Tipping Point
Or, A Little Something To Cover The Emotional Wear And Tear.
Yes, it’s time to remind patrons that this rickety barge is kept afloat by the kindness of strangers. If you’d like to help it remain buoyant a while longer, and remain ad-free, there are buttons in the sidebar, right, with which to monetise any love. Debit and credit cards are accepted. For those wishing to express their love regularly, there’s a monthly subscription option top left. And if one-click haste is called for, my PalPay.Me page can be found here. Additionally, any Amazon UK shopping done via this link or the search widget top right, or for Amazon US via this link, results in a small fee for your host at no extra cost to you.
For newcomers wishing to know more about what’s been going on here for the last twelve years, in over 2,600 posts and close to 100,000 comments, the reheated series is a pretty good place to start – in particular, the end-of-year summaries. There you’ll find bulletins from the bleeding edge of academia; thrilling adventures in the world of art; the strange mental contortions of Laurie Penny; and tales of how the great outdoors – fresh air itself – is crushingly oppressive to intersectional feminists.
If you can, do take a moment to poke through the discussion threads too. The posts are intended as starting points, not full stops, and the comments are where much of the good stuff is waiting to be found. And do please join in.
As always, thanks for the support, the comments, and the company. Also, open thread. 
Keep up the good work, David. Tip jar has been pinged.
Bless you, sir. May the rolls of leftover Christmas wrapping paper, stuffed right at the back of a closet and buried under numerous other neglected items, remain uncrumpled and perfectly usable twelve months later.
It’s a shame Penny Dreadful’s been quite lately. I enjoy your take-downs.
Ping.
Ping!
It’s a shame Penny Dreadful’s been quiet lately.
Apparently, she’s been working on a project with Joss Whedon, hence the relative quiet. Though I’m sure we’ll soon be treated to more of her mental outpourings. Comedy demands it.
Ping.
May your stylish slimline kitchen bin prove remarkably commodious and not in fact need emptying every bloody day.
Ping!
Bless you, sir. May you never discover that your new can of Oust has a defective nozzle, thereby impairing, at the worst possible time, your efforts to eliminate the odour of fried onions.
Oh, and in case it isn’t clear, open thread.
Speaking of the world of art, some religious people are offended and ululating, about “blasphemy”.
Right, good plan, chief.
Do not click here if you blow up at art you don’t like.
Ping.
Ping.
Bless you, madam. May your toaster never rattle due to an accumulation of scorched crumbs.
Meanwhile, in today’s exciting episode of “Everything is Rayciss”, Chapter 9876 of “Urban Millennials Pontificating On Things They Know Nothing About”.
she’s been working on a project with Joss Whedon
I suppose having used up Marti Noxon he’s moving on to another neurotic and self-deluded writer to steal all the credit from.
*kerching*
Thanks for the blogging (and sparing us from ads). I’ve put a little encouragement in the tip jar.
Bless you, madam, and bless you, sir. May your bookshelves and knick-knacks never need dusting. Because, well, dusting.
It occurs to me, belatedly, that I should have taken the time to write a list of new blessings before doing the fundraiser.
Dropped a little in the tip jar for all the good humour and relief from the madding crowds.
Perhaps you could put it towards some new entertainment while waiting for the next season of Bosch.
Dropped a little in the tip jar
Bless you, sir. May the shirt you’re planning to wear in approximately forty-five minutes always be fragrant and suitably ironed and never at the bottom of the laundry hamper.
some new entertainment
That rather depends on whether watching pretty twenty-somethings pretending to be angsty teenagers qualifies as entertainment. Didn’t one of the cast end up in prison?
3-hour films are ableist.
https://twitter.com/OrwellNGoode/status/1125427307831754752
3-hour films are ableist.
“…a three hour runtime represents an unspoken stumbling block…”
I am trying to figure out what the hell that tweet is supposed to mean, given that sitting and watching a movie doesn’t exactly require a lot in the way of accommodation, the only way a “disabled” person might possibly have an “unspoken stumbling block” for a three hour movie compared to anyone else is if the “disability” is having a prostate the size of a cantalope.
if the “disability” is having a prostate the size of a cantalope.
