We could go for maximum overdrama:
Faye returns to find Bubbles chatting with...Angus!
Where did Evie get that nifty color-changing coat?Dang, beat me to it. That or "Olympic-level judoka" comes with WAY more nifty powers than one might think!
Alternative, Faye returns to the workshop and finds out that Bubbles is actuallyThat'd 'splain Spookybot.(click to show/hide)
And since when do you 'warm' your sis' SO about murdering the crap out of them if they hurt her'? :psyduck:
Should I ever own a sledgehammer, I will christen it Amanda ...
Amanda would DIE for this ship! :-D :laugh: :laugh:
Jeph is rather fond of that joke, isn't he?
Where did Evie get that nifty color-changing coat?
Where did Evie get that nifty color-changing coat?
I dunno; comparing today's strip with Evie's introduction (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3650), I can't see any difference that you can't explain by way of differing ambient light levels.
I'm honestly not sure where things are going to go this week. It's obvious (as my poll shows) that Faye is going to respond to Evie and Amanda's questioning by talking to Bubbles but I really don't know what will be the outcome (or even if there will be an outcome in the immediate future). Either way though, I'm pretty sure that Faye will be given food for thought. It is possible that Bubbles too may start wondering if the status quo in their friendship is sustainable in the long term.
Plus, it also just bugs me when really, really close friendship is mistaken by onlookers for romantic love.
Plus, it also just bugs me when really, really close friendship is mistaken by onlookers for romantic love.
You and me both and many others. That's part of why (random unjustified) shipping gets such a negative response here.
Maybe the whole arc is a "F**k you" to the shippers here?That arc you mentioned is called "Questionable Content" :claireface:
I voted 'Other': She ignores everything about the dinner conversation and immediately focuses on Bubble's mood during http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3659
Because her actual interactions with her upset friend are more important than the random questions of people who don't know her upset friend.
too much anime
too much anime
I don't recognise this concept.
This is going to hurt me as much as it hurts you, but there actually is such a thing as too much bacon.
This is why I still dislike Faye "my usual threats of violence won't work" its her go to, its her first reaction
Shes, still, just a really unpleasant garbage person.
This is why I still dislike Faye "my usual threats of violence won't work" its her go to, its her first reaction
Shes, still, just a really unpleasant garbage person.
Take no other meaning from this than the bare words below:
If this is your interpretation of Faye...
You might be reading the wrong kinda webcomics... for you. :cry:
Maybe the whole arc is a "F**k you" to the shippers here?
Shes, still, just a really unpleasant garbage person.
This is why I still dislike Faye "my usual threats of violence won't work" its her go to, its her first reaction
What happened to panel #5?
I also think of Faye as a garbage person because of her frequent and unwarranted violence and threats of violence. I am glad she might possibly to be taking steps that might eventually lead her unto a path that will slowly take her to a place where she has a slight chance of becoming somewhat less likely to do so, but considering she made a threat of physical violence in the last comic, and only just stopped herself from doing so this comic, she is very much still a garbage person.
Also, let me remind you, she didn't stop herself from threatening violence this comic because that would be wrong, or rude, or a violation of her friendship with Bubbles, but because the person she wants to threaten is physically stronger than her.
Let me also remind you that she is displeased that she thus cannot do the wrong, rude violation of her friendship with Bubbles, which is what she actually wanted.
Yeah, saying that she has begun moving away from such behaviours seems to me either naive or disingenuous, and saying that she has already moved away from them is plain wrong.
Verdict: garbage person.
Edited for spelling.
@dutchrvl
I appreciate the polite response. The honest answer is that I don't care if she's malicious or not. She hits people and she threatens people with violence for reasons I would consider flimsy, therefore I don't like her. Whether she does it to hurt others or whether she just doesn't think about the effects of her actions isn't that important to me, emotionally.
On the SO thing - this comic has an arc about a girl on a Vespa beating up exes. Attacking somebody when a relationship goes bad is not remotely unrealistic or comical in the fictional world of QC.
(Nor do I find it unrealistic or comical in the real world, either. Exes frequently get murdered. I don't really find it an absurdist silly statement.)
The thing about AIs and their age relative to humans vs their maturity is that they seem to be released into the wild fully formed and... well as mature as they get. We have never seen AI as children. If I remember when we first met Momo she was only about three years old, yet she was far more mature than Marigold. Heck she was a more responsible person than most of the cast. I don't know if they are 'born' fully cognitive out of the experience of other AI that came before them or they spend time learning before interacting with the human world but their maturity level and experience with emotion even at a low chronological age seems comparable to adult humans. With the wide range of experience that encompasses.
Perhaps I am the odd one out.Fair. As for myself, it is not a word I would have chosen in a vacuum. I tend to act more forcefully when I feel as if violent people are defended, or if I feel people who question violent people are criticized. I would not have chosen “garbage” as a descriptor in my initial post were it not for this trait.
