Story: "Rotten Fruit"
May. 30th, 2016 09:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithI've been thinking about Marvel's latest issue of fail. Clearly somebody ought to do something about this. Well, I'm Somebody. If you want to do something about this nonsense too, I have a list of suggestions.
EDIT 5/31/16:shiori_makiba has written two lovely poems that follow my story "Rotten Fruit." "A Good Man" shows Phil's musing about what makes a villain and what makes a hero, while waiting for rescue. "It Ain't So" features Tony helping to clean up the aftermath, in which he and Steve explain about bullies.
EDIT 6-1-16: I have added a scene about Hulk reciting social stories, and a new reference to kibbutzim.
This story fills the "caught in the act" square in my 5-1-16 card for the Solo Celebration Bingo fest.
This story belongs to the series Love Is For Children which includes "Love Is for Children," "Hairpins," "Blended," "Am I Not," "Eggshells," "Dolls and Guys,""Saudades," "Querencia," "Turnabout Is Fair Play," "Touching Moments," "Splash," "Coming Around," "Birthday Girl," "No Winter Lasts Forever," "Hide and Seek," "Kernel Error," "Happy Hour," "Green Eggs and Hulk,""kintsukuroi," "Little and Broken, but Still Good," "Up the Water Spout," "The Life of the Dead," "If They Could Just Stay Little," "Anahata," "When the Wheels Come Off," "Against His Own Shield," "Coming in from the Cold: Saturday: Building Towers," "Coming in from the Cold: Sunday: Shaking Foundations," "Coming in from the Cold: Monday: Memorial Day," and "What Little Boys Are Made Of."
Fandom: The Avengers
Characters: Steve Rogers, Phil Coulson, Hulk, HYDRA!Nick Spencer, Nick Fury, Clint Barton, Tony Stark, JARVIS
Medium: Fiction
Warnings: Defamation. Betrayal. Anger management issues. Rebellion. Ethical dilemmas. RPF. #sayitaintso. #nickspencerishydra.
Summary: A more plausible explanation for that issue of Captain America in which Steve is portrayed as a HYDRA agent.
Notes: Heroism. Team as family. Competence. Friendship.
A note on feedback: While it's not necessary to comment on every post I make, remember that I don't know who reads/likes things if nobody says anything. Particularly on long stories, I've discovered that I get antsy if there's nothing but crickets chirping for several posts. So it helps to give me feedback at least once, even if it's just "I like this" or "This one doesn't grab me." First and last episodes are ideal if you rarely feel inspired to comment in the middle.
I also have a list of favorite photogenic scenes from the whole series for fanartists to consider, partly compiled from audience requests.
"Rotten Fruit"
Metal screeched and tore as Steve Rogers continued to dismantle the dimensional portal. He had long since dropped the shield and resorted to pulling it apart with his bare hands. It reminded Agent Coulson that Steve Rogers had been a very determined pint-sized hero before Captain America even existed. Periodically Steve would glare over his shoulder, flex his hands a few times, and then go back to pummeling the device with his fists.
In the opposite corner of the room, Hulk carefully folded another office chair into the makeshift cage he was using to hold Nick Spencer, a HYDRA sleeper agent. They had caught wind of him going from one dimension to another, methodically destroying the reputation of Captain America and the Avengers, then finally tracked him down in Earth-1218. Hulk grunted satisfaction with the containment, then began reciting social stories -- from memory -- about bullies and the importance of stopping them.
"Mean people are bullies," said Hulk. "Bullies say mean words. Bullies hurt people."
"Tell that to him!" Nick said, pointing at Steve.
Hulk snorted. "Know how to handle bully. Tell bully stop," he said. Then he leaned forward, close enough to breathe on Nick. "STOP. Say feelings. BAD. Tell grownup about bully." Hulk turned to look at Agent Coulson. "Bully picking on Steve."
"Thank you, Hulk," said Agent Coulson. "I'll make sure that Nick stops trying to get Steve in trouble." He was really looking forward to that part of the debriefing. Memories of surviving his own bullies in childhood made it very gratifying to deal with the ones he found in his current line of work. It was also encouraging to see how much was getting through to Hulk, from Game Night and other team activities, enough to give him more nuanced options than just smashing everything in sight.
Some of that must have gotten through to Steve, because he quit trying to tear the stub of a cable from the floor and turned around. "Thanks, big guy," he said. "I guess I still need a hand dealing with the bullies sometimes."
