Grrl Power #296 – Morning routing
It’s weird seeing Sydney in a different colored shirt, but this ain’t no Hanna Barbara cartoon. If you’re wondering where the orbs are in the first few panels, she stuffed them back in the tube.
I’d like to draw Sydney with different hairstyles every now and then, but braids are much more time consuming to draw and color than ponytails, and French Braids are a straight up pain in the ass. I got distracted with the braid step by step (there’s even an additional panel of that sequence I penciled but cut before I started inking) and meant to show Sydney covering up her bruise with cosplay supplies. Obviously her makeup box would be inadequate for the task. The only things in it are chapstick, which Sydney considers to be makeup, probably a light shade of lipstick, and only because it has sunblock built in, an eyeliner pencil that she used once but stabbed herself in the eye, and a bunch of different colored hair ties.
The disadvantage of working at 600 dpi is it’s sometimes hard to gauge how legible little details will be at web size, so here’s a closeup of the package on the counter.
If I was a girl and had a choice of birth control, I would definitely go with the one with the funny name. BTW this doesn’t imply Sydney has a boyfriend at the moment, a lot of women use the pill to moderate their symptoms and even control when they get their period to some degree.
Here’s the link to the new comments highlighter for chrome, and the GitHub link which you can use to install on FireFox via Greasemonkey.
SuperheroThey're super, thanks for asking!
Meatspace ComicSeriously these are awesome. Check 'em out!
Not UpdatingNo longer updating or only updates sporadically, but definitely worth reading.
SeriouslySeriously you guys. If you like Grrl Power the check these out.
"Mature"Mature subject matter and occasionally something explicit but usually safe. Can't guarantee the ads are safe though.
Dongs Ahoy!Full frontal and backal. Lots of skin, sex on some or all pages, explicit or otherwise.
its always fun to watch the vulture get chewed out for not having the common courtesy of trying to schedule an interview or even try to go through appropriate channels.
Sydney gave them both barrels and a reload as she flew away.
am I the only one who wants Sydney’s shirt? What would Deadpool do? if that’s any representation of her current mindset, the story is gonna get even crazier
I love that shirt as well
https://www.redbubble.com/shop/what+would+deadpool+do+t-shirts
Thanks for linking that. I seem to recall somebody else found those too. But it is kind of you to post it for Ty here, even if they did.
Mind you Dave’s is implemented way better. And that is not just flattery, it is my honest assessment.
Not just in aesthetics of the shirt. But also because the font they use is almost illegible. The black print against such a dark red/maroon background does not help either. It may be his hero colours, but you need a clear, easily readable, font if you want to overcome the lack of contrast.
Even zoomed in, so that the characters appear on my monitor in the kind of size you would see them on a t-shirt, I could only figure out what it was meant to say, by first reading the captions, on the website, rather than the shirt!
The label on that box of Midol…Was it hand drawn?
Nah, just an image from their site I touched up a little. I could recreate a simple design like that pretty easily but no need to spend the time.
Using a trademarked image like that might not be the best move… If there’s any chance that this could be confused with product placement, or be misconstrued as Midol supporting and sponsoring the comic… well… you’re media savvy… you know why the shark in Jaws was nicknamed “Bruce” during filming?
Anyway, point is, unless they authorized their product to be in the comic, you might have some sharks in suits being sicced on you. I am not a lawyer, but still, it might not be a good idea.
It’s called fair use. And grrl power is a legitimate parody, giving it some degree of protection.
Fair use doctrine. Its a common defense against trademark use, if for educational, newsworthy, or satirical/pardody use. This would fall under #3. DaveB is not going to get in trouble. Stop worrying.
Ooh ooh!
*holds up paw*
Sir, sir!
The Midol is also there for educational purposes. We has learnt a lot. And, on the previous comic, one of the readers indicated that they would use it to illustrate their next sex ed class!
Still not quite sure how the stork fits in though. Maybe we will see that as she flies higher?
You sort of weird me out a little…
only a little? Yorp.. you aren’t doing your job right!
:-D
…but thank you for watching out for our favorite comic artist. You’re a good human being.
I dunno, Heroine experiencing cramps on one page, next page she’s got Midol on her counter, I’d think they’d be ok with that. If not I could always change it to one of their competitors. It’s not like I’m endorsing it really, it’s just that as a guy, it’s the only drug I know of specifically designed for cramps and the like. (From a Bill Cosby routine from the mid 70’s where he took midol for a toothache or something) I’m sure there are plenty of others, I just wanted high recognition.
Since your comic is satire you are covered.
I remember that album well!
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Why_Is_There_Air%3F]
Push comes to shove, make it generic Naproxen Sodium, since that’s all that the extended release midol is. as a heavy cramps experiencing woman, i can tell you it works
Love the stuff I have knees and a back that act up. Leaves a normal person wondering how the hell I can even walk or move. The back feels like I’m passing a stone.
That’s Midol Complete which is Acetaminophen, Caffeine, and Pyrilamine maleate.
Midol. For supervillain-sized cramps.
Some companies pay good money for that kind of “oh everyone is using it so it’s just a random background item” type of product placement. Apple, Pepsi, and KFC have it as their main marketing strategy.
That Bill Cosby routine was the ^first^ thing ^I^ thought of about the Midol, in panel 1 (after finishing today’s page).
I wonder what Sydney’s first ‘fan made’ t-shirt (in the comic world) will look like…
I’m hoping for the shot from the bank where the ‘robber’ has been thrown to the floor, Sydney is standing over him, and the background is a text printout of her spew of insults from when he tried to grapple her.
1) Men get Trojans, women get Spartans.
2) Methinks Sydney is going to be making Arianna’s job a living hell.
3) I swear you focused half the comic of Sydney doing her hair specifically because I (and a few other people I’m sure) commented that hair-down-glasses-off Sydney was sexy. Ya bastard.
To #3: Hell yeah!!
Amen to that #3!
Well, Dave did specifically mention how hard it would be to consistently draw Sydney with fancy hairstyles…So he used this page to demonstrate to us a good, story-based reason why Sydney’s not likely to change her hairstyle much (if at all) in future comics.
C’mon people, give the guy a break…You need to let your hair down a little more.
;)
Hair down is not fancy but then again sometimes it’s in the way.
Do gay men get the Sacred Band of Thebes?
That was surprisingly tame for Syd. She’s usually more lengthy and vulgar in her insult strings. Too early in the morning maybe? Low on spicy food fuel for spicy insults?
Also, I wonder how sensitive those mics are. Wonder if they picked up any of that insult train as she was flying away. Kinda doubt it. Mics lose signal reception pretty drastically the farther you are from it. Depends on the pickup design I guess tho.
well if any of them knew she could fly, they might have brought long range equipment, though I doubt the could use it’s recordings with such language…. XD
Leave that to her arch-nemesis: The Filmer!
Wonder what angle he’s going to go for.
Doubtless a critical angle of attack.
Or a close up of ur get the point
It’s a good thing Sydney’s not the type to wear skirts…That would be a critical angle.
I shutter to think how she’d react to an upskirt…
It just could be that this is all the microphones could pick up before Sydney got out of range. She’s already in the process of taking evasive action, ya’ know…
Just showed the birth control to my sister. She likes it.
It is unfortunate that things like the pill are taken so lightly and used so flippantly in this context… hormone alteration causes serious long term and short term changes, many of which cannot be reversed even with time.
My wife and I discussed it with her doctor at length, and their experience is that something like 30% of women actually develop psychotic episodes (just periodic) while on the pill, but never actually attribute it to the pill. Often people attribute it to unrelated life stress, but I have seen it personally in two women who started on the pill when they became ‘serious’ with boyfriends,,, I’m talking, full blown trying to rip your face off for a few minutes a couple times a month psychosis. It can and does cause alarming amounts of brain hemorrhages each year, and much like all chemical and surgical interventions in birth, is so very much more dangerous with so many side effects that if doctors really let you know about it all you would never use these methods.
