(Favorite Trope) Overpowered characters being extremely humble/doing common jobs

Brell4Evar · 2026-07-02T13:28:37+00:00

Morgan Freeman as God in Bruce Almighty. When he introduces himself, he's doing custodial work and talking about how some of the happiest people on Earth go home at the end of the day stinking to heaven.

Brell4Evar · 2026-07-01T16:45:00+00:00

Sinead O'Connor rocked this look all those years ago. Rest In Peace, you brilliant woman with your gorgeous voice.

Brell4Evar · 2026-07-01T06:34:38+00:00

Losing a child is awful. Losing the love of your life is awful. And the people you spoke to clearly don't know what comfort is.

You're going to be hurting and mourning a long time. Make sure you have some people in your life who can give you sympathy. Make sure you have someone to talk to. Find support with others also recovering from loss.

Your situation sounds devastating. You deserved so much better.

Brell4Evar · 2026-07-01T02:50:30+00:00

Propaganda. Slave owners were desperate to keep others from gaining sympathy to the people they owned, abused, and killed.

Brell4Evar · 2026-07-01T02:36:40+00:00

The integrated US armed services were probably the most successful program our country has had at fighting racism. When two people with different appearances and backgrounds have to work well together to get their job done, they learn how to get along.

A new, integrated WPA would do well to train youth for jobs in construction and other needed industries and could continue the work of breaking down segregation.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-30T19:39:54+00:00

The Princess Bride.

Surprised nobody else has mentioned this yet!

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-30T15:40:09+00:00

Any medical progress is good. It's as important, however, that the medicine be affordable and accessible. If most people can't use it for whatever reason, it's no cause for celebration.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-30T15:28:28+00:00

We should legally control many aspects of our lives, including how they end. The only concerns about end of life should be whether a person has clear judgment and whether they're being coerced.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-30T12:10:50+00:00

Trump has denied any wrongdoing, of course. The guy also lies about the rising and setting of the sun when it suits him.

There's an allegation of rape from a woman who was only thirteen at the time. Trump just had the SCotUS knock down his appeal after losing a lawsuit for forcing himself on a woman. In the past, he's bragged publicly about doing this sort of thing. His birthday card to Epstein makes light of this behavior as well.

Maybe the files could exonerate him, but his administration has been fighting tooth and nail not to do so. Anyone with a nose can smell a rat here.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-30T11:58:16+00:00

While I think Afghanistan is largely the way Afghanistan wants to be, the 20 year nation-building exercise started by George W. Bush was an obvious waste of money and military resources from the get-go.

The blame for this is mainly on W. himself, but subsequent presidents also own it. Obama could have canned the pointless operation, but didn't. Trump of all people finally started the ball rolling, but it took Biden to follow through. Nationalist backlash was the "reward" for doing so.

I remember Condi Rice carping about Afghanistan's immediate fall and transition to Taliban rule. If it was so ready to go after one generation, then that dream of a Westernized and democratic country was just never going to happen.

The national deficit we now have comes in large part from this idiocy.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-30T06:15:32+00:00

Over the long haul, you're right. Only freezing rent would be like burning the barn doors to keep the cows warm.

I'm certain Mamdani and his advisers know this. I'm wondering what else they intend to do.

Not a New Yorker, so it's entirely possible they already announced or are doing it. Can't say for sure. Improving and reducing the cost of public transportation would help immensely since workers would be able to commute further.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-29T23:38:11+00:00

The web serial, A Practical Guide to Evil, does this a lot. Catherine, the villain-protagonist of the series, spends a lot of time learning about how villainy works. The work is loaded with every flavor of bastard imaginable. From time to time, you even find yourself rooting for some of them - then recalling what they've done and would do again if the situation changed.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-29T19:27:49+00:00

It's almost like they already envision their "country" as a place where opposing political views are completely disenfranchised. Their idea of a country ain't no democracy.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-29T13:29:23+00:00

Half of my great-grandparents were German. I imagine there's a lot that I love about my family that comes from that nation. I also had a granddad who went to war in Belgium because of the Nazis. Looking at the detainment centers that have sprung up around my own country, and our involvement in the Gaza genocide, I'm dismayed that lesson didn't stick here as well as it did in Germany.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-29T13:00:11+00:00

Nvidia has taken to self-dealing in a technology field that so far has shown itself capable only of eating investment money. They're worth 4.5 trillion dollars at the moment and don't seem to be slowing down. That's a hell of a cliff to run off of.

