There are very, very evil people in this world who like to hide in communities that won't rat them out. They infiltrate, collect blackmail, replicate, and expect you to look the other way.
If anyone threatens to speak up, they say: "If I go down, you go down with me."
The trick is identifying these sociopathic parasites BEFORE they gain too much influence. (Because once they do, the only way they can survive is by threatening to burn everything down.)
It's worth calling them out early, before the price of speaking up becomes too high.
They want silence - or better yet, compliance. That's how they recruit new people. Once everyone is corrupt, virtue becomes the trait to hunt down and eradicate.
Then the host slowly dies, while the parasites move on to their next meal.
Evil is all around, in EVERY community. That's why we can't fix humanity by escaping to "new worlds." Like a weed, the problem of evil will follow us wherever we go.
We need to get braver: To identify it, admit it's in all of us, call it out for what it is, and root it out.
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I'm biased in the "which country makes the best comics" debate. Having grown up reading manga, I devoted my career to studying Japan's style.
If you're interested in manga, here are some books I recommend! (Each deserves its own in-depth review. Maybe I'll do that someday 😶)
Some notes: The first image is ideal for an older male audience, or "seinen."
Berserk and Vagabond are incredible. Strain is a dark gangster pulp story set in southeast Asia. That writer also wrote Fist of the North Star. Blade of the Immortal is gory, with outstanding action.
The second image is a subgenre called "gekiga," which is for older men. These stories are dark, brooding, pensive, and philosophical. Readers looking for action may find these a bit dry, but I assure you they are excellent if you enjoy a slow burn.
Was it Tolkien who said something like, "The reason I haven't named those mountains in the far distance is because if I do, I'll have to name the mountains behind THEM as well"?
Numenor, like the Force, isn't SUPPOSED to have definition. It should be forever beyond our reach.
"Numinous" mysteries should only exist in our hearts, forever unreachable, beyond our wildest imagination.
These are the pillars of good storytelling, if any of these idiots bothered to learn before pumping a billion dollars into fan fiction. (Just like Star Wars.)
To those inclined: The awe & wonder we experience when trying ( and failing) to grasp the numinous, is what Heaven is.
Tokien was a deeply religious man. He understood the awe and beauty of the promises (and warnings) of scripture. That's why LotR feels so True.
Trans Man: "It feels like everyone avoids me now, like a predator. I feel lonely and mad all the time. When I reach out and share my feelings of emotional starvation with other men, they tell me to shut the fuck up and deal with it, as if this is supposed to be normal."
"When I share this with my partner, she tries to comfort me, though for some reason that makes me mad! Like she'll realize how weak I am and leave me for someone stronger. I feel hysterical all the time. I simultaneously want to cry on someone's shoulder, AND push them away."
"Nobody warned me it'd be like this. I thought doors would open, not find even more bolted shut. I feel trapped in my own body & mind. Other men suggest they're ALL going through this, but that's just not possible! How do ANY of them get out of bed in the morning?"
20 years ago, I was 16 in a High School located 15 miles away from ground zero, sitting in 2nd period History class. Our teacher flipped the channels of an old cathode ray TV to show us a some video on a VHS cassette, down to channel 3.
"Wait! What was that?!" I said.
1/
I'd seen something on channel 4: Smoke coming from one of the Twin Towers. The teacher went back. "What is this, a movie?" Our mouths hung open. Then the second plane hit. We couldn't believe what we were seeing. Maybe it was a replay.
"No, this is live!"
The classroom phone started ringing. All students were told to stay in their rooms on the PA. A few teachers ran through the halls.
The towers fell. We heard shouts up and down the hallway. Some kids started crying. We didn't believe what was happening. It was so close to home.
Keep being asked if I would consider minting NFT's, and my answer remains the same: If you enjoy my comics and want to help me do this full-time (which I'd be proud to), support links are pinned beneath my bio 👇👇👇