Also, for men, the pill kills most of your girl’s sex drive, with less than 3% of women experience no change. No sex drive means the pill does it’s job even better because there is less sex! Is it worth having very little sex just so you don’t have to wear a condom? If you really don’t want to wear that condom, use the Rythm Method. Worked for us for nearly a decade now, our child so far was deliberately planned.
“…30% of women actually develop psychotic episodes (just periodic) while on the pill…”
You’ve just confirmed what I heard the comedian Gallagher say: “Women are nuts.” (audience starts groaning) In response, he puts on a “knowing smile” & says: “Men are bolts, women are nuts.”
But yeah, long-term hormone changes aren’t really good for people…Those hormones are there for good reason, people! It makes me wonder about the surgically-transgendered people who also take hormones…
The reason they have to take hormones is due to them no longer producing them. The hormones take them up to normal levels for their proper gender, not over.
Well, Sydney is using it less for sex and more for countering her menstrual cramps, as Dave points out.
Also, last I checked, the pill was a prescription – so you HAVE to go in and talk to your doctor just to get it in the first place.
It’s not right for everyone but clearly it’s right for Sydney. Not sure what you want done about that. A lengthy flashback where she talks to her doctor? Unless it’s to have the doctor warn that it might make Sydney more aggressive while she humorously ignores the warning, picturing Sexy Batman in the chair instead, it seems rather unnecessary.
I’m so happy you took the time to make this comment. The negative side effects of the pill are seemingly endless. I developed a migraine, gained 14 kg (30 pounds), had major depression and almost dropped out of university.
Yet doctors don’t even think for a minute before the prescribe the pill for a teenage girl and that makes me scared. Many woman are temporarily (<1 year) or even permanently infertile after taking the pill for many years. A young girl died in France, because she got a stroke as a side effect of the pill, which is not as uncommon as one might think.
Indeed. But do not forget that our medical sciences are not perfect. There is rarely a clear-cut solution to any medical situation, where a safe result can be guaranteed, with no chance of a side-effect, or complication.
The key thing is that doctors are trained to maximise the chances of achieving a good outcome, whilst minimising the odds for a bad one. It is not that they do not realise there are drawbacks, it is just that they need to advise folks to follow the path that is healthiest for them.
So the risks you are describing need to be balanced with at least two considerations. One is, how frequently do the negative ones occur, in contrast to the problems of unprotected sex (or other alternative means of contraception) and how dangerous are they compared to the alternatives and their own dangers.
Of course, a good doctor must always adjust the risks, faced by the general population, by those that are particular to the patient in question. So things which are true, on average, may not be for a particular person.
Please do not fixate overly on the negatives, without taking into account, the positives. The consequences of unwanted pregnancies, the possible need for abortions (especially in jurisdictions where such is either illegal or hard to obtain), and all the risks of pregnancy (especially in under-age mothers, for example) are all major considerations which should be taken into account.
Of course, once having done that, it is perfectly right to choose not to use a particular contraceptive. And we are wise to not assume that doctors always know best. Sometimes they can indeed get it wrong.
Nor are they as common as the people who are opposed to sex for fun would like you to believe. It’s reached the point where I don’t trust any claims about the side effect/ failings of a form of birth control if it comes from a clearly reputable source.
You also rarely hear about the problems caused by the stresses pregnancy puts on a woman’s body, which can be significant.
um.. i don’t get your logic here… you are IGNORING warnings from a “clearly reputable source” in order to follow the ranting and ravings of crackpots?
or did you accidentally change the word “unless” to the as-posted-word “if” ?
It was clearly a typo, from the context, so the latter was the way I took it. Although, “even”, prior to the “if” does fit too. But it would be very sad, if that was the case, so I ran with the more moderate option.
On the other hand, some people with a working uterus have conditions that cause their ovaries to go a little haywire and which can generally only be treated with The Pill because “The Pill” is the only way to regulate the hormones that cause their symptoms. Examples include those with debilitatingly over the top cramps, or excessive bleeding on their period. Or Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. Have you heard of PCOS? The Pill is the only real treatment for it shy of literally ripping out the ovaries.
The reason is that ovaries normally produce A cyst – a single one — to help shove the next readied egg out to the fallopian tube; people with PCOS however, just keep producing them, uncontrollably, and it causes the organ to swell to dangerous extremes.
The easiest, SAFEST, most minimally-invasive way to treat PCOS is The Pill, because it restricts the release of the hormone that triggers release of the egg…in other words, the very same hormone that produces those cysts.
And again, there are those out there whose menstrual bleeding is excessive to the point of being dangerous, and those with cramps so debilitatingly potent they can’t function (we’re talking, the kind of pain that causes nausea and vomiting as a SIDE EFFECT because your body is so topsy-turvy out of pain — I’ve had ones like that once, thank god only once, and trust me when I say it’s not something I ever would wish on anyone shy of maaaybe Hitler). For a lot of these people the only way to prevent these extreme symptoms, is to regulate their hormones…with The Pill.
So, you know. It’s all well and good if you’re looking at it only from a anti-procreative stance and saying “hey, you know, there’s side effects that could happen!” because yeah of course there are. Third-Generation formulations in particular have a higher risk of stroke correlated with them, and ANY shift in your hormones can cause things like weight gain, depression,etc., to the extent that that warning applies well beyond “birth control” pills — anything that alters your body’s or brain’s chemistry can do that.
But PLEASE don’t badmouth the entire category of medication as if it is completely awful and never, ever necessary, because for a lot of people it is.
Don’t talk about it like it’s the freaking devil just because you or some so-and-so person had a bad reaction to a particular formulation if it, either — because what worked out terrible for you or so-and-so could still be literally lifesaving for someone else. Especially since a.) invasive surgery is also risky and also in this case would render many of those people permanently (yeah, not temporarily, permanently) infertile, and b.) so many damn doctors will try to turn down patients for ovary removals anyway because “but but but!!! BABIES!!! hypothetical future BABIES!!!” even if the patient really doesn’t want babies and would rather just have the troublesome useless organ that makes them bleed and suffer every month and might in fact actually kill them, completely removed.
So. In a medical climate like the US where people don’t have easy (let alone cheap) access to that kind of surgery or may just not want an invasive surgery or, you know, need one, sometimes the “birth control” medication is legitimately the best option.
Sorry it just bugs me when people freak out about those medications in a completely one-sided, demonizing way, because one of my best friends LITERALLY stays alive because of using one of said medications 3 out of every 4 weeks.
PS: honestly the part that actually bugs me about its appearance here is that it’s implied to be something you just take once in a while ‘as needed’, when it’s…more consistent. Especially the classic BC pill style of First Gen BC, which is intended to be a daily pill that you take placebos of during your period week and regular pills of daily. It’s not to the best of my knowledge, something you just take because “oh dear, today’s cramps are super bad!” ^^;;
Ok…we all know it’s a terrible terrible idea to take birth control advice from an webcomic comment, right? EEeeeespeecially skulldude’s.
So glad you pointed out that women use birth control for things other than preventing pregnancy! I actually take 3 pill packets in a row now, then have my period, then do 3 weeks in a row, etc. It’s made my cramps and flow less horrendously awful. (And you don’t actually have to have a period. You have a set number of ovulations, so they just… wait, basically. And the ovaries switch off each time, if you were wondering.)
I’m glad to see this brought up too — shame that some of the commentators here have overlooked that and freaked out about it, but.
The only thing that bothers me is the implication that she’s just spontaneously started taking it alongside today’s Midol, because cramping. Like you said, it’s usually a daily pill (when it’s in pill form, as opposed to shots). Still, maybe her cramps are coming unexpectedly because she’s been forgetting to take it…she’s canonically ADHD, and forgetting to take medications as scheduled is a common problem for those of us who are.
