T'Saan

The one thing about Al that most people don't seem to get, the really critical thing, is that this whole thing isn't a "tech miracle" it's just the wal-mart scam. When wal-mart moves into town, the first thign they do is they run a bunch of sales, for years and years.

not because they care. Not because they just really wanna help. But because they really want to drive every single store that sells the same things they sell out of business. And because they don't really want to (and can't really compete) on the quality front, they do this by just leveraging deep pockets to offer really, really, really cheap prices. They do two things with this: First, they close every single other business that sells the things they sell. Second, they manage to get everyone used to shittier versions of the stuff they used to have higher standards on - it may not be as good, but hey, it's cheap, and who can complain these days?

Al art costs a LOT to make, and it costs way way way more to build the machine models that make it, and this money all goes straight to creating a bunch of waste power, heat, and pollution. It's the anti-environmentalist effect your mother told you about. But it's virtually free to you to use right now, even for the paid services. Do you know why?

Because they want you to use it. They're trying to kill off every source of news writing, picture painting, song singing, book writing, movie making, library storing, lesson teaching, code writing, information sharing, community building, thought thinking they can POSSIBLY manage to replace with worse (but cheaper) versions that can run through machines they run

and then they can charge you for it, and get BACK some money for the billions and billions and billions of dollars that they keep pouring into this stuff.

The people who build this stuff aren't your friend. This product isn't cool. It's not "no big deal" when you share an Al thought, or project, or message - it's about you willingly hopping on board with the people who want to kill everything you love so they can run a zombie robot version of it that they can rent to you later when it's all you have left. this isn't a "conspiracy". It's not secret. It's just the fucking plan and it's right out there in the open and these people even say it out loud if you'd start listening.

They want to get you hooked in AI as your main search engine and then charge advertisers to determine the results when you ask for the best new smartphone.

They want to get you hooked on putting all your e-mails through AI and then charge companies for your data, your most private thoughts.

And of course they want to get states, military and big coorporations hooked on AI and then charge them a fortune. So your taxes go to an AI that decides which neighborhoods to police, who to accuse of insurance fraud, and who to kill by drone (already all happening now).

alternate universe where garak and janeway end up in the shitty 70s version of the astrometrics lab

Julian Bashir corruption arc. Abducted by Tain (not Section 31, surprisingly). Why? Who even knows. Either way, Julian expects Tain to torture him, interrogate him, something. It would be easier, perhaps, than this. He’s mostly just kept in his cell with nobody to talk to. Nobody but Tain, that is. Tain, who acts polite, kind, even. It’s an obvious attempt at manipulation, at getting Julian to cooperate (but what does he want?). So obvious, that Julian is even more perplexed. If Tain wanted to more effectively manipulate him, it wouldn’t be so obvious. Still, Julian doesn’t respond. Tain might as well be discussing kotra and literature with a wall. He doesn’t stop visiting, though.

Time passes. Julian isn’t sure how long. He can’t keep track of the time in here. For as relatively comfortable as the cell is, there’s no way to pass the time. The entertainment he has is provided by and taken by Tain at seemingly random times. The isolation drags on and on and on and on.

Julian isn’t an idiot. He can see what Tain is trying to do. He thinks Tain probably knows his captive is aware of the strategy, but he just doesn’t care. He keeps on visiting and Julian, despite himself, can’t help but start responding. His days have begun to blur together, with nothing but Tain to look forward to.

It’s only when Julian snaps at his captor, the mind numbing loneliness getting to him, and Tain puts a comforting hand on his arm that stills him surprisingly fast, that Julian realizes why Tain isn’t hiding his manipulation more effectively. It doesn’t matter if Julian knows it’s all fake. He’ll lean into it anyway, unable to push away his only respite.

I don't know if you have a timeline for this, but I can imagine it fitting over season 3 rather well. Julian could get kidnapped along with Kira in Second Skin, but separated since Tain decides to keep him, being intrigued after The Wire (and possibly by Garak's not-covered-enough efforts to find where they both are) -- and then his rescue could come with Garak and Odo in The Die Is Cast, when he's been working for Tain for a good 7 or so months.

[Reunion in TDIC also would mean Garak seeing Julian *work* for Tain and being unable to do anything about it because he too, ostensibly works for Tain. But of course it's deeply wrong to see Julian so subdued and lifeless, but he has to hide how much he's both pleased Julian's alive and grieved at what's been done to him. And for added angst, Tain -knowing just how to hurt Garak- requests Julian address him by the "traditional Cardassian honorific, father".(which is, of course, bs, but seeing Garak hear Julian call Tain father is just too good a mindful to pass over imagining).]

