#- murderered as being humbled and consequences of bullying

[gemgdynamight0]

Katsuki and his childhood

All happened in first year of high school and the beginning of second year.

Just listing some trauma Katsuki went through. I really hate it when his haters or even some"fans" say "bakugou had no reason to be traumatized""he has no trauma "" he has no problem in his life" like stfu I even might have missed sth here.

Also never forget, the torture before his death was so intense bones had to censore it

[tuiyla]

I know you must be fed up with these type of questions but this really confuses me.Why did Finn get away with everything but not Rachel? They was both creators favs right? Yet Rachel always got called out and humiliated ( despite getting her way) yet finn didn’t do you think it was because he was a guy? We all know the writers was sexist

Bold of you to assume I'll ever get tired of calling out the writers' sexism and particularly their treatment of golden boy Finn 😌

Here's the thing: the fans so often treat Finn and Rachel as if the narrative had them on the same level. It didn't. Rachel was the main character if we had to say and the original three pillars of Glee were Will, Finn and Rachel but there's markedly a difference between how Finchel's characters were treated. The fans see Rachel get all the solos and overall, despite some bumps in the road, get everything she ever wanted, and think that equals Finn's infuriating never called out, never dealing with consequences treatment. I personally think they're very different in this way.

Was Rachel also treated in a special way, sure. But Finn is on this pedestal both in and out of universe, the popular kid who graces these losers with his light. I’m only slightly exaggerating in that. And yet Rachel, the main representative of our underdogs, is the one the show thinks needs humbling. I mean, she kinda does, but Finn is never treated like the other popular kids are. They’re all ~problematic~, bullies and shallow and etc. And make no mistake, Quinn does not get the Finn treatment and nor does Santana or Puck or really anyone else. Puck being the key ch here as another guy, who is treated overall better by the narrative imo but Finn’s pedestal seems like a special one here.

What I’m getting at is that, imo, it was only a sexism thing as much as it was a character type thing. Were they genderswapped and the main leads were a loser guy and a popular girl, idk how different it would have been. And that’s not me dismissing the very real fact that Finn got away with murder because he was a guy as that aspect of his character is part of why he was the golden boy to begin with. Again, look at how the Cheerios were constantly villainized for similar things. But maybe sexism doesn’t explain all of it? And tbh I feel like comparing Rachel to Finn doesn’t really tell us just how much he was favoure dby the writers. Because Rachel was as well but in more obvious and, dare I say, understandable aspects. She gets the most songs because Lea Michele gets the most songs. But Rachel also had so many more learning moments. And lest we forget, the show explicitly states many times that Finn is an oh so much better person than she is. All that despite the receipts of Finn’s actions.

Wow, this is getting away from me. So I’ll just add this: on a character and in-universe level, it strikes me how differently they reacted to accountability. And look, do I have a Rachel bias here? Of course, I love her and famously dislike Finn more every day. But when Rachel messes up the narrative treats it as such and she's told she sucks. She acknowledges her flaws, apologizes most of the time and shows such humanity. Rachel is very flawed and her flaws are such that she often treats others less than ideally, but she has these come back to earth moments. And Finn never really has that accountability, to the detriment of his character.

So, TL;DR: is it because he was a guy? Not just that. There’s a mountain of difference between Rachel’s and the other girls’ treatment, too. But his status as the popular guy, the “nice” guy does play a role. At the end of the day it’s just that the writers envisioned Rachel as a flawed character who needed humbling and Finn as someone who just needed a space to show how great he was, imo. In that sense, Rachel wasn’t as much of a favourite but it worked out better for her anyway.

[violetlunette]

All Might and Bakugou Rant Chapter 8-11

Okay, before I start this rant I want to say that I LOVE All Might; he is a sweet sunflower man and I love him! He is in my top 3 favorite BNHA/MHA characters. HOWEVER, just because I love and adore him doesn’t mean I’m not going to get upset when his actions, or in actions in this case, potentially cause serious harm!

As for Bakugou--I like him when I’m not forced to like him if that makes sense? He has a lot of good qualities and I love that he has a unique backstory for rivals. There’s no angsty reason for his assholeness he’s just a brat who got a big head from being praised all the time and for actually being talented. I really want to see him grow which is why I get super angry when the story ruins his potential growth moments.

The rest of my thoughts I’m saving for a future post.

For those who are confused, I started a post series where I’ve been collecting every image I can find to explore Izuku and Bakugou’s relationship because it’s a big thing in the BNHA/MHA community and I wanted to judge myself. This rant is about Chapters 8-11 and how All Might handles things. Spoilers ahead! I should also warn that this is also very, very Bakugou critical as we are dealing with early gremlin Bakugou who goes overboard with Boom-boom. Also this is a rant, so things might not be very coherent and may repeat.

Oh and this is a LONG rant so I wouldn’t open on tumblr search. New tab suggested.

And finally; no beta reader. We die like dumbasses. Enjoy if you like rants.

The set up;

So here’s the stage; Bakugou vs Izuku. All Might tells Bakugou to adapt a villain mindset, and BOY

DOES

HE

EVER

Because of Bakugou’s temper he unleashes an explosion that both he and All Might admit could kill Izuku. Not just injure or maim, but KILL. And this wasn’t a small attack ether;

Look at this;

A large chunk of the building was taken out and the structure on the rest was damaged and cracked. I don’t think the building will collapse, but I’m not an architect and this is still serious damage.

And in this test run the area is supposed to be a nuclear plant. I’m not going to say too much considering Japan’s history with nuclear stuff, but I will say that if this was a real run Japan would be in serious trouble all because “King Explosion Murder” is having a hissy fit!

But this is a test, so I’m just going to focus on the fact that Bakugou used a literal killing move on Izuku and All Might did nothing!

Remember this part? “I will stop you if you take things too far?”

How

is

THIS

NOT TOO FAR?!

Is it just me here? I get we’re dealing with some value dissonance /blue and orange mentality as this world isn’t like ours, but come on!

YES!! Listen to Kirishima, the only one in the whole class that seems to care about the potential death of a classmate!

Even if Bakugou wasn’t intending to kill, he was going in to severely injure and maim Izuku. And what if Izuku tried to dodge the wrong way and it was a direct hit? What then? The only reason Izuku’s blood isn’t everywhere is because in anime world people are durable as fuck.

Isn’t it their job to teach these kids not to use moves that could kill someone, or at least be responsible and not use said moves on classmates during a training course?

Yes! You should!

Okay, to be fair to All Might it’s clearly stated by everyone around him that while All Might is smart and knows how to hero he doesn’t know how to teach very well at this point, though he does improve later on. And I do understand his thinking; if Izuku told him about the bullying then this is Izuku’s chance to get back a little at Bakugou and show him what he’s made of. That’s what he’s thinking here;

Yeah, that’s one way to describe it.

It’s also shown very clearly that Izuku wants this fight, to finally be able to challenge Bakugou on equal ground for once in his life.

I also understand that the UA teachers are getting these kids ready to fight real villains, so they are pretty lax on things to help them. That’s why I give Aizawa a lot of slack with his teaching methods.

And All Might does warn Bakugou not to do it again;

Also calm? Petty? Really? THAT’S what you see? Yeah, he’s “calm” and thinking clearly (which makes everything worse, btw), but “petty?” The word is genocidal, All Might. Bakugou does use the attack again! RIGHT ON IZUKU’S FACE.

Even if this was a different attack, how is this not too far? Okay, I guess Izuku blocked it as we see below;

But Bakugou didn’t know he would block and look at Izuku’s eye; did that attack do eye damage?

And what really irritates me is that All Might wasn’t going to do shit until he saw that Izuku was going to use OFA.

So, explosion fist that took out part of a building was fine, but using OFA that’s just too far!

Kirishima has to plead with All Might to stop things before he starts to give in. (And seriously? WHY IS HE THE ONLY ONE?! Does no one else care??)

But I’m not even that mad that he allowed the fight to continue. I wanted Izuku to have a chance to prove himself and beat Bakugou’s ass (he deserves it here. FIGHT ME). I also like that with Izuku’s hard earned victory Bakugou is momentarily humbled.

I agree that for both Izuku and Bakugou this fight needed to happen (but only if Izuku won). Bakugou needed this moment for character development.

He really needed this.

No, what I’m mad about is that BAKUGOU WAS NEVER SCOLDED FOR HIS ACTIONS. Hell, All Might goes the opposite way and tries to comfort Bakugou as we see here;

which okay, maybe he needed a little. He needed to hear these words, but he also needed a major scolding! But he never got that.

Izuku was carried away on a stretcher and severely damage, but does he care? No! What does he care about? Bakugou’s fragile ego!

Yeah, I know Izuku’s body is broken, but poor Bakubabe’s not feeling very confident. SERIOUSLY ALL MIGHT?!!

