Look I Clown Veganism Often Enough But Really, Truly, Don’t Ever Fucking Feed Somebody Something Without

People thing Quiggs was r e s p e c t f u l ????? Man's a bastard huffing bastard juice right out the rebreather

Part of me wants to say I get why people think he’s respectful and perfect and that the Jedi are wrong about him, because he does do a lot of good stuff, but at the same time another part of me wonders if they haven’t just fallen for the same shtick Qui-Gon pulls on everyone, because key thing about Qui-Gon is that he likes to make people think he’s dignified and wise and above it all but he’s really just 6’4 with a beard and has gotten really good at using that to his advantage.

You look at him with his long cloak and his tunics and you think, huh, okay, I believe that guy is a Jedi, and he’ll say something vague that sounds really smart and you’ll be like well he sure sounds like he knows what he’s talking about, but it’s an act, it’s all an act. Because underneath the sagely remarks and noble bearing that man is a bitch, and everyone who’s spent more than a day around him knows it.

Planning for a flight now consists of planning out how to document the legal violations the airline is inevitably going to commit.

#FOOD #!!!

I just discovered foodtimeline.org, which is exactly what it sounds like: centuries worth of information about FOOD.  If you are writing something historical and you want a starting point for figuring out what people should be eating, this might be a good place?

The pool scene is awesome. But it’s also extremely painful.

Because on the one hand you have Gideon, who is very repressed, something we’re probably not expecting as an audience, because she is a brash, agressive, openly queer woman. There’s a weird expectation that girls are somehow more in touch with their feelings (this is dumb). But also we live in a heteronormative society, and it’s unusual for us to see out queer folks who haven’t had to actually think critically about their emotions and come to terms with with them. Which, Gideon has not done.

So she’s in this position where she does not think that Harrowhark is capable of feeling affection or love, and that the strongest emotion Harrow is capable of is hate. Gideon knows 100% for a fact that Harrow hates her, so that means she is important to Harrow.

Except that Harrow *is* apparently capable of love and affection. Which means that when she says that she doesn’t think about Gideon that often because there are things she cares about more, she’s not just saying it to get under Gideon’s skin. Which means that Gideon isn’t as important to Harrow as she thought she was. And this upsets her deeply for reasons she can’t fully explain or understand.

On the other hand you have Harrow, she just told her greatest secret, and received forgiveness, understanding, and genuine human comfort in return. So she looks at the world as though it is filled with egg-eating snakes and she is protecting an egg. So she makes Gideon promise to go home and do the thing her family has been tasked with for generations. We, as the audience, have only gotten like five scenes with Harrowhark fully aware of everything post pool-scene, and in two of them she is destroying herself so that Gideon can have even the smallest chance of life.

Because Gideon just had her heart broken into a thousand tiny shards and can’t even express why, meanwhile Harrow thinks they’re married now.

If they had just a few more hours to talk to each other afterwards I fully believe that they would have worked a lot of this shit out. I guess that’s the tragedy. Even in their moment of seeing each other clearly for the first time, they still don’t understand each other.

💥🙌👏

I know the Star Wars extended universe treats “spice” like it’s this big scary drug, but I kind of like to imagine that it’s basically just space weed, and the only reason Han got in trouble with the Imperials over Jabba’s cargo is that he was evading import tariffs.

Know what I’m salty about?

In all my art classes, I was never taught HOW to use the various tools of art.

Like yes, form, and shape and space and color theory and figure drawing is important, but so is KNOWING what different tools do.

I’m 29 and I JUST learned this past month that India Ink is fucking waterproof when it dries. Why is this important? Because I can line something in India Ink and then go over it with watercolors. And that has CHANGED the ENTIRE way I art and the ease I can create with.

tldr: Art Teachers: teach your students what different tools do. PLEASE.

The Jedi Order and the Galactic Republic

Protectors of the Galactic Symbiosis

In The Phantom Menace, Qui-Gon Jinn defines symbiosis as "life forms living together for mutual advantage." As George Lucas tells us, "we're all part of a symbiotic relationship, meaning, that we all help each other" and "we have to all be one in order to go forward." One of the key themes of Star Wars that we should notice, he says, is that "everything is interconnected" and just like Obi-Wan Kenobi insists, "what happens to one of you will affect the other." For this, we all need to help each other, so we can keep our world in balance.

