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Rule 34

205 statements
39 feature instances
12 referencing feature instances

Rule 34	type	TVTItem
Rule 34	label	Rule 34
Rule 34	page	Rule34
Rule 34	comment	Rule 34 is a near-future Science Fiction novel by Charles Stross, released in 2011, a sequel to Halting State.Not to be confused with Rule 34, which is something else entirely (although it is what the book is named for). The titular police division tracks crimes that operate on a similar "if you can think of it, it's out there" principle.
Rule 34	fetched	2023-10-03T02:00:59Z
Rule 34	parsed	2023-10-03T02:00:59Z
Rule 34	processingComment	Dropped link to GenreBlind: Not a Feature - UNKNOWN
Rule 34	processingUnknown	GenreBlind
Rule 34	isPartOf	DBTropes
Rule 34 / int_11734fc0	type	Mission Control Is Off Its Meds
Rule 34 / int_11734fc0	comment	Mission Control Is Off Its Meds: The Toymaker begins to suspect this towards the end. It is left unclear whether ATHENA broke into The Operation's network, whether he's becoming increasingly paranoid due to having the wrong medication, whether he's been talking to ATHENA all along — or all of the above.
Rule 34 / int_11734fc0	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_11734fc0	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_11734fc0
Rule 34 / int_1869b4b1	type	Unreliable Narrator
Rule 34 / int_1869b4b1	comment	Unreliable Narrator: The Toymaker/John Christie.
Rule 34 / int_1869b4b1	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_1869b4b1	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_1869b4b1
Rule 34 / int_19851b86	type	The Sociopath
Rule 34 / int_19851b86	comment	The Sociopath: The Toymaker is a very clear-cut example and it's lampshaded many times in the book. Apparently his version of antisocial personality disorder is genetic.
Rule 34 / int_19851b86	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_19851b86	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_19851b86
Rule 34 / int_1994ba0b	type	Gone Horribly Right
Rule 34 / int_1994ba0b	comment	Gone Horribly Right: ATHENA was designed as an AI that would use social engineering to nudge individuals showing a high chance of becoming criminals away from a life of crime, or to sniff out spam botnets and identify them for the authorities. Instead, ATHENA is nudging criminals and law enforcement agents into confrontations with each other, and arranging for unlikely deaths-by-chance of various criminals.
Rule 34 / int_1994ba0b	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_1994ba0b	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_1994ba0b
Rule 34 / int_1c263b9f	type	The Purge
Rule 34 / int_1c263b9f	comment	The Purge: ATHENA uses John Christie and other unwitting pawns to eliminate the humans involved in its creation.
Rule 34 / int_1c263b9f	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_1c263b9f	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_1c263b9f
Rule 34 / int_1c398324	type	Death from Above
Rule 34 / int_1c398324	comment	Death from Above: A few references are made in passing to Americans launching Attack Drone air strikes on troublesome individuals, but one American official insists that they aren't in that business anymore.
Rule 34 / int_1c398324	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_1c398324	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_1c398324
Rule 34 / int_1e7487cd	type	Breaking the Fourth Wall
Rule 34 / int_1e7487cd	comment	Breaking the Fourth Wall: Some of John Christie's sections break out of the novel's Second-Person Narration so that "Christie" can address the reader directly. Apparently Christie suspects that we're figments of his addled brain.
Rule 34 / int_1e7487cd	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_1e7487cd	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_1e7487cd
Rule 34 / int_22cf536c	type	Chekhov's Gun
Rule 34 / int_22cf536c	comment	Chekhov's Gun: The bread mix, which is not only bread mix. Used with the right activating agent, it can be used to mass-produce spider silk. Used without the right activating agent, it can also be used to make crappy beer.
Rule 34 / int_22cf536c	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_22cf536c	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_22cf536c
Rule 34 / int_237404cc	type	Ironic Echo
Rule 34 / int_237404cc	comment	Ironic Echo: Played for narrative humor a few times, when various paranoid characters fuss about the police recon drones that are no doubt watching what they do, or dismissively claim that they are just being used to enforce anti-littering ordnances. Once the narration switches to Liz's perspective, it mentions the omnipresent police recon drones, which mostly get used to look out for people littering, as a means of justifying their cost. And in the end, we briefly see through ATHENA's POV, who uses the drones and cameras to keep an eye on her "meat puppets".
