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script-a-world · 10 months

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Hi, I'm struggling to worldbuild a dystopia since I normally write fantasy. I'm not sure what to include in worldbuilding. Could you help me by suggesting what you'd include in dystopia worldbuilding or link me a dystopia worldbuilding template?

sorry for the awkward phrasing!

Utuabzu: The first, and perhaps most important thing to keep in mind is that both dystopia and utopia are literary devices for critiquing current society. The most successful dystopias had something to say about the culture they were written in. 1984 was written during a period of high censorship, in WWII Britain, and couldn't be published for several years after it was finished because it was considered potentially upsetting to the USSR, which was at the time an ally of the UK. The Hunger Games was written in the 2000s as a critique of the vast amount of reality tv shows and the pointlessness of the Iraq War.

The spray of frankly forgettable YA dystopia novels written in the late 2000s-early 2010s were forgettable because while they had the aesthetic of dystopia, they didn't really have anything to say about our current world. They weren't based on anything other than 'hey, wouldn't it be messed up if-', which just doesn't stick in your head like a dystopia that takes something in our current society and follows it to its logical, awful extreme. The Handmaid's Tale works because it takes the rise of Christian Fundamentalism and its inbuilt misogyny to the logical extreme, and given current events in the US that really resonates.

You also need to consider practicalities. People can live their lives in awful situations. In every dictatorship, no matter how oppressive or dysfunctional, people were still living their lives. Oppressive régimes collapse when the citizenry is no longer able to live their lives. Specifically, when the people upholding the régime are no longer able to get by day-to-day. Revolutions, to paraphrase Victor Hugo, ultimately, are always about bread. Ideals like freedom and justice and equality are just a nice bonus.

If you want your characters to be opposed to the system, you need to ask yourself why they're against it. People don't set themselves against an all-consuming society just for fun. Not really. They might play at being a rebel if there's little real consequence, but if there's serious consequences then most people will keep quiet until the system starts failing.

Common reasons for turning against the system could be falling through the cracks and seeing the hypocrisy of the ruling ideology, being the victim of the injustices of the system, having something to gain from the régime's fall. Or they could be part of an underclass that doesn't benefit from the system in any real way but is too beaten down to resist, in which case you need to ask what made this character's life under the system unbearable, when the rest of their group's life is terrible but bearable enough.

So, my checklist would be:

What is the dystopia critiquing? What does it want to say?

How does this work in practice? What do the people upholding the system gain from this? How is the system being upheld? Why are people putting up with this?

What are the system's flaws? What hypocrisies are in the underlying ideology? Why are most people not noticing them?

Why are characters against the system? What made them turn against it?

Is the dystopia going to collapse or endure? If it's going to fail, why and how? If it's going to endure, why and how?

Tex: To compare and contrast genres a bit, let’s look at J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle Earth series (1930s to 1960s, ish) and C.S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia (1940s to 1950s). These are major establishments for the modern interpretation of the fantasy genre, but also contained many dystopic elements as a part of their narrative.

Dystopia in Tolkien’s works was featured as the aftermath of terrible tragedy, and the people who lived in the times following it - the falling of great cities and civilizations brought a downfall of peace, economic stability, and certainty in the future. There are as many characters that lived in the times transitioning period that an apocalypse incurs as those who have never known the heights their world had reached in terms of prosperity.

Dystopia in Lewis’ works was used as a parallel - the main characters are children that came from a London in the middle of war and the accompanying poverty and existential fear, where the fantastical world of Narnia occupies a narrative place of distance that allows the characters to see a world equally as devastated but whose devastation occurred, comparatively, in the far past. The trauma that the characters have from living in a dystopia allows them the skills needed to navigate the fantasy world and bring about several critical plot points that allow the story to progress.

In a way, dystopia is the inverse of fantasy, where time is make-believe. The difference is that the past is perceived with different forms of wistfulness - in a fantasy it is romantic, in a dystopia it is tragic. Both are full of speculation and yearning for simpler times, but full of emotion of what could have been, and what could still be.

Because of this, there is no formula for a dystopia, as it is a genre built upon other genres that borrows others’ tropes and gives them a bit of a twist from a removed perspective.

#worldbuilding advice #dystopia #rainbowpitofdoom

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usafphantom2 · 11 months

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in 1985. SR 71 pilots and RSOs were not promoted to full Colonel because of the envy and jealousy of the Pentagon at this time. The following is written by famous author Jim Goodall. As a military historian and a published author, I understand how and why the Blackbirds were put to rest long before their time.

In 1985, General Jerry O’Malley was the Air Force Chief of Staff and strongly supported the Blackbird. It may be that he was the first Air Force pilot to fly the very first SR-71 Blackbird over enemy territory, that is, North Vietnam. General O’Malley loved the Blackbird and all the maintained, built, supported, and flew “Kelly’s Black Jet.”

On 20 APR 1985, the first Air Force officer to fly an operational mission in a SR-71 was killed in a plane crash that also killed his wife and two Other military officers.

His next in command was his Deputy Chief of Staff (AFCS), a General Larry Welch. General Welch did not have the same warm and fuzzy feelings that General O’Malley had toward the SR-71. The reason? Welch was turned down to fly the SR-71 when he was a major, he was not that good of a pilot, and that was a requirement to be considered for the prestigious position of being a crew member of the world's fastest operational aircraft.

The pain of losing out on flying the SR-71 was a bitter pill Welch had difficulty swallowing. His first order of business once he took over as an Air Force Chief of Staff was to do everything in his power to kill the program. He sent out a memo that stated, If anyone under his command said anything negative about the Blackbirds, he was fine with that. But, if anyone, from the lowly E-1 Airman Basic to the O-10 general level, would have to live with the repercussions to their careers.

So, pulling every string and favor he could, Welch effectively killed the Blackbirds. The Russians, the North Vietnamese, the Chinese, and the Israelis couldn’t shoot one down using their best pilots and a second-rate general, who wasn’t good enough to take control of a plane that moves through the air at 3,400 feet per second, or two miles every three-seconds took down the entire fleet. The last operational SR-71 flew on 09 March 1990, six months prior to Saddam invading his neighbor.

To make matters worse, during the beginning of Desert Shield, Air Force contacted the Skunk Works in early September and asked what it would take to have one SR-71A reactivated and operationally ready for the upcoming war in Iraq. It took Ben R. Rich, then President of the Lockheed Skunk Works, about ten days to have the answer.

Ben told Air Force, that he needed a gold-plated authorization letter to cut through all the red tape, a blank check, access to all sensors, Air Force support and electronics, then in storage, and his pick of both operational pilots and ground crew. Once the “Go” was given, he guaranteed the Blackbird would be fully operationally ready.

Air Force told Ben to hold that, though. About a month later, they got back to Ben. They asked what it would take to have a second SR-71 ready. Ben said he already had the answer, 30 days, start to operational readiness.

