Grrl Power VII: Let Me Explain For The Next Thirty Comics!

[lord_khaine]

At a glance, I think his pocket state is now bigger than Egypt, particularly if you incorporate Mozambique into it, so perhaps it should upgrade to pouch or satchel state.
If I had to guess, Deus's motivation in starting all of this is more "because he can", and now there's more things there.

Yeah but its only his pocket state he has had a chance to actually change things in.
He is working on getting the machines to improve the new spots.

Deus respects the rule of law exactly as long as it doesn't get in his way, and not an ounce more. Ask Mozambique. He's employing bread and circuses for the modern age. We just haven't seen him when he's reacting to somebody he can't understand yet.

You mean just bread i think? When people were formerly at the risk of starvation im quite certain that just a guarantee of a daily meal and clean water is enough. No need for circus.

Or when he's stymied by someone who has outplayed him according to the rules - which he doesn't believe is possible, of course.

Being someone who works with plans 5-10 years in scope makes it pretty likely he just goes "oh well.. plan B-4 it is then".
Like we saw with the dictator who refused to be reasonable.

[Keltest]

You mean just bread i think? When people were formerly at the risk of starvation im quite certain that just a guarantee of a daily meal and clean water is enough. No need for circus.

I was thinking bread and Air Conditioning personally. You'd be hard pressed to find a group willing to overthrow their leader if it means giving that up.

[lord_khaine]

I was thinking bread and Air Conditioning personally. You'd be hard pressed to find a group willing to overthrow their leader if it means giving that up.

Good point on air conditioning. Im from the north so i usually more look at heating xD

Of course its also kinda telling Deus is providing this to people who didnt have it.
Where clearly noone else gave a **** about them before. Or well.
noone in power did.

[halfeye]

I was thinking bread and Air Conditioning personally. You'd be hard pressed to find a group willing to overthrow their leader if it means giving that up.

These are people adapted to the climate they are in, they probably don't need or want AC.

[Keltest]

These are people adapted to the climate they are in, they probably don't need or want AC.

Texans are adapted to the climate they live in. They did so by adopting AC en masse.

[Gez]

These are people adapted to the climate they are in, they probably don't need or want AC.

That doesn't correspond to my own experience of Africa...

[Radar]

These are people adapted to the climate they are in, they probably don't need or want AC.

There is a vast gulf of difference between getting used to something and considering it comfortable.

They will obviously not set the AC as low as - let's say - someone from Europe or Canada would, but any temperature above 36.6 is something you never want. You can obviously survive by seeking shelter and drinking a lot of water, but hardly anyone would consider it something they would not want to change.

[TeChameleon]

These are people adapted to the climate they are in, they probably don't need or want AC.

Yeah, I'm from the opposite end of the spectrum, being Canadian, and I have a cold tolerance that a lot of people from more Southerly areas would consider ludicrous. I'm pretty well adapted to life up here; that being said, if you want to try and take my heating away from me, you can **** right off.

[lord_khaine]

So in conclusion.
Deus gave his people bread and air conditioning.
So understandably he has their undying gratitude?

[Radar]

So in conclusion.
Deus gave his people bread and air conditioning.
So understandably he has their undying gratitude?

Undying might not be the right word (especially since I think he did not hire any necromancer), but those people would have to have a really good reason to oppose him. And aside from basic amenities, he gave those people a lot more: healthcare, education, stability, safe jobs and so on.

So I think that if they learned about the less stellar parts of Deus's rulership they would not care much. On one hand, he is treating them way better than any other ruler around would. On the other, moral standard for rulers seemed to be pretty low in the region (with previous dictator of Galynt as the prime example), so no one would be the least bit shocked if they learned that Deus has assassinated someone for example - they have seen far worse.

[Gez]

They will obviously not set the AC as low as - let's say - someone from Europe or Canada would

One should be cautious about what they consider obvious...

[Radar]

One should be cautious about what they consider obvious...

True that. You had any particular experiences in that regard?

[lord_khaine]

So I think that if they learned about the less stellar parts of Deus's rulership they would not care much. On one hand, he is treating them way better than any other ruler around would. On the other, moral standard for rulers seemed to be pretty low in the region (with previous dictator of Galynt as the prime example), so no one would be the least bit shocked if they learned that Deus has assassinated someone for example - they have seen far worse.

Lets be honest here, without getting further into specific examples.
What we have seen Deus do, have invading terrorists killed on national soil, still give him the moral high ground on the vast majority of rulers.
Im not even certain arranging "accidents" in other countries is enough there.

