#<- i also acknowledge how privileged i am to even be able to say that

[callmrmorrow]

brain vomit on conquest, spoilers for s3 finale and some comics spoilers as well

no i don’t want to see analysis on conquest unless we can collectively acknowledge that he’s a pathetic little (big) shit and he’s all the better for it

whichever writer decided to characterize him as a guy who has serial-killer level confessions to his combatants and showed multiple instances of him having like a deep love for combat as a weird allegory for the connections he never got the chance to have… kudos to you.

like yes to some extent they’re making him a disturbing freak because that’s who he is but there’s a REASON he’s on that level. i don’t think he was lying in that monologue and it implies something about viltrumite culture that even someone who has been so engrossed in it will eventually want to seek out connection. conquest has literally been around for every notable event in viltrumite history and he’s not valued as a source of wisdom like most cultures would their elders. he’s literally just an animal, and he’s treated like one, because even though he’s strong and arguably a great source of wisdom, the current leader of the viltrumites is incredibly strength-oriented (this is like a major plot point).

there’s something super bad about being devalued like that no matter what species you’re in. and to be devalued for like… so damn long that the only thing left for you to do is kind of go into it? i saw a post talking about invincible being about toxic masculinity and i wanted to say i half-agree, half-disagree because it’s like… yes there are aspects of that but also it was written by a white dude in the early 2000s and the comics are less about “yes men should be able to express their emotions” and more about “yes men should have women that they can express their emotions to while being comforted in their bosom” because you never really see that sense of man-to-man community. whenever male characters in the comics wanna get emotional, they just fight and yell simultaneously. (i may have misunderstood the point of that particular post but it just stuck with me)

you see it even here with mark and conquest, where conquest is only chill with opening up about it because he’s like… kind of doing it to freak mark out, too. i said it earlier but it’s kind of like how serial killers will open up about themselves to people they’re going to kill because two can keep a secret if one of them is dead. he feels lonely, yes, he wants to cry, yes, he doesn’t think anyone will care because nobody will. it’s not some self-engrossed thing where he’s like “oh everyone hates me,” literally everyone hates him. nobody likes this guy in the invincible verse. he’s just stating facts that humanize him after committing unspeakably inhuman acts of destruction.

he’s speaking to mark, who has fearlessly protected his loved ones throughout the entire fight, about feeling lonely and lacking loved ones. he’s explaining that yes, to some extent i do envy what you have, even if it is weakness. but look at me now. i’m above you, i’m KILLING you, and you’re going to die knowing that for all that love you give and receive, i am still stronger than you. that i have wanted the same things you did, that my viltrumite heart is as tainted with yearning as yours, that we are the same beast and that you WOULD’VE beat me if you had been more like ME.

obviously mark beats his shit in not once but TWICE, so conquest’s internal compass of “i am strong because that is all i am to others” is utterly derailed by mark’s “i am strong because that is what i have to be for others” and he ultimately goes out knowing that 10000 years of being a dog for his people meant nothing. nobody knew who this guy was outside of the blood on his hands and between his teeth. he is nothing but his name and he redefines CONQUEST.

meanwhile mark is … not so INVINCIBLE but everyone knows him as who he is behind the name. conquest is not afforded that privilege.

at least that’s my incoherent interpretation of the scene. does this make like… any sense at all?

[luciaintheskyainthi]

I’ve finally been able to sit down and read chapter 23

WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO US😭😭??? I DON’T KNOW WHO TO SIDE WITH ANYMORE AND IM NOT EVEN FINISHED WITH THE CHARACTER OMGG

amazing writing I love it🥲👍 five stars

🔥🔥YES MY PRETTIES WALLOW IN THE MORAL AMBIGUITY 🔥🔥

In all seriousness, you can't ship characters like Peter Parker with Jason Todd without moral conflict. Not without a compromise of at least one of their characters.

Grounded as I am in the real world, I align with Peter's perspective. But you can do that and still acknowledge that in the world that Gotham exists in, Jason's perspective could lead to less harm.

I RB a while ago someone's comment about how the conflict between Bruce and Jason comes down to, whose life do you choose to privilege? Batman chooses, inadvertently, to privilege the lives of characters like the Joker, despite knowing there's the (high) likelihood he'll escape and harm others. This is because Batman is THE Optimist™️ and so he spares the Joker (and Co.) in the hope they can change and be rehabilitated. But of course, because these are villains which are popular (we're getting a bit meta here), they'll never change. They'll just continue escaping and continue killing. And this is where Batman as a comic character fails.

In Jason's eyes, this makes Bruce complicit in the deaths of all future victims. I think Jason sees the times when he kills people as a form of harm reduction. By making himself a murderer, he in turn reduces the chance of future murders.

(Since we're talking about comic characters and since Batman is an incredibly important character to DC, this inevitably means that Jason's morality can never succeed, because Batman [ rightly so] cannot become a killer.)

Now, I think Peter is more closely aligned to Batman's moral code than Jason's. He's also at his core an optimist. Although I do think their motivators are different: Batman is for justice, something that often involves invoking fear; Spider-Man is about helping others and (to me, in my heart of hearts) community empowerment. This arguably places him in a position where he does side closer with the Red Hood in SOME things.

At present though, because I'm working with MCU Peter who was more or less reduced to a super powered cop, he has a very black and white view of the world. He'd already started changing in the months after the Erasure, but definitely has more growth to make.

Of course, because this is fanfiction, I can allow these characters to challenge each other. Instead of dooming one of them to the narrative, I can explore the messy world of morality in a city like Gotham, rather than draw a hard line in the sand saying, Batman and Spider-Man good, Red Hood bad.

So expect more mess! At the end of the day, fiction is still fiction, and you can look at the world of ECM and think, yeah, this perspective works better there, but not in our world. I'm not expecting my lovely readers to pick sides because I can't pick sides! We can all just look at the quagmire of messy politics and enjoy our two goobers having a mud fight 💖

[cheshireliam]

i not sure if anybody tell you this before, but when you always show rank in event and avater room… it very anoying. you rich, we undrestand. you can use daddy and mommy money to enjoy game, but we must work for money. you dont undrestand normal ppl, it crazy.

do these pictures scare you, anon? do they piss you off even more? make you want to block me now? because i sure hope they do.

listen. i don't owe you, nor anyone else, an explanation. but since you want to point your pesky little finger at me with such false accusations, then i'll address this once and for all.

i don't know how old or how young you think i am, but i'm a fully grown working adult. i have my own income. i haven't taken a single cent from my parents ever since i started working — rather, i'm the one giving money to my parents. i acknowledge that i'm privileged enough to be able to still live with my parents and thus i don't have to worry about rent. but i studied my ass off for years to get myself this job that pays me relatively well (compared to other people with the same education level as i) and allows me the luxury of spending on games. so, no, this isn't mommy and/or daddy's money. it's my money. i don't work myself to the bone, putting up with endless daily abuse from the people i work with, for your irrelevant ass to say i don't have to work for money unlike everyone else. you don't know what i go through at work every day because we don't know each other, but my moots aka my friends know.

what's wrong with sharing my joy? why do you need to kill my mood? also, it's not like i gatekeep the paid content i buy. i'm translating AND posting them on here FOR FREE. i can't think of any other reason why you have a problem with that, except for the possibility you're just jealous and bitter.

tldr? sincerely. fuck you, anon.

[caintooth]

From a transmasc who loves transfems more than I hate transmisogyny: If you are AFAB you should not be calling yourself transfem, a transwoman, or a transgirl.