"What friends for," Hulk said, then went back to his story.
Nick Spencer did not seem to be enjoying the performance. His whole face twisted as if he tasted something sour.
Agent Coulson really did not look forward to telling Nick Fury that his cousin was compromised. The kid had been named after him, had grown up on stories of the Howling Commandos, joined SHIELD straight out of boot camp ... and now this? It was another punch in the trust issues that the Director did not need.
"What should we do with this ... garbage?" Hawkeye asked. One foot gave a pallet of comic books a disparaging kick. "I feel like I bit into an apple and found half a worm."
Agent Coulson looked away from the disturbing cover of Captain America holding a desperately wrong, triangular shield. His stomach lurched. He swallowed hard. "I don't know."
"Burn 'em," Tony said. He had taken off the Iron Man helmet and sweat slicked his dark hair against his skin.
"We can't burn books, Tony, that's a HYDRA tactic!" Steve protested. His voice hitched.
"Okay, okay, we'll think of something else," Tony said, waving his hands.
"If I may be of assistance?" JARVIS said, pitching his own voice through the Iron Man speakers.
"Yes, please," said Steve. He wiped a hand over his face.
"I recommend that you dispatch the offending materials to high school and college classes on literary analysis," said JARVIS. "You might like to target schools whose struggling budgets limit their access to suitable materials. Perhaps include copies of references such as the Aarne-Thompson Index and The Hero with a Thousand Faces to assist students in identifying heroic and unheroic motifs in literature. It is a useful life skill which also carries over into identifying trustworthy and untrustworthy individuals in politics or personal life."
"Thanks, JARVIS, that sounds fantastic," Steve said.
"It is a sound strategy to evade an enemy's attack and strike back directly at his core purpose," JARVIS said.
"Yeah. Hey, can we send some to the kibbutzim on my charity list? They're always scrounging for more supplies. Besides, I need them to know that ... if things go wrong, I want people to do something about it, not just stand and watch. Even if I'm the one having a bad idea that day," Steve said.
"Compiling now," JARVIS said. "Additional parameters, sir?"
"How many of those rags are in the pallet, and how many schools could we cover with that?" Tony asked.
"There are 40 long white boxes on the pallet, each of which can contain up to 300 comic books, for a total of 12,000. At 20 comic books per class, that would be 600 schools," JARVIS said.
"Okay, have the PR department bundle them that way, add the two reference books you suggested, and find somebody to draft a teacher's guide. Then peel off $6 million from my educational philanthropy fund and divide that among the schools to cover any incidental expenses. I'll leave it to you to figure out which schools would benefit the most from this project," Tony said. Then he looked at Agent Coulson. "Or do you need this crap for evidence?"
Agent Coulson hesitated. On the one hand, it would be useful, but they already had a roomful of evidence even if most of it now lay in pieces smaller than Steve could grip easily. On the other hand, they technically were not supposed to let alternate-dimension materials into the hands of the public. Then again, JARVIS had been explaining to him about "loss leaders," and Agent Coulson thought if they let people have something that was only a little dangerous, like a defamatory comic book, that might discourage them from trying to take extremely dangerous things like alien technology. At the same time, it would start teaching citizens how to think about and cope with complicated issues such as dimensional travel and HYDRA plots.
"Make it happen," Agent Coulson decided. He could bury the disposition of anti-Captain America comics in his report about Nick Spencer, and the Director would be too busy fuming over the personal issues to notice much else.
"What are we going to tell Director Fury?" asked Hawkeye.
Phil knew all about awful cousins. His mother had one drunken loser who never failed to insult their "broken home" and consequently was not welcome there. "I will tell him," said Agent Coulson, "that every family tree has some rotten fruit."
* * *
Notes:
Recently Marvel portrayed Steve Rogers as a HYDRA sleeper agent in this issue, which has caused considerable upset on political and personal grounds, with fans responding about how it has hurt them or their friends/families. Among the helpful tags in response to this outrage are #nickspencerishydra and #sayitaintso.
Earth-1218 is the Marvelverse code for our world.
Bullying involves many people in a circle of violence. It involves all kinds of personal attacks from the physical to verbal and identity abuse. Here is a slideshow about bullying. There are many resources to stop bullying and be an upstander. Finding usable references to stop someone from bullying you is difficult, as much of the advice is bad (ignoring the bully amounts to doing nothing which has a statistically insignificant 3% success rate) and the most effective response -- filing a lawsuit against the bully -- has a dismal 16% success rate.