For me personally, the threshold to call another human being "garbage" (i.e. worthless, to be discarded) is very, very high, and I typically only use that qualification if the person has shown evil intent.
People with flawed behaviors who unintentionally (without malice) hurt others typically don't qualify as garbage to me, especially if I know that the person has a backstory that may have something to do with certain behavioral patterns. I may strongly dislike them, avoid interactions, call them a*holes/d*cks/jerks/etc, but they'd still not be garbage.
To each their own.
In real life, if someone said that they would murder me, I would think less of that person. If someone I just met just hours before did that, it wouldn't matter to me if there is a possibility that they did it "in jest", I would think less of them.
I was going to say that I would be okay with someone I was a close friend with said they would murder me if it was clearly a joke and they had a significantly better delivery then Faye had in the comic, but actually thinking about it, no, I'd still see that as a character flaw. I once did something like that (in a more absurd way. The other person said "I would erect a magic shield before you could" in response, clearly taking it to be facetious), but I see me doing that as a sign of character flaws I had yet to resolve.
If someone says they will murder somebody else, I will think less of that person. If I say I will murder somebody, I will think less of myself. Especially so if you don't know eachother that well, but also in general.
Perhaps I am the odd one out.Fair. As for myself, it is not a word I would have chosen in a vacuum. I tend to act more forcefully when I feel as if violent people are defended, or if I feel people who question violent people are criticized. I would not have chosen “garbage” as a descriptor in my initial post were it not for this trait.
For me personally, the threshold to call another human being "garbage" (i.e. worthless, to be discarded) is very, very high, and I typically only use that qualification if the person has shown evil intent.
People with flawed behaviors who unintentionally (without malice) hurt others typically don't qualify as garbage to me, especially if I know that the person has a backstory that may have something to do with certain behavioral patterns. I may strongly dislike them, avoid interactions, call them a*holes/d*cks/jerks/etc, but they'd still not be garbage.
To each their own.
I like the person Faye has become.
Out of interest, I really can't recall- when did Faye last actually indulge in physical violence?
Perhaps I am the odd one out.
For me personally, the threshold to call another human being "garbage" (i.e. worthless, to be discarded) is very, very high, and I typically only use that qualification if the person has shown evil intent.
Perhaps I am the odd one out.
For me personally, the threshold to call another human being "garbage" (i.e. worthless, to be discarded) is very, very high, and I typically only use that qualification if the person has shown evil intent.
Nope, you're not alone - we're at least two oddballs.
Mayhaps my socialization as a German makes me more sensitive to the connotations: Calling people 'garbage person', or 'human garbage' is a pretty unambiguous violation of their human dignity. Which, in turn, has really ugly historical connotations, and has been used as a means to incite against vulnerable minorities, or suppress political dissent. Truth be told, I find that at least as offensive as 'playful threats of violence', and I don't like those to begin with. Habitually violent people are jerks, true - but violating the human dignity of others is often taken by jerks as a permission to be violent, to give just one example.
I get where people are coming from with disliking even comedic violence, and I feel similar, believe me. But I do think that 'garbage person' is coming close to the line where the cure starts becoming as toxic as the poison.
Calling people 'garbage person', or 'human garbage' is a pretty unambiguous violation of their human dignity.
Beer never hurt anyone, well except the guy who was run over by a Tun of Beer or the others who drowned - one in a fermenter the other in the warehouse from the CO2 buildup.This is going to hurt me as much as it hurts you, but there actually is such a thing as too much bacon.Fake news, you and my cardiologist have just been taken in by the man!
Open your eyes, sheeple!
Sir Francis Bacon: The former British Lord Chancellor died in 1626 of pneumonia supposedly contracted while stuffing a chicken with snow to test a theory about its preservative properties. You hate to be insensitive, but Pip Wilson's poem is pretty funny: "Against cold meats was he insured? For frozen chickens he procured — brought on the illness he endured, and never was this Bacon cured."
too much anime
I don't recognise this concept.
I think it's one of those concepts like "Too much bacon" that horrible people make up to try to harm mankind.
Again, I'm not saying one has to like or even tolerate people or behaviours one finds unpleasant. But if we make them entirely other, something less than we are, we are ignoring the need of self-reflection and the possibility that we ought to check our own behaviours to ensure there aren't uncomfortable paralells. "If bad behaviours are only done by garbage people, and I know I am not a garbage person, my behaviours cannot be bad". I don't for a moment believe that anyone here actually thinks like this, but I worry that characters/people get judged too quickly.
I can't figure out whether I'm being a moderator when I say this so please tolerate ambiguity.
It's worth remembering that a lot of people here must have had backgrounds of witnessing or experiencing violence. When they don't see the humor in Faye they've got good reason.