As Lucas explains, this is exactly what the Galactic Republic, the galaxy-wide democracy is: a "symbiotic relationship," a "symbiotic circle" of 100 000 star systems. "I wanted to emphasize the point that the Republic was a democracy” Lucas tells us, and the Queens, Kings, Doges, Duchesses “are all elected officials” and their titles are “a designation of a ruler, like president.” During the thousand years while Republic was functioning, the galaxy, the whole ecosystem, which is life itself - the living Force, both light and dark - was in "balance."

The Jedi Knights are guardians of peace and justice in the galaxy; their job is "to convince both sides to resolve their differences and not to go to war" and who "try to convince people to get along." Thus, they are the guardians of symbiosis, shepherding the universe so they can all be one. And as a direct result, the allegiance of the Jedi Order is naturally to the Republic, to democracy and the Galactic Senate. The Jedi Order did not serve the Senate because of a political affinity of some kind, but because the unity of the galaxy in one gigantic democracy is the universal symbiosis realized, it is a galaxy governed by the principles of peace, freedom and justice, with the Jedi guarding these values. The Galactic Republic "prospered and grew under the wise rule of the Senate and the protection of the venerable Jedi Knights."

How much influence the Republic had over the Jedi?

It must be noted that the concept of the Jedi Order cannot be taken out of its mythological and fairy tale context. Although the Jedi Knights "serve the Senate," for it's the symbiotic group, through which the people of all the planets are existing in a larger symbiotic relationship, and for this, a Jedi's allegiance is "to the Republic, to democracy," the Jedi Order is a separate, independent power and authority next to the Galactic Senate and the Supreme Chancellor.

In George Lucas' myth, the Jedi Knights are the "gods," the "most moral of anybody in the galaxy," guarding peace and justice in the universe, watching over symbiosis, which is live in balance, having "the moral authority" to "keep the governments of all the planets in line, so that they don't do terrible things" and they're the "peacekeepers of the human world." They're "warrior-monks who keep peace in the universe without resorting to violence" have got the power "to send the whole force of the Republic, which is 100 000 systems, so if you don't behave they can bring you up in front of the Senate. They'll cut you off at the knees, politically."

As it was shown in the Star Wars Saga and the Clone Wars, the Jedi Council "will act as they deem necessary" even when they received direct requests from the Galactic Senate or the Chancellor, and has the power to refuse them, and even assign Senators to missions. "Republic business" and "internal Jedi business" were entirely separate from each other. The Jedi Order has an internal, tradition-based jurisdiction, independent and sealed from the courts of the Galactic Republic. While they're part of the Jedi Order, a Jedi Knight cannot be put on trial at the Republic's courts. The Council has the power to assign Knights to missions without requesting the consent of the Senate or the Chancellor, and the Chancellor did not interfere in Jedi affairs, nor the Jedi had to report to him. Obi-Wan reminds Anakin, "our allegiance is to the Senate, not to its leader."

Failing symbiosis and Jedi generals

As George Lucas explains, in Episode I, II and III, "the Senators have fallen out of the symbiotic circle" and the "symbiotic relationship had torn apart" because "they couldn't agree on anything because their interests became so divergent, so they couldn't get anything done as a Republic." Despite the laws of the Galactic Republic are prohibiting slavery in the entire galaxy, as Darth Sidious explains, "The Republic is not what it once was. The senate is full of greedy squabbling delegates There is no interest in the common good." The Jedi become unable to uphold peace in justice: just like Padmé Amidala expressed, "the Republic no longer functions" - in an uncaring galaxy, blindspots were formed, crime lords and slavers built their dominions on worlds like Tatooine. "The Republic doesn't exist out here", as Shmi said. All the Jedi could do is to hope for things to change for the better, that the Republic can be saved, that the balance of the Force, a symbiotic galaxy can be restored.

In Episode II, "Darth Sidious/Palpatine creates a war. It's all manufactured It's not real." The war "represents a failure to listen" and the Senate grants "emergency powers" to him, and with this "radical amendment" the Senate practically shuts down democracy to ensure its survival. Effectively a dictator, Palpatine commanded the usage of the clone army. "He enlisted the Jedi Knights as generals to command the Clone Army." The very existence of the clone army was unethical and amoral - war itself is -, causing further wounds on the principles that served as the foundations of the Republic. The Jedi Knights had to choose: "Are they going to stick with their moral rules and all be killed, which makes it irrelevant, or do they help save the Republic? They have good intentions, but they have been manipulated which was their downfall." Lucas explains, "The Jedi valiantly accepted their assignment, though never having served as military commanders, they were unaccustomed to the wages of war." He adds: "they’re now used as generals and they’re fighting in a war, and they’re doing something that they really weren’t meant to do. They’re being corrupted by this war, by being forced to be generals instead of peacemakers.”