Social stories are intended to provide explicit instructions for people with learning or social disabilities. Some of them are excellent. Others are terrible because they say things which are true of the neurotypical writers but NOT true of the intended audience of neurovariant readers. Social stories can also help English learners and others who find reading difficult, because they are customarily illustrated with vocabulary icons such as used on a speechboard. I figured they would be useful for Hulk in that regard. Social stories can introduce the concept of bullying, and explain how to stop a bully or stop being a bully. This one is more elaborate. Here is a video along the same lines. One of the interesting things about Hulk is that he is an emotional genius, not a linguistic genius, while Bruce is the opposite. Over the course of this series, Hulk is increasingly prone to give excellent emotional advice. In this case, he has decided that someone needs to hear it in ... very small words.
Book burning is a major red flag for tyranny, and the Nazis employed it, so logically HYDRA would too. Burning copies of Captain America because you don't like the portrayal of Cap as a HYDRA agent simply plays into enemy hands. Instead, fight back with good storytelling and literary analysis, because they hate that stuff. Hence this story.
The Aarne-Thompson Index includes volumes on plot and on motifs used in folktales and other literature. The Hero with a Thousand Faces is a famous analysis of different archetypes within the heroic character class. These are excellent references for anyone who wishes to pop the hood and study the mechanics of literature.
Comic books are often stored in long white boxes. One box holds 250-300 comics, depending on page count and whether or not they're bagged. This dealer mentioned stacking 40 boxes per pallet. So that's 12,000 comics per pallet. At 20 per class, one pallet would cover 600 schools. Plus Tony's ridiculously generous idea of funding to cover "incidentals."
Teacher's guides and lesson plans make a resource more valuable and easier to use. You can find these for the Holocaust and other controversial issues. Learn about character development, heroic traits, villainous traits, and how to create effective characters.
A loss leader is something cheap meant to benefit the company by influencing customer behavior. Most often, it is something sold below production cost to entice people into buying other things. But it can also refer to cheap junk set within easy reach so that people will steal it instead of taking more expensive items that are harder to reach, as many jewelry stores do.
The kibbutz movement is a type of intentional community in Jewish culture. Traditionally the children were raised and educated communally, and many o them enjoyed that camaraderie. This provides some insight on the value of equalizing educational investments. It seemed like something that would appeal to Steve Rogers, who grew up in an orphanage and had a Jewish mentor who helped him become a superhero.
EDIT 6/1/16: Knightinbrightfeathers has provided an additional perspective on kibbutzim. My exposure to them has been through the intentional community movement, which tends to feature those which are still focused on communal living are are doing well at that, and I figured that Steve would have tracked down those. Many others have changed from their origins and/or had further problems. So I am including this for a more complete picture:
"I just wanted to point out that kibbutzim have stopped communal education and housing. Most kibbutzim are private now, because of economical factors but also because the system was very flawed and given to corruption. Nowadays children who live in a kibbutz will go to a regional school, funded by the government and with the same syllabus and budget as any other public school. The unique educational system of the kibbutzim is now largely extinct. As a child to two parents who were both raised in a kibbutz, I can tell you that the amount of xenophobia and subtle class systems in them would be something Steve would hate. My dad came out of the communal living with a bunch of abandonment issues. He endured a lot of bullying, and nobody much welcomed the inclusion of an immigrant family. My mother has told me of the lax supervision children experienced, and the dangers this brought on, including cases of sexual assault. This is not to say that kibbutzim were without their good points. My mother has fond memories of her childhood. A lot of people chose to stay in the kibbutzim, which even now have a sense of community and provide a place for children to be more independent and experience something other than city life. Most kibbutzim are now privatized communities, aspects of which might still appeal to Steve, but nothing like the original kibbutzim built when Israel was new, with their spirit of pioneering, patriotism and love of the land. If Steve wants to donate to a Jewish organization, there are plenty of those, and plenty of universities that would happily teach a course on Erasure of Jewish Values from Popular Media or whatever strikes your fancy. I apologize for the essay. I don't like seeing Israel misrepresented, even if it is a positive misrepresentation."
Writing is powerful, both on a personal and a political level. Therefore writers and other intellectuals have a responsibility to use that power wisely, due to their influence on individuals and the wider culture. While people often think of power in terms of force, psychological and zoological studies indicate that more genteel methods are more effective. Here is a lesson plan about responsibility.
