@clarke.griffin & @lance.sweets

[strove]

@clarke.griffin
Hi everyone. This is @clarke.griffin and @lance.sweets. We wanted to give everyone an update, as well as give a rundown on some things moving forward.

First off, I know some of you just made it back from the Aerie, while others have been back for a while. For anyone who hasn't heard yet, the Aerie was a separate world where everyone was brought to it and given a new life, new memories, and new relationships. It wasn't an easy place to live, and some of us have only gotten a headstart in coping with what we went through. Still, not everyone's figured out the particulars, and a lot of us just got our loved ones back.

Perhaps most importantly, while we as a group tend to have weird things happen to us, this is the first time that the entire collective world has had a shared experience like this. Many of us came from situations where we were more prepared for this than most of the population of this world. Even if you're new, I'm willing to bet that this is the case.

Being in the Aerie changed us. I believe Lance can put this better than I can, but it's important to remember that you're far from alone in any of this. I'll let him delve deeper into this now.

@lance.sweets
‘Complicated’ is not even close to a strong enough word for the situation we’ve all found ourselves in, and there’s not really any sort of established framework for how exactly to deal with it. We’re all going to be figuring this out as we go along, but there are some key points to keep in mind.

The first is to remember that, for any similarities or differences there might've been, the people we were in the Aerie are not exactly the same as we were here before, or are now. Some patience and understanding with each other will go a long way in navigating what's happened. Additionally, the way in which each of us--including the native citizens--deals with this will be different, and so it will help if everyone can remember that and have no expectations for what others might do or how they may feel, or in what timeframe those occur. There’s no right or wrong way to come to terms with everything that happened, and that includes reconciling two entirely separate lives; some may treat who they were in the Aerie as another individual entirely, some may try to blend the two, and some may prefer the person they were in the Aerie.

But as Clarke said, none of us are alone in this, and that’s something that shouldn’t just be sentiment. As difficult as it can be, reach out to others if you need help; likewise, check in on each other whenever possible. It's very easy, in the midst of something of this scale, for individuals to get lost in the chaos if there isn’t a concerted effort to make sure that doesn’t happen. On that note, we also have people here who had arrived only days before the Aerie began and so had no time to establish any sort of support network, as well as new arrivals who can’t be forgotten about in all of this.

For those of you who have just arrived, hopefully you've found the network; although you'll be anonymous until your IDs are registered, you can still participate in discussions and read through older conversations, as well as access the new arrivals guide and the information compendium, the latter of which I believe is updated but I may have missed something. It'll give you something to do as a distraction from the current situation, at least. Additionally, if you have questions or need something brought to you, someone may be able to help with that.

[Lance probably more with the former than the latter, since he's not entirely sure if he can even get into the safehouse right now and doesn't care to test it.]

@clarke.griffin
If you're looking at the arrival guide and noticing that we need some updates, they'd be welcome right now. I usually handle it, but I'm not of a mind to be able to do so at this moment. [Which will be apparent soon for a particular reason—but also, she was doing a lot in coming back from the Aerie. Clarke always has her hands full, but she also knows she has to make good on her "I delegate I don't do everything" word. See, Gene—she can commit to her nonsense.]

Finally, our group has a bar named Red Wings. Both @stephen.strange and I run the establishment, though it's going to fall mostly to me for the time being. If you would like a place to help you get started here, or even get familiarized with the world, Red Wings is a good place to get started. We offer jobs to all Displaced, and we're only staffed by Displaced, making it so that it's a place where you can settle in on your terms. [Unsurprisingly, she isn't mentioning any code of conduct or her firing someone rather publicly. No need to draw attention to it.] And if that doesn't appeal, we do give free meals (and sometimes drinks) to our own on a regular basis.

Right now, just as we've done before, Red Wings has been converted into a community center to provide outreach and resources to our community. If you come and help out, you'll still be considered an employee and paid wages for helping out.

As a note, I'll be in charge of operations for the time being. If you helped Stephen with any of his responsibilities, let me know. I could use some help. [The point being to take the onus off of Stephen. This is how they manage things.]

We believe that covers everything. We know this is a lot to digest, so please feel free to ask any questions. Lance and I are here to help.

Comments

[strove]

Who did you think you were telling them was the enemy in this scenario? Morningstar? You think it's a good idea to do that right now? To make them hate the people who give us money to get started? Who gave us both safehouses (that's including Red Wings)? You don't think that won't undermine our efforts to protect ourselves by creating a new enemy out of nothing?

[lifetothefullest]

My power is annoying people with whatever pop song I'm thinking of, not mind control. I'm not making anyone do anything.

Feeling like they're imprisoned is what's going to lead to those outcomes, and just ignoring that they feel that way instead of talking to them about it is not helpful. What if someone goes through this experience and, because of it, decides they can't trust other Displaced? That's going to lead to a far more dangerous situation than validating their concerns will.

cw: mentions of slavery

[strove]

You know as well as I do the power of feeding into someone's fears, especially if that someone has been enslaved before. That's exactly what you were doing down thread, and if you don't know the risk of that, I can't help you.