I can't figure out whether I'm being a moderator when I say this so please tolerate ambiguity.
It's worth remembering that a lot of people here must have had backgrounds of witnessing or experiencing violence. When they don't see the humor in Faye they've got good reason.
I can't figure out whether I'm being a moderator when I say this so please tolerate ambiguity.
It's worth remembering that a lot of people here must have had backgrounds of witnessing or experiencing violence. When they don't see the humor in Faye they've got good reason.
But at the same time "Your sense of humour - regardless of when you reign it in - makes you a garbage person" is rather insulting. Sure, I have a dark sense of humour - but does that make me subhuman? Even if I don't actually use said dark sense of humour around people I don't know well or that I know would not appreciate it?
Also, even if it wasn't so common in real life, I just don't find violence funny. I am aware that other people find violence comical, and that's cool if no real people are actually getting hurt, but I really, really don't get the appeal.
Actually, I realized that I do not fully understand why shippers want to see a romantic relationship between Faye and Bubbles, as opposed to simply a very strong and intimate friendship, which they have been developing for some time now.
Could one of the shippers elucidate this?
To me, the cuteness (squee?) factor would not really increase if they'd become romantic instead of what they have now, so I'm curious what the added appeal is of a romantic development.
I can't figure out whether I'm being a moderator when I say this so please tolerate ambiguity.
It's worth remembering that a lot of people here must have had backgrounds of witnessing or experiencing violence. When they don't see the humor in Faye they've got good reason.
But at the same time "Your sense of humour - regardless of when you reign it in - makes you a garbage person" is rather insulting. Sure, I have a dark sense of humour - but does that make me subhuman? Even if I don't actually use said dark sense of humour around people I don't know well or that I know would not appreciate it?
Not sure why you put that in quotes, Pennepasta, because nobody in this thread said that. In fact, I specifically clarified I wasn't saying that.Also, even if it wasn't so common in real life, I just don't find violence funny. I am aware that other people find violence comical, and that's cool if no real people are actually getting hurt, but I really, really don't get the appeal.
Well, that was cathartic. Let's discuss it. Over tea and crumpets.
I can't figure out whether I'm being a moderator when I say this so please tolerate ambiguity.
It's worth remembering that a lot of people here must have had backgrounds of witnessing or experiencing violence. When they don't see the humor in Faye they've got good reason.
But at the same time "Your sense of humour - regardless of when you reign it in - makes you a garbage person" is rather insulting. Sure, I have a dark sense of humour - but does that make me subhuman? Even if I don't actually use said dark sense of humour around people I don't know well or that I know would not appreciate it?
I do find it a little odd that Bubbles doesn't interpret Faye's "tea and crumpets" suggestion as a glib remark. To my knowledge people in the U.S. almost never suggest that in earnest.
I do find it a little odd that Bubbles doesn't interpret Faye's "tea and crumpets" suggestion as a glib remark. To my knowledge people in the U.S. almost never suggest that in earnest.
Yep, got that same impression. She's teasing her as to how even if Evie is looking at Bubs from the Ivory Tower, that would be an unexpected way to think of it these days.I do find it a little odd that Bubbles doesn't interpret Faye's "tea and crumpets" suggestion as a glib remark. To my knowledge people in the U.S. almost never suggest that in earnest.
I read it as Faye asking "Tea and Crumpets? Where did you get that from? We're in the US - nobody suggests Tea and Crumpets, not even rich people's children ..."
Yes, it is a real issue that affects real people. Possibly all people. So how about we don't brush it aside as a debate for "rich people's children" because it makes you uncomfortable, Ms Literal Warbot?
Ms Literal Warbot that actually met an "AI God", unbound by law and morality, and therefore knows damn well that humanities fears are completely justified. :x
Telling those men to their faces that they represented a threat to my way of life just as much as the terrorists did would *definately* be out of order.and utterly ludicrous. :roll:
Telling those men to their faces that they represented a threat to my way of life just as much as the terrorists did would *definately* be out of order.and utterly ludicrous. :roll:
When it comes to the possible destruction/enslavement of the human race, "am I being rude?" is the least of your worries.
"Be nice to robots or DIE", yeah nothing to worry about there.It is if you are talking to a sentient agent. If nothing else, if you are legitimately concerned that they are a risk to humanity (and for the record, I don't think Evie does think that), surely being polite would be basic self preservation...Telling those men to their faces that they represented a threat to my way of life just as much as the terrorists did would *definately* be out of order.and utterly ludicrous. :roll:
When it comes to the possible destruction/enslavement of the human race, "am I being rude?" is the least of your worries.
"Be nice to robots or DIE", yeah nothing to worry about there.
Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power
I get the feeling you are deliberately misrepresenting my point here..."Be nice to robots or DIE", yeah nothing to worry about there.
