#2.1 million views

[uraandri]

these people really will just say whatever

[ironunderstands]

2.1 was so good holy shit (spoilers, obviously)

GOD THEY ATE AND IM SPECIFICALLY GONNA TALK ABOUT HOW WELL THEY WROTE RATIO IN THIS BECAUSE IM FOAMING AT THE GODDAMN MOUTH IT CHANGES HOW YOU VIEW EVERYTHING BUT IN A GOOD WAY.

so, let’s start from the beginning in 2.0 I want to walk you through my experience of it

ratio mean to aventurine, everyone gets mad. I feel weird about it, pre-2.1 I come to the conclusion that he got used as a plot device in that scene, since being racist contradicts his core motivations and the dialogue is awkward and has no real reason behind it, I chalk it up to bad writing but ultimately forgive it because 2.1 seems centered around Aventurine so they need setup for that

2.1 drops, my bsf plays the update throughout the night and we are losing our shit. He gets to the part where Ratio “betrays” Aventurine. I fucking lose it, I try to reconcile this with my preconceived notions of ratio, they don’t match up at all, his behavior that whole time doesn’t in the slightest. I am confused, I wonder if I have been wrong about him this whole time, if his whole speech on the Space Station and his character quests were some kind of fluke. I mean it could be in character? Knowledge of how a stellaron works could save millions if not billions of lives, invaluable information which Ratio would have trouble turning down because of its value. It still feels deeply wrong, Ratio isnt a backstabber, and he wouldn’t so easily bargain with Sunday over information he has no confirmation of (and could likely obtain in some other way).

The story continues, me and Haseeb (aforementioned best friend) are still pissed, I’m losing it because my favorite character just did something so unforgivable and out of character and I feel like a complete and utter idiot for interpreting a character to be a good person when they so clearly weren’t. Well, I (luckily) was so so so so so so so wrong about that, as it was all a setup, a plan devised by Aventurine to distract Sunday and forward their goals. I’ve never been happier, and suddenly every weird behavior, every “this doesn’t make sense” goes from “bad writing” to perhaps one of my favorite retroactive twists in fiction.

Ratio belittling Aventurine for his background doesn’t make any sense, I mean we literally saw the guy give a whole ass speech about how he believes all people deserve access to knowledge and that everyone is capable of being creative and having intellect, but that they just have to try for it, and if they are incapable of it, he DOCTOR Ratio is there to lend a helping hand. To cure the galaxy of stupidity, something which he views as not the lack of knowledge but rather the misuse and misinterpretation of it, how he depises the Genius Society because they mostly do not try and use their intellect from the betterment of other, and actively guide/encourage other scientists (and in Hertas case the researchers at the space station) to view knowledge as some sort of prize or commodity rather than tool. This notion is what causes Screwellum to acknowledge that Ratio is more like a medical doctor than a scholar. And this notion is something Sunday Isn’t Aware Of.

Sunday doesn’t know who Ratio really is, he may have heard of his various exploits, but Ratio has a reputation for arrogance, bluntness and insensitivity, something which Ratio plays up to the nines. The 2.0 scene with Aventurine goes from seemingly massively OOC for Ratio to him actively playing up his negative reputation to play into Sundays perceptions of the pair for their plan. Ratio->

a) makes it seem like Aventurine fucked up and he’s mad at him for losing the cornerstones, something which Sunday would see and go “hmm they don’t like each other

b) this “oh I can drive a wedge between them” notion gets worse (although in their case better) when Ratio brings up Aventurine’s (not entirely accurate) background. Sunday now thinks he has leverage over Aventurine and even more of a chance of getting Ratio to betray him. Ratio also makes it seem like he just learned this information by stating he “did his homework” and this supposed unfamiliarity with one another would give Sunday more confidence to try and drive a wedge between them

c) this makes it seem like the IPC are unaware of the Families constant surveillance, as it looks like they are having an important conversation in a private room, which would make Sunday think they are unaware of his eyes and ears everywhere

Now let me qualify this notion with more evidence because you could still try and argue that the deal Ratio and Aventurine struck was post 2.0 argument

Topaz (my glorious Queen). At the end of the 1.4 (or was it 1.5?) Belabog quest she has a conversation with Aventurine in which he requests for her help in Penacony, and we do not get a confirmation on if she said yes or not. Until 2.1, in which the the Topaz (and Jade) stone in in Aventurines possession, meaning she took him up on that offer prior to 2.0 because how else would he bring multiple cornerstones there, which we know there are many because Ratio says he lost the cornerstones, not just his own. Topaz would not give this item up easily or on a whim in between 2.0 and 2.1, meaning she would have to be let in on his plan prior, meaning the plan was formed prior. Since Ratio was also assigned to this mission keeping him in the dark would make negative sense and actively undermine their collaboration, something which he brings up in their fake argument

