#I deserve failure to the fullest extent | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

yandere-toons · 2 years

Note

Heyyyyy! Love your blog, dear! Was wondering if I could get some hcs with Shadow the Hedgehog? If you don't write for sonic that's all good, though! No pressures and remember to take care of yourself!

Shadow the Hedgehog (Platonic & Romantic Headcanons)

WARNING: yandere, implied violence, references to PTSD, toxic mindset.

A.N. - Artwork is illustrated by Yui Karasuno and can be found on the Sonic Channel's social media.

PLATONIC:

The initial days aboard Space Colony ARK were long and uneventful. Shadow had little more to do than read what literature Gerald Robotnik supplied, watch the scientist work, and listen to his granddaughter Maria daydream about Earth.

The Ultimate Life Form is a stranger to the intricacies of friendship when he and his friend are not each other's sole option for social interaction, and he struggles to shed the tendency to act as if they are.

Maria taught Shadow to err on the side of benevolence, but extended periods of isolation and witnessing the death of the first person he cared about have skewered his ability to form attachments. Although he maintains a certain distance from anyone who associates with him, anything personal his friend tells him is kept strictly confidential.

The Ultimate Life Form is not a fan of mind games, having been the victim of many, and despises this behaviour in others, practicing brutal honesty and opposing anyone who he suspects is conning or exploiting his friend. Deception is intolerable to him, and if he uncovers a lie or one is unravelled before him, his temper flares and is expressed in the most vituperative way possible.

If the harm was the direct result of another person's carelessness, Shadow gauges their intentions. An honest mistake is rewarded with a warning to be more careful and a dollop of bitterness, while malicious intent is returned tenfold via Chaos Spears.

If the guilty party is an important member of their life and is innocent enough to spare, Shadow is hesitant to trust them with his friend again and prefers to tag along on any future meetings.

ROMANTIC:

Shadow does not expect his partner to desire any sort of intimate relationship with him, and due to his fear of reliving the loss of someone important to him, he does not seek to establish one. An insistence on confirming their safety that exceeds what attention he offers to anyone else is the main indicator of his affection.

The relationship is only as intimate as they want it to be, for Shadow is pathologically concerned with abandonment and losing them to some unforeseen disaster. While open to taking the role of an ad hoc confidante or therapist, he will not bully or cajole them into sharing something with him and assumes that their resistance is a reflection of his inadequate effort to secure their trust.

If grave injury befalls his partner, even accidentally, Shadow adopts the fullest extent of the blame and considers the incident to be one of his greatest failures. Being preoccupied or merely somewhere else at the time is seen as a grievous oversight, and he strives to redeem himself by sticking far closer to them in public settings and, overall, reducing his time away from them to practically never.

Underestimating the level of danger is viewed as pure arrogance on his part, which he henceforth accounts for by assuming that every new situation is a potential threat deserving of inspection.

As the Ultimate Life Form stumbles down the path of guilt, the last thing he needs is another collection of fond memories haunting him in a reminder of what he allowed himself to lose. Shadow keeps his distance, not from lack of caring but rather from an excess of care.

A history of those close to him meeting an untimely demise has convinced him that the cycle will not be broken for his partner, and the worry that he will fail them in their time of need results in him unsuccessfully trying to stay away.

Do anything you want with my work, but never make me boring!

675 notes · View notes

j-minte08 · 3 years

Text

Why do I award BalanWonderworld as a masterpiece?

Introduction

⚠️I'm using a translator, so I apologize if any parts are difficult to read.

In this article, I will write about why I award Balan Wonderworld as a masterpiece, with answers to criticisms.

When I played the demo version, I thought this game was SO BAD. But I believed Yuji Naka and bought the full version. (Before I knew it, I had bought four of them...) I'm not raving blindly about it.

At first, I was hopelessly disappointed because nothing had changed from the demo version. However, in chapters 2 and 3, I was impressed by the three-dimensionality and beauty of the stages, and in chapter 4, I realized the comfort of gaining freedom through the acquisition of costumes.

By the time I was completely finished, I was convinced that this game was a great piece of work.

This is an article that I wrote after spending nearly 100 hours on this game.

I hope you will read it.

Main part

First of all, this game is not a game with flashy action as its primary objective. (Flashy battle action is possible in some scenes.)

【Puzzle】　【RPG】　【Exploration】

It is structured around these three main components.

The game also features a "Balance AI" that senses the player's movements and makes changes to the difficulty and world. There is also a presentation of my own work, so please take a look!

Please read with the above in mind.

■ One button action is stressful.

▶︎ As mentioned earlier, this game is not intended for flashy action. At its root, it is an RPG and does not require multiple buttons. The reason it's a simple operation is because it doesn't need to be.

There is only one button, but instead the player is given the freedom to select up to three actions of their choice. The way to play Balan is to find your own strategy within these constraints.

Some people point out that you can't jump, but only a few outfits limit jumping. Most of them are attack-oriented outfits. It's up to you to decide whether you want more attack power or more movement power.

If you're still not convinced, this game just isn't to your liking.(If that's you, I recommend the Wii version of Rodea.)

NiGHTS and Sonic are also action games with simple controls, but the concept is different from Baran, as explained below.

From the very beginning, NiGHTS and Sonic are one-button games that allow for exhilarating action. The action feels good and allows for improvement through trial and error.

However, Balan begins in a state of helplessness. One of his goals is to use his wits and eventually gain the power to run freely around the three-dimensional stage.

Freedom from discomfort. This catharsis is the best part of Balan.

It is also linked to the story's theme of opening closed minds.

■ The structure of the puzzle is sketchy.

▶︎ There is an intention behind this. By making the puzzle structure more flexible, the player is given more choices.

Therefore, each player will have a completely different solution to obtaining a single statue.

Also, each time you play the game, you will find new strategies, making it a game that can be played repeatedly.

This is the reason why Yuji Naka was so confident about this game.

Personally, I think that this action with a puzzle concept has a similar point of view to card games and rock-paper-scissors.

The Mega Man series is a typical example of a game that requires you to observe the situation and your opponent's movements to find the right technique and move. In fact, there is a famous episode where it was derived from rock-paper-scissors. This is also a game where you can enjoy improving through trial and error, but I think the structure of the rules is similar to that of Balan.

■ It's a pain to stock up on costumes.

▶︎ There is no need to overstock costumes. The minimum number of costumes needed to clear the course will naturally be available. Dependence on certain costumes can make the game monotonous. Also, the BalanceAI can sense your movements and take countermeasures.

As the difficulty level increases, you will have a hard time because the costumes will not come back.

The game is made more interesting by the style of play that allows you to use all the costumes to their fullest extent and bring out the true value of each one.

If you run out, explore the stage while collecting costumes. It may lead to new discoveries.

Even if you don't have a specific costume, there are many situations you can get through by applying other costumes.

This degree of freedom is what makes Balan so interesting. The strategy is left to your imagination.

■ The stage is curved. Isn't this a useless design?

▶︎ The curvature of the map allows you to see every corner of the stage. You may be confused because there is no other game that tries to do something like this. However, this is an ideal map for exploration games.

The basics of this gimmick are used as of chapter 1. Chapter 7, which has particularly large differences in elevation, makes good use of this gimmick.

■ The difficulty level is too low.

▶︎ Basics → Application → Review (Boss battle)

This game is designed to follow the above flow thoroughly. As a result, the difficulty level in the early stages is kept low, but the endgame is quite difficult. I almost lost my mind in chapter 12.

The bosses are easy to defeat. However, it is difficult to conquer all three strategy patterns.

Also, if you keep defeating enemies quickly without taking damage, the difficulty level will increase.Stronger and faster enemies will appear in large numbers.I found the difficulty level increased at chapter 3.

In other words, the difficulty of the game depends on how good you are.

■ I want to have a HP separate from my costume.

▶︎ This system prompts the player to use a different costume in case of failure.

Depending on the situation, you can either sacrifice valuable costumes, or use inconvenient but well-stocked costumes... The game throws a variety of choices at the player. This gameplay becomes more apparent as the difficulty level increases.

If you separate the HP from the costume, this tense gameplay will be lost.

The system of choosing outfits based on what will happen next fosters the ability to think and survive on one's own. It will also help the child's ego independence.