Can you say Greenlight Laser Therapy for Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia? I can.
Without it I couldn’t have made it through the “Coming Attractions” (pun not intended) part of the movie.
“unspoken stumbling block” for a three hour movie
Interestingly, Lawrence of Arabia, Sound of Music and Gone With the Wind, all movies clocking in 3+ hours had actual intermissions.
As this doesn’t happen any more, I take responsibility for myself to refrain from liquids prior to a long movie and nothing during it if I don’t want to get up and stumble over people on the way to the restroom.
(three kidneys)
This is MY issue, not anyone else’s. #smh
all movies clocking in 3+ hours had actual intermissions.
…and Dr. Zhivago. The intermission is actually on the DVD. They play a medley of music from the movie over the back drop of a Siberian winter scene with the word “Intermission” in a large font size in the middle of the screen.
My assistants, Bonnie and Connie, have informed me that Lady Godiva and her Mother Hen are on the way to Blighty.
Didn’t one of the cast end up in prison?
Allison Mack and Kristin Kreuk were banged up for participating in the NXIVM sex slavery ring. Adds a bit of a frisson to those earlier episodes.
Mack looks to be flipping on the cult leader, but Kreuk seems to have skated. I swear, that woman has Polaroids.
Smallville is a typical CW show, yes, but every episode is stuffed full to bursting with references to obscure DC comics trivia. It’s a fun visual scavenger hunt. And it created the template that every DC-based TV show has followed since.
…every DC-based TV show…
Speaking of comic book shows, Marvel announces their next blockbuster.
the jokes, they write themselves … once you get past the eye-bleach.
…once you get past the eye-bleach.
OK, so there are times wearing MOPP4 inside a BHL4 suit are appropriate. However…
Leaders and thinkers, right, another reason why I am moving to a mountain top with a moat and a fence with triple strand concertina.
That won’t help if the mailman comes down with Ebola. 😄
Adds a bit of a frisson to those earlier episodes.
I vaguely recall there was very little super-doing and lots of moping about. It also seemed to be the gayest not-technically-gay show on TV at the time.
Trust me, I’m a doctor.
Redefining straightness:
Please update your files and lifestyles accordingly.
Thanks for keeping tabs on the bedlamites and being a gracious host. Small token of esteem on its way.
Small token of esteem on its way.
Bless you, sir. May you know the small joy of remembering that you can go for a pee while still listening to YouTube videos, thanks to wireless ear buds.
Theodore Dalrymple on the policing of pronouns:
And speaking of words that are verboten.
And speaking of words that are verboten.
“Dr.” Bacon tells us it is OK to be Brobdingnagian – the jokes, they write themselves. From her twits we learn Fat People Must Become A Priority For The Left.
Gets out Enigma machine and UNIVAC…nope still can’t decipher that mess. But wait, that’s not all.
I would never imagined such a thing. Really, my surprise is complete.
Resistance, yeah, that Tumblr post will stick it to The Man™. OK, if you say so.
“…none of us were intended to survive.” What utter bullshit. Yep, the new Pentaverate of the Mayo Clinic, Jane Fonda, Pfizer, Disney, and the UN meet tri-annually at a secret gym in Nepal to discuss methods of erasing fat bodies in their spaces (to use their social science Choctaw).
RTWT, our author is one Da’Shaun Harrison who is “a nonbinary abolitionist and organizer in Atlanta, GA”. Abolitionist, what pretentious twaddle. “Quick ! Hide here, we’ll save you from portion control and that exercise program”.
our author is one Da’Shaun Harrison who is “a nonbinary abolitionist and organizer in Atlanta, GA”.
A recurring theme of woke posturing – pretty much its signature – is the displacement of responsibility, often in ways that are perverse or delusional:
And variations thereof.
It’s only a matter of time until these nutters denounce Star Wars’ Jabba the Hutt for “fat shaming.”
Tip jar hit. Should cover a decent red. 🙂
Should cover a decent red.
Bless you, sir. May the aforementioned wireless ear buds remain securely in your ears while you’re peeing and not… well, best not to dwell on the alternatives.
