I am posting this in order to let you know that I will no longer be posting to Tumblr after this message. Verizonās recent purchase of Yahoo! (and by extension, Tumblr) ended up being the final straw for me.
However!! I have moved to my WordPress, dianebtaylor.wordpress.com! In fact, I have already begun posting. I will continue constructing my blog as I get my bearings; I started the migration as soon as I heard about the acquisition. Please bookmark or follow me - I would love to do the same for you!
I will not delete this Tumblr account; I will not do a mass delete of all 3000+ posts (those have been mostly backed up to dianebtaylor.wordpress.com anyway). If Tumblr āstrikes me throughā, so be it, but I will stand my ground as long as I can.
Once again: please join me on my new blog, dianebtaylor.wordpress.com! Tumblr will not divide us if we do not let it! RESIST
Iāve tried to not read posts today because I saw a few apologist posts last night for John punching and kicking Sherlock repeatedly. And Iām honestly sick and appalled.
There is NEVER an excuse for physical assault. NO EXCUSE. NEVER. Motivations do not matter. Behavior does. And Johnās behavior was inexcusable.
If youāve ever been a victim of a vicious assault like was shown last night, you would understand. Iāve youāve never been, then god bless you because your life has been good. I have and will never excuse behavior like that. It doesnāt matter what Johnās been through. It doesnāt matter what Sherlock did. Motivation behind violent behavior doesnāt matter. Behavior is the only thing that matters.
Donāt excuse or apologize for domestic/friend violence. Itās never OK.
This. Donāt let anyone tell you their why they did what they did to you like that was all that needed to be done to make it OK. Itās not. Itās never.
Sometimes I think that someone should address to the authors how wrong that scene was, from every possible perspective, but Iām afraid they could find a way to justify the violence, and just the tohught of it makes me feel sick in the stomach.
I didnāt talk about this in my earlier posts about my feelings, post-S4, but this was a particularly traumatic scene for me. Enough that I thought to myself, āI donāt want BBC-canon Sherlock and John together.ā I wanted Sherlock to have better, because any kind of love (friendship, romantic relationship, familial relationship, etc.) that hurts that much is not worth it. I hate how the episode put John in a situation where he had to handle his built-up feelings with extreme violence. Even more, I hate how the episode initially glossed over the beating with a focus on the abuserās (Johnās) perspective over the survivorās (Sherlockās), and then later followed up with jokes (come to think of it, thatās a theme of the series - glossing over painful moments for characters with jokes). To not explore the natural consequences of extreme violence to the same degree to which they were portrayed - and I feel Sherlockās portrayal of that scene was relatively graphic - leaves the āplotā feeling hollow and unrelatable. Itās drama just for dramaās sake, but with no real payoffs - a real turn-off for audience members. Some of my favorite TV shows explore the natural consequences of what appear to be small actions at the time, but Sherlock never really seemed to accomplish that in a long-term, overarching format. Again, I say, āWhat a waste,ā and, āThis could have been written so much betterā (i.e. loudest-subtext-in-tvās M-Theory), and, āWhere were the goddamn āNo-Peopleā?ā.
...you're watching your government eat themselves in an ouroboros of fuckery, while, in spite of everything, you feel comparatively at peace with yourself and the world.
I watched it (Iāve loved super long critiques of the stuff-I-used-to-love-but-then-realized-were-catastrophes since Red Letter Mediaās blow-by-blow lambasting of Star Wars I-III).
I enjoyed this breakdown, feeling as salty as I do these days about how badly Sherlock turned out. I laughed several times throughout, and agreed with several of the reviewerās points. I initially came to the show because of the plotās, the charactersā, and the cinematographyās surface attractiveness, so it was interesting to see Sherlock compared and contrasted against Moffatās and Vertueās other past work (apart from New Who, I havenāt consumed anymore of their work - and I should disclose that I abandoned New Who just three episodes into Series 7 ĀÆ\_(ć)_/ĀÆ).
One area that struck me was the reviewerās willingness to shit on the āsuper-fansā of the show, saying (Iām paraphrasing), āYou smarter people should be laughing at these dumb fans for hoping/expecting/theorizing about how the show would eventually all come together in a neat package.ā I should also point out that this is DURING and AFTER the reviewerās description (which is couched in quite negative terms) of how Moffat shits on fans. We were not wrong in what we saw, and saying we were wrong isā¦just wrong! On another note, I stick by the idea that loudest-subtext-in-tvās M-Theory (one of the fans that the reviewer screenshots in the video) ended up having a far better overarching plan than what Hartswood ended up with.