Rule 34 / int_237404cc	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_237404cc	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_237404cc
Rule 34 / int_23781532	type	Ironic Name
Rule 34 / int_23781532	comment	Ironic Name: Dorothy Straight, who is bisexual.
Rule 34 / int_23781532	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_23781532	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_23781532
Rule 34 / int_2dc0d2bf	type	Hidden Depths
Rule 34 / int_2dc0d2bf	comment	Hidden Depths: Anwar is stunned to discover that his wife is much more familiar with his dealings than he realized, knowing, for example, what the going price is for the Issyk-Kulistani bread mix that he's been a mule for on the Black Market. Being familiar with criminal doings is not the same as approving of them, as Anwar discovers when he is banished to the couch for asking her to go into business with him.
Rule 34 / int_2dc0d2bf	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_2dc0d2bf	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_2dc0d2bf
Rule 34 / int_316e9da2	type	Memetic Mutation
Rule 34 / int_316e9da2	comment	Memetic Mutation: In-Universe, Liz's squad is responsible for searching the internet for memetic crime. Thanks to the interconnectness of the world, copycat crime is a huge problem.
Rule 34 / int_316e9da2	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_316e9da2	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_316e9da2
Rule 34 / int_3a4e34fe	type	Themed Aliases
Rule 34 / int_3a4e34fe	comment	Themed Aliases: An assassin's aliases are all serial killers. They're assigned to him by the Organisation, and he's not amused when he notices the theme. They're generated by an algorithm which has been hacked by the omniscient AI controlling everything so the police will pick up on him.
Rule 34 / int_3a4e34fe	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_3a4e34fe	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_3a4e34fe
Rule 34 / int_3dd3951e	type	Cowboy Cop
Rule 34 / int_3dd3951e	comment	Cowboy Cop: Discussed and Dismissed. It is widely acknowledged that modern police work is about managing large groups of personnel doing quite a bit of seemingly pointless tasks working towards a common goal.
Rule 34 / int_3dd3951e	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_3dd3951e	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_3dd3951e
Rule 34 / int_3f0b2f50	type	Make It Look Like an Accident
Rule 34 / int_3f0b2f50	comment	Make It Look Like an Accident: ATHENA's Modus Operandi: Set up a great many circumstances where an accidental death is possible, and wait for random chance to take effect. Defective replacement parts for appliances, mis-labeled or contaminated medication, etc.
Rule 34 / int_3f0b2f50	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_3f0b2f50	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_3f0b2f50
Rule 34 / int_5798bfbf	type	Reassigned to Antarctica
Rule 34 / int_5798bfbf	comment	Reassigned to Antarctica: Liz's fate after the events of Halting State, she has spent the last five years heading up the Innovative Crime Investigative Unit, known as the Rule 34 Squad, which specializes in trawling the internet for crime-related memetic mutation, which means they get to dredge through all the worst the internet can offer them. The ICIU tends to be a dumping ground for any cops who don't mesh well elsewhere in the force. Kemal as well, after his actions in the same book.
Rule 34 / int_5798bfbf	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_5798bfbf	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_5798bfbf
Rule 34 / int_5ca80293	type	Pragmatic Villainy
Rule 34 / int_5ca80293	comment	Pragmatic Villainy: John Christie is a psychopath who sees other human beings as being effectively disposable. However, he also knows that drawing undue attention to himself is bad for business, so he goes out of his way to keep a low profile.
Rule 34 / int_5ca80293	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_5ca80293	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_5ca80293
Rule 34 / int_5da3f522	type	Big Brother Is Watching
Rule 34 / int_5da3f522	comment	Big Brother Is Watching: The police have flying recon drones all over the city. When they aren't needed for anything else, they are mostly used to make sure people aren't littering. Similarly, police transports idly roam the city under remote control looking out for trouble when they aren't being used for moving cops around. Played for Laughs later, when Anwar gets a phone call that puts him on edge, and when he looks around for signs of anyone following him, is told by the voice on the other end of the line to stop doing that, because he's drawing attention.
Rule 34 / int_5da3f522	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_5da3f522	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_5da3f522
Rule 34 / int_60fa92ac	type	Names to Run Away from Really Fast
Rule 34 / int_60fa92ac	comment	Names to Run Away from Really Fast: John Christie sounds like a harmless enough name, until you realize that his alias is taken from the name of a serial killer.