And thanks to all who’ve chipped in so far (including all those much too shy to say hello), or who’ve subscribed, or done shopping via the Amazon links. It’s what keeps this place here and is much appreciated.
FAT FOLKS CARRY THE WEIGHT OF THE WORK IN THESE SPACES WHILE OUR BODIES AND MATERIAL REALITIES ARE CONTINUALLY OTHERED AND WRITTEN OFF
WTAF does any of that mean? Speaking as one of an increasingly portly persuasion, I look forward to leftists taking an interest in my wellbeing and championing my views, which they will love.
Interestingly, Lawrence of Arabia, Sound of Music and Gone With the Wind, all movies clocking in 3+ hours had actual intermissions.
I saw a Wagner opera for the first time recently and was slightly concerned by the hefty run time. However we had 3 acts of around 1hr 15 mins each and 20 mins in between to limber up, have a drink and visit the loo. Very civilised. They should try this for MCU films. Or even better, close down the entire benighted project and make some films that aren’t utter bollocks.
Oh yes, and.. ping!
ping!
Bless you, sir. May you never receive an Amazon notification informing you of a delivery driver “three stops away” while you’re halfway across town in a checkout queue.
WTAF does any of that mean?
The best the Enigma machine and UNIVAC combined could come up with is, “Me and the rest of us morbidly obese types are owed a living by you saps who manage to stay within two standard deviations of normal weight, and not only should you praise and admire our bulk, but make your world conform to our wants and needs.”
The machines could be wrong, they are pretty old and it is hard to find the right weight whale oil for the Enigma gears or correct tubes for the UNIVAC (best I could do was from an old Fender Twin Reverb). They came up with the same sort of thing with a couple of word changes for furries, the gender nuts, all of EF, and so on.
“I saw a Wagner opera for the first time recently and was slightly concerned by the hefty run time…”
How about the hefty Valkyries? (rim shot) They were never envisaged as tiny little Buffy the Vampire Slayer waifs.
I saw a Wagner opera for the first time recently and was slightly concerned by the hefty run time.
Sing Faster.
a three hour runtime represents an unspoken stumbling block
The phrase “unspoken stumbling block” is ableist twice over at least. What about those who can’t speak, or can’t hear? And the use of the word “stumbling” in the context of purportedly caring for the differently abled – I literally cannot even.
Which also sounds a bit ableist come to think of it.
I forget where I found this:
But not entirely unfair, I think.
It’s so annoying when people spazz out over expressions like “stumbling block.”
A Little Something To Cover The Emotional Wear And Tear
You work hard for the money…
Happy to help!
Happy to help!
Bless you, madam. May the cupboard under your sink remain orderly at all times.
CNN has a burning question for you lot over in the UK.
They have already said they want an American/Brit name for the kid, I am guessing Usuk is out, so maybe something historical like Bernard Law Eisenhower, maybe Bobby Ray Clive, or just split the difference and go with Mohammed.
Submit your own suggestions on an index card, offer not good in New Jersey or Sectors R or N after curfew.
That little sensation you felt at 1:35 GMT…that was me. Don’t let the other half tell you otherwise.
I vaguely recall there was very little super-doing and lots of moping about.
CW shows have a pretty meager budget, so that’s not inaccurate. As CGI gets cheaper it improves over the years (we are talking about a ten year run here) but early on there’s very much a “this season’s CGI effect” trope going on, much in the same way Hercules and Xena had their “this season’s giant prop” trope.
It also seemed to be the gayest not-technically-gay show on TV at the time.
It was certainly popular amongst the various gay SF fan groups, although I suspect that was for the same reason it was so popular among middle-aged housewives – they took every opportunity to make Tom Welling and John Schneider take their shirts off.
As far as I can tell, the demographics it was specifically intended to appeal to hardly watched it.
My name suggestion: Bubba.
I’ve been agitating for a Pope Bubba for years. Prince Bubba is almost as good.
Don’t let the other half tell you otherwise.
Bless you, sir. May you never wake to the sound of hoovering.
“I only got a ‘C’ on my maths test. Maybe I should have studied more.”