2. The Final Victory Lightcone. I originally thought this scene to be after their argument for complicated reasons, the most important of which being the minor snippet of conversation we see between Ratio and Aventurine during the first time we meet Acheron. Aventurine mentions 3 chips, Ratio doubts him, and the lightcone description starts with Aventurine questioning his doubt and firing three shots, a perfect correlation that made me place the order of events in that way. However, we get to see the snippet of conversation between Aventurine and Ratio in game, right before they meet Sunday, not prior to the lightcone events. However, they are still clearly connected for aforementioned reasons, just in a different manner, let me explain. Now we know the three chips reference not bullets but the three cornerstones, and Ratio openly expresses his doubt because the family is always watching (something which I will get into) and because a part of him does doubt this plan will go well. However, Aventurine prior reminds him of the events of the lightcone with the three chips. My interpretation is that Aventurine took that gamble in the lightcone to convince Ratio to go along with his crazy plan since if he can win a game of Russian Roulette with an unwavering smile on his face he an insane gamble means nothing to him (ratio doesn’t buy it because it’s ratio but the sheer audacity or you could say the “charming audacity” makes him go along with it). In my opinion this scene only makes sense pre-penacony, due to the timeline of events, which is why I believe it the reason for the events in it has to be Aventurine trying to convince Ratio to join in.

3) The family is always watching. During the 2.1 story quest it gets brought up several times in many different ways that it seems like the family has eyes on everything and everyone. Sunday’s fuckass bird is everywhere, and the man himself (minus being a goddamn biblically accurate angel) is covered in eye shaped shit and possesses close ties with the Harmony, which lends itself well to a character that knows things considering the Aeon itself is a conglomeration of many different perspectives. He fucking perception checks Aventurine, when the crew goes to look for info on firefly they learn the dream pools monitor people’s vitals and everything, even producing a dialogue option where the trailblazer states they feel like their every move is being watched. Topaz gets stalked by bloodhound members upon arrival, I could go on. TLDR Sunday knows almost everything that’s going on in Penacony, this is what leads him to believe the traitor is within the family, and his access to knowledge is something the IPC 100% knows about. I mean they have been presumably attempting to try and get it back for a while, and they would reasonably extensively try and learn everything about it. The Family notoriously hates negotiating with them so the IPC either learning and/or coming to the conclusion that the Family is watching their every move isn’t a ridiculous notion. If this conversation was genuine, if Ratio truly wanted to discuss this matter with Aventurine, why would he do it in a likely wiretapped, not very soundproof room where any passerby could hear Ratio loudly exclaim that Aventurine lost the very important cornerstones and that he is also one of the most despised groups in the galaxy because that would really do numbers for both their reputations. If you think about it, this not being staged is an incredibly stupid blunder on Ratio’s end (minus the deliberate OOCness) because of all the places Ratio could set up a very important meeting he does it in one of the worst places ever.

4) The dialogue in the scene. It’s awkward, it’s so awkward and the whole “also my family died I didn’t get an education” seemed so tacked on the first time I watched it. Knowing now, it seemed so tacked on because it was, Aventurine had to shove the info in there somewhere and their incredible conversational skills decided that was the best part in there. Ratio fucking leaving before Aventurine is even done talking goes from a “huh weird” to a “wow he is really playing up this arrogant scholar role”. And if Ratio is playing the arrogant scholar, Aventurine is playing the dumb, helpless, blonde to a T. Losing the cornerstones and acting nonchalant about it, letting Ratio insult him so callously and letting the insults slide, talking absolute nonsense at the end about random things that don’t matter, sadly lamenting into the distance that he’s alone again. Bro is playing it up and I live for it. They also and play up these personas in their little adventure prior to meeting Sunday, Aventurine asks stupid questions like wondering about the species of the bird that make up the statues and talking about how he wants to play in the sandpit and even insulting Sunday a bit, behavior that would make Sunday think him unprepared and unserious rather than cold and calculating. If Aventurine does that well, Ratio plays up his arrogant, uncaring scholar persona to the nines. He insults any and every decision or thing Aventurine does, loudly sighing of how happy he is to finally have some peace and quiet when Aventurine leaves his sight for 0.00008 milleseconds, pointing out his sarcasm, beefing with a random Pepeshi bodyguard no reason, pointing out his sarcasm, just the exaggerated way he talks in general, and suggesting he admit Aventurine into the Genius Society (even Ratio wouldn’t stoop so low as to suggest Aventurine was worthy of that).

Moreover, this is really, really tragic because I do think there are several moments of genuine banter and fun the two share “Ratio, you’re huge!” was not added to the script to enhance the plot guys. And obviously Aventurine knows most of Ratios behavior is acting, however he has such severe trust issues, and Ratio is so damn straightforward and blunt that he worries the man was serious about some of it which just breaks my heart. Soft Ratio please add it give me one conversation, the note at the end of 2.1 doesn’t count it’s too short.

Ultimately, knowing what I know now I can’t help but view the 2.0 conversation with Aventurine as being anything but staged, it simply makes no sense otherwise, and it happily obsolescent Ratio of his sins. This was a bit incoherent I honestly just wanted to rant (if you couldn’t tell haha) but I hope you enjoyed it regardless. I need sincere Ratio more then I need oxygen and I’m not afraid to say it.

[mariacallous]

Mormons!!?!?

https://www.rawstory.com/news/kamala-harris-mormons/

A group of Kamala Harris supporters convened in a virtual call Tuesday evening. It was an eclectic mix with attorneys, lawmakers, podcasters, singers and a mayor. There were, certainly, Democrats on the speaker lists, but also Republicans who have decided to step away from their party’s ticket this year.

What connected all of them? Their Latter-day Saint faith.