Again without getting to much further into details. Then i think very few rulers have much cleaner hands than Deus.
Well or they have not been in power long. No numbers are given that i recall. But i assume Deus have been in power for more than a decade.

[InvisibleBison]

Lets be honest here, without getting further into specific examples.
What we have seen Deus do, have invading terrorists killed on national soil, still give him the moral high ground on the vast majority of rulers.
Im not even certain arranging "accidents" in other countries is enough there.

First of all, those weren't terrorists. Some were rapists, and one was a missionary who preached something that Deus didn't like.
Second, there's no evidence that these people's deaths were authorized by Galtyn's actual legal system, which means their deaths constitute murder.
Finally, even if we were to accept your argument that Deus is less evil than most rulers, that doesn't mean he's good.

[Vahnavoi]

Deus might have legal ability to execute those people and under normal laws there might even be grounds for doing so.

Those details are largely irrelevant when he's feeding their lives or souls to some humanoid abomination. That makes him morally suspect all over again, because what good exactly is done by empowering Cthilla is completely beyond knowledge of any reader at the moment.

For a mundane comparison, imagine a dictatorship that only has a death penalty so they can harvest organs of the convicted... and use them to keep their soldiers up and running.

[Kantaki]

Those details are largely irrelevant when he's feeding their lives or souls to some humanoid abomination. That makes him morally suspect all over again, because what good exactly is done by empowering Cthilla is completely beyond knowledge of any reader at the moment.

Only says lives here.
And honestly? If he's gonna have them killed anyway might as well recharge the Dagger of Plastic Surgery.
Two birds one stone and all that.
I mean, would it be better if he let Cthilla loose on ome random civilians?

[lord_khaine]

First of all, those weren't terrorists. Some were rapists, and one was a missionary who preached something that Deus didn't like.
Second, there's no evidence that these people's deaths were authorized by Galtyn's actual legal system, which means their deaths constitute murder.
Finally, even if we were to accept your argument that Deus is less evil than most rulers, that doesn't mean he's good.

They were foreign mercenaries doing stuff to disrupt things in Galtyn.
Thats basically the definition of a terrorist. Deus just likes long winded speaches. So there were a seperate one for the rapists.
The massive wall of text beneath the comic went into details about it.

And noone has presented arguments for Deus being good. Just that he is like a better person than the majority of the current ones we have.
While also being more effective than any one of them, due to being a super genius pretending to be a goofball.

Those details are largely irrelevant when he's feeding their lives or souls to some humanoid abomination. That makes him morally suspect all over again, because what good exactly is done by empowering Cthilla is completely beyond knowledge of any reader at the moment.

Not even certain it actually empowers her.
Mostly she seems to want it for the plastic surgery effect.

[sihnfahl]

Deus is -kinKAY-.

Or trolling again.

[The Glyphstone]

#WhyNotBoth

[Shining Wrath]

Deus may plan on conquering the world, and may have some other bad attitudes / deeds; but sometimes his childish delight in what he can do with his wealth is fun.

Even if it does include sex dolls (I hope those aren't real women) behind glass.

[InvisibleBison]

They were foreign mercenaries doing stuff to disrupt things in Galtyn.
Thats basically the definition of a terrorist.

No, it's not. And even if the mercenaries were terrorists, he's still also murdering someone for saying things he doesn't like.

And noone has presented arguments for Deus being good. Just that he is like a better person than the majority of the current ones we have.

The difference between "This person is good" and "This person is better than all comparable people" seems largely semantic to me. If you don't think Deus is good, why does it matter if he's better than other rulers? A bad ruler is still bad even if there are worse rulers.

[Radar]

Deus may plan on conquering the world, and may have some other bad attitudes / deeds; but sometimes his childish delight in what he can do with his wealth is fun.

Even if it does include sex dolls (I hope those aren't real women) behind glass.

Considering how those panels slide, I think those were just some paintings. It does however show, he has a particular inclination toward women with metallic complexion.

And I do agree with him: who doesn't want a room with secret panels? That would be so cool!

[Vahnavoi]

I mean, would it be better if he let Cthilla loose on some random civilians?

No, but there's a world of solutions that don't involve Cthilla killing anyone. Deus has the necessary tools to lock both her and the epimorph up.

[Kantaki]

Deus is -kinKAY-.

Or trolling again.

Probably a bit of both.
Pressing the wrong buttons (and at least some of the panels) is definitely the latter.
I really dont't want to think about the former.

No, but there's a world of solutions that don't involve Cthilla killing anyone. Deus has the necessary tools to lock both her and the epimorph up.

