#The Hippocratic oath is an important thing.

[waterdroid]

What's like, a good "synonym" for french toast? asking because I Do Not want to canonize the country of France in the Tactical Breach Wizards world,

[mintgreen-homewrecker]

A rant about Mendel being a bad psychiatrist that ends up in William Finn appreciation

I mean, we all know, don't date a patient (least of all things MARRY them). But the man is a psychiatrist, it is his job to help people (obviously).

Marvin is spiraling. And it is 100% his fault that his life ends up falling apart the way it does. But Mendel is too infatuated with Trina/too disinterested in his patient to offer him help before worst comes to worst.

I mean, joke all you like, but Mendel actively failed his duty as a mental health professional, even justss a doctor (hippocratic oath and such).

Everyone (except Jason, of course because he's literally 10 years old) is flawed and makes mistakes, of course. But Mendel was the only one who could have actually done something.

Now, how does that lead to William Finn appreciation?

Originally this post was about Mendel choosing to overlook how Marvin bery clearly displays many traits of Narcissistic personality disorder and Borderline personality disorder. I decided to look, just to make sure, when these two became official diagnoses. And guess what?

Both BPD and NPD only became official diagnoses in the DSM III, which was published in 1980. Yes, you read that correctly. 1980. The year in between the two years between the two acts. And that not only explains why Mendel, despite being an awful psychiatrist, probably couldn't have helped him very effectively even if he was a good mental health professional.

It also explains how, with just two years, the bitter, hateful and spiteful Marvin from March of the Falsettos manages to become a good father, gets on reasonably good terms with Trina and, as someone who needs affirmation and validation, actually makes friends with someone who is as no nonsense as Charlotte. It makes me think of More Raquetball, where you can see his old traits shine through.

This would have probably been their first big fight since getting together. Whizzer is reacting differently, Marvin reacts "accordingly" based on all the assumptions he makes.

But when Whizzer collapses he sees it had nothing to do with him. And instead of making it about himself or how bad he feels about it (both very realistic for the respective diagnoses) instead he reassures Whizzer that it will be fine. That he loves him. True growth through accepting your flaws and working through them rather than ignoring them.

I don't mean to say that the year 1981 doesn't have primary importance as the year the AIDS crisis began, because Falsettoland is about the lives lost and how communities were torn apart and how lesbians were an absolute pillar of support for all the gay men, who suffered and the majority that died.

Still, I find it fascinating that, considering so much of Falsettos is written so intentionally and so succinct in its character building and descriptions, 1981 is not only the year of one of a scar in gay history but also the first year people with those disorders were actually able to get help.

It makes Marvin even more tragic. 1981 was likely the first year he ever felt like his life was on the right track, with how much he has mended his relationships, that he not only got to be with Whizzer again but that their relationship was a good and healthy one. Treatment definitely wasn't very advanced. It was the first year of being an official diagnosis, after all. Still, the treatments helped him.

[local-human-disaster]

My new wine and cheese pairing recommendation: reading "The Three Garridebs" before you (re)watch "The Mystery of the Midnight Circus".

"The Three Garridebs" is one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes original short stories. The most important thing about it, aka why I've been insane over it for ten years, is that Watson gets shot at, and Holmes panics. Here's how Watson sees it:

"It was worth a wound--it was worth many wounds--to know the depth of loyalty and love which lay behind that cold mask. The clear, hard eyes were dimmed for a moment, and the firm lips were shaking. For the one and only time I caught a glimpse of a great heart as well as of a great brain. All my years of humble but single-minded service culminated in that moment of revelation."

Which sure is fun to know in light of Midnight Circus, huh? ACD Watson thinks that years of "humble but single-minded service" to Holmes is all worth it, just because he gets a moment when he sees Holmes cares about him. Holmes cares about Watson so much, he has a major ooc moment where he displays emotions like he never had before, for anyone else. It's just Watson! And knowing that Holmes loves him the way Holmes has never loved anyone else before, that Holmes truly cares, makes his service worth it for Watson. Super fun to read this after I watched Watsam throw away his morals and his Hippocratic Oath. Just to try and bring Tomlock back.

Oh but that's not the end of it. In the short story, when Holmes sees that Watson is fine, he has this to say to the suspect:

"By the Lord, it is as well for you. If you had killed Watson, you would not have got out of this room alive."

An explicit confirmation from ACD Holmes that he's more than willing to kill someone for the crime of killing Watson. Fun lil thing to keep in mind when you watch "The Mystery of the Midnight Circus"!

