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newagesispage · 4 years ago

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MAY 2021

The Rib Page

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George Takei is sweatin’ with the oldies. He stars in a fitness app for gay seniors, Bar Belles. It was his April Fool’s day joke.

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Fox will bring us Crime Scene Kitchen on May 26 with host Joel McHale.

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Joel Hodgson has launched a new kick starter to create a new independent season of MTS3K, The goal is $2mil.

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Bob Odenkirk will release: Comedy, comedy, comedy, drama: A Memoir on Jan. 18 2022

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Leslie Jones will host the 2021 MTV Awards.

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$3 mil was raised for Next for Autism with help from Conan, Kimmel, Charlize, Chris Rock, Jack Black and Sarah Silverman.

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Have ya noticed that Gayle King looks great in yellow.

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Some people are not too happy that Elon Musk will host SNL on May 8. Miley Cyrus is the musical guest.** Musk tweeted: Let’s find out just how live SNL really is. Cast member Bowen Yang tweeted back, : What the Fuck does this even mean?

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Oh Seth Meyers: Every time I see the sea captain on your show, I miss him so much!!

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There is a spotlight on Foxconn which made a big splash for Trump at the start of his presidency. The company has done a lot of nothing but still gets tax cuts. Homes were demolished, roads were widened to nowhere and money was spent. Wisconsinites are upset that this big business is just folly and a big glass orb.

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Mike Lindell is a kook but he did try to appear to be a good sport on Kimmel.

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When will weed be legal on a federal level? When will drug testing for employment be illegal? We hear so much about personal rights with the gun laws and vaccines and masks. What about the right to do what we want with our bodies when we are not at work. Think of the administrative costs that could be saved if we just removed drug testing. Our experience and work ethic should mean more that what we do with our free time. This is not a problem at all companies. There are places in this country where it is near impossible anywhere in your area to get hired without a drug screening. One joint on a random Saturday night could keep someone from a great opportunity. A person in pain who reaches for an edible might miss out on the job that saves their lives.

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NASA sent the first flight to another planet. The Mars flight made history with the 30 sec feat.

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What? The Menendez brothers are popular again? From the Ramsey case to the Manson murders or Bundy, it all comes back around again.

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The Lizzie Borden house just sold for $2mil to Lance Zaal of U. S. Ghost Adventures.

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Quarantine and so much television et al proves one thing, the pharmaceutical and insurance companies have way too much $.

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Trump told everyone to boycott Coke and is later seen drinking diet Coke.** Trump sent out a statement about how bad the Oscars are. They threw it right back in his face. ** Federal agents have searched Giuliani’s Manhattan apartment. It stems from the 2 year investigation into activities in Ukraine.

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X-VP Pence is said to have pressured the Navy to reinstate former Mo. Gov. Eric Greitens. Greitens was accused of tying up, blindfolding, taking explicit photos of and blackmailing a woman.

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There is a crisis in schools with the lack of civics and history being taught.

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Hulk Hogan was hit with a chorus of Boo’s at his latest event.

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The latest sexual harassment news: Matt Gaetz is being looked into for sex with a minor and sex trafficking. Bill Barr opened the investigation.** Tom Reed has been accused of sexual misconduct by former lobbyist, Nicolette Davis.** Marilyn Manson has been sued by Game of Thrones, Esme Bianco for sexual abuse.

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What is going on with Bank of America? I am hearing from multiple people that often they do not get their statement in the mail. Is this a bad Postal service? Is this bad business practice? How many late fees had to be paid because of this? Not everybody wants to pay their bills online.

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Jack Hanna has revealed that he has dementia.

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Tiny Tim : King for a day is a new doc I must see. The film contains footage shot from Warhol’s Factory. There are excerpts from Tim’s diary read by Weird Al Yankovic and the story of how Tiny’s friend, Bob Dylan wanted to make a film with him.

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Lindsay Lohan’s Father, Michael has been charged with 5 counts patient brokering and 1 count of attempted patient brokering. This is an apparent scam of steering addicts into rehab for cash.

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Aaron Sorkin and Paulina Porizkova are dating. Pete Davidson and Phoebe Dynevor are dating.

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JB Smoove has a new podcast brought to you by TeamCoco.

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Hey.. People working on the new Law and Order: Organized Crime….. TOO MUCH MELONI!!

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Zach Avery, actor, was arrested for his participation in a $690 mil Ponzi scheme.

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President Biden has restored aid to the Palestinians.

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MLB put up a wall in Georgia but the Masters stayed.

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Hank Azaria has brought Brockmire to a new podcast.

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Tommy Chong isn’t allowed on FB because of his weed posts but they allow an imposter to use his name to sell weed.

Pennsylvania is trying to push thru 14 voter suppression bills.

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Joe Manchin. Ugh!!** Marjorie Taylor- Greene has let go of her America First caucus.** Ted Cruz has allegedly used $154, 000 of his campaign funds to buy up copies of his book to boost sales. This is an old trick but still illegal.

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For the first time, The Carter Center became involved in a U.S. election. They published videos and live webcasts as well as deploying observers across Georgia.

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Most health programs in Uganda, Nigeria and Ethiopia have resumed after Covid.** Tom Vilsack from the Dept. of Agriculture has announced the USDA will provide assistance to 30 million kids.** It is sad to me that we have to entice people to vaccinate. Football games, Church’s and shot for shot in bars?? Really? Saving the lives of others should be enough. WTF?

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Alec Baldwin, Alec Mapa and Kelsey Grammer are shopping around a new comedy that ABC decided to pass on.

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Chauvin was found guilty.

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Days alert: C’mon Ben, calm the fuck down! Don’t prove how out of control you are like everybody thinks. ** Xander is so funny right now.** How many people will Kristen be and how many times can one person melt down?? **Bring Carrie back!! **Jackee’ seemed a bit nervous in the beginning but she is fitting right in. More!

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The SAG awards came and went. With the Trial of the Chicago 7 winning best ensemble, Michael Keaton is the first person to be in 3 best casts for SAG’s.** Other winners include Viola Davis, Chadwick Boseman, Daniel Kaluuta, Youn Yuh-Jung, Mark Ruffalo, Anya Taylor- Joy, Jason Bateman, Catherine O’Hara, Schitt’s Creek and The Crown.

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The Oscars were held on April 25. It was a bit of a yawner and why would a show set themselves up for an awkward end?? There was a commercial from P&G right before the broadcast that stated, “ Widen the screen so we can widen our view.” Nice sentiment. Mank had so many noms and only 2 wins. People looking their best to me were Leslie Odom Jr., Glenn Close, Riz Ahmed, LaKeith Stanfield, Colman Domingo, John Batiste, Mia Neal, Questlove (gold crocs and a mask!), Desmond Roe, Travon Free, Trish Summerville, Marlee Matlin, The Lucas Brothers, Andra Day, Carey Mulligan, Amanda Seyfried, Nicolette Robinson, Regina King and Margot Robbie. Laura Dern looked like Big Bird, there were just too many feathers. Tiara Thomas had feathers but they looked great. Angela Bassett had some power sleeves and Tyer Perry looked like a little boy. Hooray for Emerald Fennell for her win for original screenplay but not sure about the dress. And Viola Davis?? Dana Murray?? Ashley Fox?? Hmm?? Winners seemed to have trouble getting to the stage. They often refused the steps or the walkway and sort of climbed up the side. I did love the intimate setting and it did remind me of the old clips of years before. Sound of metal and Ma Rainey both won. Tyler Perry and for the first time, an organization, the motion picture and television fund, took home the humanitarian award. I was thrilled to see My Octopus Teacher win for Doc. I loved Crip Camp too, that was a hard category. The acting winners went in all directions. Many critics complained that the films were real downers . Nomadland won best picture. Michael Moore put it best I think. Of the films this year, he said, “They force you to look backward with 2021 eyes.”

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Why the Fuck do we need a militarized police force?

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R.I.P. victims of the multiple mass shootings, victims of police shootings, the crush in Israel, Cosette Brown, Midwin Charles, DMX, Paul Ritter, Ethel Gabriel, G. Gordon Liddy, Buddy Peppenschmidt, Prince Philip, Anne Beatts, Diane Adler, Vartan Gregorian, Monte Hellman, Jim Steinman, Michael Collins, Michael wolf Snyder, Johnny Crawford, Eli Broad and Walter Mondale.

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spraxinoscope · 4 years ago

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Oct. 14: Why I still think Trump has a ~75% chance of winning

Epistemic status: Who even am I? You shouldn’t listen to me. But see the final section for details.

By ‘winning,’ I mean still being president on 1/22/21, and there being no serious actionable plan to get him out.

2500 words of paranoia and bad math after the cut.

Polling factors:

Today, 538 gives Trump a 13% chance of an EC victory, so let’s use that as a starting point. As Nate Silver will tell you every chance he gets, 2016 presidential polls were only off by a few percentage points, and that’s probably still true. But a similar (or even smaller) systematic polling error would be enough to flip some battlegrounds, bumping Trump up to something like 25-30%. Have pollsters managed to correct for the systemic errors of 2016? There’s true meaningful debate around this, but the balance of evidence seems to be that the pollsters never figured out what caused the errors, and so were not able to fix them.

Note that Trump’s decline in the polls is driven by voters who approved of the president until very recently. Consider the sort of person who still had a favorable of opinion of Trump right up until fall 2020. Generally, dips in Trump’s favorability ratings seem to have been due to conservative infighting. Often, when a person stops supporting Trump, it’s because he is being insufficiently racist. These constituents’ loyalty may be wavering, but they are not likely to switch sides.

As a complete asspull hypothesis, I’d guess that some people who tell pollsters they no longer support Trump are trying to pressure him into adopting more hardline policy and will never vote for a Democrat.

I would posit that the 13% number is the absolute hard minimum chance of Trump winning an EC victory, fair and square. Error bars push that number higher. Taking average polling data over time also pushes that number higher, since it’s almost never been this low.

Dysfunction factors:

So, those are the odds for a free and fair election. What are the odds of the election being free and fair? I’m glad you asked! Zero.

Election integrity has taken major hits recently. Citizens United turned elections into ad campaigns. Shelby County v. Holder made laws against discriminatory election practices unenforceable. The Hatch Act is also not being enforced. The numerous alleged campaign finance law violations brought against the 2016 Trump campaign all amounted to nothing (except jail time, and subsequent pardons, for some functionaries).

Fine, let’s say elections can never be perfectly fair, but even if we grade on a curve and request that elections be as fair as possible, we’re still not doing great, and it’s been getting worse since 2010.

Hey, remember all those jokes from like 2004 onwards about how unreliable and insecure electronic voting machines are? That shit never got fixed. Remember the story from this week about some 90,000 New Yorkers getting the wrong mail-in ballots?

Remember when the Russians got into the Illinois voter database in 2016? The institutions that were supposed to defend against that kind of thing have since been gutted or captured by republicans.

Hey, remember when the Iowa primary was so dysfunctional that they ended the vote count without ever producing a final tally or figuring out what the problems were?

Election integrity groups have been sounding the alarm continuously on this one. Electoral commissions and underfunded, understaffed, and undertrained in use of modern systems. This is a huge problem all by itself, and it gets worse when applied to the next issue.

Malfeasance factors:

In my American public school civics education, I learned that Richard Nixon was a crook who paid some burglars to spy on the democrats, because of how crooked he was. I did not learn that ratfucking is bog-standard procedure, in every election, all over the world. I had to learn that on my own, later. Generally speaking, the election integrity talking heads take the opinion that most countries routinely interfere in the elections of most countries, and the Ds and the Rs have never not been spying on each other. The extraordinary thing about Watergate was that Republican congressmen were weirdly amenable to allowing an investigation into one of their own, a mistake they have never since repeated.

Some amount of ratfucking is to be expected. The nation has weathered this factor before. But, like electoral competence, this may be getting worse over time. State governments have very wide purview when it comes to voting procedure, and Republican states are wasting no time in finding creative new ways to toss out ballots. The most common reason for a mail-in ballot to be rejected is that the signature on the envelope doesn’t match the voter’s signature on file. There is no official criteria or standard practice for how close a signature has to be to count as a match. Signatures are not useful security for anything, anyway.

Georgia’s 2018 election was arguably illegitimate. Irregularities included voting sites closed at the last minute for unclear reasons and fraudulent ballot collectors stealing ballots. Calls for recounts all failed. Other southern states are on thin ice. All the big Texan cities are getting one ballot drop box each, in case you thought Texas would be allowed to turn blue.

Red states already have various laws permitting them to throw out ballots that arrive after the election. Sabotaging the post office or throwing out all uncounted ballots soon after the election, as most sitting Republicans in congress and governors have already gone on record to suggest may be necessary, is a violation of the letter but not the spirit of existing restrictive voting laws.

The big thing, of course, is that the right wing media landscape has been fully saturated with the idea that Democrats will engage in conspiracies to steal the election, and action will need to be taken to thwart these plots. To that end, Republicans at all levels of government, including at the DOJ, have repeatedly signaled willingness to take unprecedented measures to stamp out fraud. These include numerous voter purge plans, new criteria for dismissing ballots, and sending the DHS or other law enforcement agencies to take custody of ballots.

In addition, the MAGAs are organizing ‘poll watcher’ groups to secure urban voting sites. Even if these groups fully obey the law and do not engage in anything that could legally be termed intimidation or harassment, that’s still a lot of leeway. Of course, over the last couple years, we’ve all learned that right wing protesters can sometimes bend or break the law and get away with it, and sometimes receive cooperation from the police. This goes triple for blue cities in red states, which is exactly what we’re worried about.

Malfeasance in general is made easier by the unprecedented levels of geographically-sorted voting blocs. It is trivially easy to tell whether a district will go hard for Trump or hard for Biden. So, whether interference is coming from law enforcement officers, protesters, or semi-sanctioned militias, they will know which lines to intimidate and which boxes to steal.

Russiagate set a clear precedent: It doesn’t matter if it’s blatant, outrageous, or corrupt. Republicans do not want to defect, and right wing media will keep the base in line. Democrats will be outraged, and then fold. There are no remaining nonpartisan referees to appeal to.

Pundits like to imagine that sitting Republicans in congress will not blatantly steal an election for fear that it will lead to them getting voted out of office, to which I would suggest that the obvious answer is the correct one: Voted out how?

Democrats shooting themselves in the goddamn foot factors:

Trump likes to say that the election will be illegitimate if he loses. Mainstream news outlets like to push back against this. The NYT, for instance, has been loudly insistent that the election is totally secure all year.

It’s not, and they’re morons. No experts agree with them on this. Trump fabricating a bunch of fictional threats does not invalidate the numerous actual threats.

Biden, Pelosi, and Schumer would not be anyone’s first pick for the task of contesting an election, but that’s who we got.

Possible October surprises:

Hey, what do you guys think this year’s James Comey is going to be? The only real prediction I have is that something very destabilizing happens in the week before the election, but the particulars could be anything. Some fun possibilities:

DNC hacked again

Federally sanctioned repeat of the 1985 MOVE bombing

Hunter Biden cocaine sex tape

Anything that startles people, destabilizes institutions, and distracts from other issues is a viable possibility.

Scenarios after a contested election:

There are plenty of bluechecks and think tanks who have already gamed this out in detail. You don’t have to take my word for any of this part. The choices are:

There are rival sets of state electors, and Congress decides which ones count. Result: McConnell and Barr play Calvinball until they get the outcome they like, Trump remains in office.

The supreme court decides. Result: Trump remains in office.

The militias decide. Result: Trump remains in office, plus the Handmaid’s Tale happens.

There’s an orange revolution. After months of protracted struggle, Trump is ousted from office. However, in the meantime, ~8 states have seceded and Russia has annexed Alaska. In the ensuing chaos, John McAfee claims the presidency.

Probability estimates:

Trump’s odds of a ‘legitimate’ EC victory are only at 13% as of this moment, but the running average is higher, with occasional spikes above 30%. Polling errors add a little extra. Let’s say 25%.

Trump’s odds of losing the EC vote, but clawing it back through malfeasance until enough Republicans agree that he’s won, are very low in the case of a Biden landslide. But a landslide is unlikely, and as the results are closer, the probability of Republicans declaring themselves winners approach one. Note that, at least from mainstream news coverage, this won’t look like the power grab that many democrats fear. It will look like a lot of confusion and disarray, with an unclear EC count, followed by a cascade of authorities and sources declaring Trump the winner and securing the acceptance from government bodies one at a time. For the most likely election outcomes in which Trump doesn’t win straight up, I’d say a 30% chance Trump remains in office.

The election being a total dysfunctional disaster, with multiple states unable to certify results, is at least 5%. At least! In such a case, I’d give Trump an 80% chance of remaining in office.

In general, I believe that the only way that Biden gets to be president is if everything basically holds together and works like it’s supposed to, and also Trump legitimately loses the EC. There is one way for everything to go right. There are many ways it can go wrong.

The NYT has fixated on the possibility that Trump clearly loses, but refuses to leave office anyway. I’d give this no more than a 1% chance of happening. But I think there’s a major blind spot around the possibility that we have no idea who won, because the whole thing is obfuscated by multiple layers of confusion and malfeasance. What tools to democrats have for investigating malfeasance? What tools do they have for persuading people that they won when the results are in question? What tools to they have for enforcing election laws that they didn’t have in 2017?

I think they have approximately one asset, and it’s a populace that’s willing to rise up in defense of their rights. But the DNC spent the last five-ish years antagonizing and alienating anyone left of Dianne Feinstein, so, the efficacy of a potential national mobilization has been severely compromised.

