A Matter of Character

This morning I woke up to angry nerds screaming James Bond has to be a white man. Ashamed to say my father sided with them (For realism; he said. His opinion has been dismissed). I wandered over to Twitter. And discovered more angry nerds talking about why Steve Rogers can't have a boyfriend.

SO I feel the need to clarify something.
Being a woman does not define me.
Being bisexual does not define me.

I am who I am because I am. Nature and nurture have created the Spryte Magnus of today.

So there is no reason James Bond would be any less bad ass as a woman or a black man, or oh my gosh, a Black Woman. (#AgyemanFreemaForBond) He or she would still be a bad ass. They would still be a top ranking spy, 007. They would still be suave, they would still be flirtatious, they would still be a clever devil.

Gender and race do not define a character anymore then they define a person.
It is actions and personality that do.

Beware there may be slight Civil War spoilers ahead.

Now, as for the matter of Bisexual Steve Rogers. One, there is no force in this universe that can tell me he's not. Now he's a confused bi boy because he was from the 40's. There are countless allusions in the comic world. Including my personal favorite despite my hating the pairing, virtually every Avenger asking why he and Tony haven't gotten married yet. [Fun Fact: In an alternative universe where Tony was born a woman, and they did get married. My belief is the hold up is Tony is hetro as they come. That said I still do not support the pairing. One, I just don't see it. Two, Steve knew Tony's father.].

For one, Steggy forever, got it? That said in MCU and in many of the comic verses, poor Peggy has passed on.

This does not excuse Steve kissing people he shouldn't be with minimal to No build up do you hear me Marvel?! DO YOU HEAR ME? THAT WAS COMPLETELY INAPPROPRIATE FOR SO MANY REASONS.

Anyway.
Here's the thing about Steve Rogers.
He's brave. He's noble and honorable. He believes in freedom and the American Way. He is unbelievably loyal. He's the kid from Brooklyn who repeatedly forged paperwork to try to get into the army. Dreamy. Willing to throw himself on a grenade to save others.

Not one of these all important traits suggests one way or other with his sexuality.
I am in fact pissed at Marvel pushing their heterosexual indifference, which is when a pair of characters are only assumed for possible romance if opposite gender. [Side Eyes the ONLY PART OF CIVIL WAR I DID NOT APPROVE OF. Not because Hetro Steve. But choice of lady and lack of build up].

Anyway. Moving on from that.

Lets talk about my favorite Gaybies, or Bibies. Poe Dameron and Finn.

I actually got into a heated argument with a friend who is normally a slash shipper about them.

She believes they have no chance pairing off because we aren't going to get a same sex couple in Star Wars. Also she ships Finn Rey. We respectfully disagree there.

Side Note: I feel Finn is one very new at life. He only recently won freedom to pick his fate. Which means he's pretty open minded. Definitely bisexual.

Now lets discuss the characters.

Poe Dameron. Sassy. Smart. Clever. Best damn pilot. Single Dad to BB8.
Finn. Brave. Follows his heart. Bit of a closet bad ass. Noble. Loyal to friends.

Once again, nothing in these two suggests sexuality. Well, I could make an argument or two about Finn's bisexuality. The point remains its not part of his personality.

Anyway.

[Look at this Shit]

[Look at his Top Gun Pose]

ANYWAY.

The whole jacket exchange. The excitement at seeing each other again.

Don't get me wrong. Finn and Rey could be cute. But currently Poe and Finn hold way more ship points.

Also someone pointed out Poe's lip bite when he says "Keep it, it suits you".

Lip biting means nervous. Or attracted. Or both.


OKAY sorry now I'm back on track.

The point is, regardless of how Poe or Finn pair off, their characters are not defined by their sexuality.

So lets go over this.
I am not defined by my gender, race, or sexuality.
You are not defined by your gender, race, or sexuality.
Characters are not defined by their gender, race, or sexuality.

I am defined by my experiences and actions.
You are defined by your experiences and actions.
Characters are defined by their experiences and actions.

Thus
James Bond is not defined by his race, gender, or sexuality. He is defined by his experiences and actions.
Steve Rogers aka Captain America is not defined by his race, gender, or sexuality. He is defined by his experiences and actions.
Poe Dameron and Finn are not defined by their race, gender, or sexuality. They are defined by their experiences and actions.

Now in regards to two arguments. One, from my father.
"James Bond and Movies in general have to show realism".

Movies, books, podcasts, music, comics, and video games are under no obligation to show anything. Especially in the genres of spy action fiction, super hero, and scifi.

Now I'll be the first to and an addendum.