■ I need more explanations and hints. It's designed in an unfriendly way.

▶︎ It's not a game that requires you to do anything difficult, so if you think about it, you should be able to understand it to some extent. All you have to do is immerse yourself in collecting statues by any route you can think of.

Some people criticize Balan for being old-fashioned, but they are missing the point.

Games are essentially content that teaches you to think and act for yourself. This is a posting of what games should be, and a refreshing return to the basics.

However, I don't mean to criticize modern games. The immersive feeling of being in a movie, and the friendly design of the UI that shows you where you are going so you don't get lost. I think it's a beautiful evolution for today's hectic world where it's hard to find time to be alone.

However, to be honest, it is abnormal to say that only works that follow the latest trends are evaluated, and it is difficult to say that there is creativity in such works. Evolving technology and the presence or absence of originality have completely different meanings.

I would like to say that games like Balan, which have their own rules and think for themselves, are what we need today.

■ I don't understand the story. I want subtitles.

▶︎ With both video and dubbing, the amount of information is extremely high. By not using real words, all the people in the world have the exact same experience. Very romantic, don't you think?

It's not to dismiss the unspoken parts as non-existent, but to let your imagination run wild and have fun with it.

Since ancient times, there has been an aesthetic in Asia that finds meaning in blank spaces.

If you want a more substantial story, I recommend the novel version, which probably has what you want. It is available for Kindle.

At the end

Balan Wonderworld is a game designed to grow with the player the more time they spend playing.

Despite its gorgeous visuals, the reality of the story is deep and Yuji Naka's philosophy shines through, making it a masterpiece that can be called a compilation of his work.

At first, you may find some scenes difficult or the system annoying. However, they all have a meaning and will make sense as you continue to play.

Balan is built on a very complete system.

EVERY MOMENT IS AN ADVENTURE... This tagline is true.

But the fact is that Balan is a very peaky game. But that's also true for Sonic and NiGHTS.

If you have enjoyed Yuji Naka's past works, you will surely understand the quality of Balan. I recommend that you take the time to face this game first without any preconceived notions.

Now that I've spoken highly of Balan, I'd like to offer some criticism of the official advertising.

I think the main reason for this failure was the poor choice of stages included in the demo version, which made it difficult to convey the fun of expanding the degree of freedom by acquiring costumes, the sense of freedom, and the fun of being able to create a number of unique strategies.

As for the official SNS, rather than introducing the costumes and the storyline by themselves, the official should have done a better job of showing how they are all connected to make this game interesting.

That's how it looked from my personal point of view, but I believe that the current situation is the result of continuous failures in the area of advertising.

I'm so disappointed that this masterpiece is being buried, and I hope that the officials will have the guts to turn its reputation upside down even now.

Hopefully, this game will get the recognition it deserves. I love Balan Wonderworld.

#balan wonderworld #game #square enix #game review #yuji naka #naoto oshima #バランワンダーワールド #playstation #bww #nights #nights into dreams #sonic #sonic the hedgehog

72 notes · View notes

incorrect-caps-etc · 2 years

Text

I feel like as a hockey blog I would be remiss if I didn’t mention anything about the Chicago story so here goes:

I stand with Kyle Beach, the other victims in this case, and all survivors of SA. What happened on the Blackhawks was an utter failure to protect victims and I hope all the people responsible for that failure are punished to the fullest extent and that the victims know what happened was not their fault and are able to find peace.

To survivors of SA who are hockey fans, especially those who may have been fans of the Blackhawks or Toews and Kane specifically, whose comments yesterday were disgusting - I am so sorry. You are not a distraction and you are not less than. You deserve so much better.

I know these past few days have been hard for many people. I don’t pretend to have any mental health expertise of any kind, but if you just need to rant about this in a private space, my inbox/messages are open.

Take care of yourselves and your friends.

#tw sa #cw sa #chicago blackhawks

18 notes · View notes

polar-stars · 3 years

Note

☕️ + Tsukasa, maybe? (what a coincidence, Tsukasa and coffee fits haha~)

(Give me a ☕️ + a character/ship and I’ll ramble off whatever thoughts and opinion I have about it)

Thanks for the ask! (& sorry for taking so long)

Eishi Tsukasa

Long-time followers of this blog probably know by now that I consider the Elite 10 to be the most severe case of wasted potential in Shokugeki & that they were hit hardest by the dip in writing quality.

But I'd consider Eishi an exception, actually. I think of all Elite-character his potential was best lived up to and utilised. Not...that it was used to it's fullest extent, but I still think he got a lot more better treatment than his companions (that is, till that fight in BLUE happens) and it made for a pretty fascinating and overall well-rounded character in my opinion.

Eishi and his obsession for perfectionism as well as his style of erasing himself from his dishes' definitely creates an interesting opponent and antagonist for Soma, who sees the value of failure. I honestly also think that Eishi is the character who is probably best representing of Central's philosophy, and also feels like he's the most believing of it & I appreciate that, because I think Central Arc could have used a lot more deeper exploration of the other side. And Eishi was the one character where we got most of that with his backstory and dialogue and all.

He also was a lot less down-played from the initial E10 build-up, than many of the other Elite characters were. The RDC-Finale is something I'm very critical of sure, but part of the reason why I am so critical is the fact that Tsukuda did do a good job at establishing Eishi as a powerful force within the kitchen. He very much felt deserving of the 1st seat and like a very serious opponent.

(Also, I gotta love how he is super intimitading when cooking but really dorky in all other areas of life. It is fun hhdhf)

The usage of Eishi in BLUE is much more of a mixed bag though. Obviously I am annoyed by his fight against Asahi that was clearly only meant to hype up Asahi and his skills even further. Eishi, as a character, did not deserve that. But at the same time, I can not help but to appreciate the visible character progression he has been through when arriving at BLUE. One scene in the anime that particularily warmed my heart was when he gave a talk about how he's come to be more accepting of losses and how he acknowledges of still having more room to grow. As someone who reacts very badly to every form of misstep and stumble she does, hearing a perfectionist like Eishi say something like this felt quite meaningful :,))) And it is very much in line with Shokugeki's core thematics.

Ultimately, I've come to appreciate Eishi quite a bit over the years and several rereadings of the manga & I think he is a pretty well written character, even though there is probably more that one could have done with him.

Deserved a more creative ending in Les Dessert 3 though, but shhdhf all of the 90st Gen did

#Rambly Asks #I know I am very slow on these but they are super fun ahdhdhd #thanks for sending questions in really #Shokugeki no Soma #Eishi Tsukasa

11 notes · View notes

cjrae · 5 years

Text

The Monster And The Man. Or: Why is Dan’s emotional catharsis less sympathetic than Lucifer’s?

If there’s one character that people seem to be angrier at than Chloe Decker, it’s Dan Espinoza. Chloe came much closer to crossing an unforgivable line in Season 4 than I think many of us expected. Dan, on the other hand, walked up to the line, stepped over it, tried to step back behind it before deciding to light the whole bloody thing on fire.

So, if you’re a fan who’s pissed at Dan, you’re far from alone. The fact of the matter is that Dan Espinoza is the most unlikeable principal character on the show and the hardest to sympathize with. He serves as a foil for Chloe and as a mirror for Lucifer. It’s not an accident that Dan is at his most sympathetic in Season 3, when Lucifer is re-integrating the angelic facets of his identity and is his absolute worst self in Season 4, as Lucifer is coming to terms with his own self-hatred.

As much as we may hate to give Marcus Pierce credit for anything, the man was an astute judge of character. He had Dan pegged from the moment he met him and it’s an identity Dan alternately embraces and rejects. He is a corrupt cop.

The show’s take on corruption within the LAPD is a subject worthy of it’s own essay, so for now I’m going to focus on Dan and Lucifer’s mirrored stories within 4x07′s “Devil Is As Devil Does”.

In Season 4, both Lucifer and Dan are drowning in the same two emotions - grief and self-hatred. How that manifests, however, is very different. Lucifer turns his emotions on himself. Dan turns them outward, looking for a target and Lucifer makes a very easy and convenient target to punish for Charlotte’s death.