I may as well throw in my one bit of wisdom, from first hand experience, in this area. Putting the moral up front, in case folks do not read through to the end.
Always check with a chemist/ pharmacist or doctor, when taking herbal or alternative medicines. They are qualified to warn you if there are known medical dangers from using them. Whereas many things can be sold, in many jurisdictions, by unqualified individuals, who may not know even the basic risks associated with things. Perfectly legally.
My experience with this came when I was chatting with a friend, and she mentioned she was taking St John’s Wart, for some reputed property it was meant to have. She is a wiccan , and puts a lot of faith in healing crystals and whatnot. I respect people’s faiths, and she liked that I did not debunk hers. So paid attention when she did stray into areas I knew to be dangerous.
In this instance, I recalled an article which listed herbal remedies, with powerful active ingredients, which could be sold legally in the UK without a licence (at that time). St John’s Wart is one such. So I told her that, and she replied that she had been experiencing problems, that she put down to her birth control pill. Which rang even stronger alarm bells, as that was one of the specific dangers listed.
I advised her to immediately go to the doctor. She did. She was suffering an ectopic pregnancy, and needed urgent surgery. Note that she was not asked if she was on the pill, when it was sold to her. Nor was she warned that there were any harmful effects possible from it.
Even if you feel embarrassed at seeking folk remedies, or the like, do not let that stop you from getting the full facts. If it is something that the doctor says ‘will not help, it is just a waste of money’ you can still ignore him. Just so long as he is not saying ‘doing that could make you worse, or even kill you’.
Glad your friend is alive & hopefully better.
Oh yes, very much so, when I last heard of her. It was a long time ago. She has a very strong personality though, so it was hard to read her, when she wanted to conceal something. But I got the odd hint, here and there, that it had affected her psychologically, more deeply than she let on.
I offered her support but, if she was troubled, she clearly preferred to deal with that herself. So I did not press the matter. Sadly, I lost touch with her, years later, when I emigrated, as she changed addresses a lot, herself, at that time.
Thank you for your concern. And Keiya, for your comment too. Which is perfectly true and good advice.
Although people who have reached dead ends in mainstream medicine will often look to many alternatives. Herbal medicines, under proper supervision, at least offer potential. Some things written off as ‘folk lore’ for decades, or centuries, can turn out to have a good scientific basis.
I did start writing about something specific, as a contrast, which would then require debunking. But it is actually used by a lot of people. Despite the fact that it help no more than any other placebo. My reason for the redaction though, was to shorten the post, and to preserve harmony. But not in a mistaken attempt to help their placebo work.
Because, the weirdest thing about the placebo effect, is that it still carries on working even when you know it to be a placebo! So, if it has helped you in the past, keep taking your dried frog pills!
Since 1987, there was a previously unknown antibiotic being extracted from frog skins…Maybe frogs are not as much of a placebo as modern pharma companies might want you to think, huh?
On a more serious note, everything that humanity has accomplished has its origins rooted deeply in the Natural World. Indeed, humanity cannot escape this fact, no matter how hard someone tries. Even the most advanced of chemical mixtures are nothing more than an advanced refinement on something that began from Nature.
However, you really should consult with a trained professional when trying something different; not even any one professional will have the same knowledge-set as any other, so get second & even third opinions whenever possible. Even so, you must also be careful on how any given “medicine” was prepared! Different medicines will have completely different effects, depending on how the active ingredients were prepared.
Even though we all start with the same Human Genome & DNA, what makes everyone an individual person is how that DNA can produce literally trillions of different metabolisms throughout our population…What works for some will not work for others because of all of these differentials.
I believe no one said all frog skin compounds are bunk, but none has been turned into medicine.
https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/33818/title/Is-Frog-Skin-a-Red-Herring-/
Well, this is where the processes of chemistry come in…They start with something that appears in Nature, then distill, concentrate & refine the hell out of it. Whether or not it gets marketed depends almost entirely of the cost-effectiveness between the refining & the sales price.
It’s sorta like refining gold out of sea-water…It can be done, but the procedures cost more than the amount of gold you could extract. There’s always that difference between finding something that could be useful & actually being able to make effective use of it.
Dried Frog Pills. Or, if you prefer confectionery: Crunchy Frog.
Dried Frog Pills… isn’t that what they feed to the Bursar in the Unseen University in the Discwworld books? I’m fairly sure that he doesn’t have a 1-to-1 relationship with reality anymore ’cause of them.
While it is true that the dried frog pills cause him to hallucinate constantly, the dosage is so exactly figured out that they cause him to hallucinate that he is SANE.
There’s also the issue of quality control. There’s no oversight for those ‘herbal supplements’. None. The QC regulations on chicken mcnuggets are *way* tighter. I’d advise avoiding them all together for that reason – it’s pretty much impossible to know that it’s actually what it says it is.
I recently read an article that talked about an independent researcher testing various brands of “herbal supplements,” and St. Johns Wort was one of the ones tested in like four different product lines. No St. Johns Wort could actually be found in ANY of the supplements. So not only is there no quality control, they can put whatever they want on the labels and it’s up to the consumer to actually read the ingredients panel–and at that, some of the supplement manufacturers should probably be either severely fined or put out of business for fraud and violating federal regulations, since some of the ingredients panels even said they had stuff in them that they didn’t–and didn’t put on the labels other things that they DID have on them.
I heard about that, but also heard that the testing method was suspect, as it was testing for DNA, rather than chemical makeup, and the processing into pill form can destroy the DNA.
Which even if it were true doesn’t change the fact that there is often “filler” that isn’t listed on the labels.
The supplement industry is VERY well-off, and it does everything in its power to resist more regulation, because it’s extremely profitable to be able to do whatever you want. There have been laws proposed to simply ensure that the listed ingredients were all that was in there, and that no say, random carcinogens or poisons were slipping in, and they fought even THOSE tooth and nail, successfully mounting a campaign (in the US, if you’re wondering about where I’m talking about) to convince people that instead of being safety regulations “they wanna take away your vitamins and supplements!!!”
Depressing, but true. Also why I very rarely use such supplements: I can’t be sure I’m actually putting in my body, what it says I’m putting in my body. That freaks me out a lot more than a professional medication with known side effects, because at least those you can figure out if they’re doing something bad to you and why. >_> Because you know what actually went into you…
The popular assumption that “it’s herbal, therefore natural, so it must be healthy and cannot be dangerous” amazes me to no end. The chemical composition of plants and funghi is incredibly complex, as are the potential interactions between any two of the thousands of alcaloids, etc. contained in the plant matter.
There is a mushroom growing in Central Europe which had been considered perfectly safe and edible up to 1980s. Now it’s known to be very dangerous when consumed over a longer period of time.
Another mushroom is completely safe when eaten *once*. The second time you eat it, even years later, can cause a lethal allergic reaction.
Some other mushrooms are perfectly edible… as long as you don’t take *any* alcohol on the day you eat them or the day after. Together with booze they are poisonous.
I like to point out to people with that attitude that belladonna is perfectly natural, and so is strychnine.
I was at a social function where someone was going on about a juice concoction saying it was ‘all natural, so you know it’s safe.’ My reply was “So is poison ivy, but I wouldn’t want to eat it.”
A US study looked at a large sample of herbal supplements, and of the products they studied over 75% of them had none of the ingredient listed on the label. This makes them at best worthless, and at worst a potentially deadly source of an allergic reaction to an unlisted ingredient.
Just playing devil’s advocate here, as is my want. But I find the most credible practitioners of such medicine to be in China and other far eastern countries. Their written records and practices far pre-date western medicines. And have long been used in conjunction with other techniques which we have found merit with, such as acupuncture.
The biggest problem though, is that their approach deals with treating the entire state of the person, rather than trying to identify one particular symptom, or cause. So it is rather resistant to analysis by modern scientific methods, which do require such techniques (talking in broad brush strokes, as I know there are always ways and means to do things).