[lilia-calderus-pet-goat]

Random thought: Jen was a midwife, yes? And her and Agatha have a history of mutual dislike—but Agatha respected her for her craft so much as to spare her.

How devastating would it be if, maybe, just maybe, Jen had been the one to deliver Nicky? (I assume based on the canon that they technically didn't know each other yet, but just bare with me for a second. Both of them, if I'm not mistaken, are from Massachusetts—Salem and Boston respectively, so they probably met pretty early on regardless.)

Imagine Jen meeting Agatha just as that—a mother in labour, in need of help—and helping her so, healing her, and handing her newborn son to her, to hold for the first time. She didn't much like the woman—not only because she was obnoxious—but also because she would have heard tales of the witch-killer who murdered her own coven after breaking their rules. But at that moment, none of that mattered. She had a Hippocratic oath to keep. And since Jen didn't know Rio at all, she would have assumed that Agatha was alone in all of this.

Then one day she hears of the witch-killer again—learns that she “sacrificed her son for the darkhold... ” And that she “goes after the undeserving,“ stealing magic from witches with her terrible syphon power.

And so she runs into her again, and again, each time convinced it'd be the last—because Jen would never stop provoking her for sacrificing her baby boy. The 'one thing in her life that made her redeemable.' But Agatha spares her. She leaves her alone, because “what you were doing was important. Not this Kale Kare crap, your real job.”

And how many more layers does that line gain, if Jen delivered Nick? And how nicely does it tie in with her being the one to warn Billy about how “Agatha sacrificed her son for the Darkhold.”

[cripplecharacters]

Hi! So my main character is a woman whose leg has been crippled in a car accident; she struggles a lot with the pain and with the cane she uses to walk. One day she gets surgery for an unrelated issue, and while she's under anesthesia her partner, the surgeon, realizes he can also heal her leg during the same procedure, and he does, without consulting her because a) she's sleeping AND b) he suspects she wouldn't accept out of pride. I'd like to know whether this behaviour could be considered toxic regarding her disability specifically? He does it out of love, because he wants to make her life easier, but apart from the lack of consent, I'm afraid there is something wrong about him trying to heal a disability. Thank you very much!

Hello,

So, first of all, it's probably not the greatest stylistic choice to refer to her leg as crippled unless you as the writer are also physically disabled. It is still a slur and it's best not to use it unless you know exactly what it means.

And second, it's just not good of him to do that. Physically disabled people do often have our bodily autonomy denied in real life, and it's a huge problem that's only recently kind of being acknowledged as a bad thing. This is something that may resonate with some readers and if it's portrayed as a good, romantic thing, it could trigger them. It can also give abled readers the idea that this is an okay thing to do, maybe even that it's a thing that should be done, and that's not a good thing.

Also, from a disability perspective, it's also not great that he went and cut her open to try and fix her disability. Procedures to do stuff like that, especially at the hip or spine, where a surgery for something like this would likely be, come with a massive risk for complications. There's a very real chance that now she's still disabled, just in a different way. I'll use an example of knee replacements. Yeah, people need their knees replaced sometimes to prevent, mitigate, or end a disability, but it's a major procedure on a weight-bearing limb and it's pretty complex, so a lot can go wrong. When things go wrong, these people are now left with an entirely different disability, sometimes a new disability joining the one they already had. That's the risk of a knee replacement surgery and patients are to be informed of the potential complications before they agree to the surgery. It's called risk-aware informed consent and it's extremely important. Doing something major without informing the patient of the risks means operating them without their informed consent and causing the patient great risk, maybe even doing undue harm. The Hippocratic Oath is to do no harm, and he will have his ability to practice taken away if he does this.

If you're going to do this, don't portray it as a good, romantic thing. It's not.

Mod Aaron

[t00thpasteface]

@depressedpossum pardonnez-moi s'il vous plait for making this its own post but that other post was getting too long AND i didn't want this reply to just get lost in the noise—

i do think it's REALLY funny how hawkeye's oddly ethical about being a slut, all things considered… iirc he has a rule that he won't hook up with married women. more important than it being nice, it's interesting for the character in a way that serves his hippocratic oath... and just as important is the fact that it's really funny. provided the woman is unmarried, she's free to kick him while wearing high heels, because yeah, he's still kind of a sex pest and he likes mean women who think he's an annoying little curiosity.

as a general rule i value The Bit very highly, and i think it's extra funny in the case of hawkahy, because there's only one bigger, brighter-flashing DO NOT TOUCH sign than a wedding ring, and that's the chaplain's collar. it's hilarious to think about hawkeye saying "no, it's WRONG to sleep with a married woman!" and then turning around and going "hm. i bet i can get this catholic priest to break his vow of celibacy for me" and then succeeding.

i also think it would be really funny if trapper, who is basically spiders georg for extramarital affairs, drew the morality line at priestfucking. i can see trapper and hawkeye getting into a heated argument over which one is more ethical...