Any protracted contested election scenario either favors Trump remaining in power, or the eventual balkanization of the US. One reason there are no good scenarios for a contested election is that mainstream media has been so adamant that the election is secure. When the Democrats are trying to contest results, they will be struggling against their own narrative.

Then, I add a 10% chance that a last minute October surprise tips the race to Trump. It happened last time, and Comey wasn’t even trying; now that every government office is staffed with Trump appointees who are trying, they have a decent shot at this.

Summing up these odds, I arrive at Trump having around a 70% chance.

Then, I add another 5%, because I bet there’s things I haven’t thought of, and every year there’s some small chance that the far right will go all in on a race war, and this would be a good opportunity for them.

I will take actual bets on these odds.

My biases:

Numerous.

I grew up in a red community in a red state and was bullied a lot by kids who grew up to be far-right; I have a chip on my shoulder about this that precludes dispassionate analysis.

I believe the RNC has looked at US demographic trends and likely consequences of climate change, and has accepted a certain amount of fascistic will to power as a necessary evil. This is mere supposition on my part.

Despite the fact that I am more or less an asshole stoner burnout weeb, I remain convinced that the editorial staff at the NYT and several other major American journalistic institutions are somehow even dumber than I am. Although this may sound unlikely, this assumption has been invaluable for making predictions about the world.

I am a paranoid person.

My motivations for writing this:

Believe it or not, I’m only doing this to assuage anxiety. I’ve been convinced that Trump’s odds for remaining in office have been significantly higher than polls would suggest since 2018, and it’s maddening to see so few other people agree even though my core assumptions keep not going away.

If anyone read this far: I’m sorry, and I hope this motivates you to vote, if you weren’t going to already. If Trump remains in office, protests against him will benefit from having the mandate of a clear popular vote win, even if not an EC win, so I do believe that even people outside battleground states should vote.

I don’t know about Tumblr, but on Twitter, ‘no-hopers’ are characterized (fairly or not) as being defeatist Bernie bros who think that Trump should win the election to teach the DNC a lesson. I disavow this idea in the strongest possible terms. I think Biden can win and urgently should win. But every time I see someone talking about the Biden presidency as if it were a sure thing, it takes another year off my lifespan.

No matter what happens, we will be fighting racism and corruption for the rest of our lives, because that’s what ethical behavior entails in this world. But a Biden term vs. a second Trump term are in no way equivalent, and things can still get worse.

In conclusion, [that picture of the guy at the folding table with the ‘prove me wrong’ sign]

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snkpolls · 6 years ago

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SnK Season 3, Part 1 Poll Results (Manga Reader Version)

The poll closed with 240 responses. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Please note that this is the results of the manga reader poll. Anime only watchers are suggested not to read if you do not wish to be spoiled about certain events! Anime only viewers, click here to view your poll results!

RATE THE FIRST COUR 231 Responses

Overall, respondents had a positive experience with the anime’s retelling of the Uprising arc with a 4 being the most popular ranking. It seems most believe there was room for improvement, but that it was overall enjoyable!

Good shit man, good shit. Next arc is gonna wring my heart dry of every last feel in existence, but so far I am satisfied.

This season was poor. I hoped for better. The scenes I loved it the manga were removed. Lots of character development was gone. But my biggest pain is anime version of Kenny. I will be honest - I am disappointed.

I liked it but the manga version will always hold a special place in my heart

I thought it was amazing, despite all the new things and things taken out. I still love the series way too much to really criticize choices they or Isayama make. I know I'm still gonna watch it and love it.

FAVORITE ANIMATED COUR SO FAR? 235 Responses

Nearly half of voters favor the Clash of the Titans arc’s adaptation the most so far, but the Uprising arc came at a surprisingly strong second overall!

Well done, WIT Studio! Although some of my favorite chapters became my least favorite and vice versa (sadly), this was over all the best arc in my opinion.

It was a good story, but they cut out way too many scenes I loved making it not the best adaptation when it comes to comparing it with the manga. Season 3 is still my favorite season though.

FAVORITE EPISODE(S) FROM THIS COUR? 231 Responses

“Friends” was the most well-liked episode of the first half of the season, but overall the last four episodes performed the strongest. This is likely due to their more faithful adaptation of the manga material than than the earlier episodes. On that note, “Pain” did pretty well in regards to the earlier episodes.

First two episodes were meh (way too fast for my liking), then it got slightly better, but the last 4 episodes were amazing

that ending scene in ep 12, what the hell, that scared me so much but it was so well done! also that last scene before the ending song is great for hype lol, Erwin's (japanese) voice actor is a god, my god what a man, SUSUMEEE

RATE THE SOUNDTRACK 236 Responses

It is probably safe to assume that the majority of respondents agree with the sentiment, “OST when!?” The soundtrack was great this season according to voters. Hopefully Sawano treats us soon!

It was so good and I really want the soundtrack to come out, I have 6 months to mentally prepare myself for the return to Shiganshina arc and I still won’t be ready

RATE THE ANIMATION 235 Responses

Overall, reactions to the animation were positive. Although there were some scenes that had room for improvement, ultimately we can’t deny that the hard work done on the action sequences really paid off. Here’s hoping for even more glorious animation in the second half of the season!

HOW DID YOU FEEL ABOUT THE FOLLOWING KEY CHARACTERS BY THE END OF THE COUR?

We’ll let the results speak for themselves on this one. Levi, Historia, Erwin, Hange and Kenny drew the most positive feelings. Rod evoked the most negative feelings.

ARE YOU PLANNING TO WATCH THE NEXT COUR? 237 Responses

We’re happy to see that most of you guys will be around for more!

I feel like this section and onwards are not going to make for very entertaining episodes and are better in manga format, particularly if it's going to keep forcing major changes

HAVE YOU BEEN WATCHING THE DUB? 237 Responses

The majority of respondents have not watched the dub and have no desire to do so. 16% will get around to it eventually and 14% are keeping on up on it.

IF SO, WHAT ARE YOUR OPINIONS OF THE DUB THIS SEASON? 211 Responses

Aside from the 75% who haven’t been watching it, those who have are having an overall positive experience with it this season, regardless if the original Japanese is the preference or not!

This season has been an improvement both in voice acting and script, I've been pretty satisfied with it.

I'm not sure why people think animes need dubs tbh. They never sound good. Kenny's voice actor really butchered the cowboy voice.

I've only seen a few scenes but when Levi shouted ''Nifa!'' it sounded really weird in the dub xD

The very idea of watching dubbed anime is heresy

DO YOU THINK LINKED HORIZON WILL BE INVOLVED IN THE NEXT COUR? 233 Responses

The majority are feeling pretty confident that Linked Horizon will be back again for part 2 with an exciting new opening for us! 16% are sure they will stick around, but we may not see them retake their role as the artist of the opening. A small sliver of respondents think that they will be absent.

OVERALL, DID YOU THINK THE ADAPTATION OF THE UPRISING ARC WAS DONE WELL? 237 Responses

Just over half of respondents believed that the Uprising arc was adapted well overall. 28% felt it was a good story, but not a good adaptation - still enjoyable, but not close enough to the source material. Smaller percentages either preferred the anime’s retelling or, on the opposite end, believe that the adaptation wasn’t good in any way.

Í think a few parts would've been better if they had stuck to the source, but overall it was a good adaptation

It was horrible to be very honest, ehhhhh they ruined it

There were a few cuts and changes that didn't make sense or took away from the story but it wasn't too bad. I love Attack On Titan too much to be ungreatful lol.

At some points it was a better adaptation, with changes I liked, and at some points the attempts to fix some issues created some others. I'd say I find it about even with the manga, the pros and cons balance out.

I enjoyed it, and I loved the action animation in the first few episodes, but I'd still have preferred a more faithful adaptation.

First half was rushed, i like the manga version of it better, but the second half that went more like the manga was excellent

It could've been a teensy bit better, but glad they hit all the marks that were important (except for the hesitation of the 104th squad killing people)

It was a good story, but they cut out way too many scenes I loved making it not the best adaptation when it comes to comparing it with the manga. Season 3 is still my favorite season though.

Although the story was entertaining and was produced well, it missed a lot of key factors present in the manga that really brings it down. At the end you have a feeling of hollowness as opposed to satisfaction

OPINIONS OF THE ARC BEFORE THE ANIME? 238 Responses

Prior to the anime adaptation, the majority of respondents were fond of this arc of the story. A few were indifferent or didn’t enjoy it, however.

I thought this arc was boring when I read it in the manga and it honestly wasn’t any better when it was animated.

AND AFTER? 237 Responses

Opinions stayed about the same after the anime retelling, with just a small bump up in the “liked it” area.

I actually like the Uprising arc. So when the anime came up I expected it to be better. So for me this is a good adaptation. Plus I think half of the budget was spent on making Levi 100 time hotter... My only regret is that they didn't show Levi shirtless.

Uprising arc is my favorite in the manga. So many changes have driven me mad but in the end, I have rather enjoyed this cour. The chara design and the animation are insane. Feel robbed in many ways though, but never mind.

I felt like a lot of details that made the arc good in the manga was lost in the anime

HOW DID YOU FEEL ABOUT THE FOLLOWING MAJOR CHANGES?

While most stances were overall neutral on many of the changes, the most disliked change was taking away Levi forcing Historia to take the crown, thus unraveling subsequent events which eventually lead to the beloved punch/smile scene. The most well received change was including a proper Kenny vs. Levi fight scene in the cave.

I did disapprove of some removals and additions, because I felt that the way the manga structured it made the plot flow easily. For the anime, it felt a tad rushed with the fast stream of information given to the viewers.

Like many manga readers, my biggest and only really significant complaint was the removal of Levi's choking-and-speech moment. It was entirely crucial to both his and Historia's characterisation and future development.

I only liked two of the changes. Everything they did that stuck to the manga was really well done.

The fandom is happy because of the 2nd fight between them in the cave. That was the worst fight IMO: Kenny didn't learn anything from the first battle between them and decided to go against Levi again; he was babbling some nonsense, offended his nephew and as result - he almost got killed. So in other words - Kenny was shown as immature, dumb simpleton who despised his nephew and was pathetic fighter.

while different, i still think it was a good adaptation and none of the changes really bothered me too much.

An additional scene that I'm still upset they didn't include - the conversation between Nile and Erwin before Erwin's arrest, where they discuss their childhood together.

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON THE FIRST COUR?

A shame a bunch of the political parts were ''rushed'', but it was to be expected. Otherwise a good adaptation!

Decent adaptation that skimmed over the boring stuff. Too bad some scenes were hacked away.

"Okay, this is epic." - Ben Shapiro

I don't care that Isayama approved the changes and that the majority of people seemed to have enjoyed this arc more in anime form with the changes. I'm not an idiot, I know how adaptations work and that they're a different medium and that it wouldn't be a 100% panel by panel adaptation nor was I expecting it to be. Neither of the previous seasons were. But they removed and changed SO MUCH of what made the arc great and my favorite personally that I'll never get over that.

After a few fast paced episodes that were slightly Concerning™️ things slowed down and made a lot of sense. I’m glad that isayama got a chance to see uprising play out in the way he would have liked. And as far as changes, some were great, some were not awesome, but we always have the manga. Overall it was amazing and what will I do with my Sundays for the next six months rip

It was pretty calm, right before the storm of the next cour

First sighting of god tier character Floch

I feel like a fair bit of changes were made just to give the main/loved characters far more screentime, and some other changes to be simply dumb and entirely unnecessary

I wish they had just stayed true to the manga. It seems like they wanted to remove some of Levi's darker parts which makes him a less interesting character.

While it could have been better (less CGI!), it was phenomenal overall, and I believe guarantees that the Shiganshina arc is in good hands!

Rod's Titan was so gross. YUCK!

EEEEEEKKKKKK

10/10 there was a brief flashback of Mina Carolina in the Cave.

I'm still salty about some cuts but overall I liked it. Who will say no to Anime SNK?

For Yams story and characters are the most important, for the anime team - it's fun for watchers. That's a bit sad but okay.

Historias new coronation outfit was better than in the manga

I see the anime as an extra, so nothing that happens in the anime will change how I see certain characters or the arc itself. So I really had a problem answering your poll. In my eyes, it a gimmick, a nice animated extra but nothing more.

Despite not being a 1:1 adaptation of the manga, the anime still manages to do a fantastic job of adapting Uprising as well as altering it. The story and characters were still executed very well, and this arc overall had a MUCH better reception than its original counterpart which, in my opinion, says something.

WHERE DO YOU PRIMARILY DISCUSS THE SERIES? 221 Responses

SHOULD THE POLLS CONTINUE/OVERALL POLL FEEDBACK? 226 Responses

We’re happy to see you guys are enjoying the polls! We appreciate all of you! <3

Thanks again to everyone who participated! We’ll see you again in April!

#snk poll #snk spoilers #snk s3 #poll results

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thelightofthingshopedfor · 6 years ago

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2018 post because I still want to and it’s on my to-do list

I'm sure at this point no one but me cares considering we're fully two months into 2019 but whatever, I want to record it for posterity, because there were a lot of things in 2018 that I did for the first time and that's kind of important. (”this will be brief!” I said, you know, like a liar.)

I finally got a tattoo. I've been talking about it for years but never figured out exactly what I wanted or where, and even once I figured out what I wanted ("all we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us," which has been important to me in different ways for years) I didn't know exactly how I wanted it to look, because it can be tough to make text tattoos look good and I’m not an artist or a graphic designer. and then Scully was diagnosed with kidney disease and I realized, oh yeah, his paw print, there's an obvious one. my tiny little semi-colon (of which I apparently never took a decent picture) was also pretty obvious once I started looking for something small I could do as a test tattoo, although the way things worked out I got them both at the same time. the whole process was...kind of odd? but instead of just talking about it I finally actually made it happen, and it hurt but not, like, unbearably, and now I have a piece of my furry little boy that goes everywhere with me, which was especially important after he died.

I did way more political volunteering than I ever have before. I always feel like I'm not doing enough and compared to people who volunteered with campaigns every single day, I guess I'm not, but I still did a lot in 2018 compared to any previous year: lots of donations to multiple Democrat candidates and progressive organizations, textbanking for several candidates across the US, sign-waving and even phonebanking for the Alaska Democrats, poll watching on election night for the Alaska Democrats, at least a few hundred handwritten postcards to voters for a few more candidates, data entry for the campaign against a local bathroom bill last spring (I keep forgetting that happened in 2018 too because, you know, 2018 was about a decade long), going to several local anti-Kavanaugh demonstrations and the like, leaving lots of voicemails for my legislators and bugging other people to do the same (with varying levels of success), and maybe other stuff I'm forgetting. which is all good, because actually doing shit is vastly preferable to just going "wow everything is terrible and we're all gonna die" both in terms of actual impact and my mental health. the unfortunate part is that after doing as much as I did for the 2018 midterms--whether or not I really actually did enough, whatever "enough" might be--I got pretty well burned out, especially because...all the candidates I did the most work for DID NOT WIN so that made it feel kinda pointless (even though we took back the House and I was so relieved about that I could’ve cried). especially locally where Alaskans did the stupid thing and 1) kept Don Young and 2) elected a Trump wannabe with almost no experience as our governor because he made promises that any idiot should've been able to see he wouldn't be able to keep. but...I still worked hard for causes and people I care about, and I devoted a pretty significant amount of time and money, and I got out of my comfort zone with last-weekend phonebanking, and none of that is nothing.

I joined a gym and started going there fairly regularly. as usual I want to qualify this, because "30 minutes on the elliptical once or twice a week" is not exactly an amazing workout, and I haven't been as good at going regularly since I finished TAZ: Balance, but like...it's still a new thing that I went out of my way to do, and it was a positive change toward taking care of myself physically.

related: I...finished a podcast? I'm bad at podcasts (see also: I'm two or three years behind on Welcome to Night Vale, the only other podcast where I've listened to more than one or two episodes), but the Balance arc of The Adventure Zone is amazing and it basically let me trick myself into wanting to work out so I could listen to more. (unfortunately, Amnesty and MBMBAM haven't been as effective this way, I think because MBMBAM is hilarious but there's no narrative and therefore no "oh shit what's gonna happen next" suspense, and Amnesty is great but it's just...less zany, I guess. constant zany goofs are great for distracting me from the fact that I'm doing generally unpleasant physical activity.) now maybe if I could find a site like GoodReads for podcasts, which apparently doesn’t exist yet, maybe I’d do better at remembering and then listening to all the podcasts I’ve heard of that interest me...although I still don’t know what would be useful for workouts to give me that all-important combo of zany goofs (made by people who are not horrible) and suspenseful narrative.

I got back into conventions and cosplay for the first time in six years, which is kind of dumb because I was never that deep into cosplay in the first place and I'm still not, and the vast majority of cons I've attended have been tiny local ones...but I did do several attempts at varying levels of quality starting back in college, and I put together some complicated-by-my-standards outfits for SDCC 2012, and then I didn't do any cosplay at all until last year when I semi-spontaneously decided to go to ECCC. I only did two for that one (AoU Wanda, and Avengers Academy Loki) but they involved more actual work than any previous cosplays and I was pretty proud of how they turned out. and then I kind of went "oh hey, cons and cosplay are fun, I forgot", so I did a very simple cosplay for one tiny local con and two that were much more complicated (Stuttgart Loki and The Final Pam) for our larger local con, and it was a lot of work and I'm not 100% happy with how I looked as Pam but the handful of people thrilled to recognize me made it worthwhile. also my Loki staff is damned cool and I look great in suits.