Mind you, there is only so much I will do to defend a system which incorporates a heavy trade in endangered species, from around the world.
And, whilst I am (geographically, at least) on the subject…
GET OUT OF TIBET!
That last is NOT going to happen anytime soon, I’m afraid.
Even politically “moderate” Chinese tend to be dogmatic about what is or isn’t ‘part of China’, with Taiwan and Tibet being especially sensitive matters. Arguably also a very strong instinctive resistance to obeying “foreigners” – historically, that sort of thing has NEVER worked out well for China.
If I get my paws on super powers there will be a bunch of mountains kicking them out. And whales will find themselves equipped with anti-whaling ship weaponry.
Ooooo… like this? ;)
Yes!
1: Only some of Chinese herbalism works, other parts don’t. It works because people noticed “hey if we have this problem, and we eat that herb, it helps a bit”. It doesn’t work because it predates western medicine. You know what else predates western medicine? Casting demons out of the body to cure disease.
2: Get out of Tibet? Why? do you have any idea what the Tibetan government did to people prior to China annexing them? Did you know that they had a feudal state of surfdom prior to Chinese occupation? People were often tortured and killed for the amusement of the priests. There is a lot that happened in Tibet that doesn’t generally get reported on by the western media because everybody just prints whatever the Dalai Lama tells them to print.
He’s the poster boy for “victims” of “bullying” by Communist China. The image he portrays in the media is far better than the image that would be portrayed if reality were better represented in the media.
This isn’t much different than Gandhi. People worship Gandhi as a paragon of peaceful resistance, but it’s far from the truth. In reality, Gandhi had sex with many of his underaged female followers during the years where he earned his current reputation. Earlier in his life, he assisted in genocide in South Africa, and he was a staunch, outspoken supporter of the nazis in Germany.
The previous Dalai Lama has plenty of photographs of him shaking hands with and being friendly with known Nazis war criminals from World War 2. He would also have people skinned alive. One time one of his priests killed a woman’s baby right in front of her. Just took the baby from her arms and killed it. And in Tibetan religion, the current Dalai Lama is the same person as the previous one, and the one before him, and the one before him…
No, I am not invoking Godwin’s Law here, because I’m not comparing them to the Nazis, I’m reporting historical fact. Gandhi and the previous Dalai Lama supported the Nazis, and China annexed Tibet because the previous Dalai Lama was a tyrant, and the current Dalai Lama didn’t institute any changes to undo the centuries of serfdom in Tibet.
1: Your retort is puerile, in it’s attempt to distort what I said. I did not just say things are better because they are older. I very clearly stated that there is a body of literature (and research, for that matter) which predates that of western medicine. China had a well-established, working medical system, keeping their country healthy, at a time when Europe was practising the casting out of demons.
And, it is in no way as simple as you characterise. There is a lot of philosophical reasoning and centuries worth of debate, underpinning the various practices and techniques which are used. Their methods may not match, nor be as effective, as modern western medicine, but that does not mean their teachings should be demeaned by simplistic portrayal.
Because it is not their country. Tibet is a sovereign nation, which China had no right to have invaded.
Be aware that you are a victim of either ignorance or propaganda. I say this not to be harsh, but simply because it is apparent from the ‘facts’ you cite, the tone you present them in and the fact that I am adept at spotting propaganda. In many countries, not just the ones I have lived in.
To avoid a wall-of-text reply, I cannot respond to every point. But will pick out the most blatantly easy to debunk. Namely:
The current Dalai Lama is the 14th The previous was the 13th Dalai Lama , who died in 1933. World War II did not even start until 1939!
Incidentally, if shaking hands with somebody indicates shared ideology, then you may be interested in this photo. The bloke on left, as we look at it, was the Finance Minister of China, Dr Kung. The fellow on the right was Adolph Hitler.
i’m glad that you guys are having a debate on all this which very clearly has everything to do with this webcomic. :)
Heh. You are perfectly right that it is off-topic. Hence why I chose not to get drawn too deeply into it. I had only said my “GET OUT OF TIBET” for the funnies, and to indicate that not everything about the orient is to be admired. Be it their medicines or otherwise.
That said though, the righting of wrongs, and the defence of injustice, are all well within the scope of the super-hero genre. And I would happily bet, real money, that there are various super heroes who have been portrayed confronting the issue of the Chinese occupation of Tibet.
We may even see Arc-SWAT there one day. But, true enough, that day has not come, yet, so it is off-topic. However, is it wise to allow misinformation to sit unchallenged? Personally, I do not feel that is appropriate.
Tibet doesnt actually exist. Its made up.
You know… Like Canada
frick it doesn’t let me comment directly on pander’s comment.can someone please help me convince pander that the country I live in (Canada) DOES in fact exist.
Just remind him that it is the one which burnt down the White House.
I suspect that a lot of people shook hands with Hitler. He was the leader of a country, after all.
Indeed. As is the Dalai Lama, albeit in exile.
However, I would not claim the fact that a politician shook hands with somebody (and looked happy to be doing so) as a justification for invading their country. Whereas the commentator I was responding to did precisely that!
And DO NOT combine St Johns Wort with an SSRI (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor).
That herb is in fact an SSRI itself. But even the pills are of variable concentration of the chemical that really matters. So you don’t really know how much you’re getting – and could easily be underdosed one day and overdosed the next. Underdose means that whatever you’re taking it for isn’t being adequately treated. Overdose means you get serotonin overload – which at mild levels produces hyperactivity, nervousness, irritability, and other non-fun things to experience either in oneself or in someone nearby.
Oh, wow. A what would deadpol do shirt… Awesome.
Ah, Sydney, ever the source of material any channel can broadcast. Have you considered a children’s TV show?
Arianna is in negotiations as we type, I’m sure of it…
can you tell me how to get…. how to get to $@#^&* Streeeeet?
The Teletubbies would be forced to go off the air.
Even singing purple dinosaurs would join the ranks of the extinct.
The Electric Company would short circuit.
Dunno if it’s been said, but as a woman, I’m not picking my BC by the name, I’m picking it by how well it works. Like many (most?) women, I’m particularly sensitive to the stupid things. In fact, my GYN gave me Yaz this time instead of Yasmin, and the two are very very slightly different in formulation (Yaz has 0.2 mg of something, and Yasmin has 0.3 mg of the same thing), and the Yaz leaves me feeling very slightly nauseated ALL THE TIME and leaves me with horrible periods, and Yasmin leaves me feeling like I can actually function as a human being on a daily basis. And Ortho, in any formulation, leaves me feeling VERY nauseated all the time and doesn’t even TOUCH the dysmenorrhea on top of that.
But I’d definitely give the one with an amusing name a try, at least!
0.2mg to 0.3mg isn´t a slight difference thats a 50% higher dose. I think anyone who is just taking medicine with the cool name without picking it by how well it works is plain stupid =)
Well, to be fair, until you have tried something, you do not know how well it works. So, whilst said with a tongue in cheek, as regards appreciating the giggles, there was a fair basis underlying that statement.
A good point as regards the differential though. Mind you, I was reading it as being possible that there were other active ingredients, perhaps with significantly higher doses. All of which matched, barring that one ingredient stated. But that 50% difference could still be on the key active ingredient, so either way, your point gives insight.
Yeah that you have to try it at least once is a given. Sry if my comment sounds wrong all I wanted to state is that even if there isn´t much of a total difference ( 1 mg is very little mass ) there can be a huge effect. English isn´t my mother language therefore it is sometimes a bit limiting to get the right meaning.
I see what you both are saying…
…0.2mg-vs-0.3mg is a difference that may well be tiny in AMOUNT, while still being huge in PERCENTAGE. Also, there are many potent substances that require no more than surprisingly tiny amounts to effect HUGE reactions in the body. Adrenaline is just one example that springs immediately to mind.