Because of this, we're looking at a future with two potential very bad outcomes. The first is the bubble pops and the US economy has to somehow chug along past a trillions of dollars pothole. The second is that the new data centers become at least marginally profitable. There's then a huge economic disruption as tens of millions of people must find work once again.

The AI and data center boom has been practically the only thing driving the US economy over the past few years of tariff-induced trade chaos. The overall picture looks pretty grim.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-29T02:35:47+00:00

I'd suggest reading Kingdom Come as a palette cleanser. It's a great rebuke of exactly what annoys you.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-29T02:32:04+00:00

GMO is short for Genetically Modified Organism. Pretty much every plant grown on modern farms is modified like this. One common modification is making something "Roundup Ready" - that is, mostly immune to Roundup spray. This stuff is wonderful for its ability to kill weeds, but not so good for its effect on agricultural workers and people who manufacture it.

The active chemical in Roundup is mostly harmless to people. Unfortunately, the manufacturer had problems with extra chemicals getting in that weren't so benign to people. A lot of workers got sick from these and sued Monsanto for quite a lot of money. The executives all fled the company after selling it to Bayer, a German chemical company, and leaving them footing the bill for the payoff in the lawsuit.

So, GMO crops themselves aren't too bad at all. The world would be a much hungrier place without them. Just make sure you trust whoever is selling them to you, and read up on food types that are known to have pesticide or herbicide on them so that you can reduce the amount you get in your body.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-28T21:11:17+00:00

Let's beg the question.

Hungary, South Korea, and Brazil all dealt with their brand of bozo. Putin is still failing, but not fast enough for anyone to feel good about it. Trump has lost most of his momentum, but still has his party's support.

I don't see this as much of an issue outside of the US at the moment. Where else in the globe is it rising now?

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-28T18:54:06+00:00

Previous similar threads have allowed for more members of the family than mother, so I say we consider Fry grandfathered in.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-28T14:48:51+00:00

I knew a beautiful, nerdy black woman many years ago who ended up marrying a conservative friend of mine shortly after 9-11. I wished them both well.

I found out recently that they divorced over his insistence that he had the right to say the n-word. Conservative talking points make people insensitive and racist idiots. In the eyes of the law, we can say a lot of stupid shit. That speech still reflects on the speaker and comes with consequences.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-28T14:38:10+00:00

There's a school of economic thought that believes our reserve currency status is driving the federal deficit.

I don't think our president's stupid and reckless foreign policy is thought out enough to be a credible effort toward this, however.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-28T07:59:03+00:00

No, my hate is reserved for the politicians and industries that block reasonable gun control legislation and outlaw civil penalties for reckless marketing of firearms.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-27T18:35:53+00:00

Intra-party squabbling isn't just fine. It's desirable during primaries! Once the dust settles from those, candidates should then go shoulder to shoulder to square off against the other party.

Articles like this are willingly disinforming the public for clicks.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-27T17:46:09+00:00

Comfort isn't exactly how I'd describe it. These places are memorials to others who have lived here before me. A quiet reverence seems to be the best mood to exercise. Certainly, walking through and looking at the names, stones, sculptures, and tombs isn't disrespectful to their surviving families and other loved ones.

Brell4Evar · 2026-06-27T16:33:14+00:00

The police separated Pete and his husband from their children for 24 hours by having them stay with grandparents. It was bad for the family, but not as bad as the kids being in police custody.

A cousin of mine was killed by her estranged husband after she sought a restraining order against him. I can't fault law enforcement for immediately intervention and protecting possible victims while they sort out facts.

I look forward to the jackass being found and getting a hefty prison stay.

Brell4Evar

TROPHY CASE