I get the feeling you are deliberately misrepresenting my point here, but okay. Put another way- why do you want to be rude to Bubbles?
To be fair, I had a professor at university who regularly invited us to tea and crumpets.
It could've been worse. Bubbles could've been stuck talking to a philosophy student.Isn't puzzling out existence a big part of several branches of philosophy?
One part, certainly. The other part is working out an answer to the question "Isn't puzzling out existence a big part of several branches of philosophy?" :-)QuoteIt could've been worse. Bubbles could've been stuck talking to a philosophy student.Isn't puzzling out existence a big part of several branches of philosophy?
To be fair, I had a professor at university who regularly invited us to tea and crumpets.
I've never been invited to tea and crumpets. :(
Tea and scones, yes.
And I'll just make a general remark that it is clear to me that Bubbles would be perfectly happy to have a discussion about AIs in society, just not with someone who speaks about the topic without empathy and as though it is a purely academic conversation that affects no-one.
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.Yeah... Often.
I see this a lot with the (mostly white) academics that study indigenous cultures.Mmm... And the (mostly white) comparative-religion types who want to talk my ear off about Buddhism, when they have essentially the same attitude towards it that an entomologist has towards beetles.
Conversely, I don't think I remember ever seeing her actually punch anybody she cared enough about to threaten - with the possible exception of Pintsize, and that was kind of a running gag with him for a while.
I feel sorry for anyone who doesn't get to enjoy hot buttered crumpets ...
"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.
Tova what have you done to those poor innocent crumpets.
"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.
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.
"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.
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.
Telling those men to their faces that they represented a threat to my way of life just as much as the terrorists did would *definately* be out of order.and utterly ludicrous. :roll:
When it comes to the possible destruction/enslavement of the human race, "am I being rude?" is the least of your worries.
It is if you are talking to a sentient agent. If nothing else, if you are legitimately concerned that they are a risk to humanity (and for the record, I don't think Evie does think that), surely being polite would be basic self preservation...
Telling those men to their faces that they represented a threat to my way of life just as much as the terrorists did would *definately* be out of order.and utterly ludicrous. :roll:
When it comes to the possible destruction/enslavement of the human race, "am I being rude?" is the least of your worries.
It is if you are talking to a sentient agent. If nothing else, if you are legitimately concerned that they are a risk to humanity (and for the record, I don't think Evie does think that), surely being polite would be basic self preservation...
AKA "Let the wookiee win".
I've never been invited to tea and crumpets. :(
I've never been invited to tea and crumpets. :(
I've you're ever in Dundee (Scotland) consider this an open invitation!
:)
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."Works" includes some pretty ugly things, which revealed ugly things about the attitudes of those carrying out the studies. Consider the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment), or Unit 631 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unit_731). The notion that a "distantiated, depassionated" study is necessarily fine, and therefore suspicion, and even hostility, from those being studied is unjustified, is certainly not one that I'd accept.
I’d like to back this conversation up a few steps, because I think we may be criticizing Evie for the wrong thing.
Evie is supposedly studying AI psychology. But looking back over Evie’s lecture to Bubbles, she’s actually not talking about AI psychology at all. She’s talking about human responses to AI. She’s not studying AI psychology, but rather human psychology as it relates to AIs. And everyone missed that. She may not be aware of it herself. (Shoot, it’s possible that Jeph might not be aware of what he did here.)
And that, in my opinion, is the real reason that Bubbles should be offended by Evie’s speech. Evie looks at AIs but doesn’t see them - she sees only the reflection of her own kind. The real AI experience is lost. I imagine her AI colleague who is studying her would have some interesting things to say about what this means.
Same thing that happened to panel #6 in this (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3663). It's just a stylistic thing Jeph does from time to time to highlight certain beats.
"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.
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.
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.
Again, a conversation requires two participants. As I said before, Bubbles being hurt by it can be more seen as a reflection of Bubbles than Evie.
Like, if Evie took the exact same tact with Momo we would have seen a really cool discussion, for instance. Ev isn't psychic, she didn't dismiss Bubbles offense when it was brought up, she seems pretty empathetic in a lot of other ways. Bubbles just has a chip on her shoulder which happened to get homed in on with laser precision, which sucks.
So like... chill out, guys?
I have to admit, the turn of events in #3668 caught me by surprise.
I really expected that Bubbles would be thoroughly pissed off with Faye, not Evie. Faye behaved horribly towards Melon. It wasn't just the condescending tone and words (although the whole 'domesticated robo-dick' dialog *was* pretty funny), it was the way that Faye took advantage of Melon's naiveté and accepted $100 for telling her to get batteries.
Bubbles and Faye's long-term business prospects depend on the good will of the AI community. I imagine that if something like that got out, their business would be damaged beyond repair.
A shame, really. Warm crumpets with butter and jam are delish!
"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.
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.
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.
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.