Why is this a big deal? Why am I so mad? Same reason why I was mad at the other teachers. By not telling Bakugou what he did was wrong and making him listen he did what every. Single. Damn. Teacher. Has done so far; taught him there was nothing wrong with his actions; it was okay that he unleashed an attack that could KILL on someone, especially on Izuku. There wasn’t anything wrong with it. Because no one ever tries to correct Bakugou he keeps acting this way, losing his temper and hurting people, mostly Izuku. And it doesn’t just hurt Bakugou, the inaction of no one ever scolding Bakugou teaches Izuku that it’s okay for him to get hurt. It’s okay that others hurt him, no big deal. It’s no wonder Izuku is always breaking his bones! Why would he listen to others telling him to to take better care of himself when the world keeps saying that it’s okay for people like Bakugou to hurt him?

There’s also the fact that Izuku was severely hurt here;

These are not comical anime wounds, these are serious, oh shit wounds so bad he has to be carried away on a stretcher.

No. Don’t laugh it off! You are hurting Izuku and Bakugou for reasons I already stated.

Even Recovery Girl tells him that what he did was stupid!

See what a good scolding can do? All Might made a mistake and he’s being called out on it.

An ego trip does not make this okay. Just like All Might needed to be told that his actions were wrong, so does Bakugou. Hell, Bakugou needs it even more!

I love RG. If she was there I’m willing to bet Bakugou would have gotten at least a time out. She’s the best teacher. She knows when to be kind, when to bee strict, and when someone needs to be called out. LEARN FROM HER All Might!

Bakugou’s quirk is EXPLOSIONS. It’s just as dangerous as Thirteen’s Black hole, or Shigaraki’s dissolve quirk and just as deadly! He needs to be taught to understand that along with controlling his temper especially because he’s going to be a hero, but he’s not going to learn if his ego is always babied and never faces consequences. I’m not asking for All Might to turn Bakugou over his knee or anything, just to tell Bakugou that what he did was wrong. Especially since he’ll be dealing with civilians in the future.

But no, instead of focusing on the fact Bakugou needs to control his temper All Might decides he needs to nurse Bakugou’s ego. I highly disagree because in addition to everything I stated above. Bakugou’s case a little ego bruising might teach him some humility which he SORELY NEEDS. He needs love and care, but when he does something dangerous and deadly, he needs a kick in the pants or at LEAST a strong NO, DON’T DO THAT.

How is he going to learn otherwise? Seriously, does anyone ever scold Bakugou for his temper? His ego is always called out, but what about his temper?

Again, I adore All Might. He is a great hero and he gets better, but I wish he bought that teacher’s hand book before his first class.

Rant finally over, I swear I didn’t intend for it to be this long, but oh well.

[theregoesmylurkerstatus]

Oof this new episode is blowing my mind. I'm just hoping that the M9 don't get framed for everything since they don't have authority. I'm so SO glad the headmaster knows about Vence, knows he just went to Rexxentrum which was then attacked? At least he'll be suspicious. The HFB really messed up the M9's sense of time tho. Not only would Marion and Yeza be freaking out but the Dynasty also prob thinks them dead/spies. Please send a message to Dairon too!

WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT TO ME YOU KNOW I’M PARANOID. NO. Shoot now I’m gonna worry about this. Because yeah, from what I understand the Nein is now really starting to get involved in the grander, large scale events that Vox Machina was getting involved in around this time. But, uh, as others have pointed out, Vox Machina had a couple blue bloods with connections, and generally were of higher standing than the Nein are.

Because the Nein are poor orphan/poor self-made orphan/poor may-as-well-be-an-orphan/definitely not rich probable-orphan/rich parents with questionably helpful connections/rich parents who don’t care/missing family from the outskirts of society. And aside from the humble beginnings all but maybe two of them have, only Beau really has useful connections individually. Caleb’s connections… Well, we all know the problems with THAT.

Of course, the Nein as a whole have made two, maybe three solid connections at this point? Which is Essek, Yussah, and Dairon. Which are… Dynasty, unaligned, and Empire respectively. So from one perspective they have their bases covered, but none of those allies have a lot of sway over the Cerberus Assembly or have any direct line to the King, which is what they’d really need. Yussah could maybe bully Oremid Hass into helping them if they got framed or blamed, but that’s not all too solid, and the Cobalt Soul and the Assembly famously hate each other, so Dairon’s… also not going to be able to sway the Assembly much.

PLUS, if they got exposed as being the ones who both returned a Beacon and tipped off the Dynasty to the Empire’s invasion? Yikes. Yikes yikes yikes. They really wouldn’t be hard to blame, especially since they have three looked down upon races of their number, and the two humans are a famously temperamental Expositor who’s caused a decent amount of aggravation multiple times AND is a convicted criminal to boot, and the other murdered his parents and is an apparently somewhat famous almost-executioner. And they have two worshippers of illegal gods. AND ONE OF THEIR NUMBER IS ACTIVELY HELPING FREE THE CHAINED OBLIVION.

And that’s only getting into character defamation. Because the Nein have been the ones dogging at the heels of this Chained Oblivion plot from the very beginning. THEY’RE the ones who’ve found out just about everything. Almost anyone who knows anything about the rifts and the demons and so on have heard it second hand, taking the Nein’s word for it. It’s the Nein that have been running all over the place and getting into the thick of things every time.

All in all, it would NOT be hard to paint the Nein in a bad light and maybe, if the antagonistic parties in question were clever, even twist a good chunk of the Chained Oblivion mess back onto them. Of course, this wouldn’t necessarily be the route anyone would take (probably easier just to kill them on the battlefield, or have them executed as fast as possible without any sort of trial), but man. Framing. That always gets me. The Nein’s best hope in that case would be escape, hopefully aided by allies.

Also, YEAH, I don’t know if they comprehend that they have people who could worry about them? Like, Marion MIGHT be used to not hearing from Jester for weeks at a time occasionally, but it seems like Jester messages her offscreen a lot. Yeza and Luc might assume Nott is fine, since communication with them is more erratic, but like, still. Though, Matt could be willing to go with “yeah you checked in with them at some point” for those NPCs.

As for Essek… I don’t think Essek has ever gone this long without hearing from them. Because the Nein have known him 48 Days prior to the Happy Fun Ball (and if you include all the time in the Happy Fun Ball and after, 83 days), according to CritRoleStats. So he’s known them a while, and in the time he’s known them he’s had pretty regular contact with them. The Nein were always jumping back to Rosohna, and he almost always visited. Even when they went on weeks long treks, they’d message him for info, to ask a favour, or even just to check in.

And now they’ve been gone for almost the same amount of time he’s known them, 35 days, and he hasn’t heard from them once. To him, that’s uncharacteristic behaviour. Essek may be the one NPC who would think it’s weird the Nein have dropped off the face of the earth for so long. And on top of that, Essek has put a lot of trust in the Nein, as well as cautiously given them sensitive political info. The last they talked, there had been a break in, and he’d been under a lot of stress! And personally I subscribe to the theory that the Nein may be his own closest allies and peers, so I don’t think them disappearing on him helps his state of mind! I honestly think he may be freaking out slightly right now. CHECK IN WITH ESSEK!!!! HE NEEDS TO KNOW WHATS GOING ON AND THAT YOU’RE NOT DEAD!!!!!!

I mean, Matt may just let it slide and act like Essek hasn’t noticed anything is wrong if Jester messages him soon, but like. Logically, if the Nein have any kind of importance to Essek (and I think they do), he must be worried. Just a little, at least!

But uh… Yeah, those Empire people he decided to trust? They’ve vanished without a word, they haven’t been seen for about as long as they were there in the first place. You’re right, the logical options are either the Dynasty thinking them dead (not unreasonable) or spies. Who knows what Essek believes? This is the kind of NPC that I don’t think Matt will hand wave communication with so easily. And this might also be the kind of situation in which their unintentional actions have less obvious consequences.

I don’t THINK that the Nein’s relationship with the Dynasty will have dissolved because of a month long absence. But it could easily have been damaged.

In conclusion it’s possible that the Nein will get screwed over by the Empire AND be forsaken by the Dynasty! Unlikely, but there’s enough set up that it could be possible! Let’s hope not, though, lmao

[paladin-andric]

Character Backgrounds: Leianna, Cleric of The Order

The ring's under her pillow,

She's climbing out the window,

To join her sisters on the run,

Let's take the devil down,

Let's take the devil down,

Let's take the devil down,

Daughters of the sun!

-From “Daughters of the Sun” by The Dreadnoughts

Leianna’s life took a drastic turn at a very young age. Originally the daughter to a working class family in the City of Deepwell, she found herself having run-ins with the lord’s son regularly. As a peasant girl, she provided a fairly consequence-free target for bullying for the would-be-lord, with him working both physical and emotional abuse towards her whenever he found her alone. It was a noble’s word against a peasant’s, after all.