YMMV, but I enjoyed bathing in the salt for a bit with this reviewer, regardless of their understanding of Sherlock fans. Iām the kind of person, however, to enjoy grinding about in salt with others when something entertaining that I love goes catastrophically badly. I will remember for the rest of my life what it felt like to watch Star Wars I-III and realize that they were HORRIBLE. I will never forget the hollowed out feeling of watching Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull after years of pushing with fellow Indiana Jones fans for more (be careful whatcha wish for, eh?), and understanding that it was GARBAGE, about which the actors and STEVEN FUCKING SPIELBERG would eventually say, āGosh, we sure did drop the ball on that one!ā I will remember for a long time how BBC Sherlock ended up being a waste in terms of the missed, ripe possibilities for landmark queer representation, as well as the wasted talent, effort, time, and money (given a comparison of the end results of Series 4 against 1-3).
Question to the universe: how hard is it to give us well-made queer representation that is mentally engaging, that has three-dimensional characters, that doesnāt, in any way, shape, or form ākill the gaysā? As a member of the USA LGBTQIA+ community in a state that is doing itās hardest to undo all the progress weāve made over the past eight years, I feel, on a daily basis, that my existence is my resistance. I get tired of fighting, and I feel like Iāve been fighting since just after our Election Day results were in. I need narratives that I can identify with in order to re-energize me to get back out there and hold my head up again. Finding those narratives gets easier these days, thanks to our LGBTQIA+ elders, but we need more, because weāre going through dark times. We need our happy endings within our stories.
I was prepared to write a big thing about it, but ultimately there isnāt much to be said. This is a bit of rambling about decency and lack thereof as well as authorial intent and reader interpretation.
This analogy plainly illustrates my thoughts: a man yells, āIām not beating my wife!ā while beating his wife.
A statement of intent that contradicts what you are actually doing does not absolve you of responsibility, even if you might consider that a āwarning.ā
You are still doing it. Just because you say you arenāt beating your wife doesnāt mean you arenāt doing it, especially when you are doing it, which meansā¦
Your warning is really just a misplaced and untrue attempt at self-justification when in actuality it is a lie. Stating you are not doing X indicates at least an awareness that your performance includes a certain amount and quality of X.
An awareness of your performance including X further illustrates you know you are using X, and your continued use of X and continued lying about that very fact is evidence for premeditation and a disinterest that might easily, and quickly, be taken for disdain.
That blame? Is to be put on your shoulders. The audience is not to be blamed for picking up on the cues and seeds you laid out for them, in no case. The audienceās reading is valid, and particularly the reading of your queer audience is valid, their perception correct and uncompromised, when you basically make queer subtext the foundation of your text.
This is so powerful and empowering. Thank you @wssh-watson . It is an honor to be tagged in this, and I will do my best to be a part of the discussion. Please everyone keep in mind that english is not my first language, so cut me some slack.Ā
Whenever people outside of this community have asked me why I am so upset, I was to tired to explain. I donāt need to justify wanting representation, but I will try to make a case for representation in Sherlock, and what it would have meant for our future, as LGBT+.Ā
There was a time in cinema that movies had no sound. And then came āThe Jazz Singerā, and every studio that had a major release scheduled after that was PISSED, because they didnāt HAVE the new thing. A lot of movies were reedited, added some new scenes with sound, to be part of this new something.Ā
This is old, but we see the same thing right now: the trend is big franchises, remakes and superhero movies. They are everywhere, and for a reason. Someone made it, it worked, and everyone is jumping in on it. Do you remember when Paranormal Activity first came out? (I am not ignoring Blair Witch Project, just trying to make a more contemporary point) And a fuckload of low-budget, found footage scary movies started to pop out of nowhere? This is what this industry is about. Someone makes something groundbreaking, and everyone else kind of follows because there is MONEY there. *Ā
BBC Sherlock could have been āThe Jazz Singerā to the āSlow Burn Romanceā between two men, without it being labeled as āa gay showā or āa gay movieā. Itās Sherlock Holmes, before anything else. You couldnāt do to Sherlock what has been done to āBrokeback Mountainā. āWhich one is it? ā/ āThe gay oneā. NO. Sherlock is self explanatory, it would just be Sherlock. It would be heterobaiting. It would be glorious.Ā
The point is: BBC Sherlock queerbaiting is not only about us. Is about what could have been. Itās about the fact that 2017 could be the turning point for how and how often we get representation. That, maybe, someone in an big studio office somewhere could have seen it and went āHoly shit, this is going to make me a fuckload of money. Iāll make some of thatā. It would be a thing that people would do, without it being questioned. It would be different.Ā
They are wrong, they could have and should have done that. So if you all think this is only disrespectful towards us, the fans, itās way bigger than that. It could have been a leap in the right direction, but it wasnāt. Ā It could have changed LGBT+ representation in mainstream media FOREVER, but it didnāt.Ā
You are not wrong for wanting that. We are not delusional. We can see it, because itās THERE. The amount of romantic tropes alone. The camera angles. This is not accidental. This is not āthey didnāt even realizeā¦ā. NO, they know. They knew. And they blew it.Ā
So please, donāt blame yourself for other peopleās lack of commitment to doing a good job. Donāt blame yourself for the shitshow that was presented to you. You saw the real story, a story that is over 100 years old. Donāt dismiss the evidence. They might have placed them with bad intentions, but we saw what was presented to us: A Love Story. And if they wanted to turn a love story into this bullshit, shame on them.Ā
I've sat on this for a while, but this piece by wssh-watson, and the replies afterward, are some material that have helped me work through the Waterfall of Salt over here.
