brew the celestial coffee!
And with that piece of theological love I say good night.
Well, duh!
We wouldn’t want and icky, icky girl to get involved, now, would we?
Srsly, I hate the misogyny present in some corners of the slash communities. It’s sad to see how much some women/girls hate their own sex.
But now I rather want to see some (magical?) woman impregnating a man. Hermione/Ron perhaps?
Well, it would be a pity if a completely solitary and inaccessible teapot was filled with something good.
I mean, just think of good tea going to waste being in a hypothetical philosophical counterexample. All that tea, undrinkable for pragmatic and empirical reasons. It would be terrible!
It would be better if it were undrinkable for flavor reasons as well.
======
Speaking of tea, is this the Happiness tea mentioned above?
http://www.todaywasfun.com/happiness.htm
I ask, because I see no ingredient list for the cocoa.
Shit.
I am sorry.
I just realized that my response to the idea of mpreg fan fiction was really sexist.
I’m out of here.
Sorry.
You’re just a hater, Ogvorbis! (boohoowah)
SPOILER:
“Jura Ab Zna Chefhrgu”, ol Fcvqre Ebovafba
(that looks almost squamous, rot13’ed)
Worse than slashfic: clopfic.
–o–
I’ve recently discovered RP-blogs on Tumblr, and dear Luna, how I wish I hadn’t. I get much too annoyed by what I consider bad characterisation – and no less annoyed with myself, that I judge characterisation by how it aligns with my ships.
Yeah. It would appear so.
I’m gonna self ban for a little while. I’m seriously concerned with, and angry at, myself right now.
Speaking of magical women.
By the power of Greyskull,what a coïncidence.
Ogvorbis, we’re all sexist and we all think and often say or react to things in a sexist manner. I do it often enough myself. What makes the difference is being aware and catching it.
Take a break if you need it, however, don’t go whipping yourself unnecessarily over this. It’s okay to be human, you know. ♥
So, no one else watched Hawking’s Brave New World, eh? Sadness.
In other not news, I believe it was Kemist who mentioned Globs to me. For the moment, Kemist, I hate you.
Og, what Caine said.
Also there is plenty of pretty good fanfic out there. Some of us even made our way to the geek community through fic. Some of it sucks a lot. Other stuff doesn’t. It’s not all everyone’s cuppa.
Ugh, bad timing – my remark was about your teasing post about freeze-dried tea, not the other thing. None of us can avoid everything occasionally leaking a bit of the social poison we’ve been marinated in all the time, though. :( Everyone slips and says something we realize was ?-ist later. The best we can do is catch ourselves quickly, like you did.
Holy thundering bag of mangled words! That sentence was a marvel of incoherence!
A link from the thread to the article Brownian posted: Guns & Ammo editor arrested in northern Arizona for second degree murder.
Opposable Thumbs:
The thing is, some people write slash to be subversive. For others, it’s just porn. And some of us like a certain level of cliché in our porn. What turns you on is not necessarily going to meet all anti-oppression standards. And, so long as you don’t act it out with the nonconsenting, this is perfectly okay.
Esteleth:
SO. TRUE.
I’ve read a story about Fox Mulder from The X-Files having sex with Alex Krycek… with Krycek having taken the form of a giant seal. As in family Phocidae.
Jules:
Fuck, if someone called ME that, I’d change my WordPress handle immediately.
Dianne:
I’ve never seen het mpreg. I’m sure it exists (Rule 34 and all), but mpreg is a subgenre of slashfic.
Esteleth: What, you’re expecting biological accuracy in slash?! The genre of self-lubricating buttholes?
Sili, uh, thanks for the offer, but my ovipositor isn’t what it used to be.
And, yeah, there is definitely misogyny in the slash world, just like everywhere else.
Og, what Caine and Muse said.
@sili
Before I click on that link, do I really want to know what a clopfic is?
Mister’s birthday is on the 18th. If he can take Thursday & Friday, I might get him home for a whole 5 days! Excitement.
ibyea: “clopfic” is My Little Pony-based fetish fanfic. Due to the noise one’s hoof supposedly makes when… well, y’know.
@Pteryxx
Oh no, it’s pony sex fics, isn’t it? O_o
Caine:
That would be awesome!
*looks around* Are we still talking about mpreg or can I share my new favorite time waster: The Worst Things For Sale?