[mediumgayitalian]

fic rec friday

hi!! welcome to fic rec friday. every week, i pick five fics i have bookmarked and rec them with a little review. check them out!

let there be light, let me be alright by annaaperson

His words stopped short as he, along with the rest of the cabin, stared in wonder-filled horror at Will. Specifically Will Solace. More specifically, his hands. His hands that were glowing a soft golden light into the night’s bleeding darkness. (aka, 5 times Will freaked people out by cracking his joints and lighting up like a glow stick and the one time he doesn't)

this was very sweet. glowstick will solace is such a funny fucking character trait and it does not have the spotlight it should have. loved the will & lee and will & clarisse. and i am a 5+1 truther why are those fics like actual crack

2. Death Boy by percyspandapillowpet

The three times Nico said he hated the nickname Will gave him and the one time he didn't.

okay full and fair warning i WILL be talking about this author all the time. they carried the pjo fandom in 2016 truly. and this fic is so tooth-rotting!! love fics where nico slowly warms up to having friends as he deserves truly

3. The Thing You Need Most by @wintersky101

When he's finished in the infirmary, when he's finally done all that he can to keep himself distracted, Will staggers into the Apollo cabin and immediately crumples to his knees, tears already springing to his eyes.

no this one is so important bc sometimes i feel like this fandom falls into the repetition of sad-nico-comforting-will and while thats not necessarily bad!! its nice to have some variety. and having nico be there for will when will cant be is so important and lovely to see. this fic does it so well!!

4. I swear by Apollo the physician, and Asclepius, and Hygieia and Panacea and all the gods and goddesses as my witnesses, that, according to my ability and judgement, I will keep this Oath and this contract: by @nicostolemybones

Will breaks the entire Hippocratic Oath.

i read this fic months ago and i literally think about it all the time. the quiet bitterness. the rebellion borne of a deep deep love for everyone around him. the backbone made of steel. william andrew solace i would die for you

5. Beautiful pain by Phantomxlegend

Will can take the pain of others and bear it himself. Half the time it’s not even a conscious decision and he doesn’t even know he did it... until later when the pain hits.

is this a little out there? yeah. a little wumpy?? yeah. but what is the point of fandom otherwise. this fic is exactly what it advertises

thank you for joining me this friday!! happy reading!!

[sga-owns-my-soul]

Fic Idea Adoption!

i have way too many ideas for fics and i know i won't ever get around to writing them all so i'm putting some ideas up for adoption!! i may or may not write these eventually, but they're too good of ideas to leave sitting in my notes app forever, so i'm releasing them to the void! anyone and everyone is welcome to use them, and feel free to be as ambiguous with the prompts as you want! no particular order but nsfw ideas are at the bottom for anyone who wants to avoid them!

(if you do use any of these, i would love to read the fic!! you definitely do not have to but please feel free to send me anything you write off this list!!)

-john takes rodney to earths moon

-john and rodney find the ancient equivalent of speed. they do Everything

-au where ronon gets earth to repeal dadt bc john tells him it's why he can't be with rodney and ronon goes I Must Fix This (he enlists teyla and lorne and maybe cadman)

-rodney asks ronon to go with john to earth (outcast coda)

-rodney goes on bill nye saves the world after stargate declassification

-evans biggest fear is having to shoot john (and maybe getting a promotion bc of it?) and john finds out

-rodney’s ‘torture too hideous and intimate to recount’ is him being tortured, just for them to realize that torturing his team is a better way to break him

-teyla living out ‘the chosen one’ trope

-what happens to sora after the eye

-au where meredith(female!rodney) comes to atlantis instead of rod and not only is rodney horribly disturbed, he’s furious (and strangely confused) as to why everyone apparently likes him more as a woman

-todd is weirdly obsessed with this strange human he meets, and is determined to get closer to him

-the team is most excited about catching up with todd when they get the confirmation atlantis is going back to pegasus