In a different essay, I pointed out that at no point is Lucifer interested in punishing Chloe for her betrayal - what he wants is her acceptance. The same thing is happening with Dan. Lucifer doesn’t default to calling him “Detective Douche” as his go-to nickname. In the majority of scenes, Lucifer refers to him as “Daniel,” even as he outwardly pushes back against Dan’s blame. And, as we will realize at the end of 4x09, Lucifer actually agrees with Dan. Allowing Dan to punish him, within certain boundaries, is the only form of care that his friend will accept from Lucifer.

Lucifer also understands instinctively what Dan is doing. He’s punishing himself. Even in 4x07, as Dan and Lucifer are both hitting rock bottom, when Eve suggests that they punish him Lucifer responds, “His existence is punishment enough.” It’s a cold, cutting statement, befitting how Dan treated him in the wake of Officer Joan’s death, but even Lucifer at his worst puts Dan off-limits.

Dan, unfortunately, does not return the favor.

Both Dan and Lucifer are struggling with the same issue - an innocent officer is dead because they trusted mortal law. Lucifer, however, is in a greater position of power than Dan; he is the Devil. He has the power to punish Julian and driven by grief and rage and pain, with Eve whispering encouragement in his ear, he does just that.

Dan is also in a position of power, but it’s a position of human power and it’s a position he know how to use - and how to abuse. The entirety of Dan’s arc in Season 1 is watching his corrupt choices spiral out of control until multiple people are dead. Season 2, he has a man killed when the justice system sets a guilty man free. Season 3, he’s trying to do better, but once Charlotte is killed he actively embraces the identity of the corrupt cop when facing Pierce’s henchman.

4x07, we see Dan return to an old trick - use someone else to do the dirty work while attempting to keep his hands clean. It’s important to note that Dan doesn’t actually have a problem with Julian’s fate. In fact, he’s gleeful when he leans into his face and taunts him with “cop killer” and how he’s going to suffer in jail. It isn’t until he puts the pieces together and realizes that Lucifer has done this that he’s able to justify putting a target on Lucifer’s back. Worse, Lucifer has succeeded in delivering Julian to the police to be tried and jailed.

So, Dan pulls out his detective skills - and it’s a good reminder that Dan, for all his flaws, is a formidable detective when motivated. He manages to find Lucifer’s cigarette in the trash, which is circumstantial, but enough justification for his desire. He wants Lucifer punished, to feel every bit of pain that Dan is currently feeling. So he whispers Lucifer’s name in Jacob Tiernan’s ear and waits to see the chaos unfold.

Dan’s hubris is that he has completely underestimated what kind of man Jacob Tiernan is and even before they realize that Trixie is in danger you can see Dan begin to panic. For all that he wants Lucifer punished, he doesn’t want Lucifer dead. It’s a bit of a truism that the opposite of love isn’t hate, it’s indifference. Dan is angry at Lucifer because he cares and because he views Lucifer as a safe target to vent his anger at because of their past friendship. This moment is when his self-protective bubble of anger pops. Dan has put Lucifer in mortal danger and even though Dan knows full well that Lucifer can take care of himself (and has seen evidence of it), Lucifer isn’t bulletproof as far as he knows.

And then Chloe realizes that Trixie has snuck out of the house to see Lucifer and Dan’s entire world threatens to shatter. In one fell swoop not only is his daughter’s life in danger, along with Lucifer’s, but Chloe’s respect for him is on the line as well if she finds out. Then there’s the cherry on top, his career. The monster hiding in Dan’s psyche is the corrupt cop and it’s a monster he doesn’t want to be.

Dan’s hits rock bottom the moment he bursts out of that elevator to find Lucifer having subdued Tiernan’s henchmen and Trixie safe on the balcony. Dan is shamed - not only did he put his daughter’s life in jeopardy but the very man he wanted to punish is the one who was ultimately able to protect her.

Lucifer hasn’t quite hit his yet (that’ll come when he sees his wings) but he’s been knocked away from the same edge that Dan’s been on the entire season, and twice - first when Chloe confronts him with what he already knows - what he did was wrong and he knows it, even if he’s not willing to admit it. The image of Chloe disappointed in him with tears streaming down her face, is enough to have Lucifer stalling and it’s something that Eve points out.

The second time is when Trixie - one of the few truly innocent characters on the show - bounces into his penthouse and demonstrates her complete faith in Lucifer in a season when even Chloe is struggling with reconciling the good man she knows and the Devil who is capable of dealing out punishment with cruel sense of irony.

Dan putting Trixie’s life in danger gives Lucifer a second chance. He failed to protect Officer Joan. But when it truly matters, when Trixie’s life is on the line, Lucifer does not fail. Dan bursts in to Lucifer’s triumph in the face of his own failure. Only now he doesn’t have the shield of his anger to hide behind anymore. He’s lost, confused and in pain. He’s waiting to be punished. The moment when Tiernan’s thug tells Chloe that Tiernan found out that Lucifer broke Julian’s back is drawn out, letting the audience feel Dan’s agony, caught between terror and relief at being found out.

And then he gets away with it. Scot-free, as far as Dan knows. (For now. God bless Ella Lopez). All’s well that ends well, right? After all, Trixie is fine, Lucifer is fine.

Not quite. Dan now has to figure out how he’s going to reconcile the man and the monster. He may not have a pair of devil wings to show him how far he’s fallen, but he doesn’t need them. All he has to do is look at his daughter’s face and know that she’s still breathing because the man he was angry enough to punish was the one to protect her, not him. Neither the corrupt cop nor the Devil is an instrument of justice, a realization that both Dan and Lucifer have come to by the end of the episode.

It’s easy to be flip and simply say that Lucifer engenders more sympathy than Dan because Lucifer hasn’t spent the entirety of Season 4 up to this point being a jerk, but that isn’t entirely true. Lucifer’s pain is very much a consequence of his own choices. He rebelled against his father. He spent millennia “sowing destruction and chaos for his own amusement” (thank you Amenadiel). Those seeds grew into the stories that shook Chloe’s faith in him. It doesn’t excuse her choices, but it puts them into a context that is perfectly understandable. Lucifer is the Devil.

The Devil is so much more powerful a character than Dan Espinoza, corrupt cop. As out of line as Lucifer is in this episode, he does not abuse his power to the extent that Dan does. He could have killed Julian, completely circumventing human law and sending Julian straight into Lucifer’s territory, to do with as he pleases. What Lucifer does to Julian is horrific enough, but he’s still delivered to the police, able to be tried for both human trafficking and Officer Joan’s murder. And, when confronted with the consequences of that choice, Lucifer makes a different choice with Jacob Tiernan. He recognizes that the punishment Tiernan deserves is within the realm of human law, not celestial justice. And he acknowledges that he was wrong directly to Chloe.

Dan’s power is much more limited and when he abuses it he does so almost to his fullest extent. It’s not an accident that the next episode deals with police brutality and Dan is faced with having to tell Amenadiel that, despite putting in a complaint, the officers that nearly shot an unarmed black kid won’t face any consequences. Just as Dan isn’t facing any consequences for his own actions. Moreover, Dan isn’t confessing what he did to anyone, even when he has the opportunity to in the very next scene with Ella pulling him aside to tell him that she knows there was a cop involved in the Tiernan case.

Contrast this with Lucifer who within the first twenty minutes of 4x07 tells Chloe the truth - and Chloe’s response illustrates the power difference very starkly. “What am I supposed to do with this?” Lucifer is the Devil. He doesn’t have to follow human law if he doesn’t want to. Chloe literally has no way to hold him to account except to confront him with his own conscience and hope that she gets through to him.

The pettiness of Dan’s actions and the limits of his power are what help throw Dan into a much more unsympathetic light than Lucifer.

It’s easier for us to parse a corrupt cop backsliding than it is to watch the Devil himself do the same. Unlike Lucifer, Dan could be held to account. He’s gotten multiple people killed. He’s put others in danger and it’s a choice that he keeps making over and over again.

In a just world, Dan Espinoza would have been drummed out of the LAPD at the end of Season 1. He ought to be in jail himself and he knows it. We have seen his perspective and we understand and sympathize with each step he took to get here, but all the good intentions in the world do not justify Dan’s actions.