While many would have simply taken it on the chin, Leianna did not. She fought back, relentlessly. She retaliated by mocking and insulting him in public, even once shoving him into a large puddle of water in the market.

She expected retaliation, of course. What she didn’t expect was attempted murder. Out in the fields, while she was playing and exploring, he ambushed her, attempting to throw her off a nearby cliff.

Beaten and bloody, she made a snap decision; that he had brought this on himself. If he had left it to a simple beating, they’d have simply gone home, at worst with broken noses. Instead, he had to escalate it to the point where she was forced to chase self-preservation, at any cost.

Briefly overpowering him with a large rock, she gained the upper hand, and shoved him over the edge of the cliffside.

His death set off a explosion in the city. Trying to explain did no good: The family wanted blood.

Leianna fled into the wilds, running far into the night. Well into the next morning she finally collapsed.

As if by miracle, a clergywoman found her, and ushered her back to the temple she served. Leianna grew up there, all the priests and clergy keeping quiet about her origins.

Leianna became genuinely interested and invested in The Order, and God. Feeling as though God had intervened that day, she slowly grew more and more devoted.

Growing older, she expressed a desire to become a member of the church. The holy men and women welcomed her, and she began training to become a cleric. She learned how to pray properly, feel God’s presence, heal the sick and injured, and sense demons and evil.

Alongside this, she became a skilled warrior, heavily armored and experienced in using the mace.

The Great Exodus passed Leianna by with some resentment. One of the priests, a young Reptilian, was dragged from the temple by soldiers, wailing that the temple was his home, and its members his brothers and sisters. Leianna tried to intervene, but was beaten into unconsciousness by the soldiers. She never forgave the king for this. The church was now above the kingdom in importance and authority, at least to her.

Leianna spoke foully of the king regularly, even around visitors. It was enough for the priests to raise concern, though she never cared. Other chapters of The Order were destroyed for resisting the edict. The king could deal with mean people hurting his feelings.

Soon, the news came. A black fog surrounded Palethorn, the city the non-humans were exiled to. Soldiers and holy men were sent, only to never return.

Leianna volunteered to investigate. Feeling a base need to help the people of the city, as well as an eagerness to prove herself, she quickly prepared to leave. The Order personally afforded her a large amount of supplies, medicine, and potions, eager to see the ungodly fog vanish.

Leianna is what some in the church might call a “Divisive Figure”. While she’s an excellent warrior, she can be reckless, though only with her own life. With little fear in her heart, she tends to “lead from the front” in most instances, putting herself in harm’s way when not the best course of action.

The cleric’s attitude shifts drastically depending on the current situation. On the battlefield, when death is lurking about every corner, she gets serious. During downtime, or even before battle, she seems to take little heed to what is considered “proper”. She’ll jest and mock at sensitive times or topics, pushing boundaries. She is often cocky and boisterous, though only in word. She’s never put people at risk with such an attitude, more often playfully joking than directly aggressive. Furthermore, she is not arrogant or deluded; she’ll only boast about things she can actually back up, and often not needlessly.

Leianna also has a blatant disdain for the current monarch, with the espousing of “That’s just the way things are” not being good enough for her. She’s openly spoken of God’s supremacy over the king meaning the people are able to disobey him if his law is immoral, something that could quickly be ruled treason if the wrong person happened to be listening. Thankfully, she usually only says such things in private circles.

Laughing, joking and getting merry with friends, driving herself into a fury over law, smiting the unholy, crassly insulting people she dislikes, risking her life for the greater good...the cleric dedicated to The Order is all over the board. Her plain and universal approach to wrongdoing and weak filter endears her to some, while putting others off. One thing can be for certain, though: She is a holy warrior in a crusade against evil, and she will not hesitate to sacrifice everything for those that saved her in her darkest moments.

She is stern and uncompromising, in that way. She may be stubborn, but she will always back up her words with action. She is many things, but a hypocrite she is not. Her dedication to the Lord truly does run deep, and her hostility is reserved for those that truly deserve it; offer an apology or explain that your spat was a misunderstanding and she’ll put her pride away, and forgive and forget.

Honest, brave, humble and pious...

Such is the way of the righteous soldiers of God.

Tag list: @thereisnothingwrongwithbeingmad, @lady-redshield-writes, @paper-shield-and-wooden-sword, @sheralynnramsey, @tawnywrites, @writer-on-time, @oceanwriter, @zwergis-spilledink, @fluffpiggy, @elliewritesfantasy, @homesteadhorner,  @laurenwastestimewriting, @elaynab-writing, @the-ichor-of-ruination, @reya-writes, @bexminx

[exquisitelyeco]

What Armour??.?

I don’t know about you. But Ephesians 6 has really had me confused, as well as a sight of hilariousness …new word….. meaning VERY amusing to the point of literally weeping……in heaven. Everyday…..well….not quite, literally physically pretending to put on the spiritual armour that Paul goes on about in Ephesians 6. Picking up the imaginary helmet and putting it on my head……etc.

And it meant nothing really. I didn’t have a blasted clue! Putting imaginary gear and believing that I was protected! And the bit, ‘For we struggle not against flesh and blood,……in verse 12! Whaaaat? Flesh and blood??! Why not just say human beings??? Now if I can’t see it, I don’t get it. Sorry. But I find that hard. I imagine demons as ghostly things, floating around venomously, whilst I wear this imaginary armour and worry about arrows being shot in my bottom where there isn’t any! Did you notice that? No trousers. So ones behind is rather vulnerable….

And I truly believed doing this worked. I thank God He makes us stand! Romans 14v4. Although I think He looked at me and said ‘Oh dear!’ you know the one……Any of you have kids? You are trying not to smile, but it’s so funny you have to go out of the room…..

When I was teaching, as a TA, I had to mark some year 2 spellings. The wee lambs had to spell the work ‘can’t’. Many of them had spelled it cunt……I was in bits. Thankfully the class didn’t notice…..I think God falls about laughing at some of the things I did and still do, trying to work it all out. But you know what? Just like we get Soooooo excited when our baby stands up or takes their first step, and tell EVERYBODY , I think He does that too! Look at Nic! I know her armour is a bit wonky, but LOOK! She’s trying to toddle, my baby girlie! Ahhhh…..I’m glad I gave her those angels though…..she REALLY needs ’em!

So. Back to this chapter. I bet even the poor Ephesians did what I did. Old Paul made it complicated. Why not make it plain? Have you noticed, the pastors say stuff and your left thinking ‘eh?’ I think I get it….or if your like me, thinking you HAVE got it. I will tell you a wee story, and you are NOT to laugh…My lady pastor, Susan, did a preach on forgiveness. And how damage happens to us if we do not eventually get to that place……of forgiveness that is……And she was talking about this damage and she said, about finding your keys to healing. So poor old me goes around for 10 YEARS thinking I had a key buried in my brain somewhere……until in another preach, she put it like this……..’ finding keys LIKE forgiveness’ and I went ‘Ohhhhhhhhhh! NOW I get it!’

A digression, I had my ex husband 1 in stitches thinking that petrol stations sucked petrol from streams deep in the earth…….I can be a bit like that……Or when I said to my sister, ‘That’s not a very nice name for pies, Puke-er pie’ , cos I did’nt know how to pronounce Pukka…..she nearly had a heart attack laughing….

So here I was, day after day, putting on imaginary armour, literally. Picking up a ‘imagined’ helmet and using my hands to stick it on my head etc. I was so worried about my bottom! I imagined extra armour……I kid you not…..

Hey! If the shoes WERE literal, could you wear high heels? I’ll stop now….

And it suddenly occurred to me just TODAY, as I sit here reading it, what it meant! AH HA! 30years and she gets it! O my goodness THIRTY years? I’m getting on! Anyway, cos I have had this AMAZING revelation I thought I’d share it with you!

I feel like a learned and holy guru right now…..smug and HUGE! Ahhhhh! Remember Nebechednezzer, Nick, concrete feet……

So.

Also, the bit about it’s not a flesh and blood struggle, flesh and blood – meaning humans. I’ll explain that first, cos it comes first! Flesh and blood. And Paul makes it clear that is NOT what we are fighting against. Neither does it mean going to the butcher shop. It means what is IN us. What our drives, or issues or besetting sins are, or in very plain English, what things we do that make us a pain in the arse to others and ourselves. The things we do that cause hurt and pain.

All sin hurts. And it’s THAT, that comes OUT of us. That is what Paul means. Out of the heart comes all evil. Matthew 15v19, Mark 7 v21. How do these things start? In our thoughts. We get them in, and if we KEEP listening to them, they grow in power. And eventually, if we do not deal with ’em, we act on them. They are first and foremost. Satan? Read my post on for the love of Lucifer. He actually comes last. Truly. We give him far to much attention.

