Tag: SJW

A Marvel insider reports that Mark Waid has gone off the deep end again:

I work at Marvel; some information for you guys

Waid was ordered to delete fucking everything social media-wise by Cebulski. Cebulski got some VERY angry emails from Antarctica Press. Lawsuit threatening letters in terms of Waid explicitly using Marvel’s name when he threatened them to dropping “Jawbreakers”. Along with threats of physical violence being committed against people at Antartica Press, if they did not do what Waid ordered.

Cebulski called Waid and basically demanded he kill all of his social media profiles and basically go off the grid. Basically, he’s in an internet time out which he has zero choice but to honor, lest he get blackballed from ever working at Marvel again.

As it stands, Waid’s career at Marvel is pretty much dead now. Not even Waid’s chief protector (Brevoort) can save him, since Cebulski is beyond the pale angry. Cebulski gave Waid one final chance when he took over. Don’t expect Waid to be writing any more comics from Marvel at least as long as Cebulski is in charge.

It did seem bizarre that Avalanche dropped Jawbreakers when they had already published Magademia and Barack Panther. But this simply goes to show that even the most SJW-converged company will eventually find itself having to eject its most extreme SJWs or risk imploding.

Of course, the fact that Marvel didn’t simply fire Waid for this behavior illustrates that its management is still in denial and is afraid to address the fact that it has the corporate version of cancer.

So, Wolverine is a woman. The President of the United States is a woman. And a superhero. And a Muslim. It just keeps getting better… check out who is the President in the ALL-NEW WOLVERINE #33. Needless to say, the Comics-SJWs just love it.

As to what we’re doing to take advantage of this nonsense, I’m pleased to be able to say that the first TWO issues of Alt★Hero are now illustrated, the first issue is colored, and we are rapidly approaching the print layout stage. So, here’s the question: do we maximize the potential audience by using the smaller format and selling the single issues for $2.99 or do we go out with the larger format at $3.99?

If you’re an Alt★Hero backer or if you’re intending to buy the single issues, please share your opinion. I go back and forth on this one. Keep in mind that the graphic novels will be in the larger format regardless. And backers will receive the digital editions for free, of course.

We will have another print release on Monday. Possibly two, as a matter of fact.

China unveils the next step in Big Social:

China said it will begin applying its so-called social credit system to flights and trains and stop people who have committed misdeeds from taking such transport for up to a year.

People who would be put on the restricted lists included those found to have committed acts like spreading false information about terrorism and causing trouble on flights, as well as those who used expired tickets or smoked on trains, according to two statements issued on the National Development and Reform Commission’s website on Friday.

Those found to have committed financial wrongdoings, such as employers who failed to pay social insurance or people who have failed to pay fines, would also face these restrictions, said the statements which were dated 2 March.

The move is in line with President’s Xi Jinping’s plan to construct a social credit system based on the principle of “once untrustworthy, always restricted,” said one of the notices which was signed by eight ministries, including the country’s aviation regulator and the Supreme People’s Court.

China has flagged plans to roll out a system that will allow government bodies to share information on its citizens’ trustworthiness and issue penalties based on a so-called social credit score.

This is a brilliant application of what Big Social is doing, only instead of allowing the hand-picked SJWs of the Twitter Trust and Safety Council or the Facebook-endorsed SPLC to do the restricting, the Chinese government will do it. And why not? The basic principle has been established and broadly accepted, from Twitter to the Her Majesty’s Government. As Q said, “why are trips allowed?”

Imagine if the God-Emperor and his Grand Inquisitor were to launch a similar program in the United States. After all, who has proven themselves more untrustworthy than Facebook? How could the SJWs legitimately complain if Mark Zuckerberg and his executives found themselves placed under permanent restriction? This principle of “once untrustworthy, always restricted” is merely an adaptation of Facebook’s own approach to banning thoughtcrime and legally controlling the public discourse, and it represents a welcome return to pre-Enlightenment philosophy on the part of a people who were always rightly dubious about it being genuine. There can be no “freedom of speech” in any non-Western, non-Christian, non-American society, because the concept doesn’t even make sense in any other context.

