I haven’t read everything Pterry put out under his own name, either. I mean, I own that one, but I haven’t read it yet. Don’t even own the sequels. I can take or leave the other collections of his short stories I have read, so I’m not particularly fussed.
These seem to be in the same vein as the Buck’s Free Press stuff, actually.
Frankly Raising Steam and The Shepherd’s Crown should have gone under the steamroller.
I dunno, I’ve always been able to distinguish between artists with very serious personal flaws and the inherent value, and enjoyability, of their work. They are separate issues. I still like Wagner’s music despite him having been a raging anti-Semite, Michael Jackson’s singing despite him having probably been a pedophile, Frank Lloyd Wright’s architecture despite him having been a Grade-A asshole who abandoned his wife and kids, Kevin Spacey’s acting despite his sexual predations, and Scott Adams’s cartoons despite his racism and Trumpyness.
But that’s just me. Obviously YMMV.
I thought there were reforms implemented by a new Minister of Magic after Voldemort’s fall, and that things were much better in the Wizarding World by the time Harry and Ginny’s kids went off to Hogwarts?
I think what’s different in this case is that JK Rowling is alive and actively working to hurt trans people. So paying her, and keeping her numbers up (and keeping her relevant) helps that “cause”. Whereas Wagner is dead. My listening to Wagner in the privacy of my own house has zero impact.
Also, i knew Wagner was an antisemitic asshole before i ever listened to his music. There’s no sense of betrayal there. Like the author of that wired article, a lot of trans people are really hurt because they LIKED Rowling. They wanted to believe good things about her.
Of these, i like Wagner, Jackson, and as much of Wright’s stuff as i looked before knowing anything about him personally. I liked some of the early Dilbert stuff, but stopped reading it years before Adams came out as a racist, and wasn’t going to be buying new stuff from him anyway. And i find Spacey’s roles to be uncomfortably like his actual predatory character, which detracts from enjoying the work as fiction.
Another artist who is relevant, i think, is Bill Cosby. Because his story has some of the same elements of betrayal that Rowling’s story does. He was a good dad, and a kind husband. In fiction. I find it cringey to watch him now.
Ironically he may have been that in real life. His wife of almost 60 years has backed him to the hilt, as has, far as I have seen, his three surviving children. Cosby, in a certain light, may indeed have been a good husband and father.
Also a raping shitbird. As with any number of evil people (some mobsters for example), there is no contradiction between them being decent in one sphere and vile in another - people contain multitudes.
I recall watching a video (no cite, sorry) of a mob hitman who did things like tying people up in a cave to be nibbled to death by rats. He was also a family man with a wife and children and, by all accounts, a good father (they had no idea he did what he did).
That was Richard “Iceman” Kuklinsky. Although reading the book (Nick Pileggi?) I couldn’t help but suspect he was making tbe more outlandish stories up.
Yup! I think that is who I was thinking of. Thanks!
Whedon’s interesting one. While he was an abusive asshole, he probably wasn’t even near the top of the abusive asshole Hollywood creators/directors (see Kubrick who you mentioned, or even Hitchcock). And I cannot help but notice that a number of actors followed him from project to project, so obviously they were able to tolerate him in order to further their career.
On the other hand, he build his public persona/reputation on being a white hat, and was probably one of the first creators to really get into parasocial relationship with his fanbase. In his case, the hypocrisy really was the worst part.
Having said, I still love Buffy. I was actually on a quest to find Buffy-like series from (for the time being) unproblematic creators, but I found most of them clearly inferior or lacking. So I guess it’ll remain one of my favorite series, even though I’m now aware of his personal failing.
One trans woman’s opinion, FWIW. If you are happy being a casual well-wisher to trans people, then I wish you well too, and we part on good terms, as far as that goes. Please go on with your day, citizen.
If you intend to become an ally to trans people, understand that you’re signing on to a struggle in which the stakes for them are their very existence, now that Republicans are going literal Nazi, openly planning to exterminate a small and defenseless minority, and inciting mobs to attack them. It was times like these Martin Niemöller spoke of. Time to speak out. They may not be coming for you now, but they will come for you next.
I’ve seen plenty of HP books in used book stores; many with broken spines and some in “good shape”, so if she fears resale of books (where she’s out of the money loop) she’s out of luck.
With regard to a certain broadcaster, I’ll turn the blighter off if he come on the radio just because of his publicly expressed political views (even though it’s nothing to do with his broadcasting) but I can’t make anyone else in the house turn him off.
What I didn’t understand was how Hermione, who wasn’t the “owner” could give freedom. When Dobby was freed, it was because Malfoy, his owner, gave him a sock. Not sure if it was intentional or not, but the whole house elf, wizard and muggle born a lot of themes around things like understanding a culture before you try to change it - yes it could be compared to US Slavery, but it could equally have parallels to trying to bring Christianity to the colonies.
Frankly - who cares what she says? Her views on anything other than writing should not even be mentioned or reported. What knowledge does she have about anything trans that makes her views worth listening to?
As a society we give far too much credence to what celebrities say - just freaking ignore them for anything other than what they have become famous for.
I think the issue is that while it may be argued no one should listen to celebrities the fact is many do. JK Rowling has influence over a lot of people even if you think she should not (and this is not limited to JKR).
Sorry for prolonging the hijack, but my take on it was that the Hogwarts elves were employed by Hogwarts the institution, so all the Hogwarts staff were in some degree what house-elves call their “masters” and “mistresses”, with concomitant powers of manumission. Maybe students didn’t actually qualify for the same powers, but they were certainly among the people that the house-elves were serving, and perhaps the elves just didn’t want to take the risk of picking up student-bestowed items of clothing.
I agree with Guinastasia that if Hermione’s elf-garments didn’t actually qualify for Elfus liberationis, that just highlights the counterproductiveness of her overbearing “savior” approach to the actual situation of the people she wanted to help.
Well, since the character was 14, I’ll give her a pass for ineffectively battling institutional slavery.
Yeah, no kidding. Like they used to talk about those crazy abolitionists before the Civil War, just making things harder for those poor slaves by getting all worked up and agitating their masters with ineffectual speeches espousing radical notions of freedom and equality.
And John Brown? Don’t even get me started on John Brown! What kind of nut job thinks it’s even necessary, let alone a good idea, to fight a war to free millions of people from slavery? He just made things worse. Thank god the patriot Colonel Robert E. Lee showed up to put down the insurrection and see such a dangerous man hanged—as all traitors to the Union should be.
Say, whatever happened to Colonel Lee, anyway?
She was pretty effective in foiling the plans of a genocidal tyrant bent on world domination. Seven times. Seems like ending slavery wouldn’t be that far out of reach for her.
Just means she was better at preserving the status quo than upsetting it.