cannoli-reader

[cannoli-reader]

"There is a technical term for someone who confuses the opinions of a character in a book with those of the author. That term is 'idiot'.

-- S.M. Stirling

There are also a number of instances in the series, where gender stereotypes are disproved or demonstrated to have exceptions in the same book where they are expressed, such as the relationship axioms and advice of Marin al'Vere in "The Shadow Rising", and her daughter's prejudice about male gossip in "The Path of Daggers." Also, sometimes its pretty clear that the character expressing gender essentialist ideas doesn't actually believe them, such as Thom's infamous "Men forget but never forgive, and women forgive but never forget," in "The Dragon Reborn." It is absolutely certain that Thom has not forgotten the conflict between him and Morgase, but also that he has forgiven her part in it. A couple books later, when we get into her stream of conscious, Morgase doesn't seem very much like she's forgiven him at all.

Sometimes an old man just doesn't want to bother with explaining all the complicated feelings and nuances of an old relationship to a 20 year old dumbass, so he gives him some wise-sounding mumbo jumbo to shut him up.

I don’t understand at all why people think the Wheel of Time series is sexist. From the very beginning I could see that it’s a criticism of the whole “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus” way of thinking. It’s always brought up in ways that are obviously stemming solely from a character’s upbringing and society, not at all of any natural law.

Character flaws are not writer flaws, guys.

[cannoli-reader]

Mike Ehrmantraut is full of shit, of course.

What Mike is actually saying is "If you had just let Jesse Pinkman die at the hands of my poorly-supervised street dealer, or allowed me to kill him for killing those child-murdering dealers, or had the good grace to die at the hands of Gus and me, instead of forcing us to allow Jesse to live, I would need to blame someone else for my inability to protect the guilt-money I intend to give to my granddaughter, because my corruption as a police officer got her father killed."

His whining is particularly galling coming after two seasons of posturing as Jesse's best friend and guardian angel, and constantly acting as if he is the only one looking out for Jesse, while Walt is just going to get him killed.

When one of the core themes in the story is that everyone playing the game is dirty, no one has room to make the Ehrmantraut castigation.

I was watching Breaking Bad just now and I saw this bit where Mike flips on Walter and tells him "If you had done your job and known your place, we'd all be fine right now!"

And I'm astonished to realize how many characters in ASOIAF that applies to.

When one of the core themes in the book are the petty ambitions and machinations in pursuit of power, the Ehramtraut Castigation is definitely going to apply.

Thanks for the remark, Alt.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[cannoli-reader]

not anti porn in a "muh dick don't work no more" way or in a "these fucking whores are ruining this generation of good christian men" way but in a "i think women are human beings" way

[cannoli-reader]

You know what buggs me so much about the wot show? Well, everything but right now is that had them do things right it would have been great, I mean this being "another turn of the Wheel" where the ef5 react differently to Rand being able to channel, where they "feel" like they should help Rand from the very get go, not ostracizing him like the did in the books? Because they unconsciously regret what they did in their past life?

Except it doesn't work. That idea even if well executed is good for a fanfic or for a franchise that has long been well know in mass culture, like Batman, Superman or even LOTR.

That idea (and veeeeryyyyy badly executed like the wot show) just turn The Wheel of Time in another generic fantasy story out of the mill. Rand says it himself "In the tales usually someone would just point at the Hero and say "Behold!" and then it was just dealing with the bad guys, in real life things were more complicated"

What sets The Wheel of Time apart from those stories is that the moment Rand is recognized as The Chosen he is ostracized from the get go by his closest circle, it's Egwene avoiding him, Nynaeve looking him weird, is Mat and Perrin questioning if they should be near him, call him dangerous. (And then is him being left alone to people who want to use him)

The very figure of the Chosen is interlinked with the antichrist here. Is Jesus and the Antichrist in one person.