Most of the stuff that sets us up to fall is in ourselves. Our pet hates, prides, lusts, damages etc. Like gossiping, swearing, sleeping around, bullying/bullied, lying, watching porn. Being petty. Then the heavier, murder, rape, burglary. All things that can totally destroy us and cause us to do things and act in ways that put God out of the centre of our attention and the sin in it.

Sin starts SPIRITUALLY (in the heart) but has PHYSICAL consequences, (ending in eternal death, if not sorted) is a good way of seeing it.

But also. Rulers of the darkness of the Age. Satan has Sergeants and Lieutenants, just like any army. Some have a little power, like over a shop or town, some have more, like a county or country. (Daniel 10v13)

Basically, these guys are like soldiers. They seek to detain and stop angels, like in the verse from Daniel, (mentioned above) from reaching Gods people and answering our prayers and aiding, or helping us. They also draw in and enslave people to keep them in darkness and their faces and hearts in chains, away from God. Porn is a very powerful weapon the enemy uses. It is like an addiction, and because the person often feels ashamed and hides it, it gives it more power. Always remember, secrecy is one of Satan’s and Sins most powerful weapons, hence, James 5v16. Confession merely means talking it out. Saying aloud what you have done or are struggling with. It breaks its power. It is not done to shame but to heal. Remember, there is now NO condemnation for us in Christ Jesus. Romans 8v1. Jesus knows we all have crap to sort out still. So don’t sweat the small stuff.

It is ultimately an illusion to think we can hide anything. Because in fact, according to God, the opposite will be true and will happen.Luke 12v 3 makes this very clear. Now you would think, Hey! God knows everything! He knows what I’m doing, so why the need to say it?! Yup. He does. But remember. God is about relationship, not principles. The principle states ‘God knows everything’ relationship states ‘Come and talk to me.’ As I have said before, God makes it clear, not only can we talk to Him and find mercy, never condemnation, Matthew 12v7,John 3v17, that we can actually argue with Him AND change His mind! Isaiah 43v26. The book of Jonah is a clear case of God changing His mind. Nineveh repented. God changed His mind and did not destroy them as He planned to do. The same as He did when He chose to save Noah and not wipe out every human as He intended. Genesis 6v7. Remember that! We can always talk to God.

He truly is a parent, a good parent. And like any good parent can be reasoned with, but for our best may not always agree with our argument. And now we get to the best bit. Our armour!

What truths did I glean? What facets did I see? Well, not a blasted imaginary helmet, I can tell you! Or a pair of iron pants!

First the pants. And no. There ain’t any! Literally and figuratively speaking…..Our bottoms are behind us. Yup. I KNOW that is obvious. But it goes deeper. A soldier does not face behind. They face in front. And as long as they are facing the right way, their bum is covered. So when we turn around, our bottom is a target for the enemy. So make sure you face God. Bit back to front, I know. But that’s the way it makes sense. To me at least. If you lose focus, the enemy is right up your arse in a matter of splitteth……..New word, meaning so damn quick, don’t do it, seconds!

The helmet. Which is our thinking! Paul tells us that we need to renew our minds which means changing our thinking. Changing it to what God says, not what the world says.Romans 12v2. So if you, like me, have lies you listen too, like ‘I’m stupid,’ or ‘I hate myself’ or ‘ I’m ugly’ or ‘ I’m a failure ‘ or ‘ I can do this on my OWN’ change that thinking. Cos that, my dearest, dearest beloveds, is Satan’s thinking. He loves us to have those little phrases. And another thing we do, thinking we are right and no body else is. And that’s butt talk. Literally. Pride cometh before a fall, or in the way I described it earlier, a boot up your arse, which will have you flat on your face in the shit. Don’t do it. By shit I mean your open to being deceived because of your pride. We can only hear God if we are in humility. We cannot hear Him if we have pride. Cos we have ear phones on. With ‘I’m the greatest, I am, I am!’ Playing. Remember who I AM is. Cos it ain’t us.

What is humility? Being open to finding you are wrong. And saying you are sorry, confessing it and changing it. And we can be proud about anything. Our interpretation of scripture, our own church and its doctrine, etc. I talk about unrighteousness pride here. That refuses to believe anyone else could be right. Of course you can be righteously proud of being part of a church! Just remember, your church can make mistakes and can get it wrong! And that your little denomination is part of the BODY of Christ and not a little hand or finger crawling along alone! You will die that way as you have no blood supply……

How do you know? If you are being humble that is………By being truthful about yourself and those around you. For example: Do you harbour anger or pain? If so, have you dealt with it? If not, you is open to being deceived. See my post about Ananias and Sapphira and the gift of discernment, should you want too. I go into much more detail.

The breastplate of righteousness. Guarding your heart. And what is in it. Being in right standing with God. Keeping short account of your sin. Or to put it another way, don’t let anything fester too long. Jesus told us, do not let the sun go down on your anger, cos if you do you give Satan a foot hold. Ephesians 4v26, sorry it was Paul. But I’m sure he heard it in good authority……God gives us a whole day to be pissed off. Sort it ‘afore bedtime! If you forget, or have issues with anger, be truthful and open. That way God can help you and you do not hinder yourself, or give the enemy more to work with than he already has!

Righteousness is us acting like Jesus as much as we can and letting the Holy Spirit work in us, by being open to change if we see we need too, or if somebody else helps us to see we need too. If it’s someone else, make sure you take it to God, and somebody you trust first. Not somebody that always agrees with you, but somebody who has the gift of discernment and is truthful. If you take it to somebody who always agrees with you, you could find you are both deceived cos you both feel the same way about not wanting to listen!

Belt of truth speaks for its self. Well it does now…..be open….to correction and truth. Do not tell lies. Do not listen to lies….like the friend who agrees with you cos you both like to gossip about one particular person all the time, for example. Or you both hate one church, cos your still pissed at how you were treated there and you know they don’t like that church either……always take truth you think is truth to God and be open for His interpretations, not just those of your pastor or the religious TV. Remember, Gods ways are NOT our ways, or possibly our pastors and friends……Isaiah 55v8-9. Ultimately we are ALL chosen AND redeemed because God said so. Not us. Even His grace in giving us the actual trust we have IN Him! Not even that comes from us! ( Ephesians 2v8) So God does what HE wants! Not us! Read my testimony of ‘ A God outside the box, A story of personal redemption’ if you dare. And I mean it. I’ll piss you off and drop a hint. God gave me my son when I was having an affair. Simple. Read it. It’s not blasphemy. It shows how God is not like we think He is. Honestly. Hold God’s hand and read it. Then if you disagree, that’s fine. But I tell you that is what happened.

Shoes of the gospel of peace. Literally, where ever you walk, where ever your feet stop, don’t gossip or slag down other churches or people. We are all Gods children and need to be one body, not like fingers and toes fighting each other! Romans 12v5. Learn to discern Gods body. And to do that, you need the belt of truth and breast plate of righteousness. Or in another’s famous words ‘ Know thy self’ cos if you don’t, you can be sure Satan does. And he will use it. So where ever you go do not slander. Do not profane or swear. I do. I have to keep saying sorry.

Make sure what come out of your mouth, where ever you are honours others and God. If you have an issue, only share it with someone who discerns. If you must talk to your friends about it, Deal with the anger and hate first! And say it in such a away you are not spreading dissention and poison, but just saying how it was. Don’t encourage gossip and backstabbing of another person or church. Remember, not only will we be judged by what we say, we will be judged by every careless word that comes out of our mouth. Matthew 12v36-37. If you know it will hurt, shut your gob! Unless it’s done in love. And humbly, cos if it ain’t, you is in danger of falling. Galatians 6v1. The same goes for all non Christians you know. If it ain’t nice, keep it to YOURSELF! We are to be God’s light and love, not spite and gossip and nastiness. What kind of Christ are we representing if we behave like that?

The shield of faith? That is merely the words that come out of our mouths. What does the bible say? Faith comes by HEARING, and hearing by the word of God! Romans 10v17. Also, Life and death is in the power of the tongue. Proverbs 18v21. Jesus said, ‘Tell the mountain to go into the sea! And if you believe it will’ Mark 1v23. It’s so obvious! How did God start? He SPOKE! ‘Light’ and there was light. Genesis 1v3. But it comes in two bits, not only must we speak it. We must trust it will happen. That is what believing is. That is what it meant when Paul talked about Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of what we do not yet see. Hebrews 11v1. All that means is this. I’ll give you example. You have longed for a weekend away. Your partner has promised it. You KNOW it will happen cos he said he has sorted it, but you have not done it yet and he has kept the date a secret!

