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fandomhigh2005-09-19 07:32 am
jerusalem-s.livejournal.com) wrote in fandomhigh2005-09-19 07:32 am
Journalism Class - Monday September 19
This morning, Spider is properly dressed, looks far too awake and chipper, and is seated on the edge of his desk, reading what looks to be a short stack of print-outs. The cat is frolicking beneath some of the desks, chasing invisible two-faced mice and batting at anything she might find on the floor. There is a small box on one of the desks, neatly labeled 'Medusa St. Clair'.
Duce arrives at class just slightly over one hour early.
Engrossed in his reading, Spider glanced up only long enough to be certain he knew who was there, before going back to his reading. He crooked a finger at her and indicated the package.
Duce tilted her head, eyeing the box for a moment before realization dawned. "Ah. The bottle. Thank you. Wednesday would have our a.. butt on a plate if we didn't get that back."
"I enclosed a thank you note," Spider told her absently, still scanning the pages. "Please be sure to read it thoroughly."
Nodding, Duce takes the box to her seat and places it under the desk. "We'll be sure to do that." She then gets on with class per usual.
Waiting until he appears to have a full class for the day, Spider begins to speak, not looking up from his reading. "First things first. Because there's been some unrest on campus and a number of complaints from concerned students and staff, we've all been stripped of our weapons. Therefore, lesson one today is to please be fucking responsible or your fellow students and/or faculty will also be paying the price because Principal Connor believes in being fair. Now, unless you, like I, are accustomed to armed death squads breaking through your door and invisible assassins visiting on a regular basis, I don't want to hear a single goddamn complaint - not because I'm a company drone, but because I will regard it as gutless whining. If you can't defend yourself without a weapon or manage to improvise on the fly, then I have no confidence in your ability to defend yourself, period."
Looking up from his reading, he continued, "This all boils down to the simple fact that if some people exercised common sense and responsibility, we'd all still be armed. I'm hoping that if everyone behaves their damn selves instead of acting like a bunch of puling, spoiled brats, we might eventually be allowed to get our weapons back. However, childish or irresponsible behavior on the part of any one person, could easily get all weapons banned permanently, including from the firing range and fencing salle. Please do not fuck this up for the rest of us, and please feel free to spread the word."
The cat chose that moment to interrupt, leaping onto the desk and beginning a hunt for cigarettes. Spider found and lit one for her before turning back to the class and holding up a print-out. "I assigned no homework for this week because there's been a great deal of flux in the student body, so you can all save your extra-credit points to spend on skipping your homework next week. Instead, I'm going to offer you a chance to score big."
Spider fended off the cat as he stood and gestured to one of the screens where a website popped up. "This, my children, is The Weekly Tentacle. This is a class about Journalism and I feel that this is the perfect opportunity to get you to demonstrate that you understand what that means. Submit something to the Tentacle this week and if it turns up in the next issue, you get extra-credit. This will require spying, bribery, sneakiness and the ability to prove to me that you did the work and that whatever scurrilous gossip you actually submit has a solid basis in truth. For today, I think that class would best be spent articulating your views on the articles in this week's rag. Discuss."
((OOC: Spider's player is rather grossly sick this morning and probably will not make it into work and will instead go back to bed. He'll probably be available on AIM this afternoon, if that's the case, and the Townie backlog will be dealt with as will any other admin-type things that built up on his day off. Sorry, guys.))
Duce arrives at class just slightly over one hour early.
Engrossed in his reading, Spider glanced up only long enough to be certain he knew who was there, before going back to his reading. He crooked a finger at her and indicated the package.
Duce tilted her head, eyeing the box for a moment before realization dawned. "Ah. The bottle. Thank you. Wednesday would have our a.. butt on a plate if we didn't get that back."
"I enclosed a thank you note," Spider told her absently, still scanning the pages. "Please be sure to read it thoroughly."
Nodding, Duce takes the box to her seat and places it under the desk. "We'll be sure to do that." She then gets on with class per usual.