And that gaze, that Pygmalion gaze is what leads to one of the most interesting questions that permeates the whole series. Is he really mad? Or is the way we perceive him (the men who can channel) what drives them mad? How much can you blame the taint in their madness and how much can you blame yourself (and the society, the world) on it. Is he really mad or do we perceive his actions as madness because of this one condition that makes him "different"?

And what is worse (and here is my future professional mental health worker talking) the show puts ALL THE BLAME ON HIM. They show him isolating just because, not as a reaction of their mistreatmen (like yeah, he resolved to leave them for their safety, but he couldn't bring himself to do it because of how much he loved them) , they show him BEATING UP PEOPLE out of nowhere (even if that fucker deserved it). Yeah, great portrayal of mentally ill people guys.... years working against the stigma that mentally ill people are inherently dangerous to see this crap. Arghhh I still remember when they promoted the show with the portrayal of mental illness as one of their flags 🤦🤦🤦🤦

But well, circling back to that first idea that'll have been so easy to make. Dedicate just one episode to flashbacks that point to the same scenes in the books, maybe they could be in the form of dreams (or the flicker scene) and the ef5 waking up and being upset about it, feeling bad about how reacted in dreams (this could even be a resource for the whole series, make the viewer curious about what's going on with "that parallel world" we are seeing) . They wouldn't know but we will. It'll be a nod to us from the producers "we hear you"

But yikes, that's much asking I guess, the writing quality is so minimal I can't expect anything is planned here 🤷

[cannoli-reader]

Actual Conclusion: Brandon Sanderson is a hack. He had an idea, he's going to make sure you notice his idea, and he's going to run that idea into the ground, and fuck whether or not it is in character for anyone involved. Or true.

Regarding Rand's claim, he IS still extremely young, physically speaking, and even in terms of lifespan, since Cadsuane is old and has lived a full life cycle by her standards, while Lews Therin was still in the prime of his life and had not faced his inevitable mortality in the same way Cadsuane or any other person near the end of their natural span has. So "boy" works.

Also, there is no evidence that they called it "raised" in the Age of Legends, and given their society's emphasis on service and self-abnegation, it's highly unlikely they would have used that verb to describe becoming an Aes Sedai. Furthermore, the man who saved with the world with the help of a group of young punk upstarts, would not be making such a fuss about seniority.

And Cadsuane would not be impressed by his claim of seniority, anymore than by his greater strength in the Power, because she isn't impressed by the superficial characteristics people use to claim superior status.

Then there is the confrontation with Tuon. There is not one word in the books suggesting that Rand's status as Dragon Reborn entitles him to superior royal claims, and considerable pushback against him wielding any authority outside of the conflict against the Shadow or what devolves upon him by the modern standards of law and transfer of power, to whit, election to a crown by the governing body or conquest and submission.

If Rand wants to make a claim based on his being Lews Therin, A. he died. Pretty sure there is nothing in the legal code of the AoL about inheritances and transfers of authority reverting if the dead person becomes alive again. If Rand wants to claim shit based on being Lews Therin, he is in three illicit relationships, because you are not morally single if you murder your spouse. Because he murdered Ilyena, however legally in the clear he might be, by reason of insanity, Rand is still under obligation as a married man. And since he kicked off the breaking, he effectively ended the civil state through which he claims his lawful authority and invalidated it himself.

Like Cadsuane, Tuon would not be impressed or buckle before these claims, and would argue back, hard. Just like she would have done against Egwene's spurious claims regarding the Seanchan occupation of the Sea Folk isles.

In Towers of Midnight and A Memory of Light Rand did the same thing 3 times with 3 different people.

Case #1

Cadsuane: Well, boy. You…

Rand: Are you ever going to give up that affectation, Cadsuane Sedai? Calling me a boy? I no longer mind, though it does feel old. I was four hundred years old on the day I died during the Age of Legends. I suspect that would make you my junior by several decades at the least. I show you respect, perhaps it would be appropriate for you to return it. If you wish you may call me Rand Sedai. I am, so far as I know, the only male Aes Sedai still alive who was properly raised but who never turned to the shadow.

