The Lady In The Tower

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hzpr7bL1Iw4

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h112-3166

Above is a link to Congressman Charles Dent's (R-PA) video where he discusses the bill he is co-sponsoring, the Enemy Expatriation Act (H.R. 3166), followed by a link to the bill's text. The bill, if passed, is meant "to add engaging in or supporting hostilities against the United States to the list of acts for which United States nationals would lose their nationality." (Quote from govtrack.us) Now, Dent says that the bill is meant to take away American citizenship from terrorists, presumably to make the American people safer.

I respect the intention to stop terrorism and protect innocent people. I'm one of the people being protected, I very well should. But things like this scare me. Why? Well, for one thing, the bill doesn't specify how this is to be determined. Someone will lose their citizenship for engaging in or supporting "hostilities" and hostilities in this context means "any conflict subject to the laws of war". It makes no mention of how this is to be proven. I'd like to be optimistic and believe that very strong proof of involvement or support will be needed to strip someone of their nationality, but... This bill gives no indication one way or another.

It's not this bill that is the truly frightening thing, though. The issue here is the precedent it could so easily set. This bill talks about hostilities. But could someone use this bill to write another one where "hostilities" is replaced with "dissent"? I honestly don't know, and I'm not trying to start a panic, but I feel like there needs to be something more concrete. At least tell us what, precisely, counts as support. Tell us how this will be determined, tell us what proof there will need to be before an American citizen loses that title. Because I read this and I wonder if it will end here.

I support anti-terrorism measures. I don't want another terrorist attack to happen in the US, or anywhere else for that matter, not ever. I just wish this bill was more specific. Engaging in hostilities is obvious, but what constitutes support? Sending money, most likely. But what else? Directly saying that you believe in al-Qaeda? Or saying something that runs counter to "America's ideals", a phrase Congressman Dent uses in his video? The former is supporting terrorism, and I can live with that, though I still don't like the precedent it sets. But the latter, that isn't terrorism. That's dissent. "We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty." Edward R. Murrow, considered the father of broadcast news, said that in the 1950s, and it's still true.

I would like to think that our government believes that. I would like to think that they would never have that confusion, and will not be tempted to move against those who do not support terrorists, but merely disagree with their country. As American citizens we're allowed to disagree. If that disagreement leads to threatening the safety of others directly or indirectly, then measures should be taken to protect that safety. But if it does not, then there is no justification for punishment.

I've been trying to find a media report on this from a trustworthy source, some sort of report that will hopefully go more in-depth on this issue, perhaps with an interview from Congressman Dent or one of his co-sponsors. I can't find anything, and the news I have found comes from outlets I'm not familiar with and can't be sure are on the level. I tried the New York Times, I tried the Washington Post. There are no articles on either website. I can't say if that is a good or a bad sign. I hope that I'm reading too much into this, and that the intent behind this bill is exactly what Congressman Dent says it is, and that only true supporters of terrorist organizations will be targeted by it should it pass. I just can't find enough reliable information to be certain of that.

So, posting from Dreamwidth, though most of you are probably still reading it via LJ. As a side note, I am fae_boleyn on DW too for anyone who would like to follow me there. :D

Anyway. No updates this Christmas, aiming for New Year's instead for what will hopefully be a multi-post. *crosses fingers*

Following Hetalia Bloodbath 2011 for Christmas, it's so exciting and silly, and just a lot of fun.

Anyway, I want to wish everyone on my flist a Merry Christmas, a Happy mid-Hanukkah, or an early Happy Kwanzaa!

Bloody hell. Michigan Senate, what is your problem? How could you ever think this is OK?

http://www.pridesource.com/article.html?article=50153

Allowing bullying when it's a statement of a firmly held religious belief? What? No, no. Just no. Religions have been persecuted, but they are also an excuse to persecute, and bullying is persecution. I found this on an LGBTQ news site, but it's not just the LGBTQ community at stake here. Kids of other religions, kids of single-parent homes, you can find a religious excuse to go after almost anyone.

I'm going to cut this off before I lose my coherency as well as my temper.

So, I've been rather absent on LJ and Twitter lately, I do apologize. I've been drifting around the Internet but not being very sociable, that's very hermit-like of me. I should be on Twitter more, we shall see how it goes.

( In which there is news and vague brooding )

On to this meme, for once not jacked from anyone, I'm starting it though I am sure that someone else has done it.

