Latest Posts by lostinthewanderingblue - Page 9
Can we talk about how Steve Rogers would probably fight to keep abortion legal and safe, because he saw how many people used to die back in the day because all abortions were illegal and unsafe and he knows if a person is pregnant and don’t want to be pregnant they will find a way to not be pregnant?
Can we talk about Steve Rogers telling off right wing politicians who say minimum wage isn’t supposed to be a living wage? Can we have him saying ‘No, I remember when it was instituted. It was supposed to be a living wage, senator.’
Can we talk about Steve Rogers supporting a raise in SNAP benefits, because he knows how it feels to go hungry?
Can we talk about Steve Rogers having problems with this country’s military industrial complex?
Bucky in the Army, part I
When a draftee got his notice to report, he was expected to show up at his local draft board on a specified date. http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/pages/exhibits/ww2/services/pdf/induct5.pdf (This links to a .pdf of a helpful pamphlet designed by Oregon officials for potential draftees, and outlines the induction process, as well as covering common questions.) Once there, he would receive a physical examination and fill out some paperwork. If he passed the physical, and couldn’t (or didn’t) claim a deferral on the basis of one of the few exempt categories, he was sent home with a grace period of about 21 days to set his personal affairs in order—arrange for payments of personal financial obligations, set up a power of attorney, and similar tasks. At the end of those 21 days (it might be a little longer, depending on delays in the training system, but that was the standard), he was expected to report to his assigned Army Reception Center (or Naval Training Station, but Bucky is not a Navy man, so we’ll ignore the Navy from now on out). At the Army Reception Station, draftees spent up to 7 days undergoing testing, were issued uniforms, were barbered to suit the army’s standards, started the necessary vaccinations, and were assigned to the army posts where they would undergo their basic training. At this point I’m going to break into the schedule to talk about how the US Army was organized in World War II. A numbering system was set up for https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divisions_of_the_United_States_Army army divisions (the typical US Army division now averages 17,000-21,00 soldiers, and is commanded by a major general, for those not experienced military details) in 1917, during World War I. Numbers 1-25 were Regular Army divisions—the Regular Amy was the US peacetime army, which was quite small at that time. Numbers 26 through 45 were for National Guard units; and Numbers 46 through 106 were the Army of the United States (with some exceptions, like the 82nd and 101st Airborne, which became Regular Army divisions when they switched from straight infantry to airborne infantry.) The National Guard units already had the necessary organizational system in place (although many officers weren’t up to their wartime jobs and were replaced later), but to staff all those new divisions, the army took a cadre from an existing division—usually around 1300 men and officers. This core group would start training as the recruits were collected and began basic training. The Army also started pulling the necessary officers from officers in the existing Reserves (my father was one of these, as he did 4 years of ROTC to get through college in the Great Depression), ROTC programs, the Army’s own Officer Training Corps, and officers awaiting reassignment for one reason or another. At this point, the division would be formally activated, so it could receive its new recruits, and this expansion would continue until the division reached full strength. The entire time the US was fighting in World War II, it was also continuously training new soldiers, and for much of the time it was forming new divisions. http://www.historyshotsinfoart.com/USArmy/backstory.cfm This is what training involved for these new soldiers: 17 weeks of basic and advanced training (Basic is where they learn to be soldiers; Advanced training is where they learn their particular specialty—artillery, infantry, armored, or the support units and special skills.) 13 weeks of unit training (This is where they learn to work as a group.) 14 weeks of combined arms training and large-scale exercises (These would be division level exercises.) 8 weeks of final training (They have now been training 52 weeks—after the first 17 weeks all of it has been in the same unit, with the same people; they will have become very attached to each other, which is important in keeping an army working well.) At this point, they’d do some more training—multi-division exercises. The Army’s first big operation outside of the Pacific Theater was Operation Torch—in invasion of North Africa. Not all the troops involved had gone through this full regime of training, and the lack showed. The troops that invaded Sicily and Italy had the chance for more training. After this, the division traveled to a Port of Embarkation, and went overseas. If it was possible, they trained some more, usually for the specific mission they would undertake. So how long has Bucky been in the Army? If he was called up in early 1942, possibly while waiting for his enlistment paperwork to be finalized, he probably went into training in late February or March—which would mean embarkation leave (this would be about 10-15 days, depending on the travel involved—no flying, so they went everywhere by train, pretty much) in May or a little later would not be unreasonable. This fits pretty well with CA:TFA. So how did Bucky get to be a sergeant? Nowadays, the army has training programs for its noncommissioned officers, and a soldier has to have a certain amount of time in the service, and a good record to get into these programs. In World War II, they were still operating on the old-school principle of promoting sergeants from inside a unit, and they used a variety of ways to select them. One would be pre-enlistment skills and training—if a man was able to type, handle bookkeeping and other clerical tasks, he would be in a position to help handle the amazing amount of paperwork running an army unit requires. Another important factor might be how well he’d absorbed basic military skills, and how well he did in helping his fellow-soldiers along. Those who were natural leaders, as the phrase goes, might also be promising candidates. Ideally, you wanted someone who combined all of these to some degree, and who was comfortable with military discipline and methods. We don’t know a whole lot about what Bucky did between the time he finished school and went to war, but in those 6 or 7 years he may well have acquired skills the Army saw as useful in an NCO. So at some point between starting his unit training and going on his embarkation leave, the US Army saw they had a useful man in James Buchanan Barnes, and made him a sergeant, responsible for the training and lives of his fellow-soldiers, and for making sure the officers over him have the help they need to get things done.
