I saw Hec's link the other day and was seriously WTF over that. Like, omg this was shortly after WW2, what part of torture and genocide being wrong did you not NOT GET??
Cordelia: You're him. You're Angel's son. Connor: It's not like I got to choose.
'Hell Bound'
Natter 70: Hookers and Blow
Off-topic discussion. Wanna talk about corsets, duct tape, or physics? This is the place. Detailed discussion of any current-season TV must be whitefonted.
meara - Oct 12, 2012 11:27:54 am PDT #25476 of 30001
Jessica - Oct 12, 2012 11:29:25 am PDT #25477 of 30001
And then Ortus came and said "It's Ortin' time" and they all Orted off into the sunset
And while I agree that steampunk is not in any way required to be historically accurate, I DO think steampunk should be aware and respectful of the problems inherent in it, not just go WHEE CULTURAL APPROPRIATION AND COLONIZATION!
I think there's a rather large gap between "not historically accurate because real Victorian jackets didn't have this many gears glued onto them" and "not historically accurate because if I took a step back and looked at who I'm really cosplaying it wouldn't be fun anymore."
Cass - Oct 12, 2012 11:30:30 am PDT #25478 of 30001
Bob's learned to live with tragedy, but he knows that this tragedy is one that won't ever leave him or get better.
He nodded a lot, and said something along the lines of, "But we're reinterpreting the history the way we want it to, without the awful parts",
Ignoring the atrocities is totally the way to make it okay? That's not even historical fiction, it's just creepy and wrong.
Jessica - Oct 12, 2012 11:33:29 am PDT #25479 of 30001
And then Ortus came and said "It's Ortin' time" and they all Orted off into the sunset
(I mean, personally, I love most steampunk clothes and jewelry. Gears and goggles and parasols and airships make me happy. But I think the being in character all the time thing is creepy and weird, and once you start actually placing your characters in a quasi-historical context, you have, on some level, a responsibility to be honest about what that historical context is.)
amych - Oct 12, 2012 11:35:04 am PDT #25480 of 30001
Now let us crush something soft and watch it fountain blood. That is a girlish thing to want to do, yes?
points and nods up there ^^^ at Jessica's spicy brains
Hil R. - Oct 12, 2012 11:35:05 am PDT #25481 of 30001
Sometimes I think I might just move up to Vermont, open a bookstore or a vegan restaurant. Adam Schlesinger, z''l
(I mean, personally, I love most steampunk clothes and jewelry. Gears and goggles and parasols and airships make me happy. But I think the being in character all the time thing is creepy and weird, and once you start actually placing your characters in a quasi-historical context, you have, on some level, a responsibility to be honest about what that historical context is.)
Totally this. Gears are awesome. Lots of that stuff is awesome. Purposely ignoring all context, not so awesome.
hippocampus - Oct 12, 2012 11:35:36 am PDT #25482 of 30001
not your mom's socks.
points and nods up there ^^^ at Jessica's spicy brains
sits with Amy.
Atropa - Oct 12, 2012 11:36:52 am PDT #25483 of 30001
The artist formerly associated with cupcakes.
Jessica, this is why I love you. Well, one of the reasons why I love you.
Jessica - Oct 12, 2012 11:38:37 am PDT #25484 of 30001
And then Ortus came and said "It's Ortin' time" and they all Orted off into the sunset
Awww, you guys.
Calli - Oct 12, 2012 11:43:49 am PDT #25485 of 30001
I must obey the inscrutable exhortations of my soul—Calvin and Hobbs
(I mean, personally, I love most steampunk clothes and jewelry. Gears and goggles and parasols and airships make me happy. But I think the being in character all the time thing is creepy and weird, and once you start actually placing your characters in a quasi-historical context, you have, on some level, a responsibility to be honest about what that historical context is.)
True. Have y'all seen Silver Goggles? It's a blog that's all about racial issues vis a vis steampunk. [link] The latest entry goes in-depth about some recent and not-so-recent racefails in the subculture:
This is a call-out of the steampunk community that will allow this kind of racism to stand.
This is a call-out of the steampunk community that refuses to discuss openly the myriad ways racism manifests in the subculture.
This is a call-out of the steampunk community that remains silent in the face of open racism.
This is a call-out of the subculture I love and of the community I participate in even though it is ever so alienating every passing year.