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may be a substantial force in presidential outcomes in deeply red Utah and battleground Arizona, according to speakers, including Mayor of Mesa, Arizona, John Giles, who is Republican, but is a vocal Harris supporter; former Democratic U.S. representative from Utah Ben McAdams; and Salt Lake City Democratic legislators Sen. Luz Escamilla and Rep. Brian King, the latter also being the Democratic gubernatorial nominee in Utah.

Data shows that Latter-day Saints are poised to support Harris “more than any other presidential Democratic ticket in 60 years,” said Jacob Rugh, an associate professor in the Department of Sociology at church-run Brigham Young University, during the call. He cited his research and past races that have moved the needle left in Utah and Maricopa County in Arizona.

“My geospatial analysis shows that areas heavy with LDS chapels in the east valley were most likely to flip blue (in 2020),” Rugh said on Tuesday. Nationwide, in 2020, 1 in 3 Latter-day Saint voters picked the Biden-Harris ticket, and the majority of the faith’s millennial and Gen Z voters chose the Democratic ticket, according to Rugh.

The 2020 Biden-Harris ticket performance in Utah “was the best of any Democratic ticket since 1964. Salt Lake County flipped blue in 2016 and, in 2020, voters did what others said was impossible by flipping four precincts blue in Provo,” Rugh said. He predicts they “will flip even more in 2024.”

There are 2.1 million members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Utah, according to data from the church. It’s the most prominent faith in Utah, which has historically voted red. There are also more than 442,800 members in Arizona.

About 1,400 people tuned into Tuesday’s call, a first from a group called Latter-day Saints for Harris-Walz, which on its social media boasted of as many as 2,600 registrants. The event came the same day Harris announced she had picked Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate.

The remarks from presenters, mostly from Utah and Arizona, were preceded by a prayer. Speakers also cited scripture as they spoke about the character of the Republican presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump, and to explain why, in their view, the most Latter-day Saint-aligned candidate is Harris.

Mostly, it was a discussion on how to organize to elect Harris. After all, Rob Taber, an organizer said, Latter-day Saints “from missions and ministering, (are) pretty good at reaching out to people and building bridges.”

However, Taber also advised those on the call not to use ward or stake membership lists when reaching out to people because that violates the church’s neutrality policy.

“But you can share on social media how you’re feeling. This actually does make a big difference,” Taber said.

‘Examine the character’

Ask Mesa Mayor John Giles why he decided to support a Democratic candidate and he may cite the arguments he made in an op-ed he wrote in Arizona Central criticizing Trump’s refusal to accept the outcome of the 2020 election and his disinvestment in cities like Mesa, and where he called on other Arizona Republicans to choose “country over party this election.”

But, he may also mention an admonition he heard at a Latter-day Saint church meeting that encouraged members to be good citizens, to participate in elections and to “examine the character of the candidates.”

“Man, I sincerely hope that we get that admonition this election season, because I think that would help our brothers and sisters to look with fresh eyes at this election,” Giles said on Tuesday.

Giles also cited the church’s stance on defending the U.S. Constitution and how different that perspective is from Trump’s view, he said.

Trump is “more than willing to compromise the rule of law and the United States Constitution to further his own gains,” Giles said. “I think that we have a particular mission as Latter-day Saints to step up and point those things out to our friends inside the church and outside as well.”

Some of the attendees, such as McAdams, said they vote Democrat “not in spite of our religion, but because of our religion,” arguing that “negativity, divisiveness, rage, political violence, discrimination and racism are not of God.”

Utah Senate Minority Leader Luz Escamilla said that, as she was preparing to teach Sunday School, it was clear to her that Trump may not be aligned with Latter-day Saint doctrine. She quoted Elder Dallin H. Oaks, first counselor in the church’s First Presidency.

“He said ‘knowing that we are all children of God, give us a divine vision of the worth of all others and the will and ability to rise above prejudice and racism.’ The current candidate for the Republican Party is literally working tirelessly to create prejudice and racism against Americans,” Escamilla said. “And that alone is a reason why all members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints should be supporting Vice President Harris for President of the United States in the 2024 election cycle.”

Utah gubernatorial candidate Rep. Brian King also praised Harris’ running mate, arguing that Walz fits into the model he likes to see in the country’s candidates and elected officials.

“He’s the kind of candidate that leaders of our faith have called for us to support, a person of integrity, compassion, with a commitment to service,” King said. “I’m so glad that Vice President Harris has revealed her own personality so clearly in her choice of running mate.”

[kermits-cup-of-tea]

youtube is all about the algorithm and something about watcher getting 2 million views and having 2.1 million subscribers is making me feel something

[sephirthoughts]

CLICKBAIT TITLE!