-everyone complains about rodney’s moods bc no one can complain about the infinitely worse in every way sheppard bad moods, that make everyone on the base wish they were on a hive ship being eaten by two wraith at once

-au where ronon ends up on athos at the same time the wraith come and he sneaks through the gate with the intention of just sneaking away on the next planet but whoops it’s atlantis (ronon pov)

-rodney keeps a memorial for every single scientist lost in his lab and radek shows it to new scientists who start complaining about rodney not caring and risking their lives

-reaper au where’s he’s fed the fuck up with these two stupid men who never actually die when they’re supposed to and it’s more annoying than anything now bc he still needs to show up

-au carson comes to atlantis and is HORRIFIED by becketts retrovirus research and the hoffan drug bc “does the hippocratic oath mean NOTHING here???”

-au where rodney can’t admit to himself what john means to him, until something happens that brings all the alternate rodney’s that have lost their johns to atlantis, and they all fall apart when they see john alive, and john and rodney have to have a Conversation (mcshep? maybe ambiguous? idk yet)

-rodney sees john as three separate entities: the Colonel, who is Professional Important Official Man; sheppard, who is his friend/team lead that he hangs out with and goes on missions with; and john, who he’s always seeming to have very intimate moments with that make him question a lot of how he feels

-early days in the city, elizabeth is sick of the marines shitting on the scientists for not being tough and the scientists for shitting on the marines for not being smart so she makes them try to solve a fake crisis from the other side and everyone is like aww shit this is harder than it looks

-that thing where tough men pretend they don’t care much about someone but then the person gets hurt and Tough Guy go a little feral and then holds them close and whisper pet names (sweetheart, baby, darling, etc) but it’s john and/or ronon after rodney gets injured

-the more important something is to john, the harder it is for him to talk about it, and rodney starts to realize how hard it is for john to talk about what rodney means to him

-a bunch of au sheppards get brought to atlantis and one on them is terrified of flying

-rodney has always said biology was beneath him, but then ford almost died, and was… different, from the wraith. and rodney knew he had to find a way to help ford, maybe find a way to fix his mental problems while keeping the physical benefits. rodney and carson find a way to save ford and sheppard is so thankful he kisses them both

nsfw ideas:

-ronon suggests some planets for trading when they get low on supplies that have an interesting trade system. it seems too good to be true and they wonder why telya hasn't taken them until they find out that they trade goods for sex

-au where john is hired as a spy for atlantis and he seduces people in pegasus to get intel for the city

-sometimes rodney just grabs john (by the hair, throat, back of the neck, chin, etc) and asks who he belongs to and john instantly melts

-rodney decides to be a tease on a mission and teyla and ronon think mckay is just really pissing sheppard off when he pulls mckay away for “privacy” but really he’s just super horny and wants to fuck (or, teyla and ronon don’t realize that their fighting is foreplay)

[clotheshorsepodcast]

NEW EPISODE ALERT!!!

Well, I am so excited about this week’s episode! One of the challenges facing all of us concerned citizens is where and how to find accurate and reliable news. And it's very important that we have true information in a time when a lot of people with bad intentions are disregarding facts. 

Being knowledgable is an act of resistance!

Fortunately, this week I am joined by Elizabeth Segran (@lizsegran), Senior Staff Writer at Fast Company Magazine.  And we are going to be talking about all things news-ish.

We will be tackling some really important questions:

★ How can we tell the difference between editorial/opinion pieces and news reporting?

★ Is it dangerous for people to get their “news” solely from social media?

★ Is there a “Hippocratic oath” for journalists?

★ What are the processes journalists and news organizations follow for verifying that information is factual?

★ How have budget cuts (and a shift in the entire media industry in the digital era) impacted how fast news is reported? Has it changed what it is covered?

★ How can we fact check the things we see online?

★ How can we stay hopeful and motivated in a time when bad, scary news is coming so fast?

And of course, so much more!

Also in this episode: I introduce REDUCE, REFUSE, RESIST, an economic protest (and new way of life) for all of us that begins in March. I will be talking about that more on social media tomorrow!

[tiodolma]

The Hippocratic Oath Within the Context of BBC Merlin

Based on what is observed on BBC Merlin, the Arthurian mythos of the show seems to take place around a most probable early medieval setting in which the Old Religion still has sway. There are many things that are never explained within the show, which is understandable. But one of the things that has caused me curiosity are the medical aspects within that universe, specifically the roles Gaius and Merlin exercise. Both men have very important titles in court as they take care of the king and the royal household’s health. Gaius has the title ‘Physician to the King’, while Merlin most probably has the title of ‘Apprentice to the Physician to the King’ (Wikipedia contributors, 2023b).