Speaking purely from a blood pressure medicine standpoint. My introductory start med was 15 milligrams lisinopril. 1 a day
My current is 25 milligrams Losartan Potassium. 1 a day
The 25 milligram acts the exact same as the 15 milligram lisinopril despite the difference in milligram. Just minus the side-effect of chronic coughing 25 to 30 times a day.
a side effect that only affects a small percentage. I just happened to be part of that.
I wish coughing was my only side effect on that crappy stuff.
I know it shouldn’t be but it’s amazing to me, how something so helpful to some can be useless and/or banes to others (and kind of sad how many end up being that way for me).
Yeah, my wife’s reaction to lisinopril (which, for those who don’t know, is supposed to lower one’s blood pressure) was that her blood pressure promptly shot up to “why haven’t any of your arteries exploded?” level.
Fortunately, she’s also one of those weird people who has easily-recognizable symptoms of high blood pressure (well short of falling over with a stroke or heart attack). So we recognized the symptoms, checked the pressure, freaked, and carted her to the hospital. They used other techniques to bring her blood pressure down to sane levels and agreed with our thought that she should stop taking that medicine.
Obviously, lisinopril does not affect everyone that way, or it wouldn’t be used on people with high blood pressure. In fact, the ER doctors had never heard of it having that effect on anyone.
I think I’m developing that. I get these nasty coughing fits once every 2-3 days that last a good 20 minutes. I’m thinking about having the doc put me on a different blood pressure medication.
If it’s that bad you should get a change. Interesting that it is considered rare and here are four of us that are bugged by it to varying degrees. Mine feels more like a dry throat type cough and doesn’t show up that much.
Yea, I agree with eddi. Respiration is one of those things that is better sorted out sooner. than ignored. We all get occasional, random, problems. But anything with regular symptoms, like that, is best checked out.
If a simple prescription change sorts it, then you get an immediate improvement in quality of life. But, if your guess is wrong, and there is something more sinister underlying that, then early diagnosis can make treatment a lot more viable.
I am a professional lab rat for hypertensive meds and a few years back I had a doozy of a “side effect”. I was taking a popular BP med that is no longer on the market for reasons that will soon be apparent and had modified my diet so that I could take the cholesterol med Zetia. I started feeling constantly a bit fuzzy-headed and noticed I was waking up every morning covered in a pile of cats and dead fleas. Then I took a trip back to the old homestead and noticed dead mosquitos around me, And then I saw one bite me and die before it could pull the proboscis back out. My doctor took a blood sample and the BP med was taken off the market for about 2 years and placed under a black box warning to never mix with Zetia or any similar compounds.
So… what you’re saying is… mosquitoes saved your life?
That is… wow. I don’t even have a word for what that is.
Ironic.
Nice to see that Opus the Poet had an industry-changing result, from his misfortune though.
Which makes it even more ironic, given that one mosquito may have saved very many lives!
Shades of Rappacinni’s Daughter.
And here i thought you were advertising this stuff as Mosquitokiller ( is it bad i want this stuff just to get rid of these damn bloodsuckers ? )
There’ve been some pretty serious lawsuits over those two in the US. Maybe you should look into that?
Well…..at least no one was calling her land line (if she has one. some people do since it’s easier for emergency services to trace location) or knocking at her door.
Being the drama queens journos are these days, they were picturing a PPO blast through the door. As it was Sydney burned out their mikes.
that and the fact they could get nailed for loitering, trespassing, stalking, or even Peeping Tom activity… with a good enough lawyer that COULD happen, not saying it WOULD happen, that said, I’m mostly agreeing with eddi in that they were staying back out of the fear of what she’d do if they got TOO close…
I think some may be of the opnion they were still too close. Serves them right if if their ears are bleeding.
Sorry for being very OT, but:
Leonard “Mr. Spock” Nimoy RIP. 1931-2015.
Oh no, that is sad! I had not read the news yet. Thanks for the heads-up.
A massive loss for the world. Just think, Leonard Nemoy was the one member of the pilot cast, who was retained for the series. More than likely, had he been a lesser actor, Star Trek would never have made it to air. No Star Trek and science fiction could have remained mired in the realm of the “B” movies, to this day. Especially if Star Wars did not get made as a result.
Without the leaps in technology inspired by science fiction, and the films made for it, the computer industry may not have progressed in either the ways it did, or at the pace it did. Without the inspirations from that, many of the people who did go into scientific fields may not. So even things such as the internet or world-wide web may not have come to pass.
Think on it. Without him, our analogues, in some alternate world could well not even have access to this community we are in, right now. It simply could not have formed, or have been sustained, by land-line phones and snail mail.
It would even have implications for the equality movement, as Lieutenant Uhura represented a powerful image for both the feminist and racial equality camps. Seeing either a black person or a female as a bridge officer was simply an unique concept to many people in that era. And yet she was appearing on the TV competently fulfilling that role.
But, even had Star Trek progressed from the pilot, would the studio, in that era, have been able to cast that character, in such a way, without the powerful presence of Spock on the bridge? Which served to make her presence seem almost mundane, by contrast. To us today, she is. Back then, it helped changed mind-sets. And, not just in America, but around the globe.
We owe a great debt to that man, and his talent. I, for one, shall miss his presence in the world.
Obviously he’s not really dead, foolish earthlings. He’s just in a deep state of Kolinahr which was never really talked about on the show, in which the Vulcan from the future playing himself on a terran TV show based in the past enters a state of extended pseudo-hybernism.
Duh.
Yeah it’s sad but not wholly unexpected. 83 is bordering on young these days, but he was looking really rough in the last few things I’d seen him in. He leaves an amazing legacy with us.
I first saw the announcement just about an hour ago, quite a while since I last came in here.
He’s boldly gone where all men (& women) must eventually go, but he left us with a legacy to aspire to. Leonard forged a path as few ever have while he was alive & I hope his continued journeys brings new discoveries & insights for those who will eventually follow.
“Course, Captain?”
“Out there…Thataway.”
For so many of us Leonard Nimoy was part of the world of science fiction for so long, it’s hard to imagine it without him. I think the last actor I really felt this bad about losing was Boris Karloff. They both did so much more, yet their classic characters are now part of human mythology.
May his legacy Live long and Prosper
Panel 4, I finally realized who I was thinking of here.
Queen Elsa (Frozen).
Clearly they picked the wrong sup if they wanted one with a cool head in dealing with the media. Expect a 24hr tabloid and paparazzi camped out at that spazzes house. No end of tabloid headlines with that one.
Hours of ratings just from her reaction
“It’s… The HALO HOUR! Follow along as we see more antics from our favorite hyperactive.. AHHHH why is she gnawing my ear!”
“Currently experiencing technical difficulties. Please stand by”
Wondering what the string on her left hand is fore?
Pip-boy. You can make it out, under her sleeve, in the second-to-last panel.
Yep, though she was wearing it on her right arm previously. You can see a good view of it in the first panel here: https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/1579
Nothing says it has to stay on one arm.
usually they would have to unless it is completely circular to allow for it to be on either arm…
but then it would be sliding around all the time, even under normal walking around and whatnot, let alone when in a fight and her trying again to use it as a shield like with Nega-Knuckles. it was probably a fluke that she got it in the right spot to block at all… trying to do that again may fail… but… if it is “flattened” a bit to conform better to the shape of her arm and prevent all that extraneous movement, then the shape of it would prevent it from being swapped to the other arm.
Unless it is round with a halfway shaped foam that can be adjusted a bit.
It looks like a thumb loop to keep the pipboy from riding up her arm or twisting too far.
has no one said anything about the vast size difference in her makeup vs cosplay boxes? just asking because i see a lot of deadpool shirt /BC pill comments,but no jab at how funny this is?