Cadsuane: *pales visibly*

———————————–

Case #2

Rand: How do you claim rights to these lands?

Tuon: By being the only legitimate heir of Artur Hawkwing. This is his empire. He is the only one to have unified it, he is the only leader to have ruled it in glory and greatness.

Rand: You accept me as the Dragon Reborn?

Tuon: You must be…

Rand: Then you accept me for who I am, I am Lews Therin Telamon, the Dragon. I ruled these lands, unified, during the Age of Legends. I was leader of all the armies of the Light, I wore the Ring of Tamyrlin. I stood first among the Servants, highest of the Aes Sedai, and I could summon the Nine Rods of Dominion. I held the loyalty and fealty of all seventeen Generals of Dawn’s Gate. Fortuona Athaem Devi Paendrag, my authority supersedes your own!

Tuon: *backs away* *eyes widen* *face becomes full of horror*

———————————–

Case #3

Moiraine: You have grown so much, but you are still just a youth, are you not?

Rand: *gets angry but instead of acting out decides to use his cool new thing on Moiraine*

Rand: Perhaps I am still a youth, in that all of us are, compared to the timeless age of the Wheel itself. That said, I am one of the oldest people in existence.

Moiraine: *smiles* Very nice. Does that work on the others?

———————————–

Conclusion: Moiraine is the badassest badass in the history of badassary.

[cannoli-reader]

It's objectively hilarious that Disney has decided to respond to accusations of real world evil by making the latest shows in their acquired IPs, the MCU & Star Wars, both depicting and endorsing inexcusably evil protagonists.

This is not accidental writing incompetence depicting evil, such as Amazon's fantasy adaptations making Moiraine, Siuan, Galadriel and the Harfoots evil without realizing that's what they were putting on the screen, or leaving things sufficiently open to interpretation that fan canons, like the Harfoots being Darwinistic cannibals, are not contradicted by the released material.

This is definitely not Breaking Bad, or Dexter, or The Sopranos, which depict evil protagonists and have them succeed in their stories by committing evil actions, but which also emphasize the evil of their actions through the manner of the depiction, and highlighting the harm they do and the effect their actions have on others.

These shows just casually portray people committing unjustified, unprovoked, and even unmotivated murder, and their shallow, uncritical dipshit fan base laps it up.

This is why people think Rings of Power and Wheel of Time on Amazon are good, because they clear this horrifically low bar.

objectively hilarious that they chose the dynamic of agatha and rio to have agatha holding the power AND wanting rio to leave her the fuck alone because it couldve so easily been a "i am killing all these people to forcefully get the attention of the cold distant force of death that i am in love with" but it is instead "killing is my most favorite hobby ever, only downside is that it constantly reveals my location to my bitch ex wife who keeps begging me to get back together"

[cannoli-reader]

Apropos of nothing, but what does it say that most of the women who call him that actively pursued a romantic relationship with him at some point?

rand al’thor is a woolhead pass it on

[cannoli-reader]

I think that's a better answer for administrations, rather than presidents, which can never be answered, because we have no idea about the extent to which Biden was actually involved with any of the organization, direction or appointments done in his name.

Was Joe Biden a worse president than Jimmy Carter?

Inflation was 9.9% under Jimmy Carter, saw a high-profile military failure in Operation Eagle Claw, and badly mismanaged his Cabinet. Under pretty much every measure, Jimmy Carter was objectively worse.

Thanks for the question, Cle-Guy.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[cannoli-reader]

Include the Conan books!

“My daughter recently said she was upset because she wanted to have had a chance to get to know Great-Uncle James. I told her when she was ready, I would read the books to her and she would get to know everything about him. Everything he was is in those books.”

— Rey Rigney (Robert Jordan(James Rigney)’s nephew.)

