#foster that sense of justice and encourage him to keep fighting to change the world even when it seems unchangeable.

[blueskittlesart]

do u have any navi thoughts from your oot replay

i've been waiting to answer this until I actually beat the game in my current playthrough because navi is another one of those characters that i think of in like a "set" with several other characters who serve relatively the same thematic purpose; in this case that purpose being the "mother" character, and i wanted to have all the characters in that set fresh in my mind. it's notable that while oot shows us very clear and consistent instances of the ways in which the adults of hyrule fail to protect their children, there ARE several adults who DO go out of their way to both oppose ganondorf and protect and nurture the children under their care. All of these characters are adult women, and all of them explicitly help the children out of some sort of parental responsibility or sense of duty towards them. in this group I include link's late mother, impa, nabooru, and navi.

all 4 mother characters, despite being adults or adult-coded, reject the inaction mentality which characterizes other adults in the game. they become either direct supports or shields to their children from the conflict the world has to offer them, and they are always explicitly punished for their interference--link's mother is killed trying to protect her son, impa's village is burned, nabooru is brainwashed. The mother's fatal flaw is that she will protect her child above all else, even in a world in which children cannot truly be protected. however, with the exception of link's mother, these characters manage to persist even in the face of her punishment, and this is where I think navi becomes the exemplary character.

Navi, after a lifetime of being link's only support system, the only adult in his life he could truly, consistently count on, receives her punishment at the hands of ganondorf--in the final battle, she is pushed out. she is unable to reach her child. she cannot protect him. However, BECAUSE link has grown up with her at his side, he is strong enough to take ganondorf down. and when ganon rises again, navi is there to support link, promising not to leave his side, and the intuitive targeting of that battle (a mechanic which navi is inherently tied to!!) makes it a cinch to win. Navi, and the other mothers we meet, are a reminder to the player that the world doesn't HAVE to be the way it is. Their persistence when punished, their insistence that their children ought to be protected, is a reminder that good adults do exist, and that good adults raise good children. link and zelda are able to win in spite of the adults who refused to help them, but also BECAUSE of the adults who DID. It's a reinforcement of the core theme of oot--that childlike idea that the world SHOULD be good and fair and if it isn't, it should be changed until it is. The mothers of oot are examples of what the world COULD be, reminders that it is possible to grow up without losing hope or growing bitter, and they are examples of the next step for the children they've raised to change the word--to continue fighting even in the face of punishment, to refuse inaction, and to foster that same hope and persistence in the generations to come.

[ameliarating]

Who would have Xue Yang and Xiao Xingchen become if Xue Yang had been taken to Baoshan Sanren’s mountain and Xiao Xingchen had grown up on the streets?

Featuring: a (slightly) more righteous Xue Yang, a (much) more angry Xiao Xingchen, and a long suffering (but much happier) Song Lan who did not sign up for these people in his life.

(an AU brought to you by a conversation I had with @paradife-loft)

So Xue Yang, who was brilliant and resourceful, and possessed of a strong golden core was taken to the mountain and brought up as Baoshan Sanren’s youngest disciple. This does not make him magically and suddenly able to match up the pain and suffering of others with his own. If pressed, he knows that just one of his fingers (of which he has ten!) is worth fifty lives or more, because his fingers are his own and the lives are of others.

But he’s grown up now in a secure environment that fosters and encourages senses of justice and wellbeing. He understands that everyone else in the room has their own sense of self-importance, of being a fully realized person, even if he can’t really get his head around it for others. He also understands that the code by which they live, which values caring for other’s needs and seeing the other as as valuable as the self, (and even to tear down the separations between other and self) has provided him and others with a good, fair life. 

People often thrive on the mountain. He’s thriving. So even though Xue Yang doesn’t really possess an intuitive comprehension of how others have worth and feelings that might even be equal to his own, he can focus on the abstract and philosophical principles that guide him to behave in a manner that suggests he does comprehend it. Even if he doesn’t.

The outwardly imposed sense of ethics takes the place of inner morality.

Now for Xiao Xingchen - he’s not nearly so trusting as he is in canon. He doesn’t possess as bright and clear a sense of right and wrong either. He does try to do what’s right, but it’s more complicated. He absolutely uses his cultivation to steal food and money for himself, to eat and survive. But he also shares more with the other street kids than he can maybe afford.

It marks him out as weak to people who think they can take advantage of him but Xiao Xingchen is naturally strong with a brilliant core (how is he cultivating it? sshhh, it’s pretend) and people don’t tend to think they can take advantage of him more than once. (Especially not since his own hand got run over and many of the people he’d been helping to feed disappeared on him when he needed help. He lost a finger, to the equivalent of the Chang Clan wherever he was, and he stopped being quite as quick to help people.)