As Lucas wrote, "As dedicated as the Separatists were in their resolve to create a new order to replace the failing Republic, the Jedi were equally determined to preserve the Republic and defeat the Sith, who they understood all too well were the masterminds of the Separatist movement. They still believed in the Republic, still deemed it a Republic worth saving."

"The Jedi rebellion"

However, as the Clone Wars rage on, the Senate votes more and more executive powers to the Chancellor, who gains control "over the Senate and the courts" and wants to interfere into Jedi affairs. Padmé and other Senators cannot help but wonder, "what if the democracy we thought we were serving no longer exists." The Jedi Order realized: the Galactic Republic is in grave danger. It's no longer a democracy, and the Chancellor uses his powers to gain more and more, and they suspect, he won't return them to the Senate when the war ends, but keep it and turns the Republic into something else.

They sense, "the dark side of the Force [designed around greed] surrounds the Chancellor" and they realize, "if he does not give up his emergency powers (...) then he should be removed from office." Under this scenario "the Jedi Council would have to take control of the Senate, in order to secure a peaceful transition." However, as Lucas says, "the nascent Rebellion and the Jedi didn't move fast enough." Palpatine is revealed to be a Sith Lord, and as Lucas says, the Sith "want to dominate the galaxy, to control everything."

Just like Lucas says, democracy dies "with cheers." The Senate is ready to "give away" democracy to "the Devil" and they celebrate him when he proclaims himself to their Emperor, ordering the army to slaughter "the gods." Padmé announces: "So this is how liberty dies. With thunderous applause." It would be important to notice that despite the scenes elaborating the political reality were deleted from Episode III, it is clear that the Galactic Empire did not have a name yet, but the Republic was no more. The "Jedi rebellion" was an attempt to take down the tyrant who used the pretence of democracy to destroy symbiosis, to destroy balance and to finish the creation of his Empire. Although Palpatine laments, the Jedi has no trust in the Senate, the Republic or democracy, one must realize that Sidious's reasoning is that democratic principles should allow and legitimize their own destruction and condone dictatorship. This logic resulted the fall of the Roman Republic, the French First Republic and the Weimar Republic in our real world. "Democratic vote against democracy" does not exist: that's called coup.

In conclusion

For decades, popular belief held that the political aspect of George Lucas' second trilogy is tedious - however, it's surprisingly clear, despite it still remains mythological, philosophical and PG13. As George Lucas tells us, "we're all part of a symbiotic relationship, meaning, that we all help each other" and "we have to all be one in order to go forward." In order to do that, we shall work just like one huge democracy, realizing this symbiotic circle, so the Force, made up of the life of all living things, is in balance, interconnectedness is is recognized and respected. This is the state of being that is under the guidance and protection who are "regular people like the rest of us," but ones who dedicate their lives to "make sure everyone is protected, to bring peace." Their role in the democratic government is a mythological one that cannot be compared to real world branches of power, since it is the pillar of morality, constituted by of "the gods," who are sage monks, also happened to be very good warriors, serving as "ultimate father figures" and "intergalactic therapists". And "if you don't work in the ecosystem that you're in, then when you pull yourself out, it collapses. And if you keep doing selfish things, pretty soon, the whole thing will collapse as well." And this leads to the birth of a world ruled by "the Devil," who, and all his minions actually "are people who are very self-centered and selfish.

The intended end of the Saga, the end of the Third Trilogy is, as George Lucas planned and intended, is that the Republic and the Jedi Order is restored.

Sources

(Please note: I used no Disney or Legends Star Wars materials, (save for the one Shatterpoint foreword) since I only interested in George Lucas' Canon)

Star Wars Saga and Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Star Wars Archives 1977-1983

Star Wars Archives 1999-2005

Star Wars: The Phantom Menace "Prime of the Jedi" featurette

George Lucas' foreword for Shatterpoint by Matthew Stower

Interviews with George Lucas 1 2 3 4 5

are we out of the woods yet ?