Abnormal is rapidly approaching release, and I want to know: What makes you #ABNORMAL?
There are tons of “abnormalities” in life that are criminalized, penalized, or ostracized in society. Transsexualism, LGBTQIA “lifestyle,” being overweight, underweight, tall, short, rich, poor, too ugly, too pretty even. What about you makes you “abnormal” by today’s society? What have you had to deal with due to your “abnormality”?
Let me know. In a comment, a tweet, an Instagram post–let me know what makes you #ABNORMAL. Hashtag #WhatMakesMeAbnormal and #ABNORMAL, and let’s get a conversation going. I want to know what you’ve gone through. I want to know your trials and tribulations due to not being the impossible “normal.”
I want to get “normal” thrown out the window–or maybe redefined. I want us all to be proud of our “abnormalities,” not shamed by them. I want to create a new normal, one that includes all of humanity–no matter what they look like, act like, talk like, whatever.
Category: Bullying
Inquisitive
I’ll be so glad when next Thursday afternoon is over. So glad. Some of the drama has been predictable, but some has, like the Spanish Inquisition, been … unexpected.
Can’t really talk about it all, though, so I’m vagueblogging today.
It’s total b.s. that things have gotten to where they’re at. Complete and utter b.s. Even worse, there’s nothing I can do about it. I just have to sit by and watch and hope for the best. The waiting sucks. The not knowing what will be sucks. And during the time that the things all come to a head? I won’t be able to be there for that, so I will spend most of that time fretting (and possibly drinking).
I hate not being able to be there. Much as I hate drama and being involved, I’ve come to discover that sitting on the sidelines for said drama can suck even more when you are invested in the outcome.
I gotta keep telling myself it’ll be okay. That even if it’s not, there are options to make things more bearable. Not necessarily better, but more bearable.
This witch hunt can’t last forever.
Fiction: Is It Really Worth a Life?
I’ve posted about rabid fandoms before, and this is yet another one of those posts. If you’re a rabid fan, you should probably stop reading this, because I’m going after you.
Why the hell would you send someone death threats over a fictional TV show or fictional characters from a book series? Why?
I was reading my Twitter feed today and saw a tweet from someone who had received death threats from a fandom. I don’t know the whole story; I don’t know if this person had negative things to say about the fandom, or if they were a part of the fandom that had a different viewpoint than the rest of the fandom. Those types of circumstances don’t matter. Death threats. Death threats. From a fandom.
What does it say about your fandom if the members send such serious threats with such reckless abandon? Do they (or you, if you’ve been guilty of this) not understand that a death threat is no joke? No matter what the fandom, no amount of insult to your idols and made-up worlds is worth even an empty death threat.
The world of fandom has become like one of the dystopian nightmares that have fandoms of their own. Hate is slung back and forth like so many grenades on a battlefield. Minute differences in opinion spark wars that can have literal casualties. Did these fandom warriors ever consider that some people may have difficult lives, that the fandom was their one “safe place” to hide from the torture of day-to-day living? What if that person you’re sending death threats to happens to be on the brink of suicide in their non-fandom life? What do you think happens then?
Fandoms need to calm the fuck down. Get over themselves. The hive mind isn’t the be-all and end-all of life. If you see your fandom going down that slippery slope of verbal attacks, stalking, and death threats, step back. Get out. The cult mindset isn’t healthy, and a world of fiction isn’t worth someone’s life.
Just because they’re a stranger on the Internet doesn’t mean they’re not a real person. Think before you tweet.
Writer’s block of a different sort
Well, here I am, stuck again. For once, I’m not talking about my work in progress; I’m talking about interview questions.
Usually, I don’t have much of a problem coming up with interview questions. I just ask the things that I–and theoretically fans of the musician(s), actor, author, artist, etc–want to know.
My problem? I’m interviewing the head organizer of the anti-bullying charity project that I’m involved in–so I don’t really know what someone unfamiliar with the project would want to know. I already know about the project (I’m even a co-admin and in charge of the American side of production once the anthology is ready), so I’m stuck as to what to ask.
Sure, I’ll ask how the anthology project came to be, about Scribes for Lives in general, about the British charity we’ll be supporting, but then what? I’m stuck.
I suppose the point of this post (as opposed to my usually pointless rambling) is this: Does anyone have any questions about the anthology project? This is my first time actively asking for comments on this blog, so feel free to throw a comment up there! 🙂
Pushed too far
It happens everywhere. School, home, work, the Web. I’m talking about bullying.
People bully for different reasons. They may be imitating what they’ve seen other bullies do. They may have grown up in a household of bullies and just not know any other way to act. They may be trying to cover their own insecurities. They may just be assholes. The reasons don’t matter. All that matters is that it needs to stop.
What is the point of bullying? Does it make the bully feel cool? Does it make them feel superior? I mean, why do it? Yeah, I listed reasons above, but those aren’t real reasons. More excuses. Y’know, “I was bullied so I’m just fighting back.” “That’s what my dad does.” “They deserve it for being fat/ugly/stupid/insert lame excuse here.”
All of those excuses mean precisely squat to me. There’s no valid reason for bullying. None. All it does is hurt the targets of bullying and can potentially be harmful. Some victims of bullying resort to self-harm, some even get pushed to the point of attempting (or succeeding at) suicide. It’s extremely emotionally devastating.
So why do it? Are these bullies just racist or sexist or homophobic, or maybe just plain phobic of anything that doesn’t fit their ideal of what a person should look like or who a person should be? You hear that, bullies? Maybe you’re just scared. Pretend predators who are really just frightened little rabbits, nibbling at others’ feelings to try to feel powerful and fierce.
I don’t care what kind of power you may feel when you bully someone. I don’t care if you’re doing it due to some deep-set insecurities. If you find yourself pushing someone–physically, verbally, or emotionally–quit it. Just stop. Just fucking stop.
In short, to quote the immortal words of Wil Wheaton: “Don’t be a dick.”