Let me start this by saying that I agree, obviously, that our society needs to stop caring about AGAB. Ideally, we should not be assigned AFAB or AMAB to begin with, and we should all be able to use the language we feel suits us best. If you are both trans and a woman, it does seem like it makes sense to call yourself a transwoman, doesn’t it? Even if you were AFAB?

But let’s have nuance, please. Let’s start by acknowledging this: a world in which our AGABs have no impact on our social roles / perceptions / interactions is NOT a world we live in yet. No matter how badly we may want to simply be feminine and masculine and androgynous and outside of connection to a binary system and AGABs entirely, we have NOT achieved that sort of liberation. To pretend we have- to act as if your AGAB has no impact on the way you are perceived and treated- is an extremely privileged game of imagination.

The most common argument I have seen from AFABs using transfem / transwoman language for themselves is that they are someone who is both, by all definitions, transgender and a woman. This may be because they previously transitioned into manhood or transmasculinity, and did not identify as a woman or as feminine at all during that time, but now, for whatever reason, have started identifying as a woman / feminine again. Or they may be a person who identifies with any variation of non-binary woman, bigender, genderfluid, genderqueer, demigirl, etc. Any identity which is either “I used to not be a woman, but am a woman now,” or “I am a woman, and another gender or lack thereof, too.”

I understand. In whatever version of this scenario, they are both transgender or have transitioned at some point, and are currently feminine or a woman. It does really sound like transfem or transwoman should be the correct language to use in this scenario!

I am non-binary, transmasc, and was indeed AFAB. I get it. I am transgender. I am not a woman, but I am also, sometimes, a woman. I am transgender and I am a woman. And I spent years of my life fighting against femininity, only to find that finally being allowed to be openly masculine has helped me embrace femininity again. It seems this is not an uncommon experience. But I am not now, and never will be, a transwoman.

Because the word transwoman has very, very specific meaning. “Meanings can change,” and “words have more than one meaning,” you say? Yes, that is true! And it should be! Change and embracing of nuance is so important to our community. And nobody should be policing the language anybody else uses.

But that being said, please. Embrace this nuance, if you are so passionate about words having it. People who were AMAB and are women have extremely different experiences than people who were AFAB and are still / are again, in whatever form for whatever reason, women or feminine.

Being a woman who was AMAB has unique culture, intersectionality, and vulnerability. Countless transwomen have asked people who were AFAB not to use the language of actual transfemininity, because it is such a different experience than being trans and feminine separately. Let me make this clear.

People who were AFAB are expected to be and rewarded for being women. If we perform womanhood in an unpalatable way, yes, we do experience misogyny. If we are also transgender, yes, we do experience transphobia. But neither of these things, even when experienced at the same time, are the same as transmisogyny, which can only be experienced by people who were AMAB.

This is because of the patriarchy. Gender Issues 101. Manhood and masculinity are seen as the ultimate power. Womanhood and femininity, as less. So, yeah, I get your confusion here. People who were AFAB, especially if they are also trans or are women or feminine in the “wrong” way, will indeed always be seen as lesser than men, for the fact of being AFAB alone! Absolutely nobody is saying that misogyny and transphobia against AFAB people are not massively violent forces in this world. Nobody is saying people who were AFAB have it “easy!”

But again, again again- people who were AMAB and are women experience a form of violence and hate very different from the kind we as AFAB people do. You know as well as I do that the patriarchy does not view women who were AMAB as actual women. It instead views them as failed men. And to those indoctrinated, that is a crime worse than womanhood. It is the ultimate insult: “They are not women. They are clearly not men, either. They are third. Other.”

AFAB people who are trans or perceived as “failed women,” no matter our actual or internal connection with femininity or womanhood, are viewed by society negatively, yes, but not as third or Other. Because, despite the wording, “failed women” are still actually viewed as women. This is because the patriarchy views people who were AFAB as inherently flawed by mere circumstance of birth. We are inherently capable of failure, because we have already failed by not being born cis men… And cis men, on the other hand, are viewed as ideal, perfect, god-like, and thus not capable of failure at all.

Let me reiterate. Due to transphobia and the rigid structure of gender within the patriarchy, when people who were AMAB declare “I am a not a man,” they are denied the status of woman. But, due to misogyny and the position of men as supreme, flawless beings within the patriarchy, when people who were AMAB respond by saying “I am a woman,” they are also denied the status of man. It is this also which is so significant. They are viewed by the patriarchy as Other in a way that people who were AFAB never will be, because we will always just be viewed as women, which is at least human.

The fact that people who are AFAB will only ever be viewed as woman is a separate issue, with separate conversation around it. Because I understand, as one of them, that we may identify with a concept of thirdness and of Otherness. We, like women who were AMAB, are not men! We feel a kinship there!

But I think I have explained well why our experience of Otherness is not the same as Otherness experienced by transwomen who were AMAB. No matter how deeply we feel third, Other, different, strange, weird? Even if this is, from the depth our soul and core of our being, not how we want to be treated? Society is still willing to view us, at the very least, no matter how much we hate it, as women. Which, like I said, is at least one way to be seen as human.

Women who were AMAB, however, are only ever treated as Other. Not even as human beings. Do you see how this is different? Do you see how this is worse?

The two questions we are trying to answer in this post are, first, why is it wrong that some people who were AFAB want to call themselves trans women or trans feminine? Which leads us to, second, why would they want to in the first place?

Transwomen who were coercively assigned male at birth are, in fact, women. They are not Other. They are not third. They are human beings and the patriarchy is wrong. I know this. The wider queer community claims to know this, too.

But we must not let our desire to affirm transwomen in their womanhood cloud our eyes to the fact that the vast majority of the world still holds extremely violent and dangerous mentality towards them.

When people who were AFAB use the language of transwoman, transfem, and transgirl for themselves, they are equating their experiences to that of AMAB people. They are, in a way, fetishizing transwomanhood. They are saying, “I have seen those called transwomen also called weird, and strange, and third, and Other. I feel that way myself, sometimes. Words like ‘genderqueer’ and ‘genderfluid’ and ‘bigender’ and ‘demigirl’ and etc., though perfectly established and expressive of my gender, do not express to others the quality of inhumanity which I feel I am a victim of. They do not express my uniqueness. But transwomen are seen as inhuman, and unique in their suffering. I am going to associate my feeling of inhumanity with their word, too. I am going to make sure this association continues, so that my pain is acknowledged, too.”

It is a violent co-opting of language. It is self-victimization. It is denial of differing axises of oppression. You are allowed to hurt, to feel Other, and denied of your humanity. But what reason do you have to equate your experience of hurt with a more marginalized group’s oppression, besides selfishness? Especially when you have been asked, repeatedly, to stop.

This behavior creates an unsafe environment for actual transwomen, who deserve community with people who acknowledge the unique experience of transfemininity! Who should be able to comfortably find other actually transfeminine people to make friends with and confide in! Who should be allowed to have their own spaces, communities, and safety nets!

Transfeminine people deserve security. Sorry for the word play, but I literally cannot imagine anything more insecure than stealing language from transwomen.

[andy-wm]

This is where I stand

I'm discovering that quite a few people in this community have different ideas of what engaging with Jikook content looks like, and that's to be expected I guess.

And yeah, things can get heated when we disagree, especially if we disagree on sensitive issues, but we should be able to have a rational discussion about it.

For me, respect is a big part of being here. I don't see Jikook as entertainment or as something to consume. For me, being in their world, even on the periphery, is a privilege.