I got contacts! for the very first time! LITERALLY JUST FOR COSPLAY! I've worn glasses since I was about two so I don't remember my adjustment period and I've never had much desire to try contacts, and with past cosplays I just kind of shrugged and wore my glasses anyway, but after ECCC I wanted to Do It Right so...I got contacts. it kind of sucked actually! after the week or so where I was supposed to wear them to get used to them, I literally have not worn them except for the local convention! it turns out contacts will never be a great idea for me because astigmatism is wacky! but now I have contacts I can use for future cosplays, and it's another new thing outside my comfort zone where I went "you know, actually, I could do this thing" and then I made it happen, which is...sort of a big deal for me.

I played Silent Hill 3 and 2, in that order, which is not that big of a deal but still feels like something of a milestone for me, because a) actually finishing a game is embarrassingly rare for me and b) I feel like...they're so well known and such a part of gaming canon, so to speak, that finally playing a couple classic games I previously only knew by osmosis is sort of significant actually. also I love them both in different ways, and discovering a new favorite game series is always fun.

I said goodbye to Scully. this was...not a fun one, obviously, and in fact those last few days were completely fucking awful. but, well, it was a big thing that happened, and it was new in my experience. like I said (a lot) at the time, I realize it's a sign of how lucky I've been that Scully was my hardest personal loss so far, but that doesn't change the fact that it was, and...of course it was hard and horrible. he was my furry little boy, he was unquestionably family, he was a huge part of my life every day for 9 years. I took care of him as well as I could for as long as I could, and then I made the most compassionate decision I could, and for the most part I was able to focus on remembering the joy he brought me instead of just how much it hurt to lose him. (I've also said this before but I think dealing with Loki in Infinity War helped with Scully, because I'd already done some work on my unhealthy tendencies toward hopelessness in the face of, you know, things ending.) and then I found Hazy, and that's been hard in different ways but she's also worth it, and I think I can train her enough that other people will actually get to see how silly and adorable and sweet she is instead of just BARK BARK BARK.

I more or less kept up with my writing goals of posting at least one new thing a month? I guess this is an accomplishment rather than a first, since it's something I've been mostly successful in doing for the last few years, but it's still notable. also it does involve a first, because until I will kiss you till your breath is found I'd never written anything even semi-explicit (well, I very vaguely described a couple sex scenes in my Crimson Peak fic a few years ago but that was...VERY vague) and then I wrote several thousand words of fucked-up dubcon sort-of-p0rn and fairly shortly followed it up with another one. so that's a thing I've done now I guess. (is it actually explicit if you never really, directly reference anyone's genitals but it's still obvious what's happening and also it's fucked-up sex stuff? I don't know but at this point I'm definitely still too squeamish to use certain words in my fics. is that because I'm hella ace or because I grew up hella repressed in purity culture? BOTH PROBABLY)

and then there are my goals for 2019! or rather the rest of 2019 but it's cool because I got started on a couple of these pretty much right away!

cut my hair real short. already done! in fact this was basically the first thing I did in 2019, because I made the appointment Jan. 1 and got my hair cut Jan. 2! kind of like the tattoo, this is something I've been wanting to do, and talking about wanting to do, for ages and I've never actually gone for it; the shortest I've gotten my hair cut was basically chin-length, more than once, because I'd go in like "I kind of really want a pixie cut or something similar but idk if that would work on me without adding a bunch of time and Product to my morning routine so maybe I shouldn't?" and the stylists were always like "yeah you shouldn't, a good pixie for your face shape is not wash-and-wear hair" so I never did it even though I kept wanting to just...cut all my fucking hair off. and then this December I kind of went, wait, I got a TATTOO with less angst than this and that's permanent. I CAN CUT MY HAIR. IT GROWS BACK. so I got all my fucking hair cut off. it's not perfect because a short cut really does take more maintenance, from what I'm told (I got it cut the first week of January, so...probably I should have scheduled a trim by now), and I really would prefer to continue paying almost no attention to my hair while still looking generally okay, and the bits in front fall in my eyes and piss me off if I don't pin them back (I did buy the hair wax stuff the stylist suggested that was supposed to sort of lightly anchor it in place but it just never worked for very long, so...pins), BUT it is very nice not constantly catching my hair in my purse strap and stuff like that, and also I'm more visibly queer with short hair and that's definitely a plus.

train Hazy. this is a work in progress. it took a while to get signed up for an actual class and then I had to go with one for reactive dogs specifically, and so far I've only been to two sessions, just one of which involved Hazy, and then I've been trying to do other stuff at home, and...well, it's a work in progress. but she's a good dog who just needs to learn to chill a little bit, and I should've trained Scully and didn't so I'm trying to do things right this time.

specifically, I would like to get her trained enough that she can accompany me to Pride in June, wearing her adorable Wonder Woman harness and cape. given that she is not great with individual strange humans and strange dogs, taking her into a big crowd of both would definitely result in a screaming meltdown if I did it now and it may or may not be realistic to hope I'll be able to get enough improvement on that in time. but that's the goal. if it doesn't work, there's always next year, I guess.

also, I want to make myself a flying ace costume for Pride. this may or may not be much more complicated than I anticipate.

speaking of costumes, I'm planning to go back to both local conventions this year, and I imagine I'll reuse my Stuttgart Loki outfit at least once but it would be nice to do at least one other new cosplay. Heather/Cheryl from Silent Hill 3 seems like it should be straightforward but Value Village hasn't provided me with any of the pieces yet so who knows.

post more to @alaska-gothic because I have a bunch of cool photos I'd like to have a place to show off (and I've taken a lot of new pictures, some in VERY cold weather, for this exact purpose)

finish more games. in practice this might turn into "play more short games while continuing to neglect long games" but I want to make my list of completed games longer and I also want to PLAY MORE GAMES in general because it's a thing I really like, and it's possibly the only thing I do that's purely for my own enjoyment, and I want to make more time for that. also I want to finish SWTOR’s existing singleplayer content because, I mean, it’s an eight-year-old(!!!) MMO so its remaining time is probably limited by default and it’s fucking ridiculous I’ve been a subscriber for at least seven years without even finishing all the class storylines, what the actual fuck Past Me. (I also want to make more time for console games specifically, because those are almost definitely easier on my body and I can do them while cuddling with Hazy on the couch. unfortunately this also generally requires me having the place to myself, which is kind of a rare thing that is also necessary for comfortably working on customs or writing, so...opportunities are limited.)

speaking of games: finish buying the parts to upgrade my computer and then upgrade my fucking computer, and also back up my fucking files

finish a long fic? or honestly if I can even finish more short fics that would be great. really just...make progress on the WIP list. especially if I can finish some IW-specific fics before Endgame comes out. that would be super cool of me.

get another tattoo. I still want that LotR quote but I don't know how I want it to look so who knows when that might happen. HOWEVER, I've been wanting something queer, and I very much loved Foxflight Studios’ "we fight as one" design, and when I asked the designer if she was okay with me getting it as a tattoo she said yes. so at least with that I wouldn't have to figure out a design. I do of course have to figure out a) where I want it (ideally, somewhere normally covered by clothes but where I can see it if I want to, and where a person might conceivably keep a real dagger) and b) how much more it's going to hurt/cost than the paw print considering it would have to be bigger and it has a lot more colors and linework.

do some travel around Alaska. I've lived here for nearly my entire life and I really haven't seen that much of my own state. more importantly there are a few extremely cool places within theoretical driving distance, like Kennicott, Igloo City, and abandoned military installations near Seward, and I want to visit them. @erlkonigstochter and I had vague plans to do this last year and it never materialized (although I did visit Nike Site Summit on my own), so...this year I intend to try harder to make that happen, especially since I have no current plans of traveling out of state.

put more stuff on Etsy (and figure out how to advertise them?). in particular there are a bunch more things I want to repaint in various Pride colors, in part because those are way easier than custom Funko figures. of course, a lot of these things are kinda technically copyright infringement which means somehow I have to figure out how to make more sales of the easier things without drawing the attention of any corporations (and/or shift my focus to things that aren't under copyright of some kind but that's probably more complicated).

but also do more personal projects. I have so many partially finished custom figures, and so many other figures I bought specifically to customize but haven't touched since, and it would be cool to actually...do something with some of those. especially because several of my WIPs/plans are more Lokis, and I need all the Lokis, and there are not many more left that I can buy.

figure out how to motivate myself to work out more and keep up with PT exercises, see above re: needing a better replacement for the magic of TAZ Balance whoops

get a therapist and work on ADHD issues, because I'm increasingly convinced that ADHD issues are at the root of the vast majority of my other issues (depression, anxiety, etc.), and that I would be immeasurably improving every aspect of my life if I could make some progress on that aspect. the difficulty, of course, is that finding a therapist is kind of complicated and difficult, and also I don't really want to add yet another regular appointment to my schedule when I already don't have enough time after work to do all the things I want and/or need to do, but...this one thing could go a long way toward helping me actually do all those other things, so obviously this is a time investment I really need to make. although probably not until I've made serious progress with Hazy's separation anxiety because that also makes it hard to go places after work. so uh, I guess we'll see. in the meantime it might be smart if I tried to figure out some kind of self-guided therapy thing I could do. I'm sure there's...something.

just, like, be more intentional about...things. in general. this is a bad goal because it's very nonspecific but it is slightly more specific than "generally do better FFS" so at least there's that.

#2018 #2019 #goals #idk what to tag this #I should cross-post to DW #I should...cross-post to DW more in general #I did that for a bit and then the site didn't completely die immediately so I kinda forgot

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momestuck · 6 years ago

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Epilogues: Meat ch 1-8 [Epilogue 1]

I’m eating so you get one more of these before I try to salvage a bit of work from today.

We’ve read through the whole of the ‘Candy’ branch of the story. It went places! Spoilers for it below.

Somehow Jane turned into a fascist dictator, Karkat became a heroic resistance leader, a whole lot of ships were made and broken, Dirk killed himself but somehow it was fake (???), John went through multiple existential crises and a failed marriage, Jade destroyed Dave and Karkat’s relationship but ultimately got with Dave, Gamzee was brought back to perform a ‘redemption arc’ and was generally awful but ultimately ended up getting sexually assaulted and then murdered by Vriska, let’s not forget that the cast had three entire fucking babies and one of them ran into her own namesake... and Obama was there. And that’s not even covering all of it...

But that was all in a universe that was ‘inconsequential’; it was in a bubble disconnected from ‘canon’, spread out on the event horizon.

Now we wind the clock back, and consider what happens if John chooses on that day to go forth, recruit a group of other selves from elsewhere in Paradox Space, and fight Lord English, as ‘canon’ dictates he eventually must...

Chapter 1

This one is in second person, and features narrative prompts, which was also true of the first chapter of Candy.

This time, John eats the meat in a really gross way, manages to not puke everywhere, says awkward goodbyes, writes a bunch of letters, and fucks off back into Canon(TM).

Not a lot to say about that! P much what we expected. Wonder where he’s gonna end up?

Chapter 2

I pretty much expected them to dive straight into Canon, but no, in fact similar plots as the first one seem to be abrew. We meet Dave and Karkat - no Jade here, this time - as Dave breaks the news of Jane’s presidential bid.

So, Dave proposes, Karkat should run against her. Which was a possibility floated in the other story... it does feel rather like, at this point, whatever V said, I might have read them in the wrong order.

Dave brings up Obama as a reason he’d want to see a good president - Obama who, in Dave’s timeline, got killed by meteors before he could ‘fix the economy’. Which I guess makes his appearance in the other branch a little less of a non-sequitur, though still fucking weird don’t get me wrong!

DAVE: or maybe not... maybe there was like an escape hatch in the white house that led to his own secret presidential session of sburb

DAVE: what if hes just chillin there now

KARKAT: DAVE, I THINK WE’VE COVERED YOUR ��OBAMA’S SECRET SESSION OF SBURB” THEORY WELL ENOUGH ALREADY.

So the Obama chapter was all payoff for a very long term brick joke? This is not the revelation I expected to be having in Meat.

Anyway, Dave basically explains how scary it is to have the human government in charge of troll reproduction, echoing Karkat’s words back at him. Apparently the way the whole weird eugenic system got put in place was that, before Kanaya arrived with the Mother Grub, the government reproduced trolls exclusively ectobiologically.

The other issue is... The Economy. We get a little note that, indeed, this is an alchemy-based post-scarcity economy:

DAVE: ok if shit goes sideways i guess we arent gonna see like raggedy turtles and pauper chess men standing in bread lines or anything

DAVE: thats just the nature of alchemy-based post-scarcity economies the depressions tend to be pretty mild

DAVE: but it will still be bad

DAVE: a healthy economy is fuckin IMPORTANT

DAVE: if for no other reason than it protects the societal context for what it means to be fucking rich, like us

So uh what do they spend money on... I guess there’s services, those can’t be alchemised (except for the fact that ludicrously advanced robotics exists?). someone actually has to work the alchemizer...

Anyway most of this chapter is... electoral strategy.

DAVE: consorts overwhelm the other kingdoms in sheer numbers but due to unscrupulous gerrymandering, all kinds of fucked up voter suppression policies and some electoral “counterbalancing” measures to account for their ridiculous population growth rate their voting power per capita is kind of pathetic

DAVE: also its hard to drive turnout

DAVE: this may come as a shock but legions of easily distracted low information amphibians primarily concerned with eating bugs and farming god damned mushrooms arent the most politically motivated demographic

The chapter ends with Dirk calling Dave... to... cut off his head. Yeah. That joke again.

OK, this sure is a direction. Welcome to Homestuck Electoralism Edition I guess. They probably won’t have quite as many kids?

Chapter 3

John apparently has a specific list of retcon interventions, apopros of Rose. The first is to appear on the battleship during the three year journey in the non-canon, pre-retcon timeline, open a fridge containing Aradia and Gamzee (god I’ve forgotten so much), and take the ring that Aradia is holding (which ring is that again?). Then, John decides to shove Gamzee back in the fridge.

> Do everyone a favor and put an end to his preposterous narrative relevance.

You wisely decide that this clown will lend nothing valuable to the narrative whatsoever if he is allowed to remain outside of your childhood refrigerator. You put both hands on his chest and shove him into the fridge where he belongs. He goes easily, issuing only a pair of weak honks in protest. You slam the fridge shut and resolve to never think about Gamzee Makara again.

So... we’re going with that, huh.

I’ve said enough about the Gamzee Issue already perhaps. But I guess I thought they were going to do more than to bring Gamzee back mostly to mock the idea of ‘redemption arcs’, and ‘punish’ him some more for being a bad character.

Chapter 4

John interrupts two other retcon-Johns, one trying to cancel out the other, a Dave, and a grimbark Jade during some of the shit that happened when Jade got mind controlled or whatever... it’s been a long time...

Dave’s the first recruit, along with Jade. John gives him a rather half-assed explanation about why, after several years of ‘boring adult lives’, they need to go and fight Lord English now.

Chapter 5

Back to the real story: Dave and Karkat’s electoral bid.

Dirk has apparently been... playing the heel in televised rap battles to Jake’s face so that Jake’s endorsement of Jane’s political candidacy would be more effective. Yeah.

Also he disagrees with Dave on fiscal policy. The cad.

He has a rather weird conversation of alternately discouraging and encouraging Dave and Karkat’s opposition. Then, to round out the chapter, V and Cephied deliver... an entire stanza of Jake’s rap. Oh boy.

At the end, Dirk... tranquilizes Jake (????????) to take another call from Rose.

This is the ‘real’, ‘canon’ storyline now? Oh Homestuck.

Chapter 6

John’s assembled a group of god tier kids in his back garden. The alpha and beta kids are present, but there are no trolls.

There’s a rather uncomfortable moment (for the reader, as well as John) when young Roxy hits on adult John.

You weren’t prepared to get passively hit on by the Definitely Not Legal version of a girl you used to have a crush on at the age she was when you first met her, only a few hours after you watched the Actually Legal version of her engage in passionate hand-holding with her possibly aromantic skeleton alien monster girlfriend.

‘Legal’, really!

Anyway, John feels rather strained watching this rather rushed rehash of the reunion scenes from the original comic. He wonders about the ethics of all this...

You wonder. Do you see these teen versions of your friends as “real”? Are you treating them, at Rose’s behest, as simple puppets? Doing your part to insist they fill friend-shaped recesses in an essential plan to stabilize all else that can be considered important, a distinction no longer applying to them? Do you care at all about whatever fate it may be that you are sentencing these children to? Are you becoming as complicit in the fatalistic evils of Paradox Space as Lord English himself? Are you becoming a monster, John Egbert?

foooof i mean he’s not wrong! let’s call them the ‘child soldiers’ from here on out...

Chapter 7

Time to catch up with Rose. We finally learn what’s wrong with her: she’s ‘ascending’, taking on the full burden of the ‘ultimate self’.

The same is also happening to Dirk, but he is somehow more resilient to it. So that’s what Obama did to Dave, huh.

Also this puts the prompt ‘Dirk: Ascend’ before his suicide in a rather different light.

The pieces are thus falling into place: this is why Dirk was building a Rosebot. Quite possibly the Dirk and Rose who were flying away from Earth C in the Candy timeline actually entered it out of this timeline, which would explain how Dirk was alive.

Chapter 8

Time to see the full events of Caliborn’s ‘Masterpiece’.

This is all Caliborn dropping an extremely corny buildup:

CALIBORN: BUT NOW. THE TIME HAS COME.

CALIBORN: FOR EVERYONE TO SHUT UP ABOUT HOW GREAT MY MASTERPIECE WAS.

CALIBORN: AND THE TIME IS NOW AT HAND...

His laughter turns into a low, cracked gurgle. It spikes towards you in waves, distorts and pitches low. He is beyond pleased with himself, and with the line he is about to deliver.