It’s now late October/early November 1990, finally after waiting over 70 days for a reply regarding when Lockheed could expect the ‘Go-a-head” for the reactivation of two SR-71s. He was told, and he said to me in a meeting I had with him after he retired. He was told that since the program was canceled by the total lack of support at the Air Force Chief of Staff’s office, reinstating the Blackbirds now would make the AFCS, that be Welch, look bad.

So much for waving Old Glory and petty back stabbing by this Jack*8% was why the program died.

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cadavagerr · 3 months

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You may have seen Anthony Boyle on your screens recently as Harry Crosby in Apple tvs 'Masters of the air' or as Kevin Maxwell in 'Tetris', but where have you probably seen him before?

Before he rose to fame in 2016, he was in an episode of 'Game of thrones' as a Bolton Guard in the episode 'The laws of gods and men'. But he doesnt stay for long as he gets his throat cut.

His rise to fame started in 2016 when he landed the role of Scorpius Malfoy in the play 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child' for which he was nominated for an Olivier and won. He went from a small local actor from Belfast to suddenly the main actor in a play that the world couldn't stop talking about. He spent three years running around in a blonde wig at the Palace theatre in London and the Lyric theatre in New York where the play is still shown to this day.

After this, he landed small roles such as David Donnely in 'Derry Girls', a comedy which is set in the town of Derry in Northern Ireland which is his home country. His friend, the writter of the show, approached him and asked him if he wanted to be in the show and he accepted, being in it for two episodes.

In 2018, he was cast as Jack Argyle in the BBC drama 'Ordeal by Innocence' which was written by Agatha Christie. A show about a family of adopted children who must work out who killed their mother, unfortunately, the blame is landed on Anthony Boyle's character.

In the same year, he played Liam Farrell in the drama series 'Come home' where he starred along side Christopher Eccleston. A mother unexpectedly abandons her husband and three children and they try to figure out what may have caused this.

In the year after, he played the role of Geoffrey Bache Smith in the biopic 'Tolkien' about the life of JRR Tolkien. Boyle plays one of thr actors closest friends through their time at school and during the war.

In 2020, he was in 'The plot against American' featuring Wynona Ryder. Based on the 2004 book by the same name, the story follows a Jewish working class family set in an alternate America where they watch popularist Charles Lindbergh, an aviator-hero and xenophobe, become President.

In 2021, he played Brian Wood in the true story of 'Danny Boy', a soldier who is accused of war crimes in Iraq.

2022 was a quiet year for Boyle as covid had stopped the production of most tv shows and movies but in 2023, Boyle starred along side Taron Egerton and Toby Jones as Kevin Maxwell in the biopic 'Tetris' which revolves around the game Tetris, its origins and how it became one of the most famous video games in history.

However, in 2024, Boyle seems to have won the lottery with four projects coming out this year already. The first, 'Masters of the air' where he plays an air sick navigator in world war two with Austin Butler. The series which is made by Apple tv is set to be released over two months from January 26th to March 15th.

And if you're not already sick of seeing his face, his new show (surprise surprise, on Apple tv) is set to release on March 15th. Boyle plays the famous actor John Wilkes Booth in 'Manhunt' who assasinated President Lincoln in 1865 and follows the days after this as the nation slides to a halt in the search for the actor.

He is then set to play Jack Barak in the Disney plus show 'Shardlake' which is set on the book by the same name. Set in the reign of King Henry VIII in the 16th century, Boyle plays former Cromwell henchman turned law clerk and investigator for the main character.

Boyle is also set to feature in the New York times best seller book adaptation say nothing which is about the struggles and troubkes in northern ireland which comes out this summer.

These are just some of the many tv shows, movies and theatre shows that Anthony Boyle has and will star in. When he was just starting out acting, he said that he would take any role that fit his description (white male with dark brown hair) meaning he was in alot of embarassing but funny stuff. One where he dresses up as a mummy for halloween and must escape a group of killer clowns, one where he plays a man who is inlove with a pillow and one where he plays a convict on the run in Northern Ireland and has to wear a dress and a wig to escape authorities. However, if you lived in Belfast in the late 2000s, you could probably see him lurking behind big Tescos with a plastic bag on his head.

It seems that Boyle is turning out to be a very promising actor with lots of work lined up. Infact, he is set to record a new show which is set in Scotland. He said on the British talk show 'Sunday Brunch' that he is looking forward to it and has to talk in a Scottish accent.

#anthony boyle #harry potter and the cursed child #masters of the air #shardlake #derry girls #scorpius malfoy

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mxdnxghtraven · 3 months

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Take Back What's Yours

When the rich wage war it's the poor who die

I've thought about this line a lot recently. I've had the song and story it tells stuck in my head from having it on loop. I listened to the album its from since I was a kid and I never stopped to think about and analyze it until it came on during a shower.

It stopped me in my tracks. Not just how accurate it is historically, but also how disturbingly accurate it is in today's society. Risk something, take back what's yours / Say something that you know they might attack you for

I doubt it what was intended when it was written/released (2007, so not that old, but definitely not released within the last couple years), but this feels like this generation's mantra. There are several human rights issues in front of us, many of which aren't even covered by the media and news. More often than not, we're censored. Take the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade for example. There was a Palestine demonstration that was never seen on TV, as they'd cut away from the parade for the express purpose of hiding its existence. Our president is openly pro-Israel, so of course it's not on TV. Genocides are happening in front of us and the only way many of us find out is TikTok and searching on our own because it means something to us. It's dystopian to sit there and use a filter or sound to raise funds for aid for affected countries but what else are we to do when voices are being censored for speaking out?

I dug into the meaning of the song further, and it's a large fuck you to the US government under the Bush administration, the Iraq war, the disparity between rich and poor, and is essentially a call to action for citizens. This song has aged well, considering the events and issues we are facing today with the Biden administration. This isn’t appeasing to any agenda. It's a song that explains that it’s bullshit that we were part of the war and we’re losing service members. Innocent people are dying, serving or not.

Raise your voice. Raise other people's voices. Hold that little red book with pride. I wanna see some fists pumping.

youtube

#writing #human rights #writeblr #social justice #activism #song analysis #hands held high #linkin park

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zahri-melitor · 8 months

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I then proceeded to look up Rick Flag on Wikipedia for further character history and uhhhhhh

After his death, Flag appeared in an issue of Captain Atom, where his soul was saved from an eternity in Purgatory and reunited with Karin in Paradise. His Purgatory self also appears in the Day of Judgement, limited series. Along with other Purgatory bound souls, he battles heavenly agents on the behalf of a still living superhero team. As stated in issue five of the series, his rebellious actions earned him another after-life chance.

All pretty normal so far, this is pretty standard shenanigans for a dead character during the 90s.

One Year Later in Checkmate (vol. 2) #6, Rick Flag is revealed to be alive and is rescued from a secret Quraci prison by the Bronze Tiger. He had been imprisoned there for four years until Amanda Waller discovered him and alerted the Tiger to his whereabouts. Rick was later revealed to be leading a clandestine Suicide Squad unit at the behest of Amanda Waller, and against the expressed mandate of the Checkmate organization.