Rule 34 / int_60fa92ac	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_60fa92ac	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_60fa92ac
Rule 34 / int_62434fe2	type	Sanity Slippage
Rule 34 / int_62434fe2	comment	Sanity Slippage: The Toymaker experiences this through the course of the book ( but that's just what the lizards want you to think). It might be due to a bad batch of medication courtesy of ATHENA.
Rule 34 / int_62434fe2	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_62434fe2	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_62434fe2
Rule 34 / int_699b3142	type	Artificial Cannibalism
Rule 34 / int_699b3142	comment	Artificial Cannibalism: Liz mentions the case of the Morningside Cannibals, a club of nice middle class people who held dinner parties where they ate each others cloned flesh.
Rule 34 / int_699b3142	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_699b3142	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_699b3142
Rule 34 / int_733e007a	type	Unwitting Pawn
Rule 34 / int_733e007a	comment	Unwitting Pawn: All of the main characters, especially the villain. Most of the minor characters too.
Rule 34 / int_733e007a	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_733e007a	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_733e007a
Rule 34 / int_762b9223	type	Played for Laughs
Rule 34 / int_762b9223	comment	Played for Laughs later, when Anwar gets a phone call that puts him on edge, and when he looks around for signs of anyone following him, is told by the voice on the other end of the line to stop doing that, because he's drawing attention.
Rule 34 / int_762b9223	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_762b9223	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_762b9223
Rule 34 / int_808cbaeb	type	Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking
Rule 34 / int_808cbaeb	comment	Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: During the book's climax, one criminal is arrested for a wide variety of crimes including tax evasion, the production and sale of various illegal items and substances, and so on, and as an afterthought, sneaking mis-labeled bread mix into Scotland.
Rule 34 / int_808cbaeb	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_808cbaeb	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_808cbaeb
Rule 34 / int_8ed5c6e4	type	Asshole Victim
Rule 34 / int_8ed5c6e4	comment	Asshole Victim: The victims are all criminals, for starters. The first one is a bulk spammer who was previously convicted for selling fake medication online. Another one was a money launderer. Starts to get a bit greyer later in the book, when more sympathetic characters such as Tariq start getting murdered as well.
Rule 34 / int_8ed5c6e4	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_8ed5c6e4	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_8ed5c6e4
Rule 34 / int_959cb9aa	type	One Degree of Separation
Rule 34 / int_959cb9aa	comment	One Degree of Separation: All of the crimes, and ultimately all of the important characters, are tied together by seemingly random coincidence. Lampshaded by the increasingly frustrated police officers because coincidences don't happen that often. Both the cops and the villain realize by the third act that they are being "nudged" towards a confrontation with each other.
Rule 34 / int_959cb9aa	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_959cb9aa	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_959cb9aa
Rule 34 / int_b41acf08	type	AxeCrazy
Rule 34 / int_b41acf08	comment	Axe-Crazy: John Christie. He is at least taking medication to keep the worst of it under control, but he picked up his schizophrenic symptoms from a less-than-successful treatment with psychopharmacy during his childhood.
Rule 34 / int_b41acf08	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_b41acf08	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_b41acf08
Rule 34 / int_b53077b3	type	Take That!
Rule 34 / int_b53077b3	comment	Take That!: Scotland has seemingly become independent or at least more autonomous from the UK and "still" has a National Healthcare System.
Rule 34 / int_b53077b3	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_b53077b3	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_b53077b3
Rule 34 / int_c5dcc180	type	How Many Fingers?
Rule 34 / int_c5dcc180	comment	How Many Fingers?: Liz to Kemal, after he gets knocked down a flight of stairs by Christie. After Kemal has to think about it for a few seconds, Liz tells him to wait for the ambulance.
Rule 34 / int_c5dcc180	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_c5dcc180	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_c5dcc180
Rule 34 / int_cbe687ab	type	Corrupt Corporate Executive
Rule 34 / int_cbe687ab	comment	Corrupt Corporate Executive: It is widely agreed that they were to blame for the economic collapse of the early 21st century. John Christie is also this after a sort. A psychopath (er... make that Neurodiverse individual) who was recruited and given top-quality business schooling to produce the perfect sociopathic businessman.
Rule 34 / int_cbe687ab	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_cbe687ab	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_cbe687ab
Rule 34 / int_cf23bb98	type	Strange Cop in a Strange Land
Rule 34 / int_cf23bb98	comment	Strange Cop in a Strange Land: Kemal, to a degree. Of course, his job with Europol is to visit other police forces and liason with them.