"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.
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.
I mean, yes of course. That is fine.
That doesn't mean doctors, for example, start telling their patients what their pain feels like.
If you think that Bubbles is upset about AIs being studied, then you are not grasping today's comic. At all.
"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.
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.
I mean, yes of course. That is fine.
That doesn't mean doctors, for example, start telling their patients what their pain feels like.
If you think that Bubbles is upset about AIs being studied, then you are not grasping today's comic. At all.
You mean the part where Evie compared AIs to nuclear weapons and how it hit right on the wrong spot for Bubbles, given her traumatic military past? Sure, but that's really specific to Bubbles, not AIs in general, is it? So there is no why she could expect that Evie could take that into account. I understand Bubbles' point of view in today's comic, but I still can't see anything wrong in what Evie said in #3656...
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."Works" includes some pretty ugly things, which revealed ugly things about the attitudes of those carrying out the studies. Consider the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment), or Unit 631 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unit_731). The notion that a "distantiated, depassionated" study is necessarily fine, and therefore suspicion, and even hostility, from those being studied is unjustified, is certainly not one that I'd accept.
"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.
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."Works" includes some pretty ugly things, which revealed ugly things about the attitudes of those carrying out the studies. Consider the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment), or Unit 631 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unit_731). The notion that a "distantiated, depassionated" study is necessarily fine, and therefore suspicion, and even hostility, from those being studied is unjustified, is certainly not one that I'd accept.
Now, you are trying to make me say things I haven't. I maintain that science needs to be distantiated to get anything valuable done. Else, you get things like lysenkoism (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lysenkoism). That doesn't mean the choice of the study doesn't need to follow ethics or deontology. By the way, those racists experiments can hardly be called "science" by any objective observer...
Thank you for correcting that poor french forum contributor...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."Works" includes some pretty ugly things, which revealed ugly things about the attitudes of those carrying out the studies. Consider the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment), or Unit 631 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unit_731). The notion that a "distantiated, depassionated" study is necessarily fine, and therefore suspicion, and even hostility, from those being studied is unjustified, is certainly not one that I'd accept.
Now, you are trying to make me say things I haven't. I maintain that science needs to be distantiated to get anything valuable done. Else, you get things like lysenkoism (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lysenkoism). That doesn't mean the choice of the study doesn't need to follow ethics or deontology. By the way, those racists experiments can hardly be called "science" by any objective observer...
That's ... not even wrong.
And it's 'distanced', not distentiated.
"Humans just don't typically seem to respond aggressively to non-immediate risks and this strongly indicates that the fear of the unknown and the actual threat response instinct are either decoupled in the human mind or at least that this 'different = bad' equation is a low action priority in the average psyche. The point I'm making is that anti-Synthetic activism is a learned behaviour rather than an instinctual response to the unknown or a threat. These people hate because they want to have something to hate; they found something and taught themselves to respond appropriately."
I liked the update. If Bubbles feels offended, she has every right to. They're her feelings after all.
I'm annoyed at the backlash against Ev, and the perceptions of a few people in here about how all social interaction should ultimately be walking on eggshells at all times, aware of all forms of offense that could possibly be caused.
So that's what they're for!I feel sorry for anyone who doesn't get to enjoy hot buttered crumpets ...
As an Australian, ...
(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/e9/25/6b/e9256b32dae49b31f38895d272fd046b--crumpets-australia.jpg)
I'm annoyed at the backlash against Ev, and the perceptions of a few people in here about how all social interaction should ultimately be walking on eggshells at all times, aware of all forms of offense that could possibly be caused.
I couldn't agree more. I get more and more the feeling Evie should somehow have used her clairvoyant powers to know how Bubbles was sensitive on some subjects...
What do you mean by "That's ... not even wrong"? That's not even a statement.
What do you mean by "That's ... not even wrong"? That's not even a statement.
"Not even wrong" is how we express in English that something is so ill-formulated that not only is it incorrect, but that it doesn't even address the subject it's supposed to be about. Tautologies, non Sequiturs, Paradoxes, and answers that merely restate the question are examples of things that are not even wrong.
They're "Not even wrong" because you can't even correct them. If I tell you that "Colorless green ideas sleep furiously" what have I gotten wrong? You don't just have several choices, you have *EVERY POSSIBLE CHOICE* of what is wrong with that sentence. It's not even wrong.
She resented it, because it's offensive. I don't see how you are missing that.
She says she told Evie the comparison was offensive, but all she did was say she resented the comparison.
Evie was the one who called it offensive. I'm sure if Bubbles expressed her frustrations Evie would apologize for everything in a heartbeat.She expressed her frustration twice in that conversation and Evie kept right on going.
Because I think a black lesbian from the south understands real issues that real people face.Being part of one (or more) marginalized groups does not automatically make one aware of or sensitive to the experiences of other marginalized groups. I say that as a biracial lesbian from a very conservative region.