…well timeline wise at least 4 years is consistent with other readings on the passage of time in DC. This is gonna be some Superboy Prime nonsense isn’t it? Also typical Waller move.

Bob Greenberger, who co-created the Suicide Squad alongside John Ostrander, has publicly objected to the resurrection of Rick Flag. According to Greg Rucka, Rick Flag's subsequent re-appearance had nothing to do with Infinite Crisis, and John Ostrander has stated that he knew how Rick Flag could survive the explosion at Jotunheim when he first wrote it.

NOT SUPERBOY PRIME????

Rucka. Rucka I love you but how did you and Ostrander figure out how to get Rick Flag out of standing immediately next to an atomic bomb as it went off?

As seen in Suicide Squad: Raise the Flag #2, Rustam used his Scimitar to teleport both Rick Flag and himself to Skartaris.

OH COME ONNNNNN

Though admittedly I can’t not laugh at the idea of escaping an old USSR bomb by travelling to Skartaris. Mariah Romanova would approve.

In Raise the Flag #5, General Wade Eiling admits that Rick Flag Jr. is not actually the son of Rick Flag Sr., but is a soldier named Anthony Miller who was brainwashed by Eiling into believing he was Flag's son.

*pinches nose* was this necessary?

Miller's conditioning means that Eiling still has control of him, and uses him as part of his takeover of the Suicide Squad. Forced to activate an explosive implant in Amanda Waller's brain, Miller breaks free from his mind control enough to activate Eiling's implant instead, leaving him helpless enough to be captured. Confronted with the possibility to give up his presumed identity and return home, Miller decides that the Suicide Squad needs a Rick Flag, and refuses the offer.

… comics, man. This is the most OH MY GOD COMICS thing I’ve read this week.

Why does this plot exist. Who thought teleporting out from a nuclear explosion into Skartaris was a good idea. How did Rick Flag end up BACK in that Quraci prison? Did he and Rustam share a classic Skartaris sword fight that ended up in Rustam’s favour?

According to Raza he [Rustam] was a US covert operative in Qurac who was apparently betrayed by the United States, a situation which led to the deaths of his entire family.

FFS!

All of these wild shenanigans are going on in comics written in 2007, might I add. You don’t even have the excuse over the start of the Iraq war - that was 2003, four years prior!!!

#z canon read throughs #what on earth #Rucka. Ostrander. What were you DOING HERE

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compacflt · 1 year

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Do you have any nonfiction that you would recommend if someone was interested in the US Navy/military?

im probably not the right person to ask this bc most of my military knowledge hyperfixation is centered on the ARMY in the American Revolutionary War & World War II. It’s only pretty recently that i got into modern warfare as a topic, so let me just give some indiscriminate recs

Can’t go wrong with David McCullough‘s 1776, which is a great overview of the first year of the revolutionary war + the extremely fraught politics of trying to start a new nation’s military—really illustrates where a bunch of lingering schools of thought in our military originated from.

Another David McCullough shout-out: his The Wright Brothers is an excellent book about the origins of flight, AND it was the book right next to the picture of Ice and Maverick shaking hands on Ice’s bookshelf in TGM. So we know ice has read that one. I think you can’t go wrong at all with any David McCullough. I own like 5-6 of his books and he hasn’t missed once. (His best is John Adams but that’s not mil related)

Ron chernows biography of Washington goes into his military background (7 years' war) a whole bunch, and kind of elucidates how truly fortunate we were to have our nation’s first leader be a military man who really kinda didn’t want to be there. Some really good takes on leadership. Just beware that chernow does have a reputation in the history community for just makin shit up sometimes. If it sounds too cute/quaint to be true, it really might be.

u may be tempted: DO NOT read Brian kilmeade's Thomas Jefferson & the Tripoli Pirates, one of the few navy NF books I've read. I read it b4 I even knew who kilmeade was--didn't matter. it fucking sucks. he uses like 7 sources in the whole book.

Stephen E. Ambrose's Citizen Soldiers is a great WWII NF book about that generation of infantrymen.

The one big Navy NF book I've read recently is (not to brag but my personally signed copy of) Craig symonds' new biography of admiral Chester Nimitz, who was COMPACFLT during WWII's war in the pacific. I got a SHIT ton of professional characterization for Ice from Nimitz' life and this book--Nimitz also worked 18 hour days, was also separated from the love of his life for long periods of time in Hawaii, was also probably acutely depressed, etc.

okay: THOMAS E. RICKS. The Generals is SUCH a good book. Army leadership from WWII up through Iraq and Afghanistan. Focusing on how the Army used to relieve (fire) commissioned officers who couldn't hack it, and that's a huge part of why we won WWII, but somewhere between WWII and Korea, being fired started being super shameful (macarthur's fault if I'm reading it correctly) so mediocre officers didn't get fired and that's why the army has suffered shit leadership in every war since WWII. It's a HUGE thesis that he backs up so well. Would so recommend. I'm also currently reading his FIASCO about the fuck-up of Iraq. Also incredible so far.

Michael O'Hanlon's Military History for the Modern Strategist-- a post Civil War survey of military strategy on the campaign/operational level. Might be a good introduction to US military history, just giving a pretty broad overview of post-CW warfare, so that way you don't pick up a random book about the Korean War and go "wait what was the Chosin campaign again?" Interestingly written and I got to meet him and he wrote "wishing you the best" in my book after I told him I wanted to steal his job at Brookings someday, so admittedly I'm biased.

Lawrence Wright's The Terror Years: From Al-Qaeda to the Islamic State is not strictly military related, but it is one of the best-written and most illuminating nonfiction books I've ever read and I cannot recommend it enough.

For war fiction, my taste is v mainstream: Pat Barker's Regeneration trilogy, Tim O'Brien's Going After Cacciato (imo better than the things they carried), Ahmed Saadawi's Frankenstein in Baghdad, Kevin Powers' The Yellow Birds, Cannot Miss Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front if you haven't read it, Hassan Blasim's The Corpse Exhibition: And Other Stories of Iraq... For specifically Naval lit: Run Silent, Run Deep is a pretty good classic, and this summer I read the 600-page behemoth The Caine Mutiny, which is about specifically WWII-era naval law... it's a brick. But it won a pulitzer and it's...passable. Kind of interesting at least.

#really can't recommend Lawrence wright Thomas ricks or David McCullough enough. just really well written stuff #otherwise I just read mil/defense news and google everything I don't know #pat barker >>>> regeneration isn't like... gay... but it is definitely gay. I think 2/3 books of the trilogy start out with soldiers fuckin #not top gun #military history #general aviation #book rec #i have no real life marketable skills but i do read a lot 👍

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blackswaneuroparedux · 1 year

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كن التغير الذي تريد أن تراه في العالم. *

- Mahatma Gandhi

Be the change you want to see in the world.*

As an irate and highly Western educated Qatari business friend of mine put it she is so looking forward to watching the World Cup in the USA in 2026 then she can return the favour and moralise to white liberal Americans about their societal shortcomings.