Now let's step over to another superhero famous for ethical considerations. Spiderman is known for the principle, "With great power comes great responsibility." Uncle Ben seems to mean the responsibility not to hurt people with it, especially if you are so massively overskilled that your opponent stands no chance; i.e. don't be a bully. Peter tends to interpret this as an obligation to go into crimefighting. Contrast this with supervillain standards. They don't care what other people need or want; they only care about what they want. The same applies to entertainers who don't care if they hurt people, just want to get their jollies, and if challenged will say "Who cares?" or "Just kidding," both markers for emotional abuse. The morality of superpowers raises questions because they threaten the status quo. But they also make us question whether the end justifies the means and how to handle the legal implications. Ordinary abilities raise similar issues when they operate on a larger scale, as with distribution of printed materials by a major publisher.
EDIT 5/31/16:
shiori_makiba has written two lovely poems that follow my story "Rotten Fruit." "A Good Man" shows Phil's musing about what makes a villain and what makes a hero, while waiting for rescue. "It Ain't So" features Tony helping to clean up the aftermath, in which he and Steve explain about bullies.EDIT 6-1-16: I have added a scene about Hulk reciting social stories, and a new reference to kibbutzim.
This story fills the "caught in the act" square in my 5-1-16 card for the Solo Celebration Bingo fest.
This story belongs to the series Love Is For Children which includes "Love Is for Children," "Hairpins," "Blended," "Am I Not," "Eggshells," "Dolls and Guys,""Saudades," "Querencia," "Turnabout Is Fair Play," "Touching Moments," "Splash," "Coming Around," "Birthday Girl," "No Winter Lasts Forever," "Hide and Seek," "Kernel Error," "Happy Hour," "Green Eggs and Hulk,""kintsukuroi," "Little and Broken, but Still Good," "Up the Water Spout," "The Life of the Dead," "If They Could Just Stay Little," "Anahata," "When the Wheels Come Off," "Against His Own Shield," "Coming in from the Cold: Saturday: Building Towers," "Coming in from the Cold: Sunday: Shaking Foundations," "Coming in from the Cold: Monday: Memorial Day," and "What Little Boys Are Made Of."
Fandom: The Avengers
Characters: Steve Rogers, Phil Coulson, Hulk, HYDRA!Nick Spencer, Nick Fury, Clint Barton, Tony Stark, JARVIS
Medium: Fiction
Warnings: Defamation. Betrayal. Anger management issues. Rebellion. Ethical dilemmas. RPF. #sayitaintso. #nickspencerishydra.
Summary: A more plausible explanation for that issue of Captain America in which Steve is portrayed as a HYDRA agent.
Notes: Heroism. Team as family. Competence. Friendship.
A note on feedback: While it's not necessary to comment on every post I make, remember that I don't know who reads/likes things if nobody says anything. Particularly on long stories, I've discovered that I get antsy if there's nothing but crickets chirping for several posts. So it helps to give me feedback at least once, even if it's just "I like this" or "This one doesn't grab me." First and last episodes are ideal if you rarely feel inspired to comment in the middle.
I also have a list of favorite photogenic scenes from the whole series for fanartists to consider, partly compiled from audience requests.
"Rotten Fruit"
Metal screeched and tore as Steve Rogers continued to dismantle the dimensional portal. He had long since dropped the shield and resorted to pulling it apart with his bare hands. It reminded Agent Coulson that Steve Rogers had been a very determined pint-sized hero before Captain America even existed. Periodically Steve would glare over his shoulder, flex his hands a few times, and then go back to pummeling the device with his fists.
In the opposite corner of the room, Hulk carefully folded another office chair into the makeshift cage he was using to hold Nick Spencer, a HYDRA sleeper agent. They had caught wind of him going from one dimension to another, methodically destroying the reputation of Captain America and the Avengers, then finally tracked him down in Earth-1218. Hulk grunted satisfaction with the containment, then began reciting social stories -- from memory -- about bullies and the importance of stopping them.
"Mean people are bullies," said Hulk. "Bullies say mean words. Bullies hurt people."
"Tell that to him!" Nick said, pointing at Steve.
Hulk snorted. "Know how to handle bully. Tell bully stop," he said. Then he leaned forward, close enough to breathe on Nick. "STOP. Say feelings. BAD. Tell grownup about bully." Hulk turned to look at Agent Coulson. "Bully picking on Steve."