Iāve held back on posting anything about this for a while; Iāve edited this post multiple times since āThe Final Problemāsā broadcast.Ā Iāve needed distance from SherlockĀ after āThe Final Problemā (like many other people)(the whole Tr**p admin/tyranny has had me in a fugue, too). To be honest, the mounting need for distance, for me, at least, started with āThe Six Thatchersā.
This hurts because Iām putting a significant level of distance between myself and a show Iāve been enjoying since shortly after Series 2 released. This series left me feeling singed. I couldnāt have been more disappointed with S4 overall, though there were some minor positive patches here and there. I immediately said to myself after the āThe Final Problemā ended: āWhat a wasted opportunity.ā As did many other individuals in the Tumblr Johnnlock community (and some in the Tumblr Sherlock community). Thereās nothing I noticed that wasnāt also noticed by others in the Sherlock and Johnlock communities.
Even if this is all a massive audience-oriented stunt designed to go into TV history books, even if they somehow retconn/pull a Bobby Ewing/explain what was āactually going on,ā I canāt say that I will necessarily be one of the first people to watch the new material they create, as Iāve enjoyed being before. I may not watch the new material at all. I have no idea why the creators of this show would suddenly plunge its quality into āfake stuff/shitshowā territory. Ā I echo, however, welovethebeekeeperāsĀ āWe were not wrongā post - the creators changed direction, or were forced to change direction, and they chose to go theĀ āfuck you/fake stuffā route in creating S4, as opposed to protesting and refusing to generate any content until they were able to do exactly as they had seemingly planned from the get-go (aka: TJLC)(ETA: as of this writing, welovethebeekeeper has since deleted her blog).Ā
Iāll watch for reviews and discussion before I decide to invest time and energy in either Moffatās or Gatissās future projects. Iāll also watch for reviews and discussion before I decide to watch another season of Sherlock, if any more are forthcoming.Ā I couldnāt be more disappointed in feeling like I need to do this.
We all, regardless of age, need fiction/stories/narratives bigger than ourselves to escape to when life gets shitty (and holy god, has this year been a CORKER so far). For a while, Sherlock was that narrative; I now find myself falling back on other narratives to carry me through the shitty times.Ā
I expect to post Johnlock and talk Johnlock again someday in the future, but I donāt necessarily expect to return to watching the show. My current mental state canāt look back on even my favorite episodes without feeling the taintedness from S4 leaking retroactively through, which is a crying fucking shame. Ā
welovethebeekeeperās posts have been most instrumental in helping me process and frame my reactions to the season. @wssh-watsonāās posts put concrete words to my abstract thoughts. @yorkiepugās anger towards the season almost perfectly echoes mine and gives me energy. Give these fine individuals a follow, if you havenāt already.Ā
Stay tuned, if you have the wherewithal - Iām not abandoning this blog, and Iām not abandoning Johnlock. We were not wrong.Ā
I live in a state in the US of A that has this spider:
This is the female Bold Jumper Spider (courtesy of BugGuide.net).
This is the male Bold Jumper Spider (courtesy of Thomas Shahan on YouTube).
I believe I have only ever seen male Bold Jumper Spiders in my lifetime. They are particularly startling because of their quick movements - theyāve rightfully earned their name. š Ā They can grow to be rather large spiders, are frightened of humans, and eat other bugs. Here is where my present-day story begins.