Think as God is that partner! You have made your request. And if it is in accordance to Gods will, for example, not out of selfishness or greed or envy, then you know He will do it. But God does not normally tell us when! That is faith. Trusting God for your ask! ASK Him, then TRUST Him to do it!

Really! These people who translate bibles! They don’t half make it complicated, don’t you think? Thank God the Source Himself is a Good Teacher. Thanks, God! I bet He don’t stand in a blasted pulpit. That’s half the blasted problem……If you’d just GET DOWN……

The verse goes on to say, about the shield of faith quenches all the fiery darts of the enemy. Ephesians 6v16. The bible tells us our mind is the devils play ground. Philippians 4 v8-20. So we are back to those thoughts! CHANGE bad thinking! Undo bad habits! Like smoking, being drunk, sleeping around. All things that give Satan a way in to hurting us. Know the bible! Satan does! And He uses it. That is why so many Christians backstab others. Because they have pride in the fact ‘their’ interpretation of the bible is correct and everyone else’s is cultish! You give the old dragon some ammo if you do that!

The bible CLEARLY states we DO NOT know God’s ways OR His thoughts! Isaiah 55v8-9. 1 Corinthians 13v12. Not only are His ways and thoughts unknown to us, they are so high we can NEVER fathom or work them out! Hence my testimony I mentioned earlier. God is NOT who we think He is! And as the bible IS JESUS, because Jesus IS literally the WORD, get used to surprises. Cos if you don’t, I am warning you now, you could be in for trouble! Stop thinking you or your pastor know it all. Cos none of us does. Not even Paul did. That is what he wrote 1 Corinthians 13v12!

So be open to change. Learn to discern, which means to recognise Gods voice and ways. Know the enemy, also means yourself! This life is a fight. Romans 7v15-20. Don’t be deceived. It ain’t all covered by blanket or conversion prayer, it’s growing up! Becoming a warrior in Christ’s army. Showing this world that Christ is and He has won their freedom and healing. Nowhere does it say it’s all done at conversion. It’s a battle. You WILL face trials and temptations 1 Peter 5v8, James 1v2, John 16v33. So these preachers who say otherwise, talk BOLLOCKS! This life is a fight, hence the blasted armour!!

So don’t be afraid. Jesus has already won. But get that armour on and Stand. Which means wait. With that armour on. In battle mode. Ephesians 6 v 13 Cos it’s when we stand, that God looks down and says ‘BRILLIANT! Look guys! My Son/daughter, standing, armour on. And waiting for me. They don’t see Me coming yet, but they blasted well believe it. Ha ha! That’s my son/daughter. Now let’s go kick Satan’s arse!’

[politicaltheatre]

Authority

We have long called the police and government “authorities”. We do it without thinking. That’s how deeply rooted it is in our culture and in our identities. It is something that we just accept, one of those things that feels like it always has been and always will be.

The authorities have power. The authorities are in control. The authorities give orders. The authorities are obeyed.

Or else.

It would be a mistake to believe that this was something forced upon us by others. We did this to ourselves. We keep doing it to ourselves. It’s hardwired. Being a social species, we seek out leadership from others so that we can focus our attention on other, more immediate needs.

Some seek to be leaders, while others are chosen for abilities they have shown. We reward them by sacrificing parts of ourselves, things such as privacy and autonomy in the best of times and our lives and limbs in the worst. The authorities may decide our fates for us, and will do so without accountability until we take that authority back, in part or in whole.

This is why men like Donald Trump crave authority so much. They crave not just power but the lack of accountability that comes with being an authoritarian power. This is what makes men like Donald Trump so very dangerous.

It’s easy to abuse power over others. It’s easy to abuse control over them. Orders can be given without thought to consequences, and those who fail to obey may be punished without consequence. If those around them merely stand by and watch, who’s to say what’s wrong?

In a culture of authority, those given orders require them and those punished for refusing to obey deserve what they get. Accountability is pushed away. The longer we go without demanding it, the farther away it seems. What we end up with is this: Nothing is truly done by those in authority, only what has to happen; nothing is truly done to those under authority, only what they bring on themselves.

The perspective of those subjected to this kind of authority is quite different. How could it not be? To them, the threat of “what has to happen” is so routine that it hangs over even the most basic decisions in their lives, such as walking to buy groceries or driving to work. To them, “what they bring on themselves” feels random, a never ending series of unprovoked punishments coming in the form of humiliation, separation from loved ones and opportunity, physical pain, and sometimes, as we’ve seen far too often, death.

Right now, all over the internet we can watch video after video after video of police in “riot gear” armed with clubs, pepper spray, tear gas, shields, “less lethal” bullets, and more, attacking unarmed, unprotected, non-violent men, women, and children, some of whom were already on their knees or lying on the ground. The videos are unedited and unfiltered. The visual evidence of wrongdoing is undeniable.

Well, it should be. Right now, denials are everywhere. Even good deeds are somehow being apologized for. Up seems truly down. Each video recorded is an accusation, and what do those caught in the act do but deny? Rare is it that wrongdoers proudly or humbly proclaim their guilt. Most, when caught, are driven by a combination of frustration and shame, the frustration at being made to be accountable to others and the shame at knowing that the others are right.

Denial is a defense mechanism, famously the first in the pattern of accepting change, the rest being Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance.

We’ve seen a lot of police anger on display the past two weeks. With these videos, they’re being shown a very different picture of themselves than they want to believe. They’re lashing out, punishing those who defy them and, to push away the shame they feel at being connected to the monsters we’re seeing in those videos, punishing themselves.

This is why one New York police lieutenant apologized for kneeling with protesters. He was applauded by protesters at the time and later by others seeing his image. It was a sign of progress, however brief. Very likely, he was condemned by his friends and family, by the culture he had grown up in, and by the image he had built of himself as “police”.

He had shown weakness. He had conceded authority to others. He could condemn the murder that had inspired the protests, but somehow felt the need to condemn the protests, too. Something in him told him he had to pick a side, and the side that felt safest for him was the side he had always known.

This is why police unions have not only made a show of applauding officers caught on video cracking heads open with batons and concrete but have, blissfully ignorant of irony, gathered together to protest policy changes that they claim will further undermine their authority.

These policy changes, proposed but not yet enacted, include measures meant to limit what they can do to harm citizens on the street and in their homes and ones removing limits on what the public gets to know about any harm they have done. In short, the police have begun to protest, peacefully and non-violently, the idea of being made to be accountable.

To anyone who innocently believes the police should exist “to protect and serve”, this makes no sense. If, on the other hand, we try to look at it from the point of view of people who approach their relationship with citizens as adversarial, who have been trained to do so, who live and breath it as a matter of faith, and who have rarely if ever been held to account in living memory, it makes a lot of sense.

Understanding that also makes sense of what the police in all of those videos are doing to those protesters: responding to protests against brutality with more and more and more brutality. The police who are attacking protesters know exactly what they are doing. They understand that putting police brutality on full display for all the world to see only seems like a stupid thing to do if you believe they need to be held accountable for their behavior, and they really, really do not believe that they do.

They are having a very different conversation with each other and their supporters than the rest of us are having about them. To them, the violence they have used and use now are both an expression of their authority and a means to reinforce it.

This means that they are not only punishing disobedience but the potential for it. They are not only punishing the betrayal of those under their authority, those who really should be grateful for all they risk and all they provide, but demonstrating just how much they have held back in their ability to cause pain. They do this as much to reinforce to themselves their own identity as authorities as anything else.

Where else do we see this pattern? Bullying. Of course. We see it in racism and every other kind of bullying from childhood on.

For bullies, to have their abusive behavior shown to them brings on shame; to reject that shame they must punish those who remind them of it. They escalate violence not because they were provoked and not because they genuinely believe they are right but because they define themselves by their authoritative right to be violent to whomever they choose whenever they choose.

It isn’t working. It never does, not in the long term. Officers’ boldness in performing their abuse on camera has backfired, as they assuredly knew it would. This is why they have repeated attacked credentialed journalists and anyone else with a camera at the protests: they really don’t want witnesses.

To bear witness to abuse is to reject the authority claimed by the abuser. It is to claim authority over the abuser. To someone who has enjoyed authority and has made that authority so important to their identity, that is a threat that they cannot allow. Punishing those with cameras is, for them, instruction: Dare show us who we are and what we do wrong and we will make you hurt.

We actually had a similar, much less malignant example of this pattern last autumn. For decades, officials in the NFL had complete authority over players on the field and coaches on the sidelines. That authority never went “unquestioned”, it never does in sports, but it was absolute.

Or so they thought. With TV came video replay. With that came people seeing obvious mistakes and wanting to fix them. Sole authority became shared authority with coaches challenging bad calls, but the officials were still in charge. And then there was one big mistake seen by millions, one they could no longer ignore, and the NFL team owners had an idea: they would allow coaches (and players) to challenge fouls that hadn’t been called.