(Need I say that, like everyone else, I have headcanon ideas about what Bucky did between the time he left school and joining the army? For later posts…)
Next post I’ll give some details about what Bucky would have gotten into once he got on board ship to head out to the shooting part of the war. Books and such may be recommended. *Link goes to a .pdf file
Also, I really hate Tumblr’s insistence on saving me from the burden of hand-inserting a link. Especially since their system works so well on a tablet.
Inspired by this post.
I apologize for these long as fuck comics. :(
And, a comic that isn’t about Bucky’s hair!!! Amaze.
Also, I hope this isn’t as confusing as I think it is. It seemed a lot clearer in my head. :/
Edit: ARG I just noticed that I kept fucking up which side of Bucky his arm is on. I AM SORRY.
“Everybody makes sacrifices for this lifestyle, Mr. Sam.” Peter says solemnly.
Sam gapes at him. “Sacrifices? I was an international fugitive for this ‘lifestyle’. I was on the run for months for this ‘lifestyle’. The Winter f-ing Soldier drop-kicked me off a helicarrier! Your underdeveloped teenage brain has no idea what I’ve put up with for this ‘lifestyle’!"
“Great, so a bunny shouldn’t be too much work!”
In which the Winter Soldier blows up Fury's phone and ops for code over interpretive dance.
Please appreciate my first real fanvideo for the Leveage OT3 set to Flaws by Bastille! I'm pretty proud of it and my Leverage Secret Santa giftee (@nickelkeep) seemed to think it was pretty swell!
You can also bookmark this fanvid on AO3!
Sam Wilson and the Art of Moving On as an International Fugitive
“No, YOU move.” By Tom Hodges. Prints available here.
So this is very random and more or less a 'crack treated seriously' idea but I keep thinking of it every time I listen to the Captain America movie soundtracks.
AU where the serum gives Steve the ability to hear the 'soundtrack' around him. Of course he doesn't tell anyone because it'd make him look like he's crazy but he slowly catches on to what seems to be happening.
He picks up the USO dances really fast
He legendary at knowing when something bad is going to happen because he can hear the boss music
He's unconsciously good at timing his 'heroic' moves and moments since he can hear the pace pick up
He can vibe check someone instantly
Just imagine:
Steve on a mission with the Commandos: *Hydra music starts playing*
Steve: Ah, great we got company
Commandos: ???
Steve in the car with Natasha and Sam: *Winter Soldier track starts playing*
Steve: oh no
Everyone: How do you always get so pumped up for missions?
Steve: *bopping along to the action music*
*Pierce's character gets introduced with concerning undertones in the orchestra*
Steve: I don't like you
Steve in the elevator with the STRIKE team: *ominous music growing*
Steve: sigh
Did they ever reveal how Captain America was thawed? Because I’m picturing a bunch of Shield agents with hair dryers and I don’t think that’s quite right.
sometimes i watch golden girls and i just tear up remembering everything each cast member did for the queer community
estelle getty lost her nephew to AIDS and moved in with him during the last months of his life to take care of him. she started a foundation that cares for people affected by AIDS that's still there to this day. she saw one of the writers on her show was queer, walked right up to him and said "you're one of us!" and promised to protect him. she put her career on the line to become an outspoken ally of AIDS patients at a time when it would've been career suicide
bea arthur was a staunch gay and trans ally who donated a lot of her time and money to helping homeless lgbt youth. when she died, she left them thousands of dollars to stay afloat after she was gone. she was incredibly socially active in the queer community!
rue mcclanahan was a staunch advocate of marriage rights for gay couples and openly devoted her time and money for the fight for equality. she also openly participated in queer spaces and loved the community with her entire heart. she was intimately aware of gay mens' particular love for her character blanche and she fully embraced it
everybody knows by now about betty white's activism, but i'll say it anyway. not only did she join the fight for marriage equality, but she was a great mother to her lesbian stepdaughter. she participated in anti-bullying campaigns specifically against lgbt youth. she accompanied liberace to events because it wasn't safe for him to be out. she loved us and she fought for us just like the others
all four of them did SO MANY amazing things for us, and it makes me happy that we had people like them -- that we still do in people like dolly parton! we didn't deserve them. i wish i could've met all of them and told them how grateful i am!