I'm overtly aware that they are fallible human beings living in a sometimes ruthless world, and that their relationship is a precious fragile thing. Im also aware there are thousands of people trying to tear them down for any number of reasons from prejudice to jealousy. So many people who would love to see them fail.

Yesterday I went at somone who was unfortunately the last in a long line of people sharing what I consider to be inappropriately personal and invasive content. That person didn't deserve to be verbally slapped by me and I've since apologised. And I am genuinely sorry i lashed out at them. Considering how peeved I get when I'm on the receiving end on that type of thing, you'd think id be more conscientious. I've got no excuse. I'll do better in future.

The other thing I need to own is yes, i did engage with the photo of Jikook in NY on their way to dinner when they were about to start filming AYS. And yes, I've since reflected on that and it wasn't right thing to do. So I'm not taking the moral high ground here.

I'm quite okay with reflecting on my actions and looking at situations from all sides. I don't mind hearing constructive criticism because i sure as hell don't think I'm perfect. In fact I appreciate the feedback. Growth comes from seeing things in new ways and reconsidering your viewpoint, right?

So why am i making this post?

Partly because i can be hot headed and an asshole and sometimes I say and do things I regret. The best way to deal with my regret is to acknowledge my mistakes.

But I'm also making this post because the way the Jikook community is sharing this particular content seems careless and irresponsible.

You can say i'm overreacting but the voice recording that was shared? To me that is wrong on every level. And it was posted and reposted before a translation was available - even worse.

Compare the current situation to when Jikook were shooting AYS.

When the boat owner shared a photo of them, ARMY was ready to tear that man's legs off. I don't see how it's suddenly okay to share videos of what are possibly/probably private moments after that response to a photo on a boat. Is it just because it's apparently army taking the videos?

So what exactly are our standards here? What's okay to share? Some of the justifications I've had thrown at me are so flimsy they're barely comprehensible.

Maybe I am being overcautious - the lawful-good part of my brain can be very black and white. And like every paladin, i can be overzealous.

But my thinking is that none of what's being shared is ok to share.

Firstly because we always used to work hard not to spoil content. When BTS went to NZ to film BV4 we had code words and chat groups actively working to send people in the wrong direction if they thought they spotted BTS.

Secondly, with Jikook especially, the careful editing and the presence of staff around them when they're filming means they aren't accidentally (or purposefully) exposed.

We know they push that line, even when they're working. So when they're not working, when they believe they're alone and incognito, there's every chance they'll push it further.

And they should be able to.

They've been in a more socially progressive country and so maybe just this one time they could hold hands while walking down a road.

But that can never happen if there's a culture of not respecting their privacy.

We don't need to wonder why Jimin sang "I wanna hold your hand" in SGMB. That's their situation. Holding hands is a simple pleasure of life denied to them.

I see people discussing how Jikook always choose Japan for their personal time and it's pretty easy to understand why. Their privacy is taken more seriously, despite the huge number of J-army who are Jikookers. I'm not saying there's no breech of privacy but far more care is taken to keep their location and activities quiet. Even now we have almost no images of them in Japan despite the number of times theyve been there together.

I wish more of I-army had the same outlook.

Feel free to disagree with me. I'm sure plenty of people do. They can always find ways to justify their choices. But i live by the mantra that what you walk past is what you accept. So i will continue to call out posts or content that in my mind cross the line.

I'm not going to be an asshole about it but I'm also not going to stand aside when i feel there's an issue.

As always, I'm happy to have a rational conversation but please do us both a favour and block me now if you don't like my outlook.

No hard feelings.

[rookieoneil]

Controversial rant 🧍🏽‍♀️

Spoilers (7x03) (not John Nolan friendly)

JOHN NOLAN

Nolan is fucking reckless. He’s doing exactly what Tim did last season. Going after someone for a personal agenda. He’s supposed to be a teacher, how is Celina expected to make it as a cop when her teacher A isn’t teaching, and B is constantly making the job personal (something Celina, Angela, and Lucy got in trouble for) I wish for ONCE they treat him like they treat everyone else.

This episode alone let’s look at this. Seth and Miles got in trouble for saving a civilian successfully (as they should) and Nolan- instead of saving a civilian (that’s protocol) he went after a suspect and made a deal with said suspect (who got away) because it was in HIS best interest.

The man ended up losing over two pints of blood! Which could have been a lot less than it could have been. Idk if he died (probably not) but still this is crazy.

Not the point. My point is he didn’t get in trouble at all.

I know the difference being they are rookies and John’s not but still. John is constantly getting away with shit that anyone else would have been prosecuted for.

Not to mention him talking to a suspect and jeopardizing the case of two teenagers who lost their lives because it benefited him. Like how is any of what he did allowed?!? How is able to continue a personal investigation with consequences??? Tim got “demoted” (fired?) from metro because of his personal investigation. How is this different? Because John let a dangerous guy get away, and almost let someone else die.

“He was doing it for his wife” idc. Let other people deal with this. Not him. He’s too close to this,

As a husband, he’s protective and good for him, as a cop he’s reckless and will get someone killed

Ughhh I just hate John Nolan with everything I am. Never make me like him.

CHENFORD

Despite popular belief, I think that Rachel is here to get Chenford back together. I don’t think she’s here for alternative reasons.

Also I think that this friendship/ team work that they are creating will make their relationship in the future be 10x better. They need this time to reconnect let’s not get them back together for a good minute because they BOTH need to grow.

Lucy

Baby girl is finally getting a friend again. I feel like Celina and she still have a strained relationship and having gotten to a close friendship YET. But Rachel being back is good for her. Look at that trauma dump she needed to let out.

I hope my sunshine girl starts gaining her sunshine back

Jalya

James stf. I 100% agree with his stance cause those teens deserve justice. But that is not the time or place. I think he needs to learn how to leave his work at work. Wesley too.

I think Nyla needs to be more open to conversation and not just stopping James. They both need a lot of growth in communication as a COUPLE. Not communication just about work.

They need to create boundaries. Like please boundaries will save yallll

Wopez

Wesley needs to fucking let it go. Angela is not gonna cheat, and now he’s letting it affect his home life. Like bro I hate to break it to you but in the world she works in, so many of those men think about Angela like that. Like it sucks and those men suck, BUT Angela went into that career knowing that. It sucks that women have to even acknowledging this part of a job. But it’s reality and if Welsey thinks this is the only man who has those thoughts then hes really showing his privilege as man.

He’s acting like this one man has flipped his world over. Like dude. 😐 the detective -idk his name- is an asshole. And he’s not the only one in that police station who has that thought about fellow female officers. If Wesley truly believed that the first one then he’s naive. You can say oh it’s probably because the detective works so close with Angela but like Angela was in patrol, she worked with plenty of men like that. Welsey has to know this.

I don’t like that they’re leaning into this idea that if Angela knows about how this detective feels about her then she’ll cheat. Like I know that they’re not actually saying that but they’re insinuating it and I don’t like that at all. Because she loves Wesley. She wouldn’t cheat on him so I’m like why are we even playing with this plot line. It felt like they picked this plot out of a hat and was like yeah this works because they didn’t know what to do with Wopez this season.

Being a woman in a man’s field is horrible and it sucks, and as a rich white man married to a Columbia & Mexican Woman you shouldn’t be delusional enough to believe she’s respected in the same way you are. You should know about what she’s most likely facing everyday. You should not get jealous over slimes men, and instead educate yourself 👏🏼 it should take you 7+ years to figure that out buddy (btw I love Wesley I just don’t like his plot this season).