Fiction should know show reality as it is. Fiction should show reality as it should be. See in 2012, White House Down, and Olympus Fallen nobody was questioning those black presidents birthplaces. Nor in 24 or the short lived Commander in Chief, though to be fair that one featured a woman president (which we have yet to see) and her nominating a black vice president.

So no, I don't believe movies or media should show reality as it is. I believe media and movies should be used to expose the flaws in the society they were made in. Now, in terms of genres like adventure, I believe Gene Roddenberry summarized in best in regards to Star Trek Next Gen. I will paraphrase.

If the point of the show is space exploration in a futuristic society, no one should give a flying fuck about whether a captain is bald or not.

Similarly, if the movie is about a super spy doing impossible things with advanced technology that doesn't exist yet, no one should care about whether they are black or white or have a penis or a vagina.

(Ditto Scifi but I refuse to deal with the people whining about Star Wars having woman protagonists today. That said I will Will Smith pose at FINN, the OTHER VII protagonist).

If a movie is about Superhero's, no one should care if the hero falls in love with someone of the same sex.

And if its god damn Star Wars the fanbase has way bigger things to worry about then Stormpilot.

Now, another argument.
"James Bond is a symbol of masculinity."

I would say so is Bruce Wayne.

Your argument is invalid. Good day.

#FreeTheNipple

ets talk about breasts.

Lets talk about nipples.

Lets talk about how there is nothing inherently sexual about them.

A homosapien female breast's evolutionary purpose is to feed her young.

Just like you would use a spoon to give a child apple sauce. A breast is a biological spoon used to deliver milk to a new born

Men have nipples to.

Because in the womb they started as female.

A male's nipples were once female but he doesn't need to cover then up.

Why?

Because women are more prone to lactation? What exactly about feeding our young is so obscene?

Nothing.

The reason there is so much shame about a woman's breasts in American Society root back to when women were chattle. It was not their body to expose. There was a time where exposing one's ankle could put a man in a frenzy. Not because it was sexy persay but because it was normally forbidden.

That is how in America a breast has become such a scandal. We make such a big deal about hypersexualizing a woman's body, we have created a double standard.

We are prudes if we show nothing.

Asking for it if we show anything.

And Shameful if we show it all.

No more.

Men can lay out on the beach and expose their generally non functional nipple. On a man they serve no purpose. But a man can still leave them bear at a public pool.

A woman can be arrested for the same. A woman can be shamed and shunned for exposing her nipple for its evolutionary purpose. Many new mothers do not know their rights. They don't realize it.

This is a sexist double standard.

And not even in any way that makes sense beyond women are prizes and we shouldn't flash our treasures.

We are not prizes. Women are equal to men.

Nipple equality is a symbol. It represents the pay gap between sexes, the double standards, the color coded toy shelves at the store. Nipples represent being told we'd be prettier if we smiled. How "don't be such a girl" is an insult. A bare female nipple represents how when an all male cast lined up to hunt ghosts no one blinked but when an all woman team assembled the Internet declared it would suck as a result. The bare nipple points out that, as Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg pointed out: "[W]hen I’m sometimes asked when will there be enough [women on the supreme court]? And I say ‘When there are nine.’ People are shocked. But there’d been nine men, and nobody’s ever raised a question about that." The bare nipple represents the oppression of victims of rape and domestic abuse of both genders. The nipple represents the fact that if a girl wants to dress as Spiderman she's directed to a costume in pink and or with a skirt. The bare nipple represents the hidden camera show when all the parents tried to tell the boy he couldn't dress as Belle. The bare nipple represents the idea that if a boy shows interest in dolls, fashion, of emotion he is feminine and it is negative. The bare nipple controversy exemplifies our sexist gender roles.

If a woman does not have the right to lay out with bare nipples beside a man on the beach, why does it shock anyone we haven't had a woman president yet?

Human bodies are beautiful. Every shade of skin, from albino to pitch black. Short, tall, slim, curvy, even skinny and overweight. Even at a humans worst their body is an amazing testament of engineering and biology and for half a moment you could perceive the idea of intelligent design. How our limbs fit into our torsos. How our bodies twist and bend. Ten toes some of us can use to pick up stuff. Ten fingers that can be used to create novels, artworks, music, and other masterpieces. Two eyes to see the beautiful world, two ears to hear it. Two nipples to feed our young.

There are exactly three external parts of the body inherently sexual. Testacles, penises, and vaginas.

Breasts, butts, legs, ears, shoulders, and every other part of the human body are not. They serve other purpose. Certain people might be attracted or aroused by them in the right situations. But thats Okay.

Its about letting women breast feed and sun bathe topless the same as their male equals without scandal or shame.

Not letting their lover nicely nibble at their nipple. See the difference?

#FreeTheNipple