Oggie,
*hugs* Hey, man, everyone slips up. But if you need a break, it’s all good. We’ll be here to argue with you about the calendar* when you get back. :)
While you’re relaxing, just stay away from the freeze-dried Constant Whatever tea. I hear it’s nasty.
*When I was trying to figure out how in the hell to spell “calendar”, a little niggling memory of a book that I read as a kid popped up. There was a character who was nurse named Calendar and the plot had something to do with the god Janus. Weird, huh?
Well, a book or a fever dream, at any rate.
ibyea:
I Watch It For The Plot
I think we’ve moved on from mpreg, Audley.
Oggie, what Caine and nifty have said. Don’t kick yourself too hard.
Audley:
Yes, it would be! I’m trying not to get my hopes up and am failing miserably. I’m getting him a galileoscope, it would be nice if he had time to play with it. :D
It might be …
“clop” is an onomatopoeia modelled on “fap”.
Oh for crap’s sake, people! Sometimes ignorance truly is bliss!
:p
Do’h I hate my mind. Using the Totally Scientific Law of Rule 34, I predict that a human/pony fic exists.
Caine:
Strangely enough, so is mine.
Og:
No need to beat yourself up over this; we all make mistakes.
Ms. Daisy Cutter:
I shudder to think of that.
ibeya, is that to say you would like links?
I don’t think that’s gonna make a “clop” sound, but I may be mistaken.
Bigot.
Sili:
Okay, then. Whatever floats your boat.
Thunk:
Cool. :) So, you’re going to be 16 in 15 days? I share my birthday with another Pharyngulite, Lynna. I think we’re the only birthday sharers.
By the way, on ways to deal with sexism and misogyny – when the subject comes up here, which it often does, tag after SallyStrange. You’d be hard to come by a better teacher when it comes to outstanding arguments and deadly snark.
Hmmmm.
This of course raises the question of just who has their hand up Colbert’s backside.
–o–
Lift’s my luggage, you mean.
I am not getting anywhere near the fanfic world because my brain would probably explode.
The student who wanted to spin like a princess in a Russian fairy tale was late 20s/early 30s. Old enough to know better – she seemed completely unfamiliar with the idea of fooling around with something until you figured out the muscle memory and feel of the task. I finally had to pull some actual commercial yarn off the shelf to get her to stop examining her yarn for small differences in thickness. I think this got her to grasp the idea of yarn irregularity as a feature, not a bug.
Today at work DaughterSpawn found a black rat snake in a nest of phoebe chicks that were a couple days away from fledging. Six of us stood around and watched the food web in action, and I got some fantastic pictures of the hapless snake, as it ate the second of the two chicks sideways, starting with a wing. This is not the recommended technique for snakes to eat birds, as it means a lot of writhing and contortion to get the bird down in the most impractical way possible. I will set up a flickr account to share the photos. (And what a good thing I remembered to bring my camera to work today – I’ve been working on making sure I do some photography every day, especially when I’m doing Official Park Naturalist Stuff™.
Sili:
Be that way. *Imagines sili carrying Lift on the train, rolling over some countryside*.
Also, thanks for the support about the Boy Scouts stuff. I feel so ambivalent about being involved in such an unjust organization, but then I think about how the etrolls are targeting CHILDREN with their hateful message, and I just don’t want to cede the floor to their bullying. It’s all come up again because of the change.org petition about the lesbian mom who was kicked out as a Cub Scout leader. I support her, but I also want to support that 14 year old kid who’s being reduced to tears because all the other kids are calling him gay, and I want to provide the kids with a different model of adulthood than they are getting from Crazy Catholic Neighbor and his fellow scout leaders.
Via BoingBoing: Compassion and understanding reduce school disciplinary suspensions by 85% over zero-tolerance.
http://boingboing.net/2012/05/03/tolerance-and-understanding-so.html
http://acestoohigh.com/2012/04/23/lincoln-high-school-in-walla-walla-wa-tries-new-approach-to-school-discipline-expulsions-drop-85/
Oh, fuck you, random apostrophe. Fuck you.
Gee, how incredibly amazing and surprising!
:near fatal eyeroll:
Following up on my post – this article on compassionate school discipline is much better than I expected, and full of stats and sources to back up the approach.
