but aside from the mayhem thousands of un-Watched super-powered girls would wreak on the world,

My concern was more along the lines of "the mayhem thousands of un-Watched super-powered ANYBODYs would wreak on the world."

All superpowers should go to me. I'd use them responsibly. To right wrongs and ensure justice and to get me alot of stuff. I mean, er, to uh...balance the...

Ah, hell, I'd use it to get me alot of stuff.

Hence...the problem.

"If I am granted Slayer powers, or Nightcrawler powers, or, you know, whatever, I solemnly swear that I will use my abilities to get Bush out of the White House."

"Who would I put in? Uh..I don't know. Not me, certainly - I don't want the job!"

"If I am granted Slayer powers, or Nightcrawler powers, or, you know, whatever, I solemnly swear that I will use my abilities to get Bush out of the White House."

"Who would I put in? Uh..I don't know. Not me, certainly - I don't want the job!"

Yeah, that's about it.

"I solemnly swear to, uh...do whatever I feel like. 'cause, you know...superpowers. What're YOU gonna do about it?"

Yeah, I recognized the sexism in the way I typed the statement after I hit "post." To be more specific (and thus wordier), these girls are suddenly made different with no education, no context, nothing to help them out.

And this is what they said about us voting. You don't think elections are life and death. Let's talk Iraq.

They may hurt themselves or others accidentally, they may feel so alienated they will kill themselves, etc. It's a double-edged sword of a gift. Even without the super-power aspect, how many kids do you know who are born to parents who just have no clue how to raise the kid?

This is all true. But it's theirs. It was their legacy and birthright. Buffy could have either (along with Faith) hogged it, and let the world end, or share it, and take the risk. Yes, there is always a huge risk when you empower people, whether you're emacipating them, or allowing them to vote, or drink, or drive, or whatever. But to use the "what if they do worst-case scenario" to stop people from claiming what's theirs, whether it's a God-given right (life, liberty, yada) or supernatural bloodline that endows physical prowess, because they might fuck up? You don't sterilize people ahead of time, because they might be rotten parents.

the non-SiT girls who got the Slayer-power have no one who is prepared to deal with them.

Buffy didn't know diddly when she got her powers. Who was prepared to deal with her? Giles? Buffy and Willow's plans include finding them. Given Willow's magical ability, and the fact that Giles has contacts, they'll find many, if not most of them. If not, and if X number go bad, is it any worse than the other monsters that are already out there?

Sure, they MIGHT do great good, but human history doesn't tend that way.

I disagree. Human history tends both ways. You've got your Hitlers. You've got your Mother Teresas.

I don't think this was a perfect solution. I think it was the only solution, and has already done more good than harm, because in the doing, they were able to save the world.

edited because Matt is delusional

They don't have anything to get beyond (that we know of). Or does the message of having the power to let go of the bullshit apply only to Buffy (who is of course the whole point of the show)?

She's letting go of the category of Special by sharing that Specialness with other people. By passing the power on. The problem is not the power itself, but what it means to people and how they use it.

The season opens with Buffy passing on her power/strength/Specialness in the way normal people do -- by teaching. She shares her power with Dawn by teaching her how to fight. The season closes with this becoming sharing her (literal) power via the show's metaphor of magic, with both signposts (sharing power with Willow in "Same Time, Same Place", working with Willow & Xander and training the SiTs during the Endless Expository Episodes) and speedbumps (aforesaid Endless Expository Episodes).

So, yesterday and today between watching some S1 Angel DVDs and watching F/X Buffy, I realized two repeat actors making appearances (I'm sure most people already know this, these are just my delayed "aha!" moments). Ken from Anne is also in Bachelor Party, and the more heavily featured pool playing girl who is rescued by Angel in City of is one of the girls in Xander's little gang in The Pack (and Cleopatra 2525, and one of the actresses to play Sara on General Hospital, but that's a little off thread, eh?).

Then I noticed Tamara Braun's name in the credits of Lie to Me, and sure enough, she's the vamp into whose mouth Buffy stuffs the cross ... and now she plays Carly on GH, so there's a tie back to GH after all, ha! See, what's the prob? All the GH crossing and they couldn't have gotten Sarah Brown to play Eve? IJS. (Oh, well, hell, then Cleo 2525 has the Jamine connection, so there you go, whole post is, well, at least on topic 'verse if not threadwise).

I'm digging the letting go metaphor, PMM.

t hearting Jen for helping me carry the Sarah Brown torch

The One True Eve. Raise the light high!

I interrupt to point out how much I hate this criticism of Chosen. This was said to keep women from getting the vote, to keep them out of the pulpit and public office, and the workforce, and from having a drink in goddamn public, to keep them from getting birth control, yada yada yada.

Of course there are risks, but it's worse to keep power from people to whom it rightfully belongs.

t hearting Cindy big and deep

Have I mentioned what a praise whore I am? No. Well then, this is the perfect time.

On with the hearting of me, I say!