User blog:Spikewitwicky/November 7, 2017 - Spike's Journal Entry



Almost two weeks later, and I'm still at paragraph one for my 'summary of humanity' statement for Poise, the Nebulon. It still reads like a lame history report. "Hi, I'm a human. We've been on Earth around 200,000 years, and engaged in heavy industrialization for only about 250 of those. If you're keeping up on the news, you're probably thinking we're near-barbaric, given the slew of mass shootings and wars going around." I tried to say that we have shown remarkable progress for a species for such a short period of time (If humanity was one person, born 200,000 years ago, they would still be about a twentieth of Kup 's age), but at the same time, we still aren't able to leave our solar system.

Of course, Crosscut nixed that. He said he didn't me to reveal too much of our weaknesses. Heyah, no offense, Crosscut, but a general Internet search will give that away. Poise may be coming and visiting us, from god knows where Nebula is. And we're psyching ourselves up, and even determining IF we could visit Mars in about 15 years, and that journey will likely just be setting foot on the planet, gathering some stuff, and hauling aft back to Earth. I'm guessing an interstellar war with Nebula would last about as long as Surburbicon did at the box office (whoever reads this in the future, just 'Google' Surburbicon and you'll know what I mean).

On a separate note, I had to bail DJ out at school yesterday. He decked a kid for calling him "gay." DJ is a product of a military elite background - not only with his mom and dad, but his sister is quite accomplished as well. And right now, in junior high, he wants to try acting. He may not go into acting later, but now he likes it. But he's very sensitive about being perceived as gay, I'm thinking it's because his folks aren't around hardly at all. And, let's face it, it's an industry with a lot of gay people in it, but I keep telling him, I can probably rattle off more straight actors off the top of my head than gay actors.

But that's beside the point. Calling someone "gay" should NOT be perceived as a slur. And his junior high is still junior high, no matter now many PFLAG or "safe spaces" you put up. When I was going to that school, I remember if I was called "gay" - that was reason to throw down. I hated it and all it represented, but it was like you were in a total Darwinian environment - someone insulted you, it's "go" time.

Anyway -  I had to pretty much pull out every trick in the book Crosscut taught me over these past few years to prevent the school from suspending DJ. I even threw his parents under the bus. "Look, I'm sorry, I will handle this. But you need to know that his mom and dad...barely interact with him. They're isolated and away, operating "in the dark" I think that's what they call it. The school has the security info to verify that. He doesn't show it, but I know it's taking a toll on him. Pretty much anything I could do to prevent a suspension. And somehow, it worked.

Even though he's not my kid, for the hours it took me to diffuse that bomb, I did punish him, by making him mop the repair bay floor. Then, afterword, when I was talking with Crosscut, I saw that...look. He leered at me, and I swear, almost for a moment, I saw hatred. It's that hatred that I know I felt, albeit briefly, when I was grounded. It's silly, but I feel absolutely awful. I feel like I crossed a line. I'm no longer DJ's "boss" - the one who pays him for helping out in the repair bay, or a friend who lets him eat with my family during dinner. He saw me as this, I dunno, cruel overlord. And, Jesus - I didn't sign up for this, where the hell are Flint and Lady Jaye?!

Anyway, I'm making him watch the movie Milk. And I want him to write 2 pages about whether he thought Harvey Milk was an effective leader. If he wasn't, I want examples of how he could have done better. I'm not forcing him to write one way or another. But personally, I see a lot of Harvey Milk in Optimus Prime. But to be honest, it's probably the other way around, since Prime was obviously here before Milk was. Both are incredibly passionate, but both are incredably steadfast when it comes to principles, and drawing a line in the sand when the time comes to defend those who cannot defend themselves. Whenever I get around to writing this 'mission statement' again (honestly, I would today, but the repair bay is calling me), I usually envision Prime or Jumal over my shoulder, editing what I'm going to say, but I should probably pop that movie (Milk) in for a quick bit of inspiration as well.