At some point as a teenager he’s recruited to be a minor disciple of a cultivation clan, and he took advantage of that to learn and train and he even gets a sword of his own, but it doesn’t take long before he leaves in disgust. He can’t stand the hypocrisy involved. Maybe he even pulls a Mianmian and dramatically removes a sash!

Besides, he’s far less interested in hunts and adventure. He’s more drawn helping spirits and ghosts move on, because he has more of an understanding of why they might be so resentful in the first place. There have been many times in his life where, if he died right then, he would have stuck around to haunt the ones responsible.

Xue Yang is still sharp, is still cruel, is still prone to disproportionate retaliation, but it’s tempered by the philosophy with which he grew up. Xiao Xingchen is still sweet, is still overwhelmingly generous with himself, but he’s much less patient, has more sharp edges.

Xue Yang has a sense of place and security. Not only does he know he matters, but others around him have validated that. They tell him he matters too.

Xiao Xingchen has no place and no security. Even when people in power take an interest in him, he is not just disinterested in politics, he despises it. He feels betrayed by the sects for allowing people to have grown up the way he did. For letting clans like the Chang trample the fingers of disposable children.

So Song Lan has temporarily left Baixue Temple to travel around, to do what he can to help people, to make sure he doesn’t grow used to a state of permanence and place and he runs into Xiao Xingchen who is laying some ghosts to rest with a level of respect and tenderness he doesn’t usually see in cultivators. Especially when they’re the ghosts of nobodies.

He’s taken aback. He impressed. He’s a little smitten.

And he joins in the effort without a word of introduction, and Xiao Xingchen is equally surprised by Song Lan, who is kind and patient and dives into the work that other cultivators don’t bother to do at all. He’s taken aback and impressed and a little smitten as well.

They start traveling together. Song Lan restrains Xiao Xingchen from some of his less legal impulses. He keeps him from making messes of situations that will bring harsh things down on them both. Xiao Xingchen shows Song Lan how so much more of the world works. They introduce each other to new places and new manners of cultivation. They spar together and study together.

Song Lan improves Xiao Xingchen’s literacy and Xiao Xingchen teaches Song Lan how to fight without a sword. They go back to Baixue for a bit and Xiao Xingchen gets some more formal training.

Xue Yang, meanwhile, is bored. There’s a world down there full of things he has only heard about secondhand and he’s a firsthand knowledge kind of guy. Curiosity gets the best of him eventually and he leaves with a beautiful sword (but there’s something just a little off about the sword, not that anyone says anything, Baoshan Sanren gave it to him, after all) and a lot of hunger.

He runs into Xiao Xingchen first. He likes him. He’s angry, and Xue Yang is starting to see that there’s a lot to be angry about. He’s also inherently compassionate and Xue Yang kind of wishes he himself were compassionate person too. 

And Xiao Xingchen is fascinated by Xue Yang. He’s from a completely different world! He still has a cruel streak, and it’s used against everyone, but Xue Yang is traveling around, doing a lot of good, not for himself, not for glory, but just because Xue Yang is convinced that’s what he should be doing in and of itself. It’s what he’s been taught to do. Xiao Xingchen can respect that.

Besides, Xue Yang shares with him a deep disdain for how the world is being run, and between the two of them, there’s an urge to tear that down.

Xue Yang does not like Song Lan. Song Lan is boring, he’s grown up with a far more orthodox interpretation of Daoist philosophy than he has, and he plays by the rules more than Xiao Xingchen does. Worst of all, Xiao Xingchen likes Song Lan too much.

Song Lan does not like Xue Yang. He clocks that cruel streak, he clocks the way he looks at Xiao Xingchen. Xue Yang is cold and doesn’t actually care about the people they’re helping, and sometimes he’s one comment away from hurting the people around them. Hurting them badly. 

Xiao Xingchen likes them both very, very much.

War breaks out, of course. All three of them get out of the way. 

Xue Yang doesn’t care, it’s all a bunch of worldly bullshit. Nothing will change when the next sect rises to power and starts the same cycle of abuse all over again. Baoshan Sanren has warned all her disciples about that.

Xiao Xingchen doesn’t care. All the sects are the same to him and innocent people are getting caught in the middle and that’s the greatest crime. He wouldn’t fight for any of those sects, though sometimes he wants to fight against them all.

Song Lan doesn’t care. It’s not for him to want to change the way the world is run, it’s for him to try and improve upon the lives of as many people as possible in as many small ways as he can. People need him, and he won’t be able to help them if he gets distracted by things like war.