It definitely says volumes about Sydney’s priorities. But I though she might be a low maintenance type give her casual attitudes. Harem might talk her into a trial makeover, but it won’t take permanently.
i think thats because it was expected for some reason
Several people have said something. Particularly on, as I recall, the latter part of the first page of comments and the first half of the second page. (But I’m not certain of that memory and am not going back to check – it isn’t important enough.)
Those last panels could become a regular thing. Sydney’s morning blessing of the troops.
Oh gawd. That’s what it looks like when I try to braid my hair.
” this doesn’t imply Sydney has a boyfriend at the moment”
It doesn’t imply she does not either, tho if he exists, he had best be a serene type.
But given her …varied… behavior, it is doubtful that Sydney has any idea whether there will be action within any given period, and expecting her to remember to use any immediate measures is also risky. So the pill is pretty much needed for its intended reason.
As far as “does Sydney have a boyfriend?” goes, I don’t think that box on the counter implies anything…But I think this does: https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/1640/comment-page-3#comment-304742 and the page after it is a strong implication that she doesn’t have a boyfriend, but is looking.
:)
You seem to have pasted in the wrong link. I am guessing you were going for Sydney eyeing up Tony’s butt?
It’s how the action flowed from the page I linked AND the next page…I did specify “and the page after it.” You linked the 2nd page I was referring to.
Interesting. I did wonder if you might have intended that one instead. Clearly most people would see through Sydney’s over-reaction, as being a false denial. But, none-the-less, the page you are citing actually reads “He is NOT my boyfriend!” Which could weaken the argument, for anyone who took her comment on face value. Not everyone is good at reading social situations.
However, if you go to the next page, from the one I linked, you will see Sydney asking Olivia if Tony is her boyfriend. And being very excited to find out that she is actually his half-sibling. Thereby making the case much more clearly.
But, you have to admit, that with 296 comics, to choose from, I did not do too badly narrowing it down, such that I got one of the two pages you intended to refer to. Have a click on your own link, in case you missed my point.
I didn’t miss your point at all. I think I was at some fault for not making the point that Sydney seems to be looking for a boyfriend, even though she denies having one.
I think you may have missed the “impregnable” = “impregnate” = trying to get pregnant…
“impregnable” ≠ “impregnate”
“pregnable” = “impregnatable”
“impregnable” = “unimpregnatable”
“impregnate” ≠ “trying to get pregnant“
“impregnate” = “pregnant“
I think you have a typo there:
pregnable (preg·na·ble) adjective: vulnerable to attack; not impregnable.
Bear in mind the context. The root of this is the fictitious “Impregnable Daily Birth Control”.
When you apply the word “pregnable” to a contraceptive, it means that it is flawed and can result in impregnation. So, to show the reverse, DaveB has, correctly, used “impregnable”. Such a birth control pill will not result in impregnation.
So it is not a typo, I was just making the same argument I verbalised here, but following the mathematical format, used in the opening comment.
I know we have a number of English as a second language readers so, for their sake, in particular, I should point out that the “im” prefix is particularly confusing. Although, most of the time, it reverses the meaning of the word, in this instance “impregnate” is actually a root word in it’s own right, as opposed to being a reversed word.
Whereas for “impregnable” the root is “pregnable”, so the two versions do carry the opposite meaning. So, to reverse the meaning for “impregnate”, you need to add the prefix “un”.
Separate to that, I changed the conjugation to “(un)impregnatable“, as that makes better sense, when used in the context we are applying it.
I just have lazy reading. I read impregnatable as impregnable.
No probs. Easy enough to do, and I have done worse myself. :-)
I basically laughed myself silly at the hair.
I. Need. That. Shirt. That is all.
“Don’t camp my spawn” is now my new favorite phrase. I can’t wait to use it at my next gaming session. X3
We. Need. A. Shirt…
that says this. Perhaps with a Halo face in silhouette and colored orbs over a white background filled with tiny print (the text version of the bank robbery swearing in 8 pt font).
I love the t-shirt request. Personally I think the best market to target would be the world gamer one, rather than just our niche. DaveB is the master of visual humour, but here is my suggestion:
Sydney, sitting in a crowded cinema. The point of view being from the screen, so that her face and body is clearly visible. With enough of the auditorium shown, to clearly give the impression that it is packed full.
Standing in the aisle, next to Sydney, and looking down at her seat, is a guy with popcorn in one hand and a soda in the other. Half-stepping towards it, as if to go in, the instant she comes out.
To one side is a door with the male and female symbol on it, indicating that it is the toilets.*
Sydney has risen, half-way out of her seat, her eye line points directly at the symbol on the toilet door. Her hands are pressed against her groin, with knees bending slightly towards each other. The classic “I need a pee pose”. Her face is a mixture of discomfort/ anger /flustered, as she says:
The back of the T-Shirt can be the three door toilet gag that Dave did, with the symbols “Male”, “Female” & “Huge Super Hero”. To get the point across, that it refers to supers, at first glance, it would probably be best to have Sydney approaching the doors, with a huge hero next to her.
Anvil may be ok, given her size, but she is not the classic ‘too-broad to fit through a normal door’ huge. And the gag really needs that for it to work to best effect. I would love to see the hairdresser in that situation, but he is not much wider than Anvil. So, perhaps, Vehemence in his oversized mode?
No text is needed. But I would recommend a plug for the comic, beneath it, with “grrlowercomic.com”.
* Ignoring the fact that entrances to these are usually located outside the auditorium. Some compromise needs to be worked to make the visual gag clear, with the single ‘frame’ you need on a T-Shirt.
No text is needed. But I would recommend a plug for the comic, beneath it, with “grrlowercomic.com”.
Spelled out in hentacle.
Grr… used “quote” instead of “blockquote”. for the tag.
The first part of that should be
(Also, I just noticed a missing “p” from the link as well, but at least I have the excuse that I merely copy/pasted it from someone else).
Nice twist, and one that would be a plus for existing fans. Without detracting anything for those not in the know.
Incidentally, I picked a darkened auditorium, as being a perfect place to showcase DaveB‘s artistic skills. He has shown us, with Sydney coming into her bedroom, that he is now a master of shadow. I could see him working wonders with that scene. And people like wearing works of art.
One subtlety that I failed to mention is that, for the auditorium scene, Halo’s orbs would be best kept, out of sight, in tubey. For two reasons, firstly I am sure she would do that, in a cinema, as a simple act of politeness. Even if she were not trying to just keep a low profile. Secondly it would detract from the universal appeal, for the front of the shirt.
Without the orbs, Sydney is just a girl in the cinema, which everyone can relate to. And they will be concentrating on the key visual elements, that we want them to notice, for the gag to work. The orbs would be a counter-productive distraction, in that scene.
Whereas, on the back of the shirt (which I visualise as being the follow-on scene, being set in the corridor of the cinema, just beyond the door described in the auditorium), the orbs could come out, without a problem. The gag is a very simple one, that will not be harmed by their presence.
To the contrary, we are trying to get the message across that the scene is set in a world where super-heroes are real. So the orbs are just an extra confirmation that, to the extraordinary individuals depicted, this is just a mundane daily slice of life.
So it serves as a perfect advert for the comic.
I love that her rant in the last panel includes “parking lot congesting” – which is actually and irrefutably true.
Anyone else realize that she now has only a few months to make corporal?
https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/60
Maxima calls her corporal and the narration says “let me back up a few months”
I’m not an expert in military workings but isn’t that a big rank change for only a few months? unless Sydney was a girl-scout and earned the “gold award” in which case she would be a E-2 rather than E-1 when she gets in, which usually takes 6 months after enlistment to do. then again, I forget.. does Sydney have an associates degree? that may help bump her a bit.
sorry if I am talking in circles but from what i know the rise to Corporal is :
enlist (E-1), Private (E-2), Private 1st class (E-3), Corporal/Specialist (E-4)
Yes, it is a big jump to make. In peace time. Simply because it is hard to assess just how good an individual will be in a battlefield situation, and whether they have the capability to command.