SLUTTY PICTURE!!!!

ok now listen

everyone is stupid sometimes

i am stupid a LOT of times

i have been stupid more times than many of you have been awake (that's purely based on number of years lived not because i am abnormally prone to stupidity although i suspect i might be)

what do i mean stupid? i mean like how we (humans and human-like organisms) get weirdly attached to certain ideas, and really emotionally invested in viewing things a certain way. since those things are personal and significant to us, the default i think is to feel frightened and attacked when that idea is contradicted by others or turns out to be different than we thought. a lot of us tend to dig in our heels and double-down on our wrong ideas, because having our beliefs challenged threatens our sense of self, which is Big Scary Existential Stuff.

but let me tell you the most freeing and mentally healthy thing in my life was when i learned to admit when i was stupid and just...change my mind. that's it. that's the secret they don't want you to know. you can just fucking CHANGE YOUR MIND. and no one can tell you not to!!

i think we all need to learn that changing our minds about things is ok. we are allowed to change our minds at any time, without shame, without apology, without regret. hell, you don't even need a REASON. you can change your whole-ass mind purely based on vibes. who's gonna stop you? the cops? those losers can't do shit about it your mind palace is sovereign territory.

if you have changed your mind, but someone points out how you used to think, don't sweat it. they missed the v 2.1 update and are working with outdated code. if someone tries to shame you for changing your mind, which seems to happen a lot on the internet for some reason, tell them people used to think the sun revolved around the earth and diseases were caused by evil miasma, but we got new information and updated our ideas.

changing your mind isn't a threat to your existence, it's proof that your brain is functioning as intended. we are an adaptable species! we invented air conditioning! and scuba diving! among other things of course but those are the most important ones.

the one thing you can't change is other people's minds. but they can! they might! they also might not! if they do, then accept the update and move on. if they don't, that's fine too unless they are running for political office and their bone-deep conviction that women being too saucy causes earthquakes will negatively impact a lot of other people (that was a thing that happened don't ask me about the early 2000s shit was wild).

i guess the point is that we learn and grow from realizing we're stupid and changing our minds. which is insanely cool. being dumb as hell but highly adaptable is the reason we're still around.

so if you have very loud opinions (like me) and i see you change your mind and be just as passionate (loud) in the opposite direction that is beautiful and will bring me so much joy.

if you think i am wrong about a thing and you engage in a respectful and good-faith way and that changes my mind, you win like a million coolguy points. the best part is that even if you don't change my mind, you still win the coolguy points because it's the engagement that matters.

if you are wrong about something and someone else engages you in a respectful and good-faith way that does or does not change YOUR mind, you both also win like a million coolguy points. it's a win-win-win (the third win is me in the background nodding approvingly cause i am so proud of you both don't spray me with the hose i wasn't being a creep this time)

anyway on the very slight chance anyone is still reading this, i hope it helped or at least made sense and was not a totally incoherent jumble of tangents.

also hit me up if you want to chat about fandom stuff or air conditioner or scuba diving or how fucking welcome-to-the-jungle shit got in the 2000s cause god damn. it was a time.

end of rambling run along back to your tik toks and k-pops

ok fine here's another slutty picture cause you stuck around

[eretzyisrael]

By TAMAR URIEL-BEERI, JACOB LAZNIK

The false report went viral on different media sources and social media

Despite being false, this report has been shared vigorously on posts throughout social media sources, including Reddit, Threads, X (formerly Twitter), and Facebook.

The report has also been posted on London-based Arab media source Middle East Eye, which has over 1.6 million followers on Instagram, as well as Turkish news website TRT World, which has 2.1 million followers.

On these various posts on different media sites, authors of the posts sharing this false report have also altered the original text to say that the officials were resigning over issues with the ongoing war in Gaza, with some posts "citing" personal objection to being 'implicit in genocide."

Some have also falsely reported, such as Al Jazeera, that IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari himself has resigned from his position. 

Al Jazeera has since retracted the statement. The original post that contained the false information has reached over 31 thousand views. 

[nic-coughlan]

They just released numbers of part 1 and currently it would be considered #9 on most watched Netflix shows but since it’s not the full season it doesn’t qualify yet. Which means that those numbers are only going to increase for part 2 so it couldn’t easily been in like top 5!!!

if part 1 can reach 2.1 billion minutes and 41 million views in just 4 days, season 3 is heading towards the most watched season of all time. it's already been predicted to be netflix royalty.

[reelaround-deactivated05312024]

influential hp media:

- those vids by il trono del muori

- that dramione fanedit from 15 years ago w 2.1 million views which was the first fanedit i ever saw

- potter fesso by gem boy (pt1, 2 and 3 snarry ending)

- my beautiful posts vaguing shit

and thats it

[beardedmrbean]

One of the leading daily Helsingin Sanomat's most widely read stories on Monday examined the problem of Finland's plummeting birth rate and shrinking pension funds.

Trade unions are currently negotiating pension reforms at the behest of Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP). Simultaneously, a working group led by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and the Ministry of Finance is also mulling pension reform. The report is due by the end of January 2025.

The reform is driven by Finland's low birth rate, which has fallen from 1.9 to below 1.3. Without immigration, a rate of 2.1 is needed to maintain the population. With the current birth rate, the reform is necessary to keep the pension system functional for younger generations, according to the HS report.

Negotiations aim to achieve an annual adjustment of around one billion euros and to ensure the stability of the agreed contribution level through some automatic mechanism. Options include raising contributions, cutting benefits or boosting birth rates and immigration.

Experts from the Finnish Centre for Pensions (ETK) have calculated that a shortfall caused by declining birth rates could be offset by increasing pension contributions by about one percentage point.

But if the decline in birth rates is not addressed in time, pension contributions would need to be increased by 2–3 percentage points in the future.