[whiterosebrian]

Confession on Israel-Palestine

Ladies and gentlemen and nonbinary folks, if you want to know how my current break from social media has been going, I’m afraid that I can’t say much.  I don’t feel like I’ve made much progress in self-rehabilitation.  It doesn’t help that I haven’t been able to meet with the clinical social worker for counseling often enough due to delays in the first two meetings.  It doesn’t help that the warehouse job still wears me out terribly.  It doesn’t help that the weather here in Indiana hasn’t been quite right yet for outdoor meditation. 

I’ve pondered when I might resume making and posting original work to my social media pages.  I haven’t decided yet.  That choice may depend on what the next month or so are like for me. 

The main reason why I wrote this journal entry is to make a confession.  Several factors led me to go off on my current hiatus from social media, which I intend to discuss in depth at a later day.  However, what especially provoked me to quit posting and declare my absence was the latest flare-up in violence in Israel-Palestine and the back-and-forth polemics on social media.  I felt unable to meaningfully address it. 

I acknowledge the ethno-nationalist administrations in Israel that have grown more radically right-wing over the years.  I cannot dismiss the reports of long-standing human rights abuses in Israel.  I cannot dismiss the suffering and death involved in the establishment of the modern state of Israel.  I dare not dismiss Palestinians who suffer and die whenever the violence flares up in that little strip of land!  I further acknowledge that most people who join demonstrations against Israel have only the best of intentions. 

Why haven’t I spoken out more often on Palestine, though?  There are still too many cases where condemnation of Israel is a thin veil for condemnation of the Jewish people as a whole.  Is Judaism not an ancient ethno-religion that has long-standing ties to Eres Yisra’el, the Land of Israel, however widely dispersed it may have been?  As a white European living on Turtle Island, am I not much, much more of an alien than a Jewish person living near Jerusalem?  Even considering ethnocentrism within the Zionist movement, is that still not a serious response to the long, tragic history of marginalization, persecution, expulsion, and eventual genocide?  Doesn’t anti-Jewish hatred persist today?  Doesn’t anti-Jewish propaganda come in the form of dog-whistles?  Speaking as an ex-Catholic, I’ve seen Catholic fundamentalists claim to reject “racial antisemitism”—in a conveniently narrow sense—while espousing their usual anti-Jewish narratives.

Those sorts of dog-whistles have made me wary of much (not all, but much) of the rhetoric that I’ve seen.  I don’t want to shut down or belittle Jewish people who express pain and fear.  I do acknowledge the increasingly sharp divides—especially generational divides—within the Jewish community over Israel.  I was also surprised to read about the historical real-world alternatives to political Zionism, most notably the Bundist movement, whose main principle was about establishing Jewish cultural enclaves throughout the Diaspora while agitating for socialist justice. 

What of the Jewish people who still express fear of antisemitism and still express attachment to the land of Israel?  I’m not supposed to dismiss their voices and stories as settler-colonial propaganda that needs to be censored, am I?  I’m not supposed to regard them all as hyper-privileged, lying, greedy, bloodthirsty, all-controlling aliens, am I?  I’m not supposed to ridicule them as passive-aggressive crybaby Nazis worthy only of isolation, am I?  I’m not supposed to declare them all guilty of genocide and needing to be punished accordingly for the rest of their lives, am I?  I’m not supposed to judge them all as Bad Jews and leave only a tiny remnant of Good Jews, am I? 

Over the course of the reactions, rants, and reflections that I’ve written into my private spiral-bound journal, I noted a fixation on Jewish safety and Jewish freedom.  Why?  Euro-American guilt?  Ex-Catholic guilt?  Have Israel-supporting organization exaggerated the prevalence of anti-Jewish hatred?  I’ve read of dissension within such organizations as the Anti-Defamation League and J Street.  Surely, though, claiming that the entire world celebrates and pampers the Jewish people would be completely ridiculous. 

You might recall the incidents of anti-Jewish intimidation and violence that sometimes appear in news outlets.  Aren’t there people with big voices like Nick Fuentes who would gladly do gods-know-what to the Jewish people if they somehow took power?  Hasn’t anti-Jewish propaganda spread beyond Europe as well?  Aren’t there Islamic fundamentalists who call for the destruction of Jewish people, branding them as conspiring overlords or as apes and pigs?  I hear about Jews and Muslims living in harmony in the Middle East in the olden days, but that narrative does strike me as sounding too good to be true—haven’t Jews faced discrimination and violence there too?  I’m willing to be educated on the nuances within said narrative. 

I trust that you understand that I reject the notion of collectively punishing Muslims, Arabs, or Palestinians.  I wish for no group of people to be collectively punished, especially a group that has notoriously suffered domination and alienation and worse over centuries.  Has something gone wrong my desire to stand with Jewish people?  Is that why I’ve neglected to publicly speak for Palestinians?  Once again, I dare not deny that Palestinians face suffering and death under the watch of a powerful Israeli state backed by other powerful states. 

I’ve gotten the sense that I’m being pressured to choose which people to support—but I would be very happy to be proven wrong.   I am not yet totally confident that the free-free-Palestine movement lacks undercurrents of demonizing and punishing Jewish people—but, again, I would be very happy to be proven wrong.  The point that I’ve been gesturing towards this whole time is this: I believe in harmonious and joyous co-existence of various peoples and cultures on lands that they work together on healing and enriching.  I’ll grant that phrases like “it’s complicated” can be cop-outs, but they can surely also be expressions of uncertainty over how to best resolve serious problems.

I ask you to write to and call your local elected leaders and put pressure on them to not only demand a ceasefire but also demand full civil and human rights for Palestinians.  Surely that is something that we can do.  I even wrote and mailed letters to Jewish organizations such as the ones mentioned previously, asking them to hold Israel’s leaders and elites accountable, stand up more forcefully for Palestinians, and seriously engage with Jewish anti-Zionists—not to lecture them as some sort of superior Aryan, but to encourage dialog as a fellow civil-rights activist. Did that in itself risk “mansplaining” antisemitism?  I trust that I had good intentions.  I wish for peace and freedom for all, and I wish to understand more fully how that can become a reality. 

[hislittleraincloud]

You seriously support Johnny Depp? His situation isnʼt comparable to Percy at all. Percy was unfairly treated and bullied by crazy Jenna stans, he didnʼt do anything wrong and was just a kid when it all went down.

Johnny Depp is an actual abuser and there is lots of evidence for it. His PR team successfully started a smear campaign against Amber on social media and people ran with it.

ETA: I JUST TOLD YOU PEOPLE:

If you didn't watch the trial, I'm not going to argue with you.

If you didn't listen to at least one of the super triggering to me audio files in their entirety (because guess what: the love of my life abused me the same fucking way Amber abused Johnny on those tapes), I'm not going to argue with you.

If you aren't going to read anything from the Hollywood Vampires book and talk about its contents, I'm not going to argue with you.

I did/am doing all of that, because I got sucked into the trial...morbid curiosity, because at first I didn't give a flying fuck about Amber Heard (like when she was all over him/married him, I didn't GAF) but I'd been a Depp fan for a while. The trial and its contents were VERY enlightening.

(And yes, I read the whole of the judge's decision in the UK case, and his decisions in the face of the actual evidence was unreal; some of the Heard items in his decisions were obviously fucked and yet he just shrugged his shoulders and dismissed it as if it didn't count. It was a different trial with different parameters and a judge known to have connections that lead back to Heard.)

Here's a thread with just the mere basics of what we have known since the trial (it's in the book). The thread doesn't seem to acknowledge that we have known these things about Heard for years. We have known that she's HPD, narcissistic and a violent cokehead and drunk even before she ever sank her claws into Depp.

