The Introspective Geek

Apparently, I don't suck, and someone out there feels that my contributions to fandom are worthwhile, so the prestigious Emmagrant will be interviewing me tonight for Slashcast. For those who don't know, slashcast is an inter-fandom slash-based podcast. It started out in the Harry Potter fandom, but as the writers of the HP fandom branched out into other fandoms, our prestigious hosts expanded the scope of slashcast itself.

The topic for which I'm being interviewed? BDSM in fanfiction. I'm going to give a personal and in-depth look at what I write, why I write it, and what my purpose is for what I write. If you've ever wondered how I tick when it comes to fanfic, listen in. (I'll link the podcast once it's edited and posted.)

Also, Kriken interviewed me for a brief soundbite for slashcast while I was at Arisia, so listen in for that, too.

Anybody? It's a long project, but there's no actual deadline. I'm at 74,000 words now, and it's getting exciting. Would anyone like to beta?

My wife just defined fandom. We were watching THIS amazing video, which is a tribute to the entire history of Doctor Who. It was made by a FAN. It's incredible. And then my wife defined fandom in a nutshell.

She said: "People who get paid don't make shit this good."

And that is the definition of fandom. That's why we write fic, make vids, draw fan art, and CREATE.

And OH, my fandom, it is GLORIOUS.

Aaah, you know what time it is. The Family Research Council (a homophobic organization in bed with the National Organization for Marriage and other fundamentalist dominionist Christian groups) had their head honcho post this piece of trash on CNN.com:

Apparently, Jesus was a free market supporter. Christ for Capitalism! WHEEE!!!

This is such a juicy piece of religion-twisting-for-propaganda. I've seen stuff like this in recent months - lots of folks pretending that Jesus was a pro-capitalism financial cheerleader. It's hilarious. Did you see that billboard? Yeah, that sort of shit.

See, just because I left the Jesus Fan Club years ago doesn't mean I don't remember all those years of Bible studies. I also happen to have a mother (Hi, Mom!) who was the odd combination of rational and religious. So... for being raised in the Jesus Fan Club, I had a very practical application of it. Science was reality. Religion is morality (sorta). But anyway...

This article twists one of the parables. Go on, read the article.

...

I said read it. Otherwise, how else will you know what I'm ranting about?

Read it? Good. So... here's what I want to say to the knucklehead who wrote this:

The parable of the King giving the minas to his servants wasn't about monetary profits. The parable was about growing the numbers of followers, making a spiritual investment, and also making the most of the gifts God gave to you such as your intelligence and compassion.

As far as the business of making money was concerned... wasn't Jesus the guy who threw the merchants out of the temple? Didn't he say (regarding money and taxes), "Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's?" Didn't he say, "Sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor?"

And... doesn't the Bible condemn usury? It does. Repeatedly. You see, we don't have a capitalist system. We have a corporatist system, and our entire financial structure is based on the lending of money at interest... a practice condemned in multiple places in the Bible. In fact, the Bible is significantly clearer on its stance against usury than "hot button" issues like gays and abortion. Go on... do a search for "Bible usury." Those two words will bring you plenty of references.

The Bible specifically condemns usury in regards to lending money to the poor. Good followers of God are supposed to lend money to those in need, but NOT at interest. NEVER at interest. Not to the poor, nor to family or friends. And if you charge interest to a wealthy person in a business transaction, the interest rate must not be excessive. Have you seen the interest rates on credit cards? THAT is usury, NOT free market as Jesus would have recognized it.

Of course, I'm not Christian. Wise man said, "I like your Christ, but I do not like your Christians. They are so unlike your Christ." Well, just because I'm not part of the Jesus fan club doesn't mean I can't read and comprehend. It doesn't stop me from holding your own behavior up against the religion YOU CLAIM and seeing whether or not you're full of shit. And having come from a Christian background and knowing your religion inside and out, I KNOW YOUR HYPOCRISY. It's an ugly, ugly thing you have going.