"Thank you, Hulk," said Agent Coulson. "I'll make sure that Nick stops trying to get Steve in trouble." He was really looking forward to that part of the debriefing. Memories of surviving his own bullies in childhood made it very gratifying to deal with the ones he found in his current line of work. It was also encouraging to see how much was getting through to Hulk, from Game Night and other team activities, enough to give him more nuanced options than just smashing everything in sight.
Some of that must have gotten through to Steve, because he quit trying to tear the stub of a cable from the floor and turned around. "Thanks, big guy," he said. "I guess I still need a hand dealing with the bullies sometimes."
"What friends for," Hulk said, then went back to his story.
Nick Spencer did not seem to be enjoying the performance. His whole face twisted as if he tasted something sour.
Agent Coulson really did not look forward to telling Nick Fury that his cousin was compromised. The kid had been named after him, had grown up on stories of the Howling Commandos, joined SHIELD straight out of boot camp ... and now this? It was another punch in the trust issues that the Director did not need.
"What should we do with this ... garbage?" Hawkeye asked. One foot gave a pallet of comic books a disparaging kick. "I feel like I bit into an apple and found half a worm."
Agent Coulson looked away from the disturbing cover of Captain America holding a desperately wrong, triangular shield. His stomach lurched. He swallowed hard. "I don't know."
"Burn 'em," Tony said. He had taken off the Iron Man helmet and sweat slicked his dark hair against his skin.
"We can't burn books, Tony, that's a HYDRA tactic!" Steve protested. His voice hitched.
"Okay, okay, we'll think of something else," Tony said, waving his hands.
"If I may be of assistance?" JARVIS said, pitching his own voice through the Iron Man speakers.
"Yes, please," said Steve. He wiped a hand over his face.
"I recommend that you dispatch the offending materials to high school and college classes on literary analysis," said JARVIS. "You might like to target schools whose struggling budgets limit their access to suitable materials. Perhaps include copies of references such as the Aarne-Thompson Index and The Hero with a Thousand Faces to assist students in identifying heroic and unheroic motifs in literature. It is a useful life skill which also carries over into identifying trustworthy and untrustworthy individuals in politics or personal life."
"Thanks, JARVIS, that sounds fantastic," Steve said.
"It is a sound strategy to evade an enemy's attack and strike back directly at his core purpose," JARVIS said.
"Yeah. Hey, can we send some to the kibbutzim on my charity list? They're always scrounging for more supplies. Besides, I need them to know that ... if things go wrong, I want people to do something about it, not just stand and watch. Even if I'm the one having a bad idea that day," Steve said.
"Compiling now," JARVIS said. "Additional parameters, sir?"
"How many of those rags are in the pallet, and how many schools could we cover with that?" Tony asked.
"There are 40 long white boxes on the pallet, each of which can contain up to 300 comic books, for a total of 12,000. At 20 comic books per class, that would be 600 schools," JARVIS said.
"Okay, have the PR department bundle them that way, add the two reference books you suggested, and find somebody to draft a teacher's guide. Then peel off $6 million from my educational philanthropy fund and divide that among the schools to cover any incidental expenses. I'll leave it to you to figure out which schools would benefit the most from this project," Tony said. Then he looked at Agent Coulson. "Or do you need this crap for evidence?"
Agent Coulson hesitated. On the one hand, it would be useful, but they already had a roomful of evidence even if most of it now lay in pieces smaller than Steve could grip easily. On the other hand, they technically were not supposed to let alternate-dimension materials into the hands of the public. Then again, JARVIS had been explaining to him about "loss leaders," and Agent Coulson thought if they let people have something that was only a little dangerous, like a defamatory comic book, that might discourage them from trying to take extremely dangerous things like alien technology. At the same time, it would start teaching citizens how to think about and cope with complicated issues such as dimensional travel and HYDRA plots.
"Make it happen," Agent Coulson decided. He could bury the disposition of anti-Captain America comics in his report about Nick Spencer, and the Director would be too busy fuming over the personal issues to notice much else.
"What are we going to tell Director Fury?" asked Hawkeye.
Phil knew all about awful cousins. His mother had one drunken loser who never failed to insult their "broken home" and consequently was not welcome there. "I will tell him," said Agent Coulson, "that every family tree has some rotten fruit."
