Posts Tagged ‘oppression’

I’m Okay With Bronies Now

Monday, August 13th, 2012

If you’re the sort of person who frequents the outskirts of the Internet then there’s a good chance you’ve stumbled upon  the curiosity known as a Brony. If you haven’t, they’re the 16-34 year old male whose frightening devotion to the children’s cartoon My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic takes awkwardness to new heights.

And for the longest time – ever since I heard of Bronies on whatever cesspool of humanity’s website it was (4chan I’m looking at you!) – I just couldn’t accept them.

It seemed ludicrous, absurd even, for grown men to act like girls in preschool. Worse still, they wouldn’t just do it quietly. They had to be loud and in your face with it, begging for someone to give them the equivalent of a high-five, the bro-hoof /)

And perhaps most innervating was the apparent growth of the Brony population. It just wouldn’t go away. If anything, Bronies (and their female PegaSis counterparts) are more prevalent than ever before.

So, for the longest time, I stood beside the average teenage gamer and Youtube commenter, condoning the open ridicule and scorn of anything Pony related.

But then I had a moment of clarity. An epiphany, if you will.

These Bronies represent something that makes me feel awkward. It’s not about what they are doing… it was about how it made me feel – uncomfortable –  because no proper human male behaves as such.  And it was this realization – that my own indoctrination about acceptable social norms was prejudicing me – which exposed the fear-rooted negativity being roused by the Brony population.

Why can’t a man openly love a cartoon show about magic ponies and then gather frequently with other like-minded men to watch something that seems to be written for little girls? If it’s not hurting anyone, then there is no harm.

So now I can accept Bronies. I still don’t approve of their lifestyle choices. But it’s their choice and whatever they do will no longer evoke hateful emotions from me.

And if you yourself are a Brony, thank you for exposing me to my own prejudices and challenging me to expand my horizons. While you’re unlikely to get a bro-hoof back, at least you’ll no longer get a bro-slap.

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First Class Security Theater

Thursday, March 15th, 2012

If you live in the United States and you travel by air,  you are familiar with the TSA. Yes, the notorious Transportation Security Administration, renown for hiring sexual deviant employees to molest children  while their easily bypassed, radiation spewing body scanners preferentially select hot women, has reached a whole new level of greasiness.

So what are they up to, you ask? Why, creating a caste system for airport security! Now CEOs, celebrities, politicians and other mucky-mucks won’t have to settle for simple first class seating. Instead, they can also snub their noses at the masses while cruising past screening lines with their first class security clearance. (more…)

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Bahraini Gov’t is Bah-rutal

Sunday, April 17th, 2011

(Now we see the violence inherent in the system!)

In the latest attempt to squash the Arab revolt from within their borders, Bahraini officials have set their sights on scholars studying abroad.

Students in the UK, who were photographed supporting the Bahrain uprising, have been stripped of government-funded scholarships and their parents were told to call their children back home.

The students fear being arrested should they return home, and that their families might be subjected to beatings and torture from the repressive regime.

Clearly Bahrain’s oligarchs are the kind of inhumane, selfish thugs who have no place in a civilized and just world, and are exactly the kind of corruption we will be eradicating as we foster a new peaceful and egalitarian dawn.

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The Internet: We’re Here for You!

Saturday, April 2nd, 2011

(Oh intermittent wireless signal, why hast thou forsaken me?)

Abuse, exploitation or oppression got you feeling down? Don’t suffer in silence anymore! A whole world, full of eager individuals, is standing by to lend a hand. All you have to do is get your message out.

Grab a camera and start shooting. Spearhead a blog and let words be your weapon. Ignite a movement through Twitter and Facebook. Do whatever you can to make some noise.

With a compelling story that resonates with others, the global hivemind is sure to echo your cries. Then, as word spreads to someone in a position to provide assistance, there’s a good chance you’ll get all the help you need.

Whenever you experience injustice in your own life, or if you see it happening to someone else, the best thing you can do is muster up enough courage and speak out against it. Drag your woes out from the secrecy of the shadows where they draw their strength, and expose them to the truth.

Your problems may appear permanent right now, but they’ll crumble away underneath the might of a cooperating human race.

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Israeli Warplanes Bomb Palestinian Medical Building

Thursday, February 10th, 2011

Today the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) perpetuated yet another atrocity upon the Palestinian people. An air bombardment from Israel struck several targets in the Gaza Strip, including a warehouse used to store medicine.

The IDF claim today’s attack came as a response to the 40 or so projectiles launched from Gaza into Israel this year, but don’t be fooled. The conflict between Israel and Palestine is a one-sided battle, with Israel as the dominant aggressor and Palestine as the oppressed whipping boy.

Seriously, it’s not even close. Consider this:

  • Israel, as a nation, sits in the world’s top 20 for military spending. Palestine’s military spending doesn’t even register as a blip on the chart.
  • The projectiles launched by Palestinian militants are often simple, home-made rockets. Israel, on the other hand, uses the latest in military technology pulled from a vast arsenal.
  • For years, the Palestinian people have been kept on the brink of economic collapse while living in an open-air prison controlled by Israel. Meanwhile, the Israeli people are enjoying a significantly higher quality of life, ranked 23rd in the world.
  • Yes, it’s true that both sides are in the wrong for using violence. But on the Palestinian side, the aggressive acts are being perpetuated by small militant groups which Palestine’s government have condemned. On the Israeli side, however, the entire state of Israel is ultimately responsible for what many deem to be a grossly disproportionate response.

So why does this battle continue if it’s so lopsided? Because one side doesn’t want the conflict to end. As recently leaked documents show, Palestine’s leaders have been trying to end the violence for some time, offering tremendous concessions and compromises, but Israel will not accept peace.

Israel needs the war to continue as it serves several purposes. For one, it stimulates Israel’s tremendous Military Industrial Complex. Secondly, the fog of war has helped mask Israel’s consistent expansion into neighboring  territory. Without the distraction of violence and bloodshed, too many people might see the war for what it is: a blatant land-grab.

The Palestinian state has already said ‘Uncle’, but the bully Israel continues to punch the face of their fallen foe. It’s time for the world to intervene, saying ‘That’s enough, Israel’ and finally put an end to this grave injustice.

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