As she put it since Americans love to moralise to the world it’s only fair to point out their sins: from genocide of its Indian natives to the evil of the slave trade as well as the killing 60 million babies in their mother’s wombs to the mutilating and cutting off body parts of little children just so they can delude themselves into believing that can be a boy or a girl (terms they can’t even define) based not on biology but feelings, and to their hatred and active break up of the nuclear family unit as the foundation of society.

Or that Obama authorised more strikes in his first year than Bush carried out during his entire presidency. A total of 563 strikes, largely by drones, targeted Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen during Obama’s two terms, compared to 57 strikes under Bush. Civilians killed in those countries resulted in the deaths of over 3797 people, including 542 civilians. Black Lives Matter but not so much non-American Muslim women and children slaughtered. Let’s not even talk about the history of American wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

And so on and so on.

But she won’t because she has manners and she understands she is a guest in a foreign country and has to respect its laws and customs, even those one might strongly disagree with.

As much as I could take issue with her arguments, and as much as I dislike the authoritarian nature of Qatar, it is a sovereign Islamic state like any other Islamic country in the Middle East and the other Muslim majority states in the world. Having said that it’s not in the same league as truly oppressive states like Putin’s Russia or Xi’s China. If it was then there would be no large Western and and even greater non-Western presence of people here (greater than the Qataris themselves), living and working quite happily for years.

As for labour abuse there is a case to answer for but it’s no different than any other country where labour are often screwed. All the contracts for buildings are done by Western and Chinese companies and they are meant to enforce strong labour laws - but inevitably they find ways around it or are too slow to do so. The Qataris are guilty for not cracking down on the abuse by these companies of labour laws it passed after intense outside pressure (and rightly so). Many of working migrants - mostly from India - have housing and food paid for them and they earn far more than they would back in their home countries. Of course there are documented cases of migrant labour abuse but not on the industrial scale that some Western media outlets are falsely reporting.

If you go to any stadium here in Qatar, you will inevitably hear a lot of people speaking in Hindi - which I speak too from my childhood in India. That’s because the Indian presence at this World Cup is very strong. The hyped up labour abuse of migrant workers hasn’t stopped Indians coming out to enjoy the World Cup. In fact, statistics published by the Qatar establishment show that Indians constitute 9% of the fans who have come for the World Cup. Saudi Arabia, which has a land border with Qatar, accounts for 11% and sits at the top. India is in the second position, and surprisingly followed by the US who make up 7% of visitors.

For the droves of visiting Americans here they are truly shocked how futuristic, slick, and modern Qatar is in contrast to the urban decaying of their cities. The standard of living is higher than anything they are used to. They are also overwhelmed by the sincere and friendly hospitality of Arab people here.

The hand wringing and sheer nonsense written in some parts of the Western media about Qatar is embarrassingly untrue. It’s a caricature of the truth in the same way Qataris have a caricatured impression of the West only just obsessed with sex and alcohol. One is confronted here at the World Cup of genuine footballing fans from England, Wales, the US, and other European countries apologising to their Qatari hosts for the misinformed - sometimes bordering on outright racism - press articles on life in Qatar.

You can drink here - just not at the stadiums itself. Previous World Cups have done the same and no one kicked up a fuss. Most fans have said it made for a better and cosier atmopshere for opposing fans and for families especially. Opposing fans mingle freely and have a good laugh together in a safe and well run World Cup. There are well catered fan zones. Plenty of beer is on tap here in the bars and hotels, though it will set you back around £14 a pint.

You can have sex with whomever you want - just don’t do it in public. Laws are not targeted specifically to gays but equally to hetrosexuals e.g. no public displays of affection like kissing or holding hands. Whatever you decide to do in your hotel room is up to you.

In truth everyone looks the other way.

Is the World Cup corrupt. Of course it is. Every World Cup has been. FIFA has been shown to be corrupt from almost its inception. Qataris are not immune to corruption but as many Qataris have said to me the Qataris just learned everything from the West. They observed carefully how we do business in the West. Money and power talks. This is how the game is played.

But I will say this in FIFA’s defence that over the last twenty years, FIFA has demonstrated a commitment to open its product up to a wider audience and take its premier sporting contest, the World Cup, to new heartlands. 

The USA saw the benefit of this initiative in 1994, before Japan and South Korea became both the first Asian nations and the first co-hosts for the historic competition in 2002. In 2010, the World Cup arrived at a fifth continent (Africa) and a new heartland was reached with the contest being taken to South Africa. In 2022, after a return to Brazil and a sojourn to Russia, the Islamic Middle East now becomes the next bright destination for the Modiale bandwagon, as Qatar benefits from the truly global game.

The Middle East region is among the fastest growing areas for football in the world and promises to be an endless stream of young, passionate football fans for years to come. And with football one hopes social progress follows. But if it happens it will be on their terms, and not ours.

#gandhi #quote #social change #society #qatar #qatar world cup #lusail trail #femme #arabic #football #wordl cup 2022 #islam #muslim #politics

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afieldinengland · 1 month

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You literally inspired me to start paying attention to New Labour. And I'm just out of curiosity wondering what touched you the most about them? You know, like a quote, concept, or something else.

multiple reasons, i think, friend— i’ll try and explain them here as much as i’m able

-> part of it was trying to work out the historical facts and impact of events that happened immediately before i was born, and how they’ve influenced the context in which i now live— on a uk-centric, social level (the repeal of section 28, the death of diana, the dawn of the millennium) and on a geopolitical scale (9/11, the ‘special relationship’, the iraq war). it’s not just so i get the nicher jokes on old episodes of mock the week, but it’s partly that

-> another part of it was just an interest in what it was like to live under a labour government. i was alive during blair’s second term, his third election win and brown’s tenure, but i was between the ages of zero and seven, so i don’t necessarily remember it— all i’ve really known has been the coalition + the subsequent decade of tory destruction and decay. the 1997 landslide fascinates me because political change like that in my lifetime feels a little alien

-> i am, of course, fascinated by spin. new labour brought with it media management on a scale that people hadn’t seen before— everything from tearing down the red flag for the red rose in the late 1980s to establishing the control-freakery of the grid, the line, the haranguing of journalists when they were actually in government. and how, in the end, the obsession mutated from ‘creating the truth’ to ‘sexing it up’

-> i am, in the words of ollie reeder, obsessed with how things play in the media. reading between the lines of an effective piece of pr is as fun to a nerd like me as poring over one that is clearly a shambles. and i’m also fascinated by situations in which a spin doctor can’t spin so easily, e.g. an inquiry

-> the way in which it was mutually symptomatic of its time also intrigues me. the pop-cultural landscape of late 1990s / early 00s britain was so influenced by positive + negative comment on new labour, and new labour was influenced by pop culture in return. ‘cool britannia’ was lame, but it says something that the government was so compelled by those on the stage. i’m also interested in how it existed in the dawn of the information age, and how it responded to the thing that would eventually make that era of ‘spin’ impossible— the internet

