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mariacallous · 6 months ago

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“Don’t mention the word ‘liberalism,’ ” the talk-show host says to the guy who’s written a book on it. “Liberalism,” he explains, might mean Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama to his suspicious audience, alienating more people than it invites. Talk instead about “liberal democracy,” a more expansive term that includes John McCain and Ronald Reagan. When you cross the border to Canada, you are allowed to say “liberalism” but are asked never to praise “liberals,” since that means implicitly endorsing the ruling Trudeau government and the long-dominant Liberal Party. In England, you are warned off both words, since “liberals” suggests the membership of a quaintly failed political party and “liberalism” its dated program. In France, of course, the vagaries of language have made “liberalism” mean free-market fervor, doomed from the start in that country, while what we call liberalism is more hygienically referred to as “republicanism.” Say that.

Liberalism is, truly, the love that dare not speak its name. Liberal thinkers hardly improve matters, since the first thing they will say is that the thing called “liberalism” is not actually a thing. This discouraging reflection is, to be sure, usually followed by an explanation: liberalism is a practice, a set of institutions, a tradition, a temperament, even. A clear contrast can be made with its ideological competitors: both Marxism and Catholicism, for instance, have more or less explicable rules—call them, nonpejoratively, dogmas. You can’t really be a Marxist without believing that a revolution against the existing capitalist order would be a good thing, and that parliamentary government is something of a bourgeois trick played on the working class. You can’t really be a Catholic without believing that a crisis point in cosmic history came two millennia ago in the Middle East, when a dissident rabbi was crucified and mysteriously revived. You can push either of these beliefs to the edge of metaphor—maybe the rabbi was only believed to be resurrected, and the inner experience of that epiphany is what counts; maybe the revolution will take place peacefully within a parliament and without Molotov cocktails—but you can’t really discard them. Liberalism, on the other hand, can include both faith in free markets and skepticism of free markets, an embrace of social democracy and a rejection of its statism. Its greatest figure, the nineteenth-century British philosopher and parliamentarian John Stuart Mill, was a socialist but also the author of “On Liberty,” which is (to the leftist imagination, at least) a suspiciously libertarian manifesto.

Whatever liberalism is, we’re regularly assured that it’s dying—in need of those shock paddles they regularly take out in TV medical dramas. (“C’mon! Breathe, damn it! Breathe! ”) As on television, this is not guaranteed to work. (“We’ve lost him, Holly. Damn it, we’ve lost him.”) Later this year, a certain demagogue who hates all these terms—liberals, liberalism, liberal democracy—might be lifted to power again. So what is to be done? New books on the liberal crisis tend to divide into three kinds: the professional, the professorial, and the polemical—books by those with practical experience; books by academics, outlining, sometimes in dreamily abstract form, a reformed liberal democracy; and then a few wishing the whole damn thing over, and well rid of it.

The professional books tend to come from people whose lives have been spent as pundits and as advisers to politicians. Robert Kagan, a Brookings fellow and a former State Department maven who has made the brave journey from neoconservatism to resolute anti-Trumpism, has a new book on the subject, “Rebellion: How Antiliberalism Is Tearing America Apart—Again” (Knopf). Kagan’s is a particular type of book—I have written one myself—that makes the case for liberalism mostly to other liberals, by trying to remind readers of what they have and what they stand to lose. For Kagan, that “again” in the title is the crucial word; instead of seeing Trumpism as a new danger, he recapitulates the long history of anti-liberalism in the U.S., characterizing the current crisis as an especially foul wave rising from otherwise predictable currents. Since the founding of the secular-liberal Republic—secular at least in declining to pick one faith over another as official, liberal at least in its faith in individualism—anti-liberal elements have been at war with it. Kagan details, mordantly, the anti-liberalism that emerged during and after the Civil War, a strain that, just as much as today’s version, insisted on a “Christian commonwealth” founded essentially on wounded white working-class pride.

The relevance of such books may be manifest, but their contemplative depth is, of necessity, limited. Not to worry. Two welcomely ambitious and professorial books are joining them: “Liberalism as a Way of Life” (Princeton), by Alexandre Lefebvre, who teaches politics and philosophy at the University of Sydney, and “Free and Equal: A Manifesto for a Just Society” (Knopf), by Daniel Chandler, an economist and a philosopher at the London School of Economics.

The two take slightly different tacks. Chandler emphasizes programs of reform, and toys with the many bells and whistles on the liberal busy box: he’s inclined to try more random advancements, like elevating ordinary people into temporary power, on an Athenian model that’s now restricted to jury service. But, on the whole, his is a sanely conventional vision of a state reformed in the direction of ever greater fairness and equity, one able to curb the excesses of capitalism and to accommodate the demands of diversity.

The program that Chandler recommends to save liberalism essentially represents the politics of the leftier edge of the British Labour Party—which historically has been unpopular with the very people he wants to appeal to, gaining power only after exhaustion with Tory governments. In the classic Fabian manner, though, Chandler tends to breeze past some formidable practical problems. While advocating for more aggressive government intervention in the market, he admits equably that there may be problems with state ownership of industry and infrastructure. Yet the problem with state ownership is not a theoretical one: Margaret Thatcher became Prime Minister because of the widely felt failures of state ownership in the nineteen-seventies. The overreaction to those failures may have been destructive, but it was certainly democratic, and Tony Blair’s much criticized temporizing began in this recognition. Chandler is essentially arguing for an updated version of the social-democratic status quo—no bad place to be but not exactly a new place, either.

Lefebvre, on the other hand, wants to write about liberalism chiefly as a cultural phenomenon—as the water we swim in without knowing that it’s wet—and his book is packed, in the tradition of William James, with racy anecdotes and pop-culture references. He finds more truths about contemporary liberals in the earnest figures of the comedy series “Parks and Recreation” than in the words of any professional pundit. A lot of this is fun, and none of it is frivolous.

Yet, given that we may be months away from the greatest crisis the liberal state has known since the Civil War, both books seem curiously calm. Lefebvre suggests that liberalism may be passing away, but he doesn’t seem especially perturbed by the prospect, and at his book’s climax he recommends a permanent stance of “reflective equilibrium” as an antidote to all anxiety, a stance that seems not unlike Richard Rorty’s idea of irony—cultivating an ability both to hold to a position and to recognize its provisionality. “Reflective equilibrium trains us to see weakness and difference in ourselves,” Lefebvre writes, and to see “how singular each of us is in that any equilibrium we reach will be specific to us as individuals and our constellation of considered judgments.” However excellent as a spiritual exercise, a posture of reflective equilibrium seems scarcely more likely to get us through 2024 than smoking weed all day, though that, too, can certainly be calming in a crisis.

Both professors, significantly, are passionate evangelists for the great American philosopher John Rawls, and both books use Rawls as their fount of wisdom about the ideal liberal arrangement. Indeed, the dust-jacket sell line of Chandler’s book is a distillation of Rawls: “Imagine: You are designing a society, but you don’t know who you’ll be within it—rich or poor, man or woman, gay or straight. What would you want that society to look like?” Lefebvre’s “reflective equilibrium” is borrowed from Rawls, too. Rawls’s classic “A Theory of Justice” (1971) was a theory about fairness, which revolved around the “liberty principle” (you’re entitled to the basic liberties you’d get from a scheme in which everyone got those same liberties) and the “difference principle” (any inequalities must benefit the worst off). The emphasis on “justice as fairness” presses both professors to stress equality; it’s not “A Theory of Liberty,” after all. “Free and equal” is not the same as “free and fair,” and the difference is where most of the arguing happens among people committed to a liberal society.

Indeed, readers may feel that the work of reconciling Rawls’s very abstract consideration of ideal justice and community with actual experience is more daunting than these books, written by professional philosophers who swim in this water, make it out to be. A confidence that our problems can be managed with the right adjustments to the right model helps explain why the tone of both books—richly erudite and thoughtful—is, for all their implication of crisis, so contemplative and even-humored. No doubt it is a good idea to tell people to keep cool in a fire, but that does not make the fire cooler.

Rawls devised one of the most powerful of all thought experiments: the idea of the “veil of ignorance,” behind which we must imagine the society we would want to live in without knowing which role in that society’s hierarchy we would occupy. Simple as it is, it has ever-arresting force, making it clear that, behind this veil, rational and self-interested people would never design a society like that of, say, the slave states of the American South, given that, dropped into it at random, they could very well be enslaved. It also suggests that Norway might be a fairly just place, because a person would almost certainly land in a comfortable and secure middle-class life, however boringly Norwegian.

Still, thought experiments may not translate well to the real world. Einstein’s similarly epoch-altering account of what it would be like to travel on a beam of light, and how it would affect the hands on one’s watch, is profound for what it reveals about the nature of time. Yet it isn’t much of a guide to setting the timer on the coffeemaker in the kitchen so that the pot will fill in time for breakfast. Actual politics is much more like setting the timer on the coffeemaker than like riding on a beam of light. Breakfast is part of the cosmos, but studying the cosmos won’t cook breakfast. It’s telling that in neither of these Rawlsian books is there any real study of the life and the working method of an actual, functioning liberal politician. No F.D.R. or Clement Attlee, Pierre Mendès France or François Mitterrand (a socialist who was such a master of coalition politics that he effectively killed off the French Communist Party). Not to mention Tony Blair or Joe Biden or Barack Obama. Biden’s name appears once in Chandler’s index; Obama’s, though he gets a passing mention, not at all.