List five ways in which fandom, specific or general, has invaded real life for you.
( Here be my answers! )

Fucking hell. Not this again. Another kid driven to suicide.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post/jamey-rodemeyer-bullied-teen-who-made-it-gets-better-video-commits-suicide/2011/09/21/gIQAVVzxkK_blog.html

This story just... It breaks my heart more than some of the others did, somehow.

Also, I just e-mailed my father. I think... I might try to find some kind of relationship with him again. I have no idea what's going to happen and I'm kind of a little scared about it.

So, I picked this blog post up from _profiterole_'s LJ, and... Well, it doesn't surprise me, really. Now, I'm not going to say that every agent will reject a YA book for having a gay character or a poly character in it - the writers themselves acknowledge that.

But the fact that it could be one of the reasons and in some cases is? Yeah, that gets to me. YA books, in my view, should not have, say, explicit sex scenes or really much romance beyond kissing, but that's for any sort of pairing. And the teens who read these books? Some of them are going to be gay. Simple statistics. Don't they deserve protagonists they can identify with just as much as the straight teens?

You'd think so, wouldn't you?

It's one nice thing about fanfic, I'll have to say that. We might not always be right about how we interpret canon, and some of our pairings are quite frankly ridiculous and would never happen outside of our heads, but we can do it. We can write any kind of relationship that we want, and while I know the rep for slash fans is that we all just like writing porn of pretty boys, I don't believe that. It's in there, sure, but that's not the only thing we like - I think I can say that, having written slash and poly fics that get a fair bit of good feedback despite the total lack of smutty content.

I'm getting off my soapbox now.

I need to get ahold of Good Omens. I do have a PDF on my computer, so I can read that I guess, but PDF reading is tedious as all get out. I should know; I did it recently with Pride and Prejudice as well as several school textbooks. Which won't stop me from seeking free PDFs of my textbooks for this semester; saving money is good, but when reading for fun... My library doesn't have it, though they did have Anansi Boys. I can forgive them a little.


But seriously. I was reading the PDF until I got irritated with the format, and now I desperately want either a hard copy or a Kindle copy - oh, wait, Kindle didn't have it last time I checked. That was why I ended up with American Gods. (I'm noticing a pattern here.) Sigh. And sigh again. At this rate the PDF's looking better and better, to be honest. (And from looking at the cover page on the PDF, with Aziraphale and Crowley, I cannot get the image of Max Brown playing Aziraphale out of my head. He... may not be blond enough, but even so. Help!)


On other topics, I'm writing again. slowly but surely. I've tinkered with the Inception genderbend and the OT3 wedding fic. My plan to set off the start of a new school year right is to spend the weekend (once I've moved) in alternating between immersion in various canons and then writing in them. I may also borrow the freewriting strategy from NCIS' Timothy McGee. If that happens, I do not know what I will come out with and in what fandom, but I'll certainly be nice and share it.


I'm working on chapter 15 of Standing Outside the Fire, and for anyone who actually knows/cares about the Tudors, you'll understand the significance when I say I'm writing my version of late 1.08 into 1.09, also known as the Blackfriars Trial stuff. For those not in the know... This is a milestone. It's a tense situation and it's making me tense when I write it. But I'm enjoying it; as I recently discovered when the sheer level of angst in Supernatural fic had me seeking shelter, court intrigues are apparently my happy place/comfort zone. I'm sure this says something about me, I'm just... not sure what. Also, this fic, which began partly as a fusion between three challenges on the Tudors forum, has now added elements of a fourth in the 1536 arc. Dear God, what am I doing to myself?


Speaking of Supernatural, I need more canon immersion, but... I have a feeling I'm not going to leave Adam in Hell or Gabriel dead. Adam because that's just not fair, can't that kid catch a break? Gabriel... Um. I really, really like him. I probably shouldn't. But I do. (Also he's cute. Speaking of cute, and back to Adam, I remember Jake Abel from the Percy Jackson movie as well... When between his appearances there and in Supernatural did he grow into his face and get cute?) I will need to find out how to have the Winchesters meeting human!Castiel after about three years (in which I think they believed he was dead) without too much freaking melodrama because I don't like melodrama.


Back to things actually written, my X-Men BB is slowly coming along. I'm having trouble getting to Points B and C from A, mostly because I know what happens from C to F (or something like that) but before then is a little murky. My Inception fic doesn't seem to want to do much, but as I said, I'm hoping a movie rewatch and maybe reading some fic because I haven't in a while will get the juices flowing again. My Hetalia fics seem to be stalled, I need to do something about that as well.