* * *
Notes:
Recently Marvel portrayed Steve Rogers as a HYDRA sleeper agent in this issue, which has caused considerable upset on political and personal grounds, with fans responding about how it has hurt them or their friends/families. Among the helpful tags in response to this outrage are #nickspencerishydra and #sayitaintso.
Earth-1218 is the Marvelverse code for our world.
Bullying involves many people in a circle of violence. It involves all kinds of personal attacks from the physical to verbal and identity abuse. Here is a slideshow about bullying. There are many resources to stop bullying and be an upstander. Finding usable references to stop someone from bullying you is difficult, as much of the advice is bad (ignoring the bully amounts to doing nothing which has a statistically insignificant 3% success rate) and the most effective response -- filing a lawsuit against the bully -- has a dismal 16% success rate.
Social stories are intended to provide explicit instructions for people with learning or social disabilities. Some of them are excellent. Others are terrible because they say things which are true of the neurotypical writers but NOT true of the intended audience of neurovariant readers. Social stories can also help English learners and others who find reading difficult, because they are customarily illustrated with vocabulary icons such as used on a speechboard. I figured they would be useful for Hulk in that regard. Social stories can introduce the concept of bullying, and explain how to stop a bully or stop being a bully. This one is more elaborate. Here is a video along the same lines. One of the interesting things about Hulk is that he is an emotional genius, not a linguistic genius, while Bruce is the opposite. Over the course of this series, Hulk is increasingly prone to give excellent emotional advice. In this case, he has decided that someone needs to hear it in ... very small words.
Book burning is a major red flag for tyranny, and the Nazis employed it, so logically HYDRA would too. Burning copies of Captain America because you don't like the portrayal of Cap as a HYDRA agent simply plays into enemy hands. Instead, fight back with good storytelling and literary analysis, because they hate that stuff. Hence this story.
The Aarne-Thompson Index includes volumes on plot and on motifs used in folktales and other literature. The Hero with a Thousand Faces is a famous analysis of different archetypes within the heroic character class. These are excellent references for anyone who wishes to pop the hood and study the mechanics of literature.
Comic books are often stored in long white boxes. One box holds 250-300 comics, depending on page count and whether or not they're bagged. This dealer mentioned stacking 40 boxes per pallet. So that's 12,000 comics per pallet. At 20 per class, one pallet would cover 600 schools. Plus Tony's ridiculously generous idea of funding to cover "incidentals."
Teacher's guides and lesson plans make a resource more valuable and easier to use. You can find these for the Holocaust and other controversial issues. Learn about character development, heroic traits, villainous traits, and how to create effective characters.
A loss leader is something cheap meant to benefit the company by influencing customer behavior. Most often, it is something sold below production cost to entice people into buying other things. But it can also refer to cheap junk set within easy reach so that people will steal it instead of taking more expensive items that are harder to reach, as many jewelry stores do.
The kibbutz movement is a type of intentional community in Jewish culture. Traditionally the children were raised and educated communally, and many o them enjoyed that camaraderie. This provides some insight on the value of equalizing educational investments. It seemed like something that would appeal to Steve Rogers, who grew up in an orphanage and had a Jewish mentor who helped him become a superhero.
EDIT 6/1/16: Knightinbrightfeathers has provided an additional perspective on kibbutzim. My exposure to them has been through the intentional community movement, which tends to feature those which are still focused on communal living are are doing well at that, and I figured that Steve would have tracked down those. Many others have changed from their origins and/or had further problems. So I am including this for a more complete picture:
"I just wanted to point out that kibbutzim have stopped communal education and housing. Most kibbutzim are private now, because of economical factors but also because the system was very flawed and given to corruption. Nowadays children who live in a kibbutz will go to a regional school, funded by the government and with the same syllabus and budget as any other public school. The unique educational system of the kibbutzim is now largely extinct. As a child to two parents who were both raised in a kibbutz, I can tell you that the amount of xenophobia and subtle class systems in them would be something Steve would hate. My dad came out of the communal living with a bunch of abandonment issues. He endured a lot of bullying, and nobody much welcomed the inclusion of an immigrant family. My mother has told me of the lax supervision children experienced, and the dangers this brought on, including cases of sexual assault. This is not to say that kibbutzim were without their good points. My mother has fond memories of her childhood. A lot of people chose to stay in the kibbutzim, which even now have a sense of community and provide a place for children to be more independent and experience something other than city life. Most kibbutzim are now privatized communities, aspects of which might still appeal to Steve, but nothing like the original kibbutzim built when Israel was new, with their spirit of pioneering, patriotism and love of the land. If Steve wants to donate to a Jewish organization, there are plenty of those, and plenty of universities that would happily teach a course on Erasure of Jewish Values from Popular Media or whatever strikes your fancy. I apologize for the essay. I don't like seeing Israel misrepresented, even if it is a positive misrepresentation."