Within those roles, both are bound by the Hippocratic Oath. The Hippocratic Oath is a very well-known Greek text that has influenced Western medicine throughout the centuries in terms of medical ethics (U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d.; Wikipedia contributors, 2023b). According to Michael North (2002), as cited in the U.S. National Library of Medicine (n.d.), the Hippocratic Oath states the following:

“I swear by Apollo the physician, and Asclepius, and Hygieia and Panacea and all the gods and goddesses as my witnesses, that, according to my ability and judgement, I will keep this Oath and this contract:

To hold him who taught me this art equally dear to me as my parents, to be a partner in life with him, and to fulfill his needs when required; to look upon his offspring as equals to my own siblings, and to teach them this art, if they shall wish to learn it, without fee or contract; and that by the set rules, lectures, and every other mode of instruction, I will impart a knowledge of the art to my own sons, and those of my teachers, and to students bound by this contract and having sworn this Oath to the law of medicine, but to no others.

I will use those dietary regimens which will benefit my patients according to my greatest ability and judgement, and I will do no harm or injustice to them.

I will not give a lethal drug to anyone if I am asked, nor will I advise such a plan; and similarly I will not give a woman a pessary to cause an abortion.

In purity and according to divine law will I carry out my life and my art.

I will not use the knife, even upon those suffering from stones, but I will leave this to those who are trained in this craft.

Into whatever homes I go, I will enter them for the benefit of the sick, avoiding any voluntary act of impropriety or corruption, including the seduction of women or men, whether they are free men or slaves.

Whatever I see or hear in the lives of my patients, whether in connection with my professional practice or not, which ought not to be spoken of outside, I will keep secret, as considering all such things to be private.

So long as I maintain this Oath faithfully and without corruption, may it be granted to me to partake of life fully and the practice of my art, gaining the respect of all men for all time. However, should I transgress this Oath and violate it, may the opposite be my fate.”

A summary of this is that the physician swears upon the gods that he and his teacher will be equals, as well as colleagues. Should the teacher be in need, the physician will help in anyway he can. Additionally, the trade is to be kept within a selected group of people: the former teacher’s children, the physician’s children, or any apprentices. The physician is to carry out his trade with purity of heart by helping the patient in any way possible without any intention to do harm or an injustice (e.g., not giving lethal drugs to anyone who asks; giving a pessary to a woman to cause abortion, sexual misconduct, etc.). Moreover, doctor patient confidentiality is to be kept and whatever is said is not to be shared with others. Lastly, in keeping this oath the physician will gain renown for eternity and if not, the opposite will happen (U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d).

If one does quick research of the period in which BBC Merlin takes place, the Roman Empire had a great influence upon their Britannia province centuries before. Not only did the Romans left buildings behind, but they also left knowledge of many things, as well as names (Wikipedia contributors, 2023a). In fact, Gaius’ name reflects the Roman influence left behind. Now, within show, there’s no mention of the Hippocratic Oath, but it is probable that Gaius knew about it and most probably swore by it. It is probable that Merlin as Gaius’ apprentice also swore by it. And if both swore by it, therein a dilemma. Because Merlin violated the Hippocratic Oath he was bound to.

He violated it in one of the important aspects of the oath, which was to do no harm or do injustice. For instance, he killed a lot of people, he poisoned Morgana, etcetera, etcetera. It is understandable why he did what he did and his reasons, but they are in no way justifiable. As a physician’s apprentice, he was bound to help people. Instead, he violated the Physician’s Oath many times over and in violation to the oath rather than renown, his name fell into infamy and his destiny remained unfulfilled.

References

U.S. National Library of Medicine. (n.d.). Greek Medicine - The Hippocratic Oath. https://www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd/greek/greek_oath.html

Wikipedia contributors. (2023a). Britannia. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Britannia

Wikipedia contributors. (2023b). Physician to the king. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physician_to_the_King

[boreal-sea]

There are a few episodes that I think are really important and poignant for the point of view of the Jem'Hadar.

The first is "To The Death", where Sisko and crew team up with a Vorta and a crew of Jem'Hadar to take on some rogue Jem'Hadar. Firstly, you learn that rogue Jem'Hadar exist, which is a pretty big thing. And then you learn that the Jem'Hadar are in many cases much smarter than their Vortas. You learn more about their culture and their ideals, and you learn how some of them interpret those rules differently. First Omet'iklan is amazing. Most Jem'Hadar only live to be a few years old!!! That's heartbreaking!