My thoughts have rather sprawled over to the aftermath, when Odo somehow wrangles Tain, Garak, and Julian back to DS9, but I quite enjoy the idea that Tain has realised Julian is genetically enhanced and can thoroughly hold that over him. After all, there'll have to be a hearing about the awful things Julian has done, even though everyone knows he'll be let off, since it was under duress -- but if Tain is allowed to speak at the hearing and reveals his secret, we'll, an augment turning dark and working as an assassin for a Cardassian is a very different tale from a young Starfleet doctor who was forced into it against his will. So that could be fun to play with 😈

(And Garak figuring out why Julian is so convinced the trial won't work out, and realising that the only way Julian will be safe is if Tain is dead. But Garak cannot kill Tain.

I think Garak might have to go to Kira for help, as the only senior officer certain not to have federation-induced-anti-augment feelings. [Odo might not have these but he doe believe in keeping order and a law's a law])

and on that note, Julian canonically already believes he's a monster - how much more will that increase with all the awful things he's forced to choose to do? Hehe. Feels.

I can imagine at first Tain makes him choose the lesser of two evils. E.g. these are the children of my political rivals, killing one would make the point well enough, but I'd just as rather kill two. But if you killed one, dear doctor, I'd let the other live. It's your choice. And Julian kills the one and Tain hugs and comfort him, congratulating him on shedding his sentiment and choosing the practical option. He'd have thought it would take a Starfleet Officer longer to see the logical side, but Julian must be different. Special.

And he continues to manipulate Julian using his need to save as many lives as possible, but praising him for not relying on emotion but on logic. And so Julian believes that he really has lost his morals and just turned into a Khan-like killing machine who sees people simply as statistics. And once he believes that, he also believes there is no way he could go back to the Federation, and so he might as well go on doing this because he might not be a doctor anymore but he's killing less and more humanely than Tain would. Possibly.

And Julian’s daddy issues would go crazy with Tain as a dad. I think another major problem that comes up when I think about this hypothetical fic is how do you toe the line between Tain being a master manipulator, while also not making him seem too out of character. I don’t doubt Tain could pretend to be sweet and cuddly if he really wanted to, but we only hear about Tain being vaguely like that (and only once really) and never truly witness it. Assuming we get Tain to be paternal with Julian (Mother Gothel meets Silco in my head), I think Julian would probably be more susceptible to his manipulation. He gets to have a father who watches over him and shows a form of love even, and all it costs Julian is his morals and dignity…

Also Tain finding out about Julian’s enhancements and not scorning him (because he sees this as just another asset to having Julian) would be horribly comforting for Julian since at this point, nobody in his life knows and he’s terrified of others’ judgment. I can really see him metaphorically melting in Tain’s arms with that (as he wrestles with what Tain is demanding of him in return for his care). You’re accepted here. But only because this makes you an even better killing machine for me. I think Tain would probably even allow Julian to be sentimental with him (Julian is best controlled through love), so long as he’s clean and efficient and obedient where it counts.

My head is giving me Jinx and Silco vibes, but with more bitterness, manipulation and a lot less genuine love.

The aftermath to all this would be absolutely insane. I adore the idea of Garak seeing Julian with Tain in The Die Is Cast. It would be incredibly unnerving to see him go from lively and passionate to obedient to a fault. I wonder how Julian would feel about it. Do we think he’s angry? How is it that nobody has come to rescue him in all this time? Maybe he’s just kinda resigned to his fate. Maybe he’s starting to truly delude himself into needing Tain. I don’t think Julian would become truly loyal in such a relatively short amount of time, but that manipulation and what we like to call Stockholm syndrome can do some crazy stuff.

Garak seeing Julian and how he’s desperately seeking Tain’s approval, even though he’s also fighting his own sense of morality. Garak seeing himself in Julian. Pairing that realization with the whole point of TDIC being Garak realizing he’s not the same person who can follow Tain and blindly obey anymore… chef’s kiss!!

Visible closures (zippers, buttons, ties, etc) are considered unbelievably slutty, especially if there are a lot of then or they're large

Cleavage is not, it's just considered feminine. While Cardassians do not have "boobs" in a mammalian sense, Cardassian women still have bigger chests due to larger pectoral muscles and fat reserves. Cardassian women who look stronger are the beauty standard. So actually, even though Natima is considered too slender, she could probably throw Quark.

