Hi everybody! Tis, Samantha aka Sesshy.Uber.Rad. :] Welcome to The Backroom! {previously known as Forever Forest.} As you can see, this world has finally been revamped! Isn't that just the bees knees? So, the purpose of this world really is just a place for me to write whatever I want. Basically this is my erm..."professional writing" world. My blog is "Journal of A Crazy." ;] So if there's something on here that you don't agree with, that's really too bad. Your opinion is welcome, but there is no flaming here. Criticism of MY writing is NOT welcome I will NOT tolerate it....I'm kidding. Of course critical criticism is welcome whole heartedly here. ^_^ Actually, I will probably love you forever if you criticize me. Cause that means YOU LOVE ME and want to see me get better as a writer. ;] That's how I take all criticism anyways. People wouldn't take the time to criticize you if they didn't care, right?
It's friendly here. This is a place where you are free to speak your mind. So...I usually don't like to put up rules, but due to past circumstances, I'll have to make some...*sigh* I wish you guys didn't make me do this....

Rules of The Backroom:
1. Thou shalt not flame (curse at, throw things at, and throw up on, etc..) the writer (me)
2. To flame your neighbor is just as bad as flaming the writer. It's mean and mean.
3. You can curse, but don't call the writer or your neighbor a derogatory name. ex: "You flabbergasted BANANA!!
4. You shall be friendly and open minded here. There is no close mindedness, or I shall kick you out. I'm so serious.

So you know what you can and can't do. Don't push my buttons, and I'll love you forever. Push the buttons, and ACTION will have to be taken..... X] <3 I am a beta reader, so if you want me to proofread anything, go right on ahead and send it my way! Welcome to The Backroom. *hugs*

Random fact.

92% of American teens would die if Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus told them it was uncool to breath. Post this in your blog if you're one of the 8% laughing their asses off.

Don't conform yourself to what society wants! I don't like Hannah Montana and I'm proud of it!

Sent with Love to: Strawberry Panic Haters

So the topic that I'll touch on today is: yuri love. If you don't know what yuri love is, it's also known to the public here in America as lesbian love. So yuri love is popping up alot in anime and mangas now. Strawberry Panic is just one of the many. My fave couple in SP is Nagisa and Shizuma. ^_^ They're cute, no? But anyways, that's beside the point. I have many, MANY friends who are AGAINST Strawberry Panic [and therefore are against all lesbians] I'm not saying I'm a lesbian [I'm not FYI] but I'm saying, why? Why are people against lesbians? Gays and bi's for that matter. And why take it out on a perfectly good anime? SP is awesome, and people hate it because there are lesbians in it. Where is the love?

If two people love each other, you should let them be together. How would you feel if I walked up to you and said, "No, you can't be with [insert crush/bf/gf's name here]. I forbid it. No. I'll backhand you." Just kidding about the backhand part. I'm not a violent person. Anyways, you would feel bad right? What right do you and the government have to stop two people who are in love to marry or be together? How are they, as a couple, going to affect your life? They're not going to come into your house and make out in your room. They're minding their own business; they're nice people. I should know. Some of my friends wear their sexuality on their sleeve with pride. So anyways, gay people can't help but be gay. It's in their DNA; there is scientific proof.

So if you're trying to stop somebody from being gay or whatever, you're preventing them from being who they really are. And now you're a bit of a dictator aren't you? Now some people say it's against the will of God. Now that is true in a way, but what if a gay person wasn't Christian or Catholic? Then you're forcing your religion on them. And now you're even more of a dictator than before. You don't want to be a dictator. People wouldn't like you very much.

Let Shizuma and Nagisa be! Let them love without scoffs of disgust and eye rolling. Hate me all you want, but this is MY OPINION. I respect the folks who are against gays, but I don't hate them. So please treat me with the same respect.

If everyone could just become more accepting and see these people as REAL people with REAL feelings, maybe the world could be a nicer place. Now if we could just tackle global warming the world would be PERFECT.

Inuyasha + Sesshomaru = Genocide?

I think many of us are already associated or aware of the whole Darfur Mass Genocide situation going on right now. If you're going "Is Darfur an animal?" I'll give a quick little mini lesson. Right now, in Darfur [a region in Southern Africa] a mass genocide is occuring. Genocide is pretty much when people kill you for what you are [ethnicity wise, religon wise etc..] So basically, it's like a gang war, except it's lasted for a few years already, and more than 500,000 people are already dead.

Okay, so I'm a student activist against this issue & I'm just constantly keeping in touch with the Save Darfur Coalition and stuff like that. Well the other day, I was watching an Inuyasha episode. It was the one where Inuyasha cut off Sesshomaru's arm () and a jolt just hit through me. Inuyasha & Sesshomaru are pretty much practicing genocide; or attempting to at least, since neither one of them had died by the hand of the other one.

THINK ABOUT IT.

They're constantly trying to kill each other. They're brothers, are they not? (Yes they are!) But Sesshomaru is just nauseated by the fact that Inuyasha is a half breed. Well in Darfur, the Sunni Muslims are disgusted that some people are like Shiite Muslim. So bam bam kill each other. They're no longer a nuisance. This sounds ALOT like Inuyasha + Sesshomaru's loving brotherly relationship with each other.