Waiting until he appears to have a full class for the day, Spider begins to speak, not looking up from his reading. "First things first. Because there's been some unrest on campus and a number of complaints from concerned students and staff, we've all been stripped of our weapons. Therefore, lesson one today is to please be fucking responsible or your fellow students and/or faculty will also be paying the price because Principal Connor believes in being fair. Now, unless you, like I, are accustomed to armed death squads breaking through your door and invisible assassins visiting on a regular basis, I don't want to hear a single goddamn complaint - not because I'm a company drone, but because I will regard it as gutless whining. If you can't defend yourself without a weapon or manage to improvise on the fly, then I have no confidence in your ability to defend yourself, period."
Looking up from his reading, he continued, "This all boils down to the simple fact that if some people exercised common sense and responsibility, we'd all still be armed. I'm hoping that if everyone behaves their damn selves instead of acting like a bunch of puling, spoiled brats, we might eventually be allowed to get our weapons back. However, childish or irresponsible behavior on the part of any one person, could easily get all weapons banned permanently, including from the firing range and fencing salle. Please do not fuck this up for the rest of us, and please feel free to spread the word."
The cat chose that moment to interrupt, leaping onto the desk and beginning a hunt for cigarettes. Spider found and lit one for her before turning back to the class and holding up a print-out. "I assigned no homework for this week because there's been a great deal of flux in the student body, so you can all save your extra-credit points to spend on skipping your homework next week. Instead, I'm going to offer you a chance to score big."
Spider fended off the cat as he stood and gestured to one of the screens where a website popped up. "This, my children, is The Weekly Tentacle. This is a class about Journalism and I feel that this is the perfect opportunity to get you to demonstrate that you understand what that means. Submit something to the Tentacle this week and if it turns up in the next issue, you get extra-credit. This will require spying, bribery, sneakiness and the ability to prove to me that you did the work and that whatever scurrilous gossip you actually submit has a solid basis in truth. For today, I think that class would best be spent articulating your views on the articles in this week's rag. Discuss."
((OOC: Spider's player is rather grossly sick this morning and probably will not make it into work and will instead go back to bed. He'll probably be available on AIM this afternoon, if that's the case, and the Townie backlog will be dealt with as will any other admin-type things that built up on his day off. Sorry, guys.))
no subject
"It seems to me that this piece of trash is trying to set dividing lines between teachers and students and students and students. I have read this rag more than once and I have to say that it bothers me. This is the kind of thing that gives journalism such a bad reputation. A teacher giving a recorded conversation to other staff should stay between staff and they should decide how they should handle it. Mind rape is a term that is horrifying in it's use. Mind rape is a violent act and this piece of gutter-sniping filth is bandying it about like it's this week's vocabulary word." Phoebe takes a breath, but her eyes are glittering, the only tell-tale sign that she is angry and is bordering on furious.
"There is a wide variety of beings that form this school. Aliens, humans, vampires, werewolves, demons, mutants and witches. Even the humans that go here are unusual in some aspect. It pisses me off that the creator of this seems to be wanting to draw lines between each group of people or species. Seeing the comment about students and teachers ganging up on an alien teacher can only cause more people to turn on aliens who are here with us. Are they trying to turn this school into a war zone." She shakes her head. "As for the weapons ban...there are dangers that not even the biggest gun can fix, so why the uproar about the weapons ban? We are a school, are we not? I am not for or against the ban, but I can see both sides to it. The thing is, most people are very resourceful and if they feel they are in danger, they will defend themselves...sometimes violently."
She looks at Rogue. "I have to agree with Rogue. Sometimes, it's the people without the weapons that you have to be wary of. If someone is going to harm you, they will, no matter what weapon you're carrying."
Phoebe looks at Spider and shakes her head. "I'm sorry, sir, but I cannot even think of trying to submit something to the Tentacle. The idea sickens me because I know that no matter whether it's true or not, the worst gossip I could dredge up would find its way into print. Besides, there are other things I should be concentrating on, correct?"
Phoebe goes silent and starts taking notes on everyone else's views again.