CALIBORN: FOR YOU ALL TO *BECOME* MY MASTERPIECE!

We need more organs to give that the proper level of scare chord...

End of Epilogue 1

Well that explained at least some of the wild horseshit we experienced in Candy, I guess.

So somehow this is all according to keikaku, which is to say Dirk’s design - he fancies himself as an engineer, putting each piece in its proper place. Rose isn’t entirely in on it, but she will be. We still don’t know why Dirk’s doing this, why he needs Jane to be president, why he’s ultimately going to need a new SBurb session...

As for themes and stuff... this just felt like ‘setting the board’. Rather hastily, even though it’s a full eight chapters. Compared to the emotional heft of some of the stuff that happened in Candy, anyway... this is all plot.

#momestuck

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kindabraveandlittlestupid · 6 years ago

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This isn't a point of nostalgia, I am only 32 and have only paid attention to so many debates over the years. Mostly the last three Presidents, so basically from 2000 to 2018 which you think would be a long time but in truth that's basically only 5 Presidential Campaigns. I cannot fathom a moment in my life where I was proud of how we conduct American debates. This is not a Right or Left issue, this is not a Media or Politicians issue... this is a failure on all fronts including that of us Citizens.

News channels capitulating to the demands of candidates who wish to establish the rules of the debate they are participating in. American citizens wanting a good show on stage over measuring the content of these men and women's character. Politicians being asked a question, ignoring said question and talking about whatever the fuck they want and no one stepping up saying “Hey Fuck Wit. We asked about Medicare and you just wasted your time talking on The Border. AGAIN!”

I am quite honestly ashamed that we allowed this to happen. The contestants of a game show don’t get to put forward the questions they have have the answers too. They don’t get to have a ‘correct’ answer when answering a different question that was never asked. Softball questions like “Who is your favorite musician?” to make them more likable is a hell of a lot less important than how they plan to conduct themselves diplomatically. The host should not be kissing the ass of the man or woman on stage they are supposed to be grilling for the sake of establishing a better democracy by allowing the American people to see who doesn't have a clue what they are doing and who actually has a plan/vision for the country.

As I said this is a failure across the board and the people who benefit from News Channels kowtowing and Publics complacency are the Shittiest Politicians who can say taglines like “Make America Great Again” without ever explaining how he plans to pay for his wall, what sort of statesmen he plans to conduct himself as or even how they even plan to MAGA. Which is how we got ourselves into this mess of someone who has increased the deficit by a trillion and has systematically weakened our relationships across the world. Am I taking a shot at Trump again? Fuck yeah, I am because the debates didn't take him to task and that perhaps would have put someone more qualified in the White House (Democrat or Conservative) in his place. Let’s face it, he is a fuck wit.

So we are at this point now where Politicians pick their voters (gerrymandering and a topic for another time), they pick their debater, the debate questions, they pick the answers they want to give regardless of the questions asked, and they get to lie about their intentions and beliefs with no adults holding them accountable to what they said before. This is why I am writing this article and calling it a “The Crucible” not to tie a stone to their feet to see if they sink or float but rather to live up to the definition of the word.

A situation of severe trial, or in which different elements interact, leading to the creation of something new.

This should be the aim of American Politics to put the men and women in power in intense scrutiny be they liberal or conservative. I am not saying we do not conduct ourselves without empathy or forgiveness of the past mistakes that some men and women might have made in their early life but look at the values they hold as they step into Office. Values that define how they will vote and judge issues that come across their desk.

So here is a list of ideas that I think will improve debate in the US allowing us to separate the pretenders from the visionaries, the dunces from the intellectuals, the reality TV stars from the patriotic civil servants.

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Cutting the Mic/Refocusing

On small thing we can add to debates is the ‘cut the mic’ option for the moderators. Far to often insults will be thrown between candidates, rants on none answers to an important question, and the domination of moderators is exploited on stage. If a candidate is asked about a subject he/she should answer said subject and if they try to switch topics the moderator should step in and cut their mic, repeat the question and reminding that individual to stay on topic. This might upset some individuals on stage but let's be honest they (the Politicians) serve the people and they don't get to change the narrative when we are asking them what their thoughts or beliefs are.

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Equal Time for 3rd Parties/Alternative Candidates

I think we Americans are pigeon held by the two-party system. We forgo third parties because MOST Americans understand the Spoiler Effect and the consequences of splitting the vote between two like-minded candidates will ultimately elect the other party which is furthest from their values. Pretty much the reason while Republicans fall in line behind their nominee which sadly the Bernie fans didn't get the memo on.

Anyways the Equal Time for 3rd Parties/Alternative Candidates is essential for a healthy democracy and the exploration of ideas. In the 2016 election, there were 6 people running under the Democratic Primary. Can you name them? Do you know what they believed in? It’s not Jill Stein (Green Party) or Gary Johnson (Libertarian Party). Don’t feel bad I only remembered 1 of the other 4 candidates besides Bernie and Hillary. This is mostly because the media provided heavy coverage to Hillary and Bernie while ignoring other options. This was much the same for Stein and Johnson having no memorable debate moments.

When we conduct the debate we need to ensure that each candidate receives an equal amount of serious questions and time to answer them. If a candidate wants to use his/her whole five minutes to speak, great! If they decide to turn over their remaining time to another candidate or back to the moderator, that would also be acceptable.

Call Backs

Very often a politician will be asked to answer for something they said in the past and explain their intent/context of what they are saying. Some will say “I never said that. Go back and read what I said.” We all know who’s said that in the past but the beauty of modern technology is we can summon those video clips instantly on a computer and we can share it with an audience right then an there with very little effort. It’s a very simple idea of pulling up videos, images, and quotes behind the candidates but an effective one because it will either A) Make candidates honestly answer what their intent/position was on the past and encourage them to avoid the call back or B) Immediately turn off the valve when a Politician attempts to gaslight an audience. It’s instant karma for those who attempt to lie their way through the questioning.

No Fluff Questions

We all know what Fluff Questions are, little softballs placed on a T-Ball stand for Candidates to answer to make them more likable. What kind of soda do you drink, who is your favorite band, what's your favorite football team and so on. None of these fucking questions matter. I don't care about the music they like, I don't care about ketchup on steak, and I don't care about the fo faith that some politicians pretend they have said they regularly read the bible and blah blah blah.

If candidates want to share these falsehoods and image during the campaign trail, fine I am ok with that. Even better if they decide to post it on their website in a bio page so people can see what they are into. However, during a debate, these individuals should be answering hard questions on policy, their vision for the country, questioned about past votes and/or judicial decisions, and should be held accountable for the beliefs/views they bring with them.

In a debate like this, we need questions on policies, beliefs, values, vision, and a fucking plan if they have one. Fluff questions just make you feel closer to the individual making you think he is just like you before he or she cuts your healthcare and runs up the debt. We smarter then this and the moderators are just as much to blame for tossing these questions out instead of asking real questions to root out the shit candidates.

Questions By The People, For The People

On occasion, an individual might stand up and asked a very important question that puts a gravity to a topic that may have not had before. These questions are important but also very rare as most people might have trouble articulating the right question to ask. I admit I sometimes do when thinking of questions on the spot. I believe this is where the Media, Journalists, and the Citizens work together to share their concerns and questions with moderators who will be conducting the debate and let them sift through the questions and turn them razor sharp inquiries to ask the candidates. This isn't to say people can't/shouldn't ask their questions but the beauty of having the people share their questions with an experienced moderator is that follow questions can be crafted ahead of time by a news team that can dig further and deeper than the vast majority of citizens.

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Conclusion

Debates, Interviews, Confirmation Hearings, and even Town Halls all suffer from these issues of Politicians deciding what they will and will not talk about. I would prefer to have a candidate say “I don’t know.” “I haven't thought about that.” ‘I will get back to you later on that” then go off on a rant to try and stir up the rest of the room with rhetoric. We collectively as citizens need to raise the bar for these men and women because if they had their way they would keep it as low as they possibly could to slither over it.

The Moderators IE the Media need to stop having this love affair with the RNC and DNC trying to charm them into letting them be the moderators. I know this is hard to do because they will take their candidates to another channel but the News Organizations are providing a civil service of keeping the public informed. If the organizations can come together and decide on a proper debate format/rules together and leave them (the candidates) no other options but to appear on one of their channels then it will no longer be the Politicians deciding the rules of debate but the moderators and the people. Thanks for reading.

Regards, Michael California

#Debate #Public Discourse #Debates #Politics #US Politics #Public Forum #Democracy

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berniesrevolution · 7 years ago

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POLITICO

Charleston, W.Va.—After pushing 90 for the better part of an hour to get here to the gold-domed Capitol from his home in rugged, woebegone Logan County, the former Army paratrooper and current state senator with 36 tattoos, bulging muscles and a dry-razored buzz cut jumped out of his red Jeep and bounded across a parking lot toward the snaking line of hundreds of striking teachers.

They rushed to shake his hand.

They clamored for snapshots and selfies.

They waved homemade signs. “HEAR US NOW.” “SUPPORT WV TEACHERS.” “UNITED WE STAND.”

“We got your back, you got ours!” one teacher called out, and they roared.

“You keep making that noise, ladies and gentlemen!” he bellowed back. “This is what union is right here! Hey! Shoulder to shoulder! Don’t take a step back! Y’all deserve it!”

As he tried to make his way through the pulsing crowd, another teacher stopped him, asking him to sign with a Sharpie the chest of her shirt that had on it a picture of him looking stalwart and stern in his military fatigues.

The people chanted his name.

“Oh-jed-ah!”

Richard Ojeda, hard j, is a first-term lawmaker from southern West Virginia. He’s 47 years old, a husband and a father of two, and he’s won exactly one general election in his life. He is running now for the open seat in West Virginia’s 3rd Congressional District, which seems like a monumentally precocious act for somebody who has served slightly more than a year in any elected office at all. But Ojeda has made his mark on the volatile politics in this state with a stunning suddenness. Though he is a Democrat in a legislature in which his party is outnumbered almost 2-to-1, he spearheaded in his freshman session the passage of a bill legalizing medical marijuana. Then, this January, he stood on the Senate floor and argued in fiery speeches that energy companies should pony up more taxes so teachers could get better benefits and pay. A strike, he warned, was not out of the question. A month later, teachers from all 55 counties walked off the job—a first in the history of the state—instantly making Ojeda the father of one of the region’s largest labor actions of the past 30 years.

In hard red, Donald Trump-loving West Virginia, Ojeda has become a kind of one-man blue wave, threatening to defy a conventional belief that the only kind of Democrat that can win big races here—or anywhere, for that matter, in Appalachia or the industrial Midwest—is somebody like Joe Manchin, the most conservative Democrat in the United States Senate, a pragmatic, pro-business social conservative. Because here is Ojeda, a pro-labor, twang-talking, plainspoken populist, scrambling the state’s recent rightward shift by harkening back to a deeper, more radical vein of its rich political history. In the early 20th century, miners fought and died for higher wages and safer working conditions while wearing red bandanas and carrying Winchester rifles. Now, teachers are the new miners; in fact, in a place all but defined by its coal heritage, there are some 20,000 teachers and fewer than 12,000 miners, making the teachers—plus the 13,000 staff who walked off the job with them—by far the largest union in the state. And here, as I hustled after Ojeda into the bustling Capitol, the striking school employees weren’t armed—but many were dressed in red. And some of them had knotted around their necks those bandanas.

Their songs of unrest ricocheted off the marble of the rotunda inside.

“We’re not gonna take it … we’re not gonna take it … we’re not gonna take it anymooooooore!”

With me and Ojeda in this crush of energy was Krystal Ball, the former MSNBC host who’s the president of the People’s House Project, a PAC that has endorsed Ojeda’s congressional candidacy. In the middle of the maelstrom, Ball had to shout to be heard. “He’s going to win!” she announced. She said this with a certainty that startled me. I had to lean in to make out her words. “And it’s going to be an instant national story! And Richard is going to be an instant national figure and face of the Democrats!”

I gave Ball a skeptical look. West Virginia, after all, voted overwhelmingly for Trump, and the 3rd District was the most pro-Trump district. The Cook Political Report doesn’t even label the district as “competitive.” Evan Jenkins, the current GOP representative, won so decisively in 2016, he decided to run for the right to run against Manchin for Senate. And in Logan County, where Ojeda grew up and still lives, just shy of 80 percent of voters chose Trump—and one of them was Ojeda himself. He’s not on Massachusetts congressman Seth Moulton’s tally of veterans he has endorsed, and he’s not on the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s “Red to Blue” list, either. He’s been a mostly limited fundraiser, too, in part because he takes no money from anybody except individual donors and labor unions. There is next to no standard reason to think Ojeda could win—except for the visceral evidence that was swirling around us. The more than 5,000 teachers screaming his name. Ball looked at me and laughed.

By this time, we had lost him. When I spotted his skin-shorn flattop sticking out of the crowd, Ojeda was surrounded by a rapt half-moon of teachers. His eyes were wide, and he was jabbing the air with a finger. “We are on the next Saudi Arabia!” he was hollering. “They’ve said that—the energy people said that! So, if we’re on the next Saudi Arabia, obviously they want it to be just like Saudi Arabia, where you have about 10 people driving around in Lamborghinis and everybody else eatin’ sand sandwiches! That’s what they want. Guess what? No!” He told them the people who give him money are regular folks. Labor unions. That’s it. “I don’t give a shit about Big Energy!” he yelled. They erupted again in applause.

Over the course of the next two days, the first two days of the West Virginia teachers’ strike that remained unresolved as of Thursday, I saw signs that read: “OVER WORKED UNDER PAID” and “TEACHERS ARE WORTH MORE.” One just said, “Help Us Ojeda. You’re our Only Hope!” I heard people ask him to run for governor, so they could vote for him, too, even if they lived in the northern two-thirds of the state. I heard him described as a “rock star” and a “folk hero.” I even watched one teacher propose to him. Literally get down on one knee and ask him to marry her. It was the only time I saw him (a little) flustered and (very briefly) speechless. “I’m married!” he finally blurted out. And everywhere I went with him, it was never too long before that chant started up again.

“Oh-jed-ah!”

(Continue Reading)

#politics #the left #politico #ojeda #West Virginia #organized labor #labor movement #populism #economic populism #strike

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annijadesign · 4 years ago

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2. How modern marketing was born? pt.2

In the 60's people started to rival against this kind of manipulation.

"There is a policemen in all our heads and he must be destroyed"

Was a phrase that they used in their protests. They physically attracted companies that made automatic weapons as well as the ones who manipulated human minds with marketing. "I want to live a life that isn't based on materialistic values and yet the whole system of government and the economy of America is based on profit, on personal greed and selfishness so that in order to be human in order to love each other and to be equal with each other and not place each other in roles, we have to destroy the kind of government that keeps us asserting our positive values of life."

Figura 1, Oil on canvas 40x50cm, 2017, ELEANOR MCCAUGHEY worn from an exibition called "There is a policemen in all our heads and he must be destroyed".

This was no success because the government released the police and national guards to stop the protesters. Because they couldn't fight the state, they decided to take a different approach. Instead of killing the policemen in the head, they wanted to get inside the mind and remove it. Start with yourself. And so the personal became political. Without changing the personal, you didn't stand a chance to win the political.

This notion nowadays also is very obvious, in my opinion. We still live in an age where the biggest change that you can make is within yourself.

They turned to the ideas of Wilhelm Reich. He was dead by then. "Esalen Institute", that was dominated by Fritz Perls, helped people to take ownership of who you are and how you act and feel. Creating ways to express themselves. Own your freedom.

They were very successful and more and more people wanted to join and do these one-weekend transformational trips. The Esalen Institute worked on social issues as well like racism. This was such a hard topic that they doidn't succseed. They even turned to nuns that acsepted this experiment trying to appear modern. After the experiment 300 nuns (more than a half of convent) broke their wows. Six months later, the convent closed the doors. All that was left was small group of nuns that were radical lesbian nuns.

In the late 60s people were very focused on searching for themselves and it had an impact on the economy. Example: students stopped buying life insurance after University because that's something a person who plans for the future does. If you live in the moment, you don't need it. That's where the

This product expresses me and who I am as an individual

was born. Before that, everything was the same for everyone. So the advertisers wanted to make new focus groups but the new expressive individualists didn't take part in them. Also, making expressive things meant making variety of them and American mass production didn't work like that. Earhart figured out a way to help people become themselves in mass groups. And do they peeled off layer after layer until they came to a recognition that everything's meaningless and that gives huge freedom because you can only create something from nothing. Be what you want to be. Earhart said that only one self matters and not the society. And so a new culture was born. The idea that people can be happy within themselves and changing the society was pointless. In 10 years from 70s to 80s this idea of having to start with yourself spread across the America. Stanford research institute of California helped the capitalism (organisations and companies) to get inside the peoples heads and give them what they want - self expression. They designed a long questionnaire that was meant to help put people in categories. People LOVED it and they had a lot of data. Now the institute made several categories for people to fit into and that gave companies a way to market their products.

Selling a lifestyle

Then this took a turn as in 1980 Ronald Reagan ran for president and was convinced by his advisors that taking in consideration the individualist groups was the way to win the election. He picked a speach that was called "let the people rule". A part from the speach "and I envision leadership in taking government off your backs and turning you loose."

This was very radical, the press and everyone else was very sceptic except for the individual people. At first some scientist didn't believe that this could work because the individualist didn't care for the government and would never vote Republican or right, but Reagans team believed it would work. And it did. That showed the power of this approach - social class, age and other democratics were not nearly as important as these new categories.