I have had an ant problem in my home for about a year; they seem to like to eat the wood that constructs the house interior and the kitchen cabinets (!!!), but generally donāt get into my food. During the summer, they leave leftover wood chewings and their droppings all over my kitchen counters every day, then they die after a while and raise an awful stink until I clean their corpses out.Ā
Two nights ago, I was puttering about in the kitchen late at night when I saw a rather large Bold Jumper Spider (who was large enough to have made an audible *ploonk* in my stainless steel kitchen sink when it dropped in) trying to scurry away from (shocked, screeching) me.
I sped-walked away as quickly as possible, and did not kill the spider; in spite of the encounter, I forgot about it until the next morning.
When it was time to make breakfast, I walked into my kitchen and saw the mangled bodies and severed limbs of ants, and their slaughtered larvae, over a small section of the counter. Some were barely alive, but none were moving properly - many had no legs, as they had seemingly been ripped off. Immediately, I thought of the ālittle,ā furry, eight-legged visitor to my kitchen the prior evening, as that was the only change in the kitchen I had witnessed.Ā
A Google search confirmed my suspicions - this is when I discovered that ants (and bugs smaller than the spider) are a primary food group for the Bold Jumper spider.Ā
I left the ant bodies where they were, telling myself that I would be deep-cleaning the kitchen soon (this Professorās Life in Summer gets ultra-chill this time of year š ) and went about my day, both pleased by the absence of the ants, and highly distracted and distressed by what was going on in my country (this was on May 17, 2017). Ā
This morning, I again walked into my kitchen to start breakfast, and noticed that all the ant bodies, their larvae, and their severed limbs, were gone from the field of slaughter. In fact, it was quite clean. However, in another small spot on another section of my counters, there was another massacre.
This time, it was mostly larvae, and just a few ants on the edge of death, but there were also very short piles of larvae stacked against my kitchen flimflam - clearly, the Bold Jumper visitor had been gorging themselves overnight.Ā
I think Iāll leave the larvae out for the visitor, in spite of the fact that spiders DO NOT MAKE ME COMFORTABLE, especially when they boldly jump (when threatened). If they perform an au naturale pesticide service, then I will abide and invite their presence. You just wonāt catch me feeling cuddly about them anytime soon. š Ā Ā
āI rise today with a sense of responsibility and duty to the people who have elected me, a sense of duty to this country, a sense of duty to the Constitution of the United States of America.
āI rise today Mr Speaker to call for the impeachment of the President of the United States of America for obstruction of justice.ā
āThere is a belief in this country that no one is above the law. And that includes the President of the United States of America.ā
Rep. Al GreenĀ (D-TX)
Here's the link to the story: http://thehill.com/homenews/house/333807-dem-calls-for-trump-impeachment-on-house-floor
When I typed "stupid idiot" into Tumblr's GIF search box, this was the second option on the first line of results. This makes me almost unbearably happy.
I was even looking for THE GIF to use to round off my previous post.
question: how would you deal with cyber attacks against the US government?Ā
donald trump: i am so strongly against cyber. we came up with the internet. cyber is a big issue. we need to be SMART and QUICK. let me tell you. my son has a computer. heās 10! heās so good on that computer so good you wouldnāt believe it!
Hereās one source, and it corroborates with others: Trumpās Incoherent Ideas About āthe Cyberā
āSo we had to get very, very tough on cyber and cyber warfare. It is a huge problem. I have a sonāheās 10 years old. He has computers. He is so good with these computers. Itās unbelievable. The security aspect of cyber is very, very tough. And maybe, itās hardly doable. But I will say, we are not doing the job we should be doing. But thatās true throughout our whole governmental society. We have so many things that we have to do better, Lester. And certainly cyber is one of them.ā
Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
A Chechen spokesman denied the report, saying, āYou cannot arrest or repress people who just donāt exist."
This weekend, Russian media reported that officials in the republic of Chechnya have detained more than 100 gay men and killed at least three. The number of dead may actually be much higher; in recent weeks, gay men have been simply disappearing off the streets.
Russian officials are saying this is impossible because āthere are no gay people in Russia.ā Really.Ā
A spokesman for Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, who is a vocal supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin, denied that any such activities have taken place. He further suggested that there are no gay people in the country at all.
āYou cannot arrest or repress people who just donāt exist in the republic,ā spokesman Alvi Karimov said in a statement obtained by Radio Free Europe on Saturday. āIf such people existed in Chechnya, law enforcement would not have to worry about them, as their own relatives would have sent them to where they could never return.ā