The reason is that theirs are not ideal stories about the unimpeded pursuit of freedom and fairness but necessarily contingent tales of adjustments and amendments—compromised stories, in every sense. Both philosophers would, I think, accept this truth in principle, yet neither is drawn to it from the heart. Still, this is how the good work of governing gets done, by those who accept the weight of the world as they act to lighten it. Obama’s history—including the feints back and forth on national health insurance, which ended, amid all the compromises, with the closest thing America has had to a just health-care system—is uninspiring to the idealizing mind. But these compromises were not a result of neglecting to analyze the idea of justice adequately; they were the result of the pluralism of an open society marked by disagreement on fundamental values. The troubles of current American politics do not arise from a failure on the part of people in Ohio to have read Rawls; they are the consequence of the truth that, even if everybody in Ohio read Rawls, not everybody would agree with him.

Ideals can shape the real world. In some ultimate sense, Biden, like F.D.R. before him, has tried to build the sort of society we might design from behind the veil of ignorance—but, also like F.D.R., he has had to do so empirically, and often through tactics overloaded with contradictions. If your thought experiment is premised on a group of free and equal planners, it may not tell you what you need to know about a society marred by entrenched hierarchies. Ask Biden if he wants a free and fair society and he would say that he does. But Thatcher would have said so, too, and just as passionately. Oscillation of power and points of view within that common framework are what makes liberal democracies liberal. It has less to do with the ideally just plan than with the guarantee of the right to talk back to the planner. That is the great breakthrough in human affairs, as much as the far older search for social justice. Plato’s rulers wanted social justice, of a kind; what they didn’t want was back talk.

Both philosophers also seem to accept, at least by implication, the familiar idea that there is a natural tension between two aspects of the liberal project. One is the desire for social justice, the other the practice of individual freedom. Wanting to speak our minds is very different from wanting to feed our neighbors. An egalitarian society might seem inherently limited in liberty, while one that emphasizes individual rights might seem limited in its capacity for social fairness.

Yet the evidence suggests the opposite. Show me a society in which people are able to curse the king and I will show you a society more broadly equal than the one next door, if only because the ability to curse the king will make the king more likely to spread the royal wealth, for fear of the cursing. The rights of sexual minorities are uniquely protected in Western liberal democracies, but this gain in social equality is the result of a history of protected expression that allowed gay experience to be articulated and “normalized,” in high and popular culture. We want to live on common streets, not in fortified castles. It isn’t a paradox that John Stuart Mill and his partner, Harriet Taylor, threw themselves into both “On Liberty,” a testament to individual freedom, and “The Subjection of Women,” a program for social justice and mass emancipation through group action. The habit of seeking happiness for one through the fulfillment of many others was part of the habit of their liberalism. Mill wanted to be happy, and he couldn’t be if Taylor wasn’t.

Liberals are at a disadvantage when it comes to authoritarians, because liberals are committed to procedures and institutions, and persist in that commitment even when those things falter and let them down. The asymmetry between the Trumpite assault on the judiciary and Biden’s reluctance even to consider enlarging the Supreme Court is typical. Trumpites can and will say anything on earth about judges; liberals are far more reticent, since they don’t want to undermine the institutions that give reality to their ideals.

Where Kagan, Lefebvre, and Chandler are all more or less sympathetic to the liberal “project,” the British political philosopher John Gray deplores it, and his recent book, “The New Leviathans: Thoughts After Liberalism” (Farrar, Straus & Giroux), is one long complaint. Gray is one of those leftists so repelled by the follies of the progressive party of the moment—to borrow a phrase of Orwell’s about Jonathan Swift—that, in a familiar horseshoe pattern, he has become hard to distinguish from a reactionary. He insists that liberalism is a product of Christianity (being in thrall to the notion of the world’s perfectibility) and that it has culminated in what he calls “hyper-liberalism,” which would emancipate individuals from history and historically shaped identities. Gray hates all things “woke”—a word that he seems to know secondhand from news reports about American universities. If “woke” points to anything except the rage of those who use it, however, it is a discourse directed against liberalism—Ibram X. Kendi is no ally of Bayard Rustin, nor Judith Butler of John Stuart Mill. So it is hard to see it as an expression of the same trends, any more than Trump is a product of Burke’s conservative philosophy, despite strenuous efforts on the progressive side to make it seem so.

Gray’s views are learned, and his targets are many and often deserved: he has sharp things to say about how certain left liberals have reclaimed the Nazi jurist Carl Schmitt and his thesis that politics is a battle to the death between friends and foes. In the end, Gray turns to Dostoyevsky’s warning that (as Gray reads him) “the logic of limitless freedom is unlimited despotism.” Hyper-liberals, Gray tells us, think that we can compete with the authority of God, and what they leave behind is wild disorder and crazed egotism.

As for Dostoyevsky’s positive doctrines—authoritarian and mystical in nature—Gray waves them away as being “of no interest.” But they are of interest, exactly because they raise the central pragmatic issue: If you believe all this about liberal modernity, what do you propose to do about it? Given that the announced alternatives are obviously worse or just crazy (as is the idea of a Christian commonwealth, something that could be achieved only by a degree of social coercion that makes the worst of “woke” culture look benign), perhaps the evil might better be ameliorated than abolished.

Between authority and anarchy lies argument. The trick is not to have unified societies that “share values”—those societies have never existed or have existed only at the edge of a headsman’s axe—but to have societies that can get along nonviolently without shared values, aside from the shared value of trying to settle disputes nonviolently. Certainly, Americans were far more polarized in the nineteen-sixties than they are today—many favored permanent apartheid (“Segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever”)—and what happened was not that values changed on their own but that a form of rights-based liberalism of protest and free speech convinced just enough people that the old order wouldn’t work and that it wasn’t worth fighting for a clearly lost cause.

What’s curious about anti-liberal critics such as Gray is their evident belief that, after the institutions and the practices on which their working lives and welfare depend are destroyed, the features of the liberal state they like will somehow survive. After liberalism is over, the neat bits will be easily reassembled, and the nasty bits will be gone. Gray can revile what he perceives to be a ruling élite and call to burn it all down, and nothing impedes the dissemination of his views. Without the institutions and the practices that he despises, fear would prevent oppositional books from being published. Try publishing an anti-Communist book in China or a critique of theocracy in Iran. Liberal institutions are the reason that he is allowed to publish his views and to have the career that he and all the other authors here rightly have. Liberal values and practices allow their most fervent critics a livelihood and a life—which they believe will somehow magically be reconstituted “after liberalism.” They won’t be.

The vociferous critics of liberalism are like passengers on the Titanic who root for the iceberg. After all, an iceberg is thrilling, and anyway the White Star Line has classes, and the music the band plays is second-rate, and why is the food French instead of honestly English? “Just as I told you, the age of the steamship is over!” they cry as the water slips over their shoes. They imagine that another boat will miraculously appear—where all will be in first class, the food will be authentic, and the band will perform only Mozart or Motown, depending on your wishes. Meanwhile, the ship goes down. At least the band will be playing “Nearer, My God, to Thee,” which they will take as some vindication. The rest of us may drown.

One turns back to Helena Rosenblatt’s 2018 book, “The Lost History of Liberalism,” which makes the case that liberalism is not a recent ideology but an age-old series of intuitions about existence. When the book appeared, it may have seemed unduly overgeneralized—depicting liberalism as a humane generosity that flared up at moments and then died down again. But, as the world picture darkens, her dark picture illuminates. There surely are a set of identifiable values that connect men and women of different times along a single golden thread: an aversion to fanaticism, a will toward the coexistence of different kinds and creeds, a readiness for reform, a belief in the public criticism of power without penalty, and perhaps, above all, a knowledge that institutions of civic peace are much harder to build than to destroy, being immeasurably more fragile than their complacent inheritors imagine. These values will persist no matter how evil the moment may become, and by whatever name we choose to whisper in the dark.

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girlactionfigure · 21 days ago

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🇮🇱SRI LANKA TRAVEL WARNING, POLICE DRAMA - Real time from Israel

ISRAEL REALTIME - Connecting to Israel in Realtime

( VIDEO - The remains of Kfar Kila, a southern Lebanese near-border Hezbollah village that also acted as a major launch site. )

✡️Tonight is SIMCHAT TORAH starts tonight, where we celebrate with the Torah! Chag Samayach, a joyful holiday!

.. Several rabbis have noted: How can we celebrate when this war started on this holiday last year? When so many fell, so many remain hostages, so many are fighting and so many have given their lives in our defense?

They answer: very much in the name of the fallen, in the name of the hostages, in the name of the Jewish people and those who have sacrificed, WE WILL NOT ALLOW THE ENEMY to destroy our holiday, to destroy our joy and celebration.

AM YISROEL CHAI, the Jewish people live! We will celebrate, we will win, we will honor their sacrifice.

✡️As a Jewish holy-day, we DO NOT POST news from sundown for 26 hours unless there is a LIFE THREATENING EMERGENCY.

⚠️ISRAEL NATIONAL SECURITY TRAVEL WARNING.. calls on the Israelis to immediately leave the Arugam Bay area and the coastal area in the south and west of Sri Lanka due to terror threat to Israeli tourists, following a warning about a terrorist squad of the Revolutionary Guards mission in the area.

⚠️ HOME FRONT COMMAND - - if you find rocket or drone debris during holiday outdoor activity, DO NOT TOUCH IT - contact Home Front (dial 104) or the Police (dial 100). The parts may be dangerous or toxic, or be important for security.

♦️LEBANON - TZUR-TYRE.. Civil Defense in Tyre walks the streets of the city and asks citizens through loudspeakers to evacuate immediately. The Civil Defense closed the entrances to the city of Tyre to prevent entry. Heavy IDF attacks.

♦️LEBANON - (enemy reports) Dozens of IDF air force attacks on more than 20 villages and towns in Lebanon.