Ronald Reagan was the president who ultimately made denial of compassion respectable all because of this individualist thinking. Now caring about those in need and only about yourself. "You've worked hard for your money! You shouldn't have to feel guilty about refusing to throw it away on people who chose to be homeless and choose not to work" he said it in a way that doesn't sound harsh.

They now used focus groups for exploring the thoughts and feelings of people to invent new ranges of products, witch would allow those groups to express what they believed was their individuality. Also computers were starting to work so making small amounts of products was no longer a problem and mass production disappeared. Now there isn't a market that can fill the needs of people and there are no more definite needs.

Now there is a market based on self expression that has infinite needs in infinitely different ways.

The 4 Consumer Types where defined and are still being used today.

Mainstreamers – They seek security

Aspirers – They are chasing status

The Succeeder – They value control, they are captains of their own destiny

The Explorer – They seek experiences, risks and discovery

To learn more about this, visit this site.

Matthew Freud started to glamourase celebraties and using them es leavers of marketing in journalism. He said where you have to mention the product, how you have to talk about it, how big it should be in the pictures and the celebrities had no choice. In TV: they would put on sexy shows before serious programs that the elite thought people should watch.

In this magazine page you can see the celebrity advertising Pizza Hut in many different ways. Nowadays this would be too much and this person wouldn't be taken seriously.

When Bill Clinton was presented, he couldn't do what he had promised the public before which is cutting off their taxes and not giving anything to the pore (similar to R. Reagen). So he turned to Dick Moriss - one of the most ruthless American political strategists.

The only way to get people back was to forget the ideology and treat politics as consumer, business

"politics need to be as responsive to the whims and needs of the market place as business is. And it needs to be as sensitive to the bottom line which is profiting (or in this case Votes) as business is. Instead of treating them as targets, you treat them as owners, instead of treating them as something that you can manipulate, you treat them as something you need to learn about. You need to learn what they want and move yourself to accommodate it."

\Dick Moriss\

So they collected more data just like marketing did with questionnaires. Asking about personal feelings and little things and almost nothing about politics. Clinton took up hobbies that his voters had. Like hunting and other.

All to get re-elected. It was very successful. Clinton's people called to suburban voters about specific questions on his policies and asked their opinion. And they used it to shape the policies. He ended the welfare system.

In conclution, Edward Bernays privately didn't believe that a true democracy can be possible. He thought that humans were not to be trusted. This notion mostly came from his uncle. He thought that the masses should never have the full control of their lives and

Consumerism is the way to give the illusion of control while allowing the elite to manage the society.

This quote I found in the comment section under the last part of these series. I think it sums up what we all are thinking about this in modern terms:

Social media today is basically a 24/7 focus group about everything, all the time. A well oiled machine that not only identifies people's thoughts and feelings towards everything, but creates and manages their thoughts and feelings about everything as well. I think we've lost, folks.

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douchebagbrainwaves · 4 years ago

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I'VE BEEN PONDERING CAPS

It could be because you're living in the future. It's obvious why investors delay.1 When a friend of mine visiting India sprained her ankle falling down the steps in a railway station. I've learned a lot from things I've read on HN. An Operational Definition. Will your blackberry get a bigger screen? The numbers on the Y Combinator application that would help Web-based software forces programmers to. Don't wait before climbing that mountain or writing that book or visiting your mother.2

The conversations you overhear tell you what to do anymore. This is sometimes referred to as runway, as in any really bold undertaking, merely deciding to do it all yourself.3 4%? Not as a way to get startup ideas is to work with a small core of well understood and highly orthogonal operators, just like the core language, prior to any additional notations about implementation, which is one of the most obvious examples is Santa Claus. Venture funding works like gears. After ten weeks' work the three friends have an idea. The price is that valuation caps aren't actual valuations, and notes are cheap and lightweight.4 Otherwise you won't bother learning much more.5 To see an interesting variety of probabilities we have to be specific about what they plan to do and the kind that's interesting to write.6

What problems? It gives us an excuse for being lazy, the others would be more fun. But should you start a startup than just start it. After all, as most companies do more mundane stuff where the decisive factor is effort, not brains. Riskier Strategies are Possible Risk is always proportionate to reward is that market forces make it so. By similar comparisons you can make yourself nearly immune to tricks. Is an inbox the optimal tool for that? Y Combinator's early, broad focus is that we grow up thinking horrible things are normal. The big dogs don't have to be called Ajax.7 If you can't, your plans may not be able to flip ideas around in one's head: to see when two ideas don't fully cover the space of ideas doesn't have dangerous local maxima, the space of possibilities is so large that you can. And this turns out to be. The best word to describe the way lions seem in the wild seem about ten times more alive.8

They don't even get a shot at being really big. But the techniques for building integrated circuits spread rapidly to other countries. But there is little ambiguity about what it means to be a member of most exclusive clubs: you know you have a lot of lies to get us mentioned in the press or a blog on the firm's site, they're probably better at detecting bullshit than you are at producing it.9 The VC funds that don't adapt won't be violently displaced. Depends on what you want.10 A rounds. Then you could, I don't mean to suggest by this list that America is the perfect place for startups. Detox A sprinter in a race almost immediately enters a state called oxygen debt. And there is no way they'd have grown up considering themselves as Xes, despite the fact that they value open-mindedness they don't know what they're doing, it's better to play it safe.

Make Web sites for galleries—that's the ticket!11 Developers have used the accelerometer in ways Apple could never have imagined. Everyone makes up their own deal terms. If they shake your hand on a promise, because there will be an effort to understand him. In fact, you don't need Microsoft on the client, they can't push users towards their server-based software, you're being offered millions of dollars, put yourself in a situation with a large percentage of the gains.12 Html 15. Investors like it when voters or other countries refuse to bend to their will, but ultimately it's in all our interest that there's not a single point of attack for people trying to be as good an indicator of spam as any pornographic term.13 Instead of treating them as virtual words. If you're not omniscient, you just stop working on it till you've launched.

Really, it's Apple's fault.14 If you feel exhausted, it's not uncommon for investors and acquirers. Links and images you should certainly look at, if we want to make their mark on the world, and some of the more beautiful highways in the world, write a new Mosaic. Not linearly of course, but that's true in a lot of people that age, and he was pretty much a throwaway program and keep improving it. A lot of the same words as my real mail. Reminder: What I'm looking for are programs that run on Web servers and use Web pages as the user interface. Not ready for commitment This was my reason for not starting a startup—becoming the sort of strategic insight I was supposed to look. I learned something valuable from that. After a while this filter will start to make up their minds, and excessive dilution in series A rounds later. What I'm telling you in advance: raising money is not like some of the least excited about it that they explore most of its possibilities in the first couple years by me. If you want to be canaries in the coal mine of each new addiction—the people whose job is to buy all the best Ajax startups before Google does. Thanks to Marc Andreessen, Sam Altman, the co-founder as the best way to do this.

If they even say no. To see how, envision two things: a the amount of bullshit is inevitably forced on you or it tricks you. Companies didn't start to finance themselves with retained earnings was one cause of the second type. But it could be shipped to Europe. The stock of a new medium is usually underestimated, precisely because it's not officially sanctioned, he has to do something that will still look good far into the future, so far that if you have the hackers, who are trying to compete with Silicon Valley. But they work as if they got the answer to this question. Most startups that raise money do it more. And I've met a lot of servers and a lot of money to us. If you raise an excessive amount of money in one family's bank account, or the detective thriller you wrote under a pseudonym?15 Football players like to win by making great products.

Notes

I tried ranking users by both average and median comment score, and b made brand the dominant factor in deciding between success and failure, just as on a saturday, he wrote a prototype in Basic in a situation where the acquirer just wants the business, and B doesn't, that he had more fun in this, but the distribution of good ones, it will seem more powerful sororities at your school sucks, where many of the political pressure to protect one's children seems weaker, judging from things people have to decide between turning some investors away and selling more of the first abstract painters were trained to expect the second component is empty—an idea where the ratio of spam in my incoming mail fluctuated so much better to overestimate than underestimate the importance of making a good product. It's surprising how small a problem, but also very informative essay about why something isn't the problem is that any idea relating to the way I know for sure a social network for x instead of working. And starting an organic farm, though. Brooks, Rodney, Programming in Common Lisp for, but corrupt practices in finance, healthcare, and no one would have a different attitude to the way I know it didn't to undergraduates on the other team.

I'm thinking of Oresme c. If by cutting the founders' advantage if it were.

Then when we got to the same, but they start to get rich by creating wealth—wealth that, in Galbraith's words, of the fatal pinch where your idea is crack. The Old Way. Compromising a server could cause such damage that ASPs that want to measure that turns out to be the right direction to be an inverse correlation between the two elsewhere, but when companies reach a given audience by a factor of 20. Mueller, Friedrich M.

And if they want impressive growth numbers. In high school. There are also the 11% most susceptible to charisma. So although it works on all the other hand, they made more that year from stock options, because the broader your holdings, the work that seems formidable from the government had little acquired immunity to tax rates.

A from a company's culture. It's hard to mentally deal with them.

Stone, op. 03%. In the beginning. I wrote this on an IBM laptop.

But it is very common, but also like an undervalued stock in that. Did you just get kicked out for doing badly and is doomed anyway. And that is actually from the CIA.

Steve hadn't come back. For example, I was just having lunch. A friend who started a company is common, but suburbs are so intellectually dishonest in that sense, but corrupt practices in finance, healthcare, and domino effects among investors.

Founders rightly dislike the sort of wealth for society. But a couple predecessors. Some of the most accurate way to tell VCs early on.

Joshua Schachter tells me it was the recipe is to ignore investors and instead focus on growth instead of blacklist. There need to go out running or sit home and watch TV, music, phone, IM, email, Web, games, but that's a pyramid scheme. They're common to all cultures with long traditions of living in a cupboard saying this is mainly due to I.

Articles of this essay, I advised avoiding Javascript. This is an acceptable excuse, but Google proved them wrong. Nor do we draw the line?

Financing a startup.

One YC founder who read this essay wrote: After the war, tax rates. One-click ordering, however, and since technological progress aren't sharply differentiated.

Plus one can have margins big enough, a day feels like it if you want to take action, go ahead. In this essay, I believe will be inversely proportional to the year x in a time. Philadelphia.

A from a mediocre VC. This approach has not worked well, so if you're not sure.

Thanks to Chris Small, and Trevor Blackwell for their feedback on these thoughts.

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anewpoliticalspin · 5 years ago

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Which side has been the feel-good side? Sometimes, conservatives

I am a former American Republican. I wholeheartedly believed the saying that “If you aren’t a liberal when you’re young, you have no heart, but if you aren’t a middle-aged conservative, you have no head.”

I thought that liberals were people who needed to toughen up and accept hard truths. A common conservative belief is that liberals don’t accept “the way the world works”.

I thought this for a long time. Then, the advent of Donald Trump, well, turned my world upside-down and made me have to rebuild from the bare bottom up my entire worldview on politics.

After all, you always know something by it’s outcome. The right vision leads to the right results. Or, the reverse, as can be. Which we’ve seen. Ever heard of “garbage in, garbage out”?

I started to rethink whether, in present-day America, conservatives really had a mature, tough, worldview. Mind you that a political faction can change a lot over the years.

Liberal or conservative?

1) I’m going to start with an easy one. It’s human-created global warming. It already has, and will, lead to lost lives. Countless of them. It threatens the well-being of many, many across the globe. The scientific evidence is also out there and there is close to 100% agreement.

Wouldn’t logic tell you anyway, even if you’re not a scientist, that putting out high numbers of smog every day would have some kind of effect? Which party has accepted this difficult truth, and which party has denied it?

2) Which is an easier truth to accept in the case of an unsuccessful war, that we’ve hit our terrorist targets (for the most part), or that we’ve also hit a lot of innocent civilians?

Think about our War in Afghanistan. Isn’t a war successful when its over? Afghanistan was and still is, being fought for, 19 years (surprisingly, yes. It’s the longest war in US history! Did you know that?)

You’ve also got to be tough to be honest with yourself about war when it is taking innocent lives. That takes strength to see. Seeing the honest suffering of innocent civilians, and maybe at the hands of our drones strikes, might cut at our hearts because we can only imagine how it would feel if it were to happen on our soil.

Think back to Vietnam, too.

3) Is it tough to say, “Really poor children in really poor neighborhoods have no habits of working and have nobody around them who works,” “So they literally have no habit of showing up on Monday. They have no habit of staying all day. They have no habit of ‘I do this and you give me cash’ unless it’s illegal.” (This was Newt Gingrich, by the way)

Or, is it tough to say, the working poor (most of the poor are working and not unemployed) are working hard, and still struggling to get by? That they have demanding, low-paying jobs, and are still struggling.

Yes, people are sometimes poor due to their own choices, and need to help themselves. Only sometimes, though. Sometimes, they have had hard luck. We can use a belief about the poor in the wrong way.

4) “Guns don’t kill people. People kill people.”Before we go anywhere, let me say first that I am not saying we should have an absolute ban on guns. They may sometimes have their place. I’m just saying, having unfettered legal access to both owning guns and almost any type of gun has it’s consequences. It’s an important distinction.

I used to think too on the logic that “law-abiding citizens are law abiding citizens, and criminals will always get guns illegally anyway”.This puts the focus on criminals. But I think we do have to worry about law-abiding citizens too. It’s not just street criminals who misuse guns, and people who get them illegally. Mentally ill people will borrow from a family member, as Adam Lanza did from his mother before the Sandy Hook shooting. Kids will find them from their parents. People will obtain a weapon legally bought from someone else, as the Columbine shooters did.

By the way, gun control legislation has been found effective in many nations that have tried it.

Just think of this. Which takes more guts, and honest soul-searching, to believe?“Guns don’t kill, people do” “Guns can help kill people, and can make it worse”

Lastly, do you think it says something that we have had a number of mass shootings over the last two decades much higher that any other developed country, and we have the laxest gun laws and highest guns ownership?

5) Who is tougher, the then Vice Presidential candidate runner who says:

“Donald Trump and I believe there’s been far too much of this talk of institutional bias or racism within law enforcement. That police officers are human beings. In difficult and life threatening situations, mistakes are made and people have to be held to strict account,“, and then "we ought to set aside this talk about institutional racism and institutional bias.”

Or Hillary from this article:

But the former secretary of state said the “systemic racism in our criminal justice system” needs to be addressed.She added that “implicit bias” is a “problem for everyone, not just police.” But since encounters with police can have “literally fatal consequences,” she believes the federal government could be in a position where it would “offer and provide” more support and training.

Who is tougher? The person who says “we don’t need to talk about”? Or the one who says “we do, and we’ll find a way”?

By the way, I say this because when you look at the statistics of who is pulled over by officers, in identical situations, and the disproportionate numbers, I think you start to see how the only explanation is bias. There are reputable studies on this here, here, and here.

and it’s a big problem. When something is a large enough problem, the answer has got to be to take action, and have a real conversation about it, not to say there has been too much talk about it.

6) Who is tougher, in this debate that was had? The person who asks that tough question, the one posited to Ron Paul? Or, maybe, someone who gives the answer he gives? This is taken from this article.

This was the question from CNN’s Wolf Blitzer:

“A healthy 30-year-old young man has a good job, makes a good living, but decides, you know what? I’m not going to spend $200 or $300 a month for health insurance because I’m healthy, I don’t need it. But something terrible happens, all of a sudden he needs it.

"Who’s going to pay if he goes into a coma, for example? Who pays for that?”

The question was directed to Paul, who is a physician. The exchange continued like this:

PAUL: Well, in a society that you accept welfarism and socialism, he expects the government to take care of him.

BLITZER: Well, what do you want?

PAUL: But what he should do is whatever he wants to do, and assume responsibility for himself. My advice to him would have a major medical policy, but not be forced —

BLITZER: But he doesn’t have that. He doesn’t have it, and he needs intensive care for six months. Who pays?

PAUL: That’s what freedom is all about, taking your own risks. This whole idea that you have to prepare and take care of everybody —

(APPLAUSE)

BLITZER: But Congressman, are you saying that society should just let him die?

A few in the crowd hollered and at least a couple screamed, “Yeah.”

Paul responded, “No. I practiced medicine before we had Medicaid, in the early 1960s, when I got out of medical school. I practiced at Santa Rosa Hospital in San Antonio, and the churches took care of them. We never turned anybody away from the hospitals.”

Yet, is this always what happens? Do churches always have the funds and means to take care of the poor?

7) Plastic bags. We as Americans use 100 billion plastic bags, and just in one year. That has to go somewhere and has plenty of costs. The blue state of California has enacted a ban on plastic bags. Many nations have also implemented a ban, or something close to one.

That was some courageous action they were willing to take, and I think shows commitment to facing and fighting a difficult truth about plastic bag usage.

8) Conservatives are less likely than liberals to believe that the Israeli government has a discriminatory treatment of Palestinians.

9) Lastly, what if we take an issue at random, and see the response to it by each side, I think that can be very telling.

Take the issue of sexism From this article, Poll: Republicans see equality for women. Democrats don’t.More than half of Democratic voters, 55 percent, think men are better off than women in the U.S. — but only a fifth of Republicans shared that view. I think this is a good indicator of a party’s overall mindset and approach to difficult issues.

What I’ve seen in the Republican Party, for some time, has been an overall philosophy, and one that can be pretty cavalier, and even avoidant and uncompassionate. It’s been a tough it out philosophy.

It’s one that has avoided discussion of unpleasant facts and difficult truths, especially ones related to the hard circumstances of people.

