B1ue

I'm not totally convinced she owes Will an apology, actually. (edit:) She should make one, but only because it'll get everyone else off her back. What I dislike about her character is that, like Will, she's not connecting her actions with the results. And that's not something I tolerate in anyone I know, nor do I enjoy seeing it in fiction. In the stories though, Will is getting help for that. Marie is refusing help, which is what I find more alarming. Besides, I'm never going to find hundreds of thousands or dollars worth of property damage owned by someone that can easily afford it anything but amusing. If he'd vandalized the mission, I'd be less amused, but Brad and Robbie? That makes me smile.

Claire wasn't exactly a saint in Be-Rad. Oh, sure, compared to Brad, she had the morality and temperament of one, but that's compared to Brad. She made mistakes, turned on her own twin when she thought he was in the wrong, and backed Brad up when Brad piled punishment and worse onto Billy. Marie, at least, cannot be accused of being anyone's follower, while Claire really did do things for the sake of following the crowd. Like Claire, I hope Marie gets the chance to see where her actions might lead her. I hope she doesn't have to pay quite as much as her mother did for her lesson, though. Also, I have to wonder if this is the best way to try and reach Marie. It was worth trying, but it doesn't seem to be working yet. Nothing better springs to mind, I must admit. Marie seems to be at a point where she's only going to change when she wants to, and no amount of punishment will deter that, because she's genuinely not linking the punishment to the crime. I also wonder if Claire and Jack are piling a bit more on Marie than genuinely necessary in order to expiate their own guilt. They don't seem to be, other than the level of stubbornness they seem to be exhibiting, but I am curious.

Whatever his maturity level, he's still the only one that can make these decisions for himself. Whether he makes them now, at twenty, or at forty won't change that. As has been, repeatedly, stated, Will is not your average 14 year old. Psychological and medical studies are excellent for charting trends, group behaviors, and odds, but mean damn all against the reality of case studies. The only percentage that matters in any one case is 100% or 0%, and not many studies can guarantee those odds. I, in fact, stated that not everyone needs to experiment, but that the need to experiment is something that everyone needs to decide for themselves. I, for instance, have never smoked pot. I hate the very idea of it, and feel no need to partake in it even if it were to become legal. I also don't drink to excess, or smoke regularly, for many of the same reasons. But that doesn't mean I harped on anyone else for trying it out. Generally I didn't even judge them for it, though that equanimity came hard for me. Also I never knew any teenager that let an adult stop them when they put their minds to something, however risky or patently illegal the idea was. Honestly, I find the idea that any adult stopping any teenager when that kid doesn't want to be stopped a bit laughable, but perhaps you've seen examples where they managed it? More to the point about Will's emancipation, do you honestly think Brad, JP, or, hell, even Wade having parental control over Will would slow him down? The kid is pretty much the definition of out of control at this point. I realize that you believe the best response to that kind of situation is to crack down, create concrete boundaries for a child or teenager. I can understand that mindset, because that's almost the only positive action a reasonable parent can take in response. Or, at least, that's the only positive response I've noticed being taken (I am not a parent, so my viewpoint is at the remove of watching my friends and various family members crash through their teenage years). To put it bluntly, I do not share this mindset. I've seen it work, when the kid in question wants to be good or just wants to not be in trouble with the law or their parents, but I've also seen it create situations where the kid escaped as fast and as far as they could. Will would certainly fall into that category. We've seen him do it. What does the acquisition of friends have to do with sexual activity? Are you arguing that one stops the other? Because that's not been my experience, so I'm not sure of this connection. Or are you simply arguing that it is stopping it in Will's case. If so, I can more readily see the argument, but I would point out that Will has several role-models to whom sex is an extension of friendship. Also, family and friends can have a different dynamic. That difference is not universal, or even universal to every member of your family.

Not so much his entire life, but his bedrock seems to be his family. He possibly doesn't feel he needs more friends than that. I confess to having that tendency, my family is so large, so chaotic, that keeping up with them in my little free time, plus having my own necessary me time (I'm a loner by nature and habit), doesn't exactly leave room for many other people. And I'm fine with that. Will is not a loner, but his best friends seem to be Wade, Brad, JP, and Stef, and any further people on top of that might be superfluous. Welcome, mind, but not really necessary for his well-being.

I would question your underlying assumptions here. What is "better" as you use it here? Do you mean Will would be happier if he learned to settle? Well, I can certainly agree with that, but first Will needs to know what exactly he is willing to settle for. Your ending list of loyalty, trust, commitment, may be what you, may even be what the majority seek, but that's not necessarily what Will wants or needs. How do we know that Will truly needs one big relationship, akin to a marriage for lack of a better concept, rather than a series of consensually casual encounters, sort of like Cody. There's trade-off to that lifestyle, but there's trade-offs to any lifestyle, including marriage bliss. It would be deeply ironic if Will turned out to prefer a casual approach, considering his past, but considering his trajectory through that past, it becomes less unlikely. Also, if I am reading this right, you're implying that Will exploring his sexuality with a great many partners is, inherently, not a good thing. Isn't that Will's call to make? And, assuming proper safety precautions and that all relationships are entered into with consenting parties, isn't it up to Will to decide how harmful such relationships are to him? And how is he supposed to figure that out unless he experiments. Not everyone needs to do that experimentation, of course, but that's also up to Will to decide if he needs it. Back to your original question, I don't think his enthusiasm for sex with Tony is a bad thing. It's just putting into perspective the choices he's going to have to make regarding future relationships. He's going to have to decide, is great sex the most important thing? Is the emotional aspect of a relationship really what he desires above all else? And that's not an easy question for anyone to answer, and we don't all reach the same conclusions. And, hell, many of us decide later we made the wrong choice, and some of those DO something about it. Will, at least, will be able to make an informed choice here, which many of us don't get or didn't feel we needed.