From my second link above. Again:
http://acestoohigh.com/2012/04/23/lincoln-high-school-in-walla-walla-wa-tries-new-approach-to-school-discipline-expulsions-drop-85/
Way back in the Before Times, I wrote fanfic, and I eventually stopped, well, because I ran out of ideas, but then I stopped reading it because of the all-consuming fanfic obsession with Shipping, of all varieties. Never mind trying to tell a compelling story of how such-and-such characters would handle such-and-such a situation, no, it was all about “so-and-so gets together with so-and-so and they make happy love babbies (metaphorically or literally)”. I wrote about ten fics in total, and while I took a liberty or two that I’m not proud of, I never once wrote a story dealing with any two characters getting together.
Also, the debate over canon vs. noncanon, where I eventually decided I fell on the canon side. Despite all the flowery sentiments about fanfic being somewhere where one can run wild and free with fictional universes, I think that staying within the fictional universe and writing something that one could actually imagine seeing on the TV (this was a TV show I wrote fanfic for) is more challenging, and more rewarding. Trying to beat the show’s writers at their own game, in other words. And if I may toot my own horn for a second, I actually did that – I wrote a fanfic that anticipated a future plotline on the show. I even wrote it in a three-act teleplay style (though I will probably never know if it would have played out in 22 minutes).
My favorite comment on that article (so far) is “tough love” is nothing more than “soft hate”. Speaking as someone whose parent was involved with the real, true, original ToughLove (TM) this is completely true; “tough love” is a way to passive-aggressively beat someone into the ground with a sweet smile.
Lift/random apostrophe/s three-way fic? Grammar/punctuation porn?
“Let me insert myself right here,” said ’ to the young and innocent simple verb. “You might be a bit tense, presently, but soon you’ll be feeling more… possessive.”
And of course, they’re introduced by a sleazy character named Greengrocer.
For David M and David Caruso:
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++++++++++++++++
niftyatheist @ 289, that is the worst timing I’ve ever seen here. I know it was by accident … Oggie! Come back, come back Oggie!
++++++++++++++++
Fucking sleep shaming!?
I do goddamn everything right and I’ve been an insomniac since I was old enough to remember.
Fuck you authors, seriously, fuck you.
Owlmirror, I want to have your ellipses.
The Sailor:
That’s not at all unusual, either. I’m hypnophobic and have been chronically sleep deprived most of my life. Probably one of the all time stupidest things I ever heard about not being able to sleep came from my grandmother. When I was around 11, after an hour and a half of laying in bed, I got up and said I couldn’t sleep. She sent me off to bed, telling me to pray, that would do the trick! Eeesh.
It’s not just kids, I see it in adults, and me.
But I’m much better now [/John Astin]
Caine, Patricia, Lynna, TLC, Katherine, Dr AZD, Oggie, et al, it’s kind of bothered me that I couldn’t participate more these these last few days. All I have has been spent in just keeping it together.
So, hi to the new folks! Hugs, tea and libations, your choice of course, at the Emporium on me.
Well then, hello there sailor.
The article also mentions that many kids with complex trauma (meaning, multiple traumatic issues) are being raised by adults with complex trauma issues of their own, hence the need for adults the kids can trust to help them learn emotional coping skills. Severe traumas in childhood tend to affect adulthood, producing health problems for instance – there’s a whole section of research on the correlations.
There’s also a bit on how to deal with kids whose stress response is freezing and withdrawal instead of rage… the ones usually labeled as “lazy”.
Audley:
It Pays To Enrich Your Word Power!™ Hey, I learned the word “turtlecest” the other day.
Owlmirror:
I always thought that “sentence splice” sounded kinky.
Also, if you’re playing with colons, be sure to use enough lube.
Sili, I’ve got sleep problems myself, but those recommendations aren’t entirely useless. If nothing else, the reminder to watch my caffeine intake is helpful. The “we” language, not so much. There are structural issues in society that hinder people’s ability to sleep well. In fact, the whole idea that an uninterrupted eight-hour stretch of sleep is “normal” is ahistorical and an artifact of capitalism.
Pteryxx:
Seriously, that is not a given. It’s a mistake to assume that’s always the case.
@mattir
It will be better for your mental health if you don’t get into fanfics. ^_^
Once, I found a blog that featured something called fanfiction Friday, in which the guy would read and tell the readers of the blog of the worst fanfiction out there. Let’s just say that after reading a post or two, I came to the conclusion that certain kinds of fanfiction should be forbidden knowledge.