Iron Man: you gotta help me fight Captain America or I’ll tell Aunt May your secret identity
Spider-man: why are you fighting Captain America?
Iron Man: he refuses to sign the Sokovia accords which would install oversight for superheroes and require them to disclose their identities
Spider-man: and if we win this fight…. this law would go into full effect?
Iron Man: that’s right!
Spider-man: I mean…. that just sounds like you telling Aunt May my secret identity anyway but with… more steps…
when I was 14 I worked in a grocery store and one day I got to bag Stephen King’s groceries and of course, being the little horror fiction nerd I am I was completely starstruck
I think he thought I was gonna ask for an autograph because I was not even lowkey staring I was full on moon-faced and bouncing and he kept looking over at me hesitantly like aw jeez kid fuck off
anyways I finally managed to squeak out that I was a huge fan and asked for advice on writing, “how do I write as well as you do?” in my horrible thick German accent and broken ass English and he gave me the best writing advice I have ever received
“shit kid, stop worrying about how other people do it and just write your story”
14 years later my wife and I nearly hit him with our car because he was jaywalking
Advent Drawble day 2! Happy Hanukkah!
Some Avengers headcanons
Scarlet Witch is Cassie Lang’s second favorite Avenger. (Scott, obviously, is first.) That’s why Scott makes a point of saying “I know you, you’re great too!” to her in civil war, and why he later starts learning magic tricks for Cassie.
Bucky has named every single goat he tends to after people he knows. The most reckless one is named Steve. The one that constantly tries to headbutt him is Sam.
Shuri has an extensive database of memes about life in the palace. Her brother and Okoye are the only ones who currently have access.
Peter occasionally doodles spider suit designs on the margins of his homework without thinking about it, and then has to tear them off before handing it in. His teachers are still under the impression that he has a homework-hungry dog.
Clint has purchased each of his children a bow and arrow set for their tenth birthday. He already has one picked out for Nathaniel.
Sam has a special charging station for Redwing set up right beside his bed. He occasionally has Redwing fetch him water or turn of the light so he doesn’t have to get up.
Natasha has a bad habit of borrowing other people’s stuff without asking. Especially sweatshirts and jackets. If it’s kept where she can access it, it’s fair game. If you borrow her jacket without asking, however, expect a big fuss.
Wanda has a lingering habit that she got from growing up poor, homeless, and hungry - she stockpiles food. She hides it away in her room without really thinking about it, and the others occasionally have to go through and bring it all back to the kitchen so they don’t get ants.
Vision tries to avoid the internet, especially after what happened to Ultron. He thinks it brings out the worst in people, and doesn’t quite trust himself to be unaffected.
Steve has always debated getting a pet, but after losing his whole world he’s a little hesitant to let himself love something that he knows only has a lifespan of ten years.
On occasion, T'Challa will intentionally misquote vines to annoy his sister.
When Bruce gets nightmares, he watches obscure crafting and decorating videos on YouTube to calm himself back to sleep. Hearing the generic video background music has him yawning like a charm.
Thor always stocks up on Midgardian food before heading back to Asgard. Lucky Charms is his current favorite.
Peter likes trying to do things upside down just to see how different it is. He’s very familiar with having to explain to Aunt May how pouring himself a drink wound up with orange juice all over the kitchen.
The first thing Aunt May does once she discovers that Peter is Spiderman is examine the suit - she removes the tracker the second she finds it. This is why Peter surprises everyone when he shows up in Infinity War.
Scott has a ranking system from 1 to 10 on how enjoyable each of Cassie’s kid shows are for adults. That way he knows which ones he’s going to need his phone as distraction to sit through.
Lila Barton is the only known person in the world who has gotten away with putting a pink bow in Natasha’s hair.
Nick Fury keeps a couple dozen bottles of aspirin in his desk - one for each of the Avengers, labeled with their name - and he’ll pull from a specific person’s bottle whenever they are giving him a headache. One of the ways he judges performance is by seeing how fast it takes him to go through that person’s bottle.
“wanda, just like we practiced!” aka bring your kid to work day i drew these two a lot after civil waR
writers whenever they’re starting a new fic: I have these ✨ vibes ✨ now I’ll have to build an entire plot and write an entire fic about those vibes
I really think Rasputin lucked out, in that being remembered by history as some species of giant unkillable sex wizard is something most of us can only fruitlessly aspire to.
