a sniper when I grew up. Didn't everyone?"—as well as his parents' growing madness. He claims to have worked as a prostitute at some point in the past, and as a stripper at 8 years old. He grew up on the City's docks with drunken parents as an only child. His father drove a city bus and his mother was a housewife who cooked lizards for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day. He returned to the docks as an adult to see that everyone was gone and the docks were abandoned, before vowing to never forget his childhood there. Philosophy Spider is a firm believer in the truth and delivering it to his readers in the most direct and blunt manner possible, often capitalising it as "The Truth" in his writing for emphasis. This is most notable in one story, when Spider's editor recounts the tale of how Spider submitted an article on the election of the Richard Nixon-analogue "The Beast", which consisted of the word "fuck" repeated eight thousand times (from Transmetropolitan #1). His approach to journalism has been encapsulated by Spider as "The truth...no matter what" and his appraisal of others rises if they feel the same way. The primary focus of conflict within Spider's psyche, over the course of the series, is a combination of concern for his delivery of 'The Truth' and misanthropy towards his public. Spider hates and struggles against authority figures who oppress others, but he is also bitter toward the uninvolved public who give the authority its power. Likewise, he struggles to convince the public to listen to The Truth, but is disgusted by those who blindly accept what he reports. In addition, Spider's talents earn him unwanted fame and adoration, which clouds his ability to "get at The Truth", often resulting in him experiencing writer's block and depression. His editor, Mitchell Royce, opines that Spider needs to be hated in order to function as a writer and journalist. Despite his absolute disdain for those around him, Spider is quite loyal to those few who he considers friends and is equally quick to hurt those who would betray him. Indeed, much of Spider's motivation in the second half of the series was dedicated to bringing the President to justice for ordering the murder of Vita Severn, whom Spider had befriended. Although he opposed The Beast, Spider is not loyal to any political party