Someday, you're going to have to accept that the biggest reason (other than the Constitution) that we're not a Christian nation is because a nation that actually followed Christ wouldn't treat the poor, the sick, the hungry, the homeless, the outcasts, and strangers as we treat them. And as for OWS... yeah, Jesus would have been down in the Occupy Wall Street protests. Not just protesting along with them, but leading them through the lobbies of the huge corporate banks and throwing out the CEO's who are raking the poor people of the nation over the coals. Jesus would condemn the entire mortgage industry, the credit card companies, and all those making money through the exploits of usury and investment trading. Jesus would be a socialist.

Talk about an inconvenient truth.

The point is that we're dealing with people who have no qualms about manipulating and completely twisting the nation's dominant religion in order to sway public policy in the most insidious way. The point is that people listen to this shit. It's bad enough that people want to base public policy on ANY religion... but once there are no rules, and the religion can be bent to the whims of the people in power, completely gutting ANY positive message that the religion once had... we're in trouble.

So... in conclusion, I bring back this oldie-but-goody. Take it away, Stephen:

“If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition and then admit that we just don't want to do it.”
― Stephen Colbert

81 words

typing test

I thought I'd never learn to type. Apparently, I'm not half bad.

Also, life has been weird lately, hence my lack of posting. How is everyone?

There are enough explosions to satisfy my need for action in a movie. It won't be anything particularly profound or thought-provoking... but action, explosions, and Chris Pine? I think I can ignore the blatant romance theme just for the sake of that, plus the ludicrous antics.



(And, by the way... hi! I'm still alive!)

Okay guys, the party is ON! The date is Saturday, August 13th (this upcoming Saturday).

Details HERE.

Please RSVP. See you this weekend!

I met William Shatner today.

I managed to get in line to ask him question during his presentation at the convention, and was close enough to the front of the line that I got to the microphone.

I asked him the question I've wanted to ask the man for years -- in short, does his portrayal of Kirk mean something to him (beyond just a paycheck), and what aspect of his role in Star Trek does he want to be remembered for. I told him that his role as Kirk had an influence on my military career.

He asked for me to tell him about that, in more detail. I said it was a long story and didn't want to monopolize the microphone. He said to break it down into one-liners and tell the story anyway. So I did. A very abbreviated version, but I told my story, and explained the key things that Kirk did or said that had the most direct impacts on my life and career.

The Shat had a moment. He really did. I watched as the wall came down, and he looked at me as I told this story, with this look of complete enthrallment on his face.

And yes, the wall came down. He talked about how he talked with Patrick Stewart, who spoke of his role as Captain of the Enterprise with pride, and said that yes, the role meant something more than just a paycheck and a simple sci-fi role, and that it matters. And that hearing it from another "serious" actor like Patrick Stewart made him think about it, and reconsider.  And that he started hearing the stories from fans who have been deeply inspired.

And he said that after the original series was over, people would shout out to him, "Beam me up, Scotty," and stuff like that, and he started to wonder if people were mocking him. And suddenly, I understood why Shatner would be defensive and stand-offish to fans. It makes sense.

We chatted back and forth, and he held out his hand and asked me to come up and shake his hand. He gave me a strong, warm handshake, and I looked at him, and I just wanted to give him a hug. So I asked.

He pulled me up on stage and gave me a hug that felt like the sort of hug you give to a friend you haven't see in years but miss dearly. And I said in his ear, "Thank you." And he said, "Thank you."



(By the way, he isn't tall.)



I cried. I think he got misty eyed. Everyone in the room had a moment.

I'm still a bit in shock.


I've said many times that I wasn't sure what I thought of Shatner. I'd heard enough stories back and forth, positive and negative, that I didn't know what to think. I said that I would reserve judgement until I met him for myself.

I've met him now. And I have nothing but love for the man.

Click to see the full-sized version.  Now I want to make "formulas" for all of our favorites.