But this isn’t a just world and Dan is protected first by luck and later by Ella, who prioritizes mercy over punishment. Dan’s pain and need for help are more important to her than what almost happened in Lucifer’s penthouse. (Presumably Ella, who joined the LAPD in Season 2 and is also unaware of Dan giving up Warden Perry to the Russian mob, is missing the fact that this is an established pattern of behavior).

Because this is a show about redemption, we feel a certain amount of relief as Dan begins to get the help he needs to move on after Charlotte’s murder. But true redemption doesn’t just require an acknowledgment that your actions were wrong. It also requires restitution. And Dan has not offered that since the ending of Season 1, when he turned himself in to prevent Lucifer from going down for murder. My biggest wish for Dan in Season 5 would be to see him take responsibility for his choices, even when the consequences are dire.

#lucifer meta #lucifer analysis #dan espinoza #trixie espinoza #lucifer morningstar #chloe decker #long text post

211 notes · View notes

fugandhi · 4 years

Text

Excerpts from John F. Kennedy’s ‘The President and The Press’ (1961)

“..The very word ‘Secrecy’ is repugnant in a Free and Open society; and we are, as a people, inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths, and to secret proceedings. We decided (long ago) that the dangers of excessive and unwarranted concealment of pertinent facts far outweighed the dangers which are cited to justify it.

Even today, there is little value in opposing the threat of a closed society by imitating its arbitrary restrictions. Even today, there is little value in insuring the survival of our nation if our traditions do not survive with it. And there is very grave danger that an announced need for increased security will be seized upon by those anxious to expand its meaning to the very limits of official censorship and concealment. That I do not intend to permit to the extent that it is in my control. And no official of my administration, whether his rank is high or low, civilian or military, should interpret my words here tonight as an excuse to censor the news, to stifle dissent, to cover up our mistakes or to withhold from the press and the public the facts they deserve to know..

..Today, no war has been declared - and however fierce the struggle may be, it may never be declared in the traditional fashion. Our way of life is under attack. Those who make themselves our enemy are advancing around the globe. The survival of our friends is in danger. And yet, no war has been declared, no borders have been crossed by marching troops, no missiles have been fired.

If the press is awaiting a declaration of war before it imposes the self-discipline of combat conditions, then I can only say that no war ever posed a greater threat to our security. If you are awaiting a finding of “clear and present danger,” then I can only say that the danger has never been more clear and its presence has never been more imminent.

It requires a change in outlook, a change in tactics, a change in missions - by the government, by the people, by every businessman or labor leader, and by every newspaper. For we are opposed (around the world) by a monolithic and ruthless conspiracy that relies primarily on covert means for expanding its sphere of influence - on infiltration instead of invasion, on subversion instead of elections, on intimidation instead of free choice, on guerrillas by night instead of armies by day. It is a system which has conscripted vast human and material resources into the building of a tightly knit, highly efficient machine that combines military, diplomatic, intelligence, economic, scientific, and political operations.

Its preparations are concealed, not published. Its mistakes are buried, not headlined. Its dissenters are silenced, not praised. No expenditure is questioned, no rumor is printed, no secret is revealed. It conducts the Cold War, in short, with a war-time discipline no democracy would ever hope or wish to match..

..No President should fear public scrutiny of his program. For from that scrutiny comes understanding; and from that understanding comes support or opposition. And both are necessary. I am not asking your newspapers to support the Administration, but I am asking your help in the tremendous task of informing and alerting the American people. For I have complete confidence in the response and dedication of our citizens whenever they are fully informed.

I not only could not stifle controversy among your readers - I welcome it. This Administration intends to be candid about its errors; for as a wise man once said: “An error does not become a mistake until you refuse to correct it.” We intend to accept full responsibility for our errors; and we expect you to point them out when we miss them.

Without debate, without criticism, no Administration and no country can succeed - and no republic can survive. That is why the Athenian lawmaker Solon decreed it a crime for any citizen to shrink from controversy. And that is why our press was protected by the First Amendment - the only business in America specifically protected by the Constitution - not primarily to amuse and entertain, not to emphasize the trivial and the sentimental, not to simply “give the public what it wants”, but to inform, to arouse, to reflect, to state our dangers and our opportunities, to indicate our crises and our choices - to lead, mold, educate and sometimes even anger public opinion.

This means greater coverage and analysis of international news - for it is no longer far away and foreign, but close-at-hand and local. It means greater attention to improved understanding of the news as well as improved transmission. And it means, finally, that government at all levels, must meet its obligation to provide you with the fullest possible information outside the narrowest limits of national security - and we intend to do it.

It was early in the Seventeenth Century that Francis Bacon remarked on three recent inventions already transforming the world: the compass, gunpowder, and the printing press. Now the links between the nations first forged by the compass have made us all citizens of the world, the hopes and threats of us all. In that one world’s efforts to live together, the evolution of gunpowder to its ultimate limit has warned mankind of the terrible consequences of failure.

And so, it is the printing press - to the recorder of man’s deeds - the keeper of his conscience, the courier of his news - that we look for strength and assistance; confident that, with your help, man will be what he was born to be: Free & Independent.”

#Freedom #Independence #TheUnitedStatesOfAmerica #JohnFKennedy #Kennedy #ThePresidentOfTheUnitedStatesOfAmerica #RestInPeaceMrKennedy #ThePresidentAndThePress #USA #Awesome #TheAmericanPress #UnitedStates

1 note · View note

anoverlyemotionalautist · 5 years

Text

Dating

God I haven't been sad enough to post here for a while. But I'm breaking down.

So I'm... not conventionally attractive. I've mentioned it before. I'm 5'8", I'm 205 lbs (which is 35 less than I used to be, and I'm still at the fat end of "dad bod"), my face is a solid 5, my facial hair is bad but I can't grow better, all that stuff. These are issues for me, but tolerable. People who are worse looking or otherwise physically worse-off end up in happy, healthy relationships all the time.

The problems start when I mix in two factors. I'm autistic and aromantic.

I'm autistic. This is a problem because the thing that makes up for a sub-par body is social skills, of which I have none, and confidence, of which I have even less.

I'm aromantic. I don't experience romantic attraction or the desire for romantic interactions. The fullest extent of relationship of which I am capable is "friends with benefits, but more serious". My longest-lasting and best relationship was basically us being best friends and also having sex. That felt so natural to me that it took months after she left before I even realized I was aro, I thought that's what romance was. I know now that other people experience something else that I don't, that is, romantic attraction.

[As a side note, it's really great, as someone who's gone through life being acutely aware of all the supposed "fundamental parts of the human experience" that I have no connection to or experience of, to find out there's yet another thing I'm missing out on. All the more reason that I'm defective and broken.]

Why is this a problem, you ask?

Because people, quite understandably, don't want some schlub for a casual fling. The kinds of relationships I seek out (non-monogamous, non-serious, casual medium-term FWB relationships) are very hard to find for someone who isn't that attractive. It makes me feel like I'm somehow morally wrong for wanting what I want, that I don't have the right to want that type of relationship, and being sad that I find it so incredibly difficult to find is actually a moral and ethical failure on my part (and, as an added bonus, those feelings are also anti-feminist because they indicate feelings of entitlement towards relationships and, in addition, a feeling of being entitled to certain kinds of relationships).

But people are less willing to compromise regarding physical attractiveness in those types of relationships simply because those relationships have less... other stuff. A romantic relationship (what my inner monologue insists on calling a "real relationship" or a "full relationship" despite knowing intellectually that there's nothing more valid about one relationship style over another) includes more guarantees of non-physical aspects of the relationship like emotional support and financial stability. Less serious relationships don't generally include expectations of such things (although I also tend to form very deep friendships, so when I'm with someone even casually for more than a short while I'm more than happy to be supportive any way I can; this goes for platonic and sexual friendships), so more emphasis is put on physical attributes. Basically, you don't need a soft, sensitive, emotionally supportive guy just to bang, all you want is someone who's physically attractive. And that's perfectly understandable, far be it from me to judge that way of thinking; it's not my place to criticize someone's priorities in their romantic and sexual life.

But it makes it hard for someone like me, who is literally incapable of more "traditional" relationships where I would be more welcome, to find anyone who's interested. People don't want me for the kinds of relationships I'm capable of sustaining.