(Link to the description of this incident in the book, which doesn't differ except for being more thorough than this testimony.)

And I was honestly triggered by the audios of their conversations since my ex would also say and do similar fucked up shit to me (I still have the audios of her abuse where she tells me to kill myself because I wouldn't write something academic for her; of when she created a crisis when my friends were visiting because she needed to be the center of attention; of when she said no one would believe me if I ever told someone she was being abusive [since she had Pretty Privilege], etc.). And I would react in a similar fashion to Depp: Attempted avoidance (but she wouldn't stop calling me), drinking & drugs (at the time it was morphine) and the only reactive violence occurring was to inanimate objects like my laptop (R.I.P., when she was grilling me about my friends and accusing me of cheating on her with my ex).

FTR, my mother has HPD. I know she does, because she did and still does the same shit to my father. I can recognize HPD. That was the proper Dx for Amber Heard.

At 27 minutes in, Curry describes the behavior of someone with HPD, and later on in the trial you can see the evidence of it yourself when Heard took the stand and got aggressive with Vasquez🔥. Heard literally proved the doctor correct in her Dx.

I'm not arguing with you, I'm just giving you where I'm coming from on this. I didn't sit around eating PR during the trial. I ate what was presented in court PLUS some, since full ass audios weren't played in court (though they were available from the court website). I sat with Emily D. Baker every day on YouTube, where she was able to break down what was going on for us in layman's terms, even though I'm already familiar with legalese.

Depp v. Heard Trial

Come back to take a dump in my inbox after you've watched it. Have fun.

P.S. There's an asshole greyface in my 📥 who thinks that this hurts me:

I told you, I watched the trial. I also understand how some peoples' brains are slow to adjust to adjectives and pronouns when their visual/audio cues tell them otherwise (and as far as it's known, Johnny knew Io under his former female pronouns). My aunt was like this. She had trouble adjusting to my transition since she knew me pre-transition, and it also depends on disposition/personalities and how they react to something like that. If you think Depp is a transphobe or bigot like you, say it. Because damn, this obsession with harassing me about my gender identity is real fucked.

From the ETA above:

I just fucking told you all I'm not going to entertain you if you watched nothing. IDGAF about Marilyn Manson. I really don't, because he's vile and he abused both Evan Wood and Esmé Bianco (and he had to drop his defamation lawsuit against Wood, it's different).

Come on bruhs, we're not doing this right now. Go watch the goddamn trial.

[empenvs3000f24]

Unit 3 Blog Post

Hi Everyone!

In my first blog post I touched on the fact that I am grateful for the experiences I have had in nature and how they continue to provide me with peace and comfort; however, I don’t think I fully grasped the depth of my ability to connect with nature and how my identity plays a role in that. By my name, I’m sure you can guess that I’m a white woman. This in and of itself gives me a leg up when it comes to my identity and how the public might perceive me. I am also writing this blog because I am enrolled in a university course, which many people do not have the opportunity to even think about doing. I am able to read and write, have full physical mobility, and access nature because I want to, not because I need to in order to survive. This whole class and myself, are lucky to be able to learn what nature interpretation is, because many people are wondering where their next meal is going to come from. I try my best to acknowledge my privilege and pure luck that I have ended up in the situation I am in and try to pay gratitude where I can. 

I grew up in Brampton, which is a big melting pot of culture and religion. In high school especially I noticed how certain students were treated by teachers and our school police, oftentimes being targeted for the way they looked. That’s not to say that I have just coasted through life with no adversity; yet I am not often a victim of my skin colour or religion. I think witnessing interactions like these ones have made me hyper aware of the way I interact with people of all identities and how I treat everyone with respect.

In my opinion, to have privilege is not having to think about the fact that you posses it. I feel like there is an element of ‘I deserve this’ and that can really turn sour when we don’t pay some respect to those who would do anything to be in our position. I’m sure plenty of us in this class have traveled, visited touristy areas, been to a cottage, experience(d) nature through skiing, golfing, boating, horseback riding, or hiking. Many people do not get to access these activities or places frequently, if at all. I think this is why nature interpretation roles are so important. If the opportunity arises, nature interpreters can provide someone with a very memorable and cherished moment. My working definition of privilege evolves as I experience new things and grow as a person. I will continue to appreciate my situation and strive to be a lifelong learner. 

Thanks for reading :) 

[mariacallous]

So here we are. Kemi Badenoch is the leader of the Conservative party. That’s another couple of firsts that the Tories have beaten Labour to. So far, the Conservatives have elected the first Asian leader and prime minister, and the first female Black leader of any major British political party.

But as these firsts started to come quicker and closer together – we now have a brown party leader handing over to a Black one – two things have happened. One, the politics of the party has become more unhinged and its electoral record has tanked. And two, the profile of these mould-breaking new leaders has become more extreme. The two are not unrelated to the success of ethnic minorities in the Tory party. I am sorry to point this out, because there is a sort of ritual now that must be observed when the Tories do well on diversity: you must not speak ill of a person of colour who has been elected to a position of leadership for the first time, and the significance of that moment, above all else, should be respected.

That ritual now has become a sort of farce. Because many things are staring us in the face while we are asked to perform some perfunctory ceremony of celebration. The ritual now even has its own incantation: “putting politics aside” or “whatever you think of their politics”, you must say, we must recognise that this is a good day for British politics and society in general. I’m not clear how you can “put politics aside” when it’s Badenoch’s actual job, and when her record is so appalling. I mean, it’s Kemi Badenoch. And her job is leader of the opposition.

This is the woman who said that “not all cultures are equally valid”, when deciding on who is to be allowed to enter the UK. Who said that autistic people undeservingly receive “better treatment” and economic “privileges and protections”. Who thinks that maternity pay is “excessive”. That online safety regulation is “legislating for hurt feelings” and that net zero commitments are “unilateral economic disarmament”. And who has dedicated much of her career so far to pugnacious culture warring.

And if you were to just take a glance at what her elevation means to the ethnic minority from which she comes, I am afraid that there is not only little to celebrate, but a lot to worry about. Take Badenoch on colonialism (she doesn’t care about it); on Black communities (she thinks no such thing exists, a neat echo of Thatcher’s “no such thing as society”); and on racism (when Black people are in the wrong job, in her experience, they just think their employer is racist).

But you must park whatever you think of that, and acknowledge that this is a good day because it says something about diminishing barriers to the rise of people of colour today. What that obscures is the specific circumstances of that rise, and of which people in particular. It’s not just anyone who gets to the top in British politics, but those who adhere to a particular story – one in which their experience, success and racial identity allow them to undermine the concerns of other ethnic minorities and attack those minorities for not toeing the line in terms of their “integration” or political values. (Badenoch says that “ancestral hostilities” make some immigrants “hate Israel”.) It seems that successful candidates, because of their identity, can do the wider work of Conservatism when it comes to race in a way that their white counterparts are not able to without annihilating the veneer of respectability that distinguishes the Conservatives from the far right.

And the circumstances are also troubling. Kemi Badenoch, like Rishi Sunak, ran before as party leader and was dismissed out of hand. And like Sunak, she was only considered when the party’s prospects had dwindled. It’s an awkward question and again I am sorry to pose it while we are in the customary grace period of putting politics aside, but does there not seem to be a correlation between electing ethnic minorities as party heads, and a recent deterioration of the party’s performance internally and at the ballot box? The implication is that when the party is not really in serious play, it can afford to experiment with new people who wouldn’t have been quite the right profile in more bountiful times, and see where it goes.