[cannoli-reader]

How is she letting this color her behavior? The only thing she is doing that might possibly be considered letting irritation color her behavior is threatening to send Nynaeve and Min home, but that's part of the mission. If you can't follow orders, if you can't stick to the plans, if you're going to argue instead of making useful contributions, you should be sent home, instead of being taken along to interfere, or undercut the mission. Remember, the whole reason she is doing this is for Rand's own good. She has promised, and by the Three Oaths, has to keep that promise, that whatever she does will be for his good and no one else's, specifically not hers or the White Tower's. Cadsuane is threatening to boot them off the mission, because she thinks they might be interfering in what's best for Rand.

And from Cadsuane's perspective, she's not wrong to think that. Nynaeve went along with Rand, and helped him with the Power, despite the knowledge of the detection systems that Far Madding possesses, which Cadsuane herself warned her about. The last time Rand was in danger and Cadsuane & Min were present, Min shoved her away from a wounded Rand then screamed "Heal him" at her. Min does not cope super-well with threats to Rand, and Cadsuane knows it. What's more, she was the one who talked Min down last time and handled the situation. Based on her experience, not necessarily her near 300 years as an Aes Sedai and innumerable adventures, but just what she has seen of these particular people, Nynaeve and Min are very much Part of the Problem, and they very much need to be kept under control and on-mission if things are going to work out as they want. Getting into the Hall of the Consuls, and Nynaeve suddenly deciding to pick a fight and force them to release Rand, or Min breaking down in hysterics again, could undermine her bargaining position and set back her efforts to free him. And from what Min is telling her via the Warder bond (the fact that Min is babbling this information further supports the question of her judgement. What she is telling Cadsuane & anyone else in earshot can't really help Rand, and does nothing other than expose the existence of the link between them, which is, for the most part, a dangerous vulnerability for all four of them, as well as a potential problem for her BFF down the road), the longer Rand is a captive, the worse his mental health will be deteriorating.

This is NOT a question of Cadsuane failing to understand mentorship, or being too removed from youth thanks to her ivory Tower experience. Rather, this is a case of the mission coming first, and thank the Light that she's on the case. Nynaeve & Min's self-esteem is very much a problem here, and bolstering it should not remotely be the priority of Cadsuane. And no, I don't think the Wise Ones would have seen the situation one bit differently. They have exactly zero margin of tolerance for apprentices fucking around and messing up important things and are as quick, if not quicker than, sisters to tell their pupils to shut up and sit quietly. Given their ethos of deferring to the one of their number with the most experience in the situation at hand, Amys or Bair or Sorilea, had she been present, would have been taking Nynaeve or Min by the ear and telling them to behave and obey Cadsuane or else.

““I can do this without either of you, if need be,” she said firmly. “No; don’t say anything, Nynaeve. Merise or Corele can wear that belt as well as you. So if you children do not stop whining, I will have Alivia take you back to the Heights and give you something to whine about.” That was the only reason she had brought the strange wilder. Alivia had a tendency to become very mild-mannered around those she could not stare down, but she stared very fiercely at those two chattering magpies. Their heads swivelled toward the golden-haired woman as one, and the magpies fell blessedly silent. Silent, yet hardly accepting. Min could grind her teeth all she wanted, but Nynaeve’s sullen glower irritated Cadsuane. The girl had good material in her, but her training had been cut far too short. Her ability with Healing was little short of miraculous, her ability with almost anything else dismal. And she had not been put through the lessons that what must be endured, could be endured. In truth, Cadsuane sympathised with her. Somewhat. It was a lesson not everyone could learn in the Tower. She herself, full of pride in her new shawl and her own strength, had been taught by a near toothless wilder at a farm in the heart of the Black Hills.”

—

Winter’s Heart,  chapter 34 “The Hummingbird’s Secret”.

I really like the way Robert Jordan varied the metaphors and turns of phrase he used, depending on the POV character. Cadsuane’s description of Min and Nynaeve as “magpies” is a good example of that. From Cadsuane’s perspective, the younger women are so much younger than she is, they’re practically children, and their commentary is as helpful as the twittering of birds.