This leads me down dark paths, as always. I'm not good enough to deserve that kind of relationship. I'm not good enough to deserve anything. "What the hell is wrong with you, thinking about 'deserving'? You never 'deserve' any relationship, you misogynistic entitled asshole. Obviously you're just another douche who can't hook up so you cry about it and blame women for not getting what you 'deserve'. Sick fuck."

And of course, that leads to... worse places. My only goal in life is, and always has been, to be wanted and loved, and physicality is a huge part of that for me. It's my #1 love language, it's the most important aspect of any relationship to me. So if I'm not good enough... "Maybe it would be better if you were dead. After all, how many girls have you tried to talk to who would rather you never have even looked at them, you creepy fuck? You try so hard and it's just sad, everyone is embarrassed for you, everyone is cringing at you, everyone thinks you're a failure because that's what you are. You can't even get a single date, you pathetic waste of biomass. If I had a choice I'd hurl your corpse into space far away from the Earth's biosphere, that way none of the molecules from your worthless existence can be reused and potentially spread your uselessness. Go cry in a hole until you're dead, asshole."

So sitting here, 9 months into a year in which I haven't had a single date, no promising dating app matches, nobody who wants me, nothing, I'm thinking about giving up. Why not? What difference would it make? Clearly I wouldn't be missed.

I hate being me. I hate my body, I hate my brain, I hate being autistic and I hate being aromantic, I hate being poly and lonely at the same time, I hate trying and never succeeding, and I hate myself. Why bother?

#// depression #// suicide #// dating #// body image #long post //#vent //#love #failure #giving up #autism #aromantic #polyamory #attraction #broken #defective #pain #relationships

6 notes · View notes

flying-elliska · 5 years

Note

yeah i know how it can be when you are bullied or criticized for your interests. and not only for that. I had to lie to seem normal, because i knew if even a little part of myself will show I'm fucked. lie to my parents, my teachers, my classmates, even my friends. I only started thinking about all this last year. It's insane. It's like I don't know myself at all. so you know i reading your messages. it helps me to think. will continue in another ask.

hey anon, i was waiting for your other ask but it didn’t come so i’ll answer this one.

that’s rough. and i’ve been there. and i won’t lie, it leaves scars. because you start being so afraid of vulnerability, like you said, you don’t know who you are, you’re missing out on occasions to discover it. it becomes this automatic mask that you don’t know how to get rid of. but you sound pretty young, so i’ll say this, with adulthood you do get more and more spaces of freedom. i hope you find them as soon as you can.

and anyway, the self is, for anyone, always a little bit of a fiction. nobody ever entirely knows themselves, I think. A lot of people just go with the flow and overtime, lets their habits define them. the advantage of your situation is that you have to think about it. it brings a level of self-awareness that you can turn into an advantage. some people will have this crisis in their forties, (or they used to anyway, since everyone is having their midlife crises at 25 nowadays). you don’t have that luxury. but you have time. we’re pushed to believe that if we don’t reach all these milestones by a certain age we’re failures but that’s bullshit (and the best way to rush into things you will regret later, btw). what matters is you finding yourself and things that makes you happy no matter how long it takes or what strange roads it takes you on.

my advice, or what i would tell my younger self anyway, is be weary of that voice telling you there must be something wrong with you. it’s tempting, thinking if you’re hard enough on yourself, you will find ways to fit. if you cut away enough, overanalyze yourself enough, are harsh enough on yourself, you can avoid rejection. but that’s dangerous. it sabotages your most precious energy, that thing that belongs to you only. you’re in survival mode, right now, sounds like to me, and there’s nothing wrong with doing what you have to do. but don’t let it define you. cultivate a voice of tenderness and curiosity towards yourself instead. treat your inner self like a little baby deer you want to observe in the wild. you have to be careful with it, patient, let it feel safe, otherwise it will never come out of the woods.

what i’ve been working on realizing lately is that nature doesn’t make mistakes. variation is how life on earth, and human societies, have flourished. but humans just still too often default to their instinct of being afraid of anything different. it’s normal to internalize that, since we’re all social creatures and wanting approval is part of who we are. but you do deserve space and people with whom you can grow to your fullest extent. and i promise they’re out there and you can find them. but in the meantime, you’re probably not as alone as you think you are. and you can find sideways, little doors to practice vulnerability and freedom and expressing yourself.

i’ll tell you what one of my older friends told me when i was 20 and still living at home and struggling with this so, so much. she told me, go hunt. go hunt for your family of heart, for sources of real joy, for things that make you hungry, for the stories of those who have been where you are, for visions of the life you want to lead, for the mistakes that you need to make.

you’ll learn that some parts of yourself you actually don’t want to cultivate, because everyone carries their own ugliness, but for that, you need to face them and be free to actually make that choice for yourself. not just pushing them down out of fear. and you’ll learn that some parts of yourself, when expressed, make you so strong. and you’ll find things to love so much, and things to do that matter so much, that who you are won’t even be that big of an issue anymore. and ultimately you’ll start to fill your own skin, and you’ll find yourself in a place where you don’t have to lie anymore.

and that’s worth asking all the difficult questions for.

#anon asks #about me

7 notes · View notes

kindnotestoself · 5 years

Note

I feel like I don’t deserve my transplant. That My heart should’ve gone to someone else instead of me. I’m a waste of a life and a fucking failure at everything. I’m just a burden to the people around me

Strive to be someone you think is “worthy”. You are human, and you’ll never be perfect. But you can try to be the Best You. Live your life to the fullest extent, try, make mistakes and learn from them. Look at your mistakes with a critical eye to see what went wrong, but don’t blanket yourself as a ‘failure at everything.’

#Anonymous #KN2S Replies

4 notes · View notes

yhwhrulz · 2 years

Text

Wayside Chapel Daily Devotional 24th October 2021

Morning October 24

Psalms 103:10-12 10he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. 11For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; 12as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

These songs of praise are rich with teaching. In this psalm the writer tells us a fact we need to remember. We never get what we deserve. Never ask for justice, or you may get it. We always forget our sins and remember our good deeds with a little embellishment. If we got what we deserve, we would all be cast into the Lake of Fire. We are by nature rebels against the loving goodness of our Creator. Instead of giving us what we deserve, God lavished His love upon us by sending His one and only Son to take what we deserved. Only Jesus could bear it.

How did we ever learn to fear Him, that is, to reverence His just nature that will not let sin go unpunished? It is only an undeserved gift of grace! It is an expression of His great love. That love is much greater than you or I could ever muster. What is your attitude toward those who have betrayed your love for them? God just continues to love us to the fullest extent of His love.

Satan would try to get us to dwell on all our failures and past mistakes. God doesn't, so why should we? Satan's accusations are true, but so is the fact that those sins are covered by the sacrifice of Jesus. They are removed from us as far as east is from west. That is a long ways! Next time the enemy tries to get you down about a past sin, remind him of this verse. The future is as bright as the promises of God. You are a work in transition, but the debris that has been chiseled away is already cleaned up and hauled off.

Remember: Look forward, not back, and praise God for loving you so! Praise Him for sending Jesus to bear what you deserved.

https://www.daily-devotions.net/

0 notes

hansoloschubbybrother · 6 years

Text

My Opinion On The Last Jedi...For What It’s Worth

Having just watched The Last Jedi again and having seen way too many YouTube videos from people who hated the movie, I just had to write down my thoughts on it because I disagree with so many of the things that people hated about it.

It wasn’t perfect but, on the whole, I still think it is a great movie, mostly because of the choices made regarding the story arcs for the main characters.

But before I get into that though, I’m going to confirm some of the things where I can agree with the haters. Firstly, Mary Poppins Leia. It’s a nice idea that, by being blown into space, Leia’s survival instinct kicks in and enables her to use the force in a way she hadn’t before but I thought it looked awful and by just not having her blown into space in the first place would have been better. The moment with Kylo Ren deciding not to shoot would have been more poignant and instead of Holdo being needed, Leia could have remained in charge and Admiiral Ackbar could have been the one to sacrifice himself by using light speed to obliterate the First Order fleet, giving him the noble death such a character deserved.