No, it isn’t a given, but it is true many times – and many people don’t know that (or don’t care).
Pteryxx, that’s a great article, but I did want to mention this comment from a teacher and teacher’s union rep:
The Sailor:
I hear ya. I’m feeling particularly vicious today and I’m fast reaching the point it’s not safe (for others) for me to be on the ‘net.
Pteryxx, that article was fascinating and encouraging. Thanks for the link!
Ms. Daisy Cutter, of course they aren’t useless.
Now let’s talk about how to lose weight.
@owlmirror
Do not taunt rule 34. :)
Esteleth:
Gosh, I’m aware of that. I seriously cannot stand people making assumptions and generalisations which aren’t true, they don’t fucking help.
By the way, the people who “don’t know” and/or “don’t care” – they find a way to “not know” and “not care” no matter the situation or background.
Now that I have that out, I apologize for being a harsh asshole. I’m off the ‘net. Catch you all later.
Ms Daisy:
… Really, Daisy? Really?
Why do you hate me so?
Gah. Anyway.
*waves at the Sailor!*
Well, what choice do they have?
It’s not like there’re any female turtles out there.
Let us never talker of Venus de Milo.Would you prefer (more) interspecies pr0n?Audley, I’m just trying to broaden your horizons!
Sailor: Point taken. Though, to be fair, sleep is nowhere near as stigmatized as weight is, and — for people who do not have chronic issues, unlike us — sometimes the simple recommendations do work. Also, I did mention societal structures, which underlie both sleeping and eating patterns.
Sili:
Does hot turtle-on-shoe action count?
WARNING: there may be triggers.
.
.
.
.
Wow. IME, and I can come up with a few statistics; policing, heath care and prisons are where the worst abuses take place.
Outside of families, but that is a horse of a different color. You had no choice but to trust those people.
I’ve been beaten down by cops for witnessing a crime. I’ve had doctors and nurses torture me and refuse care. I’ve never been to prison, but we all know how that goes.
@Rey Fox,
You sound almost exactly like me, only in my case I consider myself still a fanfic writer, albeit one who’s slowed down a lot in the last couple of years. Mainly because I feel like I’ve said pretty much all I wanted to say about my favorite character, who is no longer on the show — which I still like but am no longer as “into” the current episodes since he left. (Oh, you might as well know. It’s Doctor Who, and said favorite character is the Tenth Doctor.)
The shipping culture in fanfic is indeed very pervasive. Practically the first question anyone asks is not “do you ship?” but “who do you ship?” I get it, shipping is fun, but I wish people didn’t treat it like the be-all, end-all of fic writing. *I* just want to explore the character(s) I love, as I see them on the show.
Exactly how I feel! And that’s how I write. I don’t get nearly as much attention as the shippers, but what audience I do have seems to really appreciate it, and it makes me happy to stick to canon, so screw anybody who thinks I’m some sort of “slave” to it.
Augh. Random storms spawning just south of me, always setting off the weather radio.
I think I’ve got a Pavlovian response to it now.
Daisy:
You know, when most people say that, they’re not talking about TMNT slashfic.
Huzzah! I get home from a crappy day at the office (more fundie clients, thanking gawd for the work WE do)and y’ll are talking interspecies porn. I love this place.
TMNT slashfic?
Bah.
How ’bout Great A’Tuin slashfic?
“When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro.”
I think we need ever-more exotic porn — bathmat/tea cozy; eggplant/rutabaga; vowel/consonant; kite/tree; cosine/tangent; interurban bus/trolley car — just to stretch people’s minds so far that they turn into multidimensional Klein bottles.
Ooooh, topological pr0n! Mœbius strip/knotted torus!
Also, kindly remember the corollary to rule 34.
Or rather, Möbius strip/knotted torus.
Oh, wait, that gives me more ideas — umlaut/ligature! HTML/XML!! Various code blocks of UTF-8 in a typographical orgy!!! Glyphs and serifs really getting into the whole close kerning thing!!!!
W00t!
That was some impressive gibberish, Owlmirror.
*bows*
@owlmirror
A tangent is made when a sine and a cosine love each other very much… ^_^
Crap, if only I’d been able to stop howling with laughter last year and gotten a photo of my Bulldog trying to hump one of the Australorps you lot could have seen some great pullet porn.
Rev BDC:
“Curvy gal pal”?? Who knew Us Weekly had a correspondent in the bunker, eh?