It’s a lot to reckon with, I know, when there is a far simpler moment to land on, a far simpler story of racial success to grasp on to. If you had told me 10 years ago that we would have a brown prime minister and a Black female leader of the Tory party, I would have imagined a far less flat and dispiriting scenario.The Tories’ record on elevating problematic people of colour has accelerated quicker than society’s understanding that people of colour can be problematic too – and that it’s OK to say so. The party’s degrading effect on social cohesion over the past decade is far too clear now for any of us not to realise that this is the way the status quo works. Its very power lies in constantly expanding the profile of people included in the establishment so that they may stabilise it, by diversifying it.

Badenoch has the right to have whatever opinions she wishes, but it is also the right of others to feel excluded by them, and not be scolded for refusing to cheer an appointment that is at best meaningless, and at worst perturbing.

Badenoch’s election is a first that signifies nothing. But it is useful, because it forces us to confront the fact that representation does not happen simply by elevating women or people of colour. True representation requires specific people and specific circumstances that do something other than merely continuing, or indeed entrenching, the way things already are. It’s a curveball for sure. But we can catch it. And catch up.

[askgothamshitty]

at the risk of sounding like a choice feminist (which i certainly am not lol), i do ultimately think that if someone wants to be a sex worker, they should be able to make that choice if that’s what they wanna do but why do you feel like so many sex workers get “defensive” i suppose when non sex workers (even if it’s someone who supports sex work), tries to talk about the flaws and dangers in the industry?

like i’ve always been pretty sex positive & think that sex/sexual freedom is a beautiful thing but im also not ignorant and im aware that there’s issues in that industry and i recently had an online interaction on instagram with a sex worker who absolutely LAID into me about me saying “nobody should tell women what to do and if a woman wants to do onlyfans and whatnot, that is absolutely her choice but, we should also acknowledge the women who are lower class in this field who struggle to pay their bills and who entered this field as a last resort & don’t want to do it forever.”

I truly didn’t think I said anything bad or negative and this girl (who was white, cis, and straight btw of course) proceeded to tell me to shut the fuck up, that i was “speaking on something i shouldn’t speak on”, and that i was a “swerf in disguise” (i am literally the furthest thing from i swerf, I’ve always been very sex positive lol). SWers always say “listen to all sex workers, not just the ones with bad stories or experiences” but, shouldn’t those be the voices we uplift the most? The women in this industry who are struggling, have dealt with constant toxicity and are having daily problems with this job? I do think sex workers need to be at the forefront on feminist conversations surrounding SW but that also means the voices of the women who are struggling to pay their rent and are always having bad experiences, not just the ones who are “more well off” who’s onlyfans cost $100 and who are able to pay all their bills off of one video or picture and just get to sit in the comfort of their homes and take explicit photos. Idk I’ve just always been kinda bothered by that, how when someone is who isn’t a sex worker says “I support you but your industry can be not so great sometimes” and some sex workers will just completely go off and snap on you. It’s like jeez okay…

Much of the pro-sex work discourse online is perpetuated by successful women in the trade who use their online presence to attract clients. They’re not going to bad mouth the industry or the buyers because it hurts their bottom line. It is in their material interest to promote a very specific perspective, one that is centered around them and the few privileged women like them.

They often protect this epistemic authority by wielding this politic of who’s “allowed” to speak and who’s not. Their motto is “listen to sex worker voices”, as if objective analysis of the industry is impossible and only they have the right and ability to discuss it. This is a pseudo-social justice way of silencing survivors/exited women, women currently in the trade who oppose full deregulation, and feminists/other radicals who conduct systematic material analyses. This becomes very clear when you observe the discourse; dissenting voices, even from those currently in the trade, are shut down and immediately labeled as “SWERFs”.

[bakershakers]

beautiful as the place i live and blessed am i to be able to live here, it is still horrible for a multitude of reasons, namely 3; weather, politics, and walkability.

firstly, yall can shout all you want about how florida has "the best weather" when we all know that isnt true. 80° days every month of the year, sweltering heat in the summers (which is essentially late april to early october) with 80% minimum humidity, and not to mention NOT TO MENTIONNNNNNN the hurricanes, the storm surges, the tornadoes, the hail. its undeniably awful, and idc what anyone has to say about it. "oh but you dont get snow!!" okay and??? i wish we did because its so damn hot. its not even meant to get this hot in florida, but tying into my next point:

our polticians dont even think climate change is real, hell our governor doesnt think that!! that is insane. genuinely insane. this past hurricane season was absolutely devastating especially for my community. you cant look at these two once in over a century events occurring happening in less than 2 weeks from eachother and say "thats normal," because it ISNT!! climate change is real regardless of what your pea brain thinks. thats not even the only thing wrong with florida politics. the governor hates on gay people for no reason. i wasnt made bisexual by my surroundings, by how i was raised. i was raised extremely conservative in a strict muslim household in a suburban community filled with republicans. i was not raised to acknowledge gay peoples' existence. and guess what, i turned out gay. you cannot look me in the face and tell me my community's turning children gay when i have first hand accounts of figuring it out myself. its insane that people believe that. i was born this way and you cant change that, and neither can our greedy politicians, mr i bought a $30k+ golf simulator illegally using taxpayer dollars, mr i wear heels in my boots to make myself look taller but then i also am actively trying to ban children from attending drag shows bc i feel like it, mr dont say gay in schools bc itll somehow turn our children gay, mr climate change doesnt exist meanwhile i live in one of the most affected states by it.

my third point, is walkability, which heavily heavily ties into politics. if you know me irl youll know how much i truly care about this. my representative is an idiot who thinks cars=freedom. how is forcing people to pay thousands a year just to fucking leave the house without dying, while also making it more likely for others without that privilege to die, freedom?? it isnt! its not freedom. cars were only ever meant to be luxury items. cars were never meant to be a main mode of transportation. sure, some communities in florida have amazing public transit and walkability, but spend even a day in florida outside any major downtown (like tampa, miami, orlando, etc) and youll quickly find out that where most floridians live, you cant live without a car. florida is extra bad with this, cars bring litter, noise, and air pollutants. add to this floridas extremely fragile ecosystems that we basically paved over with asphalt so 2 ton hunks of metal can get from point a to point b within 3 miles of eachother in 90% of trips.

anyways yeah, thats why i hate florida even though im blessed and privileged enough to live here. i do have to admit, our sunsets are gorgeous, and our beaches are very very nice. i love clearwater beach, has to be my fav ive been to in florida. our wildlife is also very unique and diverse, i love it!! i still would rather not live here.

[emersonfreepress]

You previously mentioned that we will be able to play as the child of immigrant parents. But how will you handle where the family comes from? Because let's be real: a kid whose parents come from Sweden or Germany won't get the same type of reactions as one whose family come from Mexico or Iran.

And that's even assuming the family are ethnically from those countries and not, say, people who went from one country to another to escape civil war or poverty or whatever, then came to the USA. Which is very detailed and nitpicking, I know, but I am very curious about this particular route.

Would it be right to assume MC's whose family have immigrant backgrounds would have it set, like how MC's family in non-immigrant route have certain set characteristics (upper middle class, how they came to their vices that caused current economic issues etc.)?

I haven't decided on exactly how I want to do it as far as accommodating backgrounds; as in, the choice scene isn't written or coded yet. But I really love what C.C. Hill @when-life-gives-you-lemons-if did in Insert Rich Family Name when it comes to customizing the family's background and plan to do something similar. (I highly recommend that game btw; and anything else CC writes tbh) Opening up a country of origin choice for immigrant MCs, however, means that I'm definitely reversing my decision to exclude skin tone customization. The game doesn't delve into things like colorism and or specific ethnic perspectives because I'm one person and just can't write all that 😅 but continent and country of origin will be a separate choice from things like appearance customization.