🔹IRANIAN TERROR PROPAGANDA.. a new mural in the center of Tehran: No (Israeli) hostage will be released.

🔹HOUTHIS CLEAR THEIR PORT? Houthi leader Abdel Malik al Houthi issued an urgent order to the owners of the containers in the port to clear out the Hodediah port, immediately. ???

🔹GERMANY SAYS.. German Foreign Minister: Israel succeeded in weakening Hezbollah to a great extent, and the task now is to reach an effective diplomatic solution.

🔹US INTEL AIRCRAFT.. The US is operating reconnaissance aircraft in the Persian Gulf to monitor the movements of Iranian surface-to-surface missiles.

🔹US SEC STATE GOES TO SAUDI ARABIA.. from Israel. Riyadh: The American Secretary of State in Lincoln met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan, and talked with them about "the developments in Gaza and Lebanon"

▪️ON ISRAEL APPROVING THE NEW COVID VACCINE.. I received significant STRONG negative feedback about the Israel Min. Of Health approving and bringing into the fall vaxx schedule the new COVID vaccine. It has become ridiculously difficult to determine the facts around COVID vaccines, and I can only advise to consult with a trusted medical professional before taking this vaccine, and there are categories of people who should clearly avoid it such as men under 30.

.. Israel no longer has public COVID testing, COVID (and flu, and both together, and strep - quick test kits are available at pharmacies), so there is no case rate data.

.. The last info I can find on COVID in Israel is 14 cases hospitalized in June, all seniors with other health problems. This is the “from COVID or with COVID” argument, and the article seems to state “with”.

#Israel #October 7 #HamasMassacre #Israel/HamasWar #IDF #Gaza #Palestinians #Realtime Israel #Hezbollah #Lebanon

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wangxianficfinder · 1 year ago

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In the mood for...

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1. hi guys hope y’all are well

for the next mood for

is it possible to have some more lesbian wangxian? i’ve read everything in the complication and now im a little obsessed

thank you for everything ❤️‍🔥

Beautiful mess, a colourful wreck by covalentbonds (Not rated, 12k, wangxian, modern, rule 63, fluff & humor, mild smut, childhood friends, first meetings, evil vending machines)

End Racism in the OTW by Deastar (M, 2k, wangxian, F/F, modern, ABO, non-traditional ABO dynamics, alpha LWJ, omega WWX, fluff, rule 63)

Line of sight by deliciousblizzardshark (T, 8k, wangxian, F/F, pre-relationship, always different sex au, plucky heroines, misogyny, enemies to friends, WWX has ADHD)

you can always find me here by ScarlettStorm (E, 15k, wangxian, F/F, post-canon, getting together, genderswap, cisswap, trans woman LWJ, cis woman WWX, first time, vaginal fingering, oral sex)

A Heart in Ribbons by Alliandra (E, 8k, wangxian, F/F, gender or sex swap, canon divergence, war lord LWJ, darkish LWJ, powercouple wangxian, dub con, finger fucking, cunnilingus)

smoke gets in your eyes by Hi_Hello_smile (T, <1k, wangxian, F/F, modern, chef WWX, WIP)

Pocket Too Deep for Play by bigamma (E, 57k, Female WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Vibrators, Easter Eggs, Sex Toys, Autistic LWJ, Female WWX, Female LWJ, WWX Has ADHD, Lacrosse, Christian Themes, Sports Medicine, YZY’s A+ Parenting, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Christian Holidays, Easter Egg Hunt, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Bible Quotes (Abrahamic Religions), Cunnilingus)

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2. Hello, I am looking for fics about Lan Zhan being an overprotective father to Lan Sizhui, thank you. @majhe2026

❤️ A Civil Combpaign by Ariaste (M, 12k, zhuiling, wangxian, arranged marriage, combs, courting, awkward teenagers, teenage drama, humor, feelings, fluff, Mojo’s post)

Work in Tandem by MimiSpearmint (E, 23k, wangxian, LWJ & LSZ, modern cultivation, single parent LWJ, swordflight instructor WWX, fluff, protective LWJ, getting together, smut)

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3. Hey mods! Are there any fics where LWJ is hurtful towards WWX to protect him (like staying with him is dangerous and so LWJ acts all horrible so that WWX leaves) and then later he has to work to reconcile etc.?

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4. Hello!!

So I'm in the mood for Wei Ying homeless & found fics!! Like Wei Ying has been missing & found years later, or sometime later homeless and brought home. If there is intense trauma even better 🥹 I'm not really sure what to add.

Or even Wei Ying missing & found.

Full of secrets waiting to be revealed!! @spicyramen10969

(Un)forgettable by Edens_Cat, VividestListi (E, 67k, wangxian, modern, kid fic, misunderstandings, angst w happy ending, teacher WWX, juniors as WWX protection squad, amnesia, protective WQ, protective LSZ, matchmaker LJY, single parent WWX, smut) dont think he's homeless in any of these but wwx has been missing and gets found again in all of them

End Racism on the OTW || Yesterday Once More by Sweetlittlevampire (T, 22k, wangxian, modern, reality show au, Long Lost Family au, adoption, family reunions, lost love, getting back together, family feels, angst w happy ending)

Running Home to Me by songsofthespring (T, 34k, wangxian, Anastasia fusion, royalty au, angst w happy ending, hurt/comfort, temporary amnesia, medical inaccuraties, JYL & LWJ friendship, everyone lives au)

Where You Fell by Sweet_William (E, 303k, wangxian, 3zun, NHS/JC, JYL/JZX, modern, coffee shop au, angst w happy ending, homeless au, pining, getting together, slow burn, implied/referenced child abuse, suicidal thoughts, self-esteem issues, autistic character, WWX has ADHD, panic attacks, hurt/comfort, implied/referenced sex work, implied/referenced substance abuse)

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5. Hello! I'm in a mood to know what everyone is reading right now!

The Fifth Type of Non-Contact Force by Caixx (Not Rated, 83k, WangXian, Modern AU, High School, Slice of Life, Slow Burn, Fluff and Humor, Actually Somewhat Canon, Mutual Pining, Horny Teenagers, Angst with a Happy Ending, Non-Graphic Smut) Such a fun question! I'm rereading this fic, it's one of my fave teen wangxian fics

Caffeine, Small Talk by mistergoblin (E, 144k, WangXian, Modern AU, Friends With Benefits, Enemies to Lovers, or more accurately: frenemies to fuckbuddies to lovers, Angst and Fluff and Smut, touch-starved lwj, Slow Burn, high levels of sexual tension, Misunderstandings, Getting to Know Each Other, Switching, Bottom LWJ, bottom WWX, slight D/s, Happy Ending, side yanqing, lwj's patented horny grip, Sub LWJ) I just found this one and I'm hooked

Going on charmingly by scribbet (T, 21k, WangXian, Teenage LWJ, Cloud Recesses Shenanigans, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, WWX is BSSR's Disciple, Genius WWX, Petty LWJ, Meddling LXC, Canon Divergence)

Mew Dao Zu Shi by DizziDreams (T, 28k, WangXian, Tokyo Mew Mew AU, High School, Minor Violence, knowledge of Tokyo Mew Mew not required) been keeping a close eye on this Tokyo Mew Mew AU

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6. for the next iitmf, I was wondering if any of our lovely readers wanted to rec a fic that they recently came across that is new and they think is worth a read ? I took a hiatus from all things fandom and now there are a ton of new fics and I don't know where to start! when I say new, I mean in the last 2-3 months. thanks everyone! I love this blog ! ❤️

The Scarlet Lotus by rainbowninja167 (M, 137k, WangXian, Marriage of Convenience, Secret Identity, Fix-It, Angst with a Happy Ending, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Canon-Typical Violence, canon-typical war crimes, Yunmeng Bros, the mortifying ordeal of getting seduced by your own husband, nonlinear chronology we die like cql, just kidding nobody dies in this fic, Slow Burn, Mutual Pining, Miscommunication) these two are my face recent fics that I think deserve waayyyy more attention!

Mad about the Boy by TriviasFolly (M, 62k, wangxian, 1950s America au, greaser WWX, historical smoking, historical viewpoints, angst, internal struggle, pre-relationship, historical homophobia, sexual awakenings, sexual exploration, self-discorvery journey, self-love journey, gay academia, teenage dramatics)

here's a few I adored that I recently read! Troubled Heart, Cooking With Love. by serenare (T, 10k, WangXian, Modern: No Powers, Light Angst, POV LWJ, Internal Conflict, Intern WWX, Strangers to Lovers, LWJ Loves Cooking, Cooking, Food as a Metaphor for Love, Anxiety, Ambiguous/Open Ending)

The Housewife's Guide to Causing Chaos by dvasva (T, 99k, WIP, WangXian, Canon-Typical Violence, Functionally Trans Character, Mild Sexual Content, Domestic Fluff, Love Confessions, Transphobia, Grief/Mourning, Body Dysphoria, Fake Marriage, Canonical Character Death, Misunderstandings, Doting LWJ, Canon Divergence, Arranged Marriage, Misgendering, Mild Angst, Assumptions, Comedic Elements, non-sexual nudity, Discussion of Various Bodily Functions, 4 years of mourning instead of 13, POV Multiple, Corporal Punishment, Trans WWX, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, pregnancy mention)

Silenced With A Kiss by NinjaKK (E, 88k, WIP, WangXian, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, Flirting, Teen Romance, Cloud Recesses Shenanigans, WangXian Get a Happy Ending, Soft WangXian, WWX in WWX's Body, Secret Relationship, Falling In Love, First Kiss, First Dates, Inventor WWX, Genius WWX, Canon Divergence, Protective LWJ, Protective WWX, Ripple Effect, First Time, Fluff and Smut, Optional Smut, Supportive LWJ, BAMF WWX, Inappropriate Use of Gūsū Lán Forehead Ribbon, Has an Angry LWJ Kink)