-> i do, on a literal level, think that the relationships between the four men at the heart of new labour are fascinating. i don’t know if another political party in this country has had a comparably volatile and odd and passionate cocktail of personalities at its heart. the interpersonal drama of betrayal and succession compels me as much as anything else. it’s all a tale as old as time. no wonder so many songs got written

-> and the media response to said relationships is of note to me. not just the extremes, like whatever leo abse was doing, but the headlines + the image that ran in the press every day. the monikers of ‘prince of darkness’, ‘poodle’, etc, the not-quite-implications of homoeroticism, and the either snide or weird way of conducting interviews that only the british press could do. the not inconsiderable amount of time they spent trying to work out if they should hate peter mandelson. the odd relationship they had with this government so focused on presentation…. it’s great

#answered #thank you friend!! it’s a very multifaceted interest for me #new labour

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communistkenobi · 2 years

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Hey Nick, I was wondering if you had any reading recommendations for ppl looking to get more into political/leftist theory? Ik you've posted a lot about The Authoritarian Personality and I agree with your insights and posts abt it and I'm considering picking that up! But I also wanted to know if you have any other recs besides that? Anyways, thanks so much, and give Muffin a pet for me! :^)

I would recommend reading historical non fiction written from leftist perspectives. I often find that to be A) a more approachable start if you’re not super familiar/comfortable with the more dense and abstract theoretical texts, and B) very instructive in what the actual value of leftist political thought is, how it’s been built and shaped throughout history, and the core contradictions that exist within class relationships. Reading about the Haitian Revolution is a great start, either Black Jacobins or Avengers of the New World (I’ve only read the latter but I’ve heard Black Jacobins is the better of the two so I recommend that one, Avengers was a bit dry). Cesaire’s Discourse on Colonialism essay is also fantastic, I find him to be very insightful (and funny) without speaking in the more dry academic tones you’d find in a lot of other theory. + I think it’s foundational in describing what colonialism “is”, not just as a historical process but as a historical force itself

I would also recommend David Harvey’s work, he’s a very influential marxist geographer and has written a lot about how neoliberalism is expressed in the built environment/urban contexts (+ I think neoliberalism is one of those concepts that’s extremely valuable to understand because it’s the dominant expression of capitalism, and knowing exactly what it is and what it does will be very useful in helping you understand a lot of what’s happening today economically). He also wrote what I believe is a fairly famous book called A Companion to Marx’s Capital, though I haven’t read that one. Everything I’ve read of Marx’s work has been fairly impenetrable, so (echoing advice I hear often) I would recommend secondary sources that either commentate or criticise his stuff. Which is extremely easy to find because everyone is responding to Marx lol

OH also Transgender Marxism is a self explanatory collection of essays on the topic of transness and marxism. I’ve read a couple of the essays in there that I’ve been impressed with, particularly Seizing the Means: Towards a Trans Epistemology and ‘Why Are We Like This?’: The Primacy of Transsexuality.

I can provide you the list of books I’ve bought and intend to read after I’m finished The Authoritarian Personality but haven’t gotten around to yet. A lot of the stuff ive read are journal articles / books that are written specifically to be taught in universities so they aren’t necessarily good to recommend because they can be hard to find/expensive/annoying to read. Although if you do want some recommendations in that vein I’d be happy to share a list + any PDFs I have on hand

Anyway this is what I want to read after I’m finished auth personality:

A People’s History of the United States (I almost always see this on “so you want to start reading leftist theory” lists)

The Jakarta Method (a book about the United State’s anti communist foreign policy during the Cold War. I hear the subject matter is pretty horrifying but very illuminating)

Are Prisons Obsolete? By Angela Davis

I also listen to podcasts about theory by other grad students but idk if that’s what you’re looking for. If you are I recommend Liv Agar and What’s Left of Philosophy. Obviously this has a lower bar on quality and fact checking but I find them enjoyable. Also if you’re into podcasts Blowback is really good (covers the Iraq War and Cuban Revolution).

Sorry this is a bit scatterbrained but I hope that helps lmao. If that’s not helpful I can take a look at some of the shit I have downloaded on my computer. Mutuals can also chime in if they have book/essay recommendations

#asks #book club

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sci-fiworlds · 1 year

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Battlestar Galactica - Sci-Fi and the Terror Wars

Very sadly Stuart Miller's Alien Worlds magazine "will not be published again." Although short lived, I really enjoyed my time working with Stuart and am very proud to say I wrote for AW. In a field largely trapped in the 1990s (if not the 1950s), it was fresh, young and innovative, not afraid to seek new answers to old questions or even ask new ones. Perhaps the best evidence of this is the fact that Stuart was prepared to take a gamble and give new writers like me the chance to show what they can do. For those who don't know, I wrote a sci-fi/TV related column called Sci-Fi Worlds, my first piece was on Doctor Who and is available in issue 4 of Alien Worlds. Anyway, before I got the sad news about the magazine I had already written a second piece on Battlestar Galactica so I thought it might be a good idea to publish it here at BoA instead. Hopefully you'll find it thought provoking, even if you disagree with some of my views.

Unlike the new series of Doctor Who, the resurrected Battlestar Galactica is not a continuation of the classic story but rather a total re-imagining of it. Like its counterpart, the new series begins with 12 colonies of humanity getting savagely attacked and ruthlessly wiped out by the Cylons. A relentless and calculating race of war machines that appear hell-bent on the complete annihilation of all mankind. The Cylons' holocaust leaves only a handful of survivors. A ragtag fugitive fleet, 41, 402 people desperately trying to escape their cybernetic hunters and clinging to the hope of finding the legendary 13th colony called Earth.

But other than this shared back story, the two series have surprisingly very little in common. This is a good thing, because the original descended into little more than a childish action adventure, especially when compared to the more serious, adult drama and post 9/11 allegory which is the new series.

Perhaps the most interesting and, by far, the most disturbing parallel with 9/11, however, is how the survivors behave in the wake of the tragedy. Of course, just as in the wake of 9/11 in the real world, we witness incredible courage, as well as a stubborn determination to continue in the face of terrible adversity. But, we also sadly see how fear, fueled with a legitimate need for revenge, can bring out the worst in people, changing victims into criminals, the terrorized into terrorists, and moving society closer to the evil it is meant to be opposed.

Interestingly, the post-9/11 parallels are completely turned on their head in the third season. In the miniseries, as well as season one and two, the Cylons are clearly meant to represent Al Quada and fundamentalist Islam, whereas the humans clearly parallel America. However, in the shadow of the Anglo-American invasion and occupation of Iraq, these roles seem to have been somewhat reversed during season three. The bad guy Cylons become the invading westerners and the humans take the place of the Iraqi insurgency.

Much of season three takes place on what the colonials name "New Caprica": a cold, remote and hostile world that most humans decide to settle on after abandoning their vain search for Earth. However, they are eventually found and, strongly echoing real world events in Iraq, invaded and occupied by the Cylons one year later.