They all get as far away as possible because by this point they’ve all made names for themselves, and many in the sects want them on their side or want them out of the way. They get so far away that they barely notice when the war is over and they start trading dreams about starting their own... something

Song Lan wants to call it a sect.

Xiao Xingchen does not. 

Xue Yang doesn’t have an opinion but he takes Xiao Xingchen’s side because it’s funny what that does to Song Lan.

Whatever it is, their first disciple (not a disciple, she’s a child, she’s a little sister, okay, but we could still call her a disciple, no we could not) is a sharp-tongued girl who they’re all pretty sure isn’t blind? Honestly, it’s hard to say. Xiao Xingchen catches her trying to fleece them. 

She’s going to be the best student ever.

[perfectirishgifts]

The 13 Best Korean Dramas Of 2020

New Post has been published on https://perfectirishgifts.com/the-13-best-korean-dramas-of-2020/

The 13 Best Korean Dramas Of 2020

Bae Suzy and Nam Joo-hyuk partner up in ‘Start-Up.’

Although 2020 will make the history books for all the wrong reasons, it was a great year for Korean dramas. With a slew of big budget hits and small quirky stories, k-dramas offered plenty of innovative entertainment to help viewers happily pass pandemic time.

Every drama viewer may have a different list of favorites, but here are a few 2020 dramas that stood out in terms of originality, subject matter and execution.

Park Seo-joon created one of the year’s most memorable k-drama characters in ‘Itaewon Class.’

Itaewon Class

The year started off with the quirky hit Itaewon Class, in which Park Seo-joon’s character overcomes so many odds that he naturally sympathizes with those who society may shun. When opening a cafe he hires employees that others might not and those choices contribute to his success. Park’s generous character is one of the year’s most likable and the drama also features top-notch performances by Kim Da-mi, Kwon Nara, Yoo Jae-Myung and Ahn Bo-hyun.

Why see it? If you’ve never been to Seoul’s international neighborhood of Itaewon, this drama takes you there. The drama provides plenty of feel-good moments and a great soundtrack, including a contribution by BTS member V.

Kim Hee-ae and Park Hae-joon star in ‘The World of The Married.’

World of the Married

Although this drama has not yet made it to all international audiences, it was a huge hit in Korea, enjoying both critical success and nationwide ratings of 28.37%. World of the Married, an adaptation of the BBC series Dr. Foster, stars Kim Hae-ae. Kim plays a doctor who thinks her life is perfect until she learns that her husband, played by Park Hae-joon, has been cheating on her. Even worse, all their friends know. 

Why see it? Kim won Best Actress at the Baeksang Awards for playing the drama’s protagonist Ji Sun-woo and the drama was a breakout hit for supporting actress Han Seo-hee. There’s also the guilty pleasure of watching a woman scorned exact revenge on those who betrayed her.

The legal drama ‘Hyena’ starred Kim Hye-soo and Ju Ji-hoon.

Hyena

The drama’s leading characters, played by Kim Hye-soo and Ju Ji-hoon, each have their own approach to practicing law. She’s a scrappy small-time lawyer with questionable ethics and he’s a self-satisfied high-profile lawyer at a top firm. Despite their differences—and getting off to a bad start when she scams him—they turn out to be good for each other.

Why see it? Ju delivers a pitch-perfect performance, with his every twitch and grimace creating an unforgettable character.  Ju and Kim have undeniable chemistry that sizzles through episodes of fast-paced high-stakes legal entanglements.

Bae Doona played a zombie-fighting nurse in the second season of ‘Kingom.’

Kingdom 2

The second season of this historical zombie drama was even better than the first. Kingdom 2 also stars Ju Ji-hoon as the prince trying to save his country from a zombie invasion as well as inner court corruption. What makes the second season better than the first is a larger role for actress Bae Doona, whose character takes time out from nursing the sick to battle the undead.

Why see it: It’s a zombie story with a historical and moral twist.

Start Up

Nam Joo-Hyuk and Bae Suzy star in this story of a small tech start-up that gets a chance to compete on a bigger stage. When Bae’s character Seo Dal-mi was young she received encouraging letters from a man named Nam Do-san, but the letters were really written by Kim Seon-ho’s character Han Ji-pyeong. When a grown-up Dal-mi decides to find the real Do-san, played by Nam, Ji-pyeong asks Do-san to pretend he really wrote the letters. Do-san and Dal-mi are perfect for each other but their budding relationship is based on a lie. 

Why see it? The story of how the start-up gets started is interesting. Each of the actors—from the leads to the supporting cast— is imperfectly endearing and Kim wins this year’s unofficial prize for being the most appealing second lead.

Lee jun-ki is a potential serial killer married to the detective played by Moon Chae-won in ‘Flower … [] of Evil.’