Truth Will Out (when caught on video) - End_OTW_Racism! by KizuKatana (E, 82k, wangxian, WN & WWX & WQ, graphic depictions of violence, modern cultivation, canon divergence, YZY abuses WWX , caught on camera, partial core removal, WWX kicked out of Jiang sect, livestreamer WWX, meet ugly, dual cultivation, smut, no war, WIP) I’ll take any and every opportunity to rec - currently my absolutely favorite fic

~*~

7. Hello! Once again thank you for everything you do.

For the next in the mood for i'd like to request everybodies favourite getting together fics from Lwj's perspective. I just need more of him pining for Wwx. (But if you have other good Lwj POV fics i'd love if you could recommend them too)

Thank you in advance!!

like blue flame over my fingertips by tangerinechar (T, 37k, wangxian, modern, college/university au, pining, 5+1 things, food as a metaphor for love)

Window Shopping by thunderwear (E, 18k, WangXian, quarantine fic, Single Dad WWX, Getting Together, Long-Distance Relationship, kind of??, Mutual Pining, Fluff, lots of fluff, almost no angst, Happy Ending, First Time, Phone Sex, background 3zun, switching POV, Domestic Fluff, no like a shitton of domestic fluff, some smut)

fell by you by Vrishchika (E, 44k, Dragon LWJ, Fantasy, Explicit Smut in Last Chapter, Pining, POV LWJ, Canon Divergence, Immortals, Deities, Canon-Typical Violence, Dragon WWX, Angst with a Happy Ending)

leave all your love and your longing behind by ScarlettStorm (E, 143k, WangXian, Modern AU, no magic, Meet-Ugly, Panic Attacks, autistic lwj, neurodivergent wwx, the neighborhood asshole dog, if you’ve met one then you know, Hurt/Comfort, Pining, Minor Angst, major shenanigans, Happy Ending, for everyone including the asshole dog, Eventual Smut, switch rights, Sex Toys, horny yearning, Masturbation)

Child's Play by flowercity (FaoriE) (T, 14k, WangXian, Modern AU, Mutual Pining, Family, Kid Fic, Fluff, Love at First Sight, Light Angst, Brief Hospitalization, Seizures, Alcohol, But no one gets drunk, Making Out, Single Dad WWX)

You'll be my by cupofwater (G, 2k, WangXian, First Meetings, Meet-Cute, Modern AU, Weddings, Fluff, Illustrated)

Admonishment by bookwyrmling (T, 6k, wangxian, canon divergence, fix-it of sorts, teacher LQR, student WWX, LQR pov, gusu lan sect positive, cloud recesses study arc, burial mounds settlement days, golden core reveal)

Keep Track of Losing Days by giraffeter (T, 74k, WangXian, NieLan, Modern AU, Case Fic, Police, Missing Persons, Mystery, Getting Together, Flashbacks, Rooftop Conversations, Detective LWJ, antifa WWX, team give LWJ friends, Angst with a Happy Ending, Sharing a Bed, First Kiss, First Meetings, Seattle, Mutual Pining, nonfatal car accident, mafia wens, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Friends to Lovers, Guns)

I know what my heart wants by yakuso5u (Not Rated, 28k, WangXian, Modern AU, Single Father LWJ, Fluff, Mutual Pining, Getting Together, Accidental Child Acquisition, Domestic, Slice of Life, Christmas references)

The Second Jade of Lan's late but incendiary sexual awakening by KizuKatana (E, 41k, wangxian, modern, college au, genius WWX, competency kink, caretaking kink, canon wangxian dynamics, first time)

(not) puppy love by tiramisus (M, 3k, wangxian, modern, WWX owns an animal shelter, affection starved LWJ, LWJ’s tragic childhood, meet-cute, love at first sight)

some things go forward by everythingispoetry (T, 73k, WangXian, Modern AU, Hospitals, Teenage Drama, Slow Burn, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Happy Ending)

~*~

8. Hello! For the next ITMF, I’m looking for fluffy fics with no misunderstanding and no oblivious WWX. Just falling in love, getting together, actual communication

i prefer canon but i'm down for modern as well :)

Question for 8: are they looking for canon or modern or both/any?

~*~

9. Hii , thank you for all the hardwork. I really appreciate it and I am back with another request. Can you please recommend me fics where it's wangxian being in love but from outsider pov. Thank you so much @sineofu

hey I just met you, and this is crazy by KeriArentikai (E, 9k, wangxian, modern, outsider pov, woke up married, married in vegas, with a twist, getting together, love at first sight, unrealistic sex)

Wait, What? by MarbleGlove (G, 1k, wangxian, time travel, outsider pov)

Always the right way round by so_shhy (G, 3k, wangxian, modern, office party, LWJ loves rabbits, good brother LXC, fluff, excellent boyfriend WWX, outsider POV)

The Misunderstanding by kisahawklin (T, 9k, wangxian, LXC & LWJ, WQ & WWX & WN, WWX & LSZ, modern, misunderstandings, outsider pov)

Everything's growing in our garden by like_a_bird_that_flew (T, 3k, wangxian, LXC & LWJ, modern, coming out, supportive LXC, family feels, established relationship, remrefenced fear of homophobia & rejection, fluff, angst w happy ending, humor)

looking through a window by glitteringmoonlight (T, 5k, wangxian, modern, college/universtity au, outsider pov, fluff, humor)

oh brother by lanzhans_rbf (G, 5k, LXC & LWJ, wangxian, modern, outsider pov, twin jades of lan dynamics, twin jades of lan feels)

~*~

10. *cupped hands* do you of /any/ fics where jin ling gets his dajiu's gift? bonus if it comes into play as it grows up? 🥺🥺 please i can't believe the only fic i know like this is my leaves reach ever for the sun 🙏🙏🙏🙏

a symbol to remind you that there's more to see by paperminds (T, 9k, JL & WWX, JC & WWX, JL & JC, post-canon, canon typical violence, hurt/comfort, angst w happy ending, JC & WWX reconciliation)

~*~

11. Askjhgahgahab I love your blog!!!!

Have you heard of the fic called A Price to Pay by Wangxianist? In that one, a lot of WWX’s angst was caused by LWJ. I’m looking for fics where the same is the case. Where he’s angsty not because of the Jiangs or the SSC or anything else. But because of LWJ. But also not CQL post canon fics where the WWX is pining because LWJ left him on the roadside.

~*~

12. For the next itmf, can you recommend some dark lwj fics where he is older than wwx. The time period doesn't matter. Thank you for your hard work!💞💞

A Matter of Time by mrcformoso (M, 40k, wangxian, time travel fix-it, graphic depictions of violence, underage, LWJ pov, JC pov, dark LWJ, manipulation, grooming, teen body adult mind for LWJ, happy ending for wangxian, problematic consensual underage sex, blood & violence, insane LWJ, manic LWJ) i would recommend 𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 by mrcformoso, i think it fits ♡︎

~*~

13. Hi!! I'm going crazy searching for Wen Yuan fics, especially something where he or the Lans discover his identity before WWX resurrection. I'm craving for angst. Thank you!! @niquels-mind

no new age Series by everythingispoetry (M/T, 145k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Permanent Injury, Recovery, Disability, Parenthood, Character Study, Thirteen Years of WWX’s Death, Families of Choice) part 2 in this series is focused on pretty much exactly that!

the blurriness of being alive by RedLipped (T, 18k, wangxian, canon divergence, grief/mourning, burial mounds, angst w happy ending, hurt/comfort, LWJ is a good dad, inquiry, character study) lwj tells him before wwx resurrection but lsz doesn’t handle it very well at first

~*~

14. any fics where wwx has a dependable parental figure? preferably not jfm? examples that come to mind are jyl in the teapot plot, and lqr in ssj. i would absolutely adore more stories like this, in whichever way the parenthood comes into play ❤

~*~

15. it's been a while since i saw this request so please some inventor/genius/talented-artist wwx? love that guy :')

💖 Pentimento. by orange_crushed (E, 73k, wangxian, modern, college/university au, art conservation, museums, pining, not actually unrequited love, angst w/ happy ending, misunderstandings, smut, major character injury, hospitalization, hurt/comfort, past incarceration, forgery)

~*~

16. ITMF WWX debating with Lan Qiren? LQR could be kind or cruel, I just would love to read some fics where the two debate philosophy, practice, history, academia, etc.

Seasons of Falling Flowers by merakily (G, 40k, wangxian, LQR & WWX, LQR & LWJ, post-canon, character study, introspection, in-laws, emotional baggage, family bonding, protective LWJ, good parent LQR, LQR has feelings, LQR & WWX become friends)

💖 Minding series by WithBroomBefore (G, 85k, wangxian, canon divergence, what if WWX got therapy and recovery post-sunshot, trans LWJ) Part 2 of this series has some debating

~*~

17. Itmf: wwx dies a child birth or after having the baby, can be temporary character death.

The time we’ve lost by Anye (T, 54k, wangxian, LSZ & WWX, LSZ & LJY, modern, ABO, everyone is alive but they don’t know that, eventual happy ending, slow build, twins, misunderstandings) this one is wild bc lwj thinks wwx died in childbirth but he didn’t and has been raising lsz in America the whole time

~*~

If you didn’t get an answer to your ask here, don’t forget to make use of @mdzs-kinkmeme and MDZS KINK MEME on Dreamwidth. Authors actually do use them for ideas. You may get what you order!***Your prompt doesn’t have to be kink! Fluff, crack, whatever - it’s all good!***

#wangxian #mdzs #wangxian fic recs #i'm in the mood for a fic #the untamed #wangxian fic search #wangxianficfinder #long post

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bleedingcoffee42 · 6 months ago

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Part 2- Day of Days

Wishlist of what should have been included

Forrest Guth!!! Show him landing in a field of cows and happy he didn't land on one. Then walking by a crashed plane, taking pictures and finding out after he gets them developed it was Meehan's plane.