Moreover, strongly paralleling the Iraqi Police Service created in the immediate aftermath of the 2003 invasion, the Cylons establish the New Caprica Police: a group of human volunteers who work for the Cylon authority to establish law and order within the settlement. The NCP are considered nothing more than Cylon collaborators and traitors by the resistance who, again like their counterparts in Iraq, even go to the extremes of using suicide bombers in their campaign against the Cylons.

Another interesting parallel with Iraq, of course, is the role religion plays in the conflict on New Caprica. The Cylons worship what they call the "one true God," whereas the colonials have many different gods. This is perhaps a loud echo of the religious differences between a predominantly Christian America and Muslim Iraq.

It should be stressed that in earlier seasons the monotheist Cylons were obviously meant to conjure up images of Osama bin Laden and radical Islam. However, during their brutal occupation they more immediately brought to mind another band of dangerous religious fundamentalists... George Bush and the Christian Evangelical right that supported his mad crusade in the Middle East. Like the Cylons (or even bin Laden) they used God to justify their immoral war.

Similarly, many people sadly supported the 2003 invasion because they were beguiled into believing our troops were fighting to free Iraq from an evil dictator before he could develop weapons of mass destruction and threaten, paradoxically, international peace. Disastrously though much like the Cylons, far from peace all we've done is throw Iraq dangerously close to civil war and terrorized the Iraqi people.

Five years on from its relaunch, the writers of the re-imagined Galactica have to be congratulated. It would have been easy to write a more simplistic series with, like the original, everything presented in distinct black and white terms of good vs evil and no shades of grey. Instead, they created a highly compelling post 9/11 allegory, a mirror for our troubled times that shows the Terror Wars, warts and all. Hopefully, the rest of the series and the planed spin-off Caprica will be equally brave and thought provoking.

READ RICHARD THOMAS'S SCI-FI WORLDS COLUMN FOR BINNALL OF AMERICA

#battlestar galactica

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lgbtqiamuslimpedia · 7 months

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Adam Yosef

Birth : 1981

Occupation : Journalist,LGBTQ+ Activist

Gender : Male

Ethnicity : South Asian, Arab

Sexuality : Pansexual

Religion : Islam

Adam Yosef is a British journalist, photojournalist,LGBTQI+ activist and political activist.He is co-founder of the Stand Up To Racism Birmingham Chapter, Birmingham Against LGBTQI+ Hate, & organiser for Stop the War Coalition.

Yosef has regularly written for the BBC, creating content highlighting issues of socio-politics,diversity,culture,racism and religion.He has also written for the Birmingham Mail,The Forward,IlmFeed, etc. His work also has been featured in The Washington Post, The Mirror and Al-Jazeera.

Yosef is a former member of the Respect Party, campaigning for the party in Birmingham,UK.He supported the Green Party of England and Wales in October 2009.

Early life

Yosef was born in September 1981 in Marston Green,England to a religious muslim family.He is of South Asian and Middle Eastern heritage, with family from India, Kashmir and Iraq.

Career

Public media career

Between 2003 and 2004, Adam Yosef was employed by the Birmingham Central Mosque as a Press & Public Relations representative.He regularly appeared as spokesperson for the trust alongside its chairman, Dr Mohammad Naseem.From 2005, he was Press Officer for politician Salma Yaqoob, the former leader of the Respect Party.He was also Press & Social Media Officer for Salma Yaqoob during the 2010 general election.

Between 2005 and 2006, Yosef was senior journalist with The Asian Today & Desi Xpress.In 2007, Yosef was appointed deputy editor of national entertainment magazine Ikonz.In 2008, he became a columnist for Fusian magazine. In July 2009, Yosef launched I Am Birmingham, an independent news website serving the West Midlands region, of which he was an editor-in-chief.

In October 2019, public letters written by LGBT+ Labour & LGBT+ Labour West Midlands accusing West Mayoral candidate Salma Yaqoob for homophobia, included claims Adam Yosef was previously employed by Yaqoob and had "called for violence against LGBT+ activists".The letters were shared and endorsed by Labour MPs Wes Streeting & Ben Bradshaw.Then Salma Yaqoob defended her relationship with Yosef, stating: "Adam is a member of the LGBTQI+ community and is an active campaigner for LGBTQ+ rights, who was pivotal in promoting Muslim groups' involvement in Birmingham Pride."Yaqoob's responses to the points made in the letters were backed by LGBT+ activists Owen Jones,Saima Razzaq, Pav Akhtar, who described Yaqoob as an ally.LGBT+ Labour West Midlands has since removed the original letter from their Twitter account.

Activism

In 2003, Yosef co-founded the interfaith Saltley Gate Peace Group, a community peace initiative which was formed in response to the threat of war in Iraq as a part of the growing peace movement in Britain following 9/11, and he was Community & Interfaith Liaison Officer for the Birmingham Stop the War Coalition during this period.He has been actively involved in community work which is related to the Lozells riots, the Alum Rock terror raids & campaigning against radical groups in the Midlands.

In his early twenties, Yosef slept rough on the streets of London before being assisted by The Salvation Army. As a result, founded the Birmingham Food Drive in 2012, which regularly provides food, clothes and essential items to homeless people in the city, and is an active supporter of youth homelessness charity St. Basils.He has also written for Pavement, the magazine for the rough sleepers in the UK.

Between 2011 and 2017, Yosef co-organised the Birmingham Zombie Walk, an annual event which raised thousands of pounds for Birmingham Children's Hospital, as part of an ongoing commitment to the charity.In 2015, Yosef co-founded the Birmingham chapter of the national anti-racism organisation Stand Up To Racism.

In 2021, Yosef co-founded Birmingham Against LGBTQI+ Hate, alongside queer muslim activists Saima Razzaq & Salman Mirza.The group organises rallies against homophobic attacks in the city and has called on city leaders to facilitate better relationships between communities.

Honours

In November 2017, Yosef was nominated & shortlisted for the Inspirational Man accolade at the Birmingham Inspiration Awards.In September 2018, Yosef was nominated & shortlisted for the Excellence in Media accolade at The Birmingham Awards. In 2019 and 2021, he was nominated in the Positive Role Model (LGBT) category for the National Diversity Awards. In 2020, Yosef was presented with an honorary award for 'Outstanding Contribution to LGBTQ+ Equality' award by Midlands Zone magazine.

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scotianostra · 2 years

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Happy Birthday Scottish playwright and screenwriter Stephen Greenhorn born on September 5th 1964 in Fauldhouse,West Lothian.

Stephen grew up in Fauldhouse in West Lothian, studied Physics at Heriot Watt before switching to Strathclyde University where his English Lit degree included a life-changing Theatre Studies option. For the practical part, he wrote a play, Heart and Bone, which won him a Fringe First, since then he hasn’t looked back.

His first professional writing was for BBC Radio Scotland in the late Eighties, after which he concentrated on the theatre for a number of years. Greenhorn moved into television with a 1996 episode of The Bill. He then worked on programmes like Where The Heart Is and Glasgow Kiss, before creating the long-running soap opera River City for BBC Scotland. He also wrote episodes of Dr Who while David Tennant was playing the tenth incumbent.