There are set characteristics of the second-gen MC's past but they don't differ wildly from the local background. Since the parents are characters with set personalities that I actually feature in scenes and dialogue, though, the immigrant backstory still needs to follow roughly the same beats as the local one. Your parents still lucked into money and spent it quickly and unwisely.

I know what you mean by the reactions that different migrant groups garner from people in real life, especially as the kid of African immigrants, but the setting I'm writing isn't like that. That's super unrealistic for a town like Emerson in real life — but it's a fiction and the story I'm telling isn't about facing or overcoming discrimination. If I was writing a version of Emerson that had a historical past actually typical of the United States, so many things, so many, would not exist as they are and I'd be writing a completely different story. The story I have written is just like... inappropriate honestly, for a setting like a realistic Emerson. I would not care to write about some high school kids at the prep school, I would much rather explore the politics and criminal underbelly of the adult world -- if I was writing this realistically.

To some degree, there are darker, more realistic aspects of Emerson as a setting (like blacklisting and what discrimination in Emerson even looks like) but that won't be explored until Book 2 because the MC will be an adult finally navigating life with the other adults. But this Book and this story are about the very insular perspective of a privileged kid from a weird fictional town. You could almost call a teenage MC an unreliable narrator, regardless of background, because they have lucked out in not experiencing much personal hardship. It doesn't mean my world doesn't acknowledge or have these things; literal case and points being Gabe and Kile. The MC is ignorant to a lot of what they haven't experienced and is written that way — and the characters who have had vastly different and harsher experiences also have their own limitations in perspective.

What you're describing just isn't what I'm exploring and xenophobia is not the sort of thing I'd want to inject half-assed for realism's sake or drop as some form of flavor text. I used to have a variable that let players choose if their last name gets frequently mispronounced because to me it's a funny thing that I relate to my immigrant experience. But I scrapped It because at the end of the day, it's just coding a micro-aggression that does literally nothing for the story or character development. Realistic discrimination doesn't enhance the story because I didn't create a story based in a realistic world. ...I think that sentence might sum it up, yeah.

I get that people don't have access to my notes or unpublished work and I don't presume that you know my background! But I'm confident I know what I'm doing with the option — and if it sucks, y'all better tell me (!!) and I'll have the whole rest of development to improve it.

[praisedbesophia]

im lightskin quarter latine whose greatgrandparents deliberately did not teach their son mexican culture or even to speak spanish hoping he would have better opportunities. then he and his daughter married very white europeans. i look white, culturally im white, but theres something missing in me, i feel lost and theres freedom and an overwhelming sense of place in the deserts of the southwest(my home already), the flow of the spanish tongue(estoy aprendiendo), the flavors of the cuisine, everything.

i feel a strong (though currently broken) connection to my ancestry and pull towards mexican culture, but im very concerned about appropriating or claiming something never meant for me. i knew i wasnt ready for any of the spirituality, but reading your blog made me realize it may never be available to me.

do you have any advice for a young person trying to reconnect with their ancestors' culture?

im still not even sure i can claim to be latine, or if even that much is inappropriate

Hi anon! I'm excited to hear that you're interested in reconnecting to Mexican and Latine culture. One thing I would recommend (and it seems you're already doing this considering you sent me an ask) is to reach out to and interact with people who were raised in the culture. Here on Tumblr it would mean not only following Mexicans and other Latines, but also reblogging our posts. And not just the "fun" ones. We absolutely do notice how whiteblr is quick to reblog pictures of Santa Muerte but ignore posts that discuss things like the absolute racism and vileness of "Mexican coquette", or the neocolonialism of Mexico and other Latin American countries

For example, I have mentioned in the past that non-Latine westerners have moved into Indigenous and rural Mexican communities and have either driven out the locals (many of whom whose families have lived in those same communities for literal centuries) or else have unofficially introduced segregation with the locals getting the short end of the stick. I am not exaggerating when I say that there are banks, restaurants, grocery stores, hotels, schools etc. in Mexico that will not serve Mexicans. These exist solely for (non-Latine white) western neocolonizers. Sadly but unsurprisingly, my posts and similar posts by other Mexicans have been all but ignored by whiteblr

Which brings me to another point. It is important that you acknowledge your whiteness and privileges it gives you. Understand that you will most likely be perceived as gringo by most Mexicans. In fact most Latines will likely perceive you as gringo. This isn't meant to discourage you; it is simply a fact. Even my dad and I who aren't remotely white passing by US standards have been perceived as gringos — which in Mexican culture typically refers to a non-Latine white USAmerican — by other Mexicans because we are light skinned USAmerican native English speakers

There are people who will tell you that you will never be able to claim Mexican culture. Ignore them. I have found that most of those people aren't even Mexican in the first place. Many aren't even Latines. And the ones that are often turn out to be xenophobic and white supremacist. Yes, the legal definition may say one thing, but the legal definition isn't the cultural definition. I have cousins who do not fit the legal definition of Mexican whatsover, yet they are still Mexican. They walk through this world as Mexicans. The only people to have ever told them that they're not Mexicans? I'm sure you can guess

Claiming Latine may be a little more complicated. There are many who believe that the term Latine should only apply to people raised in Latin America or who have a parent raised in Latin America. The Mexican definition of Latine is more relaxed, but even we would give dirty looks to someone with absolutely no connection to Mexico or Latin America whatsoever (beyond some distant unknown ancestor) claiming Latine

This is not out of xenophobia. Rather this is a response to racist and xenophobic attempts by non-Latine white westerners to redefine and claim Latine and Latin American for themselves within recent years after centuries of dehumanizing us and deeming our cultures inferior

Learning Spanish is of course a good idea. Becoming fluent isn't necessary — I'm not, and it was my first language as a small child — but you should learn enough to at least communicate in full sentences. Plus learning Spanish will allow you greater interaction with Latamblr. Many Latines on here write their posts mostly if not entirely in Spanish or Portuguese. Some do it because they don't know how to read or write in English. Others for other reasons

Do you know where your great grandparents were from? Mexican culture is rich and varied. Each state is its own traditions, cuisine, dress, dialects, music, etc. White rice (often cooked with butter) is a common part of the diet in Jalisco where my mother is from. Yet my paternal grandparents from Chihuahua had literally never even eaten white rice until one of their daughters married a Chinese man. And let's not forget Californio, Tejano, Nuevomexicano, Sonoran Chicano cultures. These cultures are often dismissed and degraded (even by other Mexicans) but they too are rich

I am also grateful for you admitting that you are not ready to engage with Mexican spirituality and may likely never be able to. However, should you choose to look into Mexican spirituality in the future, please keep this in mind: Mexican spirituality is heavily Catholic. Mexico is the second most Catholic country in Latin America (Brazil takes first place). More specifically, Mexican spirituality centers heavily around La Virgen de Guadalupe. In fact one of our most famous hymns is called La Guadalupana, and in that hymn is a verse that claims devotion to La Virgen de Guadalupe as essential to being Mexican

Many of us find it offensive and insulting when people attempt to separate Catholicism and devotion to Guadalupe from Mexican Spirituality. Even some Indigenous Mexicans have expressed finding this offensive and insulting because while it's true that most Indigenous Mexican religions and spiritual traditions predate the Catholic Church in Mexico, even many of those have been influenced and permanently altered by Catholicism

[ecargmura]

Paradox Live The Animation Episode 10 Review - What Extra Battle?