Rule 34 / int_cf23bb98	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_cf23bb98	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_cf23bb98
Rule 34 / int_d62dd556	type	The Chessmaster
Rule 34 / int_d62dd556	comment	The Chessmaster: Colonel Felix Datka, working under the orders of his boss, the President of Kyrgistan. And he is yet another Unwitting Pawn of ATHENA. It just so happens that his goal and hers are compatible.
Rule 34 / int_d62dd556	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_d62dd556	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_d62dd556
Rule 34 / int_d848560f	type	Unusual Euphemism
Rule 34 / int_d848560f	comment	Unusual Euphemism: "Two Wetsuit Job", which actually refers to a real case.
Rule 34 / int_d848560f	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_d848560f	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_d848560f
Rule 34 / int_dd51740f	type	P.O.V. Sequel
Rule 34 / int_dd51740f	comment	P.O.V. Sequel: Liz Cauvanaugh, the high-and-mighty Detective Inspector that Sue was working for in Halting State, is now a main character suffering from a bit of burn-out.
Rule 34 / int_dd51740f	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_dd51740f	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_dd51740f
Rule 34 / int_f6507695	type	Everything Is Online
Rule 34 / int_f6507695	comment	Everything Is Online: Very nearly literally true. Late in the book, a military unit launches a raid to arrest various individuals, and one of their preparatory steps is to have every soldier turn off and lock up their radios, cell phones, computers, etc. before leaving base, effectively making them disappear from the net entirely until they get to their destination.
Rule 34 / int_f6507695	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_f6507695	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_f6507695
Rule 34 / int_fa73ee9d	type	Explosive Leash
Rule 34 / int_fa73ee9d	comment	Explosive Leash: The Toymaker believes he has one. He is almost right: its actually a remote-controlled stent in his carotoid artery.
Rule 34 / int_fa73ee9d	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_fa73ee9d	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_fa73ee9d
Rule 34 / int_fd94c4ac	type	Theme Naming
Rule 34 / int_fd94c4ac	comment	Theme Naming: John Christie's alias happens to be the name of a prominent serial killer from the previous century. When he gets a new alias issued to him, that one turns out to be the namesake of another serial killer. He is not amused by this and suspects that an outside party is tampering with the Operation's system to make him stand out more.
Rule 34 / int_fd94c4ac	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_fd94c4ac	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_fd94c4ac
Rule 34 / int_fed441ad	type	All Gays are Promiscuous
Rule 34 / int_fed441ad	comment	All Gays are Promiscuous: Or at least all the bisexuals (Anwar habitually cheats on his wife; Dorothy is polyamourous and doesn't want commitment; the Toymaker normally relies on sex workers and gay cruising) and the gay men (Adam has many "on-again-off-again boyfriends" according to Anwar). Even the LGTB murder victims (Micheal and Vivienne) turn out to have had busy sexual histories and died during sexual escapades with hook-ups or sex workers. (The straight victims died in normal household accidents - electrocuted by a faulty kitchen machine or in the bath, for example.) The only monogamous queer character is Liz, the lesbian.
Rule 34 / int_fed441ad	featureApplicability	1.0
Rule 34 / int_fed441ad	featureConfidence	1.0
Rule 34	hasFeature	Rule 34 / int_fed441ad
Rule 34 / int_name	type	ItemName
Rule 34 / int_name	comment
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Rule 34 / int_name	featureConfidence	1.0
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Rule 34 / int_name	itemName	Rule 34

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

Rule 34	hasFeature	Artificial Cannibalism / int_d07826aa
Rule 34	hasFeature	Chemically-Induced Insanity / int_d07826aa
Rule 34	hasFeature	Date Rape / int_d07826aa
Rule 34	hasFeature	English Literature / int_d07826aa
Rule 34	hasFeature	Explosive Leash / int_d07826aa
Rule 34	hasFeature	Heroic Fatigue / int_d07826aa
Rule 34	hasFeature	Lazy Alias / int_d07826aa
Rule 34	hasFeature	Mistaken for Pedophile / int_d07826aa
Rule 34	hasFeature	One Degree of Separation / int_d07826aa
Rule 34	hasFeature	Ruritania / int_d07826aa
Rule 34	hasFeature	Themed Aliases / int_d07826aa
Rule 34	hasFeature	Working the Same Case / int_d07826aa

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