Just on that whole using light speed as a weapon thing, I’ve listened to people using it as another reason to put down the film, saying that if it was a plausible weapon it would have been used already so having it in TLJ doesn’t make sense. Rian Johnson or someone had a cool idea that looked great in the movie and if other people involved in previous movies had thought of the idea then I’m sure they would have used it too. It was a great moment in the film and people need to stop trying to find reasons to dislike the movie that aren’t there.

Next up is some of the humour. Whilst I enjoyed some it, overall it felt a little out of place in a good Star Wars movie and harked back more to the prequels. It may have been an attempt to appeal to children, but I felt the same way about Luke milking that animal and going fishing and the way BB-8 is used. In the original trilogy, R2-D2 would never actually ride a AT-ST, he may have found a way to control something by interfacing with a computer terminal but not actually driven something himself. This step toward children’s comedy was just one of the reasons I mostly disliked the prequel trilogy and wasn’t necessary here either. The original trilogy didn’t have that and it didn’t stop those films from becoming an obsession for most children at the time.

My final gripe about TLJ is the over arching story of the slow chase. Not only does it seem silly that the First Order would need to wait to destroy them, it created the need for the whole Canto Bight scene. I enjoyed Finn and Rose’s scenes when they were on Snoke’s ship and I also enjoyed DJ as a character, but they needed to find a better way to make that all play out. I really enjoyed the film’s opening battle with the dreadnought and the end battle on Crait but the story they created to get them from one place to the next was very underwhelming.

In spite of these issues, I still really enjoyed the film and that was mostly because of how they developed the story of each of the main characters. On the whole, I thought they got this spot on and is generally where I seem to differ hugely from many of the online posting star wars fanbase.

I will leave Luke until last as I think his treatment in the film is what has caused the most hate from the fanbase, not least from Mark Hamill himself. Instead, I’ll start with Rey as she is probably the character where there is the most common ground. Undoubtedly for me, Rey is far too much of a Mary Sue. As the central character of this new trilogy, this is not great film making. If they needed her to have these abilities/skills from the get go, they shouldn’t have made her an orphaned desert girl at the start. The journey they needed her to make was too far, too soon. I know they are trying to explain how this is possible by saying that she basically downloaded Kylo Ren’s skills but it’s not very believable. This said, I don’t actually believe that TLJ is what makes her a Mary Sue. This problem is one created by TFA. In TLJ, she doesn’t actually advance her skills set a great deal, other than to move a bunch of rocks, which is Jedi Training 1.1. Therefore, this is not a problem with TLJ, it’s the knock on effect from a big failure with TFA…which is not the last time I’ll say that.

We then have the issue of Rey’s parents, the source of much speculation between the two films. I mentioned in a post I wrote after the film came out that I’m glad that her parents are nobodies. Star Wars is a vast galaxy, why does she have to be some blood relative of an existing character. It would be difficult to realistically explain that she is a relative of one of the key characters from the original trilogy and very unimaginative. It is far better that her heritage broadens the Star Wars landscape, not enclose it furthermore. For those that wanted her to be a Kenobi or a Solo or whatever, there is always the possibility that Kylo was lying. Rian Johnson did, after all, include the mysterious but unresolved scene with Rey and the mirror thing on Ahch-To. So for me, it was a positive that Rey’s parents were nobodies.

Finally for Rey, there is her connection with Kylo Ren, which brings me to another aside. Many people are up in arms that Rian Johnson would use the force in a way that they have never seen before but for me this is just ridiculous. It’s a sci-fi fantasy film. If you can extend your disbelief in the originals then why not now? The Jedi’s are supposed to have kept peace for thousands of years and we have only followed a handful for a few years but somehow we have seen the force used to its fullest extent. Come on now. You wouldn’t have worried about this as a child, so why now? It’s totally not important and totally possible.

Anyway, back to Rey and Kylo. For me, their connection is the most interesting arc of the new trilogy and using the force as a way to further develop this relationship was an important reason as to why I enjoyed the film. Without that, they would not get the chance to interact as frequently as they do, thus removing important character development. Many people, have said that it is not realistic that they would feel some kind of connection after knowing each other for such a short space of time but I see it completely differently. Maybe it’s linked to personal experiences when it comes to relationships but, to me, it is perfectly plausible that two people with so much in common and who both share the same insecurities would feel an immediate connection. They are in the same position as each other just on different sides of the force. It’s natural to feel drawn to someone who is going through a similar experience to yourself, so that you don’t feel alone and for support. For me, their relationship is an intriguing way to consider the force and how idea of light and dark sides exist.

This leads us nicely onto Kylo Ren. Many people disliked the fact that in TFA he was basically a power brat. For me, I was immediately drawn to this idea that we are seeing the proper development of the main bad guy. His journey in this trilogy is much more what I was hoping to see for Anakin’s journey in the prequel trilogy. Unfortunately, in the prequels, we a got a few brattish comments and then he basically became a full on bad guy after a short conversation with Palpatine/Sidious. Kylo Ren’s character development is far more considered than Anakin’s. He is a powerful brat but, especially because Adam Driver is as good an actor as Hayden Christensen is bad, you can understand why. You can also see that has not completely turned to the dark side, that it isn’t a switch. This is developed even further in TLJ and, as I said before, I have enjoyed his development and how his character has mirrored Rey. Kylo Ren has become my second favourite character in the Star Wars universe after his father. I enjoyed how he first appears to be a Darth Vader clone, evening looking up to his Grandfather, but then falls way short. I enjoyed the line TLJ when Snoke reminds him of this and tells him to remove his helmet. I suppose some people don’t want to see their bad guy go through some dark coming of age story but I think it makes it much more interesting.

It is the same reason why I thoroughly enjoyed that Rian Johnson just killed off Snoke. No back story, no big bad, just everything opposite to what people might have been expecting. For me he was Sidious 2.0. A powerful bad guy who we thought was going to be defeated at the end of the third film. To me he was unoriginal and another reason why TFA was described as a love letter to the original trilogy. He felt very “Star Wars” but that was it. People felt short changed after Snoke’s back story was ignored and became insignificant but thought it was exactly the right decision. He played his part and moved aside for Kylo Ren to become the main bad guy for the second half of the trilogy. On the subject of his back story, I just don’t get this obsession with needing to know everything about every character’s back story. We never got that in the original trilogy. We didn’t get told a single thing about Darth Sidious. He was just the powerful bad guy that ruled the Empire. We didn’t need to know more and we didn’t care. That we got to learn more via the prequel films was great but it wasn’t a vital part of the story that was missing from the original films. This is the same with a whole host of other characters from Jabba, Boba Fett, Lando and even Han and Chewie. Why do people now suggest that the new films lack characterisation or some shit because we don’t know the back story of every character? It’s just not necessary.

Poe was another character whose story arc has been criticised. When I first watch TLJ, I also thought that having Leia and Holdo hold back their plan from him seemed like a stupid decision but this felt more and more reasonable with each watch. In order to avoid him being just another boring hero pilot character that destroys lots of enemy ships and always survives, Rian Johnson clearly wanted him to have some kind of journey to help develop his character. It makes total sense to me that a hero pilot would have an ego that is too big and gets in the way of strong leadership decisions, so Rian Johnson develops this through the film, from Poe unnecessarily sacrificing lives and ships to destroy the dreadnought at the start, to his demotion and subsequent exclusion from leadership decision and then redemption at the end by choosing to pull the Resistance fighters back when they’re being picked off easily on Crait. I can’t help but think that having two women leaders decide not to let the male hero pilot in on the plan goes against male sensibilities in this situation. He’s the hero, the man and, in all previous eras, would be the one who knows what the right thing to do is. The truth is, that if it were two male leaders and a female hero pilot who was denied knowledge of the plan, we probably wouldn’t bat an eye-lid. Is it feminist politics unnecessarily introduced to Star Wars? I don’t think so. It’s not forced down our throats, just used to help develop what could easily become a boring character.

The final character I’ll focus on before Luke is Finn. As mentioned before, I enjoyed his scenes on Snoke’s ship with Rose and Captain Phasma but really didn’t like how they got him there. It’s a shame that it made his character seem marginalised. The only part I did enjoy was how DJ made him question his defection from the First Order and whether there is a good or a bad side in war. This is quite deep stuff for a Star Wars film and quite political but I liked that they asked these questions and it seemed fitting that Finn’s character be the one to contemplate these ideas. Again, it’s a shame they couldn’t have found a better way to do it, that made him more integral to the story.