I am confused. I get that this is a BAE-focused, or rather an Allen-focused episode, but the way it was handled was so…weird? Like, I’m an anime-only watcher but I’m seriously wondering what just happened with this episode. I get why it’s titled ‘Lost’ because I am as lost as the plot is.

I’ll talk about the part I do understand, like the Allen portion with his father. His father is so toxic. I guess all that toxicity aged him so fast because look at him before Allen’s birth and him after. How did he age so fast when he’s Asian? I hate it when parents try to take control of their child’s life just because they were involved in the creation of the child. Mr. Sugasano, hip-hop is credible music! If Allen ran away, then he should just let him be! Why did he have to come back into his life now of all times? Does he know something about phantometals that he doesn’t? I get that Allen was trying to be rebellious and wanting to win Paradox Live just to have his father’s acknowledgement, but Allen learns that getting his approval was a futile attempt. Allen’s story with his parents was an emotional one, I admit.

The part with him telling Anne and Hajun that he cannot produce illusions was a bit confusing. Was he going through a trap reaction? I don’t get this part. I get that Allen is very susceptible to trap reactions as he did have bad reactions to them early on, but he’s usually seen as confident and a bit cocky, so why is he deteriorating now of all times? I get that it’s because of his father’s words about how his music is one that kills others is affecting him, but is it a trap reaction? Is he going to get metal corrosion? What is going on? The Allen I’ve seen throughout this show was a strong-willed guy who’s willing to help out people in times of need. I thought the one with the biggest issues in the group was Hajun, so why do we need to focus on Allen all of a sudden? Is it main character privilege or something? The way Allen’s all mopey makes him look a bit pathetic, even after all the confidence he oozed out in past episodes. Heck, it’s not even like him to back out of a fight. It just gives cozmez so much disrespect. Like, why hype up the extra battle when the other team forfeits by default? What was the point of the extra battle, then?

And the part with the ramen guy and the scientist guy was confusing too. I thought Shura and ramen guy were the same person? They have the same voice actor. Is Suwabe doing double roles? Since Buraikan showed up, it made me wonder where the other guy has been all this time. Is he an illusion? Does that mean he’s dead? WAIT! The metals are called Phantometals… DOES THAT MEAN YASHA IS A PHANTOM? DOES THAT MEAN NAYUTA IS ALSO A PHANTOM? If Ramen Guy and Shura are standing in two different places despite being the same person, does that mean the Shura on stage is a phantom produced by Ramen Guy? Since the Akira Ishida scientist guy placed that gold phantometal into that contraption, is that how Yasha is able to appear? Where is the real Yasha? My head hurts thinking about all of this.

Because BAE took up most of the time that the other groups had to squeeze in screen time. TCW gets some. Akan Yatsura was the opening act for the extra battle, but was that even needed? Cozmez, though… Nayuta’s words to Kanata about how Kanata needs to cherish himself more and how he needs to rely on him less feels very ominous. Nayuta is seriously one of the biggest mysteries of this show alongside Yasha. Just what are you, Nayuta?

All I can say is that I didn’t like this episode. It feels like it’s disrespecting cozmez for winning by default and BAE for having another depression episode that seems unwarranted. I feel like BAE got way too much screen time and cozmez, the other side of the extra battle didn’t get jack. There’s only like two or three more episodes left which means Anne is definitely NOT getting a focus episode and that’s a disservice to them. The next episode has bright yellow borders, so…that means Buraikan is getting focus since Akan Yatsura’s color is a dark yellow. I don’t know what’s going on. I’m super lost. What did you get from this episode? 

[nameforadragon]

I keep seeing posts being like "omg. The kids don't know how to use computer! They don't know how to use a mouse! They don't know what a command line is! They can't even use a browser. The kids don't know anything about technology if not app on phone:("

And idk dude like. I'm not gonna accuse these people of lying but I am gonna accuse them of being completely biased with absolutely no self reflection at all. You sound like your parents. Like holy shit. First of all, LOTS of us [aged<20] have had computer classes. "Computer lab" was a class all throughout primary school for me, and in grade 8 I had a required course where I learned some Python, had to use Adobe Photoshop, that kind of stuff. I know so many people who go further than that (including myself) and take elective coding classes. Now, it would be incredibly fucking biased of me to conclude that, because almost everyone I know is at the very least functional with a computer and can use a mouse, this means everyone is. Of course not. But thats what these posts do. "I only interact with children who don't know this, therefore no one under 20 knows anything and they're all stupid with their little tik toks" you have a very incomplete sample of kids at this age, and you barely acknowledge it.

Secondly, more on the self reflection bit. This is absolutely a privilege issue. Not a "the kids are so dumbb omggg" issue. Kids don't have computer classes? It's a privilege I was able to get that education. Should we mock people who didn't have music classes growing up and don't know the difference between a rhythm and a beat? If your answer to that is no, then maybe we shouldn't mock kids for not knowing the difference between a search engine and a browser. I know plenty of people bring up the issue to try and get at this, but I cant shake the undertone that all of these posts have in common, which is essentially this air of superiority, like people who grew up with desktop computer access are somehow better than people who didn't, which is just kind of terrible?? Like no joke, I've seen people complaining about uni students who don't really know the ins and outs of programming yet in undergrad and its like,,, did you just not want them to go to school because they didn't know that prior to post secondary? Like, what do you think school is for? Being perfect all the time and telling the teacher that you know everything already? I was under the impression that school was for acquiring knowledge and skills that you previously didnt have.

I also know people who are much older than me, and could have been coding all of their life, but didn't so much as touch a computer until after college, and they learned how to use it, and how to code, and now it's their career! You don't need to learn how computers work when you are five! I grew up scribbling on ms paint and being confused how solitaire worked, and struggling to comprehend minesweeper strategy on a very old version of Windows. I could functionally operate a mouse at the age of one, and that's all privilege. I'm not smarter, or better or more refined or anything, I was literally just born into a family that had desktop computers. And again, to point out the bias, I know way more adults that fit the whole "don't understand it if it's not an app on my phone" than kids.

Finally, a minor nitpick but I feel like it's warranted since the people authouring these posts often present themselves as being more knowledgeable about computers than the average teen? Don't go just saying incorrect bullshit. If you mean PC, say pc. If you mean a desktop computer, or a laptop, say that. Phones are not "fake computers" they just ARE computers. They are computers that have been engineered to be tiny. Their size does not mean they are not computers, it just means they are small. Furthermore, an "app" isn't a "thing u use on a phone." It's literally just the word application shortened. Anytime you use an application that you download on a laptop, or a pc or whatever, you are using an app. Your browser application is an app. I hate to tell you, but it must be said.

Sorry if anything I said in this is straight up wrong, I am not immune to hypocrisy, yadda yadda you know the deal. I also AM NOT an expert on computers, I have (what I, a teenager consider to be) a relatively baseline understanding of computers. And I'm writing this exhausted because I can't sleep. Admittedly on the mobile app, (which explains any typos) but I swear to you that I have a laptop and I use it more than I use my phone most days. I doubt anyone will really see this post but thanks for reading if you got this far I guess. Maybe let's just not fearmonger about "the kids these days" when we should be trying to help kids become functioning adults. I didn't get past my struggles with reading as a kid by being told that I was stupid, or getting mocked. I got past them by finding a book that I loved, and by being encouraged to read by adults who genuinely cared about my education. I really don't see how computers are different, that's all I have to say.