I don't think I ever fully fleshed out what happened there, even in the stories that take place in-between the ones up on GA (there's about one unfinished/unpublished story for each I actually finished in time for the deadline). If I recall correctly, what happened between Mason and Khay was that Kay went to college, and Mason didn't. And eventually that got too hard to sustain.

Personally, I've never seen him as smarter than the adults around him. Or, no more so than any person is occasionally smarter under certain circumstances than their peers. I have seen him as about emotionally and mentally equivalent to an 18 year old, albeit an 18 year old with a large bank account and reasonable ability to discharge those responsibilities. Also, I don't think people magically lose their capability for stupidity once they are able to vote. I think dismissing Will's faults because of this age is a mistake; there are people in their thirties that haven't figured out the golden rule, and we don't assume they'll figure it out when they're 40. I would assume he's getting that feedback from his peers, as with most of us with absentee or distant parents. Look at what he's picked up from Tony, with the help of his psychologist. What's he going to pick up form Kai? Or Darius? It's not the perfect system, but few things are.

I'm relatively calm sliding into my thirties. I think it'll be my forties or fifties I dread, because of all the various health complications just waiting for me. I don't think Tim meant that Will was being taken advantage of. It was Malcolm being preyed on, and that did make me uncomfortable. As far as he knew, if he didn't have sex with Will, he'd have been fired, and good luck getting more jobs if he managed to piss off someone as well connected as Will. Of course, he's still not free form that, because if Brad ever finds out about this, his career is pretty much toast. Possibly, anyways. Actually, Brad will probably figure out who the instigator was, but Malcolm doesn't know that. A lot of times, the reason male rape gets brushed aside is that the victim comes, and if you were enjoying yourself how can it be rape? Which is bullshit, but that's people for you. While I don't think Malcolm was pushed quite that far, just because he made the best of a bad situation didn't mean it was one he'd have chosen.

I have a difficult time seeing Will with anyone, at this point. I never particularly bought Tony and Will, I see Jeff as even less likely, Kai would be rough going. And I figure John is mostly straight, but, then, I thought the same of Lark, and look how that turned out. In the end, I voted for "protagonist unknown," since I think Will will eventually hook up with someone close to his own age, once guys close to his own age actually catch up with him in terms of emotional and physical development. Actually, that's an interesting catch-22. Him dating Tony, while actually statutory rape, is less likely to be remarked on by strangers, because Will passes for so much older; while if he dated Alastair right now people would accuse him of being predatory. And, considering their relative development, it would actually be kind of true. Maybe he needs to date women for a bit. They stereotypically develop faster than boys, yeah?

I was re-reading the description of Rick this morning: I shook his hand and took a good look at him. He was tall, like Tony and me, but heftier. He had the body of a guy who lifted weights and played sports, but ate and drank an awful lot, so he was probably toting around an extra fifteen to twenty pounds. On some guys, it would have landed on his chest, giving him man-boobs, or around his waist, but on this guy, it was more spread out, making him seem bigger and stronger. He had light brown hair with hazel eyes, neither of which was exceptional, but they adorned a really handsome face. He was frowning when he came in, but when he met me, he shot me his smile, and that turned him from a handsome guy into a really hot dude, one throwing out some major charisma. and had a suggestion: Josh Turner, a country singer. Your Man And I so much of that plot line made much more sense.

That would take some doing. After all, the family includes Matt, Stef, JP, and arguably Cody. But anyways. The comment I was going to make was that I wonder how Brad is going to react when he realizes his son has surpassed his number of sexual partners. Is it going to trigger another mid-life crisis, do you think?

Bitchy diva is not mutually exclusive with nerdy. I said it in reviews, and I'll repeat it here. Kai's response to Will having to think about his number of sexual partners is one of the few I'd find acceptable. I was a bit worried there would be some judgment incoming, and was pleased that he didn't express it. Also, Will is going to pass Brad in number of sexual partners, isn't he? And probably relatively soon. Perhaps before he leaves high school, certainly by the time he's wrapped up college. and grad school And...I lost my train of thought. The image of Will as a TA somewhere down the road is going to take some getting used to. Scoring a hot TA in college is awesome. I got three one quarter, it was like Christmas that lasted 10 weeks (and I don't think I ever attended class so religiously). Will is going to break so, so many freshmen in his intro to Bio sections.

I loved the last lines. It's pretty much the only good response, right?