Flower of Evil

What would you do if you found out you were married to a serial killer? It might be happening to Moon Chae-won’s police detective character in Flower of Evil. Her devoted husband, played by Lee Jun-ki, has a mysterious past that ties him to a serial killer. Did he also commit murders? If he is a serial killer, does his wife love him enough to look past the incriminating clues?

Why see it? Although some of the drama’s plot occasionally veers into the illogical, the relationship between the leads is so charismatic that the drama acquired a loyal and enthusiastic following. The mystery is sufficiently complex and Lee’s tortured performance as the suspected serial killer is mesmerizing.

Park So-dam played Park Bo-gum’s makeup artist in ‘Record of Youth.’

Record of Youth

Record of Youth features ambitious likable protagonists trying to find their place in a highly competitive world. Park Bo-gum plays a model so charming it’s hard to imagine why he’s not already a success at the story’s start. Park So-dam plays a talented make-up artist with dreams. She’s also a devoted fan of his modeling career.

Why see it? Park Bo-gum’s character is as bright as a shiny penny, ever optimistic and upbeat, despite not having much support for his dreams. Watching Park So-dam act is always a pleasure and the real star of the drama might be Han Jin-hee, who plays Park Bo-gum’s supportive grandfather.

Seo Ye-ji aggressively pursues Kim Soo-hyun in ‘It’s Okay Not To Be Okay.’

It’s Okay Not To Be Okay

Easily the most visually appealing drama of 2020, It’s Okay Not To Be Okay stars two of k-drama’s most photogenic actors Seo Ye-ji and Kim Soo-hyun as a twisted children’s book author and the psychiatric nurse she needs to calm her nightmares. Not only are the actors beautiful, but the drama’s graphics, cinematography and costumes are also gorgeous. 

Why see it? The drama explores the topics of autism and the mental scars created by early trauma. Oh Jung-se’s performance as Kim’s autistic brother was one of the best of the year.

‘The Good Detective’ is a fast-paced crime thriller starring Son Hyun-joo and Jang Seung-jo.

The Good Detective 

The Good Detective delivers a Scandi-noir vibe with its insightful character development plus some over-the-top, superhero police action scenes. The drama stars Son Hyun-joo, who might have the most expressive face of any k-drama actor, and Jang Seung-jo as a detective whose super-power is having a fortune. 

Why see it? The Good Detective is an involving police procedural with top-rate performances. Oh Jung-se plays a hard-hearted villain, a dramatically different role than his vulnerable character in It’s Okay Not To Be Okay.

Nana plays a woman who pursues politics for a paycheck despite Park Sung-hoon’s objections.

Into The Ring 

The wry comedy stars Nana, formerly a member of k-pop group After School, and Park Sung-hoon, who recently played a convincing but comical killer in Psychopath Diary. Nana plays a plucky unemployed woman who runs for office, motivated largely by the paycheck, but also from a sense of justice. Although Park initially finds her irritating, he eventually helps her fight local corruption.

Why see it? Nana is so charismatic in this role, viewers may want to see everything she’s ever done. She and Park develop a low-key lovable comic rapport that keeps a story about local politics happily enjoyable.  

‘My Dangerous Wife’ is a cat-and-mouse mystery within the story of a marriage.

My Dangerous Wife

In this dark comedy Choi Won-young plays a chef who plans to murder his wealthy wife, so he can inherit her money, but when he arrives home with a poisoned bottle of wine he finds she has been kidnapped. The note the kidnappers left behind warns him not to contact the police or they will kill his wife. Should he? It sounds like an opportunity.

Why see it: Interesting plot twists and turns make this drama fascinating to the very last episode. The complex storyline involves a mistress, a mysterious old friend, a detective with a suspicious wife, and a set of curious next door neighbors with secrets of their own.  

Son Ye-jin and Hyun Bin experience an impossible love in ‘Crash Landing On You.’

Crash Landing On You

Crash Landing On You, which first aired in Dec. 2019, successfully introduced a wider international audience to the joys of k-drama viewing. The mega-hit, starring Hyun Bin and Son Ye-jin, follows the story of a South Korean heiress who accidentally lands in North Korea and is helped by a North Korean officer at the risk of his own life.

Why see it? Everything about the drama is top-notch—the cinematography, the romantic storyline and the excellent performances from the lead and supporting actors. The drama also offers some interesting insight into North Korean daily life.

Shin Sung-rok stars in the paranormal thriller ‘Kairos.’