"Alternatively, the scale of the issue could be addressed by reducing pension benefits by about three percent," the CEO of ETK, Mikko Kautto, told HS.

Last spring, Kautto told business daily Kauppalehti that the pension system's financing situation could be balanced if annual net immigration were 30,000 people or the total fertility rate rose to 1.5–1.6.

Finland addressed rising life expectancy in its 2017 pension reform. The system links retirement age to life expectancy, with the minimum age currently at 64 years and 9 months, rising to 68–69 years for those born in 2000.

Criticism for plans to cut household tax credit

The government aims to save 100 million euros by tightening the conditions to receive tax credits for household expenses starting next year. The proposed changes have been opposed by multiple organisations, according to a report by Aamulehti.

The plan includes reducing the maximum deduction amount from 2,250 euros to 1,600 euros and lowering reimbursement rates from 40 percent to 35 percent. The out-of-pocket share would increase from 100 euros to 150 euros.

Finland's tax credit for household expenses provides deductions that allow individuals to claim a percentage of costs for services such as cleaning, childcare, nursing care and renovations performed in their homes.

Several organisations, including the Taxpayers' Association of Finland, the Federation of Finnish Enterprises, the Finnish Homeowners' Association and the Finnish Commerce Federation among others have opposed the move.

They argue that the cutbacks could drive the growth of the black market, negatively impact employment in the construction sector, lead people to delay necessary home repairs and make it harder for the elderly to manage in their homes.

However, the VATT Institute for Economic Research said household tax credit mostly benefits high-income households, costing around half a billion euros annually. They view the proposed reduction as a suitable measure for budget adjustments and suggest further cuts could be considered.

Study: Newspapers most trusted media

Tabloid Ilta-Sanomat reported on a recent study commissioned by the trade association News Media Finland (Uutismedian Liitto) that found newspapers to be the most trusted media across all age groups.

Nearly four out of five respondents considered printed or digital newspapers reliable. Television channels and their online services were trusted by three out of five respondents, while just over two out of five found radio channels and their websites trustworthy.

Social media, YouTubers, and blogs were trusted by only 1–5 percent of respondents.

The study also revealed that nearly 90 percent of respondents prioritise reliability as the most valued quality for news and current affairs media, followed by expertise and independence. Newspapers ranked high in all categories.

The survey, conducted in August by IRO Research, included 1,000 Finnish adults and has a margin of error of over three percentage points.

[docholligay]

Episode 2.1: Shauna

Hello! This is about up to Season 2, Episode 1 of Yellowjackets, and ONLY that of Yellowjackets. I have not seen beyond this spot, at all, and know NOTHING about this show. Please do not spoil it for me.  Things that are spoilery in nature, for me, include: saying things like  “Just wait!!” confirming or denying anything I put forward, outside information about the cast interviews or creator statements, leading questions like “Do you think “blank moment” means anything?” etc. Remember  that Y’ALL HAVE SEEN THE SHOW AND I HAVE NOT. This informs the way you  talk about things relating to the show. Just be really careful is all  I’m asking. Also: If there is LITERALLY any stance I  could take on this show or character that would make you upset, please  just fucking block the tag

If you WOULD like to discuss the show and my takes on it, the Discord is right here! I don’t go there, so it’s a great place to get every emotion out.

Please thank @sailorsunspot and @moonlight-frittata for backing this odd way of doing a liveblog, and remember my tip jar is always open

First off, this is a crackerjack episode in so many ways, but ESPECIALLY for Shauna. 

For once, i am dumbstruck. Shauna is such a delightfully fucked up little creature, both in the past and current day. 

So Jackie is haunting Shauna, but of course that’s ot true at all, Shauna is haunting Shauna. The Jackie in Shauna’s, we’ll call them hallucinations for lack of a really appropriate word in the English language, isn’t the real Jackie, the Jackie who lived and who we saw in the show. I think I pointed this out in the jackie’s birthday episode, when she appears to Shauna in her old bedroom. This is Shauna’s idea of what Jackie would say to her if she could. This Jackie in Shauna’s mind, if we look at the real Jackie we meet, is so much meaner, but particularly in a ore clever, more cutting, plain SMARTER way, because she’s actually Shauna. She’s an externalized view of Shauna’s guilt. 

Even the game, ‘Oh great, I’m my mother” but without a million dollars. She did become her mother, but without a million dollars! Shauna is nothing but self-fullfilling prophecy, she’s defeatist and resigned and this, I think is a problem that can’t be blamed on the crash. I think she might have ended up going to Jackie’s college and living in her pink and green dorm room and telling herself it just happened to her, it wasn’t really her fault. Maybe not. But Shauna was already inclined that way long before their plane fucking dropped out of the sky. But here, she has Jackie telling her, in a playful game way sure, but telling her, that all she can be is the sad mother she subtly resents. And Shauna will bind herself to that! She has to be what Jackie said she would be, she has to be what Jackie might have been, except of course…Jackie might have been happy having a husband and daughter and staying at home. She has to have jackie tell her what she thinks, in a way, she might deserve. 

