selfequipped | MASK OR MENACE IC CONTACT

Absolutely.

Can I ask why?

Because that's what governments do.

And they have actually scrubbed information away that might be important to us. Information on people. On journalists. On anything.

It's a thing they do.

[ ...really. ]

Please tell me more.

In the history lesson, it said the government got a little big on the military state thing. It's obvious that while they downgraded on that, it's at least still a present thing. It's way less obvious, but there is some sustained information control.

In the newspapers and in official reports. Where else? What about normal people? Do people get in trouble for speaking their minds?

Edited 2014-12-10 01:28 (UTC)

Not as far as we know.

The libraries also have a lot of books, but ... less on certain subjects than you'd think.

[ ...She'd thought the libraries were actually quite stunningly comprehensive. Guess that goes to show what she knows. ]

Like what? History?

Oh, you get world history, but things turn up missing.

Things unflattering to the current government, I'd assume?

Or that might make things like "what the hell happened before and how is it relevant now" easier to figure out.

Maybe...But why? Locals know what happened, don't they? A lot of them lived through the previous government. They remember.

Why would the locals speak out against their country?

[ She replies unthinkingly: ]

Because it's the right thing to do.

[ And then as soon as that's sent off, she winces at the stupidity of saying something like that. "Lizzie" pretends to be perfectly docile and obedient and not at all a trouble-maker; explicitly saying that speaking out against your government is a good thing is a deeply un-Lizzie thing to say. She takes a few moments and debates sending some follow-up, something that would make that less egregiously suspicious...But no, any attempt to explain that away would just draw even more attention, wouldn't it? Maybe Kate just won't notice; after all, it's a lot less uncommon to say that sort of thing here than it was back in her home. ]

[It works out because Kate's perspective on Lizzie is different. She sees her as someone passionately interested in helping and trying to figure things out. That she has a strong sense of right or wrong doesn't surprise her.

No, this isn't an odd thing at all.]

I think you need a better understanding of this world. The Hornets are against the government, but up until recently, they were an urban legend. Actions against this government don't seem common, and many of those actions now and in the past have to do with heroes and legislation that has to do with the heroes.

Otherwise, I'd say that the us versus them mentality promotes a strong sense of loyalty to the US government.

The "them," of course, being the Soviet Union.

Why would it be the "right" thing to do when that information might not matter in the first place? Do you follow?

Edited 2014-12-11 20:34 (UTC)

I guess.

[ Okay. Kitty relaxes; evidently, her slip out of character went unnoticed. That's a relief. ]

But...Okay, even if they're not driven by a sense of right and wrong, people still like to tell stories. They like to talk about themselves and what they've witnessed. I mean, get two old people in a room, and you can't get them to stop talking. I don't know...I guess I'm just thinking out loud here (or thinking in text, as the case may be), but the government couldn't possibly rely on the locals to stay quiet about things they'd have firsthand knowledge of. Right? So what's even the point of erasing recent history? We can find out if we put our minds to it...Unless there's something more sinister keeping potential sources of information quiet.

Well, look at it this way. I really uncovered this for myself a couple months ago when I looked up a lot of people connected to disappearances. I was looking up one guy in particular, but there were other names, too. I just did some easy searches, but even when I got more thorough with it, I was left high and dry. These were people who were being memorialized, but still, I got mostly ... nothing? Nada? One of these guys has since turned up on a video. I also got a memory of him off a Hornet in October.

It just doesn't make sense.

Why is this information missing? Possibly because the people who would otherwise tell it are also missing, or behind yellow tape so strongly wrapped around an area that even the Hulk (he's a super strong giant green guy) can't bust through it.

[ Kitty hesitates a moment. There's no way that this next thought will lead to good things; she's self-aware enough to know that, and know that if she follows it she's going to end up getting herself in trouble. That's just how her life is, and that's just how she is. But as soon as it bubbles up, half-formed, she can't quite push it back down again, and so, finally, she writes back to Kate: ]

How much do you think the Hornets know about it?

They're some of the ones who vanished, or knew people connected to the vanished, so I'd bet a lot of dollars that they're well aware of it.

You can't make an entire group of people into an "urban legend," without something that makes them seem fictional.

[ Right. ]

Has anyone made contact with the Hornets? Spoken with them, I mean, at any length.

You mean, aside from when they attacked us? A number of us have looked into them. I'm currently trying to find some of them.

How are you going about it? Have you had any success?

I've gotten some information on them, but nothing that leads to any lunch dates.

What have you found out? Assuming it's not just the stuff in the FAQ.

It's not stuff I'm comfortable sharing until I finish following my leads. I will be sharing it in a bit.