If you wanted to keep what passed for free speech in America, then you shouldn’t have permitted entry to Catholics and Jews, followed by wave after wave of various peoples whose beliefs and cultural traditions are entirely antithetical to the concept. And given those waves of immigration, you can’t be surprised that it’s no longer even possible to publicly state that a man is not a woman without negative legal and social and employment and financial consequences.

The devil, of course, is in the definitions. But the devil is out. Let’s not shed too many tears for the SJWs once they discover the difference between “influence” and “power”, for as another Chinese leader once said, “power comes from the barrel of a gun”.  It does not come from control of a momentarily popular software application.

The Conservative Libertarian Fiction Alliance is alarmed over a recent mass deletion of Amazon book reviews:

Amazon frightened many conservative authors this week in a mass deletion of reviews. Some authors lost almost 100 reviews on their published works. Others lost all the reviews they had ever written on Amazon. Some lost both. Information about the purge began to trickle out in the closed Conservative Libertarian Fiction Alliance (CLFA) Facebook group. Member after member began reporting the losses at the same time. Marina Fontaine, whose credits include the dystopian Chasing Freedom, the pro-Trump fiction anthology MAGA 2020, and moderating the CLFA page reported many members experiencing losses. A coordinated effort was launched to contact Amazon for explanation. Jon Del Arroz, a science fiction author who was banned from Worldcon earlier this year, contacted Amazon directly asking for his reviews to be reinstated. Amazon responded:

At this time, we’ve reviewed your feedback and ensured that appropriate action is taken.  There may be times that reviews must be removed from the site.  Unfortunately, we won’t be able to discuss the specifics about why the reviews were removed as we’ll only be able to discuss that with the individuals who posted the reviews.  They’re welcome to contact us if they’d like additional information.

Del Arroz’s reviews were reinstated but the corporate response is less than satisfying to conservatives who know their freedom of speech is under constant attack from SJWs in a big tech industry that rules the socials and platforms writers need to connect with their audience.

Of course, the mere fact that there is a closed alliance of authors with personal relationships who pay very close attention to reviews may explain at least a reasonable percentage of these deletions, given the terms of service. I checked out my reviews and it looks like ten or fewer reviews were deleted across all my various book listings. Not only that, but several of the reviews were one-star fake reviews, so two of my average ratings actually increased. This made me suspect that the deleted reviews were likely in open violation of Amazon’s terms of service, which Amanda Green’s investigation appears to have generally confirmed.

Checking reviews is part of my monthly “business” I take care of along with paying bills, etc. That’s why seeing so many folks up in arms on Facebook and elsewhere about it brought me up short. It also had me thinking about who the people were, what their relationships with one another might be and then it sent me scurrying to the Amazon TOS for authors and for reviews.

In this case, all my questions were answered in the “Customer Reviews Guidelines Frequently Asked Questions from Authors“. If you haven’t read these FAQs recently, I recommend you do so. Amazon makes it clear what their rules are. Below are a few of the most important ones.

2. Are authors allowed to review other authors’ books?
Yes. Authors are welcome to submit Customer Reviews, unless the reviewing author has a personal relationship with the author of the book being reviewed, or was involved in the book’s creation process (i.e. as a co-author, editor, illustrator, etc.). If so, that author isn’t eligible to write a Customer Review for that book. 

3. Can I ask my family to write a Customer Review for my book?
We don’t allow individuals who share a household with the author or close friends to write Customer Reviews for that author’s book. Customer Reviews provide unbiased product feedback from fellow shoppers and aren’t to be used as a promotional tool.

However, the fact that Jon Del Arroz’s reviews were restored upon review by an Amazon manager, as were some of the reviews of Declan Finn’s books, indicates that there was probably more going on than just legitimate TOS policing. My guess is that a rogue Amazon employee took it upon himself to take advantage of the opening being given to him by TOS-violating reviewers, but got carried away and ended up deleting a number of reviews that were not in violation of the terms of service as well.

This leads me to two conclusions. First, reviews are considered very important by SJWs. Therefore, culture warriors should be diligent about posting Amazon reviews of books that they read. Even if it’s only a short, one-paragraph review that only takes a minute to post, it will help build up the total number of reviews as well as bolster the book’s average rating against fake reviews meant to lower it.