Writing is powerful, both on a personal and a political level. Therefore writers and other intellectuals have a responsibility to use that power wisely, due to their influence on individuals and the wider culture. While people often think of power in terms of force, psychological and zoological studies indicate that more genteel methods are more effective. Here is a lesson plan about responsibility.
Now let's step over to another superhero famous for ethical considerations. Spiderman is known for the principle, "With great power comes great responsibility." Uncle Ben seems to mean the responsibility not to hurt people with it, especially if you are so massively overskilled that your opponent stands no chance; i.e. don't be a bully. Peter tends to interpret this as an obligation to go into crimefighting. Contrast this with supervillain standards. They don't care what other people need or want; they only care about what they want. The same applies to entertainers who don't care if they hurt people, just want to get their jollies, and if challenged will say "Who cares?" or "Just kidding," both markers for emotional abuse. The morality of superpowers raises questions because they threaten the status quo. But they also make us question whether the end justifies the means and how to handle the legal implications. Ordinary abilities raise similar issues when they operate on a larger scale, as with distribution of printed materials by a major publisher.
Re: Thank you!
Date: 2016-06-03 05:01 am (UTC)I have read all of the Shiv and the Stan/Lawrence poems. I now intend to reread again for detailed feedback on at least some, and possibly for ideas of what seems wrong and what might help, and I will send my thoughts your way.
Re: Thank you!
Date: 2016-06-03 05:11 am (UTC)Okay.
>>I have read all of the Shiv and the Stan/Lawrence poems. I now intend to reread again for detailed feedback on at least some, and possibly for ideas of what seems wrong and what might help, and I will send my thoughts your way.<<
*gleeeeeee*
There are many poems still unpublished in Shiv's series, so some of his development has gone farther than what's currently visible. Poor boy has a long way to go, though.
Re: Thank You
Date: 2016-06-03 11:56 am (UTC)(When I saw that linked picture I was so "and lo I'd been thinking someone should do this")
Re: YES
Date: 2016-06-03 12:14 pm (UTC)"I'm following that punk from Brooklyn"
Re: Thank You
Date: 2016-06-03 05:55 pm (UTC)Re: This morning
Date: 2016-06-04 05:13 am (UTC)Re: Thank You
Date: 2016-06-04 05:18 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2016-06-04 06:29 am (UTC)And "$6 million". That didn't hit me till the second reading.
The icon is pretty blurred because of the degree of reduction. It's from Deuteronomy 16:20: Justice, justice you shall pursue. (by & © Michael Noyes, http://www.michaelnoyes.com/images/products/product_45_copyright.png; used by permission)
Thoughts
Date: 2016-06-04 08:03 am (UTC)You're welcome.
>> For myself, thanks especially for the valuable debunking of the idealized, simplified view of the original kibbutzim in the halcyon days of the halutzim.<<
I was interested to see how far the "average" has shifted, since the ones I mostly read about have been more refined versions of the orginal, much as the other intentional communities today are more refined versions of earlier communes.
>> And "$6 million". That didn't hit me till the second reading. <<
:D Tony's idea of reasonable spending money is a little off the beaten path.
>> The icon is pretty blurred because of the degree of reduction. It's from Deuteronomy 16:20: Justice, justice you shall pursue. (by & © Michael Noyes, http://www.michaelnoyes.com/images/products/product_45_copyright.png; used by permission) <<
That is beautiful. I am fascinated by the red-and-blue ink. It looks like some kind of resist?
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2016-06-04 09:11 am (UTC):D Tony's idea of reasonable spending money is a little off the beaten path.»
I don't mean it's a lot. Six million? The size of the Holocaust. Tony's idea is beautifully meaningful, even if it was unconscious for you.
«That is beautiful. I am fascinated by the red-and-blue ink. It looks like some kind of resist?»
I have no idea. You might find out on his website
Re: Thank you!