Then there's "Rocks And Shoals", where Sisko and crew crash land on a planet where a Jem'Hadar ship has also crashed. The Vorta is dying, and needs medical aid. Throughout the episode Jem'Hadar culture is again put to the forefront, with this episode being from the point of view of a Jem'Hadar who is much more loyal to the literal interpretation of the rules than the First from "To The Death". Third Remata'Klan is, by his own words, "one step ahead" of the Vorta the whole episode, but he chooses to follow the orders anyway, and his death (and the death of his squad) is both tragic and honorable.

Of course there's "Hippocratic Oath", which is a great episode on multiple fronts, including the Jem'Hadar side of things. More rogue Jem'Hadar, these ones trying to free themselves from the addiction to Ketracel White! First Goran'agar desperately wants to help his men, but can't. And there's still the nobility and honor of the Jem'Hadar at play here.

[lastlycoris]

I guess who are the important folk in my new villain arc.

Well, Matthew Greene, the other incompetent NP, is probably getting beaten half to death right now. Half is important. Apparently, he had assaulted others under the guise of doing "procedures" and sometimes not even with that thin premise. And then he also told interested guards about whom of his patients would be the most vulnerable. You could probably infer why. Most of the prison population is not happy with him.

What's annoying was that he tried to cast suspicion on me while he was being dragged out. And then when no one believed him, he had the audacity of saying that I was not fulfilling the Hippocratic Oath.

I politely reminded him and the prisoners escorting him out that the Hippocratic Oath only applies to the treatment of sick - and the only thing of the Oath that would apply - "I will prevent disease whenever I can, for prevention is preferable to cure" - is probably not something I could reasonably stop aka the consequences for his actions.

I then reminded him that consent is an important part of medicine - and that so long as he consents to treatment, and assuming he recieve no permanent or mortal wounds, I will keep putting him back together good as new.

I also smiled at him to be reassuring out of habit, but that just sent him crying.

One of the prisoners holding onto him said that it doesn't matter if he consents to treatment or not. I told him otherwise. He then pulled a shiv on me.

But then the boss lady Dr. Fries intervened and asked coolly if he was really threatening one of her subordinates in front of her.

And well, that took the wind right out of his sails.

[torturingpeople]

WIP 001: Hilbert's Grand Hotel

Synopsis:

Being a doctor is a hard but rewarding job. And there was nothing more important to this young, recently-qualified doctor than his beloved Hippocratic Oath. It detailed all of his beliefs in his profession as a pathologist perfectly; first, do no harm, I must not play at God, I will not be ashamed to say “I know not” and so on and so forth.

But this was all upended when he landed himself in a paradoxical hotel, be it by circumstance or fate, hiding in his room with no home to call his own. As the halls and doors shifted around him, payment of his hotel bills eluded him (or rather, he evaded them) for three full months. Keeping to his room, reticent, he tended to avoid the prowling Staff Members; he knew all too well of their desperation to pounce on the opportunity laying right in front of them to send him to a fate worse than death. Once he was inevitably discovered, they leapt, and he was stripped of all his possessions. His room was wiped clean, as if he had never set a foot in it.

He would have very well died, there was no doubt, unless fate hadn't smiled upon him, in its own strange, reprobate way. 

Descending from upon high comes Dr. Roland Hanna, the Lead Doctor at Hilbert’s Grand Hotel, to save him. Impossibly charismatic, spoiled with power, cruel and unusual, the maddened tyrant wastes no time in making him an offer he can’t refuse. Quite literally, lest he fall back into the hands of the Staff - so he falls forward into the hands of evil. Even if the doors of Heaven close on him at Judgement Day, if he wants to keep his life now, he has no choice; his arm is twisted; he has to say ‘yes’.

Tag to navigate all of my posts about HGH

(Character summaries and some more notes under the cut ^_^)

The Main Character (a.k.a. "The Pathologist" or "MC")

The main character, unnamed through the entire book, hails back to some of the most classic whump-y protagonists of the 20th century, much like Nick Carraway from The Great Gatsby or Winston Smith from 1984. He takes barely any action and merely lets tragedy happen to him until he needs to act, and following his gut never ends well. He is hopelessly attracted to the codependent and horribly toxic relationship he has with his boss, Roland Hanna, but refuses adamantly to acknowledge it despite it bleeding through the plot constantly. He is perfectly inept in everything he does and perfectly insecure for Dr. Hanna to manipulate. All-in-all, he is the ideal victim of a main character -- he writes the book himself in first-person and you are privy to his inner monologue and descent into madness through the book.