Thank you for correcting that poor french forum contributor...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."Works" includes some pretty ugly things, which revealed ugly things about the attitudes of those carrying out the studies. Consider the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment), or Unit 631 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unit_731). The notion that a "distantiated, depassionated" study is necessarily fine, and therefore suspicion, and even hostility, from those being studied is unjustified, is certainly not one that I'd accept.
Now, you are trying to make me say things I haven't. I maintain that science needs to be distantiated to get anything valuable done. Else, you get things like lysenkoism (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lysenkoism). That doesn't mean the choice of the study doesn't need to follow ethics or deontology. By the way, those racists experiments can hardly be called "science" by any objective observer...
That's ... not even wrong.
And it's 'distanced', not distentiated.
What do you mean by "That's ... not even wrong"? That's not even a statement.
Thank you for correcting that poor french forum contributor...
I'm annoyed at the backlash against Ev, and the perceptions of a few people in here about how all social interaction should ultimately be walking on eggshells at all times, aware of all forms of offense that could possibly be caused.
I couldn't agree more. I get more and more the feeling Evie should somehow have used her clairvoyant powers to know how Bubbles was sensitive on some subjects...
Golden Rule would cover it. Evie could have reflected on how she'd feel if positions in the conversation had been reversed.
Walking on eggshells I don't advocate but go back to Momo. She was presented with a faux pas from Ms. Reed and said something to the effect "If everyone does their best it will work out". "Do your best" is a far higher standard than having good intentions!
U.S.S Faye Whitaker, oblivious to the point of clinical blindness, plows on like an icebreaker through a polar bear's back yard.
It's no doubt it's an attempt by some American student of freshman French at revenge for passé simple.What do you mean by "That's ... not even wrong"? That's not even a statement.
"Not even wrong" is how we express in English that something is so ill-formulated that not only is it incorrect, but that it doesn't even address the subject it's supposed to be about. Tautologies, non Sequiturs, Paradoxes, and answers that merely restate the question are examples of things that are not even wrong.
They're "Not even wrong" because you can't even correct them. If I tell you that "Colorless green ideas sleep furiously" what have I gotten wrong? You don't just have several choices, you have *EVERY POSSIBLE CHOICE* of what is wrong with that sentence. It's not even wrong.
Wow. I'm a native English speaker and I had no idea what "That's... not even wrong" was supposed to mean. Despite feeling that there are so many things wrong with what was said that you can't address all of them, perhaps you could provide some specific examples of some of the things that are wrong with it? Because I for one don't see what the problem is.
I couldn't agree more. I get more and more the feeling Evie should somehow have used her clairvoyant powers to know how Bubbles was sensitive on some subjects...I think there is a difference between demanding clairvoyance, and expecting basic social toilet-training. I don't expect people to be clairvoyant about how I'm going to react, but I don't believe clairvoyance should be required to anticipate that saying, for example, "you can't help but feel that the Chinese are a subspecies" would offend me. Comparing Bubbles's entire "species" to weapons of mass-destruction, is similar to regarding my entire people (I'm an ethnic Han (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Han_Chinese)) as part of the Yellow Peril (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_Peril), an attitude still widespread today.
Bornyl acetate is used as a scent in air fresheners. Why would anyone put it in a coolant?Because Bubbles is pining for Faye? :claireface: (I know she isn't, exactly, but I could not resist the pun.)
Speaking of shipping, Jeph has been teasing us for almost a month now. Goddamn man, either launch this ship or decommission it already! :psyduck:
Bornyl acetate is used as a scent in air fresheners. Why would anyone put it in a coolant?Because Bubbles is pining for Faye? :claireface: (I know she isn't, exactly, but I could not resist the pun.)
Bornyl acetate is used as a scent in air fresheners. Why would anyone put it in a coolant?Because Bubbles is pining for Faye? :claireface: (I know she isn't, exactly, but I could not resist the pun.)
You're just saying that to needle us.
Bornyl acetate is used as a scent in air fresheners. Why would anyone put it in a coolant?
You wood say that.
These puns don't really make a lot of scents.
Bornyl acetate is used as a scent in air fresheners. Why would anyone put it in a coolant?
Oh, this thread is getting poplar.That's your o-pinyon
I have to admit, the turn of events in #3668 caught me by surprise.
I really expected that Bubbles would be thoroughly pissed off with Faye, not Evie. Faye behaved horribly towards Melon. It wasn't just the condescending tone and words (although the whole 'domesticated robo-dick' dialog *was* pretty funny), it was the way that Faye took advantage of Melon's naiveté and accepted $100 for telling her to get batteries.
Poor Bubbles. This must be pineful.Hey look at it this way, she’s got 99 problems but a beech isn’t one of them.