Honestly more cows? General Ridgeway of the 82nd landed and had a "Flash!" -- "MOO" moment when he realized a cow was the one sneaking up on him when he landed. The cows were already there as extras, let them work. Cow POV sneaking up on paratrooper would have been hilarious.

Compton lost his gun on the drop, got a Thompson from Dog's Co. McMillian who broke his leg on the jump. (The gun's firing pin ended up being broken too and he doesn't find out until he goes to use it when facing two Germans and Guarnere saves him from getting shot) Almost got killed by a navy shell landing 50 ft away, but it didn't explode so he was good to go.

Speirs kicking a live grenade while capturing that fourth gun, it going off and knocking him on his ass, and catching his boot on fire and stomping to put out.

THE KNIFE. Those guys from the 82nd need to be snatching that thing instead of just being excited Dick is whipping something out of his pants in front of them. And show us how he gets it back!! You lost your gun on the drop, it's all you have, Dick. The custom engraved fighting knife from Lewis Nixon is all you have to fight with. GOD.

Dick yelling at Strayer, "Goddammit! When I send for ammunition and help, I mean now! Not when you get around to it!" YES! We love yelling!! And he's so pissed and filthy and imposing they just start laying bandoliers on him like it's Mardi Gras. Hester says he'll bring explosives, and does, and send Speirs with reinforcements. YES, make them answer to you Dick Winters!

Shifty and friends finding a downed glider with Jeep and deciding to take the Jeep. Needing to free it they use C-4, but don't realize the gas was leaking and end up blowing up the jeep and glider. Oops. Also Shifty running into Sobol later and having casual chit chat and talking about Popeye getting hit in the ass. "Serves him right" says Sobol. WTF does that mean? This would have pissed us viewers off so much. Gimme gimme.

Tipper, who should get more time come on, and his group getting shelled by the US Navy until they put up orange flags and smoke. The level of 'We're behind enemy lines and this massive hellstorm is hitting the beach' would have been a nod to just how chaotic it was to be paratroopers. Behind enemy lines is one thing, behind he enemy our lines are advancing on? Mmmmhmmm. Oh ! And they run into an English speaking guy who instantly gets shot by one of Tipper's compatriots and everyone is like ???? He was Speaking English and wearing a US paratrooper uniform? And the dude says "Look at his boots!" and they're German hobnailed boots. Like...more over Sherlock, give him a medal for the observation skills.

Lt. Col Billy Turner. He's not Easy Company, but he and Speirs had a personal civil war going on and we just get Lurker Speirs in Part 2 and we could have had some drama in the previous episode with Turner transferring him from Charlie to Dog eve of the invasion. In Normandy Sink told Turner to "Neutralize guns but be careful" so Turner tried to direct tank fire in Normandy, on a tank, and got shot by a sniper doing so. Ed Pepping, medic, got to him, pulled him out of the tank turret right before he died. Laments his loss. Says his death really held up the advance and rattled people. Seems like a good guy. Sink's comment? "His stature was small, his heart was big, his head was clear, his mind was sharp, his courage unlimited." Which sounds like a tribute for a warhorse, and Turner was cavalry so probably would have likes it, but BOB, really? Show Speirs walking by the guys dead body and saying "Well, Turner, by God, the krauts saved me the job!" Just some drama that could have been background noise. Sparky is already winning the morality Olympics this episode, pile on some more.

To be Continued....

#hboww2rewatch #live blogging i guess #bob rewatch part 2 #band of brothers #hbo war

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kevlarcrack3d · 2 days ago

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Oho what's this? I'm making Skullgirls headcanons?

I ain't kidding. Yes, I am. I actually have super mixed feelings about the many open-ended threads of lore in the game. I kinda like it because it allows me to make headcanons like this (ignore the Medici fuckup), but at the same time, I don't really think it had a good impact on the story. Lots of interesting stuff could be put there.

Without further ado, LET'S GO!

BEWARE OF LEWD: MILD/COMEDIC NSFW FOR THE LAST ONE!

Samson helps Filia pickpocket and steal credit cards. Samson also helps her gamble at the casino because Samson had gambler hosts. They do this sparingly, and they're pretty average. They prefer the lotto tickets.

Skullgirls world technology level is close to that of our current time in the 21st century. However, the uses and people's mannerisms are more of the 40's with many tweaks for the rule of cool.

Speaking of tech, Brain Drain is an AI bro, the sort who screams, "AI ART IS REAL ART AAAAA," and gets into fights over it. Valentine is neutral on AI. Dr. Avian is also pro-AI, but is ethical and knows the limits and challenges. Brain Drain types out whole text messages about AI and instigates LEGENDARY arguments among the labs.

Irvin fights in an ambidextrous manner like Revy from Black Lagoon (can't help it - his two guns remind me of her). Many chicks dig him because TALL, DARK, AND MYSTERIOUS IS VERY HOT 🥵😭🍑💖🔥🔥🔥.

After Umbrella's story mode, Parasoul heard of Filia and Carol's plight and arranged them to have certain support and properties under the proper officials. Filia and Carol now live together and will be having scholarships for college.

Aside from working for the Anti-Skullgirl labs, the previous squads of the Last Hope participated in King Franz's war campaigns. In this headcanon, the SG world has a rule like ours that states combat medics shouldn't be shot at. King Franz took advantage of this and used these squads for biological warfare and effective surprise attacks.

Double also supported herself in the human world as an actress. She was always bitchy and mean to Annie, Selene, Eliza, and literally every celebrity that breathed in her face in that disguise. She was the number 1 drama instigator in their media. Every damn time, there would be something wild popping out about her.

Albus (the bodyguard of Eliza that looks like Anubis) is not a jackal but a black dog feral. This is based on how Anubis may not really be a jackal but a Pharaoh hound (I love long-faced dogs they're sooooo cute 🥺).

The first head of the Medici family had Leviathan as his host. He enjoyed art and music and gave Leviathan as a gift to the Contiellos. He once had the life gem, so when he took Leviathan from his body, he didn't die. (My most preferred one. The other have this head be Lorenzo's parent or boss). This head was more pragmatic than Lorenzo, though, and preferred to be stealthy and smart. He was also more of a fighter, too. Lorenzo is the more hedonistic, narcissistic, flamboyant one who likes being on the front pages of magazines like Bugsy Siegel and buying expensive stuff.

Since Leviathan stated that he and Samson were present before the Skull Heart, then I'll make this headcanon - parasites have been around since the prehistoric ages. Once humans, ferals, gigans, elves, dagonians, etc. grew more complex and the parasites began spending more time with them, that was when they learned to talk in their languages and articulate their ideas as such. Parasites always had complex minds and were able to form long-term memories, they just didn't know how to articulate them until they crossed paths with civilization.

Ferals procreate like the Mink Tribe in One Piece. When the parents are two different species, the kid may come out as another species that isn't their parents'. Same with Dagonians. (One thing I noticed is that these two races in Skullgirls remind me of the Minks and Fishmen in One Piece).

Cerebella didn't attend school. She was homeschooled and trained by the mafia since day 1.

Not my headcanon, but I support it. Beowulf is actually very smart. Has actually taken PhDs and loves to read. Aside from having side roles as the big bad wolf in Annie's show, he is a librarian. He also used these smarts in the ring, where he'd calculate his strikes.

When simply patrolling, The Last Hope also gives medical treatments for free.

Peacock also watches cartoons in the Skullgirls equivalent of Adult Swim. She does prefer the sillier, kiddy ones, though.

Parasoul likes Annie of the Stars because that was her comfort media. Ever since her father started his wars, ever since she was training to be a worthy queen, especially after her mother died, Parasoul deep down looked up to Annie's lessons of standing up for good, never giving up, and protecting the innocent. Though being a real-life head-of-state has more complexities, deep down, Parasoul would always love Annie, her inspiration.

The one with the real political power in Canopy Kingdom is actually a prime minister. However, the Renoir family will always find a way to have the final say if the situation calls for it.

New Meridian is actually like what Hong Kong is to China. It's considered separate, but the Canopy Kingdom has a degree of dominance over it.

The reason why Queen Nancy was a very powerful Skullgirl was, aside from the wish she made to stop the wars and the fact that she was in a warzone most likely filled with dead warriors, especially powerful ones, the umbrella Todd had something to do with it.

Big Band once played gigs at nightclubs to support himself in police academy. He had to be very careful because many of those nightclubs were run by the mafia, and it's not just the Medici Mafia.

When not angry, Carol/Painwheel likes to fly around with the Buer Drive. No thoughts, head empty, just fly around wheeeee ✈️.

If told to draw, Robo Fortune cannot draw hands (a jab at some AI art engines drawing hands so badly). She can't even trace a hand on a paper for whatever reason, and it's driving Brain Drain mad.

The second person in Fukua is actually Shamone on her head. Regarding the two people used to create her, the warrior good at close combat was actually Delilah - Brain Drain actually found an artifact confirmed to be Delilah's and it was fortunate that it had her DNA stuck on it. The assassin who specialized in ranged combat was one of Black Dahlia's best bunny girl assassins.

Taliesin can master any stringed instrument in a short period of time ( the longest is like 2 weeks) except for piano.

