inconsequential gibberish.

Batspreading

Skipper has no mercy. My hero😭

Wacom recently asked me to talk about why I make queer comics, and given there are multiple bills right now floating around in congress that are effectively "we will kill your livelihood if we get a sniff of queer" I had some pretty strong, simply feelings to relay.

Capes are too dangerous (the Edna Mode argument)

Cape can get caught on things (e.g. branches, mechanical doors, exposed sharp objects)

Heavy capes can reduce mobility (e.g. weighing them down when running and climbing) and get in the way

Capes can be grabbed by an enemy to choke or restrain the wearer

Capes can increase visibility (especially for flying heroes when contrasted with the sky)

Capes can lead to instability and loss of balance at high speeds

Capes can be tactical (the Batman argument)

Capes can conceal movement, making attacks hard to read

Capes give the wearer a dramatic silhouette that can intimidate criminals

Capes can be used as a weapon or tool in a fight (e.g. using it to obstruct an opponents vision, distract them, wrap around a weapon to disarm, or cause an opponent to flinch or create distance)

Capes can be reinforced to provide some small amount of protection against weapons

Capes can be modified into a glider, parachute, or other tool

Capes can obscure body shape to protect secret identities

Capes can provide basic weather protection by using waterproofing for rain or insulation for the cold.

And now for the poll:

Which argument about superhero capes do you find more compelling?

Edna Mode argument

Batman argument

I am allergic to taking sides

Nightwing (2016) #112

Batman and Robin: Year One #2

Robin (1993) #77

I've seen people testing this with regular-ass cloth, and basically any type of looser fabric, like a cape or cloak, has a chance to deflect projectiles, including some types of arrows, up until the point where they are sharp and fast enough to pierce armor.

It is generally accepted that most superhero capes of this type - like as with Batman - are not regular-ass cloth, and have an actual bullet-resistant-fabric property to them, which has already been noted.

But I'd like to also add that wearing as a cape has cases where it is specifically better than just wearing it as armor.

This is probably also related to the fencing note from a couple reblogs up, with a cape's general ability to deflect energy, but I did think it relevant to note the case for projectiles, as they are probably a more relevant problem than sword blades most of the time.

when considering the sexual violence against trans women, it's important to remember that "people only view us sexually" does not mean the same thing as "people only find us attractive". it means "people can only conceptualize of our existence within a sexual light" because that's how the majority of our coverage in media has been tinged in the past century. as a result of the chaste and patriarchal nature of modern capitalism, gender and sexuality are inseparable in much public discourse by virtue of propaganda, and as a result, a trans woman is seen as sexual because efforts towards projecting specifically femininity is only categorized as sexual. and when paired with the uncharitable perception of "man", that propaganda can often evolve how people view us directly into "sexual threat" anywhere, for any reason. i could be in the freezer aisle of costco looking down at the ground while i push my cart and i'd still get dirty looks for wearing a dress (this has happened).

when i say "they're either jerking off or sharpening a knife", i mean we're either viewed sexually, or as sexually threatening, in almost all scenarios.

The BYSTANDER effect is exactly what it’s called- people who are there DURING the attack or parts of it, and who do nothing, either out of apathy, not knowing how to respond, thinking someone else will take care of it, or being scared for their own safety (etc I’m not listing them all off). It’s specifically about ordinary people- again, those who do not have any kind of first aid or emergency training- freezing.

Also, 9-1-1 didn’t exist when Kitty was murdered. The bystanders would have needed to find a local precinct phone number or get through to an operator- it wouldn’t have been anywhere near as quick to do as today. Moreover, the claim that 37/38 people saw everything and chose to do nothing is also a fabrication by the media, as you pointed out. The reality was that some people heard things and didn’t know what it was, and yes, others likely ignored it. But a neighbour came out and held Kitty. Someone did call the police. And later it came out that most people were ear-witnesses and had seen nothing and thought it was a drunken fight. The point of the bystander effect is that it’s not (usually) coming from malice- it’s not people standing around with their thumbs up their asses and laughing as someone is killed, it’s ignorance. It’s people not knowing what to do, thinking someone else is more equipped, figuring someone else is going to take care of calling help, whatever. It’s rarely “fuck this person I ain’t helping them.”

To be clear, I fucking hate the bystander effect. I think it makes people look like fucking cowards. So I’m not saying this to let everyone off the hook- because for sure, there are people out there who are malicious about not helping. They’re just not typically the majority.

Also, if you want to combat this within yourself, take a first aid course. Or if you find yourself thinking, “someone else will probably help,” maybe follow it up with, “why shouldn’t it be me?”

I also dunno how, if cops had even been there at the moment she was being killed, they would have known Kitty was queer, and how that could have possibly factored into the non-existent decision. Her being queer DID affect the subsequent investigation and the cops deserve every bit of criticism for it.

us americans currently live in a state actively continuing the largest genocide in history against its indigenous people

rightfully so, leftists and people with a moral compass are deeply disturbed by what's happening to palestine, and i think it's in part because we're outsiders not yet desensitized to violence against palestinians

but we also turn a blind eye to reservations where the government is actively depriving indigenous communities of adequate land, food, independence, sanitation, drinking water, and who continues to aid the collective forgetting of indigenous culture

north america was a whole ass world y'all, with civilizations as significant and massive as rome, and we know basically NOTHING about that world because our government has actively destroyed and buried it

the genocide is still ongoing; indigenous people are still here, fighting to preserve their culture and languages, and it's happening right now in your backyard