Kairos

Kairos is a tense paranormal thriller about karmic debt. In this drama two people who live in different times stumble on a supernatural way to talk and thus untangle their preventable personal tragedies. Shin Sung-rok plays a callous businessman whose daughter is kidnapped. Lee Se-young plays a woman whose mother disappears. Together they must change fate but they can’t connect in their own time. This plot device was used in the film The Call and the k-drama Signal, but it feels fresh in Kairos, given the carefully crafted moments of suspense and some intriguing performances.

Why see it? Both Shin and supporting actor Ahn Bo Hyun do an excellent job of portraying men who question what they once held sacred. 

Which dramas made your list?

From Hollywood & Entertainment in Perfectirishgifts

[linkspooky]

Panem Et Circenses

Roma’s monologue from the latest chapter was what interested me the most more than any bloodshed depicted. (Yes, even more than Urie getting owned.) In particular her light reference to a latin phrase. 

Bread and Circuses or “Panem Et Circenses”, it’s a phrase used to describe appeasement of the masses, most particularly in the form of government. That public approval is best gained not through exemplary of excellent public service and police, but through distraction and satisfaction of the most immediate and shallow desires of the populace. 

The phrase itself originates from Rome in Satire X of the roman satirical poet Juvenal (about AD 100), citing what the roman populace cares about, forgoing both it’s historical birthright or political involvement. In 140 BC. Roman politicans passed a series of laws to keep the votes of poorer citizens, by introducing a grain distribution, and easy to access entertainment [x]. 

It’s also important to remember that Roman culture is based upon the culture of the Greek City States (most importantly the surviving culture of Athens), and for Latin culture the concept of every citizen having not only a right, but an obligation to participate in government. Athens was a direct democracy where all able bodied citizens had to paricipate, vote, sit in juries in order for the government to function. Rome was a republic, and then an empire, but still in those days there was a sitting senate and opportunities for even commoners to participate in government as long as they were citizens. 

Basically, it’s a very latin idea (that is combined Greek and Roman), that the improvement upon society relies on individuals stepping up to contribute. Therefore the mass of the government those who wield power, and the masses those who are subjected to power is almost one in the same. However the pacification of the masses, that is supplying them with bread and distraction to fill their most surface needs and stop them from rising up themselves while it helps a certain amount of individuals secure power, leads to the downfall of society. 

What, I wondered did he mean by society? The plural of human beings? Where was the substance of this thing called “society”? I had spent my whole life thinking that society must certainly be something harsh and severe, but to hear Horiko talk made the words “Don’t you mean yourself?”, come to the tip of my tongue. [...] What is society but an individual?

Osamu Dazai’s, No Longer Human 119-120

What Juvenal is satirizing is the decline of individual heroism, in favor of the satisfaction of the masses. Individual heroism in a sense of the ability of a single individual to stand up and make a difference in its simplest of terms: agency.

… Already long ago, from when we sold our vote to no man, the People have abdicated our duties; for the People who once upon a time handed out military command, high civil office, legions — everything, now restrains itself and anxiously hopes for just two things: bread and circuses (Juvenal, Satire 10.77-81)

This idea of certain forces being used to pacify the masses to make them easier to control is something that appears again and again in philosophy. Nietzsche accused Christianity of fostering a slave morality,

“I finally discovered two basic types and one basic difference. There are master morality and slave morality. . . . The moral discrimination of values has originated either among a ruling group whose consciousness of its difference from the ruled group was accompanied by delight - or among the ruled, the slaves and dependents of every degree [...]  The Christian faith is from the beginning a sacrifice: sacrifice of all freedom, all pride, all self-confidence of the spirit, at the same time enslavement and self-mockery, selfmutilation …” Nietzsche - Beyond Good and Evil

Nietzsche accused Catholicism of suggesting that by making our most cherished values originate not among those who were the best and brightest of their times, but among those who were the most oppressed and impoverished. That this encourages not pride in oneself and one’s own achievements but rather pride in keeping your head down and surviving. Therefore people are encouraged not to be revolutionary but to be ordinary. 

Jesus’ statement itself presents a paradox. “If the meek aren’t meant to inherit the earth, they cannot do this by remaining meek.”

Of course religion asks for faith that all suffering and losses endured in this world will be rewarded in the next one. It can quickly look like an excuse for further suffering in this world, hen people could just as easily work to make a paradise out of this one. 

Nietzsche calls this idea “Slave Morality”. It’s obviously connected with the dynamics of power.

Karl Marx in his critique of Heigel wrote this: 

"Die Religion ... ist das Opium des Volkes" and is often rendered as "religion... is the opiate of the masses."

Karl Marx

The full quote in context is this, though. 

Religious suffering is, at one and the same time, the expression of real suffering and a protest against real suffering. Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people.

The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness. To call on them to give up their illusions about their condition is to call on them to give up a condition that requires illusions.