And loose a useful asset? Several possibly seeing there were witnesses*?
Also, ticking someone off who can seemingly kill with a look strikes me as a bad idea.
Besides, Deus wanted those guys dead anyway, so he might as well (let Chtilla) recharge the funky knife.

Definitely not good, but unless it turns out the thing eats souls to fuel it's make over magic I wouldn't condemn it either.
Plus, it is hardly surprising. It was in the Vault for being "too useful not to use", so unless it's overtly evil I could see a point in keeping it charged. You never know when you need a new nose.

*Maybe. I think a good part of why Deus is so successful is because he keeps his deals, so people will keep working for him.
Backstabbing Chtilla might hurt that reputation unless there's a really good and obvious reason.

[Rydiro]

The difference between "This person is good" and "This person is better than all comparable people" seems largely semantic to me. If you don't think Deus is good, why does it matter if he's better than other rulers? A bad ruler is still bad even if there are worse rulers.

Well to argue semantically, the word good has two meanings. One being morally good, the other being effective or useful. No one is really arguing Deus isnt good in the sense that he is bad or ineffective. People say that he isnt good in the sense that he is morally evil.

[lord_khaine]

No, it's not. And even if the mercenaries were terrorists, he's still also murdering someone for saying things he doesn't like.

According to the dictionary they are.
"a person who uses unlawful violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims." Source Oxford languages.

That seems to fit a mercenary team caught preparing to bomb a hospital nicely.
I dont know where you got the other part from. But i think you lack evidence for it.
Thats basically directly contracted by the author explanation on when Deus might arrange a visit from Vale.

Unless you mean the former ruler of Galtyn?
More for refusing to step aside. But at the same time he was a warlord.
Whose hands were a lot more dirty than Deus.

The difference between "This person is good" and "This person is better than all comparable people" seems largely semantic to me. If you don't think Deus is good, why does it matter if he's better than other rulers? A bad ruler is still bad even if there are worse rulers.

Really? to me it seems a crucial difference. You might prefer having a good person on a position.
But if it requires to many sketchy dealings for a good person to succeed. Then at least you would prefer a person who isnt bad.

Well to argue semantically, the word good has two meanings. One being morally good, the other being effective or useful. No one is really arguing Deus isnt good in the sense that he is bad or ineffective. People say that he isnt good in the sense that he is morally evil.

I dont think anyone contest that Deus is extremely efficient. I do believe the discussion is purely about morally good.

[InvisibleBison]

According to the dictionary they are.
"a person who uses unlawful violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims." Source Oxford languages.

That seems to fit a mercenary team caught preparing to bomb a hospital nicely.

Okay, I missed the part about them (trying?) to bomb a hospital. I'll agree, they qualify as terrorists. That still doesn't mean it's okay to extrajudicially murder them, though.

I dont know where you got the other part from. But i think you lack evidence for it.

Panel 3 implies, and the author's reply to this comment makes explicit, that Deus is having a missionary executed solely for preaching against the use of condoms.

Unless you mean the former ruler of Galtyn?
More for refusing to step aside. But at the same time he was a warlord.
Whose hands were a lot more dirty than Deus.

Sure, the previous king was a bad dude, but that doesn't justify Deus murdering him.

Really? to me it seems a crucial difference. You might prefer having a good person on a position.
But if it requires to many sketchy dealings for a good person to succeed. Then at least you would prefer a person who isnt bad.

Your argument seems to be "It's impossible for a ruler to be a good person, so we should ignore issues of morality when evaluating rulers". I see no reason to accept this argument, and thus no reason to think Deus is a good ruler.

[sihnfahl]

Okay, I missed the part about them (trying?) to bomb a hospital. I'll agree, they qualify as terrorists. That still doesn't mean it's okay to extrajudicially murder them, though.

Where did you get it was an extrajudicial act? Remember, Deus et al have set the laws. Presumably under Galtyn's legal system, catching terrorists red-handed expedites matters; a quick call to one of Deus' judges, and the terrorists are executed.

[Shining Wrath]

Where did you get it was an extrajudicial act? Remember, Deus et al have set the laws. Presumably under Galtyn's legal system, catching terrorists red-handed expedites matters; a quick call to one of Deus' judges, and the terrorists are executed.

But things can be legal and still be morally bad. Slavery comes to mind.

[InvisibleBison]

Where did you get it was an extrajudicial act? Remember, Deus et al have set the laws. Presumably under Galtyn's legal system, catching terrorists red-handed expedites matters; a quick call to one of Deus' judges, and the terrorists are executed.

Right at the top of this comic's commentary.