The Lead Doctor, Roland Hanna (a.k.a. "Dr. Hanna" or "Roland")

Roland is very much the epitome of a Machiavellian villain. The ends will, without a doubt, justify whatever means he needs to use to get them, and he will see nothing standing in his way to get what he wants. He is a master of manipulation and a manager of both his own and others' human emotions; there is never a moment where you can guess if he is sincere or not. (He most likely isn't.) He also has some pervasive sort of attraction to the main character but is never truly explicit about it, always being hidden under some subterfuge to pull the main character closer into his grasp. Standing at seven feet, frighteningly saccharine, it's impossible not to be drawn into his charm and euphemistic language, and just as impossible to pull yourself out of it.

Other Notes

i felt like it was about high time to post about my wip! considering the first draft is nearly done! it's a little crazy to think about LOL. originally this was based on hilbert's paradox of the grand hotel after thinking about what the hotel would be like if it were real... and it erupted into this massive thing thanks to my english teachers encouraging me to write it haha. it's become my magnum opus right now and i'm so close to finishing my first draft, and i'm hoping to take it to a publisher once i have a few more drafts done! (i hope posting about it here doesn't cause me any problems with trad publishing down the line ^_^;;)

[basingstokemercury]

As of October 7th, 2023, my country is at war. I don't know how long it'll last or how safe the people close to me are. I probably won't be making as many fun fandom posts for now, but interaction with those I have would be welcomed as a distraction if you'd like to.

I've become very obsessed with a certain DS9 tenor recently, and he seems to have inspired my media analysis side.

Collected essays, observations, and rants on the topic:

First Impressions (that time he was in TNG and I didn't know this was an Important Person)

The value of platonic relationships (Dax)

Why he's the best character (and why his relationship with Garak is such a genius move)

Why The Twist makes no sense with previous characterisation (very long, very researched, felt very good to actually get done)

What his backstory should have been (keeping one thing from canon, putting it together with hints in previous episodes to make what I think is a better narrative)

When the man who helps everyone can't ask for help himself (ramblings as to how his childish side fits with emotional intelligence and deep compassion, and why it is that we hardly ever see people supporting him the way he supports others)

Why The Twist is bad writing, by a young adult who was a gifted kid (what it says on the tin)

Breaking The Cycle (in which I posit that Garak views him as a surrogate child)

The "Arrogance" Trap (on how his self-esteem issues actually stem from his knowledge that he is very capable)

Garak Dad Moments: Cardassians (their interactions in that episode go deeper than intitially obvious)

The Hippocratic Oath Rant (yelling at O'Brien, with screenshots)

Garak Dad Moments: Distant Voices (one line, spoken from honest emotion. it reveals a lot.)

Changeling Minds (technically about changeling!Julian, but touches on both by the nature of its topic)

The best character arc (comparing to some others I've seen, why his is really something special)

Clash Of The Doctors (comparison with the Tenth Doctor's storyline, and why I'd much rather live in DS9's universe)

Vulnerability (what his two main scenes in Apocalypse Rising say when taken together)

[athenawasamerf]

with respect, while i think it's inappropriate and racist to assume palestinian men are the same as any other muslim man, i WOULD say the behavior of the arab and/or muslim diaspora in the west (not strictly male either) has not exactly dispelled the idea that there is widespread for terrorist action among that population. just because we don't like it doesn't make it not true.

this doesn't change my pro-palestine position on the israel/palestine conflict but i do have a strongly negative opinion of most of the (overwhelmingly, non-palestinian) diaspora and their behavior in this context. they are just as much out of touch westerners living a cushy life and begging to see blood.

My problem with the post that (I believe) inspired this ask is the racist coalition of all Middle Eastern cultures into one monolith. Equating all Islamic terrorist organisations with each other due to a lack of understanding of the differences between cultures and countries is a big enough problem when it comes to fighting extremist ideology and terror groupes, nevermind when it comes to conversations about an ongoing ethnic cleansing and genocide. Bringing up a 2-decade old Al-Qaeda, an Afghan-Pakistani terror organisation, attack on the U.S. in a conversation about the atrocities committed against Palestinian women as some kind of gotcha is incredibly racist, and I don’t think I need to mention how tone deaf the timing is. Al-Qaeda does not exist, and has never existed, in Palestine.