After seeing everything, who has been tougher?

The Republican Party has gone wayward, and needs to pull themselves back.

P.s. Someone else noticed a lot of these things, and I got my inspiration from him.. It was actually one article that changed my views. Just one, that opened my eyes. “Confessions of a former Republican” by Jeremiah Goulka. He talked about how conservatives had to “take off their rose-colored glasses”. He talked about the “wool being pulled off his eyes” in a logical, no nonsense, pragmatic way.

I take his word at it.

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dillhome69-blog · 6 years ago

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Jack M Silverstein’s Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2019

Later this month, the Pro Football Hall of Fame selection committee will take its list of 102 modern-era nominees — players and coaches — and cull from that 25 semifinalist candidates for the Class of 2019. In January, they will trim down to 15 finalists. On February 2, 2019, the day before the Super Bowl, the 48 voters will convene in Atlanta — site of the game — and bring the list from 15 to 10 and then 10 to 5.

They will then vote “yes” or “no” on each of the remaining five players. Any player receiving 80% “yes” votes makes the Hall of Fame.

For players and coaches on the list of modern-era nominees, making the semifinalist list of 25 is the first true step toward the Hall of Fame.

That’s because any person can nominate any player, provided that the player has been retired for five or more years and was voted to at least one Pro Bowl or one All-Pro team. Brad Biggs and I were among those who put Olin Kreutz on this year’s ballot, for instance, though Kreutz had been on before and is a true Hall of Fame candidate himself, as we’ll see below.

A much stranger nomination came last year when Steve Smith was on the list — not the heralded Smith of the Panthers, but the one from the Giants. He made the 2009 Pro Bowl and had some clutch catches in Super Bowl XLII, but few people consider him a Hall of Famer.

Therefore the cut to 25 is a significantly greater honor than just landing on the modern-era list.

In a way, this is the most difficult cutdown. While there might only be 10 guys in a given year who are legitimate Hall of Famers, there are 40-50 who can legitimately be considered worthy of that semifinal round.

I learned that the hard way. In this story, I will unveil my entire Hall of Fame ballot at each stage, starting with my top 25, which includes three Bears. In making the list, I had to ultimately make a top 40 list too, because there were 15 guys who I thought were soooooo close to being worthy of the 25 that I had to find a way to include them as well.

My methodology was to rank all of the players within their position groups, put the top-flight guys into the 25 first (including Gonzalez, Sterling Sharpe, Ed Reed and a few others), and then drop in the guys who I think we want to continue discussing based on positions.

For example, Kevin Mawae is my top center, but there are three other centers who I think are truly Hall-worthy: Kent Hull, Olin Kreutz and Tom Nalen. I had to then rank those three guys, and then decide how many of the three should be in my top 25.

My voting methodology will grow more clear as you read. Here are the nominees I would vote for this year, which I will then explain by position:

Hardest cuts from my top 40: Randall Cunningham, Steve McNair, Shaun Alexander, Kent Hull, Tom Nalen, Ty Law, Don Coryell

Semifinalists (25, announced this month): Donovan McNabb, Edgerrin James, Daryl Johnston, Torry Holt, Sterling Sharpe, Tony Gonzalez, Tony Boselli, Mike Kenn, Richmond Webb, Alan Faneca, Steve Hutchinson, Olin Kreutz, Kevin Mawae, Simeon Rice, Richard Seymour, Karl Mecklenburg, Wilber Marshall, Champ Bailey, Steve Atwater, LeRoy Butler, Ed Reed, Darren Woodson, Brian Mitchell, Steve Tasker, Clark Shaughnessy

Finalists (15, announced in January): James, Sharpe, Gonzalez, Boselli, Kenn, Webb, Faneca, Hutchinson, Mawae, Bailey, Atwater, Reed, Mitchell, Tasker, Shaughnessy

Round of 10 (chosen the day before Super Bowl LIII): Sharpe, Gonzalez, Boselli, Faneca, Mawae, Bailey, Reed, Mitchell, Tasker, Shaughnessy

Hall of Fame Class of 2019 (chosen the day before Super Bowl LIII): Sharpe, Gonzalez, Reed, Mitchell, Shaughnessy

Here are my explanations by position. Let the debate begin!

(Side note #1 — Here is my ongoing spreadsheet that I keep for my research. If there are small inconsistencies between the spreadsheet and the article in terms of rankings, that’s because I tinker a lot and changed the story but didn’t go back to update the sheet. Anyhow, feel free to take a look if you’re interested.)

(Side note #2 — There are three other candidates for the Class of 2019: safety Johnny Robinson from the seniors committee, and longtime Cowboys personnel guru Gil Brandt and Broncos owner Pat Bowlen from the contributors committee. All three candidates will be voted with the same “yes” or “no” process as the final five modern-era candidates, and will also require the same 80% “yes” vote for induction. All three can be elected. For more on Robinson, here is an interview with his long-time foe — and Hall of Famer — Lance Alworth.)

Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images

Top 25: Donovan McNabb

Top 40: Randall Cunningham, Steve McNair

Jack sez: This was one of the categories where I went around and around, since each guy has an edge over the other two.

Randall has the highest personal peak. McNabb has the best career and was the one of the three who I would have said most consistently throughout his career that he was a HOFer. McNair got the closest to a ring (one yard from OT in a Super Bowl), played the best in his biggest games and won an MVP (a co-MVP with Peyton Manning, which almost makes it bigger).

I had to pick McNabb for the top 25. He was the one guy I always thought was a HOFer during his career, measuring him against Manning and Brady.

I came very close to including both or either Cunningham and McNair and ended up removing them for others.

After that, I ended up dropping McNabb. I hate to say it, but the bar for quarterback is fantastically high, probably the highest of any position. I think we probably elect too many QBs to the Hall, and as I look ahead, there are two guys who I think have a great chance of getting in but who I would definitely not vote for: Eli Manning and Ben Roethlisberger.

I think Philip Rivers has a decent shot — he’s another guy I don’t think should be in. Coming up in the next decade will be four guys who are all going in, including at least two first ballot: Peyton, Brady, Brees and Rodgers.

In that context, I can’t give it to McNabb, Eli, Roethlisberger, Rivers, the spectacular Mike Vick, or two of my favorite QBs ever: Cunningham and McNair.

We’ll see what plays out for Cam Newton and Matt Ryan. My next QB going in is Peyton in the Class of 2021.

Photo by Robert B. Stanton/NFLPhotoLibrary

Top 15: Edgerrin James

Top 40: Shaun Alexander

Jack sez: The Hall merges halfbacks/running backs with fullbacks into a single category as “Running Backs,” but I’m going to split them because that’s how we think about them.

I love Shaun Alexander, and he just nudged my other top 40 candidates at running back: my guy Eddie George, the great Ricky Watters and the very talented Corey Dillon.

I think Edge is the best of the bunch, and I’ve got him going to the round of 15, which will be his third finalist selection in five years. He was a semifinalist the other two years.

Why Edge? He was just flat out better than the other guys, with a greater combination of skills. He’s got the most rushing titles of any of the nominees (two — Alexander has one), he’s got the most career rushing yards, the most yards per game, he’s one of the top two receivers (Watters) and he probably would have won a ring if he didn’t leave Indy. In fact, he might have even been Super Bowl MVP considering that Addai and Rhodes should have shared it.

Top 25: Daryl Johnston

Top 40: Larry Centers

Jack sez: A common theme for me with the Hall of Fame is the inequity in positional honors. Namely fullbacks, centers, and everyone on special teams. So it was disappointing but not surprising when I checked the Hall of Fame’s positional page and found that there is no true, modern fullback in the Hall.

We have to start somewhere, and Moose Johnston is a great starting point. He was arguably the best fullback of his time, paved the way for the NFL’s all-time leading rusher and started — and won — three Super Bowls. He deserves a top 25 recognition, no question.

Larry Centers was also arguably the best fullback of his time, albeit with different responsibilities. I’ll take Moose because his skill adhere to the position, whereas Centers’ standout statistic is valuable but more of a curiosity at the position (receptions for a fullback). Same idea as Mike Alstott — great player, but got a lot of recognition for the novelty (short-yardage touchdowns) rather than the blocking.

But here is my question: WHERE IS LORENZO NEAL? Not only is he not a nominee, but he’s only been nominated once since he’s been eligible, which was the Class of 2014. That happened last year.

Photo by Robert B. Stanton/NFLPhotoLibrary

Here are his credentials:

Arguably the best pure blocking back ever (my choice, for sure)

Passed the eye test as a monster fullback

16 seasons at a brutal position

239 games, with 14 seasons of 16+ games, including his last at age 38

4x Pro Bowl, 1x All Pro

Played in 6 postseasons including one Super Bowl

Starter at fullback in front of x 1,000-yard rushers: Eddie George (‘99, ‘00 Titans), Corey Dillons (‘01, ‘02 Bengals), LaDainian Tomlinson (‘03-’07, Chargers)

Lead blocker for MVP and first-ballot Hall of Famer Tomlinson

Lorenzo Neal belongs in the Hall. So do Moose and Larry Centers. And by the way, if fullbacks were given the HOF consideration of wide receivers, the following guys would be in play along with Neal, Moose, Centers and Rathman:

And that leaves off a ton of guys who had great careers, paved the way for 1,000-yard rushers and helped their teams reach or win Super Bowls, including my guy Jason McKie plus Howard Griffith, William Henderson and Brad Hoover, to name a few.

Hall of Fame Class of 2019: Sterling Sharpe

Top 25: Torry Holt

Jack sez: As I explained here, Sterling Sharpe needs to be in the HOF yesterday. This is his final year of eligibility before heading to the senior committee, and I 100% want to see him in now. He earned it and then some, and is one of the five guys in my Class of 2019. (We’ll get to the other four as we go along.)

In 19 years of eligibility, Sharpe has never even been a semifinalist. Torry Holt has been one in each of his four seasons of eligibility. And with good reason. He was electric. In an era with Moss, Harrison and T.O., and on an offense with Kurt Warner, Marshall Faulk and Isaac Bruce, Holt managed to distinguish himself as one of the very best at his position.

I’m not sure at what point I would vote him in — not this year, and not ahead of Calvin Johnson, who will be eligible in the Class of 2021, should Holt remain on the ballot that long. But I do know that I would have put him in ahead of recent HOFers Andre Reed and Tim Brown. And I know that the gap between Holt and the other nominated WRs is too great to move anyone else into the top 40.

Having said that, where are Herman Moore and Jimmy Smith? Those two guys need to be on the ballot too.

Photo by Robert B. Stanton/NFLPhotoLibrary

Hall of Fame Class of 2019: Tony Gonzalez

Jack sez: Tony Gonzalez is the number one guy on my list for the Class of 2019, the only one about whom I had not one millisecond of debate. He is arguably the greatest tight end ever in four respects: skillset, statistics, accolade, legacy.

Quite simply, he changed the position forever, not just in terms of the level of production a team could seek from the position but also the build a player could have at the position.

He changed the prototype, bringing the super-athletic basketball body to tight end. He is the predecessor of future HOFers Antonio Gates and Rob Gronkowski, and he’s better than both. The other three tight ends who are nominated had marvelous careers and were all talented players in their own right: Mark Bavaro, Brent Jones, Jay Novacek.

But none is good enough to warrant a top 40 in a year when Tony Gonzalez is going in first ballot. It’s not worth including them when there are other guys I want to debate, and when Gonzalez is so far ahead of the rest.

Two other guys are though, and they’re not on the list.

Ben Coates and Keith Jackson.

WHERE ARE BEN COATES AND KEITH JACKSON?

Of the five guys, Coates and Jackson rank 1st and 2nd, respectively, in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns. Coates had 50 TDs, Jackson 49, and then Bavaro was 3rd at 39.

Coates, Jackson and Novacek are on top of the pack with 5 Pro Bowls, and Jackson leads the All Pro 1st team selections with three, followed by Coates with two.

Next year.

Top 15: Tony Boselli

Top 25: Mike Kenn, Richmond Webb

Jack sez: The group of nominated offensive tackles is imposing. There are seven nominees; joining Boselli, Kenn and Webb are Willie Anderson, Lomas Brown, Chris Hinton and Chris Samuels. Anderson has the fewest Pro Bowls, and he has four. Samuels is the only one without a first-team All-Pro selection and he was a Pro Bowler in six of his 10 seasons. This is a fantastic group.

At the top is the trio of Boselli, Kenn and Webb. I struggled with where these guys should go. Boselli had the best peak but the shortest career due to injuries. He’s on the Terrell Davis / Sterling Sharpe track. Webb was probably the best tackle of his time year in and year out. Between 1990 and 1999, if I had to pick one active tackle and I was assigned one of their seasons in that time frame at random and I had to start that player from that season in the Super Bowl, Webb would be the guy I would feel best about picking.

And then there’s Mike Kenn, a steady-as-she-comes tackle, 17 years, all with the Falcons, with peaks that included his being regarded as the best in the league. His most famous season was 1991, at age 35, when he was first-team All Pro for the first time since 1980.

Here’s what Kenn did against some of the league’s best pass-rushers:

Pat Swilling, Saints: ‘91 DPOY, ‘91 AP1, ‘91 PB, 17.0 sacks in ‘91, 0 vs. Kenn

Derrick Thomas, Chiefs: HOF, ‘91 AP1, ‘91 PB, 13.0 sacks in ‘91, 0 vs. Kenn

Leslie O’Neal, Chargers: 6x PB, 9 sacks in ‘91, 0 vs. Kenn

Chris Doleman, Vikings: HOF, 7 sacks in ‘91, 0 vs. Kenn

Charles Haley, 49ers: HOF, ‘91 PB, 7 sacks in ‘91, 0 vs. Kenn

Look again at that Swilling line. He was Defensive Player of the Year with a league-leading 17 sacks, and the key here is that Kenn played Swilling three times: twice in the regular season and once in the playoffs, a Wild Card game that the Falcons won.

Now read this list of accolades from his peers.

This is Kenn’s final year of eligibility before he moves into the senior category. From what I’ve read and watched, he seems like someone who was considered a Hall of Fame-talent in his time but fell through the cracks. I would like to see one final discussion on Kenn before he moves on.

Photo by Rick Stewart/Getty Images

Top 10: Alan Faneca

Top 15: Steve Hutchinson

Top 40: Steve Wisniewski

Jack sez: Only three guards are nominated this year, and they are a stronger trio than the three top tackles. Faneca was in the top 15 his first two years of eligibility and moved into the top 10 last year. If not for needing to do some makeup work with my HOF votes with Sharpe and two others, I would be voting Faneca in this year.

Hutchinson was also top 10 last year in his first year of eligibility. He needs to be the next guard in. And Wisniewski’s eight Pro Bowl selections is the most of the 15 nominated offensive linemen.

Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

Top 10: Kevin Mawae

Top 25: Olin Kreutz

Top 40: Kent Hull, Tom Nalen

Jack sez: Kevin Mawae was the best center of his time, and will be the next center in the Hall. Because I see a large enough gap between him and the rest of the pack, I’m putting him into the top 10 and leaving the next man, our guy Olin, at the top 25.

After that, the choice between Hull, Kreutz and Nalen is super tough. (Ray Donaldson is just on the outside of that group, another guy with a wonderful career.) None of these three guys has ever advanced to the semifinals, a sign of the disrespect toward pure centers.

The last one voted in as a modern-era nominee was Dermontti Dawson in 2012. Bruce Matthews went in 2007, though he spent more of his career at guard than center. Dwight Stephenson entered in 1998, Mike Webster in 1997, and that’s the entire list of HOF centers inducted since Jim Langer in 1987, which is the last time a center went in on the first ballot.

I am obviously biased here in my choice of Kreutz over Hull and Nalen, not just because I am a Bears fan and have come to know Olin personally, but from just a pragmatic level I watched nearly every game of his career and know his candidacy better than the other two guys. I think the Hull-Kreutz-Nalen debate is a great one, and though I will stick with Olin, whoever you choose of that three should be in the top 25.

Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images

Top 25: Simeon Rice

Jack sez: Ooooooh Simeon Rice. Man. On a personal level, he might have been my toughest cut after the top 25. He’s in a tough spot because with the exception of transcendent players — of his era, really just Reggie White and Bruce Smith — the defensive end position tends to get boiled down to just sacks.

Rice had a lot — 122.0 — but that’s still only good for 20th all-time. He was also only selected to three Pro Bowls and was only first-team All Pro once, in 2002, with three 2nd team selections.

But let’s talk about that one year.

In 2002, Simeon Rice had one of the most dominant seasons I’ve ever watched for a defensive end. His Buccaneers won the Super Bowl that year behind its defense, and Rice was one of three Bucs named to the All Pro 1st team. The other two are in the HOF: Warren Sapp and Derrick Brooks.

Rice finished 2nd in sacks that year to DPOY Jason Taylor, with 15.5 to Taylor’s 18.5, and then ripped off a spectacular postseason: four sacks in three games, one forced fumble in each game and two fumbles recovered. His two sacks in Super Bowl XXXVII led the Bucs, and his pass rush helped force Raiders QB Rich Gannon into his first interception to eventual MVP Dexter Jackson. Jackson’s second interception came when Rice dropped into coverage, and Gannon’s first read was to the left, toward Rice, causing him to look back to the right where he threw the pick.

Rice later forced Gannon into Warren Sapp’s one sack. And when the game was nearly over, announcer John Madden said that he voted for Rice for MVP.

Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images

Top 25: Richard Seymour

Jack sez: Again, like with “Running Backs” and “Offensive Linemen,” “Defensive Linemen” is one category, but I’m splitting it up to reflect how we actually think of players. The Patriots won three Super Bowls in four years led by their defense, and Seymour — who the team drafted #6 in 2001 — was the their best defensive player.