I think this is one area where the Wise Ones definitely worked things out better than the Aes Sedai - they’re not only allowed to keep in close contact with their relatives, they’re encouraged to have families of their own. They have greater opportunity to develop personal relationships with young people and be involved in the day-to-day lives of their community. Of course some Aes Sedai teach and mentor novices/Accepted/younger Aes Sedai, but that’s limited to a very specific type of relationship with younger women who are following a very specific path, and it’s possible to avoid that. Wise Ones are much less likely, I suspect, to be approaching their 300th birthday and have forgotten what it is like to be young.

Cadsuane obviously remembers somewhat, but not enough to be very sympathetic or patient. And while I recognise that she’s frustrated because she sees that Nynaeve has the potential to be so much better than she is now, it’s not Nynaeve’s fault that she still has learning and growing to do.

Nynaeve’s education has been unconventional and has often taken a backseat to things like hunting the black Ajah and trying to help Rand. Firstly, it’s not as if it was Nynaeve’s choice to skip being a novice, or to be sent to hunt the Black Ajah or to be raised so soon and secondly, she’s got her priorities worked out (I mean, the gaps in her education won’t matter if the world ends!).

If Cadsuane were keeping her irritation to herself, I might find it less annoying. (It’s understandable, after all.) But instead she’s letting it colour her behaviour…

(via herenya-sedai)

[cannoli-reader]

Aviendha & Lanfear are very tall, and it's a part of their characterization and affects how other characters interact with and see them, and those are visibly short actresses. Kunis played kids into her adulthood for a reason. When they tried to cast her as a young Wicked Witch of the West, she looked comical, like a child dressing up in her mother's clothes. And I don't think Johansson is the best choice for furious or quick-tempered. She's more of the sort who always keeps her cool, even when she is mad.

A question I always want to ask people who do these casting lists is, "Are you aware hair dye exists?" You do not have to cast one of the small number of well-known redheads to play a red-haired character. FFS, Johansson herself plays blondes, brunettes and redheads.

WOT casting by Alan Romanczuk

Aviendha- Scarlett Johansson Mat- young Robert Downey Jr. Lanfear- Mila Kunis Rahvin- Christian Bale Verin- Judi Dench Narg- Andre the Giant (Obey!)

Source.

[cannoli-reader]

I think Min would go the "add Sexy to the name" route in picking a costume. Aviendha would seize on the opportunity to put on the cadin sor again, and if she couldn't, would reluctantly let herself be persuaded to dress up as something fancy and beautiful, but only because her friends/near-sisters/first-sisters were talking her into it. Elayne would do one of two things - either something extremely revealing, or mostly naked (like, strategically placed leaves or pasties level revealing), though with a mask, or else a rather ordinary & not particularly creative, but well-done costume idea. She would just be a vampire or a witch, but it would be a damn good vampire or witch. Her ghost costume would not be a sheet, it would be white body paint. And a mask. If they were to wear the costumes in the picture, Elayne's would be a very real looking mummy, with corpse makeup and full bandage coverage, or skin-tight with strategic gaps (more strategic than a shoulder), and a gold funereal mask. Min's pirate outfit would have a corset and shorts or not much of a skirt. Avendha's skeleton would probably have real bones. And she'd have a full mask, with the top fastened at the neck, even if she got a secret thrill out of the way she looked in a skin-tight suit.

It is a very well done picture, however, and far beyond my own talents.

Happy Halloween from Elayne, Aviendha and Min! XD

[cannoli-reader]

"When the Himalayan peasant meets the she-bear in his pride, He shouts to scare the monster, who will often turn aside. But the she-bear thus accosted rends the peasant tooth and nail, For the female of species is more deadly than the male. " ... "Man , a bear in most relations - worm and savage otherwise - Man propounds negotiations, Man accepts the compromise..." .... "She is wedded to convictions, in default of grosser ties; Her contentions are her children, Heaven help him who denies! - He will meet no suave discussion, but the instant, white-hot wild, Wakened female of the species fighting as for spouse and child."

