Why Mitt Romney is Worse than Dracula
Fans of Konami’s Castlevania series know him as the series’ big bad, the man they must kill every hundred or so years lest he bring untold darkness upon the Transylvanian landscape. And yet, a look at the videogame franchise’s history will show that for an undead, soul-sucking monster, Mathias Cronqvist (a.k.a. Vlad Tepes, or most famously Dracula) might as well be a Flea Man for all the actual damage he does. If he wants to truly be something to be feared, he could stand to get some tips from some real world people…say, current Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
«Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia» screenshot obtained from Castlevania Crypt.com
Okay, so Romney wouldn’t suck the blood of innocents or personally kill anyone, nor would he mind-control people from beyond the grave in order to assure his resurrection. Still, given his history, character, and claims, it’s fair to say that were he to become president, he would cause a level of suffering ol’ Vlad could only dream of.
Today’s Bit of Writing Fail
So apparently issue three of Marvel’s X-Men: Prelude to Schism features the following line:
”Kitty and Storm: powerful mutants, possessing the best qualities of their sex.”–Cyclops (Narrative Caption, I think)
Ugh. I wonder: if Paul Jenkins were asked what those qualities are (or what he thinks Scott believes those qualities are), what would he answer? I mean, surely it can’t be bravery or intelligence or their ability to inspire–it’s not like either sex has a monopoly on those. Their ability to lactate, perhaps? Their ability to give birth? In any case, it’s a rather unexpected position for someone who is leading the struggle for an oppressed minority’s personhood–surely if someone were to have «people are individuals–and that’s fine» drilled into his brain, it should be Scott freaking Summers.
That said, it’d be nice if such a line were actually an intentional attempt to portray Scott as someone who is unconscious of the way in which his stances help oppress people, despite his self-stated goals–its happens often enough in real life and it’d add some complexity to his character (even if ideally, I’d prefer the character not be sexist at all). Unfortunately, I don’t for a minute believe this is the case. I don’t know enough about Paul Jenkins to determine if the line is something he actually believes, or enough about Cyclops’ comic book incarnation to determine whether such a line is in-character for him, but the fact that it made it into the final product is disheartening, as both an aspiring writer and as someone who believes people should be treated as individuals.
Oh, goodie.
So, apparently the case against Dominique Strauss-Khan, the former managing Director of the International Monetary Fund who was arrested and accused of raping a woman, is falling apart, due to lies and inaccuracies in the victim’s testimony. My first thought: «Dammit. The kind of people who believe rape victims are lying liars who lie about being raped to get men in trouble are going to have a field day with this.» These people are not the ones who need more ammo for their bullshit beliefs. And yet, here we are.
Although forensic tests found unambiguous evidence of a sexual encounter between Mr. Strauss-Kahn, a French politician, and the woman, prosecutors now do not believe much of what the accuser has told them about the circumstances or about herself.
Since her initial allegation on May 14, the accuser has repeatedly lied, one of the law enforcement officials said.
Chasing Sheep 