There is a pro-Medici Mafia series super beloved in New Meridian, which I could see as their equivalent of "the Sopranos." It's called "My Outlaw Darling." It's a live action just in case some of you think it's animation like My Little Pony or My Dress-up Darling because of the title reference. Bad - or maybe good hehehehe 😊 - news: it's very smutty, risqué, sexy, and 🍑 PASSIONATE ✨️. Embarrassingly, Lorenzo was walked in on many times doing "self-love" to the dirty scenes, particularly the ones between men for whatever reason. IDK, he's bored. This series gets on the Renoir's nerves. Since King Franz isn't really doing much in public, if he uses his TV as background noise, once he hears the "My Outlaw Darling" opening song, he has to stop himself from smashing the TV if he's doing something that requires him to keep sitting down. Peacock also hates it and actually gets up to fire lasers at the TV once she hears the theme! She and her gang have a joke about the airing time of the series where they call it "the witching hour."

Regarding the sexual nature of "My Outlaw Darling," I don't know why it isn't called "OutLewd" 🤔.

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cantsayidont · 11 months ago

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A common apologia for STAR TREK — particularly TOS, but extending to the newest shows as well — is that it wants or tries to be progressive, but is tripped up by the writers' unconscious biases or the ostensibly more backward social attitudes of its time (whatever time that may be). This argument is somewhat perplexing because STAR TREK has never been what you'd call subtle in expressing its liberal imperialist values, either in 1966–1968 or now.

The core of STAR TREK, which is explained clearly in Roddenberry's pitch and the TOS writer's bible (excerpted at some length in Stephen Whitfield's THE MAKING OF STAR TREK, inter alia), is a hybridization of Horatio Hornblower, the C.S. Forester adventure novels about a heroic British naval officer during the Napoleonic wars, and the American Western, a genre that still dominated a big swath of American TV drama in the period when STAR TREK was conceived. Roddenberry himself had previously written for some of those shows, in particular HAVE GUN, WILL TRAVEL, and his pitch line for STAR TREK was "WAGON TRAIN to the stars."

To its credit, STAR TREK ended up being about more than just that, but Roddenberry was very clear that at heart, the series was about extending the conquest of the American frontier to the stars. Of the Enterprise and the other ships of its class, Roddenberry said:

In addition to the twelve Starships, there are lesser classes of vessels, capable of operating over much more limited distances. They are involved in commercial ventures, survey work, archaeological expeditions, medical research, and so on. The Starships are the heavy cruisers, the ones which can best defend themselves as they probe farther and farther out, opening new areas … and then the others follow. [Whitfield, 204; emphasis added]

Because TOS avoids saying anything very substantive about civilian life and government outside of Starfleet, we actually know very little about factors may be driving this wave of colonialism. If Earth in the TOS-era is a post-scarcity paradise (which, it should be noted, the original show does not ever actually say), why leave home for a riskier, hardscrabble life on worlds like Rigel XII ("Mudd's Women") or Cestus III ("Arena")? Part of it is plainly capitalist interests: There are explicitly opportunities to strike it rich discovering or exploiting valuable resources (or fleecing those who have or hope to, as Harry Mudd does). The Federation is also keen to cement its political hold on worlds that are near the borders of rival empires; the plot of "The Trouble with Tribbles," for example, hinges on the Federation's determination to colonize Sherman's Planet, which is also claimed by the Klingon Empire.

However, these plot details are to some extent beside the point: The premise of STAR TREK, and of most Westerns, is that the importance and heroic necessity of colonizing and "developing" the frontier, bringing (white) civilization to the "savage" wilderness, is self-evident.

Much of STAR TREK is predicated on concepts of "social evolution," the idea that there are a series of consistently defined hierarchical stages from the primitive to the advanced. TOS often states this quite explicitly, but it has remained a key feature of the STAR TREK premise up to the present. This process of advancement is described as both natural and a matter of moral urgency: Kirk rails against the "stagnation" of less-advanced societies, and on multiple occasions argues that the importance of reversing stagnation (or devolution) justifies violating the Prime Directive with dramatic interventionist action to put a civilization back on what he considers the proper track.

The concepts of social evolution STAR TREK espouses are fundamentally racist — it's a philosophy that rationalizes colonial exploitation (and in the real world even slavery) — and play into the franchise's virulent anti-indigenous attitudes. Indeed, STAR TREK frequently takes an openly contemptuous view of "primitive" peoples, who in TOS are often presented as simpletons, either kindly child-men (e.g., "The Apple") or dangerous savages driven by quasi-animal cunning (as with some of the characters in "A Private Little War"). Probably the ugliest example in TOS is "The Paradise Syndrome, where Kirk loses his memory and falls in with a society of American Indians transported centuries earlier to a distant planet; the story emphasizes that, even deprived of the knowledge and technology of his century, Kirk is still the intellectual superior of the people around him (who of course are played by white actors in redface). However, this a recurring theme throughout STAR TREK: Indigenous species are consistently presented as something less than people unless their stage of advancement approximates that of 20th century Earth (as with the Roman proconsul in "Bread and Circuses," who is one of the very few indigenous "primitives" to be credited with any kind of intellectual sophistication). The application of the Prime Directive (which is wildly inconsistent and honored more in the breach than in the observance) is based not on respect for cultural differences, but on a patronizing desire to "protect" indigenous pre-warp civilizations from ideas that their primitive minds can't yet handle.

STAR TREK pays lip service to the idea of cultural and racial diversity, and the Vulcan slogan (in the third season of TOS) "Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations." However, what it most consistently espouses is the importance of ensuring the march of social evolution along orthodox lines and the eventual absorption of other races, cultures, and species into the Federation's (white American liberal) ideas of socioeconomic and technological progress. As Kirk says to Ayelborne in "Errand of Mercy":

KIRK: Gentlemen, I must get you to reconsider. We can be of immense help to you. In addition to military aid, we can send you specialists, technicians. We can show you how to feed a thousand people where one was fed before. We can help you build schools, educate the young in the latest technological and scientific skills. Your public facilities are almost nonexistent. We can help you remake your world, end disease, hunger, hardship. All we ask in return is that you let us help you. Now.

"Errand of Mercy" is notable in that Kirk's condescension toward the Organians proves to be ill-founded: What he and Spock assumed was a stagnant, primitive society is actually a kind of backyard bird feeder maintained by a vastly more advanced species that is trying very hard to be patient as Kirk and the Klingons strut around making pronouncements. At the end of the episode, Kirk admits openly that he's embarrassed at how badly he misread the situation. However, this doesn't ultimately lead him to question his presumptions about social progress; he simply admits that in this specific case, they were misapplied.

The result of "Errand of Mercy," as revealed in the second season of TOS, is a peace treaty between the Federation and Klingons that makes the show's endorsement of colonialism and economic imperialism that much clearer: As we're told in "The Trouble with Tribbles," under this new treaty, if there is a territorial dispute over a newly discovered or colonized world, "one side or the other must prove it can develop the planet most efficiently," with the ostensibly benevolent and freedom-loving Federation and the ostensibly "brutal and aggressive" Klingon Empire vying to determine who will be permitted to exploit that world and its resources. The exact role of the Organians in the framing of this treaty is unclear — they have no need of or interest in Federation-style economic development, and nothing in "Errand of Mercy" suggests that they see much value in it, although the Organians do say they find the prospect of a shooting war between the Federation and the Klingon Empire both morally objectionable and "intensely painful" — but its result is to more firmly establish the Cold War conflict between the Federation and Klingons as the competition of two rival colonial powers for control of valuable territory and resources. Their conflict is a primarily economic one, not really substantively based on what Kor calls the "minor ideological differences" between the two empires, which both Kor and the Organians regard as incidental. (Kirk takes issue with that contention, but as previously noted, Kirk has more than once used the explicit threat of planetary genocide to get what he wants, so Kor probably has a point here!)

Later STAR TREK shows are sometimes more self-conscious about these values, but they seldom actually question them, and there's really only so far that STAR TREK can move these load-bearing narrative elements without becoming something really fundamentally different than it is. Moreover, DISCOVERY, STRANGE NEW WORLDS, and PICARD have seemed committed to doubling down on many of the franchise's more disturbing ideological elements, while attempting to paper over viewer unease with appeals to nostalgia, faux-patriotism, and sentimentality.

#teevee #star trek #star trek tos #the making of star trek #gene roddenberry #stephen whitfield #errand of mercy #organians #the paradise syndrome #anti-indigenous racism

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commander-heart-eyes · 2 years ago

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Clexa fics if you're a masochist

Clexa fics if you want...

...angst

Personal Demons | Eyeofthehurricane

Marine Clarke Griffin shows up at Raven's apartment after a horrific experience. Closed off and all over the place, can Raven's mysterious next door neighbor help Clarke move forward and start to live again?

or...

The one where Clarke and Lexa meet in a stairwell.

we owe nothing now | ur_the_puppy

For as long as Clarke could remember, every year on the third of March, her soul would die.

(my) Destruction Within Your Mouth | KL_Morgan

He that keepeth his mouth keepeth his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction. Proverbs 13:3

Clarke loses: her head, her voice, her heart.

(Canon divergent from 1x03)

what the ground grows | coldmackerel

There is nothing a little bedrest and irony can't cure.

Lexa is sure the only thing that heals Clarke's mind and keeps her heart thumping against her ribs is an ill-advised amount of the first and a frustrating amount of the second. But Clarke has never been anything less than ill-advised and frustrating. If anybody will survive a hole in their brain, Lexa is sure it will be Clarke.

(At Heda's expense, of course.)

[complete]

i fell from the sky (and then i fell for you) | orphan account

Fix-it (kind of?) canon-divergent from season 2 ep. 16 in which Clarke is not captured and brought to the commander but rather captured and brought to the Ice Nation….but not to be executed.