Second, when you are dealing with an SJW-amenable authority, or even just an authority that happens to employ an SJW, you must keep your nose clean. Don’t push the envelope with regards to the posted rules and regulations. Don’t give them an excuse to crack down, because when they do, they may not stop with your infractions, but cross the line themselves.

A short-term perspective is why corporations believe they are free to take political action against the beliefs, interests, and values of their customers.

Within hours of announcing its decision to end a credit card relationship with the National Rifle Association, the First National Bank of Omaha found itself thrust into the center of the resurgent national gun debate.

Its Twitter and Facebook pages were flooded with comments. Some customers applauded the 160-year-old bank’s decision. Others said they would take their business elsewhere.

In the aftermath of the deadly school shooting in Florida last week, businesses were making the same financial and moral calculus, quickly discovering that there is no neutral ground. As pressure mounted across various social media platforms on Friday, a number of corporations, including several car-rental companies, MetLife insurance, Symantec security software and the car pricing and information site TrueCar, abruptly announced plans to cut ties with the organization.

The actions continued on Saturday. Delta and United Airlines both issued statements saying they were ending discount programs with the N.R.A. and would ask the association to remove their information from its website.

Over the last couple of years, social media has become the preferred vehicle for the rise of consumer activism, turning the everyday purchase of dresses or shoes or, now, renting a car or buying insurance, into a form of protest or demonstration of ideology.

Marketing experts say it’s difficult to determine whether calls for boycotts can truly have an impact on a company’s business. Rather, they say, once-angry customers either forget or move on to the next event or debate.

“Memories fade. The intensity of the feelings that people have on this subject right now will feel different one month or five months from now,” said Maurice Schweitzer, a professor of operations, information and decisions at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

This is why it is a tremendous mistake to make unprincipled exceptions because you really like Disney movies or find a cheaper flight on Delta or have a hankering for Kentucky Fried Chicken. That is precisely the mindset that converged corporations are counting on you to have in order to permit them to continue converging the wider society and culture.

Those of you who went and saw Black Panther or The Last Jedi in the theater helped make it successful, even if you made snarky critical remarks about it later. By doing so, you increased the ability of Disney and Marvel to continue making more movies like that. By supporting the convergence, you ensure that there will be more of it.

Actions have consequences. Don’t support those who are trying to destroy your culture, your faith, and your nation.

Inherent in the insane, shamelessly hypocritical world of SJW comics:

Comics creators really hate criticism. Every time “Diversity and Comics” creator Richard Meyer reviews a comic book he doesn’t like, industry professionals lose their minds and wish violence on him. The last time it happened he was threatened by a Marvel professional and told to stay away from Comicon. This time, Image Comics’ transgender writer Michelle Perez tweeted that he wishes Meyer had died in an IED attack.

Michelle Perez@rubblewoman
richard c meyer, aka the diversity and comix guy. he did a 30 minute video about a comic book circular that featured an article of mine. hes a multiple divorcee piece of shit. hes a war veteran so of course he’s a cryptofascist. unfortunately an IED didnt blow him up

Michelle Perez@rubblewoman
my unvarnished opinion: man it sure sucks that this guy didnt get blown up by an IED

Twitter has not removed the posts for violating community standards.

Meyer is an Afghanistan combat veteran who survived multiple IED attacks and served his country honorably. He has now carved out a popular niche for himself reviewing comic books and has a huge following on YouTube. He has been at the forefront in bringing attention to the far-left ideologues who have taken over the comics industry and he isn’t shy about reporting their terrible behavior and penchant for always running to violent ideation any time they are offended….

Bounding Into Comics reported that Erik Larson, Image Comics co-founder and board member, responded to the uproar.

Larsen’s initial reaction was to explain Perez’s wish for Meyer to be killed is part of freedom of speech, “I can’t control what other people say or do anymore than they can control what I say or do. It’s just words, man. Nobody was hurt. That’s the freedom of speech in action. None of us have to like it.”

But comics artist and veteran Will Caligan lost his job at Short Fuse Media for expressing his opinion that men can’t change their DNA by wishful thinking. His First Amendment rights meant nothing to the mob. His innocuous truth about the impossibility of DNA morphing by the power of wishes took food off his table, but Perez can wish to see a veteran blown up in an IED attack and suddenly #FreeSpeechMatters.