However, Sydney has just demonstrated that she is capable of leading a Lt. Colonel, and her entire unit! Turning a loosing battle into a decisive victory, in the process.
Also note that, for military personnel, in charge of flying war machines, capable of destroying city blocks, it is more common for them to be officers, rather than NCOs. I would be surprised if you had a private (or equivalent rank) flying any such aircraft, in any branch of the armed forces. But am happy to be enlightened if I am wrong.
The only reason that she will not be transferred to officer cadet training, and flagged for fast-track promotion, to senior ranks, is that she is Sydney. She would not be happy with the restrictions she would face as a career officer. And she has already blown any chance of that, out of the water, with her ditzy behaviour.
But jumping several grades to corporal? No problem, with the credentials granted by that battle alone. Provided she does not get caught peeing in the officers’ punch, or some such gaff.
“I would be surprised if you had a private (or equivalent rank) flying any such aircraft, in any branch of the armed forces. But am happy to be enlightened if I am wrong.”
Chuck Yeager was a sergeant, IIRC, when he became an ace in WW2. I believe that in WW1 some of the few US fliers that got into the air war were sergeants, by way of transferring over from the “Lafayette Escadrille”, with whom they had volunteered years before the first large US military units showed up, as part of the “Legion Lafeyette”. The US Army did not yet have an idea of what their rank *should* be, especially since the value of aircraft in war was still a hotly debated topic.
It seems that since WW2 there has been bureaucratic “rank inflation” of pilots, primarily due to the formal “up or out” policy of the military, combined with the need to retain the best pilots. The US Air Force now has Lt. Colonels flying fighters. Such a rank would normally be battalion commander, managing a unit of between 480-800 men and women, depending on the military they serve in. Not truly similar levels of responsibility at all.
I was in Air Force ROTC for a couple years (never served) and learned a bit about this.
US Air Force (and Navy, and Marine) pilots flying aircraft with operable weapons systems MUST be officers, by law. I’m not sure about transport planes but in practice (not sure about law) you have to be an officer to officially be an Air Force pilot.
(IMHO they should consider loosening that up for drones. It isn’t obvious that a single officer with a suitable display setup couldn’t supervise a dozen enlisted people flying three or four drones each. Since they would all be sitting in a room some distance from the actual theater of operation. Of course, after due consideration they might conclude that there really is a good reason for the current practice even in that context.)
The Navy has the same sort of thing in regard to ships. I think the Army is required to put an officer in each tank, but haven’t been able to verify that recollection.
Forgot to mention – a lot of requirements like that, including the one that officers be college graduates, came as side effects of the Korean War.
I forgot to mention: a lot of requirements like that, including the one that officers be college graduates, came as side effects of the Korean War.
I specifically chose to say ‘private’, because a) it was the ranks below what we know Sydney will become and b) due to recalling a commentator mentioning that one branch (maybe the U.S. marines?) routinely used sergeants as helicopter pilots. Whether those were gunships, or unarmed aircraft, I do not recall though.
Which is not to dispute your information, which is interesting. One slight quibble though, is that, although Chuck Yeager enlisted as a private, he was promoted to flight officer, when he got his wings, before seeing action. As such he was a warrant officer, which outranks even a sergeant. And puts him a number of ranks above the one that Sydney will be at.
None the less, that is still interesting, as it does go to show that her, more modest, jump is actually realistic. Given that he got his promotion without even having seen combat. Nice to note that he ended up as a Brigadier General.
One other quibble (and not a major one, as the final paragraph is perfectly true)
Possibly, possibly not. Do not forget that some aircraft can be equipped with nuclear weaponry. If you have somebody in a critical strategic situation, with a need to decide whether to start WWIII or not, that can be a comparable responsibility. And that situation can happen even without nuclear weaponry, for that matter. But, no argument as to the leadership side of the equation, obviously.
well as for levels of responsibility in most US combat units more than 90%of a platoons effective firepower is being controlled by a corporal/sergeant. granted no other army in the world would put that much power in the hands of their enlisted men. but perhaps that is why the US has better and more responsive fire support.
Unless I’m misreading DaveB‘s responses to this comment, it would appear that he plans to retcon the “corporal” reference to a different rank.
Dave would only need to do that if he felt his decisions were wrong. And he does that based on feedback from the readers. So what we say does matter here. Personally, I do not think he misjudged it at all.
Check out anifreik‘s comment below. Mine is just the opinion of a civilian. But clearly I am not getting it too wrong. Sydney would be a few months faster, and one grade higher, than that real-life situation. But she does have the battle experience going for her, which easily keeps it within the bounds of credibility.
The US military does not put that kind of firepower in the hands of enlisted people without close supervision by an officer.
However: (1) ArcSwat *did not* put that firepower in Sydney’s hands (or Max’s, or Harem’s, or…) but must now find a way to live with the fact that she has it with or without their approval; and (2) as communications has improved substantially since the current US military rules were written, perhaps the definition of “close supervision” needs updated – and the creation of a new service branch would be an excellent time to do that, at least for the new branch.
I enlisted in 1982 as an E-1, made E-2 at the end of Basic Training (10 weeks) and was promoted to E-3 at the end of MOS training (approx 12 weeks). So I went from Private to PFC in under 6 months with no special accomplishments.
And depending on your level of aggressiveness and their level of need, if you ask for it as well as scoring high on the ASVAB you might be able to join up as an E-2 or E-3. Or so I have been told by recruiting officers when I was considering joining the military. Who might have been shining me on, but I wasn’t about to sign anything without getting everything I wanted in writing, so had I decided to join I would have had the opportunity to see exactly what the BS level was before I made the actual commitment.
I occasionally regret never having served. I even played with the idea again in college, but decided against after the Navy sent two officers to talk to me about signing up (I was already in ROTC classes, but they were filling B class requirements which none of my engineering classes would fulfill so it was either that or some other classes in the category, and I have always liked learning about the military, have played war games from about 10 years old, am an armchair historian of battles from the ancients through WWII, etc. Plus ROTC classes were an easy ‘A’, and my engineering classes were not, so it helped me focus attention on my core classes.
But after about an hour of telling me how wonderful the nuclear sub program was and how my EE degree was going to fast track my promotions and how valuable I’d be in the civilian world as a nuclear power plant operator should I ever decide to retire (but perish the thought!) they learned that I had taken a few years off between high school and college and would not meet their age requirement. Yes, at something like 25 I was too old… Then they switched tracks real fast and started telling me how wonderful my Navy career would be as a calculus and physics instructor, how easy the workload was, how I’d be located in sunny Florida and etc, etc. But I had already been sold on being a boomer and was pretty much embittered by the bait and switch routine, that and the sudden realization that they had senseless, arbitrary rules for entering into different programs and that if I joined up I’d probably witness a whole lot of other senseless and arbitrary rules that I wasn’t going to like much either.
Did the High School ROTC classes and had it in writing I could enlist at sergeant rank because of it. Continued in college ROTC, with full Air Force scholarship under my arm, until year two (just before a summer of basic). Got walking pneumonia which resulted in Asthma and got bundled out of the Air Force (on paper even) as a technical sergeant (E-5) as a medical discharge from the AF Reserves. Note: they often give one last promotion on exit…
Early 90’s.
On a weird side note, there was another guy at UCF with same first and last name who was in ARMY ROTC. I got grabbed out of formation in blues and goose stepped by the scruff of my collar to an Army formation by a Lt Colonel (Cadet) who thought I’d “switched sides” and promptly got “rescued” by a squad of blues who saw me grabbed. Almost had a civil war reenactment right there with Blues V’s Greens instead of Grey’s.
I had a friend who became a French Foreign Legion Commando. I remember asking him if it is true they have a signature call that they shout out, if they are in trouble. Which he confirmed. A street that is empty one minute, will have them jumping out of the windows, in response to it.