-- Rudyard Kipling agrees.

I don't know why but I feel like carefully calculating risk is more of a boy thing and brute violence is more of a girl thing.

[cannoli-reader]

I also like it, for none of those reasons.

I have seen a lot of similar opinions about Wheel of Time and its female characters and readers, and I just want to point out something of my own experience as an extremely (according an online, and thus, unimpeachable, quiz from a link on a WoT fan site) non-female reader.

When I was a kid, I started reading it, shortly after reading David Eddings' Belgariad & Mallorean, various Terry Brooks Shannara works, much of Piers Anthony's Xanth excretions, Ursula LeGuin's Earthsea novels, a bit of Pern, a book or two of early Raymond Feist and Lloyd Alexander's Prydain Chronicles (far and away my favorite of this list, written for the youngest target audience). Wheel of Time was so much more identifiable and gratifying to an adolescent male reader, who identified with teenage protagonists (as many of the aforementioned series possess) and their interactions with the female characters, who were on the same level, not distracting trophies masquerading as people, or elevated beings on a pedestal, or just somehow more significant in the setting, where no matter what the main characters did, they could never escape that relative position, and would be in an uninteresting relationship by authorial fiat. Wheel of Time was one of the first books or series that spoke to me as an adolescent boy, going through a rough time of life in our gender's particular way.

It's almost like actually good writing is universal or something.

Wheel of Time still remains the best fantasy saga I’ve ever read in my life and I’m really mournful about the fact that I’ll probably never read a fantasy series as good as it was.

It had such a huge world with radically different cultures, that focused not only on the nobility, but also on the peasants and city folks. Robert Jordan respected every character, allowed each voice to be heard and populated the books with an army of characters (that’s at least 400-500 named characters, with about 50-100 major key players).

While Wheel of Time strongly supports the gender binary, on account of the magic being segregated by two genders (I loved the transgender and agender headcanons made by fans, though), I still think that the books are quite progressive in many ways. Polyamory, hinted lesbian relationships (for some reasons no relationships between gay men, which could have something to do with the books being written by a white cishet man, hmmmm) and strong equality between the two genders. It may not be perfect, but it’s definitely not bigoted.

I was especially a huge fan of the White Tower plot. Being the citadel of female magic-users, it is wholly made up by manipulative, smart women who constantly plot and scheme against each others as well as their enemies, it means that there’s whole chapters where you don’t see a single man. But scheme is not all they do. Many women share strong bonds with and fight alongside of each other. 

These women are fucking fantastic characters with strong arcs of their own. I really loved Nynaeve, the brash and loud woman, that sees her life’s calling in healing people. She might be hard to reason with and easy to anger, but she deeply cares about people and is wiser than many of her mentors. Verin, the absent-minded book-worm, and Siuan, the leader of the White Tower are really cool characters as well, mostly due to their immensely interesting character arcs.

I will admit, that the protagonist of Wheel of Time may be even dearer to me than the female characters themselves. Rand is a special. I have rarely seen an arc as perfectly executed and anticipated as his. I may have been annoyed by him some times, but I recognize why it all was necessary to reach the conclusion he did.

Wheel of Time is a long series. It’s 14 huge books, which are ponderously written and often have more descriptions than necessarily. But even at it’s weakest it’s still damn good writing. I am sad that Robert Jordan was not able to finish the last books himself, because although Brandon Sanderson was a fine substitute and carried the torch as well as he could, it still lacked Jordan’s fire. I could see how much greater it could have been under Jordan’s pen, but sadly, it was not meant to be.

I can only strongly recommend Wheel of Time to any people in need of great female characters, an unique world and a kind and smart fantasy saga. If you got time to kill, then go and read it. It will swallow a few weeks of your life.