That went about as well as you would imagine. Coach after coach after coach challenged missed calls, the officials made a show of reviewing the plays as they had been ordered to do, and they rejected almost every single one. By mid-season, most coaches had learned not to challenge missed calls. When the season was over, the rule meant to fix things was gone.

Civil disobedience worked for the officials because there was no punishment for them if they did it. No punishment means no accountability. In this world, that’s all the authority you need.

The irony, then, that another type of video replay has been responsible for the NFL changing its tune on player protests should not be ignored. Four years ago, star quarterback Colin Kaepernick chose to use his fame and platform on TV to protest racism and police brutality. For his brave choice to protest, peacefully taking a knee, he was exiled from the league.

For the next three seasons, team owners, the same ones who thought it so important to create a level playing field on the field, punished anyone daring to follow Kaepernick’s example on the sidelines. They were afraid to offend those who believe, as the police unions seem to, that authority should not be questioned and accountability not be demanded.

Videos of one man being murdered and countless men, women, and children facing brutality to oppose it have changed that. The NFL, like governments around the country and even a few around the world, has begun to bow to another kind of authority: moral authority.

The shame we all should feel, at having allowed so many to live their lives in fear from those who are supposed to protect them, that is the source of moral authority. So, too, is watching all of those peaceful, non-violent men, women, and children taking abuse when they had not given any. There is shame we should feel in allowing that.

Shame isn’t there for us to wallow in - really, don’t -  but to inspire us to be better towards others and ourselves. It is the best part of our nature protesting against the worst. It is communication. Listen to it. Engage it. Ask what it is trying to tell you, take that lesson, and improve yourself.

That so many police feel shame right now is good, because it should guide them as it is guiding so many of us towards change. Right now, they’re fighting it just as much as they’re fighting those trying to get them to feel it.

Eventually, they’ll reach a tipping point of their own, just as the NFL did and just as so many others have. The amount of energy it takes to maintain a false image of themselves as victims in all of this cannot be sustained. The amount of energy it takes to deny that some, even many, among them brutalize minorities and women and others to feel better about themselves and their own brutality, that too cannot be sustained.

It will all collapse, the rage and other fuel exhausted, like a star going nova. We aren’t there yet. Moral authority takes longer to take hold. It has more fighting against it: denial, anger, bargaining, and depression. It’s benefit is that once it does take hold, it doesn’t easily let go.

- Daniel Ward

[saintheartwing]

So, Cap. Marvel had this One Deleted Scene...

It sort of expands more on her stealing that motorcycle. Here.

https://twitter.com/usatodaylife/status/1131620934077571072

I’d say “You should have included this, it adds more personality to her when she kind of needed it in the film” but...then I thought about it. It’s just more FLIPPANCY. Y’know, the only other switch she has other than stoic calmness. Those are the two buttons she predominately has throughout the film. She’s calm and collected and all stone-cold “Don’t got nothing to prove to you” and flippantly snarky when she’s not. That’s it.

I know what you’re thinking. “Well a lot of the Marvel heroes are snarky and quippy and flippant, why’s it okay when they do it”? 

One, it gets annoying seeing it done twenty times. 

Two, the guy who does it the most and started the whole snarky dry wit humor thing? Iron Man. 

And I HAAAAAAATE Iron Man. I have never, EVER forgiven him for the stuff in Marvel’s Civil War comic. Not ever. He got off fuckin’ scott free and he can fuck a garbage disposal. I’m Captain America all the way. Even though they fucked HIM over with the Hydra crap in the comics. 

Three, we actually get to know the characters in the other films who do similar behavior. We know their likes, dislikes, their fears, hopes and dreams. We see their family. We get a buildup. What do we really know about Carol? 

Well, we THOUGHT we knew her when the film starts off, then about twenty minutes or so in...evidently not, something’s off about her past. So everything we THOUGHT had been established about her past was a big fuckin’ lie. She’s not that person at all. So who is she then? Do we see her past? Not really. The most we ever see of her actual past doesn’t add up to ten minutes of screentime and it’s FLASHBACK stuff that first appears with quick, almost seizure-inducing editing when her brain is being scanned. Then there’s the one full scene when Mar-vell is shot and Carol gets her powers. That’s it. 

Let’s compare her to Captain America. We see his normal life. We see him with his friend Bucky, and him wanting to join the army out of a sense of Patriotic duty and because he doesn’t like bullies, and the Nazis are the biggest ones of all. He’s too weak though. But then he gets a chance to be a candidate for a super soldier serum and proves his mettle by trying to fall on a grenade to save his fellow men. We also see he’s smart, and not a brainless brick. He gets a flag down that nobody else did not by climbing up the pole...but by just knocking down the pole itself, then leisurely plucking the flag up. Nobody else thought of that. But he did.

So we see him quite a lot and get to know who he is BEFORE he gets his powers and even then, it didn’t really change who he was inside. It just brought out the potential that was always there. 

But Carol? What do we know about her? We don’t really see her with her friends and family. We get TOLD what she is, but we’re not SHOWN. And on top of that, she doesn’t really suffer any consequences or trials. She gets it easy.

Let’s compare. 

Thor actually gets kicked out of his home. He disobeys his dad’s orders and because he’s such an arrogant toe-rag, he is stripped of his godhood, and he can’t even use his big, fancy hammer because he’s not worthy of it anymore. He’s easily captured by SHIELD. He’s a fish out of water who has no idea how the Earth works and he has nothing but the clothes on his back, and he has to learn humility, and to respect other people. He begins to fall in love with a human woman, and at the end he even offers himself up to save others. So he fell to his lowest point and then got to rise back up by proving himself humble and noble and worthy again through self-sacrifice for other’s sake. 

Guardians of the Galaxy. It opens with a KID LOSING HIS MOM TO CANCER. He’s so hurt he can’t bring himself to take her hand on her deathbed, he runs out of the building to cry and he’s abducted by aliens whom, we get told, joke about doing things like EATING HIM. Which he doesn’t find funny AT ALL.  That kid grows up into a rather selfish jerk who’s an arrogant thief, and he gets into a big fight with bounty hunters AND they all get tossed into jail. Peter, the kid, has to work with others to break out and sell the fruits of his labor, which turns out to be an infinity stone. We learn more about the others, we learn of their pain, and we see them at low points too. Rocket drunk and feeling like a worthless, stupid animal. Drax tries to avenge his murdered family and fails miserably. Groot’s self-sacrifice. And they’re all...well...losers! All of them have indeed lost people and Gamora’s implied to have been heavily mistreated by Thanos, but they’re also all sort of pathetic. Just about everything they try to do blows up in their face in some way. So because they keep getting screwed over and screwing up and then at the END succeed by working together, we can identify with them. They don’t really have these huge, amazing powers either, so you can further identify with them because for the most part, they’re just normal people with guns and knives except for Groot. 

Capt America, as I’ve shown, has a ton of his life shown before he even becomes Captain America. But he loses his best friend. He can’t even get drunk to numb the pain.  And then at the end of the film he has to sacrifice himself to keep WMDs from being launched on America. He crashes into the arctic, and he doesn’t die, but he’s frozen for 70 years. He’s lost the love of his life. He’s lost his whole world, his time. All of his friends and family are dead now. He’s got nothing. He saved America...but he has nothing left. THAT...is tragedy. THAT...is drama. THAT...is good writing and it gets us to identify and relate to him.

Heck, take ANT-MAN. He’s a pathetic thief. He can’t even see his own daughter. He can’t even pay child support. He can’t hold a job because he’s a thief. So from the beginning, this guy is a loser. His only special thing is the suit he manages to steal, and he even at first doesn’t WANT it, he tries to return it. Throughout the film that sense of “this guy’s pretty pathetic” lingers on. His big thing is being able to shrink and to summon ants. Not that impressive. But we can relate to somebody who’s so pathetic, we can see ourselves in him, especially since he sincerely keeps trying to help his daughter. You know, the clear, obvious family that’s very firmly established and we get to know more than Marvel’s family who isn’t even her actual family and most of what we know about them  is from an info-dump scene and very brief flashing images of her singing in a bar with Monica? 

Even TONY has a better origin. At first he’s a smug weapons manufacturer. Then he gets kidnapped. He’s gonna get killed. He gets to know a man named Yinsen, a doctor, who helps save his life. They form a bond and Tony builds a suit made of scraps in a CAVE! But tragically Yinsen dies to save Tony. Tony barely makes it out of their alive, and decides...no more weapons. His company is done selling them. Period. But he does build a new suit, the Iron Man suit, and decides to use it to start helping people and fighting terrorism. He wants to clean up the mess he’s unknowingly made. He was at a low point. Knocked down. Nobody takes his company seriously anymore and they think he’s cuckoo for getting out of the weapons business AND if that electromagnet in his chest is removed, he’ll die. There’s a real threat to his life. So at least he started out at a low point and had to rebuild himself and build his way back up. And even then I still don’t really like him much at all.