“Studying won’t help. It’s because of white supremacy.”
Western civilization was good while it lasted.
My name suggestion: Bubba.
I’ve been agitating for a Pope Bubba for years. Prince Bubba is almost as good.
Actually, that has already been King Bubba.
In other areas, I was indeed disappointed that a very clear precedent was not followed by a recent pope.
As everyone is quite aware, Pope John-Paul was clearly supposed to be followed by Pope George-And-Ringo.
Woman arrested at CIA headquarters after asking to speak with ‘Agent Penis’
Western civilization was good while it lasted.
Well, to borrow their own buzzword, the influence of the woke-lings is certainly toxic. Seen from outside, it’s a cultivated unrealism, in which the ideal is a kind of whiny preposterousness.
Which is why, for example, Everyday Feminism’s former managing editor Melissa Fabello isn’t an educated middle-class woman in twenty-first century America, which would be much too humdrum, but is instead, as she puts it, “a marginalised body that experiences the trauma of oppression.”
Oppression being defined as people disagreeing with me and pointing out my vanities.
This is not, I think, an attitude that leads to happiness, or on which a civilisation can depend. And as we’ve seen more times than I can count, this is the favoured trajectory of the type, the role they want to play.
A lot of those names look like something J.R.R. Tolkien would have come up with.
Which is appropriate since I just finished the annual Lord Of The Rings re-read.
The future is now.
Via Dicentra.
The future is now
Kid’s a genius. Excuse me, I have some furniture shopping to do.
The future is now
That kid’s going to be so nearsighted he’ll be walking into walls.
This is not, I think, an attitude… on which a civilisation can depend.
That.
Tip jar hit.
Tip jar hit.
Bless you, madam. May dust never gather on your hob extractor.
A running list of beloved sci-fi franchises that have been ruined in the past half decade or so:
-PREDATOR: It was wheezing terribly, but that last…”movie”…finally killed it for good.
-TERMINATOR: Stop. Please just stop making Terminator movies. It’s like being stuck in the middle of a drunken family quarrel at the funeral of a beloved grandparent.
-ALIEN: Prometheus was like doctor assisted suicide, gentle but still very fatal.
-STAR TREK: You know when terminal cancer patients go off chemo and consequently feel really healthy (JJ Abram’s lens flare fest), only to crash and tragically perish shortly thereafter (Star Trek Discovery)?
-STAR WARS: Disney didn’t kill SW so much as dig up its peacefully resting corpse then parade it through town Weekend At Bernie’s style.
-GAME OF THRONES: David’s cartoon perfectly describes the situation. I feel like I’m watching a relative in hospice, just hoping they leave the world with as little pain and humiliation as possible.
I think I left out a few, but these analogies are getting too dark so I’ll stop now.
but these analogies are getting too dark so I’ll stop now.
[ Rummages in lost property box. Hands Sam a rather soiled-looking teddy bear. ]
It’s probably best not to get it too close to your face.
Payday for me … so ping
Payday for me … so ping
Bless you, madam. Should you find yourself offering cups of tea to visiting workmen, may you never discover that the long-neglected teabags stuck at the back of a cupboard actually expired several months ago, resulting in the dilemma of whether to chance it, or offer coffee instead.
beloved sci-fi franchises that have been ruined in the past half decade or so
I was never a huge fan of Star Wars, so I can’t say much about the recent films, beyond the obvious Mary-Sue-ing and the almost nihilistic disregard for established character, coherent plotting, etc.
I saw a few episodes of Star Trek: Discovery and was actually quite amazed by how charmless – and borderline obnoxious – the lead character is, the one we’re supposed to like and root for. Again, lots of inept writing in the service of Mary-Sue-ing.
And regarding Alien, Ridley Scott seems oblivious to the fact that the more you fill in the Alien mythology, retconning furiously, the less scary, and more tiresome, it gets.
[ Added: ]
By endlessly embellishing the premise, backwards and sideways, Scott is somehow making the story less interesting. As with John Carpenter’s The Thing, the gaps, the unknowns, were a large part of the original film’s nightmarish effect. See also the remake of Battlestar Galactica, which had some remarkable early episodes and then buckled under the weight of the flabby and incoherent mythos subsequently bolted on.