The trick is to not kill any of my muses while trying to revive others. Oh, and there will be school and quite possibly an internship as well. This is going to be an interesting time, isn't it? And I'll be 21 this November; drinking age here in the States. I'm not sure I care as drinking is not much of a thing for me, but... Still.



Hey, at least the Phillies are number one in the NL East. :D I may or may not have a bit of a thing for newcomer pitcher Vance Worley. And his adorkable glasses. And the mohawk, which usually I don't like. *ponders*

So, I've never talked about Anita Blake on my LJ before, but I just read Hit List and... And... I don't. What. LKH, did you just...?

( Spoilers Below - You Were Warned )

I just want to know what's next; it has to be the potential U.S. Council. Who's likely to be on it (I feel we'll be seeing Auggie, Samuel, and Max again, and some new Masters/Mistresses of Cities), how are they going to set it up, so on and so forth. More vamp politics, which makes me happy because I really, really like vamp politics. And Edward. And the investigation-focused novels (largely because a lot of them also involve Edward).

In other news. The X-Men Big Bang is trucking along, but the ensemble cast seems to be growing. That wasn't in the design! Sigh. But at any rate, I'm having fun developing the 'verse, especially as this is not going to be one story and done. It's really fun to create AUs, I'm kind of hooked on it, honestly. Interestingly, I find that Charles has a temper and Erik is really, really snide when he's defensive/ticked off. Sigh, boys. They're also both in different flavors of denial, I kinda want to smack them.

But the good news is, there is Darwin! :D And I hope no one kills me for OCs.

My other fics are at a crawl if not a standstill, which is annoying. I should watch Inception and Tudors again, I need to kickstart something, Jesus Christ. *adds to to-do list*

Oh, and I need to look into internships. For, y'know, my real life career plans. I hate being an almost-adult some days.

So, I'm home this weekend to work, which technically sucks. Except it doesn't really since I kind of like work. I fight - jokingly - with my coworkers, chat with customers... It has its shitty moments but overall it's not bad. And also I have a job, in this economy this is good.

Being home also means being with my mother and grandmother. Which can be tense when we don't get along, but when we do... Like today, with Mom-Mom and Mom squabbling over "ice cream addiction" and screwing up the channel for the Phillies pre-game. This type of fighting is usually fun, Mom-Mom half-laughing and Mom rolling her eyes. Seriously, the way they are sometimes, I could film them, put it on YouTube, and be a hit. And then they would kill me. So no.

But. This is not why I am spinning. Oh no. i am spinning because of my Phillies. Yesterday, they came up from a 4-2 losing spot in the bottom of the ninth and won 5-4. Today, as of this post, they are winning 8-4. Oh, and Cliff Lee. He is pitching tonight. And how can I not love Cliff Lee, he turned down a serious bonus from the Yankees (Evil Empire) to come back to Philly, and he says he loves it here. Oh, and his eyes are gorgeous, though that's not relevant to his playing. :D Still...

Also I have this, mini-outtake from my OT3 series in which Arthur is a Philly native.
( In which Arthur channels my excitement )

So, I just spent the better part of the last two hours tracking down info on Libya to condense into an info page for tomorrow's radio show broadcast. And... I don't even know. I think I just found the downside to being a journalist, that's for damn sure.

It's the same feeling I had last week, when I was hunting down the latest on Japan. I mean, I'm thrilled in a way, one that I can't entirely explain. But for years now, every major crisis, my head has been split between feeling terrible for the people involved and wishing desperately that I was old enough and qualified enough to cover it myself. I didn't realize before how wrenching it can be, and I'm just gathering info from news sources and putting it together.

I wish that there was something I could actually do. You know, something besides typing stuff up for the hosts of the show to read out tomorrow and discuss while I work the sound board and make sure everyone actually hears what they have to say. Of course, part of me wishes I could join in the conversation, but that again is a product of what seems to be my split consciousness. I have ambition, and I have my dreams, and I don't feel guilty about that. But I don't think it really occurred to me, deep down, the stuff I'm going to have to work with.

This is the start, and I'm going to have to get used to it. Because when I'm actually out there it's going to be a lot harder. I just have to remember that this is doing something, I'm not just a helpless observer anymore. I think maybe that can be enough, or I certainly hope so anyway.