There’s only ONE origin that I think is truly weak and could be called worse than Capt. Marvel’s. Hulk. Bruce Banner HAS to control his temper, sure, because when he tried to perform an experiment to make humans immune to gamma radiation...it failed, he went all Hulk and destroyed the lab he was in and killed several people AND he hurt the guy who helped start the project, Gen. Ross AND his beloved Betty Ross, whom Bruce cares for deeply. He’s a fugitive from the law from the very beginning of the film and desperately looking for a cure. And yes, the entire film he’s on the run and there’s never a moment’s peace for him until the very end. But then again, Captain Marvel is also on the road and the run a lot of her movie, and we see more bonding with the people who used to be her friends than Hulk bonding with Betty. And she and Nick Fury get plenty of great friendship too. Not much friendship and bonding in Hulk.

But I think you get the point. Compared to almost all the other superhero origin films in Marvel, Carol Danvers got jack. Even BLACK PANTHER in HIS debut in Civil War got more because we see him lose his dad and he doesn’t even get vengeance and he has to accept that revenge isn’t the answer. There’s an arc. And he’s also more fleshed out as a character. Plus his own actual movie gives him even more of an arc and having to accept responsibility for his country while realizing they’ve really dropped the ball on how to handle power. And the villains aren’t boring either. 

So Captain Marvel’s film is just...ehhhhhh. Meh. Blah. Whatever. That’s it. 

I know what you’re gonna say. “But it got so much money!” Yeah. And one of the big reasons was the same reason Black Panther did. Superhero marvel film featuring a type not seen before. For Black Panther, it’s a mainstream black superhero. For Capt. Marvel, mainstream superHEROINE. We only really had one other, Wonder Woman. People were hungry for more, even if the end result is just OKAY or AVERAGE at best. People will accept poor representation or just average if the alternate is none at all. You’d rather have crumbs than nothing. Even the critics said Captain Marvel was about a 78%, even Ant-Man and the Wasp, one of the weaker Marvel films, got a higher rating. It got ONE point higher than Thor, one of the weaker Marvel origin films. But to be fair it dead beat The incredible Hulk! And again, that’s from the Critics. AKA people who get paid to like this stuff. Sometimes outright directly in Sony’s case since we found out they were paying off critics. XD 

Just saying. Capt. Marvel wasn’t that good. But if I had to say one thing about this deleted scene that didn’t make it into the film, it’s this.

SUUUUUUUUUUUBTLE. XD

[nathanjhill]

Give Us What We Want (a sermon on leadership)

1 Samuel 8

What makes for good leadership?

Right now, authors and academic types are claiming that the world is experiencing an uptick in authoritarianism. Larry Diamond of Stanford University in a media interview described it this way - “they can do whatever they want, they can repress and arrest and even murder whoever they want, they can rule as nastily as they want.” (and face no consequences)

Across the world from the Philippines to Turkey to Poland and North Korea and maybe even right here at home, leaders are choosing to behave as bullies, cracking down on their opponents, trying to silence those who might disagree with them… twisting what is fact and what is fake. Maybe it’s not new - maybe it’s been going on along time, but this kind of behavior doesn’t seem to get challenged on the international stage quite like it used to.

Especially when we hear of talk right here in our nation of a President who claims to be able to pardon themselves of all wrong - it’s okay if we get a bit nervous or fired up in alarm.

What’s clear - we are in need of some good leaders for a time such as this.

But what makes good leadership?

I wonder if part of the rise of authoritarianism is an ancient need buried within as human beings - a need for certainty. A need for security. A need for, even if it is not a tangible sense of a safety, someone or something in our lives and in our society who makes us feel grounded in all the uncertainty that swirls around us.

A tough talking leader can do that.

Walls and big guns and echo chambers (of people who believe things like we do) and people who look and act like us can do it too.

All of those things can seem to make life easier, make us feel comfortable and safe, even if the reality is that life is rarely safe. The unexpected can happen. Evil is on the prowl. There are bad guys with guns. We live in a world with nuclear weapons.

We want a King.

We want a King who can sort through all of that madness and convince us that it’s all going to be okay.

Who is going to stand tough and talk a good game and make our worry go away.

It seems scripture is prepared to challenge our notions of safety and security in one glorious leader.

In our text this morning, we come across a word from the Lord through the prophet Samuel that is as eerily timely today as it was a couple of thousand years ago.

Samuel the prophet, appointed by God as an intermediator between the people and the Holy, has seen his ministry begin to wane. He is old - and his sons have become corrupt. They are unable to carry on the family business. They take bribes. They showcase a leadership that is not aligned with God’s way.

So the people ask for a change - they ask for a king.

Place this in context - When the people came to the Promised Land, they didn’t initially have a King. They were a way of life that was quite free other than the specific religious laws that governed how they behave and settle disputes and care for the poor and vulnerable. But when trouble struck or the people needed a word, God gave the people prophets, sometimes called Judges, to gather the tribes and lead them to repel invaders or critique their way of life when they strayed.

But times have changed - the people have seen what other nations are doing. They are away of the instability and chaos of the world. Maybe those neighboring peoples raised their tariffs or tried to threaten them or have come across their border. The people don’t trust God’s way - they want a King.

Here, the people of Israel clamor for a King - and they clamor for a King for all the reasons that authoritarians today are having a run of success. They want security. They want a warlord who will lead them into battle. They want to be like other nations, strong and significant. They want to feel safe and secure in a world of chaos and challenge.

Give us what we want - the people seem to say.

The prophet Samuel, knowing that his ministry is coming to an end just like his predecessor, Eli, listens to the people and consults God. Samuel is reluctant. After all, Samuel knew what God desired of the people - not for them to be conformed to the way of the world but conformed to the way of God.

God tells Samuel - they are not rejecting you - they are rejecting me.

Surprisingly or lovingly or with a mischievous grin, God gives them what they want.

But there will be a price. There’s always a cost.

These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen, and to run before his chariots; and he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plough his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his courtiers. He will take one-tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and his courtiers. He will take your male and female slaves, and the best of your cattle and donkeys, and put them to his work. He will take one-tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves; but the Lord will not answer you in that day.

The price for that “perceived” safety and security? Your lives. Your freedom. The fruit of your lands. Your children. And ultimately, a loss of your identity. God may not hear your cry anymore.

But the people, hard-hearted, are willing to take that bargain. Anything to keep up with the Jones. Anything to look as strong and mighty as all of their neighbors. Anything to claim that certainty in a world that seemed out of control.

And who does Samuel go and pick to be Israel’s first King?

Saul, who in Chapter 9 we are informed, most important credentials are that he is tall and handsome.

At first, Saul’s reign begins well - he must have been a terrifying sight in battle, but pretty soon, it begins to fall apart. No one person can fulfill all of those people’s dreams and desires. No one person can sustain the weight of the people’s desire for security. No one can be everything that people want and hope for. Saul too became jealous, bitter, distant, murderous, and hard-hearted. But at least he looked good while doing it, right?

Most cutting of all, the people, who were led out of bondage by a loving and just God, reject that God. They don’t want God to be their King. They want someone else. Someone they can touch and feel. Someone they can hang a portrait of on their living room wall. Someone who will give them inspiring speeches. They choose an idol over God.

How many times are we invited to choose an idol of security and safety over the One Sovereign God?

How many times have we chosen a candidate to vote for who is tall and handsome?

How many times have we chosen an ideology that offers certainty over reality?

How many times have we chosen to follow someone who looks and acts and believes like us even as God is calling us to place our trust in the Creator?

The opposite of safety and security is not vulnerability and irresponsibility but it is trust.

Trust in God’s creative, life-giving power.

Trust in God’s sovereign ability to hold us even in the midst of grief and uncertainty.

Trust in God’s leading and shaping so that we indeed might reflect God’s will in a world gone awry.

It’s past time to cast out those false idols and images.

All of our leaders are flawed. All of our leaders at one point or another will let us down. Including your pastor! And yet, the greatest among us must be the lowest, Jesus says.

For we Christians, our image of leadership comes from Jesus.

It comes from the one who the crowds talked about, crying out, “Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest!”

The one who prayed in the garden, with sweat like blood dripping from his brow, “Not my will but your will.”

The one who was spat upon and mocked and tortured and who said, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.”

Jesus who as Paul’s letter to the Philippians said:

he was in the form of God,    did not regard equality with God    as something to be exploited, but emptied himself,    taking the form of a slave,    being born in human likeness. And being found in human form,    he humbled himself    and became obedient to the point of death—    even death on a cross.

Therefore God also highly exalted him    and gave him the name    that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus    every knee should bend,    in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue should confess    that Jesus Christ is Lord,    to the glory of God the Father.