Does Shauna know she’s doing this? I don’t think so. I think for all of her writing about herself, for all the ways that she documents, she’s not very fucking introspective. Even if she does have an inkling, she could never allow herself to admit it. Why did I run around with a younger man? Why did I stab him? Why did I sleep with Jeff in the first place? Why do I try to force the hand of everyone I love into hating me? Why did I EAT MY BEST FRIEND’S EAR? 

I think you could ask her all these questions, and she would just do that Shauna shaking her head throwing her hands up, “It just--just happened!” thing because I think she has no clue why she’s like this, and I think that bothers her, and I think her need to both write her life, and to keep it as a catalog, is an attempt to try and explain herself. But it doesn’t work. For all her efforts to remember and understand what happens to her in her life, she is so disconnected from her own mind, that she sees everything as happening to her rather than anything that she had even the smallest hand in. I hate it, it’s perfect, I want to beat the shit out of Shauna all the time. 

“But Doc, Doc what about Shauna’s homoerotic fixation with Jackie? What about her literally consuming her in order to ensure Jackie remains a part of her?” This is going to sound strange but it’s the sort of thing that’s so obvious to me that it barely feels worth mentioning, it feels worth mentioning in the same way that a human being would mention that A Christmas Carol has English people in it. Thank you for your incredibly obvious contribution. 

But I think my favorite thing about her eating the ear is that while it is, of course grotesque, and takes you aback, it doesn’t feel SHOCKING. Like, while I was looking at Shauna with my eyes wide, the words, ‘I can’t believe she fucking did that” never crossed my lips, because of COURSE she would do that. It makes complete sense. What the fuck else was she ever going to do? It was a scream of realization, not surprise. 

What did surprise me, in a positive way, is that we’ve focused a lot, or at least that’s been a lot of my focus, on cannibalism as predation, and as becoming the hunter. BUt here we have this really interesting space for this idea of cannibalism as devotion, and as desire, and I’m not sure if they are intending to go anywhere with that, but in the framing of this action, it is so obvious that Shauna is not acting out of hunger, but out of emotion. And I’m not sure I expected that. Really like it. 

But it’s so much the same with Adam as it is with Jackie, as it is with everything. She can’t let go of him, she is holding on to these things that are not only unhelpful to her, but actively harmful. She is hurting herself by the way she chains herself to her past, to remind herself of not only that it was real, but in the sort of way where she needs to see a listing of her sins. To remind herself of why she’s being punished, and every bad thing that has ever happened to her. 

Speaking of externalizations of Shauna’s judgment, Callie sure is a piece of work, huh? She’ll never ever be satisfied with anything her mother does. Not that I think she should back the play of her mother killing her lover, but it wouldn’t have mattered if she told Jeff about the affair or not, it would have been wrong in any case. Callie is the second coming of jackie, but with all of Shauna’s cruelty. 

Neither Callie nor Shauna actually deserve Jeff, just as an aside. The whole scene with Jeff fucking Shauna on the drawings Adam did of her, of him staring at that art while he’s having sex with this woman he loves. And she tells him she always thought the idea of him with someone else was a little hot, but he, I don’t think, thinks that. He doesn’t think the idea of Shauna with someone else is hot. His fantasy was of someone returning and armoire and finding that fucking hot. He is so vanilla and straight-up, and Shauna is not. And, by the way, Shauna’s fucking lying here, she was never turned on by this idea. She’s playacting out as per her therapist, because she has to rescue this moment, she has to keep jeff near her. This is why while it’s happening she is staring at a picture of herself with her face half eaten away. When she brushes away the painting Adam made with turpentine, she’s scrubbing away the first time she felt seen as herself, seen as a woman, not seen as Shauna the victim, Shauna the wife, Shauna the mother.

[fallinginreversefanblog]

Falling In Reverse "Prequel" music video reached 2.1 MILLION VIEWS ❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥 in 3 days! Congratulations Ronnie Radke ❤️❤️❤️ You deserve it so damn much!

WATCH music video HERE

[mr-system-of-a-downer]

who are either of these people dawg. this video has 2.1 million views btw

[escinsight]

Why Finland Broadcasts UMK In Ten Different Languages

Why Finland Broadcasts UMK In Ten Different Languages. With Finnish Eurovision selection UMK 2024 broadcasting in a record ten languages, Ben Robertson speaks to producer Anssi Autio to learn how and why the Finnish broadcaster commits such time and energy into their multilingual broadcasting at the Song Contest. 

Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu has grown in popularity tremendously in recent years. The 2019 edition saw just one artist perform three different potential Eurovision songs, and 358,000 viewers tuned in. Following on from that we see a great rise in viewing figures, which jumped to 885,000 in 2020 followed by an epic 1.7 million in 2021, 1.9 million in 2022 and now a record breaking 2.1 million for the…

[torchickentacos]

This youtube video has done more for American youth than the last six presidents have. The font of choice being papyrus. The unapologetic and consistent rainbow filter. The song that it's applied to. The fact that the channel has less than 1k subs and four other videos, three of which have under 500 views as opposed to the 2.1 million on this one. The way I listened to this video on the bus ride to middle school in the morning with those earbuds that only worked when held at a hella specific angle. THE PUNCTUATION??????????????????? Actual fucking cinema condensed into 2 minutes and 52 seconds.

[nickgerlich]

Baby, Baby

Ours is a consumption-driven economy. About 70% of our GDP is accounted for by the things we buy. As long as we keep buying everything should be fine, right?