The White Queen Running | KL Morgan

Were you ever punished? “Only for faults,” said Alice. “And you were all the better for it, I know!” the Queen said triumphantly. “Yes, but then I had done the things I was punished for,” said Alice: “that makes all the difference.” “But if you hadn't done them,' the Queen said, “that would have been better still; better, and better, and better!”

Clarke wakes up wearing the tattoos of the Ice Nation.

(OR: Soulmates, parallel worlds, and Ice Queen Clarke; oh my. Canon divergent from 2x16.)

...slow burn

when my heart is at war | mopeytropey

Lexa is primed for great leadership and will not be deviated from her agenda.

Clarke is driven by her insatiable curiosity and is not easily deterred.

There is plenty at work to drive them apart, but the strength of their combined determination will change the course of an entire civilization.

Griffins Anatomy | Clexanation

Clarke was just trying to survive the first year of her internship. That was until she fell into bed with a beautiful brunette, who was running from her past. Maybe life should be about more than just surviving.

The 100 hospital AU that nobody asked for. Inspired by the hit tv show Greys Anatomy. All hail the great Shonda Rhimes. We will embark on this drama/love-filled journey through the eyes of our fan favorites in the medical field.

*THIS FOLLOWS GREYS ANATOMY STORYLINE, SO DONT COME FOR ME ACTING SHOCKED BY ANYTHING*

The shows been around damn near 20 yrs ppl 🤦♀️

#clexa #clexa fanfic #clexakru #clarke x lexa #clarke griffin #lexa kom trikru #clarke griffin x lexa #lexark #commander lexa #archive of our own #fanfiction #fanfiction rec list #fanfiction recommendation

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queensqewed0722 · 8 months ago

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THE LEGEND OF ZHUOHUA

I think I've fallen in love with this CDrama. It reminds me so much of "Saiunkoku Monogatari", especially the heroine, Mu Zhuohua (played by Jing Tian), whose personality is very much like Kuo Shuurei.

Mu Zhuohua (whose real name is Mu Qi) is the daughter of a rich merchant from the province. Her mother was a former courtesan and one of the lower-ranked concubines of her father so she's treated with disdain by most of her family. Qi is intelligent and decides to escape a promised marriage between her and one of the provincial officials so she can pursue her dreams of becoming an imperial court official.

She travels to the capital and lives among the courtesans, serving as their physician due to the medical skills she had acquired growing up. In one of her errands to see to the medical needs of some courtesans, she encounters Lord Ding, Liu Yan (Feng Shao Feng).

Lord Ding is the younger brother of the Emperor and known as the War God of Southern Chen due to his prowess on the battlefield. However, the last battle that he led had ended in a devastating loss of 30,000 men, which he suspects is due to someone leaking highly confidential battle strategies to the enemy. Lord Ding is trying to investigate the matter even as he supports his brother, the Emperor, in ruling the nation.

Their chance encounter somehow leads to them being entangled in each other's affairs, despite their reluctance. Lord Ding's enemies try to use Zhuohua against him and he's left with no choice but to protect her. For her part, Zhuohua sees in Lord Ding a patron who can help improve her chances of getting into the imperial civil service exam and realizing her dreams. They somehow end up supporting each other along the way, and in the process find themselves unexpectedly falling in love.

What I like about this drama is that the heroine isn't some damsel in distress, she isn't a warrior, nor does she have supernatural powers. She's just an ordinary young woman with big dreams and she uses her intelligence and talents to achieve her goals. The hero, on the other hand, isn't some mighty warrior-god who slays his enemies but a man who has suffered defeat and betrayal at the hands of those whom he trusted most. For all intents and purposes, they are regular people living in ancient China.

It's quite refreshing to watch a xanxia that doesn't have heroes and heroines and immortals flying all over the place. And I must say the actor and actress portraying the roles of Zhuohua and Lord Ding are just lovely to watch and have great chemistry together.

Lord Ding took some time to grow on me because he first came off as very stern and cold, which made the difference in their ages more apparent. But the gradual softening of his character and personality as he slowly falls for Zhuohua changes his overall demeanor, so that when you finally see him smile, you realize that he is actually a handsome man.

Zhuohua, on the other hand, has a look that's both charming and witty yet intelligent and resourceful. She's quite beautiful but she isn't fully aware of her own physical beauty, because she's more concerned about developing her abilities and talents and achieving her dreams. And her emotional maturity is very apparent so that you don't question why she ends up choosing someone like Lord Ding, who's far older than her, over all the young men around her.

I hope I can find more CDramas similar to this one. I'm not averse to fantasy xanxias but it's quite refreshing to watch characters who are ordinary people.

#cdrama #cdrama otp #the legend of zhuohua #lord ding #mu zhuohua #mu qi #jing tian #feng shao feng

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howtofightwrite · 2 years ago

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Hey I'm trying to write a fantasy AU following the plot of a series that takes place partially during the Second Sino-Japanese War, but it is very much a romance drama. So China sends volunteer female nurses stationed right next battlefield and it appears they have no clue how to fight and are very much unarmed. One nurse had to arm herself with dad's gun and barely knew how to use it. This isn't how war medics work...??? Maybe I can make it a little more realistic in my AU?

Given we're talking about Republic of China forces in the late 30s and early 40s, it might not be that far off.

So, an important piece of context about the Second Sino-Japanese War, when Japan invaded mainland China in 1937 they were attacking a nation that had already been in a state of civil war for over a decade, with many provinces seceding from China. (China had been mostly reunified by '37. But, there were continuing hostilities, until the Japanese invasion tabled most of those differences for the duration of the war.) If you're wanting to be realistic, you probably do want to read up on Chinese history from the First Opium War (1839) until the rise of the PRC in '49.

In an invasion scenario it's fairly common to see volunteer specialists, especially doctors and nurses, brought in to support to the defending forces. At this point, it's important to remember, they are still civilians, not military personnel, and it's entirely plausible that they have no combat training whatsoever.

Intentionally targeting medical personnel (or civilians) is a war crime, so that's entirely consistent with Imperial Japan's behavior throughout the Second World War. (Worth noting, the specific relevant treaties would have been The Hague Convention of 1907, and the Geneva Convention of 1929. Both China and Japan were signatories of The Hague Convention of 1907.)

Specifically, the first paragraph of Article 9 reads:

The personnel engaged exclusively in the collection, transport and treatment of the wounded and sick, and in the administration of medical formations and establishments, and chaplains attached to armies, shall be respected and protected under all circumstances. If they fall into the hands of the enemy they shall not be treated as prisoners of war.

The first paragraph of Article 10 continues:

The personnel of Voluntary Aid Societies, duly recognized and authorized by their Government, who may be employed on the same duties as those of the personnel mentioned in the rust paragraph of Article 9, are placed on the same footing as the personnel contemplated in that paragraph, provided that the personnel of such societies are subject to military law and regulations.

So, there are your nurses, protected under international law, as it existed in 1937.

Beyond that, Article 12 specifies that if a belligerent nation should capture medical personnel, they are to return them as quickly as possible, and if they cannot, that they can be instructed to continue to provide aid to their own people, but they can't be ordered to treat enemy soldiers.

So, yeah, targeting a medical facility would be verboten. Interestingly, if you're asking the realism, a nurse picking up a weapon and using it could invalidate some of their Geneva protections. They stop being just a medic, and become an enemy belligerent, though I'm not an expert on international law, so I'm not sure what other factors might kick in.

There's a mistake in thinking of these characters as combat medics, which they’re not. They should be working in a hospital, and while they might be close to the front lines, they would still be at a permanent location. Now, that hospital might have been quickly converted from something else before the war.

If the series is putting them out on the battlefield, then, no. That's probably not right. Again, I'm not an expert on the RoC's military structure, but, generally speaking, these kinds of civilian medics would be kept out of the line of fire if at all possible.

That said, if you're talking about something like the Nanjing Massacre, then yes, Imperial Japanese forces intentionally slaughtered hundreds of thousands of Chinese civilians. (There is question over the exact number, somewhere between 32k, including soldiers, up to over a quarter of a million civilians.) I'm unsure how much reading you've done on Imperial Japan's Pacific campaigns, but it makes for terrible light reading.

I realize I'm leaving you with a lot of reading, but with historical fantasy, that's the nature of the beast. You need read a lot of history, and build that into a concrete grasp for the slice of the world you're writing about. In a lot of cases, that requires starting long before the events you're looking at.

-Starke

This blog is supported through Patreon. Patrons get access to new posts three days early, and direct access to us through Discord. If you’d like to support us, please consider becoming a Patron.

#how to fight write #Starke answers #writing advice #writing reference #writing tips #alternate history #Starke is neither a real lawyer nor a signatory of the Hague Convention

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chaosmagetwin · 16 days ago

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Feeling creative while being really sick suuuuuuuucks dude, like, I'm so dizzy I can barely stand up, and I'm busy thinking about a court room drama where an artificer has to defend herself from heresy charges because she made Repair Magic that works exactly like healing magic, except, unlike healing magic, doesn't create endorphins and oxytocin that, over time, make the healing target fall in love with the healer / make them addicted to getting healed (and no one knows the truth about this except the artificer!)

Also thinking about "Seeds of Evil", which are sort of like if tyranids were demons who slowly corrupt entire planets, stripping them of life and light before gathering all the magical energy / spiritual life force of the planet, reabsorbing all the demons into the seed of evil, before launching itself back into space. If it got enough energy (And it usually does), it'll split into 2 seeds while in space. The gods of each planet are panicking because Seeds haven't ever lost (on the scale of tens of thousands of years, does any civilization last?) And they do a summon on a planet that has very nearly been lost to the seed of evil in an attempt to reclaim the planet, in a last ditch effort to stop this seed of evil. The summonee's goal is to survive, gather all the survivors they can in the disparate parts of the world, and build an outpost that can withstand against the hordes of demons for exactly one year, long enough for the light of the world to recover, and allow for more summons.