Alrighty, this had bugged me for the last couple of days. No one actually knows squat about this situation. It's all rumors and hearsay. The kid never came out, so how did he run into the closet? Not that I know for sure if he's gay or straight, aside from him point-blank stating that he's straight. I just dislike people being condemned as closeted when there's not a lot of evidence to support it.

He's going to tail Kai, isn't he? Maybe he'll just hire a private detective. But, no, he'll do it himself, if the thought occurs to him at all.

Oh, that's easy. UCs have the discretion to waive or lower requirements to admission on a student by student basis. I, in fact, got in on such criteria (in my case, they let my SATs outweigh my overall GPA, I'd guess), although I didn't actually know what the heck that piece of paper was for some time. So, basically money, and an earnest promise that he'd shape up to the right admission officer or Dean would get him in.

Well, it's technically possible, but no, you're correct that it's just not done, to my knowledge. Outside of Warrants, as far as I know, and that certainly wouldn't apply. And, to be honest, I thought Darius was older than he apparently is during this time period, and would have finished his degree anyways. Apparently not. Like I said, I don't know if his wealth would be a factor, but I think the most plausible reaction he'd get to trying to enlist under his own name would be a suggestion that he finish his degree, join an ROTC program in the meantime, and join afterwards. And, oh, switch majors to something either business or hard science related, if he isn't already one of those. Not to say an Arts degree wouldn't be useful, but some are prejudiced. It's stupid, and certainly not all pervasive, but what can you do?

Agreed. And it might not even be a factor. But I think if it was a factor, seeking a commission rather than an enlistment might make it a non-issue.

And, backing away slowly, something that occurred to me was that, if Darius did join the military, he'd almost have to be an officer, correct? Same for Gathan, actually. They're too wealthy to be enlisted, from what I understand. The thinking, as it's been explained to me, is that enlisted with a lot of money tend to be too risk-adverse to be reliable troop, and both recruiters and personnel officers try to nip that in the bud before it becomes a problem. Not that Gathan actually is risk-adverse, however rich he is, but whatever. One of my colleague's battle-buddies won the lottery while enlisted about, oh, ten years ago, and they almost immediately showed him the door. I couldn't tell you if that's an actual policy or just a guideline some follow and others don't. It's just something that might come up.

To add to PriviteTim's notes, my school didn't close, although damn all was actually accomplished as we all processed what went on. I don't think it was a game day, and I think practice was cancelled that afternoon as well. Or possibly I just blew it off, although that doesn't sound like me. At the risk of derailing the thread, to summarize the points Method and I both brought up, whatever Darius's last name, the fact that he's not White, and registers as not-White to all the characters that have described him, and so presumably also to other people he encounters, is going to be enough that people are going give him crap for being a terrorist and a towel-head. Method and I, individually and living entirely across the country from one another, experienced this phenomenon first hand, which is how we came to this conclusion. We are neither of us Iranian; I am Meztizo, and if I recall correctly Method is Filipino. So, what you saw as armor, that only an idiot is going to single someone out when they can't actually tell anything based on the color of their skin, we saw as something that would make Darius a target.

You can prove nothing.

This made me curious, so I went ahead and did some general research myself, and found two points. Number 1, Colonel-of-the-Marines was still an honorary rank bestowed upon post-captains at the time. Nelson, in fact, held this rank. Actually, I'm curious if Granger will wind up with it. It doesn't seem to have involved any actual duties, but it did come with pay, and some literary sources (so take with HUGE grain of salt) seemed to imply that this rank was a way to honor post captains that didn't have the seniority for flag rank yet. Number 2, Marine colonelcies pay not have been available for purchase (though, honestly, I think that's probably they weren't customarily available), but army ones apparently were http://www.napoleon-series.org/military/organization/Britain/Miscellaneous/c_brevets.html. I wonder if that's because the British Army was a wartime formation for so long, and the marines were more constant need?

That's an awful lot of higher level social-thinking from someone that has not really demonstrated that much awareness, at least the way you set it up. I have a hard time imagining John listening to Stef, or even Claire, if they'd taken him aside, and have a harder time imagining any of the parents in CAP thinking it would be a good idea, since they all seem to subscribe to the school of burnt hands. Although I suppose someone did take Will aside for a similar talk, so maybe I'm wrong there. In any case, I don't think it would have taken that. The blow-up from Zach, and the loud way Will handled that, would probably have been enough to teach John to handle will with long tongs.

Parenthetically, a fair number of technically bi people I know do this, including myself, simply because the binary point is a heck of lot easier to explain, even with people who should know better.. I'm basically gay, am out to my family and close confederates as being gay, but all that would lead to awkward conversations down the road if I do settle down with a woman, which I can't really rule out completely. At least it isn't as bad as when I was a teenager, and the split was a lot closer to 50/50. That was just annoying. The last couple of paragraphs made me chuckle. Check Will out, being actually thinking about what his therapist said and applying it further.

So...nineties nostalgia. As Jeremy keeps pointing out, that started about 4 seconds after the nineties ended. This reminded me of that, as did the thought that All of Will's generation would know these shows. http://www.thebacklot.com/nickelodeon-gay-icons-from-the-nineties/07/2013/