In essence, if people were to abolish their habit of simply looking for happiness to distract them from suffering, or even their need to give reason and justice to suffering which is by its nature unjust, then people could directly look at the suffering and then deal with it. 

Of course it’s not that simple, but this is philosophy and philosophy likes to deal in conjecture and abstract terms. 

As shown through Juvenal, Nietzsche and Marx, the tendency of the masses and therefore individuals to forgo deeper reasons to live for instead more on the surface pleasures is what leads to their own ability of making their will manifest. 

It’s all about individual agency. This is a theme that too, comes up time and time again in Tokyo Ghoul. Furuta, perhaps in reference to V’s many own roman references describes basically this as the way that V corrals the masses in “66- Old Guard.”

He mentions both things, food and distraction. Kuzen similarly, says that in his early life with V that he was supplied with a safe dwelling and all the food that he could eat in return for completing their heartless tasks for them. 

Kuzen describes it in different words, but what he feels before meeting Ukina is in essence the same problem that plagued Roma as she was growing up: He was bored. 

Boredom is another word for fulfillment, even if it’s not as poetic. Roma had no parents, no point of attachment, no people in her life no reason to continue living and yet she did. She looked at it and said why? Then she looked around her and saw nothing but people distracting themselves.

Roma was both disgusted, and envious. Envious that they had the opportunity to distract themselves despite being such weak and frail creatures yet she who had been fighting for her survival all this time did not have such a luxury. So Roma made humanity her distraction. 

Roma calls the common enemy of humans and ghouls “boredom” itself. Probably not something Urie could immediately sympathize with, but look back what exactly is Urie’s entire quest for anyway? 

To have his own existence affirmed. Without it, Urie was merely lost. Donato had to ask for him the questions he was putting off asking for so long. He simply suffered without reason. 

Urie’s quest is one for an individual identity outside of his father’s. He is plagued by the same questions then we all are, “Why am I fighting? Why was I born? Why do I exist?”

His answer to this so far though has been to surrender his sense of identity to the CCG above him, and hope that through ascending the hierarchy therefore he will get the affirmation he so desperately desired. He too was bored in a way. He did not have a reason to stand or fight. Too weak to stand on his own feet and fight for his own reasons and therefore he surrendered his power to a higher system and hoped the would make the decision for him.

“The weak wish to surrender themselves to the strong.”

Fura notices this same pattern in Sasaki and Arima themselves, he defines a good person as somebody who can struggle with and accept an answer they find themselves, while the opposite of that is somebody who accepts an answer from on high and nods “Yes, I understand.”

That people who are therefore mentally troubled by what they do are actually healthier than those who aren’t. At which point we reach the final panel of Roma’s monologue, where she casts Kaneki and Furuta in the same role. Conductors of a meaningless parade who aren’t going to bring any meaningful change to the world. 

Why is it that the both of them in Roma’s mind, are different from Aogiri who stated that they actually believed in a world for ghouls, an answer that bored her? 

Is it because they too, just like Roma but unlike Tatara and Eto of Aogiri have no true intention of destroying the cage placed around them, no care to follow through on the future that the both of them promised to their respective sides. “A perfect world without ghouls” and “A world where you walk freely up above.” They are completely different promises but at the same time they are in essence promising the same thing. Bear with it for now, and the world will be better. 

Perhaps it’s because Furuta and Kaneki both on their opposite sides of the game create exactly the kind of gameboard that Roma enjoys to dwell in. That they both lead the masses through distractions and promises, showmanship rather than substantive leadership that might actually bring a better change to the world. 

Furuta sets up a scoreboard, publicizes the gory details of the CCG, sets up executions on the streets as a way of inciting the masses. Kaneki en masse dumps broken Quiqnues in front of the crowds even as they are starving for food. Both of these are demonstrations, put on to convince the crowd. 

They only requires the masses to secede their agency to them, their individual will, to tie their strings collectively to both Furuta and Kaneki, and in return these two kings will supply you with what you need. 

Roma calls both of these so called revolutions for what they really are, “parades” simply a conflict to entertain the masses on both sides and distract them from the suffering of their lives rather than actually addressing it. 

The common evil then shared between humans and ghouls is not their propensity towards violence, but rather their propensity towards boredom. Attempting to fill the void of their meaningless existences causes them to stumble blind through their own lives rather than acting individually and with purpose. 

[newsnigeria]

Check out New Post published on Ọmọ Oòduà

New Post has been published on http://ooduarere.com/politics/legendary-nigerian-general/

The Legendary 'No-smiling' General Every Young Nigerian should know

It does not require clear thinking for one to see how shameful and revolting things have become in our country. Saudi wahhabi lead goverment has been used for ages as proxy to supress the future of Nigeria and if integrity was a man, they would have called him Idiagbon.