However, exposing your chula is a little slutty. Tastefully. More appropriate for evening wear. Wearing a boob window that hides the chula is more modest than having a low neckline that exposes it.

Exposing your neckridges does have some Implications, but not as much as you'd expect. Using makeup on more than a 2-4 scales on the other hand is akin to wearing red lipstick and red nail polish

Higher necklines and long sleeves are preferred for anyone working with "outsiders", which is usually something Cardassian men do. This is for temperature reasons and because letting an outsider see too much of even a living Cardassian body is frowned upon.

Jackets double as a way of covering a person's face after they have died suddenly and if no appropriate length of cloth was available. For a long time, Cardassians wore an outer robe that could fully be used as a shroud for this purpose, but long robes gradually fell out of fashion.

In the Cardassian Union, going shirtless with high-waisted pants, regardless of gender, is more acceptable than wearing low waisted bottoms with a shirt that can't meet them. This is because the stomach is close to the chuva, and some Cardassians essentially tattoo their stomachs* for private titillation. Low waisted clothes in general aren't held in high esteem.

These markings are also done partially for superstitious reasons, not that most Cardassians will admit it when someone who isn't Cardassian could hear it. Such marks are believed to help with fertility issues and "trap" your partners eye.

Most Cardassians wear undershirts, and. exposing these is also slutty. It ranges from "tasteful" (your jacket or tunic being cut so a little of the undershirt peeks out) to "you are getting fined for indecency" (most of the undershirt is visible, its sheer, its decorated so you'll stare, etc). Garak having his jacket open so you can see his shiny moire undershirt in Rocks and Shoals would be considered very inappropriate.

Wearing clothes that are very obviously made of pieced fabric (remnants seamed together when you don't have quite enough fabric) or are color blocked are considered fashionable, as they publicly declare one's frugality and therefore patriotism. However, too much piecing, as seen in quilts, is often considered too showy. It may still show up in clothes for special occasions.

Cardassians dye their nails and skin sometimes, but most prefer to use powders today as they take less time to apply. Nail polish is considered some combination of annoying and unclean. Dyeing the nails is more common than dyeing the skin. Dyeing the lips is also done.

The dyes used are not usually dangerous to ingest (though they don't taste good), and it used to be fashionable for Cardassians to dye their teeth by chewing on them or holding in a mouthful of dye for a few minutes. Purple dye was imported from Bajor pre-Occupation and was used as a sign of status and worldliness. Blue dye was used by courtesans. Black was used to signify masculinity. This petered out as the practice was gradually considered extravagant, wasteful, and too provocative. The mouth, as the site of speech, is considered borderline sacred by Cardassians, which both encouraged and discouraged this practice.

Similarly cosmetic whitening of teeth is considered weird, and arguably more inappropriate than dyeing them.

Single women who are looking for a partner often wear layers of taffeta skirts or petticoats sewn with bells. While Cardassian hearing is poor, these are still noticeable, and the dampening makes them more socially acceptable, because they are less noticeable.

Married and working women often wear a metal chatelaine at their waist that also makes noise, but fact that it is visible signals they are not interested in being approached romantically. A working woman who is looking for a partner keeps her keys and other supplies in a pocket or petticoat with an access slit. The latter allows the chatelaine to still jangle. Noise making jewelry that can be seen is generally worn by uninterested women, and is understood as a warning.

Working men sometimes also wear chatelaines, but these are made of wood. Noise is not used to signify relationship status by men, partially because wearing metal is considered somewhat feminine among civilians.

Purely decorative waist pendants and beaded aprons are also popular with the upper class.

Perfume is considered gauche, due to how strong the Cardassian sense of smell is and how much information comes from a person's natural scent. Someone who wears perfume is assumed to be hiding something about their scent. In practice this is more of an upper class bias- service class Cardassians, especially those that work jobs where they are exposed to bad smells, often wear perfume in their free time, as well as keeping something perfumed on hand to clear their senses at work. However, Cardassians in general do use perfume to scent their houses, and it is occasionally appropriate to scent jewelry.

Jewelry and ornaments made of flowers used to be popular, as were fake flowers that had been perfumed to seem real. However, like dyeing the mouth and teeth, this is currently considered extravagant and wasteful.