If we were to have a conversation about the Arab and Muslim diaspora in the west and the effect of their actions on the widespread image of the Middle East among western populations, that is not the place to start it. And, more importantly, this is not the time to have such a conversation. I understand that western cultures have become increasingly individualistic, but that is not the case in the global east. We are in a state of collective mourning. We’ve cancelled all national celebrations, events, and demonstrations. My med school is cancelling all graduation activities apart from the official ceremony to hand us our degrees and have us swear the Hippocratic oath, which will be held with no music or press coverage, and without an after party. Marriage ceremonies are being held in silence with no wedding parties. Birthday celebrations are being held off. The black ribbon of mourning has been placed on all tv channels and will not be removed until 3 days after a ceasefire is enacted. Our neighbours are going through a catastrophe, there are manners to be observed. We don’t even put the tv on too loud if a neighbour is sick, nevermind dead or dying. When our neighbours, our family, our people are being massacred in front of our eyes with the sanctions of the entire world, we mourn with them and we mind our manners while we do it. That is all to say, when the entire region is in a state of mourning is absolutely the least appropriate timing for this kind of conversation, despite its importance.

When brown people aren’t being massacred by the thousands, and displaced by the hundreds of thousands, we can talk about the behaviour of the brown diaspora in the west. Until then, we mourn.

I apologise if I’m not entirely coherent, I’m very sick at the moment, quite literally in the middle of finals for my last year of med school, and completely overwhelmed with the insanity going on in the world at the moment, especially after Egypt was targeted twice. Our government had to double the rolling blackout duration to two hours a day after Israel decided to cut off all fuel exports to Egypt to put pressure on the government to agree to Israel’s plan of displacing over 2 million Palestinians into Sinai. So, things haven’t been great here either and people are preparing for the non-zero chance that our hand could be forced into war.

[solidarity-mama]

We know for a fact that:

There are high school students all over the country who are illiterate and are intentionally still allowed to pass each grade and graduate to get diplomas

one such illiterate student got insanely good scholarships from an Ivy League School, who continues to pass her and whatnot, and she's actually in the process of suing her school/teachers for not teaching her to read properly and enabling her illiteracy

statistics show a shockingly high number of Doctors and Nurses who admittedly cheat on their exams, which means we have actual Medical 'professionals' who have people's lives in their hands but they don't properly understand the actual medical cases they're supposed to handle

we know full well that politicians and celebrities buy their kids' way into top universities, and how nepotism works to push them through the graduate programs to secure their degrees and get them top jobs

we know full well that people like Biden use their political authority to get their relatives top positions they are not qualified for, in order to engage in sketchy or outright illegal things such as money laundering

we know full well that many college graduates cannot even name 10 US states or their capitals when asked, or even what year the Declaration of Independence was signed, or other very obvious, important things

it's not hidden that the fitness and strength standards for women in positions like the military, firefighters, or police are reduced from their male counterparts (See the video of the overweight female Firefighter in California openly stating that she can't carry grown ass adults out of a fire, and then victim blaming them for being in a burning building in the first place.)

There are multiple states and school districts who very openly have reduced the grading/passing requirements for certain student demographics because they don't think they can achieve the same grades and they want to push through as many failing students as possible in the name of diversity (which, assuming all POC students are too 'stupid' to meet academic standards is blatant racism to begin with)

there are people caught and arrested, and those who brag about what they do on social media, for intentionally taking jobs in nursing homes and assisted living facilities just so they can beat the ever-loving snot out of the elderly, particularly white elderly. some of them have been very proudly talking about what they do, with others on social media directly saying that's why they want to work in a nursing home

a NICU nurse was arrested for abusing the premature babies in her care and BREAKING THEIR BONES... yeah. Got her medical licensing, swore the Hippocratic oath, intentionally took a job with the most vulnerable babies, just so she had the opportunity to harm them.

Just because someone has a License or Degree or title in something does NOT make them just as qualified as anyone else in the same field. It does not. And we need to use our common sense and recognize patterns and the idiocy that's happening all around us.

And, as for the female helicopter pilot who caused a crash and killed people, it's on record that she was underqualified AND she was refusing to listen to her seniors and the instructor's orders to correct her altitude, among many things. She was a DEI hire who didn't want to listen to men telling her what to do and she got people killed.

DEI does not mean lower standards.

You are thinking of white privilege.