At the same time, Greenhorn was developing the acclaimed stage musical Sunshine On Leith, which he later adapted as a 2013 film. The background to this was his friend the theatre director James Brining saying ‘Wouldn’t it be great if we could do a big, Scottish musical?’ It stuck with him Green horn says “We thought of finding a composer to write the songs, but it was hard to find a compatible soul. So, we reckoned on using the works of a Scottish band. But they often use many different styles. And the songs just wouldn’t lend themselves to a narrative.”

Greenhorn struggled to find such a back catalogue. Until... “One night I was sitting in my flat in Glasgow, having a few drinks and listening to The Proclaimers' first album....” His (slightly?) addled brain screamed out to him ‘Oh my, God, these guys have written about everything. About finding love, losing love, being a parent, being a child, politics, community, home . . . I was so excited.” Yet, given he was also a little tired and emotional, Greenhorn feared the lightbulb would burn out during the night. “To remind myself, I wrote the words ‘Proclaimers' musical’ on the back of my gas bill, and went to bed,”

The next morning, the bulb had indeed gone out. But a glance at the missive from Scottish Power brought it all back. And some deep listening to Proclaimers' albums offered up clues about the storyline, which became a tale of two squaddies returning from the Iraq war to their home in Leith. It’s about lost loves, holding together relationships and community, with a searing backdrop of NHS cuts and nods to gentrification.

Two years later the show launched in Dundee, and it coincided with the Proclaimers having a Number One hit, I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles). Then came the film, which attracted a younger demographic and very good reviews.

His television work has included Echo Beach and Marchlands; the latter was a supernatural drama starring Alex Kingston, who had played River Song in Doctor Who. During the Twenties, Greenhorn scripted two episodes of Dalgliesh before being reunited with Tennant on an installment of Around The World In 80 Days.

Greenhorn’s most recent stage work was one half of Tracks of the Winter Bear, a double bill of plays shared with a new piece penned by Rona Munro, and seen at the Traverse. There should be at least one other new play due as soon as he can finish it.

“It was good to do Tracks of the Winter Bear,” Greenhorn says, “just to remind myself that I was a playwright who accidentally ended up writing for film and telly.”

Sunshine on Leith, with a wee revamp and songs added, is currently playing at the Pitlochry Festival Theatre until October 1st.

#Scotland #scottish #theate #cinemetography #tv #writer #playwright #happy birhtday

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songsforthepierce · 1 year

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Album Showcase: SYL - Strapping Young Lad

This was an awaking for me as a teenager. I think this was one of the earliest exposures I got to metal that was considered very heavy and aggressive. Beforehand the metal bands I was familiar with was stuff like Avenged Sevenfold, Bullet for my Valentine, Bloodsimple, Disturbed, Linkin Park, etc. So this was very different for me.

Content warning/trigger warning for some discussion about war (mainly the Iraq war), discussion of rape, and mention of 9/11.

The album’s cover of a white feather covered in blood is not the most notable cover I have seen. Though the cover was not what mattered to me as a teen.

Strapping Young Lad, sometimes shorten to SYL, was an extreme metal band from Canada formed in 1994. One of the most notable things about this band is the lead singer is Devin Townsend. Yes, THAT Devin Townsend. This band was before he did the Devin Townsend band and Devin Townsend Project. Though looking through Devin’s discography he has done a LOT. I will eventually tackle ALL Devin has done but that is in due time.

Around December 2001 Devin announced an album would be released in 2002. Though there were earlier statements he made seemed like that wouldn’t happen. Okay so at the end of 1988 the band went on hiatus. Devin went off doing solo work and producing other artists’ albums. While the rest of the band also did their own projects. As that was happening Devin was having issues with the label Century Media and struggling with bipolar disorder. He did check himself into psychiatric care in early 1988 though that doesn’t mean that everything was going smoothly. Both of these are what was added to the hiatus of the band. Devin stated,

“What happened? I signed a shitty deal, but luckily it was non-exclusive. I got tired of doing Strapping so I said, 'I can't do it anymore.' Then I freaked out and went into a hospital. My lawyer said that I was under mental duress when I signed the contract so the contract is void. At that point it was like, 'I just won't do another Strapping record.' Yeah, I went down saying 'CM was the shittiest label ever.' And they went down as saying that I was 'a complete, arrogant psychopath.' ”

Though he stated above that he changed his mind. He made it clear that he was not doing this to generate record sales. Instead this came from “creative anger” which was sparked by...the September 11 attacks. Which that happened when they were on tour during that year. You know, I knew going back on writing about music I listened to in the early 2000s that there as a chance I would mention 9/11. I just didn’t expect it from a Canadian band of all things. This was the first Strapping Young Lad album to be written by all the band members. That may sound strange and to me it did as well but when I was researching, this band did start out as Devin’s one man studio project. The fact it took eight to nine years for this to happen is fascinating. During the 2001 Foot in Mouth Tour the band wrote half of the album while the rest would be finished up at home starting January 2002. They played at some festivals that spring and afterwards went and recorded the album in September. On February 11th, 2003 the self-titled album was released and it was apparently the band’s first top charting album. That is pretty cool.

Before I move onto the album I should say that I have only listened to one song from this. I don’t know why teen me only listened to one song from it and didn’t look more into it but whatever. This will all be new to me and I am genuinely exited. Also, I remembered where I first heard of the band. It was from the movie adaptation of Alone in the Dark soundtrack. I don’t think I even saw the movie, I watched a review of it, but not the actual thing. But I do remember finding some good songs on the movie soundtrack. Well anyway lets see what the band’s first charting album is like.

Track 1: Dire

The first track just sets a nice mood. Brooding but also just pumps you with energy. There isn’t much lyrically but I don’t think that detracts from the song.

Track 2: Consequence

After Dire is smoothly transitions to Consequences which I have seen a video that combines the two. It keeps the momentum from the first track and mostly keeps it there. Which while it doesn’t really have a release to the build up which I am surprised by since I was expecting it to just build up to something and have a big release. Like the guitar, bass, and drums do a job on this track. I mean vocally it...kind of does? Okay not really. Oh yeah, this track has lyrics. This song is about...it’s about...what is this song about? I know it has to do with humanity..but what about humanity? The hatred humans have? The love humans have? I know Satan is mentioned but does that mean something. Either I am not getting it or it is not meant to be deep. The lyrics are there, I have no strong opinions on them. This track does feel like the instrumentals is what you are mainly meant to listen to and ignore the lyrics.

Track 3: Relentless

Consequences also smoothly transitions into Relentless and as I re-listened to this I wondered why Dire, Consequence, and Relentless weren’t just combined? When I listened to the whole album as I was working on this stuff I genuinely thought I was still on the first song or something. This track also has lyrics and I think this is about war and how this destruction is relentless. I think anyway. It is uh hard to tell what a lot of this is about because if I had no prior context about how 9/11 affected the creation of the album I would be mostly lost. Wait, this song has a music video maybe that’ll help. Okay so there is a machine smashing human skulls...and the band is playing their song to a crowd of fans...who are being held back by a fence cage thing. Devin please, help me. I am trying to understand.