[cannoli-reader]

She doesn't get more fan love, because she does things like declare war on grounds she personally knows to be untrue, on people who are legit trying to fight the Shadow with the information available to them, and exploit loopholes in legal codes, to claim dictatorial powers, and punish people for pointing out that she's an 18 year old less than two years removed from her parents' care.

To be clear, I am not saying you can't or shouldn't like Egwene, just that there are damn good reasons to dislike her and Moiraine and Siuan and all sorts of other characters who have impressive feats or moments.

Please excuse this outburst : book 8 spoilers

ASDGFHEUFYSJNEVAYSKBFHEK it is my first read of WOT and I’m in book 8 (path of daggers.) And EGWENE JUST DECLARED WAR ON TAR VALON AS AMYRLIN AND SHUT EVERYONE UP. I’M INTERNALLY SCREAMING I WASN’T SURE HOW TO FEEL ABOUT HER UNTIL THIS MOMENT I AM FIRMLY TEAM AMYRLIN.

Edit: I have no one to freak out about the books with in person and I am eternally thankful to the Internet presence of the UAF for understanding the wot feels.

[cannoli-reader]

Not if you're being Min Farshaw. Elayne or Aviendha are much better at that.

Min's tactic is to go find someone competent to handle a problem.

- Egwene's a captive?

Find Nynaeve.

- Domon is reluctant to flee Falme?

Introduce him to Nynaeve.

- Siuan & Leane are locked up?

Get Laras.

- Rand wants to ditch his guards and go visit an army of rebel lords?

Go with him.

- Rand is wounded by an Evil Dagger of Evil?

Push Cadsuane away from him and scream "Help him" at Cadsuane.

- Merana pisses off Rand with her negotiation results?

Agree with his tantrum and hope Merana talks some sense into him.

- Rand decides to try hunting the renegade Asha'man?

Go with him.

- Rand wants to duck the women he loves?

Find Elayne.

- Rand won't leave Far Madding?

Make friends with Cadsuane.

- Rand wants to walk into a trap to get his last enemies, even though he's already decided to quit?

Find Cadsuane.

- Rand demonstrates a disproportionate overreaction to your being in danger, you have figured out that he is being influenced by Lews Therin, largely remembered for killing the woman he loved, you have noticed that the only times he experiences fear is on your behalf, and furthermore, the last two times he has been captured, a bondholder in the company of his rescuers has proved invaluable?

Accompany him into danger, instead of hanging with Bashere & co to make sure he can get to Rand wherever he is taken, and incidentally giving him one more thing to worry about.

So, think I could talk some sense into the Rand al'Thor?

(for those that don’t know, I’m attempting to be Min Farshaw, my 2nd favorite character from my favorite book series. :D)

[cannoli-reader]

The Soviets' problem with Polish Independence was the second word in the name, that begins with the "I" which is always their problem, and the point behind everyone else's problem with them. Except for a handful of jealous assholes who were embarrassed at being outstripped, like Mao, Hitler, Mussolini, and FDR.

Why was polish independence such a big nonstarter for the Soviets?

The Bolsheviks were Russian imperialists through and through, and loathed the idea of breakaway Russian imperial territories being fully independent. An independent Poland, to the Russians, was anathema, and so the Soviets saw the establishment of an independent Polish state as an affront to their sovereignty. Factor in great power politics, and it's easy to see that the Soviet Union wanted a compliant state that could count as an independent country but would brook no serious cleavage from Moscow.

This was the norm, rather than the exception. Lenin and the Bolsheviks talked a big game about anti-colonialism but fought ferociously that Russian imperial possessions needed to be ruled directly from Moscow. He was willing to entertain ideas of democracy, provided he won. When this didn't happen, he invaded to install his own puppet rulers, as had happened in Lithuania and Belarus and what failed to happen in Estonia and Finland.

Thanks for the question, Asdf

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King