Ping! And may your stock of weird but totally relevant blessings never fail.
Ping! And may your stock of weird but totally relevant blessings never fail.
Bless you, madam. May you discover a forgotten bottle of wine stashed in the dishwasher, which you never actually use for washing dishes and is instead full of takeaway menus, bin liners and unfathomable blender attachments.
Mary-Sue-ing
It’s fairly amazing to behold, actually. Many people will deny “Mary Sue” status or become outraged at the mere suggestion. Those that openly acknowledge they want a flawless female character in all their entertainment are at least honest in their aims, which is almost always to empower little girls and to make middle-aged women feel good about themselves.
So it’s worth examining if Mary Sues are actually uplifting to females and…they are quite the opposite. If you identify with a flawless movie character simply because you share the same nasty bits then you likely have a very fragile ego and tenuous grip on reality. As for little girls, the message is clear: you CANNOT have flaws or weaknesses because YOU’RE BETTER THAN THAT.
Overall this means lower quality entertainment in service of a counterproductive message. Woo hoo.
If you identify with a flawless movie character…
…you may fall into the trap of thinking you can succeed only if you are flawless.
…I was never a huge fan of Star Wars…
I enjoyed the first one, but never understood the mindset of adults who would go squeee! over the latest Star Wars (or Star Trek or whatever) movie. After all, they just movies and they’re generally not the most sophisticated and subtle of stories.
the dishwasher, which you never actually use for washing dishes
Is that a common thing in the UK, or are you revealing a small detail about your home life, David?
[ Exudes air of mystery. ]
pst314,
Agreed that some people get way too invested in entertainment, but the recent trend of ruining shows and movies due to politics and general incompetence is nearly as worrying as the destructive idiocy that infects universities. After all, not everyone goes to college (and not all who do are exposed to this nonsense) but millions upon millions consume this rotting media – which has outsized influence on the cultural zeitgeist.
BTW subtle and sophisticated =/= good or important. The Iliad, Dr Zhivago, Jane Austen novels, and Star Trek have all made profound impacts to certain people’s lives, for example.
I think I left out a few, but these analogies are getting too dark so I’ll stop now.
And you people twit me for watching Smallville.
Many people will deny “Mary Sue” status or become outraged at the mere suggestion.
When I have more time, I’ll opine on the Half as Hard, Twice as Good trope.
isn’t an educated middle-class woman in twenty-first century America, which would be much too humdrum
A friend of mine once described a similar person as “She’s trying so hard not to be ordinary”.
Many people will deny “Mary Sue” status or become outraged at the mere suggestion.
Making a character omnicompetent tends to limit any development, any arc. It’s hard to convey a sense of peril or accomplishment, a sense of things being earned. (See, for instance, Brie Larson’s one-note Captain Marvel, which isn’t so much a character as a pretext for an agenda.) You can just about get away with something approaching omnicompetence in Bond films because character development isn’t why people watch Bond films – and provided the way in which a trap is escaped and the villain defeated is suitably entertaining.
But in the recent Star Wars films, Rey goes from desert forager to puncher-of-men-much-bigger-than-she-is, plus ace pilot, plus ace engineer, plus mistress of the Force, all in a matter of minutes. How this instant and seemingly effortless success is supposed to be empowering, I’m not quite sure. I quite liked Daisy Ridley’s performance in The Force Awakens – I thought she was moderately charming – but the character’s unearned excellence at just about everything wasn’t helping on that front.
Sam, you will get no argument from me!
“the way in which a trap is escaped”
Like how Bosch used that guy’s eye socket as a bowling ball finger hole in epis…
Oh wait, spoilers.
So today was V-E Day, and not one fargin’ thing in the US media, even the innarwebs, about it. Pathetic.
So today was V-E Day, and not one fargin’ thing in the US media,…
Ironic given how the media has been telling us about how the far right fascists are one of the greatest threats we face today.