***
Walton:
I’m pretty sure my own rep (Joe Courtney) would be on the side of the angels in any case, but I know from talking to him about other issues that the number of calls and emails the office gets matters, so I fired off this:
“Joe:
I understand your colleagues across the aisle are trying to strip out protections for immigrant victims of abuse from the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act… another poison pill, it seems to me, similar to their attacks on women in the Student Loan bill. I know you’ll do the right thing, of course, but I wanted to add mine to the voices urging you to stand up to the Republicans and make sure we protect *all* women from violence and abuse! “
[Linky added here so you’ll get the reference: The pending doubling of Stafford Student Loan interest rates has been a point of emphasis for Courtney.]
***
Jules:
My first thought was the same as Daze’s: Sounds like an Unintended Badge of Honor® to me! ;^)
***
All:
I’m even threadruptier than usual, and I think I’ve missed a couple needed sets of congratulations on good medical news, along with a couple needed sets of hugs on sad animal news. I wish you all joy and/or consolation, as needed.
“Referring to a type of previously non-existent porn will cause online porn of that type to come into being retroactively.”
Excellent.
Personally I’m looking forward to some hawt portcullis plowin’. Oh, the anticipation!
>_>
Storms here again. Really hoping to avoid a power outage.
Ah, Owlmirror, not that corollary.
So… Anyone brave enough to check and see whether the porn suggested by owlmirror exists? ^_^
What, font porn?
Go ahead! Put the serif in!
SPONTANEOUS RULE34 CHALLENGE GOOOO
ibyea:
A search for bath mat/tea cozy lead me to a discussion of a Harry Potter slash fic.
I don’t even
Sounds about right, Audley.
I heard someone propose writing contact lens/eye porn.
closest I could find on a quick search:
http://mslk.com/reactions/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/MSLK_Uncomfortable_Typography.jpg
<_<
(if I weren't so thrashed, I rly ought to draw some, possibly with narration. yar.)
…and the storm has begun.
I may disappear if it gets bad.
@Audley
That’s why I consider fanfics forbidden knowledge. ^_^
Ogvorbis, what our Cast Of Thousands said/will say.
–
:D
–
[*hugs* The Sailor, and hands him a roll of Duck (sic) Tape—the better to keep “it” together, and any other “things” that may need containment.]
–
ibyea:
:D
On one hand, I’ve read just enough fanfic to know how bad a lot of it is, but on the other, it’s like a train wreck– I just can’t look away!
oldie but goodie:
youtube – 69: A Love Story
(continuing the kerning/font theme)
Not having much luck with Klein bottles, but they do look rather as if they’re making out with themselves.
http://i.ytimg.com/vi/REanBpPSViI/hqdefault.jpg
Ooooh, Patricia, Australorps! Those were what I had when I had hens, and what I will have again when I have them again.
(*checks last paragraph for sensemaking and decides the hell with it*)
Also I think I can do you one better on the weird-humpin’ front, because I used to have a large amorous male rabbit who would follow my poor girls around.
Caine:
I hope it works out.
Pteryxx, I have a pattern for knitting Klein bottles.
kristinc – Just hopped over to youtube, and bigger than shit there’s dogs and rabbits humping chickens. Rule 34 indeed!
I love the Aussie chickens (not that way)especially in the summer sun when they shimmer green on their black feathers.
Loooove… is a many-splendored thing…
Yep, just beautiful, prettiest chicken there is I think.
And I had a very small flock but my girls were uniformly friendly and docile. They would let my 3-year-old carry them, follow me around the yard like puppies, try to stick their heads in my plate or mug if I had a snack or a cup of coffee out there. In contrast the couple Americaunas I had weren’t mean, but definitely more standoffish.
Just saw the latest anti-Obama attack ad. I nearly exploded when I realized that there was no comment box under to TV for me to point out all of the stupid in the ad. ARGH!!!
Meh. What is this “fan fiction” you speak of? :p
*goes and stares at some more proposed road designations*
I. Hate. Stupid. Spineless. Democrats: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A03ljqx1zok&feature=BFa&list=UU1yBKRuGpC1tSM73A0ZjYjQ
A. R.
That would be useful, except that most people would either end up polluting TV with their idiocy, or making crude jokes.
thunk: You mean like YouTube comments?
heheheh… the internet’s just too much fun.