He was versatile, beginning his career as a 4-3 d-tackle and then moving to a 3-4 d-end. He was great from the jump, earning a starting job during his rookie year and starting in New England’s stunning Super Bowl victory over the Rams. He made 7 Pro Bowls and was 1st team All Pro three times. He was strong and fast, got to the quarterback, could stuff the run and was a great leader.

Top 25: Karl Mecklenburg

Top 40: London Fletcher, Sam Mills, Zach Thomas

Jack sez: Fourteen linebackers are nominated this year, all in one category, and once again I’m separating inside from outside backers. It’s a valuable distinction for nearly everyone on the list, with one notable exception: Karl Mecklenburg.

As Rick Gosselin broke down two years ago, Mecklenburg was predominantly a 3-4 inside linebacker, but played outside as well, along with positions along the line. As a result, he is not remembered for a single position, nor did he accumulate a ton of any one stat.

“My position is strange because I played all seven front positions,” Mecklenburg told Gosselin. “One of the challenges I face in having an opportunity of going to the Hall of Fame is that, statistically, people don’t know what to do with me.”

A newspaper feature on Mecklenburg prior to Super Bowl XXI, with the headline “Denver’s Mecklenburg fools computer,” opened thusly:

“At one time, Karl Mecklenburg was a football player without a position. Now ... he has a bunch of them.”

The author went on to say that Mecklenburg “lines up everywhere but in the defensive backfield.”

Like Kenn, Mecklenburg is in his 20th and final year of eligibility. He was a defensive standout on three Super Bowl teams, made six Pro Bowls and was All Pro 1st team three times. I’m curious to hear more discussion on him.

The guy getting the biggest shaft here is Zach Thomas, with London Fletcher and Sam Mills just a bit behind. I think fans of these three players probably feel about them the way I feel about Kreutz, Peanut Tillman and Lance Briggs. Strong cases exist for them, but just-as-strong cases exist for others too. I know in particular that Dolphins fans think Thomas was just as good as Urlacher, and many see Lak’s first ballot selection as an affront to Thomas’s candidacy.

Fletcher, Mills and Thomas put up stats that in many ways rival Urlacher’s. To me, Brian just had that extra umph, in large part because of his speed. Look at these rankings of the four players:

Recovered fumbles: Mills, 23 (Urlacher 2nd, 15)

Fumble return yards: Urlacher, 177 (Mills 2nd, 154)

Interceptions: Fletcher, 23 (Urlacher 2nd, 22)

Interception return yards: Urlacher 324 (Thomas 2nd, 170)

Yards per takeaway: Urlacher, 13.5 (Mills 2nd, 8.0)

Sacks: Urlacher, 41.0 (Fletcher, 39.0, in 74 more games)

Touchdowns: Mills, Urlacher and Thomas all with four

In other words, despite not being first in the group in either takeaway category, Urlacher was dominant in takeaway yards, gaining five more per play than the next best man, Sam Mills. Statistically, that is a great indicator for where you see Urlacher’s difference — in other words, that is his eye test translated into a stat.

Add that to Urlacher’s DPOY and while I understand why fans of Fletcher, Mills and Thomas feel like their guy is getting shorted, to me this was a no-brainer.

But okay, let’s put Mecklenburg into the group.

Recovered fumbles: 3rd, with 14

Fumble return yards: 3rd, with 47

Interceptions: last, with 5

Interception return yards: 4th, with 128

Yards per takeaway: 2nd, with 9.2

Sacks: 1st, with 79.0

Touchdowns: last, with two

Suddenly, Mecklenburg’s candidacy looks pretty good. I was just a tad too young to really know his game. He strikes me as a true eye test guy. I want to hear from the voters who watched him before he’s eliminated.

Top 25: Wilber Marshall

Top 40: Leslie O’Neal

Jack sez: I wrote a ton about the inside backers, so I’m going to keep this one quick.

Wilber’s another guy like Simeon Rice. He only made three Pro Bowls and was 1st team All Pro only twice, but he made significant contributions to two Super Bowl champions known for their defense. He was a starter on the Super Bowl Shufflin’ ‘85 Bears, making him a standout on arguably the greatest defense the league has ever seen.

And then he went to Washington and was a starter for another champ, becoming a guy who Washington defensive coordinator (and fellow Class of 2019 HOF nominee) Richie Petitbon called “our best football player” the week leading up to Super Bowl XXVI.

Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images

Top 10: Champ Bailey

Top 40: Ty Law

Jack sez: Champ Bailey is probably going to be voted into the HOF this year, and he totally deserves the first ballot treatment. The only reason I’m leaving him off is that my ballot is sending in some guys who I think should have been in a while ago, and as a result I only have two first ballot spots.

One is for Gonzalez.

The other came down to Bailey and fellow DB Ed Reed, who I think did more at safety than Bailey did at corner. So I’m taking Reed, and next year I’m voting for Bailey.

But that’s just me. Bailey is almost definitely going to be voted in this year, and I’ll be applauding for sure when it happens.

Photo by Harry How/Getty Images

Hall of Fame Class of 2019: Ed Reed

Top 15: Steve Atwater

Top 25: LeRoy Butler, Darren Woodson

Jack sez: If we separate the “Defensive Backs” category into corners and safeties, then safety is probably the strongest position group of the entire ballot. I’ve got Ed Reed going in on the first ballot, joining Brian Dawkins, Ken Houston and Larry Wilson as the only pure safeties selected in their first year of eligibility. (Rod Woodson and Ronnie Lott were too, but also played extensively at corner.)

I think Steve Atwater needs to go in, while LeRoy Butler and Darren Woodson would be the tops of almost any other class.

And because we have four safeties in our top 25, I left out 2018 finalist John Lynch and two-time Super Bowl champion Rodney Harrison. Reed, Atwater, Butler, Woodson, Lynch, Harrison. That is a murderer’s row, and though I suspect Lynch will again be voted higher than Butler and Woodson, I’m rolling with the list that makes sense to me based not just on stats but my experience watching all of these guys.

Hall of Fame Class of 2019: Brian Mitchell

Top 40: Eric Metcalf

Jack sez: In 2016, I argued that while Devin Hester needs to go into the HOF, electing him and only him on the basis of him being the GOAT at his position is NFL tokenism. I selected a group of five guys who I called the inaugural class of HOF returners, and along with Hester was 2019 nominee Brian Mitchell.

I’m sure there are plenty of people who will be surprised that I’m voting for Mitchell in a year with Bailey, Faneca and others. Mitchell deserves it though, for this stat alone:

All-purpose yards, career

Jerry Rice, 23,546

Brian Mitchell, 23,330

Walter Payton, 21,803

Emmitt Smith, 21,564

Tim Brown, 19,682

That’s right: Brian Mitchell, he of a mere one Pro Bowl selection (though he was also 1st team All Pro that year, 1995), is 2nd all-time in all-purpose yards, behind only Jerry Rice.

Here’s another list:

Combined kick and punt return yards, career

Brian Mitchell, 19,013

Allen Rossum, 15,003

Josh Cribbs, 13,488

Mel Gray, 13,003

Glyn Milburn, 12,772

I don’t know how far down those lists we should extend the HOF qualification — Darren Sproles is 6th in all-purpose yards, and Allen Rossum is 2nd in return yards, and I don’t think I would vote for either as a HOFer (though Sproles is closer). But I think when you’re #2 in yardage and #1 in return yardage, you deserve that honor.

Top 10: Steve Tasker

Jack sez: The special teams slot in the Pro Bowl typically bounces around. If you go in consecutive years, you’re a stud. Steve Tasker was elected six years in a row, and bagged another three years prior to the start of his streak. He is widely called the greatest special teams coverage man of all time.

Any time the word “greatest” is in your title, you need to be there.

Top 40: none

Jack sez: We have two nominees: Jason Elam and Nick Lowery. They were both wonderful players, and I give Elam the edge, but I don’t feel strongly enough about either to move them along, let alone into the Hall.

The guy who is not nominated who should be, and who would be in my top 25, is Gary Anderson. I’ve said it before (kind of) and I’ll say it again: WHERE IS GARY ANDERSON? He was the first man to break George Blanda’s all-time scoring record, a mark he held from 2000 until the end of 2006, when Class of 2017 HOFer Morten Andersen passed him.

Anderson is still third in points, third in field goals and second in games played. He belongs in this discussion.

Top 40: Sean Landeta

Jack sez: In a 21-year career, Landeta won two Super Bowls, reached two Pro Bowls and was first-team All Pro three — yep, three — times. That’s excellent for a punter. I was very close to nudging him into the top 25 but I couldn’t decide who I would remove.

Landeta was also named to the NFL’s All-Decade team for the 1990s as the 1st team punter, and was 2nd team for the 2000s. That’s an element we haven’t discussed yet in this story, and is a valuable barometer for HOF odds, because the HOF selection committee votes for it. (Its flaw as a barometer is that players whose prime straddles decades get left off.)

I would like to hear more arguments for Landeta from the people who watched him. I’ve got him ahead of Jeff Feagles, this year’s other nominee.

Two other guys I would like to see considered were known for their powerful legs and were both game-changers (in the game) and Game-changers (at the position): the late Reggie Roby, best known for his time with the Dolphins, and Darren Bennett, best known for his time with the Chargers. These were the punters who really put me in awe of punting and made me sit up and take notice whenever they were on the field. They had what Isiah Thomas once called “the oohs and the ahs.”

That’s important at any position, but especially at punter, which so often goes unnoticed unless a mistake is made or unless they rack up a ton of years.

Top 40: none, as there are no nominees

Should a long snapper be considered for the Hall? I posed that question last year to none other than our own Pat Mannelly, who certainly goes down in history as one of the greatest to ever do it. Here’s what he said:

I don’t think so. If you were going to go off positions, I would say yes, but to me, the long snapper didn’t become truly a football position until the year 2000. I wrote on my blog a thank you to all the guys who came before me, because they helped the long snapping position become what it is. All the guys before me, they played other positions. There are now 32 long snappers. There weren’t always 32 long snappers. ... All these guys were backups at their positions. They weren’t truly just long snappers. The game has changed in that regard.

Mannelly did note, however, that long snapper should be a position in the Pro Bowl. I agree completely. Here is his argument for that:

They vote for a fullback. How many teams have a fullback? There are 32 long snappers now. There are not 32 fullbacks. So why not make it a voted-on position? People say, “Well, we don’t know how to vote for it.” Well do people really know how to vote for a guard? Does your average fan know what the best guard is? It’s from what they read in the media. And then players and coaches vote as well, so I don’t understand why they don’t have that.

I agree with that too. And while I understand what Pat is saying about long snapper only being a separate position since the year 2000, that means we’ve nearly had two decades of long snappers as their own position. It’s probably time we undertake this discussion in earnest. I’m in favor of it. Certainly Mannelly is one who should be considered in that respect. I would be curious to hear more from him on who he thinks the greatest long snappers are since 2000.

Hall of Fame Class of 2019: Clark Shaughnessy

Top 40: Don Coryell

Jack sez: At last, we get to Shaughnessy.

The innovator extraordinaire and one of the fathers of the modern offense was a finalist three times in the 1970s, but has been largely forgotten since then. There was a time when he seemed like a sure-thing to make the Hall. In 1975, five years after his death at age 78, George Puscas of the Detroit Free Press called Shaughnessy “the most inventive genius of modern football,” adding that “For sure, one of these years, Clark Shaughnessy will make it.”

He still hasn’t.

The main problem with Shaughnessy’s candidacy is that to me, he’s in the wrong category. First of all, coaches don’t advance to the seniors committee, as far as I can tell, so we end up with a guy like Shaughnessy as a “modern-era nominee” 126 years after his birth, 56 years after his final NFL job and 48 years after his death.

Second, some coaches weren’t necessarily Hall of Fame coaches, but as the years go on we see that their contributions to the game have exceeded their coaching career. That’s true for Shaughnessy, and then some. His actual NFL career looks like this:

1944-1947: Washington, as an advisor

1948-1948: Los Angeles Rams, head coach

1951-1962: Chicago Bears, defensive coordinator

If that was his entire NFL career, I doubt we’re still talking about him lo these many years later. The reason we are is because what he did in the 1940s to revive, invigorate and spread the old T-formation, the game’s oldest formation.

While working as head football coach of University of Chicago he became friends with George Halas, and after a wildly successful season as head coach at Stanford, he spent time with Halas and Bears assistant Ralph Jones, all of whom were tinkering with updating the T.

Shaughnessy and Jones helped install the new T — known for its man in motion, spread formations, multiple play options and general trickery — with the Bears, leading to the team’s famous deconstruction of Washington 73-0 in the 1940 NFL championship game.

The degree to which Shaughnessy deserves credit for the T vs. Jones or Halas is a matter of debate. In 1941, when Jones became head coach at Lake Forest College, columnist Henry McLemore of the United Press called Jones the “real master” of the T-formation and credited him with the man in motion innovation.

What is not up for debate is the respect Shaughnessy’s peers had for him, and the influence he had on the game. Sid Luckman credits Shaughnessy with teaching him the T. After Shaughnessy’s death in 1970, Halas called Shaughnessy “one of the great inventive minds of the game” and “a master strategist.”

In his new book, “The Genius of Desparation,” Doug Farrar quotes Halas on Shaughnessy:

“Before we began collaborating, our T formation had two major weaknesses (...). One trouble was we only had two end runs ... thanks to Shaughnessy, we have 22 maneuvers around the ends — touchdown plays. Second, the majority of our plays went to the side of the line of the man in motion. Shaughnessy designed ground-gainers that run to the side opposite the man in motion. These counter plays were honeys.”

Added Farrar to me on Twitter: “Jones brought it forward some, but I think Shaughnessy was the more obvious innovator.”

I am still exploring the true wrinkles of history with regards to Shaughnessy and the T, but I’ll take Halas’s word on this one, and Farrar’s too.

Fellow nominee Don Coryell, whose Air Coryell offense helped usher in the modern passing attacks, is another man without a true categorical home, at least for now.

“You know, I’m sitting down there in front, and next to me is Joe Gibbs, and next to him is Dan Fouts, and the three of us are in the Hall of Fame because of Don Coryell,” said John Madden in 2010 at a memorial service for Coryell, whom he coached under at San Diego State in the 1960s. “There’s something missing.”

I’ve emailed the Pro Football Hall of Fame to ask whether there has been any discussion about separating coaches, about creating a seniors division for coaches, and about whether some coaches should be moved into the contributor category when warranted.

That’s where I would put Shaughnessy. It’s where I would put Don Coryell, too. But they’re in this category, and as long as they are, I’ll vote for them until they’re in.

Clark, you’re up first. Thanks for the T, good sir.

Jack M Silverstein is Windy City Gridiron’s Bears historian, and author of “How The GOAT Was Built: 6 Life Lessons From the 1996 Chicago Bulls.” He is the proprietor of Chicago sports history Instagram “A Shot on Ehlo.” Say hey at @readjack.

Source: https://www.windycitygridiron.com/2018/11/15/18067462/historian-jack-m-silverstein-class-of-2019-pro-football-hall-of-fame-ballot-clark-shaughnessy

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snkpolls · 6 years ago

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SnK S3E2 Poll Results (Manga Reader Version)

The poll closed with 590 responses! Thank you to everyone who participated.

Rate the Episode

The vast majority gave the episode their approval, with the largest percentage rating it a five.

Levi vs MP chase blew me away and I didn't remember rest of the show except Linked Horizon.

Animation blew me away and Kenny is better than I had imagined him in the manga.

They made Levi more bishy and badass at the same time. As expected of WIT. I find myself surprised at some of the changes and the new pacing, but I’m just here to enjoy this wild ride, so I’m open to anything. I can’t wait for Frieda to finally appear and confuse the fuck out of anime-onlies.

ep2 has already become my fav episode

It feels rushed. But I can only hope they make up for it later on.

I enjoyed it, especially the fight scene! A lot of things were missing from the manga, but I'm thinking they will be included in a different context. The ED was absolutely perfect! I'm looking forward to the rest of the season.

It was super enjoyable in its own right even if I'm a bit skeptical of the changed pacing.

The animation in this episode was amazing!

Rate the Ending

Respondents have agreed that the ending is a bop, with votes heavily favoring the positive. Feelings were much more mixed for the opening. We’re happy to see that most were at least satisfied with the ending!

I think it's the perfect mood for an ED. I'm really glad Historia got such a great focus; the OP focuses more on several characters an the ED on her.. I like it that way.

It's great! I love Red Swan so much and I'm happy with both songs!

Loved it a lot. You could immediately tell the signature Sounds Horizon influence, which is great. The song’s been stuck in my head for days. I also love the fact that the visuals are Historia-centric.

I don't think it should've been the opening per say......maybe with different visuals but I absolutely loved it. I'm glad that unlike the opening it didn't disappoint.

The Sasageyo in the middle caught me off guard lol

but like why did they have to make me feel so many emotions over that ending tho???

i'm literally in love with the ED it sounds like a fairy tale and i need the full version stat

the ed took me to nirvana

The ending was really beautiful. The animation with little Historia was beautiful because we will see more of Historia. Heck, this is her time to shine. This is her spotlight.

How do you feel about Linked Horizon performing the ending this time?

The majority of respondents are happy that Linked Horizon is back this season, even if it’s the ending instead of the opening. A smaller percentage still wished they had done the opening instead, however.

Who Linked Horizon is?

I hope they perform the opening for the next arc

Ending or opening I wouldn't care. As long as we have Link Horizon.

