Comic Discussion > QUESTIONABLE CONTENT
WCDT strips 3666 to 3670 (29th January to 2nd February 2018)
dutchrvl:
--- Quote from: Technoir on 31 Jan 2018, 04:50 ---A shame, really. Warm crumpets with butter and jam are delish!
--- End quote ---
They really are.
I sometimes get them from Trader Joe's, and while vacuum sealed, they are actually quite decent after putting them in a toaster :)
maneyan:
--- Quote from: dutchrvl on 31 Jan 2018, 04:41 ---
--- Quote from: maneyan on 31 Jan 2018, 02:40 ---
--- Quote from: traroth on 31 Jan 2018, 02:29 ---
--- Quote from: fayelovesbubbles on 31 Jan 2018, 00:24 ---"Bubbles needs to chill, Evie didn't mean any harm."
Gee, where have I heard something like that before? Oh yes, white people telling me how to feel about racism, men telling me how to feel about misogyny and straight people telling me how to feel about homophobia.
--- End quote ---
Every single one of us is a study subject for various science disciplines. Medecine, psychology, sociology... They all study us in a distantiated, depassionated way. And that's actually fine, because that's how science works.
--- End quote ---
Pretty much this. From where I'm seeing it, the issue is not with Evie per se, it's simply with the fact that Bubbles is hypersensitive to these issues and can't really deal with that kind of scrutiny. This, after all, is a PTSD-suffering veteran whose main coping mechanism we've seen thus far is explosive violence towards things (that and tea admittedly). Still, it's this kind of scrutiny that is needed to build a greater understanding between people. Thus far we've seen laser-armed sociopath-bots (Pintsize), giant walker death robots (Deathbot 9000), 2.5 meter emotionally unstable Terminators (Bubbles), an omniscient demigod-bot etc. If that's the AI lineup I'm gonna say that "sorry, humanity is trying to understand you and being perceived as rude does not take precedence"
EDIT: Having reviewed the thread a bit more, I'm going to simply say "Yeah, Evie could have been way more diplomatic". Still: Bubbles should have been more clear she personally took offense. "Some might find that offensive" pretty much means "Some, not me", at least where I'm standing.
--- End quote ---
That last bit is definitely where Bubbles could have been a lot more clear.
Personally, while Bubbles' anger is absolutely justified and should lead to a discussion with Evie so she understands why her approach to AI sociology was not cool, I also find it slightly disappointing that Bubbles felt the need to add the qualifier "for rich people's children". Not only is it completely unnecessary (the sentence reads just as good without it), it also implies that only rich kids are that stupid, which is highly unlikely (not to mention that we've seen no evidence that Evie is such a rich kid).
In addition, Evie did not 'merely shrug it off', she in fact acknowledged that the comparison was offensive. Yes, she could have, and I think should have, apologized for it, but Bubbles misinterprets or misrepresents Evie's response, in my opinion.
--- End quote ---
Yeah, that bit about rich people's children really rubbed me the wrong way... it sounded honestly like something I'd expect out of an anti-intellectual Trump fanatic. "Hurr durr, educated elites"
AND YET! Is that statement offensive? I'd take it as sorta offensive because it really belittles the academic view of things, and as I took it that way, there's a case to be made that it was indeed offensive. And if I can say that, Bubbles can definitely say that she found the comparison offensive and was hurt by it. So I guess it works out both ways her really.
Technoir:
Argh. Now i really want warm crumpets with butter and jam. I don't even want to look and see how many points that is on my WW app. Yikes. 2 crumpets each with a 1/2 tbsp each of butter and jam....16 points, out of my daily 40. Sigh. Maybe on the weekend with my leftover weekly points.
#CrumpetTalk
TheEvilDog:
I've said it before, Bubbles main problem is that she doesn't communicate how she feels. She remains quiet and quiet and quiet, until its too late and she vents. By which time, the person who could actually use the information, in this case, Evie, has already left.
That remains her biggest obstacle and she needs to learn how to talk to people.
And I am still waiting on my damn scones!
Dal Gurak:
After reading today's comic, I went back and re-read #3656 to make sure I remembered something correctly. And I did - Bubbles said "Some of us would resent being compared to weapons of mass destruction." She did not say "I am offended that you would compare me to weapons of mass destruction."
I'm not trying to nitpick her - I realize that, in most cases, when hearing something like that the other person is expected to make the mental translation (i.e. "Uh oh, I offended this person.") and apologize appropriately. Perhaps Bubbles was just trying to not be too blunt? (I'll defer to people who understand social context better than me, which is to say most people.) The reason I bring it up is that I think it's possible Evie took those words literally. She reacts to the statement as if it was a broad sweep of A.I. opinions, not the opinion of the person right in front of her speaking to her.
I could be projecting. This sort of thing would happen to me constantly as a child, and still happens pretty often. For example, when I was a kid, my mother might tell me "Your room is a mess - you really need to clean it up." And I would interpret that as her saying my room was a mess and I need to clean it - a disapproving comment on the situation. Okay. I'd go back to whatever I was doing. Later, she'd get angry and say "Why didn't you clean your room like I told you to??" And I'd respond "What? You didn't tell me to." And she'd get more angry because she thought I was intentionally overanalyzing her words and misinterpreting them deliberately out of spite or mischief. I take things literally - it's very difficult for me to suss out what a statement really means when it's indirect, such as Bubbles' statement. When I first read #3656, I thought she was talking about A.I.s in general, and it wasn't until today's strip that it was clarified that, oh, she was actually talking about her own personal feelings.
Again, that's not saying Bubbles or anyone else must only speak directly and bluntly. It's my responsibility to learn how to communicate and internally translate what people say to me, and it's Evie's responsibility to realize she said something rude and apologize to Bubbles. I get the feeling that if Evie was told that she hurt Bubbles' feelings, she would be surprised and very sorry. Or she might shrug and say something like "Well, that's too bad - this issue is more important than one person's feelings", in which case I suppose the many, many Evie-haters on here can have a field day with that callous attitude.
So to sum up - the hurt feelings and anger may have been caused by miscommunication. Which happens all the time, and really sucks. I would hope that, if things were explained to her, Evie could make up with Bubbles and all would be well. Maybe too idealistic, but it would be nice.
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