In some circles where V-E Day is still sacrosanct, there is a lot of focus on D-Day. This year is the 75th Anniversary of the Allied landing. My son plays in a Marching Band for teens. They are heading to England and France at the end of this month to play at official ceremonies at Juno Beach (we’re Canadian).
As part of their preparation, each member of the band is wearing the dog tags of a Canadian Soldier who fell during the invasion. They had to research, write and post a biography for their soldier. They will also attend the grave site of the soldier. There are around 200 Band Members, so that’s 200 soldiers who will be honoured.
In the grand scheme of things it’s a small number, but it’s these small efforts that will help keep the memories alive.
Steve E.
I’m heartened by this story. Bravo to your son and his band mates 👍🎶❤
When I have more time, I’ll opine on the Half as Hard, Twice as Good trope.
Well, don’t leave us hanging.
The phrase which came to my mind when trying to pin down why the performance was unsatisfying was “present, but not involved”.
“No, he’s not in trouble.”
The phrase which came to my mind when trying to pin down why the performance was unsatisfying was “present, but not involved”
I’m only familiar with Ms Larson’s acting in the Marvel films, but she seems rather limited in her range and devoid of anything approaching charisma. And in interviews, as herself, she’s vaguely obnoxious. Reliably so.
First time using Paypal. Hope it’s worked. 🙂
Hope it’s worked. 🙂
It has indeed. Bless you, sir. May you never know the dismay of breakfast cereal soddened with low-fat milk.
See, for instance, Brie Larson’s one-note Captain Marvel, which isn’t so much a character as a pretext for an agenda.
She’s not woke enough…
https://www.louderwithcrowder.com/sorry-brie-this-petition-demand-captain-marvel-be-a-gay-woman-of-color/
Just chucked a few coppers in your hat David.
Here’s a few titbits I’ve picked up this week…
A school in Washington D.C is becoming ‘whiter’, and apparently that’s a problem:
“.. The District is growing whiter, and the majority-white elementary schools that feed into Wilson have more students than ever. The school may become majority-white within a decade.”
The solution:
“Wilson should reserve seats to keep the school majority-minority. It must resist the racism of least friction.”
via Battle Beagle
Evidently, puberty has no effect on the human body:
“Deadspin, quoting a philosophy professor, argues that there is no scientific evidence puberty gives biological males any athletic advantages. Rather, this belief is “based entirely on social perceptions of gender.”
https://twitter.com/jessesingal/status/1126226674771795973
via Yeyo
The biter, bit:
https://twitter.com/OrwellNGoode/status/1126310578954412034
Just chucked a few coppers in your hat David.
Bless you, sir. May your car’s glove compartment contain only the thing you happen to need right now and not the usual landslide of sweet wrappers, sunglasses and accumulated crap.
Deadspin, quoting a philosophy professor, argues that there is no scientific evidence puberty gives biological males any athletic advantages. Rather, this belief is “based entirely on social perceptions of gender.”
At which point, one might say honk honk.
Deadspin, quoting a philosophy professor…
Not just any philosophy professor, a “World Champion Cyclist. Associate Professor, PhD. Tweets my own. Public Intellectual. Trans Woman, Queer Chick, Feminist.”
Not that this guy would in any way be biased or have an agenda, what with being a philosophy professor, female bike champion and all.
How this instant and seemingly effortless success is supposed to be empowering, I’m not quite sure.
Well, don’t leave us hanging.
Simplified version: stories for boys are The Hero’s Journey; stories for girls are Cinderella. Rey/Captain Marvel get given things just for existing rather than having to struggle or overcome anything, because that’s the equivalent of the fairy godmother giving them a dress and the Prince falling in love with them.
because that’s the equivalent of the fairy godmother giving them a dress and the Prince falling in love with them.
Heh.
[ Slides bag of crisps along bar. ]
Ignore the sell-by date.
…no scientific evidence puberty gives biological males any athletic advantages. Rather, this belief is “based entirely on social perceptions of gender.”
“When banal observations like “men and women are different heights” prompts the accusation that I’m both brainwashed and a Nazi, it’s clear that this was not good faith protest.”
The school may become majority-white within a decade.
Iceland bad, Turkmenistan good