I'm glad they are still sticking around but I'm still so upset the OP/ED were 100% from some romance high school anime.

Which one is your favorite ED?

Do we as a fandom have a bias toward Linked Horizon? Quite possibly, as the new ending has already captured the hearts of the largest group. Great escape came in second, and Yuuguri no Tori remains the least liked ending of the series.

The new ending is beautiful. The scenario, music, how sad it is considering the recent events in the manga. Beautiful. I've to admit that I prefer by far the ending to the opening.

Which scene(s) did you like best?

It goes without saying that the Levi vs. Kenny/MP chase is what blew away the fandom this week. It was the favorite scene by a huge margin. The runner up was Armin taking aim and shooting in order to save Jean’s life.

I've been waiting five years to see the bar scene, BANG! BANG!

not ashamed to admit I rewatched the Levi vs Kenny chase dozens of times

Favorite anime-only scene: Sasha saved Armin this time, i couldn't be happier for my girl. She ain't useless and definitely not a comic relief, i hope Isayama will do something in the future so that people appreciate &miss her more when 105 is animated.

Also, something I'm loving this season and doesn't receive enough credit is to hear Traute's voice. Her voice sounds so badass. Love it

The animation is so gorgeous and literally jaw dropping. I enjoy absorbing every single second of action. And seeing and hearing the scene of Jean almost being shot and Armin killing somehow has made me officially ship Jearmin.

On a scale of 1-5 how much did the animation during the Levi vs. MP chase blow you away?

As expected, the animation left the majority of respondents in awe. It took one month for the animators to get in that 30 second sequence and it was so worth the efforts of the animation staff!

The Levi fight scene was breathtaking. Genius.

Best animation. Ever. Levi you awesome badass.

On a scale of 1-5, how daddy is Kenny?

While a fair amount of voters wouldn’t let Kenny touch them with a 50 foot poll, a larger portion of voters agree that Kenny is daddy material.

I want Kenny to be my daddy :P

The only thing so far that is completely good is KENNY BANG BANG ACKERMAN! They're making a wonderful job with him and I hope the dudes from Wit studio won't turn him upside-down or change some important scenes. In the end... KENNY IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AND COOL UNCLE/COWBOY ON EARTH. I'll always follow him

Kenny is even colder bastard than he was in the manga. I like him!

How did Erwin light the match with one hand?

Will the mystery ever be solved? We don’t know, but the majority of voters are quite certain that Erwin’s chiseled jawline may have something to do with it!

How excited are you to see kidwin’s eyebrow game next week?

61% of respondents are ready to see Kidwin moving and talking. Possibly also the heartbreak that will follow as we watch his backstory unfold. We’re pretty excited for small Erwin too!

Is your heart ready for Historia’s childhood flashback?

The majority of voters are ready for Historia’s “not very happy” backstory to unfold in episode 40. Some are eager, some just think she’s cute as a button and others are ready for their hearts to hurt. About 12% of voters aren’t as enthused, however.

I hope we will finally see Frieda in the next one !

On a scale of 1 - 5, how much do you relate to Bartender-kun?

I think we can almost all agree with the bartender when he says “EEEK!” It’s quite relatable really.

It took 4 years to finally see Bartender-kun in his moe glory and it was beautiful. 10 outta 10 would EEEEKK again.

EEK!

Would you want Levi as your motivational counselor?

68% of you would appreciate Levi’s straightforward and blunt was of saying things in order to help you cope and sort things out. 32%, however, would prefer a more gentler approach.

Does Erwin have a gambling problem?

68% of respondents agree that Erwin’s gambles are a positive thing! The thrill of it all is quite a ride for both the Survey Corps and the audience. We look forward to watching his gambles pan out in animated form soon!

How are you guys holding up?

The largest group of voters are unsure about the changes and feel pretty sketchy toward WIT and Isayama for making and agreeing to the changes. However, a combined 50% of respondents overall are enjoying the anime so far, with 31% of those voters having a great time watching the events unfold in a new way. 8% of voters have already lost all hope at enjoying the adaptation.

Jokes aside, the pacing's still left me reeling a little. But I can see how this might make sense from the studio's perspective. If I was an anime-only, I think this episode would have THRILLED me. So yes, I am still invested in the anime and am looking forward to the rest of the season!

Thoughts withheld until we see how the rest of the arc is adapted

i thought it was really good! most manga readers disagree, but i have hope that important scenes will be included later, and we shouldn’t be so quick to judge only 2 eps. i think we should be grateful that the scenes they DID include followed the manga pretty well. i have faith in the changes isayama wanted to make, he is the creator after all. have hope yall!

How do you feel about the restructuring so far?

We were quite surprised to find that 57% of respondents are still open to the changes, looking to see what happens next before ultimately deciding if the anime is in good hands or not. A small 15% are excited for the changes, while another 15% are not feeling them at all. A very small percentage aren’t enjoying anything about the restructuring so far.

I'm really trying to enjoy the season and not judge too fast before seeing all of the arc, but damn WIT, Isayama, you guys are making it so hard, I'm hella confuse by the changes you're making

In my opinion, the change of pace is for the worse. I'm sad Isayama hates the arc this much, and that he agreed to many crucial character scenes being cut. I think the arc in the manga only felt slow because of waiting for the next monthly chapter.

I'm confused by all the changes but it's only episode 2 so I'm waiting for what's coming next. The animation is beautiful, Levi is beautiful (even with his shirt on) so I like it so far!

Still generally hyped about the season, but wary of the changes. A little bit disappointed about the cutting of the minor characters' (dimo, nifa) screentime/character moments. But I'm gonna wait with my judgement 'till the arc's over.

Character development will not be the same. Hopefully they can build up Armin’s and Erwin’s characters in time for RTS or nobody will care.

What best describes what you think about the missing scenes so far?

While we’re all a bit sad to see some of our favorite scenes lost, the largest group of respondents have accepted that as a fact and are ready to just move forward. 26% are holding out hope that everything will be implemented one way or another. 13% of respondents are finding that the missing scenes are making it very difficult to enjoy anything about the season so far.

I literally want to fly to WIT Studio, go in banging a cowbell in everyone's ears until they put the cute scenes of titan eren and his dorky yet fine ass back in the anime.

I'm afraid that loosing some scenes now will take away more important ones later on. No Dimo telling Historia to give Levi a good punch. No Levi basically threatening Historia to take up the mantle of Queen. These interactions added depth to the characters. There's still time for them to include a few other things in flashbacks, but the changes have me a little on edge. Maybe it's just cognitive dissonance - I'll not write off WIT's and Isayama's restructuring efforts yet. But I will sit on my hands and bite my tongue when I ask my Anime-only friends about their thoughts on the pacing thus far.

the only thing I’m really upset they cut is the scene where Armin talks about how to manipulate the mass and everyone stares at him horrified, everyone’s bitching about the abs but the true loss is not seeing the horrifying expression Armin makes

Dimo's the real victim of the cuts here ;_;

My hype for this season died seeing how they are dealing with this arc

I think that people complain too much about snk anime. Yes, some things are different and even some favourite scenes of mine where removed but overall this is still the best anime of the season, maybe even the year.

How do you feel about the scenes they did keep?

A combined 63% of voters were satisfied with the scenes that we did still get and many of those believe WIT excelled at executing them. 29% thought the scenes were still alright, but lost some of the impact they had in the original work.

The animation of all of it is phenomenal, but all the scenes/events are jumbled in comparison to the manga. It has me like ?????

The whole bit with Jean being "shot" was better in the manga IMO

Again, as before I am not the Uprising Arc's biggest fan, but one thing I did enjoy was whenever the focus was on the 104th kids coming to terms with fighting humans, struggling with their own morality and the orders Levi was giving them. In the manga, this takes place over a longer period of them, so you really get to see Sasha, Jean and Connie question things and come to their own decision not to kill. By reordering things now, I feel that has completely lost its impact.

The scene at the end where the SC crew learns about rod reminds me a bit of the AT & CT reveal when the way in which the SC reacted to Reiner and Bertholdt possibly being titans was withheld from the viewer so I think that maybe thats what they might be going for this season in the sense that they will find a way to cram a lot of moments in flashbacks later.

Rushed. Scenes have less impact. I’m just thankful I’ve read the manga so I have the context of how bamf these things really are.

They removed way too many Dimo scenes which makes him a very different character to the anime canon. In the manga he was a good-hearted opportunist trying to avoid the deaths of himself and his comrades whereas in the anime this was watered down significantly. Also, #BringBackGesumin2018

I like the pacing but many scenes lost their impact, e.g. Reeves death, Armin's kill.

Where do you think Rod, Historia and Eren are right now?

We definitely know they aren’t in the cave, but the largest group of voters aren’t even sure where to theorize they could be right now. Although there is a near tie between people who believe they are either at the ranch or the chapel. One commenter on the poll pointed out an area we hadn’t even considered, however:

Because this option didn't show up in where Eren and Historia are: The Central MP Headquarters! The torture of Sannes was used as a way to find where Eren and Historia are, which is the original point of that mission. So there'd be a different, less redundant reason to go to the HQ in the first place! You can even add some missing scenes there.

How did you feel about the way the torture scene was handled?

Most of us did believe that WIT would censor the torture sequence a bit, but the largest group are shocked at just how much of it wasn’t shown at all. Nearly one quarter of voters are disheartened that they didn’t show it all. Commenters are mourning Hange’s memorable line about which testicle Sannes wants to keep the most.

THEY REMOVED THE “WHICH TESTICLE DO YOU NOT NEED” LINE. BUT THE BALL-REMOVING INSTRUMENT WAS THERE. TALK ABOUT AN UNFULFILLING CHEKHOVS GUN.

They cut out Hange's best line

Even though i expected it would be a little bit censored, but wasn't thinking it would that much, they turned it into a joke, a humouristic torture...like seriously wit?

I'm upset because they removed Hange's best line.

Where was Levi punching?

It may've not been directly shown, but sometimes there's more horror in what you can’t see than in what you can

I expected it to be censored but it's ok, they managed to transmit the grotesque and black humorous feeling that the manga gave.

im sad about hange’s line not being included, but other than that, i thought it was really good, and i didnt expect them to be as brutal as the manga anyways. :/

Armin contemplates how they are torturing and killing people because they have different views. How does this relate to the current manga events?

The majority of voters believe that this was a good foreshadowing for the events that have taken place much later in the manga. 17% of voters don’t feel that the situations are comparable, however.

Both sides are fighthing for their own good

Eh, that’s how human history has always been since time immemorial. It’s always people killing other people because of a difference in views and ideologies. Not saying that it should be tolerated, but everything is a case-by-case basis. Sometimes, you need to extinguish the enemy because the enemy alive is a far bigger threat to the world. That’s just how it is.

Everyone else is stuck in the mid-Uprising chapters while Armin is 57D pathsmancing his way to mid-Marley chapters

The uprising and ao Liberio aren’t comparable, but Armin is consistent through each

We didn’t get shirtless Levi, how are you feeling about it?

39% of voters are sad about not getting treated to some eye candy this week, while 34% just don’t care about it at all. 15% were happy just to see Levi’s nice bara tiddies outlining his shirt, while 12% of you are still holding out hope for rock-hard abs.

I was robbed of the abs I was promised and am like... really pissed off? Sad? Bemusedly confused? I know in the grand scheme of things it shouldn't really matter that much but dang, it hurts.

It might just be the lesbian in me talking but I don’t care they didn’t show abswin and Levi shirtless lol

Levi is daddy af. Thanks for exploding my ovaries bc I didn't want children. Super convenient.

But Levi still looked badass tho

What about abswin?

Similar to Levi, the largest groups of respondents either feel betrayed by WIT or don’t care about it. A larger portion than with Levi were completely satisfied simply by Erwin’s presence.

ABS ABS ABS!!!

Apparently this world doesn’t deserve Levi and Erwin’s abs... Looks like we’re not worthy of such a blessing.

I AM FEELING ABSOLUTELY BETRAYED BY THE LACK OF ABS I mean c'mon, WIT, you can't give me, a grown adult, just an angsty adolescent's steaming abs (from the Titan tyvm) and expect me to be satisfied with that.

The Ackerman reveal was handled a bit differently, with Kenny telling Traute about how he raised Levi instead of telling Dimo he is his pride. How do you feel about the change?

The majority of voters believe that the small change in the Ackerman reveal wasn’t a big deal. However, a pretty sizable portion do believe that the weight of the reveal was lost, with many commenters lamenting the loss of Kenny saying that Levi is his pride.

I think we'll have more impactful Acerkreveal to come when Levi and Mikasa talk. *nervous chucking*

Levi being an Ackerman is the less secret thing anyway, the way it's reveals hardly matter

Most of the fandom read some good ol fanfic, i'd be surprised if like 95% of the people watching it didn't know he was an Ackerman (or just log in to tumblr)

Lol so many anime-only reactors didn’t even notice the Ackerman name-drop so WIT pretty much failed at that. And it’s okay for fans to feel disappointed with the anime. We’re not **obligated** to think it’s amazing especially if we think there are parts of it that weren’t adapted well.

I expect another encounter between Kenny and Levi that leads to the talk about Levi being Kenny's pride, probably directed to Rod instead. This scene, on the other hand, worked as a wonderful namedrop and setup for a second encounter.

I love how he called Levi his pride in the manga so i’m very sad they changed it, it made Kenny’s death even more emotional.

It flew right past me oops

Levi threatening Historia didn't happen, breaking the chain of events that builds up to her punching him later. What best describes your thoughts?

It’s probably safe to say that many of us are raising questions about the loss of this scene and how WIT will make up for it or whether it was truly needed in the first place. 39% believe that WIT will still work it in somehow, while the majority believe that the scene is lost forever, with split opinions about whether WIT will make up for it in another way or whether their faith in Historia and Levi’s arcs is shattered forever.

The only thing I'm keeping my eyes on is anything related to Historia and her future step up as queen. I'm sure she'll learn that she is royal next episode via her father, so I wonder if eventually deciding to take rule in place of her hidden relatives and corrupt government, will actually end up being her idea, which could explain why Levi's altercation with her was removed. That would be really interesting and I think it could work out just as well! I always thought his anger toward her was a little too sudden and misplaced in the manga, anyway, and if it's removed for good, I'm glad we don't have to live through that controversy again.

I’m kinda disappointed that they didn’t include Dimo Reeves’s redemption arc. It was very essential to Historia & Levi’s character. Maybe I’m worrying over nothing & instead Fligel will replace Dimo in that role, but Eren & Historia were already captured so I’m not sure how they intend to go about rewriting Historia & Levi’s character progression. However, the production team & Isayama do seem to understand how important character development is for this arc, so maybe they’re finding different ways to make it better in ways we didn’t even realize were possible. Maybe by the end we’ll all say “Wow! This was handled a million times better than in the manga!” But right now, it just seems like Isayama had a negative bias towards this arc & was only so accepting of the changes cause he just thought of the Uprising Arc as his worst piece of work to date despite it being the most important for character development & plot progression. I hope I am wrong though.

Which group of characters are your favorite?

Where do you primarily discuss the series?

I discuss the series in Facebook, dunno why you don't have that option :/

Additional thoughts on the episode?

Isayama reacting to S3 complaints: “Am I out of touch? No, it's the manga readers who are wrong.”

BUT NO FLEGEL QUESTION IN THE POLL!!!?!?!?!? THAT'S IT!!(╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻ I'm actually not going to do anything about it though. but still. Flegel is best boy.

I’m blown away by the animation! I’m kind of enjoying guessing what might happen next and what other changes they’re going to make. I still have faith that WIT and Isayama will deliver an amazing season three - holding out for more episodes until I lose my mind about changes. It’s super entertaining so far.

I am aware that a 100% adaptation of the manga is impossible and I'm usually not bothered by it. However, I'm slowly getting nervous that too much could get lost and that those fans who want an accurate adaptation will get too frustrated with it to continue. I really hope WIT has a plan here and listens to the fans.

I really, really, really wanted Kenny to say that he was proud of Levi. It was really bittersweet. I hope WIT puts it later on when Kenny is about to die and hopefully he tells it to Levi straight up. But I’m not gonna lie, Levi never knowing that his “father figure” was proud of him all this time puts a tragic and beautiful twist to their relationship. There’s always been something sublime about unexpressed emotions that will forever be hidden because death claimed it first.

I feel like they're sacrificing character interactions and developments for the sake of pacing and action.

I know lots of people are saying that everyone should chill before jumping to conclusions, but as far as I’m concerned all our opinions - mine included, as well as the opinions of those who are dissatisfied with the episode - are valid. And in my opinion, there was so much that the anime skipped. Sure, they were just small details. But it were these details that enriched the story. I trust Isayama, but at the end of the day, he too errs. He too commits mistakes. I don’t know, but if I feel overly dissatisfied with the adaptation even after the season is over, and in my defense am able to bring up valid reasons why I didn’t like it, then so be it.

It's a shame Dimo got reduced to such a minor character.

I felt a bit sorry for the girl who was killed by Armin. I didn't pay attention on her in the manga but in Armin's flashbacks she was more human. It was the proof that even such cold monsters like anti-human squad members have some heart.

I love it so far but Levi and Erwin need more love and they'll get it if they are shirtless and have moar scenes

Traute made me gay.

Ackerman bastards! How they can violate chairs like that?! Right now I can trust only Mikasa with my poor chair babies <3

everyone is like 'where are the abs' while my lesbian ass is sad about no gesumin smh

Thanks to everyone who participated! We’ll see you again on Monday!

#snk poll #snk polls #snk spoilers #snk s3 #poll results

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