Here’s the best I could find for tree + kite:
http://www.storyboardtoys.com/gallery/TyroneLarge.jpg
It’s actually pretty neat.
There are also plenty of obscene trees out there, such as:
one example
kristinc – A beautiful, sweet, docile & child friendly breed you might also check out is the Buff Orpington. They are shimmering prairie schooners of gold. Gorgeous!
Miscellaneous hilarious images accumulated while searching for other things, just because.
Where is your god now
Better than a slide
One way to remember atomic numbers
Playing princess
Animated cartoon innuendo:
Glow-in-the-dark condoms
385: Yeah.
I hate watching rerun after rerun of Big Bang Theory, and then getting ONE flipping new episode from jebus knows what season. It makes fuckall sense. *snort*
I sometimes lapse into roadgeekery every now and then. Today is one of those times. Different playing field, it seems :P
HOT PROPOSITION ON COROLLARY ACTION
Saw Primus tonight. They gloriously sucked.
Patricia: my friend has Buffs, and loves them. Apparently, they’re laying machines. And they get along well with her family’s two small dogs, who are young and kind of excitable sometimes, but the hens are just not into any of the puppy drama at all.
speedcaughtup!
From now on, in addition to *baconchocolatehugs*, I intend to offer all who need it cicely brand “Duck!Tape” to help keep it together :) :) :)
(maybe “duckie tape”)
—
Caine
Granny’s prayer advice for sleep may have been sound.
Boredom often makes me sleep.
Chigau; I’ll use said Duck!tape in order to build the Corridor 副 freeway.
This will improve the transportation between… um… I don’t know? *sadly sips baconchocolate shake*
Ah, whatever, let’s build it anyway!
Yep, Buffs are great layers, and sweet!
I read that as “Buffs are great lawyers” and had a brief mental image of chickens in suits, carrying briefcases.
I think that’s a sign that it’s time for bed.
yeah.
everyone else seems to be asleep.
Sleep, sweet sleep.
I have mentioned my sleep trick of listening to an audiobook under my pillow. I use a cellphone to play MP3s, and find it helps a lot. (I’d like to try some soothing string music, but haven’t found enough yet. This is good, though http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-btbUVLv34&feature=plcp Tears In Heaven performed on a Chapman Stick)
Tonight’s advice concerns my other sleep-inducing trick, white noise. I use a box fan with a furnace filter on the back of it, not some fancy-dancy electronic gizmo. See, a fan stirs up the air in the room a bit, so it doesn’t feel dead and lifeless, and comes in handy for drying shoes and hats. The furnace filter slows the airflow, smooths out the sound, strains out the cat hair and keeps the fan clean.
A box fan is under $20, disposable furnace filters are $1 or so. I’m talking about the square fans that stand alone, about 20 inches by 20 inches, by 6 inches. You can put it in the window on nice nights, or aim it at yourself on hot nights–during the winter I keep it under the table, aimed at my shoes. (The filter size is obviously 20 by 20, and will practically hold itself to the fan–a few rubber bands might be needed.) Look in your local hardware store or department.
The sound keeps me from listening to every clink and peep and cat, but it doesn’t block out things I need to hear (dammit) at the speed setting I use.
(My sister does the same thing, and we’ve both been known to take our box fans on road trips for use in hotel rooms. (I suppose I could find some white-noise MP3s for my sleepy phone. (I shall Google that.)))
Humm…it’s cold enough here for the pellet stove to go on, and the ceiling fans drone away… good night sweethearts.
Or that maybe you have a subconsicous interest in chicken/lawyer fic…
======
Matilda pecked at her keyboard for a few moments. “Henrietta, Emma sent a message to tell you that you’ll be working with Garrison on the East Kansas Grange portfolio.”
Henrietta sighed internally. Good thing I just finished molting. I don’t think I could bear my feathers all in a mess while having to deal with that arrogant, egotistical, overbearing, strutting cock-of-the-walk…
Oh my god, I think I died last night and failed to notice.
The perso staring out of the mirror has eyeholes as black and sunken like your usual zombie, I swear the skin, the iris and the hair have the same colour.
Well, I guess that’s good if you want to convince your doc that you’re sick and need to be sent somewhere nice…
Pteryxx
Wow, you mean they’ve finally discovered that children are not only people but children, too?
But some comments on the comment:
First of all, it looks like that person didn’t read the article.
