A list.

[sarea]

The problem with working with people as/more anal than you: Spending half an hour arguing over the spelling of Argentinian/Argentinean, feverishly looking it up on every dictionary you can get your hands on, debating whether Word actually can be trusted, asking other colleagues, and searching through the Buenos Aires Herald. Word says it's "Argentinean." Dictionary.com is ambivalent. The Buenos Aires Herald uses both (really, if the Argentineans/ians don't even know, what hope is there for the rest of us?). Result: Stalemate. And disgruntlement.

The joys of having a friend like Jade: When you whine about wanting fluffy D/G, fic like Learning Tree gets written. If you haven't read it yet, do! Result: Squeeful!me.

Why candy is bad for your teeth, and so are drabbles about Halloween: Halloween Sugar (D/G, pink-haired brats) Result: Cavities.

Why it's good to reminisce: While I was writing the drabble, I remembered one of the best Halloween fics I've ever read. I have to rec it, even if I don't know how many of you would be interested in XF fic. If you ever saw the show or been curious about the fiction, check it out! I love what Branwell does for Mulder and Scully in this story: A Normal Halloween

The reason to post fic rather than hoarding it: All your lovely feedback from yesterday -- thank you! Result: Warm fuzzies.

Proof I've been in fandom too long: I'm not shocked by what happened to poor AnnieSJ. I have ceased to be surprised by what people do, what level they can stoop to. The XF fandom pretty much exposed me to how virulent humanity can be -- and if that hadn't done it, what I've seen in the HP fandom certainly would have. And I'm not even that involved! But there's a reason for that, and when things like this crop up, it just re-cements my non-involvement policy. What happened to her is completely disgusting, but SO not out of the norm for fandom that I can't even be surprised. Isn't that fucking sad? Yeah. It is. Result: Cynicism!

Why it's not good to arrive at work at 7am and still not have eaten 6 1/2 hours later: One gets very, very grumpy. Result: Hunger pangs.

Comments

[mynuet.livejournal.com]

You could always go for "Argentinos".

[akscully.livejournal.com]

I prefer to spell it "Peruvian".

[selinakyle47.livejournal.com]

Hey, XF fic! Cool, it's been a while since I've read one of those. Though I'm more of a S/K fan myself (those bad boys get me every time). :)

[sumdumgai.livejournal.com]

That anniesj thing is all over the place. Personally, I think it's fake. Especially since the last paragraph seems to be encouraging people to post links. For someone who seems to be so concerned about the implications of having an FBI file, she sure is public about it. And naturally given the fact that she was on a tirade against Bush, I can only assume she's in favor of Kerry, of Democratic policies, and of more government regulation. Irony is sweet, isn't it? It's pretty clear to me that being a dumb bitch got her into that mess and being a dumb bitch isn't going to get her out. Therefore I'm willing to give her the benefit of the doubt and assume it's a sensationalist hoax. And when that is the benefit of the doubt, you know you're not dealing with the right sort of person.

Even if it is true, it's pretty laughable how the commenters there are crying 1984. Give me a break. It's common wisdom that the Secret Service investigates every possible threat even if it doesn't seem credible. That's their job. To post "I made a threat to the President and got investigated!" is, to me, like posting "I played with fire and I got burned! How could I have known it was true? Oh the injustice!"

Besides, she got a visit and was cleared. I don't see the problem. The Secret Service did its job, and she got treated fairly. What is there to complain about, other than some self-fabricated notion that having this on file is going to affect her lifestyle? It's not like she was arrested, and the last time I checked, job applications don't ask "Have you ever made satirical comments about assassinating the President?" It reeks of self-importance and sensationalism. Neither the Secret Service nor anyone else really gives a crap about anniesj's journal, so she should get over it already. The only job that she might not be able to land as a result of this Q&A session being on file is at the Secret Service, or FBI, and that's justified. Though it DOES make a rather convenient scapegoat for whenever she happens to lose a job for being, I dunno, a dumb loudmouth?

Incidentally, I recently got a call from San Jose Police because I didn't return mom's call for a week (my phone was off) and she got worried. Now the SJPD has me on record for being a bad son. What is this, 1984? My life is ruined!

-----

As for the people of Argentina, I would just call them Argentine(s). Actually I just did a check at m-w.com and it seems that all three are acceptable.

[sarea-okelani.livejournal.com]

No, really, tell me how you really feel. :))

Here's the thing: I don't think Annie's lying -- I knew her in XF, not extremely well or anything, but enough to be pretty certain she didn't just make it up. Also because there ARE asshats like that who would do it just to be jerks.

Has it been blown out of proportion? I rather think so, but you have to know that most people think of the Secret Service and having an FBI record and what not as being a big deal. Regular people don't encounter such things. I KNOW Secret Service agents, a couple of them were previously interns when I was working at Interpol, so it's lost its mystique for me. But for regular Joe? It's a big deal.

I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt that she honestly intended this to serve as an example to not be dumb like she was, wrt posting content that could be misconstrued in this manner in a public forum -- not really her fault if a whole bunch of people got totally het up over it and went over to take a gander/offer support/whatever. I didn't bother to read the comments, because I knew they'd probably just piss me off or make me roll my eyes, because there are a lot of ignorant people out there, who don't understand that it's the Secret Service's JOB to do exactly what they did.

What's appalling is that someone would be mean-spirited enough to report her, when she's clearly not a threat -- but as I said, nothing people do can really shock me anymore. And if they honestly believed she WAS a threat, even that would be a different story -- but I'm fairly certain that it was done NOT for national security, but to fuck with her. And I think that's disgusting and pisses me off. Not just on her behalf, but on MINE, because two United States Secret Service agents, who probably have far more important things to do than investigate some bogus claim about a threat to George W., had to go out to wherever the hell she lives and waste their time and resources there. Wasting MY taxpayer's dollars. And that pisses me off. It's totally immature, irresponsible, and probably represents a gross abuse of the system.

I also know that an FBI record is not a big deal -- but again, to the average American, the mystique of it is there and they're like, "OMG an FBI record! Oooh!" I think the bigger issue, at least if I were in her position, is what her lawyer advised about the no-fly thing. Because that would be a pain in the ass.

So yeah, if I were her, mainly I'd be flipping out that anyone could be that much of an asshole, and the inconvenience of possibly not being able to fly. The rest of it is whatever.