I've seen these discussions before. I haven't taken part. But I definitely want you to come back with a plan that answers all of our concerns:

• How do get people identities that hold up in this world, while also giving them a new understanding of this world.
• A guarantee that any newcomers won't flee from someone's apartment at the first chance. Any and all.
• A guarantee that any newcomers won't be arrested, even just trying to get into a store because a door won't open.
• A guarantee that letting people go wild won't make them fall prey to people like Johann P. Grey, the UNA, or anyone else who might decide they have a problem with us. Elsewhere in this post, Damian is referring to someone who's obsessed with people like us. That person cut off a piece of him and kept it as a trophy.

I'm not raising these concerns because I think you can't, but because I think you're failing to see the bigger picture. We're already tackling security concerns brought up in one of Stephen's posts a few months back, both to protect ourselves and offer safe passage out of the city. And you want to tack on one additional security concern.

Come up with a plan that doesn't depend on us getting lucky for a short period of time because the city was in ruins. If we're depending on being overlooked, that won't always be the same.

Do that instead of arguing with what's in place because you feel that it's traumatizing. I mean it. I'd love to hear how you can adapt something to work better that involves guarantees instead of luck. Because instead, right now, you're just inciting more irritation within our group for no good reason.

[lifetothefullest]

I'm sorry, did I flash back like ten years to when I was in school? Do I have homework now? I'll try to fit that in between all of the everything else I'm doing right now.

If you think I'm failing to see the bigger picture, then I think you're failing to see the point, which is that risk is not a reason to deny someone their basic rights. That shouldn't be something controversial.

[strove]

You mean the right to get arrested, experimented on, or anything else because they stood out like a sore thumb? That right? I'm giving you homework because you're creating problems. Don't create problems if you don't have a solution in place that answers all of these questions.

I see this as a problem to be solved by a leader. Don't pretend to act like one if you won't put together a solution. "Basic rights" doesn't answer the other concerns, and you've seen what we've gone through. You've put together a complete file on it. Don't play ignorant just because I told you to do a thing.

[lifetothefullest]

Everyone has been going on about how well known we are in general, and after the Aerie that's even more so the case. We all stand out, and we're all at risk, and we continue to make ourselves more and more visible when it seems like the reward is worth it; isn't that why you decided to go public? The risk was worth the reward?

Refusing to pretend a problem doesn't exist isn't the same thing as creating it, and right now the only solution I can actually put into place immediately--which is when it's needed--is to let these people who are rightfully distressed at their situation know that not everyone is totally fine with what they're going through. I can't just ignore when people are suffering, even if that's apparently much easier for some others to do.

[strove]

We took the risk with the understanding that we had protections in place, and the motivation to add additional ones. What you want to do is rip away a protection that we have in place.

What you did was not just let them know that everyone was fine, but imply that someone is malevolently holding them against their will. The fact that you're doing that causes problems. Tell them that we're working on it. Tell them that you're working on a plan and begin to compose it beyond just the psychological distress of four days, especially when there is a greater risk in being outside that many of us experienced first hand.

I'm not ignoring the problem. I'm telling you to come up with the solution because the lack of one is leading you to cause more problems by exacerbating distrust in our group. It's not hard to dig back and realize we own this safehouse, that it belongs to us as an entity. So, what you did there was sow distrust among us, instead of saying that it's an old system that you'd like to improve, but you haven't come up with a way yet. Just so I repeat myself: the problem is the incendiary nature of your "comfort," and how you fed into their fears.

But instead of offering a solution to a problem you've gotten into numerous arguments about, you suggested that I gave you homework for telling you to try to solve it. It sounds like you'd rather cause problems than seek out a solution. Or it seems like you expect me to come up with a solution, but I'm not interested in arguing about the problem, just the outcome of how to solve that problem.

[lifetothefullest]

The problem is that there's never going to be a solution you accept, because your listed requirements all contain 'guarantees' that can only be achieved in the way they are now, which is the entire point of contention. I'm not interested in playing an unwinnable game, and fortunately enough, I don't have to.

[strove]

I'm not playing a game, Lance.

Come up with a plan. Work with the anonymous commenter who's argued with me. I'm not trying to maintain a status quo just because it's worked for us. I'm sorry that you think I am, but it's fair that you don't know me very well.

Come up with a plan, or stop exacerbating a problem and trying to make enemies of the rest of us for trying to hold up and maintain what's already in place. The fact that you're giving up is telling, but I'd love for you to prove me wrong.

@anonymous

[cognitivus]

I'm plenty capable of deciding who is and isn't my enemy without anyone else's influence, I can promise you that. Nobody has agency over my opinions but myself.