That’s certainly not what the approach is about. It’s about dealing with it differently. It is about giving kids a way to change and learn a different behaviour instead of creating maladjusted dropouts.
Yes, it really looks like the USA is doing great in dealing with their criminals. It looks like it really works in lowering the numbers of repeated offence.
Shit, how does he get from “understanding why the kid acts that way” to “victim blaming”?
Yes, you need to support teachers as well. They need ways and methods to deal with that stress, too. But this “oh, i wished it would work but being nice doesn’t work so just kick them out so I don’t have to see them anymore” makes me sick.
I’ve worked with teachers like that. they had the worst classes I’ve ever seen.
Happy Star Wars day! May the Fourth be with you, everyone!
Mr. Mattir,
This. I think it’s wonderful that at least a few kids will have someone like you to turn to.
Lies Down to Reason
seconded.
There’s plenty to love and hate about fanfic – it’s basically as broad a category as … well writing. I dislike that so much of it is so bad, of course – but one can always find and hang out in corners where the average quality is relatively high and simply never see/come across/be aware of the existence of bad stuff. I love the fact that it’s not for profit but for sharing, that so much of it is by women for women, that it’s a sort of re-emergence (maybe) of producer-consumer relationships that pre-date publishing (all producers are also consumers, many if not most consumers are also producers, there isn’t such an active/passive divide). I love that in a fandom where the characters canonically would have spoken Latin there are writers willing and able to write fanfic in Latin (be still my geeky heart). I love that some writers will explore moral ambiguities often glossed over in the canon material, or characters who just conveniently vanish in canon once their usefulness to the plot is over (such as Antonio, the ship’s captain who loves and sacrifices everything for Sebastian in Twelfth Night).
Owlmirror, it’s all about the Present Tense, Future Perfect ;-)
Go on, you know you want to ….
Oooh, Caine, I saw the Hawking Brave New World programme – they showed it here a while back, so I don’t remember it all but there was a lot that was very exciting. I love science and technology programmes that give you a sense of how people can be so passionate about their work – and that unlike in (most) films, this work often involves vast amounts of painstaking, meticulous drudgery (or what would be drudgery to many). Things like that programme keep reminding me how incredibly inventive and creative and smart humans can be (which I try to bear in mind when the short-sighted destructiveness is looming particularly large).
(⌐■_■)
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( •_•)
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I just liked this so much I wanted to repeat it again. I love it. And the acting is so much better than Caruso’s!
The Sailor, hope you are OK. Sounds like some stressful times there. A {{hug}} if I may and if you want one.
@opposablethumbs
Whenever moral ambiguity and fanfics cross my mind, I think of pokemon. ^_^
I haz an amazed
A quick look at google scholar indicates that the Herbal Stuff™ my doc told me to take might actually work.
I usually don’t understand that woman. She’s a kind and dedicated professional. She really cares and works with facts, data and the ton of background information only a small-town doc has. I’m in for the full Monty clinical check-up in 3 weeks but she usually digs every kind of woo that’s out there…
In local news: Vogue bans skinny, underage models
(Reaction to pushback, presumably)
Charlie Stross recently blogged about his most recent novel:
(Fair use extract intended)
For y’all’s information: Jen (of BlagHag) just liveblogged Abby Johnson’s (the anti-Planned Parenthood pro-liar) appearance at the UW last night. Pro-choice protesters were out in force to counter her misinformation, but also heckled her so much that the event was disrupted. One of the student organizers who invited Abby is in comments saying they just wanted to open a dialogue on campus, and in fact are looking to organize a pro-choice/pro-life debate.
http://freethoughtblogs.com/blaghag/2012/05/liveblogging-abby-johnsons-do-women-have-too-many-rights
And so it goes.
Introduced (to Australia) species sought to combat an introduced species that is problematic for the farming of an introduced species.
(Or: Silent pest devastates rural properties)
Audley – that site about the things for sale! I was entranced. And horrified.
thunk – the best I can think of, if you want to stand your ground but be somewhat low-key about it, would be when a friend says something sexist, reply with “Really? I like women, myself.” or something of the sort. Then when the friend sputters and says of course they like women, or whatever, just give them a raised eyebrow and a “Huh, didn’t sound like it.”
John,
I love Charles Stross. I’ll have to read Rule 34 next.
Carlie,
I know, right? Ridiculous. :)
NEW THREAD!