Well, it would be nice if it worked out that way, but all is not well in the world’s largest economies. Among the 38 member countries in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the birth rate is now just 1.5 children per woman, which is down from 3.3 in 1960. Given that each woman needs to have, on average, 2.1 children for us to statistically replace ourselves as a population, we’re in for problems in the years ahead.And the implications for marketers are huge.

While these stats are for only those 38 nations, there is another forecast. By 2064, if trends continue, the global death rate will surpass the global birth rate. If you were worried about the population explosion in the last 125 years, from 1.6 billion in 1900 to about 8 billion today, your worries may very well be allayed.

The effects will be felt up and down the economy. Fewer infant cribs, clothes, formula, and everything else that the little ones need will decline. This ripples through the entirety of life then, with fewer people simply consuming fewer products.

If you have noticed your local school district shrinking, this is among the possible causes. In academia, we are bracing ourselves for a demographic cliff in a couple of years, because it was around 2010 that US births dipped below 4 million a year. Now that those kids are nearing college age, the shrinking pool of possible applicants has universities nervous.

It also means that the costs of social safety nets will fall increasingly on the young, because those systems are set up to tax people while they are working, all the while paying out benefits to the retired. It is by design a bankrupt system, but when the ratio of people of working age to retirees slips from 6:1 to 2:1, there are going to be problems. That is predicted to happen in 2035, five years after I plan to start drawing on my Social Security. And I am not going to take a reduction in benefits sitting down.

The world’s most prosperous countries, though, are still able to post population increases, by virtue of immigration. For example, in the US last year, births outnumbered deaths by 3,591,328 to 2,854,838, or about 737,000. But 878,000 people also immigrated, producing a net growth of 1.6 million.

Pheeewwwww. But we’re not out of the woods yet, and may never be, unless we start having bigger families.

Which, of course, raises the $64,000 question: Why aren’t women having more babies? It’s complicated. A combination of expenses, lifestyle, delayed marriage (or none at all), economic uncertainties, and workforce participation are conspiring to change our economy.

For example, female workforce participation in the US was only 34% in 1950. It rose to 38% in 1960, followed by 43% in 1970, 52% in 1980, 58% in 1990, and 60% in 2000. While it has dipped since that peak in 2000, it now stands at 57.3%. I am pretty sure that all the expenses of working outside the home, such as transportation, wardrobe, meals, and so forth, outweigh the expenses of raising a child.

When viewed from a safe distance, the dip in fertility is alarming, but I am not sure how to solve it. Societal changes that allowed women to enter the workforce have produced great gains in equality, although we still have a way to go. To send women back to the home to be Moms and homemakers doesn’t seem like a whole lot of progress, one particular sage footballer’s comments notwithstanding.

And the 38 member nations of the OECD can only continue to grow by virtue of immigration for so long, because those developing nations are also starting down the slippery slope of low fertility. We have effectively been outsourcing births, but that is not a sustainable model.

While we still have time on our side to make a correction, we can also watch other nations in far more dire straits to see how they handle the problem. Japan, for example, now has a birth rate of only 1.2 children per woman. They face a cataclysmic effect if this does not change soon.

Meanwhile, the marketer in me is also watching how companies adapt to the new dynamics. Our numbers are safe for a little while, as long as we seniors live healthily, but we will eventually die, leaving our heirs—an increasingly smaller cohort—to pick up the pieces.

And since I suspect all of my students, even graduate students, are many years younger than me, it means the burden is falling upon you.

Dr “It’s Not Looking Good” Gerlich

Audio Blog

[tomorrowxtogether]

Tomorrow X Together Is Living the Daydream

The K-pop group on their latest EP, showing a new side of themselves and why there’s “no set definition of masculinity.”

Through the right camera lens, youth is often portrayed as a dreamworld—smooth at the edges and achingly gentle, like a garden in bloom. It's an illusion the K-pop group Tomorrow X Together knows well. Since their debut in 2019, the boy band often referred to as TXT has become a voice for their generation, deftly confronting volatile coming-of-age feelings and adolescent malaise in their own foreboding, whimsical way. From heartbreak to loneliness, they've laid their vulnerabilities bare across a body of work that spans two albums and five EPs. Their latest, The Name Chapter: Temptation, finds the K-pop quintet lost in their very own Neverland, where the most beautiful flowers are the most dangerous.

There's a hazy ambience to the group's visual imagery that's especially present in this depiction of Neverland. In early concept photos for Temptation, the group’s five members Soobin, Yeonjun, Beomgyu, Taehyun, and Hueningkai—who range in age from 20 to 23 years old—idly wander barefoot around a lush forest in billowy textiles. Open vests and loose cardigans fall off their shoulders, exposing skin dusted with glitter. It's a delicate expression of masculinity, tender and pliable. As harsher sounds and darker aesthetics continue to dictate trends among today's boy groups, Tomorrow X Together eschews impenetrable bravado for radical sensitivity—painting a portrait of boyhood that's both beautiful and anguished, where daydreams and nightmares swirl on canvas. It's one of the reasons why their global popularity has boomed following an electrifying Lollapalooza set last summer.