Finally, we come to Luke. More than anything else, it’s people’s comments about Luke that get me shouting at my screen. Maybe it is because I was never drawn to Luke as my favourite character as a child but, for some reason, I just don’t see things the same way as all the haters. For me, Luke’s story through TLJ needed to follow on from what we were told in TFA, in a manner that is both realistic to how you might think someone would react having been through that experience and also realistic to how Luke, the character, would react.

So, what were we told in TFA? We learnt that Luke is in hiding and has cut himself off completely from his family and friends as a result of the part he played in the failure of his Jedi Academy and turning his nephew into Kylo Ren.

This leads me to the first of the things that annoy me about some of the arguments laid at the door of TLJ and Rian Johnson. People claim that Luke would never abandon his friends and cowardly hide away and cut himself off from everything. This idea is played out in TLJ but this story was clearly set in motion in TFA. If people can’t believe Luke would act in this way then be angry at JJ Abrams because it was his idea. Rian Johnson continued Luke’s story from this situation because it’s the only place he could have started from.

Next is to decide whether Luke’s reaction to what has happened is a realistic way for someone to respond. This is obviously subjective but his failings have led to the creation of a potential new Sith Lord, the death of many young fledgling Jedis, the estrangement of his nephew from his family and the break up of his sister’s marriage to his best friend. This is quite a heavy burden bare, considering this is on top of how someone would naturally feel after failing so badly. Imagine someone is revered as a hero around the galaxy, a new Jedi Knight to help bring peace. Your self-esteem would be sky high. You would be pretty happy with how your life is panning out. It is clearly absolutely plausible that someone could react to what happened the way Luke does in TLJ. If people were happy to believe Luke’s set up in TFA, then they have to accept that someone could react the way Luke does. I believe that this is a far more likely way that someone would react than to remain positive and not question your beliefs and the part they played in what happened.

Therefore the question is whether Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight and hero of the galaxy, would react this way. Clearly many fans and Mark Hamill say he wouldn’t. I just don’t see how they can come to this conclusion based on his actions in the original trilogy. The main argument I hear is that he was a great Jedi who saw the good in Darth Vader and defeated Sidious. This just doesn’t stack up I’m afraid. How do we know Luke is a great Jedi? He was only taught by Yoda for a little while and clearly never finished his training. In fact, choosing to be so loyal to his friends was against his Jedi training. Additionally, he beat Darth Vader, not by being a great Jedi but by turning to the dark side and using anger to fuel his fight with him. Vader threatened Leia and he threw anything Jedi out the window and got plain mad. This made him a hero but certainly not some grand Jedi. Then we come to Sidious. Luke didn’t defeat Sidious at all. Seeing the good in Vader pulled him back from killing his father but he was about to be killed by Sidious. It was Vader/Anakin who killed Sidious. So, Luke was a hero, a bastian of hope but he was not some infallible human or a Jedi dedicated to their code. If anything, he was the first grey Jedi. For me, the fact that he felt so strongly for his family and friends is a reason why he would have reacted the way he did when he caused it all to go to shit.

People have also suggested that Luke would never think, even for a second, about killing his nephew. Again, I just don’t have this picture of Luke as all things light and good. He is not so squeaky clean that when faced with the prospect of a new Sidious or Vader and acknowledging that he is not able to control him, that, for a second, he wouldn’t think that right thing to do is kill him. Everyone has thoughts they shouldn’t have for just a split second. Again, why is Luke any different?

It seems to me that people who loved Luke in the originals can’t face the idea that he is somehow a flawed human being and a flawed Jedi. This character that they idolised as a child is actually a human and not some unrealistic hero type. For me, it gave Luke something interesting to contribute to this trilogy. Did people who hated it just want Johnson to forget what was set up for him in TFA, something he is criticised for in other areas, and suddenly have Luke forget all about why he was where he was? Was he supposed to return to the Luke from the original trilogy just because some girl he doesn’t know turns up with his old lightsabre? That would have been bad film making in my eyes, not good.

Another criticism is that he died a coward. I just don’t see it that way. Was it cowardly to hide away? Possibly but, as mentioned, this wasn’t Rian Johnson’s fault and also not an unrealistic way for him to react to what happened. Having been put in this position, you then want Luke to redeem himself and I thought he did that. As the film progressed, he slowly became his old self. First he saw Chewie, then the falcon and news of Han’s death, he then agreed to help Rey a bit, then he saw R2-D2 who played him Leia’s recording for Obi-Wan and finally Yoda’s force ghost helped him come around. There was a progression to his arc and, in the end, his actions were both brave and saved the day. He would have known that using the force to project his image for all that time would lead to his death but that it was necessary to save the rebellion. His death gave hope, renewed the idea of Luke the idolised hero, and then echoed the death of both Obi-Wan and Yoda, so was more than fitting, especially with the twin suns setting. I thought it was a great way for him to “die” and not at all cowardly. He will almost certainly be back as force ghost in IX as well.

As before, anyone moaning that force projection has never been done by a Jedi in any other material, needs to open up their imagination a little. Also, if Luke is supposed to be such an amazing Jedi then surely he could find ways to use the force that others before him hadn’t.

My final point about Luke, and of this ridiculously long essay about a film, relates to how people have criticised the idea that Luke could ever feel that the Jedi order needed to end, the idea that an order that kept peace for thousands of years could ever need to move on or evolve. I can’t believe people even say this without thinking about our own history. Religion, the British Empire, slavery, etc have all been institutions used over 100s of years to keep peace and maintain the powerful but there always comes a time when life and people learn and move forward. They find better ways to live. The Jedi might have kept peace for 1000s of years but in the recent past, and Luke’s understanding, they have not kept the peace, they have only been one side of a conflict. Luke would be absolutely right to reflect on his Jedi beliefs and could easily be correct in his new found stance that the Jedi need to end. He comes round again at the end of the film, when he corrects Kylo that he is not the last Jedi, but in my eyes his questioning of the Jedi order is not only right but interesting and made for a great film.

#the last jedi #why I liked it #why those who hate it are wrong #be warned #very long post

15 notes · View notes

labourpress · 7 years

Text

Jeremy Corbyn asks Prime Minister to broaden Grenfell Inquiry team

Jeremy Corbyn has today written to Theresa May to request that the Grenfell Fire Inquiry team is broadened to improve confidence in the process and improve representation.

In the letter, Jeremy Corbyn writes: “The importance of residents and victims’ families having full confidence in this inquiry cannot be underestimated.”

He continues: “I urge you to consider broadening the inquiry team to a model more similar to that used in the McPherson Inquiry, including with representation from those from minority backgrounds, in order to support the judge leading this inquiry.”

Labour has urged the Government to conduct a two-part inquiry in order to get answers to urgent questions about what happened at Grenfell, with the first part reporting back this summer to minimise further suffering of survivors.

Labour is asking for the second part of the inquiry to take a “wide-ranging” look at the issues thrown up by the disaster. As Jeremy Corbyn writes: “We would be disrespecting the memory of those who died in the Grenfell fire, and putting further lives at risk, if we fail to fully learn these lessons. It is therefore our view that an immediate inquiry into the proximate causes of Grenfell should be supplemented by a longer-term, more wide-ranging inquiry into the underlying causes of what went wrong at Grenfell and the extent to which they are replicated on a national scale.”

The letter has been hand delivered today ahead of the closure of the consultation into the inquiry terms of reference.

Ends

The letter in full

Dear Prime Minister,

I am writing to set out our response to your consultation on the Terms of Reference for the inquiry into the fire at Grenfell Tower.

I strongly welcomed your promise that ‘no stone will be left unturned in this inquiry,’ and what follows is our assessment of how to ensure that promise is fulfilled. As stated in earlier correspondence, we believe that the interests of both Grenfell Tower residents and the general public would be best served by a two stage inquiry, the first into the specific circumstances around the Grenfell Tower fire and the second into its national implications.

