Rage Against the Machine: Etc, Etc, Etc; Tuesday, Second Period [02/01].

[somethingwithturquoise]

Was it a good thing or a bad thing that the class was back in the classroom sim in the danger shop? Perhaps only time would tell. But there they were, Summer leaning a little on the desk at the front of the room while she waited for everyone to get settled in, and then got started.

"Sooooooo," she started, "I think last week sort of showed that this group is not exactly the subtle spy types, which is perfectly fine. A good rebellion is based on a wide variety of different types and it's important to play into your strengths. While info gathering can be important, so can all the little things going on behind the scenes, as well as the brute force to send out in times of actual uprisings and attacks. So we're going to switch our focus just a liiiittle bit again....that, by the way, is also important, being flexible, and looking at situations and figuring out how to adjust accordingly...and today, we're going to talk about BoOs...Bases of Operation.

"Now," Summer pushed herself off the desk and ventured to the board, because this was definitely going to be a 'discuss and list' sort of lesson that day, "the jello cantina we were in last week was my Base of Operation when I was a part of the Rebellion. As you guys saw, it was a good place for eavesdropping and picking up on local news and information, which I could then pass onto interested parties, but it also had the added benefit of being a business that dealt in importing ingredients from all over the galaxy. I could easily disguise transactions for weapons and supplies for the Rebellion as legitimate business purchases and shipments; most of my business contacts were also spies, and we could disguise everything as good old capitalism in case anyone wanted to look a little closer. But there's a lot of risk in a place like that as a BoO, too, as evidence by the fact that one little leak could have devistating results, and that's why, eventually, when the facade began to crack, it was time to get on out of there before it was too late.

"A lot of times," she continued, "a BoO will be tucked away and hidden somewhere you wouldn't expect. An abaondoned planet or somewhere that's hard to get to, which offers a lot of safety, but it also makes it a little more difficult for people to come and go, or to keep up-to-date on what might be happening in more poulated areas of the galaxy. If the base is discovered, you're out of the way enough that you might be able to get out on time, but, if you don't, the remote location can leave you pretty vulnerable, and resources for defense might be limited.

"A mobile base of operations can also be useful; in my last tour against the Galactic Federation, my crew worked out of our ship, so we were constantly on the go, which made us more difficult to pin down, but could often be a very strong drain on resources and, if we were low on power or were recognized, we could run into a lot of trouble. It wasn't any trouble that our guns couldn't handle, but it probably was more trouble than was strictly helpful.

"These are just a couple of examples," she said, having written some of that on the board and now turning back to the students, "and I'm sure you can think of more. Which is what we're going to talk about today. Together, I want us to discuss what makes a good base of operations, what you might like to avoid, perhaps some ideas on previous BoOs that you've dealt with before, and why you think they worked or didn't work, what could be improved, etc, etc, so on and so forth. I think we cann really get some good ideas going between everyone's different experiences, so let's go. Base of Operations jam session. What've we got?"

Living with Trauma, Tuesday 2/1, 3rd Period

[stykera]

Stark, still looking like he desperately needed a good night’s sleep, was at the front of the classroom once again this week.

“Some of this has been general. A little vague,” Stark began. “So, I thought something a bit different this week. Something more specific. Something that might be easier to talk about.” He paused, frowning. “Might be. And you still never have to talk if you don’t want to. About any of this. It might help but you don’t have to. I can talk enough for everyone.”

“Where I was, before I was here, and after I was here the first two times I was here…where I’m from, I mean, it’s a…not the best place to be from. Not the best place to stay. Nearly everything I might talk about here happened there. Plenty of things happened there. Too many things.” He was starting to babble now and he could hear himself doing it. It was easy, at the moment, to fall back into old habits and old patterns.

“I spent a lot of time places I didn’t want to be. Places I didn’t choose to be. Places I couldn’t leave. Cells. A mining colony. A research base. But I’m not there now. I’m here. Because I chose to be here. Choice is important to have. Especially when it’s been taken from you often. I don’t know if any of you have experience with that. I hope you haven’t. It’s awful, always.”

“But,” he continued after a moment, “I’m here now. As are all of you. None of us are trapped somewhere or held against our will or being used by someone. Even if that did happen before. This is…this is a good place to recover from hurts. Usually. But it’s not the only place. The first place I ever chose to stay, and to return to, was a ship. She was home, for a while. I had friends there. I still have friends there. And they gave me a place to stay where I was welcomed but I was free to come and go. And I did. That helped, being able to leave if I wished. It helps here, still. Knowing I have the option to go.”

“There were other things. Locks that I controlled.” Don’t mind the sad little sigh there, students. “Having my own space. Those apply here as well. All reminders that I am my own person and not property.”

"Again, I hope none of you have your own experience with this. If you do, you don't have to talk about it. But you can, if you like. Sometimes talking helps. Sometimes."

Books vs Movies, Tuesday first period

[intheeyeofthebeholding]

"Today's film is a bit long, so I'll, um, keep the chatter down and get to it," Jon announced.

He would absolutely be sleeping through it. Or zoning out at the least.

"Just remember to think about the differences from the book, how things translate - occasionally literally - and be prepared to discuss it after."


Before he lost track of things, he wrote the next week's assignment on the board: The Shawshank Redemption.

Mad Kings & Queens: Raving Royals and How To Survive Them (Tuesday, 4th Period)

[atreideslioness]

"Today, we start near the what some would call the beginning of this age," Ghanima said once her students had arrived.  "Back when the Roman calendar that we currently use numbered itself in the double-digits, not the thousands.  And across the Atlantic Ocean that is outside our doorstep, to the great power of antiquity -- Rome."

( I, Caligula Caesar, command in the name of the senate and the people of Rome. I, Caligula Caesar, command in the name of the senate and the people of Rome. I, Caligula Caesar, command in the name of the senate and the people of Rome. Rome! Rome! Rome! Caesar! Caesar! Rome! Rome! Rubbish! Rubbish! )