all it takes is tuppence from you

I'm tired of all the people talking about how important it is that folk all have "the same chance to succeed." How about the same support toward success? Something that doesn't imply that everyone should start level and we should just, what, ditch the ones that somehow "fall behind"? Where is "behind," anyway? What does it mean, to have "a chance to succeed"? How are we evaluating success? Equality of chances doesn't do much without followthrough or social safety nets, and anyway the whole rhetoric rests on the idea that some people are failed people, and I'm not sure that's the best starting point for progressive action.

My uncle had a probably-but-not-yet-fatal stroke last night. We weren't close, but the family really didn't need to bury anyone this year, and he was just 50. I am Not Dealing with this right now, and so will proceed to comment that it sucks balls that 12 Years a Slave took the Golden Globe for Best Drama but none of the actors were individually honored. Not particularly surprising, but definitely shadeworthy. And to note that Ronan Farrow gives me hope; it's wonderful to see a young man publicly standing with the women he cares about against patriarchal abuse and dismissal.

(I don't really want sympathy comments about my uncle? I don't want to think about it, and I wasn't going to put in anything at first, but then that felt weird. But I still don't want to think/talk about it atm.)