Track 4: Rape Song

Oh no. With a title like that, the time period that this was made in, and the genre it is from I was not having high hopes for the song. I assumed going in this was gonna be an edgy track about the subject since metal is filled with many songs about “killing and raping bitches and/or corpses” sort of deal. But instead this is actually an anti-rape song. Though that is hard to tell even reading the lyrics only make that clear near the end. Though despite this being an anti-rape song there have been those who took it as a pro-rape song in a terrible way. Devin has regretted making this song which I can 100% get why. While I am glad he was angry enough to try to make a song that hates rapists I don’t think he did a good job really capturing that. Instrumentally this track is all right but the instrumentals don’t save this song.

Track 5: Aftermath

Well let’s see if this song can get the not great taste of the last song out of my mouth. Well instrumentally so far so good. A nice build up, not an outstanding one, but nice. The lyrics of this song at least are clear but GOD they are very in your face. Like yes, we know war is bad. Yes, the war for oil and killing innocent people is genuinely awful but the lyrics are...well they are not on the level of System of a Down. Now I get that Devin and the band wrote this not long after 9/11 so the emotions were fresh. I also get the Iraq war was happening which was very divisive for the time and even today. I can tell this was written from pure emotion. Which while I can somewhat respect I just think this song needed more polish.

Track 6: Devour

Now this was the track I first heard by the band! I still like the song to this day though that could be nostalgia talking. Lyrically it is simple while I don’t fully know what it is about besides death. Instrumentals carry this to be a banger on the album. But I will say this is so far the strongest track on the album. I think because the sound and lyrics work well together as a simple angry song. No wonder this song was chosen from the Alone in the Dark movie soundtrack.

Track 7: Last Minute

The instrumentation sounds nice. The lyrics are...there I guess. Is it about war? Maybe I don’t know. This track exists.

Track 8: Force Fed

Okay, this is the other strong track on the album. Not as good as Devour but it at least stands out on the album. What is this track about? Does it actually matter? I mean I guess it is about finding oneself? Sure, why not.

Track 9: Dirt Pride

I was about to basically shrug at this song until I read the lyrics and it is one of the only comedic songs on the album. I mean with lyrics like,

Dripping... Seeping Dripping... Leaking Dripping... Cabbages

and

Dripping... Gigbutt Dirt Pride... My pride Dripping... Bunksock

and the line,

Wash my fucking balls

I think that makes me somewhat like the song but it feels a little too late because we are already almost done with the album.

Track 10: Bring On the Young

The last track on the album and instrumentally it is the most stand out tracks because it is a slow and somber sounding song. The build up and this being the least heavy instrumentally sounding songs on the whole album. The lyrics are very clearly about being the war is hell but I think it works better than Aftermath. Mainly because I think I can feel the emotion more on this track. The chanting really adds a lot to the song. Also how high pitch Devin can get on the track is pretty neat.

I was originally going to cover Detox and Underneath the Waves since those were bonus tracks on the album but then found out they originally came from the album City so I’ll cover those songs when I cover that album.

This album was...underwhelming. It is interesting they went more for a death metal route than their extreme metal and industrial metal sound from their previous albums. Furthermore this was a raw production which is not really a common style for Devin. Though Devin would look back on this album saying it was “murky” and “dreadful sounding” along with claiming he “phoned it in”. Which I can believe all of that to be honest. Is this a bad album? Not really since the sound is pretty solid. Actually, if all the songs were instrumental I think it would be a lot better of an album. However, this was a forgettable album. A lot of the songs I couldn’t really remember on the top of my head with the exception of Devour. But I think the only reason I could remember that track was because I listened to it as a teen.

#Strapping Young Lad album #Strapping Young Lad #album review #music review #Devin Townsend #long post #death metal #rape tw #war tw #blood #album showcase

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abbydjonesoffaerie · 2 years

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Well, this is complicated. From this book I've gained a guarded distrust for more recently written military history books. I love studying the boots-on-the-ground history of modern military engagements from WW1 through the War in Iraq, post 9/11. I'm not so into the politics as I am interested in the stories of brotherhood and courage so starkly displayed on the battlefield. This book, freshly written and published during the so called pandemic has a subtle stinky whiff of wokism. When I was in college, we were taught in our history class not to judge the men and women of the past by our current cultural morality. We were taught that wasn't fair and wasn't how you studied history.

What do they teach them at these schools?

The woke-ish fumes weren't so toxic as to drive me to toss this book away—I added it to my Band of Brothers shelf—but it was enough to make me rant and sputter.

I get that they were trying to deal with a man who's surrounded by whispered tales of executing prisoners and even one of his own men. But to deal with it in a 'we know how evil that is because we're so much more civilized' Monday-morning-quarterback, armchair historian, voice was so annoying. No one with any sense of war is really going to be super bothered by this, his men, and commander's weren't, and Spiers himself critiqued his own actions so as to become a better commander. This was war. It's not pretty. It's not clear. And we shouldn't run around just judging people like we'd do so much better.

Again, it was subtle, but there in their adjective choice and their questions. It showed a sense of whining justification, instead of a manly, "this is war, suck it up, buttercup." It felt like a girl whining because she didn't want to get sweaty. If you play, you're going to get hurt.

They also seemed constantly astounded that a man could be hard and cold facing the enemy but be concerned about his men's safety. For me, there will never be an incomprehensible dichotomy between being an effective combat leader, a "killer", and being gravely concerned for the wellbeing of your men, loving your men. I mean you're writing a Band of Brothers book, what even? This is what we love about them! Why is this so hard to explain? It's not shocking it's beautiful. It's a wonderful dichotomy, not incomprehensible. It's what those of us not so interested in the big picture but the boots on the ground stories are searching for.

They just constantly tried to philosophize and psychologize their way through this instead of just telling the story. Spiers fought in 3 wars and possibly engaged in black ops operations. By all accounts he was a wonderful husband and grandfather in his old age. I cried through much of the whole last chapter which shared a bunch of correspondence between Winters and Spiers.

I'm thankful for a book about Spiers. I'm thankful to learn more details of his life. I just don't find him to be that mysterious or dark or incomprehensible. From what I've read about combat, he's not much different from many other men making snap decisions, while being lost, while being shot at, while being responsible for the lives of his friends. In fact, what sets him apart is what a great man he was to follow. Almost as beloved as Winters. I get that he was private about his war experiences. Based upon what he might have been involved in and the generation he was part of, that's not shocking or beffudling. The majority of his men loved him. Winters and Compton respected him. That's enough for me.

#feed the muse #reading #books #book review #military history #band of brothers #ronald speirs #101st airborne #easy company #i'm probably overreacting #i'm frustrated #can't you just tell me the history and nit your opinion about it?#maybe let me decide for myself?#i felt like this showed why Lone Survivor happened

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