( A sensitive implication he is very swift to affirm after a sociopath and a case of encephalitis tried its best to prove otherwise. )

[strove]

Maybe, but that's not the case for everyone. I'm not trying to imply that we're all sensitive or at risk to the same dangers. But we have dealt with newcomers killing people and being arrested for it, as well as having to decide what to do about it. I think trying to prevent that should be our priority.

[cognitivus]

I understand it's important to factor in risks while working out this compromise. It must be difficult to find a good balance, but I think it can be done.

How many newcomers have killed? What were the consequences that followed afterward?

People have mentioned a previous precedent where new arrivals weren't confined to a safehouse, with no incidents. If that proves it isn't wholly necessary, why continue to so strictly enforce it?

Have you considered letting people come and go as they please with an escort?

[strove]

Two killed, and were jailed. They were freed by the man named Jimmy Henries. One got arrested for an unregistered implant, who was later freed by Jimmy Henries. Henries recently informed us that he was running out of favors to help us, so we'd have less leeway of having someone on the moon use his credits to solve our problems.

For that time, I referenced that the city was in ruins. It won't always be like that. The NAPD won't always be cleaning up a mess, and if it is, then you and Lance will be right in your greater implications: we'll have bigger things to worry about. But there were NAPD on the scene to arrest those three previous figures. One day things may improve here. Given our efforts around the city, we can only hope that they will. A lot of us are working toward that.

The issue with an escort falls to the lack of the registered implant. Someone seen with them could be arrested. There is precedent for that, too (in the above-mentioned cases).

[cognitivus]

It seems like the NAPD is currently overwhelmed as we speak, with the fallout from your alternate universe.

Are the implants like police radar? Are they alerted when in proximity? Hypothetically, how would one get caught without an implant when not actively drawing attention to themselves?

[strove]

Right now, yes. But surely you can understand the consistency that might be needed, especially since many of us are only just returning from that other world.

As far as I understand it, the UNA (though they're all discharged and are now rather violent these days) and local police departments can see the neural implant identity of everyone. If you passed an officer without that neural implant being registered, you'd stand out. I'm not sure how it works, but it seems to be a sticking point. It's why Morningstar has special masks to scramble identities even on surveillance, because the neural implant can be read by these people through surveillance.

[cognitivus]

Given that we'll only be new arrivals once, and the next batch won't understand that it's consistent, I don't know that consistency is benefiting anyone at the moment.

An alternative, then: restrict new arrivals to designated safe establishments rather than one underground bunker. Your bar, or volunteer displaced who are willing to house them until IDs are created. If they can't open doors, there's no flight risk.

[strove]

We keep a network log. Lance has proved what someone can find if they dig a little. Besides, I wasn't meaning it lightly: a lot of us just got back from another reality. Expecting us to take in newcomers at this time is a bit much. I wouldn't use this excuse otherwise, but I'm going to argue that what's done is done.

Red Wings may be a suitable alternative, as we have a safehouse down below, but we'd need to ensure that we're not being surveyed by any cops or anyone with that implant viewing software.

And finally: I can't believe I'm saying this, but windows do open and people will use them. Some of us are rather fearless, so height isn't a factor.

@bellamy.blake

[jettisons]

What kind of safe establishments do you mean? Something like Red Wings? What's the plan for when a couple of cops come in for lunch and see five people without IDs wandering around? And why is restricting them to a bar that they can't leave so much better than a safehouse?

I've seen volunteers brought up pretty much every time we have this discussion, but no one seems to be able to explain how having a chaperone is going to keep both people from getting arrested if a cop spots someone who's unregistered.

No one is dismissing anything. The issue is that this is complicated, and a lot of you want to insist it isn't.

@anonymous

[samebito]

I'm sorry to interrupt, but I do have one question. You've mentioned newcomers killing people and being arrested. However, this confinement doesn't eliminate the possibility of murder: it only restricts potential victims.

Are there any safeguards in place to prevent a newcomer from killing those trapped alongside them?

[strove]

I think that's where we're supposed to be around to help, plus the Morningstar agent. But most early injuries have been from sparring or punching the wall.

[samebito]

Really? I'm surprised these circumstances haven't led to bloodshed... If you don't mind, I have one other question: has anyone attempted to take hostages yet?

[ "Yet," because as far as Kisame is concerned, it's a valid tactic. It's only a matter of time before someone uses it. ]

[strove]

I believe threats of that nature have been attempted, but not broadly. As you can guess, it hasn't worked out. You can't seriously harm the person who needs to also open the door for you.

[samebito]

Perhaps not. But the harm doesn't have to be inflicted on the person who can open the door. Keeping a knife at the throat of a fellow newcomer could be just as effective. A desperate person might even kill one of their new comrades to prove that they're serious.

Something to consider when it comes to safety, eh?

[insect]

Kisame-san.

[strove]

It doesn't change the circumstances. You'd still be isolating a potential problem. Or do you think unleashing that problem on the entire world's population is a good idea?