The world, especially Nigeria, is what it is today because of our inability to live a life of integrity. The pillars of our guiding principles are no longer standing on the foundation of value.  Instead of dignity and morality to be the watchful directors of our course, we decided to let vanity and impunity to rule over us.

Regardless of any other opinion, it was this senseless decision of ours that Gen. Idiagbon tried to dethrone from our mind.

But in vain he tried.

Born on the 14 September 1943, in Ilorin, Kwara state, Babatunde Abdulbaki Idiagbon received his secondary education at the Nigerian Military School, Zaria between 1958 and 1962.

He would join the Nigerian Army by enrolling in the Nigerian Military Training College (NMTC) in 1962: NMTC was renamed the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) in February 1964.

In April 1965, Idiagbon was commissioned second lieutenant upon his arrival from Pakistan Military Academy where he had obtained a BSc in economics.

From 1966 to 1967, he served as an intelligence officer, 4th Battalion and General Staff Officer, 3rd Intelligence, 1st Sector.

It was during this time that he got promoted to the rank of lieutenant, and also to the rank of captain two years later.

At the age of twenty-five, Idiagbon had already become the commanding officer, 125 Battalion.

Owing to his intelligence, qualification, and personal ability, his promotion kept coming until he rose to become Brigadier General in 1983.

For his uncompromising stance against indiscipline, incorrigible fight against corruption and dying at a relatively young age under a most mysterious circumstance, Major General BABATUNDE ABDULBAKI ‘Tunde’ IDIAGBON has become a legend of sorts and some will say, a martyr and true hero. But who was this stern-looking,Ilorin-born General many said never smiled? Was it true he never smiled? No. He did smile.

Nigeria before 1983 had already taken side with lawlessness. In addition, the nation’s resources were handled with recklessness.

The depth of corruption among public officials had succeeded in dragging the country into a state of economic shambles and the government in charge at the time seemed to be very okay with the situation.

The Shehu Shagari’s government succeeded in creating a group of dark kleptocratic thieves whose heartless goal would not be reached until the nation is plunged into a well of hopelessness.

As a matter of fact, record has it that in the space of four years, between 1979 and 1983, Shehu Shagari administration had mismanaged Nigeria into debt.

In fact, Nigeria was at the time counted among the most indebted countries in Africa.

Owing a colossal sum of about fifty billion dollars, inflation found a fertile soil to sprout. The result could only lead one end, hardship.

And of course, where there’s hardship, insecurity is always present.

At the time, a radical Islamic insurgent called “Maitatsine” operating from present-day Gombe state was inflicting all sorts of atrocities.

The Shehu Shagari government could not contain this vicious and dangerous Islamic fundamentalist. The nation was in a state of disarray.

It was during this time of national disorganization that the military ousted the Shehu Shagari administration in a coup d’etat.

Thus, Gen. Buhari became the Head of States and made Idiagbon chief of staff at Supreme Headquarters (de facto vice president).

Spearheading the control of all visible instruments of national, political, governmental and administrative powers, Idiagbon made use of power the way power should be used.

With ruthless zeal and determination, he introduced and implemented policies like War Against Indiscipline, which comprises of five phases:

Phase One – Queuing (launched on 20 March 1984)

Phase Two – Work Ethics (launched on 1 May 1984)

Phase Three – Nationalism and Patriotism, launched on 21 August 1984

Phase Four – Anti-Corruption and Economic Sabotage, launched on 14 May 1985

Phase Five – Environmental Sanitation, launched on 29 July 1985

Gen. Buhari 

To enumerate, the first phase was forcefully introduced to encourage customers and citizens to always line up to board buses.

And to always do the same whenever they find themselves vying for services with high demand. Anyone who deemed himself too important to comply was met with the military’s wrath.

The purpose for which this phase was implemented was to bring social order back to society.

In like manner, the second phase was launched to encourage hard work: Civil servants must be punctual, arriving work at the strike of the clock.

Frog jumps and sometimes kobokos from soldiers were the lots of those who usually arrive late.

Interestingly, the war was also extended to the classroom; making cheating during examination a very serious crime.

The third phase was launched to foster nationalism and patriotism. And this was supported by the implementation of import substitution industrialization policy; based on the use of local materials.

Thus, importation was tightened. The sole aim of the policy was to ensure the growth of local industries.

And it was further supported by the implementation of the Go Back to Land Programme which was part of the government’s farming policy that encouraged massive agricultural food production.

In a bid to implement the fourth phase, which was to counter corruption and economic sabotage, Idiagbon announced the introduction of a new currency for Nigeria.