With over 2.1 million stock pre-orders recorded, The Name Chapter: Temptation is on track to become their highest-selling album yet, and there's already a U.S. arena tour in the works. Ahead of its release on January 27, I caught up with TXT over Zoom, where they joined the video call from a studio in Seoul late in the evening. Even amidst a hectic day of press, their restless energy was palpable as they fired off inside jokes and swapped teasing glances. Below, we discuss the visual themes of the album, their favorite photoshoots, and why there's no "set definition" of masculinity they feel the need to follow.

As Tomorrow X Together, you've explored various visual themes. You were ice princes in The Chaos Chapter: Freeze and then wrapped in leather from head to toe for Minisode 2: Thursday's Child. Do you have a favorite concept?

Soobin: I liked the concept of our debut album. I didn't like it much at the time, but looking back now I like it, because we could only do it at that age and level of experience.

Beomgyu: I liked The Chaos Chapter: Freeze the best. I also had long hair back then, and I think that's why I feel more affectionate toward it now.

Taehyun: I personally like Freeze as well. It was new. I remember the idea was for each of us to express the point of view of a lover. I have never been someone's lover before, so it was something new and interesting for me.

So it was an acting challenge.

Taehyun: Unfortunately.

Is there one look or concept that you think defines Tomorrow X Together?

Taehyun: Without a doubt, to define our concept in one word, it would have to be "youth." The stories we want to share are about the experiences that our generation faces as we grow up.

Your latest album, which is very much inspired by Peter Pan, has four different visual versions: Daydream, Nightmare, Farewell and Lullaby. Each has its own unique visual aesthetic and accompanying cover, photocard and photobook. What inspired some of these visuals?

Yeonjun: I think it'll be best to explain this using our photos. The concept for this album is "temptation." In the Daydream photos, we wanted to illustrate an image of someone forgetting about their dream and falling into temptation. In Nightmare, we're depicting a beautiful and fantastic nightmare as sugar, something sweet and colorful. In Farewell, we wanted to show the journey of leaving this Neverland of temptation to move to another star. It's like us coming back to reality after overcoming these temptations. On the other hand, in Lullaby, we play the role of Peter Pan, and we become the temptation.

I'm glad you mentioned Daydream because I think your fans were most surprised by those photos. They're really stunning. Did you anticipate that reaction?

Taehyun: I personally think it was a very bold attempt, so I was looking forward to seeing the results. At the same time, I was worried that fans would feel kind of unfamiliar with this new side of us and indifferent towards it, but I'm really, really grateful that everyone loved it so much.

Can you put that new side into words?

Taehyun: It's new in both sound and theme. We’d like to describe our single "Sugar Rush Ride" as fresh, dreamy, and sexy at the same time. The new choreography also really elevates the song.

Is there a member you think fits that concept the best?

Beomgyu: I think everyone fits it well, but I think I did it best.

Soobin: I agree. Everyone fits well, but if I had to choose one member it would be Soobin.

Yeonjun: I personally think Soobin fit Daydream the best.

Soobin: Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Yeonjun: Because he has a fair complexion, and also he bleached his hair this time, so it all came together quite well with the naturalistic background and the sunshine shining down on him. He reminded me of Edward from Twilight.

Soobin: "Edward Soobin." Yes.

Yeonjun: Oh my God.

When I look at those photos I see a really soft, gentle expression of masculinity. Has being an idol changed your idea of masculinity at all?

Taehyun: I don't think that there is a set definition of masculinity that we have to follow. It just happened to be that for this shoot, we were thinking about how we can best depict one's fall into temptation in the most beautiful way possible and how the photos can be taken in the most beautiful way. So I think the softness is a result of this thinking process.

Do you feel like your visuals are part of what makes Tomorrow X Together stand out?

Hueningkai: I don’t think that enjoying music is just an auditory experience. There are ways to expand that experience through movements and choreography, costumes, or through sets and lighting which our tour team puts a lot of hard work into. We want our listeners to have the full Tomorrow X Together experience, so visual imagery is also important to us in that regard.

Among the different shoots for the album, which did you like the most?

Soobin: I personally like Daydream because although we expressed Neverland as a place we need to leave in our album, I think that when most people hear the word Neverland they imagine a place that is beautiful and filled with happiness. Daydream was really beautiful, and I think it would look like this if it was to exist. It was so close to the Neverland I had imagined.

Beomgyu: For me, Farewell resonated with me the most. You know how the photoshoot was based on the idea of someone about to leave something behind? During the photoshoot, I had to think of someone with happy memories while they were at this place, the anxious feelings they experience during, and the emptiness you feel when it's time to leave.

Taehyun: I choose Farewell as well. I think the members did a great job expressing the ambition to overcome temptation even just with their gaze.

What's a temptation you're struggling to overcome these days?

Yeonjun: Delicious food, always. Right now it's ramen.

Taehyun: For me, the greatest temptation is the temptation that pulls me back into bed every morning.

Beomgyu: For me, I think it's vacation. It's tempting me even right now. I am working hard each day, looking forward to that day we go on vacation.

Hueningkai: For me, it's the person inside the mirror, myself, that tempts me the most.

Yeonjun: Oh my God.

Soobin: Are you sure it's not the temptation to break the mirror? I think [our fans] MOA are my greatest temptation. I can't live without MOA.

Beomgyu: Of course, me too! You had the same thought as me!