New verses in "Only If It Is Embraced"

[ysabetwordsmith]

Thanks to a donation from daisiesrockalot and curiosity, there are 40 new verses in "Only If It Is Embraced."   It features a hilarious culture clash between Pain's Gray and one of the cops.

Comments

[technoshaman]

Wow. You are not only selling out of poetry, you are CRUSHING it with the microfunding!

Yes ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

That was an awesome extra. :D

[technoshaman]

Bad cop. NO DONUT. <3 <3 *SQUISH* (and that is WHY you are crushing it.)

Yes ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

I laughed my ass off when Gray did that.

Thing is, he makes some very salient points: Cultures do differ, and if you act like a dick then people won't want to share their goodies with you. Gray's response to Artie's misbehavior was mild but conspicuous. And the supervisor cared more about keeping their hard-to-find combat medic than about letting an average cop get away with misbehavior.

Re: Yes ...

[technoshaman]

Mmmmm, clinical-grade glaze. *drool* *slobber* *grabs handy napkin stash*

That's the other thing. I *know* you're a milk chocolate lady... but you're not _limited_ to that POV... *chuckles* Now I need a chocolate fix. And it might be just a little bit *wahm* in heah.

Re: Yes ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> Mmmmm, clinical-grade glaze. *drool* *slobber* *grabs handy napkin stash* <<

It does work, by the way. The quality of a chocolate glaze, icing, sauce, etc. comes directly from the quality of the ingredients. If you make it with grass-fed cream and 80% cacao organic chocolate, you will totally taste the difference. Don't be fooled by idiots telling you not to "waste" the good chocolate on sauce.

>> That's the other thing. I *know* you're a milk chocolate lady... but you're not _limited_ to that POV... <<

Yeah, I can appreciate the others even if it's not my personal favorite. Dark chocolate just has to be really good to appeal to me.

>> *chuckles* Now I need a chocolate fix. And it might be just a little bit *wahm* in heah. <<

LOL yes, that Gray is HAWT.

Re: Yes ...

[technoshaman]

LOL yes, that Gray is HAWT.

And whose "fault"[sic] is that?! ;)

Re: Yes ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

Ricasso's? :D He taught Gray a lot of the elegance and competence. The physique ... is up to Gray's parents.

I just ogle from afar.

[siliconshaman]

*snickering*

Now, if only we could do that IRL with some L-space cops I can think of.. it might seem like a small thing, but can you imagine if every doughnut & coffee shop in a locale has a list of cops not to serve?!

Want to bet that would grind them down pretty quick?

Well ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

It's replicable. Anyone who brings treats to any event can choose to withhold a share from anyone who acts like an asshole before the treat is in the asshole's hand. I've done it. Granted, it really pisses people off, not necessarily just the person who got shorted. People usually use either kindergarten rules or dominance rules. But legally speaking, your property is yours until you explicitly give it away. Artie argues that putting out donuts makes them public property. Gray argues that this step merely makes them available and people accept the offer by picking one up. So the threshold of denial is different in those two cases. And that's exactly the kind of argument this move starts.

I do it anyway, because I dislike assholes more than I care about social approval. Usually someone tags along behind me to say, "Thanks for standing up to him."

With regards to donut shops, the principle there is that any establishment can deny service to a customer who misbehaves. (Not, for contrast, who is black or is gay. Action, not nature.) So if cop harasses the clerk, she absolutely has a right to put him on a "do not serve" list, same as for writing a bad check. If the whole department is rotten, some-several cops along, it becomes justifiable to ban the whole department (but not cops in general) the same as certain frat houses get banned from ordering pizza because none of the drivers will go there anymore due to past mishaps.

In the case of a business, it would be advisable to have a written policy, a security camera, and a lawyer. The police will tend to target you for further harassment if you try to enforce standards of human decency on them. If they were decent, they wouldn't be acting like assholes and getting banned in the first place. But if you have video of Officer Asshat's hand on your employee's boob, it will be a lot harder for them to get away with legal harassment. Especially if you publish the video, which you can do since it is your property.

You can see why police beat people for aiming cameras at them.

Re: Well ...

[siliconshaman]

Hmm.. yeah I hadn't thought that all the way through. The police will retaliate, same as any other gang would. Problem is, the current administration is really pushing the idea that you're not allowed to film cops, for any reason, or any other kind of federal/public building.. for "security" reasons. So that gives them a fig leaf of legal justification to demand you not make their bad behaviour public.

and without the court of public appeal, anyone trying to stand up to them is going to have a bad day...

Still, it was a thought, given the way the Rethuglians & assorted bigots are trying to make it legal to refuse to serve certain classes of people, to turn that very thing against them and see how they like it.

Re: Well ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> Hmm.. yeah I hadn't thought that all the way through. The police will retaliate, same as any other gang would.<<

Always ask what could go wrong with a plan. Then account for it.

>> Problem is, the current administration is really pushing the idea that you're not allowed to film cops, for any reason, or any other kind of federal/public building.. for "security" reasons. So that gives them a fig leaf of legal justification to demand you not make their bad behaviour public.<<

That's because they're cockroaches, who don't like the light.

Since we live in an age of minicams and cell phones, it's a bit late to put that genie back in the bottle. If filming something openly is too risky, do so secretly. Any citizen can use a button cam to film scurrilous activity. If the law will not condemn said activity, refer to the court of public opinion by posting it online. This might not help the coffeeshop in its case to refuse service to abusers, but it certainly alerts the citizens which cops to stay away from.

>> and without the court of public appeal, anyone trying to stand up to them is going to have a bad day... <<

Unless money. If enough citizens object, they can fund an effective fight. Especially if a lawyer volunteers to help.

>> Still, it was a thought, given the way the Rethuglians & assorted bigots are trying to make it legal to refuse to serve certain classes of people, to turn that very thing against them and see how they like it. <<

Remember that it's not about law or morality but about power. They will always see themselves as right and others as wrong, no matter how contradictory it is. It's like dealing with a chaotic neutral party member, who always argues to their own advantage.