We’re not fooled. The double standard for conservative voices in comics is deafening—and #Comicsgate is about to boil over.

It is increasingly evident that the entire “free speech” movement of the so-called Enlightenment was never about anything but getting Christians to relax their blasphemy laws. Obviously that was a tremendous mistake. Again and again, we have seen that tolerating evil merely leads to the rule of intolerant evil.

The sad truth is that Image and the other independents are actually more converged than Marvel and DC. At least the Big Two have to pretend to acknowledge the mass market, even when they make major mistakes like trying to claim this bare-faced Western whore is a Muslim. The indies are free to let their freak flags fly, and they make the average Lovecraft cultist look sane and reserved by comparison.

No worries. Alt★Hero is coming. And speaking of comics, don’t forget that Rebel Dead Revenge #2: Satan’s Army is now available and the #1 comic in four categories. I’m also pleased to report that our distributor has successfully addressed the technical issue and the first two Arkhaven print editions should be available on Amazon soon. But you don’t need to wait if you want to acquire both #1 issues.

Bleeding Cool reports that the USA’s foremost black intellectual, Ta-Nehisi Coates, will be writing Captain America for Marvel:

Last July, Bleeding Cool heard the word that Ta-Nehisi Coates would be the new writer on the Captain America ongoing comic book. Same with Nick Spencer on Amazing Spider-Man. Though we only learnt that Ryan Ottley would be joining him as an artist in January.

None of these stories have been confirmed. None of them were in the Marvel May solicits. And none were mentioned by Marvel at ComicsPRO today.

However, I get the nod that we might be hearing more about Coates writing Captain America next week…. An American author, journalist, comic book writer, and educator, Coates is a national correspondent for The Atlantic, where he writes about cultural, social and political issues, particularly regarding African Americans. It is likely this aspect that will inform much of the coverage when the news goes official.

For Coates, it might be just one more notch. He’s written for The Village Voice, Washington City Paper, and Time. He has contributed to The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post, The Washington Monthly, O, and other publications. In 2008 he published a memoir, The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, Two Sons, and Unlikely Road to Manhood. His second book, Between the World and Me, was released in July 2015. It won the 2015 National Book Award for Nonfiction, and was a nominee for the Phi Beta Kappa 2016 Book Awards. He was the recipient of a “Genius Grant” from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation in 2015. And he has been the writer of the Black Panther series for Marvel Comics drawn by Brian Stelfreeze for two years now.

But the man who wrote The Case for Reparations writing Captain America could make for a very interesting comic book indeed.

Very interesting is one way of putting it. Very converged is another. I, for one, very much look forward to learning more about Captain America’s self-flagellating voyage into the discovery of his own internalized racism and his eventual retirement in favor of a black man who, completely coincidentally, looks very much like an idealized Ta-Nehisi Coates.

I love the smell of my competitor’s convergence in the morning!

“What we did today is going to change DC Comics forever. Forever. There’s no going back anymore.”
– John Cunningham, Senior Vice-President of Sales, Vice-President of Content Strategy, and Vice-President of Marketing at DC Comics/Warner Bros.

Music to my ears, though long-suffering DC Comics fans will probably disagree. This is why:

1. Before he was Batman, he was Bruce Wayne. A reckless boy willing to break the rules for a girl who may be his worst enemy.
2. DC announced Wonder Woman: Tempest Tossed by the Speak and Chains writer Laurie Halse Anderson. With a 15-year-old Wonder Woman on Paradise Island who sees drowning refugees and disobeys her mother Hippolyta to rescue them. She becomes caught up in their struggle, becoming a refugee herself. Washing up on a foreign shore, she is met by two UN workers — one called Steve and another called Trevor.
3. Melissa de la Cruz’s Gotham High: a Multicultural Love Triangle Between Batman, Catwoman, and Joker. A Bruce Wayne high school graphic novel with a 17-year-old part-Chinese Bruce Wayne and DC villains as high school teenagers.
4. Mariko Tamaki and Steve Pugh’s Harley Quinn is an Intersectional Activist Comic About Drag Queens
5. Beautiful Creatures’ Kami Garcia Starts Line of Teen Titans Graphic Novels, Before They Were Superheroes. She will explore the Teen Titans lives before they realise they have powers, as a series of coming-of-age graphic novels.
6. Minh Lê introduced us to the youngest Green Lantern, the 13-year-old Tai. Tai  discovers that his grandmother was a secret Green Lantern, and he inherits her jade ring. Tai then goes on to uncover his grandmother’s life’s secrets as well as grapple with the new powers he has. Lê he has drawn on his own life in an immigrant family and his own grandmother and her life story, and it has become a very personal story to him.
7. His Super Sons story out in April next year, featuring Jonathan Kent and Damian Wayne, the sons of Superman and Batman, will be about climate disruption. With Lower Metropolis under twelve feet of water, with super storms cycling around the world destroying farmland and with what Ridley described as “a coastal ambush” of refugees heading to Denver and Lincoln, Nebraska as the coastline get flooded.
8. DC Comics gave some more details of the Superman Smashes the Klan graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang, and how it ties directly into the Superman vs The Klan radio serial from the forties. Because that is why the comic is set in 1946: it tells the story of an American Chinese girl who moves to Metropolis to find herself and her family’s ethnicity targeted by the Ku Klux Klan. Through her experience with Superman and the radio serial, she learns to overcome some of the trials and understand what it means to be American.

Perhaps DC should consider changing its motto from whatever it is to “comics by transgender immigrants with an unhealthy interest in high school teenagers for transgender immigrants with an unhealthy interest in high school teenagers.”

Now, perhaps DC is attempting to safely wall off its SJW insanity in a series of low-budget comics intended to distract the media and divert the focus of its internal SJWs. But the fact that some of these writers are established names in YA fiction combined with the fact that it brought in Marvel’s lead SJW and handed him its most important properties tends to indicate that DC is simply doing what converged companies do and doubling down on social justice.

I agree with Mr. Cunningham. What they have done will change DC Comics forever. Forever. But what they have also done is to ensure that Arkhaven will become at least the #2 publisher in the comics industry. At least. This panel from the forthcoming Chuck Dixon’s Avalon #1 should serve as an accurate metaphor of the eventual outcome.

Although SJWs are trying to characterize DC Entertainment’s new social media guidelines as a means of reining in Ethan Van Sciver, the reality is that DC is belatedly attempting to muzzle its SJWs before they do any more damage to the brand:

Dear DC Talent Community –

The comic book industry is a very special creative community dedicated to telling epic and legendary stories of action, heroism and intrigue with a rich and diverse portfolio of characters. Both DC’s employees, as well as its extended family of freelance talent, contribute to our success and are direct reflections of our company, characters and comics.

As such, DC expects that its employees and freelance talent community maintain a high level of professionalism as well as reasonable and respectful behavior when engaging in online activities. Comments that may be considered defamatory, libelous, discriminatory, harassing, hateful, or that incite violence are unacceptable and may result in civil or criminal action.

In addition, comments that may be considered insulting, cruel, rude, crass and mean spirited are against company policy and guidelines. We ask, and expect, that you will help to create an online environment that is inclusive, supportive and safe.

Below you will find the most current version of the company’s social media guidelines. If you have any questions, please contact DC Talent Relations department so that we can be of assistance.

DC Entertainment Social Media Guidelines for Talent

This policy has been developed to empower DC Talent to participate in social media activities, represent their creative endeavors well and share their passion for DC’s characters, stories and brands. We recognize the vital importance of online social communities and this policy reflects our commitment to the best possible use of social media. Below are DC’s recommended guidelines when partaking in social media.

Stay positive when you post and we also recommend that you avoid negative comments in this very public forum.

You may want to refrain from engaging with individuals who may be speaking negatively about you, other talent, DC, our fans and the comics industry as this is a no-win situation.

If there has been a personal threat to you or those around you then in addition to alerting DC, please involve the proper law enforcement authorities.

Use good judgment when posting, reposting and liking comments, photos and videos as these may have unintended consequences.

Talent should take special care when using social media to ensure that comments and postings made by you are not associated with DC.