I know a few friends who find it amusing that Inuyasha and Sesshomaru are always fighting. Does that mean we find real life genocide amusing? Believe it or not, I know a few guys who do. They think its 'darn freaking hilarious' that people over in Africa are killing each other and that they're at war with their own people. How is it funny? How is it funny that everyday, an innocent life is being ruthlessley ripped from their grasps? I think it's NOT funny. Entertainment like Inuyasha is one thing. But killing is not a funny thing. And I'm sorry, but if you think killing is 'darn freaking hilarious' learn to grow up. Seperate Inuyasha from the real world. Killing in an anime is different. Those people aren't really DYING. They kinda die in your heart. But the people over in Darfur (and all over the world) are being killed--for real. And let me tell you one thing; the deaths are not quick and painless.

So learn how to seperate fantasy from reality. Some things are just not worth having a great laugh over.

Good: "Hey did you see Naraku whupping Inuyasha's ass last night? It was hilarious!"

Bad: "Hey did you hear how a bunch of school girls in Darfur got burned alive in a church? IT was AWESOME." [this is a true story.]

I'm sorry if this essay seems graphic, but it's real. You learn so much more from it than fairytales. (Even though I like fairytales.)

Are Women Falling From Grace?

Fushigi Yugi is one of my favorite manga series. I mean, it's just so magical. A young girl, Miaka in this instance [Yui, too, but she comes in later],gets sucked into a book and finds herself stranded in a totally different time. She's a priestess who has the power to bring luck & life back into the land. That's cool! Right? Right?

It sounds cool, but throughout the whole entire series, Miaka was portrayed as a whiny, over eating, and spineless girl. (Except for the few bursts of compassion and courage every now & then.) Her protectors were all MALE and three of them were pursuing her throughout the series. (Hotohori is MINE. ) How many women do you know that are like this? Weak and babyish and always have men fawning over her? I can honestly say that I know none, and I know ALOT of people. (Okay, so maybe I know a few girls that are quite popular with the dudes, but it doesn't mean that they're like fragile or anything.)

Why does Yui, one of the antagonists in this story, get to be portrayed as a cold, stone faced, and strong priestess? Her protectors are a mix of male and female right? What is so different between Miaka and Yui? Yui went through a tragedy. She was raped (almost raped anyways) and she's in love with Tamahome, whom her former BFF has her clutches in. The readers must watch Yui endure silent pain as she slashes her wrists every night. But just because Miaka is like the innocent girl next door, it doesn't mean that she should be written (drawn, whatever) as a pathetic thing that should be hawked over at all times. Are we reverting back into Victorian times or something? Back then, when something 'bad' (I think you know where I'm going with this) happened to a girl, it was called "Falling from grace." The girl that fell from grace is usually portrayed as a different person after her experience and less delicate than her fellow friends and peers. So did Yui fall from grace? Was it necessary for her to fall to become strong?

So this is my point. (Finally!) To become strong, must our minds become tainted? Do we have to 'fall from grace' to become mentally able? Can't women be just STRONG without a catalyst? When will society finally accept women as an asset to the world, and not just a pretty face to ogle at? Do guys even KNOW that we can protect ourselves without their help? (Maybe some help...) I love Fushigi Yugi and all, but all you girls out there reading this essay have to know that you don't have to fall from grace to be strong. You have to set yourself apart from what society wants and what soceity needs. What do YOU want? What do YOU need?

And my friends in The Otaku, I bid you adieu with one last sentence.

POWER TO THE FEMALES!

^-^

Cliques [?]

Inuyasha is an anime I'm sure many of you members are associated with. I'm sure we've laughed, cried, and cursed at the television during at least one point in the series. I would be lying if I said I didn't. But as I further delved into the series, a question started to form into my mind, and now, I'm taking the time to share my thoughts with all you cool people.

So you see Kagome in the feudal times in 99.9% of the episodes. As she further distanced herself from her family, I started to wonder why she'd want to leave them in the first place. I mean sure, it's fun and all to be out and about with Inuyasha and the gang, but did Kagome realize that while she was becoming closer with her Feudal Family, her family back in modern times was going on in their lives without her? Was she sad or upset that she had left her family & friends behind?

Now this begs the question: Was something missing in Kagome's life? (I'm not talking about her love interest with Inuyasha!!) She has a warm and loving family. She's a good student. She's POPULAR. (what we all want) Everybody wants this type of life (almost everybody at least.) So why does she feel the need to leave this perfect life of hers, to go into the Fedual times and pretty much, almost die in every single episode? I mean, c'mon, if she got a dollar for every time she almost died in that series, she'd be filthy rich. Do you agree with me or not?

It's called the need to be needed. At the beginning of the Inuyasha, I thought of Kagome as the strong heroine, courageous and the perfect role model for all females out there. As the series continued, I started seeing her as a vulnerable and sad human being. (Don't flame me! I'm a fan of Kagome, don't flame me!!) You see her get in these deadly battles everyday, and only THEN is she genuinely happy. She may yell, "Inuyasha, I'm sick and tired of you, I'm going home!" But she always comes back. But why? Did you ever notice that the producers/writers never go into deep detail of Kagome's life? I mean, sure, we know she's popular yada yada. . . But how strong is she emotionally? How do we know that Kagome doesn't harbor some dark feelings inside her heart and the only way she can feel happy is by feeling needed? With Inuyasha & Co. she can feel special and needed. And I don't disagree--Kagome is a very special individual.

And you're probably wondering what the point is of this seemingly random essay. . . (cause that's what I'M wondering. JK, please don't take that seriously. I know what I'm talking about. . . I do!)

Never assume from one glance that a person's life is perfect. There is always more to somebody than meets the eye. So when you want to diss somebody just because of their social status or whatever, always remember that what they are on the surface and what they are underneath are two totally different things.

Wow. I managed to combine an anime and a moral lesson into an essay. Yay. (Yeahh. I'm with the 'nerds')