That facial expression in panel 3… pure gold! :-DSeriously, it says so much without any text.
So... Friday is a "Steve-eating-cereal" day?
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!
Just a month? Oh my sweet summer child...
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!
Poor Bubbles. This must be pineful.
Great. I make one simple comment that inadvertently sets off a pun war that lasts through the night and lumbers on into the next morning.
Great. I make one simple comment that inadvertently sets off a pun war that lasts through the night and lumbers on into the next morning.
Hey, if you're going to vent in public, it would be nice if you were releasing pleasant odors... Most humans don't after all. This question seriously got Bubble hot under the collar, that's fir sure. And you know, it's abough time some progress was made here. It was beginning to feel like an Ent was telling this tale.
Don't be hasty!
Seriously though, I do hope there's some kind of resolution soon.
Wil and Penelope got a resolution, and Steve and Cosette, and Dale and Marigold, and look where that's got us.
I would much rather continue to see Faye and Bubbles interacting, than see them pushed into a pairing and bundled onto a bus.
If Faye doesn't realise something is up after panel 3, she actually has issues with perception that may be medical in nature!
I don't know: the consequences of Marten and Dora's break up were interesting, and although the immediate consequences of Faye and Angus's breakup were in themselves creaky, they have driven much of the story since then. (Faye -> support group; Faye -> robot fighting ring; Faye + Bubbles: the friendship; Faye + Bublles II: Uniom[sic] Robotics; Faye + Bubbles III: The coupling...)Wil and Penelope got a resolution, and Steve and Cosette, and Dale and Marigold, and look where that's got us.
I would much rather continue to see Faye and Bubbles interacting, than see them pushed into a pairing and bundled onto a bus.
Ah, but those were all heterosexual human couples, and pretty much any kind of drama you can get out of those is tired and cliched.
A romance Faye and Bubbles, on the other hand, would open the door to a whole new world of problems; coming to terms with one's own sexual identity, learning how consummating such a relationship works, facing bigotry from the outside world... Jeph has far more fuel to keep Faye and Bubbles' arcs going than he did with any of the human couples.
If Faye doesn't realise something is up after panel 3, she actually has issues with perception that may be medical in nature!
Faye does have psychological problems, and they make her selfish and obtuse much of the time. She is charming, vivacious, and sometimes sharply perceptive, but she is not the nicest person in the whole world. She wants continual company without physical intimacy and is careless about how she comes by it. She kept Marten on a string for a long time. Now she has Bubbles with her almost 24/7 and has never once wondered what is up with this person sitting next to her bed all night every night. If she doesn't get a clue soon, she will be willfully ignoring what it would be inconvenient to know.
I like Bubbles a great deal, and the sheer panic on her face in panel 3 wrings my heart, but she, too, is going to have to step up soon. She must find the courage to speak her heart.
There is nothing wrong with wanting continual company, but you have to be aware that it is unusual to get it from one person, and that if you do, they may want something more. That is where the part about being careless about how you get it becomes problematic. If they have no hope, you have to let them know.
Keeping people on a string when they know they have no hope is OK, I guess, but it makes my skin crawl a little. You are going to wind up feeding that admiration and longing to your ego, and that won't do anyone any good. Anything consensual is permissible, but not everything permissible is a good idea.
It's not just Faye though. Bubbles has to speak her heart.
My other fear is that Bubble takes my friend's route, and decides that this change is too much for them to share with their closest friends and family.
(Not that Bubbles has too many of them) and decides it would be for the best to remove herself from that situation.
Okay...
Let's get personal...
However... If during a night of blethering and stuff he had suddenly turned to me and said... "I think I'm gay, and I'm actually quite attracted to you!"
I dunno if an 18yr old me could have handled that.
Hmmmh - This is oddly specific. People could be undecided about their feelings, feel that the other is progressing too fast, feel they're not ready (yet), hundreds of thousands of reasons. Humans are allowed to change their minds & hearts, or to be wrong about them. Tricky things, hearts & minds. And they always, under all circumstances, decide about their time, company and body alone. They. Alone. Nobody else.
And who said anything about keeping close company and bathing in the glory of your friend's pain? What kind of sick fantasy is that? Some people just carry on being friends, others play it a little slower for a while to give themselves time to decompress (I often feel the need) - and yet others invent idiotic 'rules' to justify resenting their alleged friend that they allegedly 'fell in love with' for making an autonomous decision about their time, mind and body - it's called The Church of the Nice GuyTM, and it's a place that nobody past their puberty has a good excuse spending any length of time in.