Stage one of the inquiry should focus on residents’ urgent questions about what happened at Grenfell Tower itself, specifically to establish:

· What started the fire;

· Why it spread so rapidly and whether building regulations were contravened;

· Why residents’ complaints about the condition of the building’s fire safety features were repeatedly ignored;

· The priorities informing the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea’s funding and administrative decisions and what impact, if any, they had on the circumstances surrounding the fire;

· The soundness or otherwise of the advice given to residents during the fire;

· The support and advice given to those affected in relation to housing, mental health, benefits and immigration status after the incident and how effectively it was communicated and administered by the Council, the Tenant Management Organisation, task forces, Central Government and any other relevant organisations,

· Whether survivors have been treated reasonably and with due consideration since the tragedy;

· The nature of and reason for any constraints on the emergency service response to the fire;

· Whether existing building regulations are sufficiently clear, up-to-date and strong.

In addition, the early part of the public inquiry should examine what happened at Grenfell Tower in relation to the points of concern raised by the Coroners in rule 43 letters to the Government in 2013, namely: building regulations, the retrofitting of sprinklers, and advice and information to residents. Any early assessment of such aspects in light of the Grenfell Tower fire will enable necessary work to be started early rather than be delayed until after the final inquiry report.

There is widespread recognition that Grenfell Tower residents and victims’ families deserve rapid answers to these questions, and that any undue delay risks adding to the intolerable levels of suffering they have already experienced. We suggest that stage one of this inquiry seeks to answer these questions in a timely fashion, producing an initial report this summer. Enabling the inquiry to report back rapidly on this specific set of issues would be a major benefit from conducting it in two stages.

However, we are also concerned that the information already in the public domain points to a series of systemic failures that may extend from local to national government and beyond. We would be disrespecting the memory of those who died in the Grenfell Tower fire, and putting further lives at risk, if we fail to fully learn these lessons. It is therefore our view that an immediate inquiry into the proximate causes of the Grenfell Tower fire should be supplemented by a longer-term, more wide-ranging inquiry into the underlying causes of what went wrong and the extent to which they are replicated on a national scale.

Following the successful template of the Macpherson Inquiry, the rubric for this stage should be ‘an inquiry into matters arising from the Grenfell Tower fire’, that is broad enough to allow the inquiry to follow different avenues as and when they become relevant and appropriate. We anticipate that the issues covered would include, without being limited to, the following:

· The adequacy or otherwise of existing building regulations and their enforcement;

· Housing allocation policy;

· Levels of funding for local councils, housing associations and the fire service and its impact on the quality and quantity of services they are able to deliver;

· The use of outsourcing and subcontracting to deliver local government and housing responsibilities, including how widespread it is, why, and its impact on standards and accountability;

· The responsiveness of TMOs and councils to their tenants.

Finally, it is important to note that effective inquiries command confidence because of both what they examine and how they are conducted. With this in mind, I urge you to consider broadening the inquiry team to a model more similar to that used in the McPherson Inquiry, including with representation from those from minority backgrounds, in order to support the judge leading this inquiry. In addition to the stated responsibilities to set out the Terms of Reference, the Inquiries Act 2005 outlines the responsibilities that government ministers have in making such appointments.

The importance of residents and victims’ families having full confidence in this inquiry cannot be underestimated. As your own Justice Secretary recognised when he told Radio 4’s ‘Law in Action’ programme on 27 June: ‘after the experience with the Hillsborough families it’s really important to make sure those who have been absolutely traumatically affected by this disaster have utter confidence that the inquiry will get to the truth.’ Yet, as you will be aware, for a number of residents this confidence has so far been lacking. Choosing one of the options at your disposal to introduce a range of perspectives and experiences into the inquiry will help to both build trust and deliver justice.

As I set out in my letter dated 30 June, there is considerable concern among residents and others that the judge leading the inquiry has already been directed towards a narrowly defined Terms of Reference, which will not bring residents the answers they seek. I therefore urge you to give our suggestions in this letter the fullest consideration.

Given the importance of these issues, this letter will be made public.

Yours sincerely,

Jeremy Corbyn MP

Leader of the Opposition

6 notes · View notes

janeaustentextposts · 7 years

Note

Unpopular opinion: Lydia Bennett got what she deserved when she married Wickham and I don't feel bad for her future life because she never felt remorse for running away, causing worry, wasting $$$, never listened to her sisters anyway (she never wouldve listened about him even if Lizzy told her family so idk why Lizzy put that on herself), and even though Wickham's affection for her cooled first, hers cooled too. Everyone was waaaay too generous with Lydia AND Wickham

Lydia is barely 16 years old. Whatever her era and society would make of her being thought a grown woman, she’s honestly still a child by many estimations. Elizabeth admits to Lady Catherine that, at then-fifteen, Lydia is too young to be out much, socially, but that with all the elder sisters out enjoying themselves, in quieter country society the kinder thing to do is relax the rules and let a younger girl have some fun. And, of course, as long as they’re in Meryton, and close to home, this really isn’t a problem. It’s when Lydia is allowed to go away with an incompetent chaperone that she gets in over her head and is easily led astray by a man who must be at least ten years older than her.

Also consider where she learned to waste money and be frivolous. Mr. Bennet hasn’t set any money aside to help out his daughters when he’s dead. He hasn’t bothered to correct Lydia’s behaviour. He openly acknowledges Lizzie to be his favourite, Jane to at least be good and sensible in her way, and his younger three daughters he calls silly to their faces and pretty much treats them as worthless. For all he’s a comical character in many respects, and because he loves Lizzie and Lizzie is the protagonist it’s far easier to take his side than Mrs. Bennet’s much of the time, he’s a terrible father and in many ways the worst parent these girls have. In a society where a man is the head of the family, Mr. Bennet at the head of a family full of women evidently has no clue how to properly Be a Dad, or if he does, he doesn’t give enough of a shit to try until it’s too late.

And then there’s Mrs. Bennet. She IS silly, but her concerns are valid. She wants her daughters married to men who will provide for them. Rich is good, but even just a gentleman works, too. Her own brothers have professions in trade and the law, so they’re less genteel, but even an officer is a step above that in terms of gentility, so Wickham, by rank, is not a BAD match for Lydia, even if he would be poor in terms of income.

So a high-spirited girl of fifteen, encouraged by her mother to be vivacious and good-humoured (which are both things Lizzie is, as well,) and only swatted away by her father as being silly...well, at this point it feels inevitable that Lydia WOULD run away to marry an officer. While Wickham later has to be persuaded to marry Lydia, she was honestly in love enough to run away with the fullest faith of their being married as soon as possible. With her mother’s general insistence on Marriage Above All Else and Mr. Bennet’s TOTAL UNINVOLVMENT IN ANYTHING, Lydia did Her Best. Which turned into a shitshow, but how was she to know? It’s all a joke to her because EVERYTHING has been a joke to her, and no-one has ever attempted to correct her before. Elizabeth certainly doesn’t get involved--and it’s not her place to. She briefly encourages her father to TRY PARENTING but to no avail--and that’s on Mr. Bennet, and not Lizzie. Lizzie CAN’T just expose Wickham’s behaviour to her family, seeing as Miss Darcy’s reputation would be ruined if it got out. Which it would--Mrs. Bennet and the younger girls WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO KEEP THAT SECRET. Darcy divulged that information only as necessary, and with faith in Elizabeth, that her discretion would not allow her to spread such a ruinous tale about a young girl who she’s never met, and who has been hurt enough already by Wickham.

I think, much as some may want Lizzie to step in and Fix Everything, there are good reasons why she can’t, and most of those reasons are to do with Mr. & Mrs. Bennet and their failures as parents. Why should Lydia listen to her sister? I sure as fuck don’t listen to MY big sister when she tries to boss me around. It’s not Elizabeth’s job to raise Lydia right, and she’s never really tried to. The problem is, it IS essentially Mr. Bennet’s job (and to a lesser extent, Mrs. Bennet’s,) and he’s never tried to, either.

So blame Lydia for whatever unhappiness she experiences, if you want, but bear in mind she’s a naive, impulsive teenager who has a mother with a one-track mind about marriage (which--Mission Accomplished!) and a father who either fails to notice her at all, or verbally abuses her when he does.

#Ask Me Anything Austen-Adjacent #AMAAA #Anonymous

90 notes · View notes