This for me - and I hope for us - is an image of leadership that we seek.

Granted, I get that we as a church have a challenge. In a world where people come to church to seek security and safety, we are embarking on a project that challenges us to go to the margins. We are asking of each other to be open to the Holy Spirit shaping us in God’s image and not our own. We are calling one another to be stretched to place our trust not in bank accounts and weapons of war and political parties of any kind - but place our trust in God to provide for us as we face the wickedness of our day.

Sometimes, we come to church saying to God, Give us what we want.

But if we dare to listen and be open, we might receive exactly what God desires to give us - a place at the table, a part in God’s unfolding story of salvation and liberation.

Our church is full of stories of God’s provision - of God showing up in times of challenge and hope - of God giving us vision to live in this world. We know what it is to be vulnerable - may we commit to that call over and over again.

[chewthepage-blog]

Easy Dos and Don’ts to Improve Your Writing.

A perfect life is boring. Would you read three hundred pages about a character without flaws? No obstacles to overcome? Would you pay twelves dollars to see a movie where the main character breezes through the plot, everyone loves him and defeats the bad guy easily? Why not?

Why don’t we run to buy these kinds of stories? Isn’t this what we aspire to have for ourselves? I say at least not for our fiction, and those perfect characters should be burned.

There’s a life we wish we had and a life we want to read about.

Life’s imperfection is the perfect foundation for story building. If your plot is the meat then tension and conflict is the flavor. What’s a story without that resistance or pushback? You could go to the store, get some shopping done and go home. That’s a story. There’s a beginning, middle, and end. But is it a good story? Does anyone walk away relieved that everything went smoothly? Good news is better than bad news, but good news doesn’t keep you on the edge of your seat. What fills those cracks that creates interest in what’s going on? Let’s try a loose example:

Since we’ve established that going to the store and coming back is boring, let’s mix it up.

“Maybe you wanted to go straight home after work, but couldn’t put off grocery shopping anymore. There’s no coffee, you’re low on laundry detergent, there’s practically nothing to eat. It has to be today. You pass the exit you would normally take to go home and go two more to your usual grocery store. They don’t have your favorite coffee and so you settle for something lesser so you don’t have to make a second trip. You wait in line, the cold handle of the milk jug has a rough seam that presses into your hand. The register girl is smacking her gum as she rings you up, her hand on her hip as she bounces on a leg.

Maybe on the way home you get a flat tire. It’s a full blowout so the patch kit in your trunk won’t do you much good. Your dad’s words come to mind:

“You should put a spare in there, a patch won’t get you out of everything.”

Standing by your car, thumbing through your contacts, you try to call someone for a ride. No one is picking up. Cars are passing by and sweat is beading at your hairline as you shield your eyes from the setting sun.

A man in a white truck pulls up behind you. He can’t do much to help without a spare but he offers to get you to the next exit so you can wait at a gas station. It would be safer that way.

“Your choice.”

At this point, anything would be better than standing in the heat. You grab the gallon of milk from the backseat and climb into the passenger seat of the man’s truck.

“Thanks.” The man is friendly enough, trying to make small talk with you but conversations like that are doomed to die. You resign to stare out the window to watch the tree line down the embankment pass by. The milk in your hand is sweating in the heat, leaving a wet mark in your lap. A green sign passes in front of your eyes. You passed the exit. The exit is behind you. You need to get home.”

Maybe the man robs the station in a way that makes you look like an accomplice. Your face is on video and you have to run from the law with someone you don’t like. It’s a new pickle for the character. You could take this into many different paths. Do you want to be this guy’s accomplice or hostage? Is this the start of a life of crime or a fight to get home.

I am assumptious by using the “you” pronoun to try and force empathy. I wouldn’t do that normally but I wanted to illustrate a point. Was there a point at all that you began shaking your head or “noping out.” Maybe you thought to yourself “I wouldn’t do that” or “don’t do it” like many people who talk to horror movie characters.

Is it a comedy? A drama? Horror? Heck, a romance?

Is the man with the truck trying to save a loved one and turn to a life of crime? Is he actually a long lost cousin? Brother? Is he a murderous psychopath? Do whatever you want, but whatever you do, don’t bore the reader. Make them uncomfortable, gross them out, make them consider things they wouldn’t otherwise.

Maybe this is a comedy and the character’s life is perfect. There is value is setting up this scenario as long as you plan on ruining it very quickly. I would exaggerate the lifestyle of this person to make it too good to be true and make the character flounder a bit in the shift. Maybe he’s shocked that someone with a beard could be untrustworthy since Santa, Abraham Lincoln and their dad has a beard.

Back to bad writing. Sometimes recognizing what’s sour helps us appreciate the sweet.

When I was younger, as do many people, my characters and plots revolved around the wishful thinking of my youth. I like to think we’ve all written something like that. For example:

“The awesome life of Mason Gerkins by Jason Perkins.

PS: The main character is totally not me.

Once upon a time, there was a boy named Mason and he was going to school for the first day. He was nervous but his mom told him he would be okay and to study hard. He waited for the bus. When the bus came, he went on and looked for a seat to sit.

“You can sit by me.” Said Gatlin Green who was sooo hot.

“Thanks for the seat.” said Mason.

“Hey, that’s my girlfriend and seat.” Said  Danny, who was a bully and dummyhead. “You don’t want to mess with me.”

Mason didn’t want any trouble and thought that maybe Danny was just having a bad day but he couldn’t move from his seat because it was against the bus rules.

Suddenly, the bus stopped and Gatlin Green’s books almost fell on the floor. Mason caught them all quickly with one hand and everyone thought he was sooo cool. Danny felt embarrassed.

In class, Gatlin Green sat next to Mason.

“Thanks for catching my books. You must be strong to catch them all with one hand.” Said Gatlin Green.

“You’re welcome. I do ninjutsu so my reflexes are pretty good.” Mason wanted to tell her his secret that he had to train so he could protect his family from assassins. Which is why he brought his sword in his backpack, just in case, but he couldn’t because he promised his dad it was a secret.

All of a sudden, assassins broke through the windows.”

You get the idea. I hope we all have something like that to look back on. I threw mine away long ago and I shouldn’t have. It’s good to read back on them for a laugh or a humbling experience. It’s not good, but it’s also not weird for most people to start writing that way. Authors can only draw upon the things they know. As a kid, I didn’t know much and had a selfish perspective as most kids go.

There’s the life we wish we had and the life we want to read about.

“Hey, that’s the kind of story I write now.” Then stop it. Don’t throw it out, but try something new. Using your new found power as the storyteller to make everything great is far from it.

Ask what were we missing in those days? It had assassins in it, middle school is relatable right? What more could you want?

Tension. I’ll say now that tension and conflict are not the same and we can cover it more in depth later on. For now, let’s say you can fight ninjas every other paragraph but without tension you’ll yawn through most of it. Unless your story comes with a hype-man it’ll be difficult to make repetition exciting. Ever been in the same room as two people argued? We’ll call that conflict. It’s in the open being resolved.  Ever been in a room where someone wants someone else dead, but is acting civil? There’s might also be a gun in the room somewhere, but it’s hard to know. Tension is a conflict with mystery, like a battle under the surface of what’s being presented. An unseen snake in the grass. You know it’s there but no one is talking about it.

As the creator for whatever medium you present your storytelling, you have an incredible power but must walk a razor’s edge. At any moment of your drafting and revision stages you must determine what is too little and too much.

“Mason sat down on the bus seat, the cushion sighing from its seams. The seat was warm from the sunlight pouring in from the windows. The structure of the bench was sturdy, the support could be felt through the foam and faux leather construction. He tried to find a comfortable position, trying not to disturb the girl next to him. He lay his backpack in his lap, clutching it to his chest. He leaned against the back of his seat, his back would soon sweat as his body heat mixed with the sun’s heat through convection which is the tendency of hotter and therefore less dense material to rise, and colder, denser material to sink under the influence of gravity, which consequently results in transfer of heat.”

What are you doing? He’s just sitting! There’s no tension, the setting doesn’t seem important to the plot. All these details aren’t interesting enough and make the progression hang. Get to the good part! Don’t stall out your story by holding the clutch down or switching gears too slow.

I’ll gladly revisit these subjects as per request or as soon as I hit my general topics and pass again for more specific blogs.

You can make anything mundane into something far more interesting. Let that be a challenge. You can write it, vlog it or just try it verbally on a friend. I am also starting a podcast for those of us who like a good story, written or otherwise. If you have a good story (fiction or not), a weird dream, and want to share them- or anything really- copy paste it or link it and email it to me at chewthepagepodcast@gmail.com. I don’t click on strange or shortened links.

I’m also on Twitter under @ChewThePage if those are preferable ways to share.

https://twitter.com/ChewThePage