He said the new currency would keep the same name, but the colors of bills would be different.

It was reported that some former politicians including ministers, governors and local government chairmen were holding large amount or sum of stolen monies in their houses.

The move was to render those monies useless.

Notice was given to the public, a time frame to withdraw their old naira notes from the bank and re-change it to the new ones.

Idiagbon had already announced that the exchange limit was 5000 naira; exchanging in excess of the limit had to explain where the money came from with government clearance.

He had affirmed that the deliberate sabotage of the Nigerian currency through large-scale illegal trafficking was the major cause of the nation’s economic problems.

So ruthless was the implementation that when Fela was caught at the airport with more foreign cash than was stipulated by law, not even the truth that he was known for could set him free from paying the prize.

Even a huge consignment of Abiola’s imported newsprint, which was on the government contraband list was seized.

Without conformance to bias nor sentiment, the no-nonsense general blasted corrupt politicians on a radio programme known as Military in Action; promising to smoke them out of their holes to face justice.

Shehu Shagari 

It might interest you to know that it was during this administration that late Alhaji Barkin Zuwo, a former senator and Governor of Kano state, was slammed for corruption with an imprisonment sentence of two hundred and fifty years.

Like the Great Thomas Sankara, Idiagbon believed that Nigeria was strong enough to develop from within; that should Nigeria be focused, she could become a creditor nation.

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In fact, it was with this conviction that he blasted the International Monetary Fund when he said: “International Monetary Fund (IMF) cures no sick state, in most cases, they worsen the ailment.”

Idiagbon’s ruthlessness wasn’t born out of foolishness; he was intelligent and prudent enough to know what he was doing.

In April 1985, he was heavily criticized for executing a drug trafficker. In replying his critics, he said, “a uniquely Nigeria solution is necessary to curtail the get-rich-quick mania that encourages serious crime.”

Also, when he was blasted by some senseless critics, for jailing corrupt Second Republic politicians, Idiagbon blasted back: “All these criminal racketeering and swindling went on while the salaries of local government employees and teachers were left unpaid for months.”

  But how could he have smiled with a country like Nigeria? A country whose thought alone calls depression to the thinker’s mind.

Nigeria has always been an organization of disarrangement. A nation where sentiment and bias ride upon the horses on its Coat of Arms. A state where religion and tribalism make mockery of patriotism.

It does not require clear thinking for one to see how shameful and revolting things have become in our country.

A country where the people’s representatives pocket in a year, what an average citizen won’t earn in three earth lives if we are to go by the minimum wage.

However, one major highlight of Buhari/Idiagbon’s regime was the Umaru Dikko saga.

Umaru Dikko was a special adviser to Shehu Shagari and also the minister of transportation. He exiled himself from Nigeria and took refuge in the UK when he sensed that danger was coming for him

Accused of looting a whopping sum of $1billion, he was declared Nigeria’s most wanted.

With an intent to bring him back home alive, Umaru Dikko was kidnapped, injected into a state of unconsciousness and packaged inside a specially made crate.

Luckily for him, the move was somehow double-crossed by a British customs officer known as Charles David Morrow.

Though the Nigerian government denied involvement, Idiagbon was, however, angry that the British government foiled the plan.

He was clear in his assertion that Nigeria was not going to ask for restoring relations with Britain, and that if anyone was to ask for forgiveness, it should be Britain.

Umaru Dikko

As expected, the Nigerian Airways plane that was sent to bring Dikko, with its crew, was detained by the British government.

The no-nonsense general would retaliate by detaining a British Airways passenger plane at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport.

It was not long before it became clear that his style of leadership had earned him a long chain of elite enemies.

In August 1985, while on a pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, news reached Idiagbon that Buhari had been overthrown and detained in a coup led by Ibrahim Babangida.

He was cautioned to stay away from the country or he will be dealt with.

Upon hearing this, the late King Fahd Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud called Idiagbon and made an offer. The Saudi king told Idiagbon that he would get him a magnificent mansion to stay for his retirement for life and forget about the idea of returning to Nigeria.

Idiagbon politely declined the offer. He was too rugged and brave to hide behind closed doors.

A few days later, he was unwelcomed by soldiers armed with all sort of weapons. And for forty horrible months, he was placed under house arrest in Benin and Bauchi state.

His reign as vice president lasted for only twenty months.

With no millions of dollars to his name, Idiagbon took to farming and detached himself from public activities.

Nigeria had chosen not to be better, and there was nothing he could do about it.

Still remembered for his simple and humble lifestyle, Major-general Idiagbon passed away on May 24, 1999; leaving Nigeria to the darkness she preferred over the light.