Date: 2016-06-04 04:22 pm (UTC)I don't know how I missed this on the first pass, but I'm glad you had a chance to make it better before I did. It does add to it. Sharing the fuck out of this... tag line, "And lo, it has become canon."
Re: YES
Date: 2016-06-04 04:24 pm (UTC)I feel like I should know you... we've got a number of people in common.
(no subject)
Date: 2016-06-04 04:31 pm (UTC)Re: Thoughts
Date: 2016-06-04 04:34 pm (UTC)Re: Thoughts
Date: 2016-06-04 05:47 pm (UTC)>> So he's starting to reflect them back, and yes, it freaks people out. <<
The Hulk has him completely outclassed on morality and empathy, with kinder-age speech about it, and he is the freaking Hulk - bigger and stronger and tougher than anybody. Shaking in his boots is an understatement.
Re: YES
Date: 2016-06-04 05:52 pm (UTC)Not sure if this is addressed to me or not but just in case...
All the people I know on DW I met online on DW although I hope to eventually meet some of them face to face if they like. I am happy to get to know people online. While I can't guarantee that I won't eventually turn into a hermit because of my personal brain issues, I can't guarantee that for people I know in meatspace either. I can guarantee that I never intentionally try to be nasty to people who choose to hang out together with me. I like fandom and I like reading and writing and I want us to be able to have nice things.
I actually got here via fanfic and specifically following the LIFC storyline.
(no subject)
Date: 2016-06-04 05:57 pm (UTC)You people are what I am talking about when I explain to people that, no, online conversations can be positive and non-scary. You just need reasonable, inclusive social norms and exploration of differences and common interests and people actually moderating things and well-written technological support for those things ... you know, all the work people want everyone ELSE to put into their social spaces. Oh, and not demonizing useful things because a distorted snapshot of one aspect of them has escaped into the mentality of the general public (e.g. content warnings). People can actually care about talking to each other and telling good stories. Wow. Newsflash, straight from the prehistoric campfire, now on your glowy hypnotic screen of choice.
Re: Thank you!
Date: 2016-06-04 06:12 pm (UTC)Thank you!
Date: 2016-06-04 06:18 pm (UTC)I'm glad you liked this.
>> And a comments section every bit as good as Scalzi... nay, better, because every one of you lot is not just smart <<
:D I've put a lot of work into developing a good audience, and it sure has paid off.
>> but deliciously crazy, each in your own inimitable way. "The best ones are always 'round the bend." -- Alice <<
"It is no great measure of good health to be well-adjusted to a profoundly sick society."
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2016-06-04 06:34 pm (UTC)Hulk has most people outclassed on those, except for Steve.
>> and he is the freaking Hulk - bigger and stronger and tougher than anybody. Shaking in his boots is an understatement. <<
:D It couldn't have happened to a more deserving doodyhead.
Re: YES
Date: 2016-06-04 06:37 pm (UTC)Thoughts
Date: 2016-06-04 08:00 pm (UTC)\o/
>> You just need reasonable, inclusive social norms and exploration of differences and common interests and people actually moderating things and well-written technological support for those things ... you know, all the work people want everyone ELSE to put into their social spaces.<<
Building a good audience is work, but it is so rewarding. This is one reason why I prefer the blogosphere to social networks like Twitter: not just more room to talk, but much better moderation tools.
>> Oh, and not demonizing useful things because a distorted snapshot of one aspect of them has escaped into the mentality of the general public (e.g. content warnings). <<
Agreed.
>> People can actually care about talking to each other and telling good stories. Wow. Newsflash, straight from the prehistoric campfire, now on your glowy hypnotic screen of choice. <<
:D I love campfire circles too, and see the similarity here.
So then, think about blog metaphors. Where are you, when you are in your blog? Do you think of it as a party, a street fair, a class under a tree, hanging out with friends in a coffeeshop? I think of mine as a cross between my office and my living room (which are actually adjacent in my house) because I post a combination of professional and personal content.
Blog metaphors influence how we behave in blogspace. The etiquette is different for a street fair, a classroom, or somebody's house. Your campfire circle is another example, and a great one for storytellers. Plenty of blogs exist primarily to promote someone's writing.
Re: YES
Date: 2016-06-05 12:50 am (UTC)I got here-in-specific via
Re: YES
Date: 2016-06-05 01:08 am (UTC)Re: Thoughts
Date: 2016-06-05 01:54 am (UTC)