Yanno, one thing I would like to mention: Sydney actually did a good job with her outburst against the media. She stated two things and two things only: 1) no comment, and 2) talk to the PR department for any developments. This is what you are supposed to do. The rest just reinforces her down-to-earth personality and increases her nerd cred with society as a whole if it gets out, but is otherwise valueless.
So now from the back almost PG-13 rating of Sydney in the shower? Darn. You could show so much yet not the “naughty bits” though showing buttocks is okay. I saw bare butts both on The Simpsons and Family Guy.
Heh, I too would have liked to have seen more. Dave is not worried at all about the rating system. He simply has a vision for his comic, and that does not include showing the naughty bits. Disappointing though that is, given how good he is at that, I was actually very happy with his decision. Because, if he had started to show fully nude scenes, he doubtless would have driven away some individuals. Including ones who’s presence we value greatly.
But, do not despair, DaveB is perfectly happy to draw the odd fan service picture for us, which he posts on his Deviant Art website.
And some of them are very odd. =OP
Speaking (well, writing) about the shower scene, that wouldn’t be a reference to the Weather Girls, would it?
Honestly I think “This Girl’s in the Shower” might’ve gone a bit more smoothly for Sydney.
Oh and Sydney’s regeneration factor kicked in again (I.E. she’s missing the bruise in panel 8).
Derp NM there was probably a reason she dipped into the Cosplay box.
WELP. This comment section has made me quit the internet. See you in a few days when I get the shakes and I forget what human nature is like again and come back.
?
Ooookaaaay.
Its pretty rare to find an easier bunch of people to chat with than in this comment section so yeah, if THIS is too much for you then you’ve definitely made the right decision.
Turns out it took a lot less than a day to bring me back. Lemme explain my previous comment a bit more: I love the people here, and I didn’t mean I was feeling any aversion to anybody’s attitude or personality. Nothing like that. But see…medicine is like…my realm of expertise. So..taking »both« those into account lemme again stress, I do really like the people here. …but also, reading how little people know about birth control options and how much disinformation there is here, I’m pragmatically left with the opinion that somehow, the already unwieldy prescription system is perhaps insufficient.
Ahh, that is a shame. The best way to cure misconceptions is to correct them, when you encounter them. I am sure we would all highly value the input of a medical professional here. Bearing in mind that we even welcome lawyers!
I had been holding off on mentioning the following. But, the next page is well under way already, so a text wall here should not inconvenience folks too much.
This Christmas my mum was unhappy about a neighbour falling foul of misinformation about not washing poultry, prior to cooking. I had a hell of a time trying to convince her that it was her who had the wrong end of the stick.
Even having to going so far as to show her that the food standards agency had listed it as their highest public health campaign priority. For precisely the reason that it is counter-intuitive and goes contrary to decades worth of indoctrination to the contrary. This from the people who’s job it is to shut down restaurants, butchers or any shop which violates public health standards.
And yet, even with that, she was highly dubious! And for good reason. Every week we hear some new bollox being spouted, from seemingly reputable sources, such as early-morning talk shows, magazines and even newspapers. Some piece of early research, or minor study, will be featured alongside comment or headlines which read “do not eat this” or “avoid doing that”.
Even those which, after the headlines, go on to clarify the source, have still done irreparable harm, given that not everyone will check further than the headlines, or may just flip to another channel. And it is compounded when later research shows that the early study’s results did not hold up to the initial promise. Which the same sources then gleefully report as “findings reversed” or “we can now eat X again”.
This despite the fact that the researchers very very rarely make over-hyped claims themselves. For precisely such reasons. Often they will make strong statements that such conclusions should not be drawn about their research. Yet still be ignored by those seeking to gain a few more column inches, a catchy headline or a pre-add break sound-byte.
Mind you there are also a heck of a lot of highly technical papers out there, that will not bother with such disclaimers, being aimed at the scientific community, without a thought for the media. These really do need a properly trained scientist to understand and interpret them. Good science/ medical journalists are invaluable members of society!
The failings in reporting, by media which do not employ such individuals, was confirmed by a study. Which analysed all of the English language papers, magazines and the like, in the world, for a set period (a week if I remember correctly). Picking out every article which covered health/ medical issues or advice (eg eat apples). Separating it out into those which reported bare facts, and those which drew some kind of conclusion or advice.
To analyse the content, they applied the same kind of criteria as would the sources the articles drew upon. Namely peer-review guidelines. Even when applying the less rigorous of the two systems, a terrifying number of articles (already published and read by the public) were found to be erroneous. Stating facts which were not in the source material and which were not otherwise true.
The same was found of conclusions drawn or advice verbalised. A very high proportion were deemed to be not fit for publication. Our own media is misinforming the public badly. As such, we have to do what we can to address the problems ourselves, when we come across them.
And press for a change in regulation where such media sources are banned from publishing/ broadcasting such material, without the oversight/ review of competent scientific/ medical professionals. Even on light entertainment shows/ glossy magazines. They are reach the biggest audiences, but are the worst offenders! Further, the publishers and broadcasters should be held criminally liable for each act of misinformation.
Every time they commit such crimes, they are putting peoples health and lives in jeopardy! Both directly, for obvious reasons, and indirectly. Through people, such as my mum, suffering from cynicism and disbelief, even of good advice, from reputable sources, caused by the overload of misinformation.
Aah. Well, one would hope that many of the more intelligent people here would read up on good sites like https://www.mayoclinic.org/ before asking the doctor(s) they trust the most some in depth questions before they run out and pump themselves full of artificial body chemistry. I mostly stayed out of it since sadly it has nothing to do with me.
At all. :-P
A point to consider here is that our story started out with people having doubts about super heroes existing, and having no idea that Sydney was one. Now the team are getting headlines, and Sydney is well known as one of them, months before strip 1.
At this point there are lots of ways to correct the inconsistency. [Maybe the team is quiet for the next few months and they are largely forgotten.] Nor is there any need to rush a solution. Still, the plothole does need patching eventually.
I dont see any indication in the first few comics(the rolleplaying game) that superheros are not common knowledge.
You have the timeline mixed up. The flashback had already started before Sydney and Joel had that conversation. That was happening yesterday morning. Not several months into the future (a.k.a. pre-flashback).
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Trademark is about protecting a brand, if Dave was selling medication there might be an issue, since there isn’t, no. Most movies/tv/comics avoid using real brands because it’s free publicity that could be paid for via product placement, not because there’s any real danger of suage.
IANAL either but seriously…
Ah, Sidney. Your #1 source for soundbytes that are absolutely unairable! ^_^
So at what point are we finally going to get to see her closet? I kind of want to know how many outfits she has like the deadpool one and such.
If it helps, until then, there were a few shown, in the montage, when she was spinning her lies to Joel about the contents of Tubey. One of which, should she wear it to Archon, might provoke a telling-off by Maxima!
You’re talking about the boob window one? Those ones aren’t quite the same. She appears to have at least two fully decked out outfits for super hero wear. Those other ones seemed more just like shirts.
Yea. It will be interesting to see what Sydney wears in future. Or what we might get a peek at, in her closet.
That said though, I do foresee a problem for the non-trademark outfits. Namely just what Dave could call his own brand name. The House of Dave? John Paul Gautier can get away with just his name, but Dave Barrack just doesn’t have that kind of ring to it alone. Barrack Clothing conjures up images of camouflage fatigues. It ain’t gonna be easy!
I think that one would depend more on the subject material for name as much as anything. The super hero genre is rather large and depending on who’s being included in the prospect pool, the name for such a line could be changed rather drastically. I do rather want that Deadpool shirt though…
Considering that type of birth control usually has to be taken for at least 3 months to reach full effectiveness (or at least last I heard, many many years back; it is not an area of scientific advancement I have a personal need to keep on top of. They may have improved the drugs since… or made them worse) I would think most young women ought to be taking it just in case you FIND a boyfriend sometime in the foreseeable future.