P.S.: Knowing someone wants more than you are sure you can give, or want to give to them, and not knowing which way to jump, and knowing that every day you try to make up your mind hurts them? Feels shite. Fucking up is bad enough when you pay the bill. Fucking up and knowing another gets the pain while you 'go free' - that doesn't feel good. It certainly didn't feed my ego and didn't make me feel admired. What you're talking about is not ordinary people making ordinary, stupid mistakes that hurt others - that's malignant Narcissism. If that's how you believe you would feel in that situation ... stay the fuck away from me. If you know somebody who feels like that in that situation: Get the fuck out of Dodge, yesterday, or be glad you got away if you did already - people like that certainly don't give a hoot about your 'rules'.
How will that memory affect her reaction if she finds out Bubbles has been admiring her? The situations are different but some emotions might be the same.
Hey, if you're going to vent in public, it would be nice if you were releasing pleasant odors...
Someone needs to root this pun business out, it's getting sappy.
Aaaand another resolution tease shot down. The status quo continues ever onward. *headdesk*
From my personal experience she reads as clearly attracted to Bubbles but oblivious
Aaaand another resolution tease shot down. The status quo continues ever onward. *headdesk*
That said, Faye's expression in panel 3 doesn't convince me that she's 'content' with the current state of affairs.
Sometimes I worry that QC will suffer the same fate as Friednds. Starts off as a story about people finding their place and way in the world, ends with people being coupled off and dull.
Ah, the perils of shipping.
Ah, the perils of shipping.
Perils of obsessing over shipping-inducement strategies (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/WillTheyOrWontThey)?
To those feeling in some way let down today...
Life is like this... quite often.
To those feeling in some way let down today...
Life is like this... quite often.
Maybe that's the point? Maybe the comic is coming too close to reality to stay really enjoyable?
Ah, the perils of shipping.
Quick question though; does this mean Faybles would be a steam ship? If ever it gets launched, that is.
I do believe that the turbines provide electricity to electric engines, rather than power a steam engine.
To those feeling in some way let down today...
Life is like this... quite often.
Maybe that's the point? Maybe the comic is coming too close to reality to stay really enjoyable?
If reality isn't enjoyable to you, maybe that's not Jeph's fault?
P.S.: It's a 'slice of life webcomic'. We can't really claim fraudulent labelling.
To those feeling in some way let down today...
Life is like this... quite often.
Maybe that's the point? Maybe the comic is coming too close to reality to stay really enjoyable?
You are mistaking the will to ship with growing boredom, and anger when I see a narrative arc ruined by the will to stretch it beyond its breaking point.
This. My sentiments exactly. I would much rather see a hard definitive "no" to the question of "do Faye and Bubbles want a romantic relationship", than have Faye continue to be a completely oblivious fucking moron and Bubbles keep chickening out every time the issue comes up. It's not funny anymore; it's just frustrating to watch two characters I otherwise love play Idiot Ball with each other.
Bubbles is avoiding eye contact so as not to show her feelings. That is a poor way to live with a friend.
Bubbles is visibly physically aware of Faye's proximity all the time, and visibly moved every time Faye touches her. Faye, by contrast, handles Bubbles with the easy familiarity with which one would handle a beloved dog. I don't remember Faye ever being this physically familiar with anyone before, male or female, not even with Angus. It looks like Bubbles not only doesn't register as a possible object of desire for Faye, Bubbles doesn't even register as human for her. Bubbles has gotten all the way inside Faye's defenses precisely because she does not register as a possible lover, and thus as a possible danger.
This could all go very badly. Any responsible adult can live with someone they love who doesn't love them. You wall the love up, starve it to death, and get into the habit of ignoring its ghost. Doing that when the person you loved had their hands all over you all the time would be hard though. Maybe someone could manage it.
Faye could be terrified if she finds out that this person who she has let so far into her life is also a potential lover, and thus also someone who could potentially abandon her. It could feel like seeing soldiers coming out of the Trojan horse.
We are seeing an intimate AI/human relationship.
Just a month? Oh my sweet summer child...
In comic time...
I guess Dora counts. Still, the fact that Faye felt comfortable cuddling with Bubbles and not with Dora may have nothing to do with Bubbles being an AI.
Ok, that's the point where the stretching goes too far to my liking. Bubbles chooses to let things like they are, and Faye is still completly oblivious, to the point it's not realistic anymore.I don't see this at all. I've been that oblivious to interest in me. Similarly for many people I know.
Ok, that's the point where the stretching goes too far to my liking. Bubbles chooses to let things like they are, and Faye is still completly oblivious, to the point it's not realistic anymore.I don't see this at all. I've been that oblivious to interest in me. Similarly for many people I know.
(Of course, I and all of those others are all losers and nerds. :) )
Seriously - it's indeed possible to be pretty oblivious to That Kind Of Attention. Especially if you believe you're not worthy of it, it'll never happen for you, they couldn't possibly be interested in you, or etc.
Not forgetting, of course, that there was a strong "other" vote for her very first question (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3667). So we picked question #1 and question #2.I like how expressive Bubbles is in panels 3 and 4.