Under all circumstances, please indicate that you do work for DC, but that your comments are your own and do not reflect those of the company.

The internet is permanent regardless of “privacy settings” or other limits you may try to place on your posting. Think before you post, comment, retweet or like something.

Do not reveal plot points, storylines or launch timing — including photos or video of in-progress assets, artwork, story outlines, scripts, panels, announcement details, etc. without coordinating with DC Publicity. Members of the press may follow you on social media, and your posts can — and probably will — become news.

Don’t break news on social media. If you have any questions on what you can or can’t post on any platform, DC Publicity or Talent Relations departments are available to assist.

If you’d like to share DC news on your social pages, we recommend sharing news from DCComics.com, DCE-sanctioned social media pages and other news widely reported on credible news outlets.

If you are contacted by members of the press or asked to participate in an interview about your work for DC, please coordinate this with the DC Publicity department so that news can be rolled out in an orchestrated fashion and elevated on DC digital and social channels as well.

And finally, we recognize that there can be a dark side to social media and to that end if you feel that you are being harassed or bullied through social media channels because of your work for DC or your association with us, please feel free to contact the DC Talent Relations department so that we can be of assistance.

Needless to say, it won’t work. The Comics-SJWs are already trying to play the victim and absurdly wringing their hands about “a chilling affect” on free speech… as if there is anyone on the planet outside of North Korea who hates genuinely free speech more than they do.

DC guidelines to freelancers on using social media “…comments that may be considered insulting, cruel, rude, crass and mean spirited are against company policy and guidelines.”It’s been a while since I worked for DC so I guess I can still say “Fuck you, Trump!”
– David Hine

While on the surface it seems like a good step, I think it could have a chilling affect on the free speech of their employees and freelancers. Also- I’m afraid it’s just too broad. There is no mention of homophobia, transphobia, misogyny, or racism. They use catch-all phrases, but it leaves a lot open to interpretation. While obviously they can’t write an “Anti-Ethan Van Sciver policy” (and let’s be clear, Ethan is what it is in response to) I think you’ll see a lot of people who just post political stuff get swept up in this.
– Tim Hoyle

Others contacted me worried that all sorts of people could go through DC Comics creator social media history looking for anything to use against them. 
– Rich Johnston

This is why SJWs always prefer nebulous Codes of Conduct and Community Police to clear, objective guidelines that can be impartially applied. You see, the “rules” are supposed to be applied only to those who violate the Narrative, while allowing complete freedom of action to the SJWs.

America is getting increasingly tired of Corporate Globo’s endless and inescapable lectures on social justice:

While watching TV advertising, I often get the feeling I’m being lectured to.

The Super Bowl yesterday was a series of lectures with this message: “As often as we’ve tried to educate you people out there in flyover country, you remain resistant to our efforts to civilize you. We continue to detect traces of racism, misogyny, and xenophobia in your makeup; so it’s our moral imperative to disabuse you of those ideas.”

If a young girl and a boy are in some kind of competition—running, shooting a basket, doing a science project—put your money on the girl. She’s a shoe-in. It’s all terribly cute, of course. Look, the girl beat the boy! But the schtick is getting a bit tired. Ad folk, lay off the ideology for a bit, for goodness sakes, and let the poor boy win every now and then.

There seems to be some kind of law in advertising that if you show two kids, one of them has to be black. The rule is so strict that there must be some kind of jail (probably on Madison Avenue) for those who break this law. In a group of seven or so, three or four will be “people of color.” They’ll sometimes show an Asian in a group shot, but Asians just don’t count as much as blacks. We’re being lectured to, folks.

In the Super Bowl T-Mobile ad showing a bunch of babies, more than half of which were “babies of color,” we were told that “Some people will be threatened” by the varied hues of these babies. “But,” we’re told, “you will love who you want.” Why do I get the feeling that person who considered himself enlightened was scolding me for my benighted ways?

The Kraft ad in the Super Bowl featured gay couples and interracial couples. “There is no right way to family” (using “family” as a verb) we were told by an ad that obviously was tweaking the noses of the unenlightened.

One can’t really call it “Corporate America” anymore. There is nothing American about it.