Also thinking about that previous idea I had, about the VRMMO set in magical WW1, AKA, The Forever War, and was going through the tutorial in my head and figuring out what the mechanics were, which was basically that there are all the fantasy races with different levels of varying magic, and then also a class system that anyone can be, but it really boils down to the interplay of technology vs magic to see how those classes function. Dwarves, an ONLY technology race (they cannot cast spells or use enchanted gear), can still be healers; they just call them medics. Elves, an ONLY magical race (they cannot use most technology more complicated than crossbows, and exude a faint aura making technology work worse around them) can be still be engineers, but what that actually means is artifice; the creating of enchantments and magical items, with some mana intensive spells for moving earth to create trenches (since they can't use machinery). The main character, a tiefling, can use magic somewhat and technology somewhat, and her class is that of a combat medic / rifleman. She can't use fully automatic weaponry, but she can enchant her gear and use more powerfully enchanted gear. She can use radios at reduced range, but she can also stand within 5 feet of a dwarf who is using a radio without interfering with it.

Why can't I have all these idea's when I have the energy to actually work on them. This sucks.

#creative writing #background

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mud-castle · 2 years ago

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Ya'll put me back on my bullshit on the day I'm supposed to be studying. So things I've changed in Dark Mirror Au:

Focuses mostly on the dark mirror universe itself, instead of them interacting with their canon selves.

Fire's sibs are being split up, the ones formerly known as Eaglekit and Wildkit stay with mama Nutmeg (Hope). Firekit is taken along with his near twin Flamekit and his sister Fawnkit (Princess). They don't have an official mom bc I couldn't find one that wouldn't bring up future problems.

Fire & Flame get a much closer relationship. Fawn eventually leaves

Fire does not get his villain arc (honestly it's more of a vengeance arc) until after the dog pack fiasco. As such, Bluestar does not die until after that..

Ya'll thought Starclan was involved in these cats' lives before? Let's turn that up by 200

Fire might not be Squilf n Leaf's bio dad, still iffy there

Fire works with instead of against the Hope Colony...at first.

Fire & Bramble's relationship is a lot more complicated

Might have Leafpaw rebuild Skyclan while she's gone bc why not. Also she can meet Sol there.

Medic Dovewing

Hollyleaf, gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss -> girlfail

Some form of an alliance with Riverclan, either between Fire & Misty themselves or an arranged union with Hawk & Squilf, likely the latter because the drama is spicy there.

Squilf is a lot more respected in TC (not that she wasn't before, but she's less likely to have her decisions questioned by anyone who is not her parents). Leaf is still the golden child though.

Lionblaze leaves the clans and joins Leaf

Tawnypelt stays in Shadowclan and might end up becoming leader.

Primrosetail and Talonswipe <3

The Three are stolen as kits; gotta lotta prophecy cat theft going on in this au

The Dark Forest battle might end up being replaced with kind of a Civil War, though the Dark Forest has its part to play.

Daisy becomes a warrior, yes this is highly controversial

Jayfeather gets more narrative purpose; mansplain, manipulate, manwhore...what if I make him Dove's dad?

Part that are still fairly iffy:

Crowfeather, what does he do post-journey

Stormfur & Feathertail stay in ThC and don't go on the journey, but I can't just have them just existing, taking up space.

Ivypool...babe...what to do with you...

Windclan, they're just...there.

#dark mirror au #warrior cats au #warriors #warrior cats #firestar #leafpool #brambleclaw #squirreflight

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kwebtv · 1 year ago

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TV Guide - November 16 - 22, 1963

James Grover Franciscus (January 31, 1934 – July 8, 1991) Film and television actor, known for his roles in feature films and in six television series: Mr. Novak, The Naked City, The Investigators, Longstreet, Doc Elliot, and Hunter.

His first major role was as Detective Jim Halloran in the half-hour version of ABC's Naked City. Franciscus guest starred on the CBS military comedy–drama Hennesey, starring Jackie Cooper, and on the NBC drama about family conflicts in the American Civil War entitled The Americans. CBS soon cast him in the lead in the 13-week series The Investigators, which aired from October 5 to December 28, 1961. He played the insurance investigator Russ Andrews, with James Philbrook as a co-star. Franciscus was also cast in the role of Tom Grover in the 1961 episode "The Empty Heart" of the CBS anthology series The DuPont Show with June Allyson. He performed in many feature films and television programs throughout the 1960s and 1970s, preceded by a minor role in an episode of The Twilight Zone titled "Judgment Night" in 1959, and a major role in episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents: "Forty Detectives Later" in 1960, and "Summer Shade" in 1961. (Wikipedia)

Dean Jagger (November 7, 1903 – February 5, 1991) Film, stage, and television actor who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Henry King's Twelve O'Clock High (1949)

In the 1960s, Jagger increasingly worked on television appearing in The Twilight Zone ("Static"), Sunday Showcase, Our American Heritage, General Electric Theater, Dr. Kildare, The Christophers, and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour.

Jagger achieved success with the television series Mr. Novak (1963–1965), receiving Emmy Award nominations for his role in 1964 and 1965, as well as the California Teachers Association's Communications Award, along with star James Franciscus, in 1963 for his portrayal of high-school principal Albert Vane.

Jagger's appearances in the 1960s included episodes of The F.B.I. and The Fugitive, as well as the TV filmm The Brotherhood of the Bell (1970), with Ford, and an episode of The Name of the Game.

He had a semiregular role on the series Matt Lincoln (1970) as the father of the title character, and parts in Vanishing Point (1971), Bonanza, and Incident in San Francisco (1971).

In 1971, Jagger appeared on The Partridge Family. He played a prospector named Charlie in the Christmas episode "Don't Bring Your Guns to Town, Santa".

In his later career Jagger was in The Glass House (1972), Columbo, Kung Fu (Jagger appeared as Caine's grandfather, who wants little to do with him, but starts Caine on his series-long search for his half-brother Danny), Alias Smith and Jones, Medical Center, The Stranger (1973), The Delphi Bureau, The Lie (1973), Shaft, I Heard the Owl Call My Name (1973), Love Story, The Hanged Man (1974), The Great Lester Boggs (1974), The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case (1976), Harry O, Hunter, The Waltons ahd Gideon's Trumpet (1980)

He won a Daytime Emmy award for a guest appearance in the religious series This Is the Life.

His last role was as Dr. David Domedion in the St. Elsewhere season-three finale "Cheers" in 1985. (Wikipedia)

#TV Guide #TV #1963 #James Franciscus #Dean Jagger #Mr. Novak

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system-design-hospital · 3 months ago

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Day 2: Visiting a hospital

After a lot of infighting and straight up civil war drama rivalling the Mahabharata, our new group rose like a phoenix out of the ashes and we changed our space to Sri Krishna AYUSH. Ayurvedic Hospital. We visited the facility. It was the only medical college in Kurukshetra.

Context of the place

Shri Krishna AYUSH University, established by the Haryana Government under Act No. 25 of 2017, began its operations in the academic year 2018-19. Headquartered in Sector 8, Kurukshetra, Haryana, it is the first university of its kind in the world to offer all AYUSH courses. This university plays a pivotal role in the affiliation and regulation of Ayurveda courses across government and private colleges in Haryana.

Tour of the Hospital

We walked in through the emergency block and tried to soak everything in and get a feel for the place and later found out about the main entrance. There, we spoke to the medical superintendant, Dr. Rajender Singh who introduced us to Dr. Priya, an intern who is doing PG. She gave us a tour of the place, meticulously explaining everything in great detail.

Dr. Priya started with the OPDs and explained what the purpose of each ward was. She guided us through the entire hospital starting with the lobby where patients are instructed to get a slip with their name, age and sex.

They get assigned to specific departments based on your ailment represented by a number of the slip. Later, she walked us through all the outpatient departments on the ground floor and the accompanying waiting areas. A general sense of uncleanness was observed with the washrooms and water coolers.

The following departments and wards were seen-

GROUND FLOOR 1. Reception 2. Dispensery 3. Medical Superintendent office 4. Emergency Ward 5. OT Block 6. Swasthy raksha (yoga room) 7. Stri rog OPD (gynaecology) 8. Shalya tantra OPD (stomach) 9. Shalakya OPD (eyes) 10. Shalakya OPD sub unit (nose and throat) 11. Balrog OPD (paediatrics) 12. Kriya karg OPD (child treatment) 13. Kriya OPD (physiology) 14. Kayachikitsa OPD (general medicine) 15. Dravyagun (drug testing) 16. Rasa shastra 17. Agni karma 18. Rakt Moksh

FIRST FLOOR 1. Medical record room 2. Narcotics treatment room 3. Kayachikitsa female ward 4. Deputy MS office 5. Matron office 7. Clinical Lab 8. Nurse Staff duty room 9. Panchkarma reception 10. Panchkarma OPD

Panchkarma

We then proceeded to go one floor upwards where the inpatient wards were located. Separate wards existed for male and female. The wards were mostly not occupied with a lot of empty beds. However, there was a long line which extended far beyond the waiting area outside the Panchkarma OPD. There were two people stationed on a bench managing the people and clearing any doubts they had.

Dr. Priya explained what Panchkarma was. It means to detox. It is an Ayurvedic treatment that helps cleanse and heal the body. It involves five main methods:

Vamana (Therapeutic Vomiting): Removes toxins from the stomach.

Virechana (Purgation): Cleanses the intestines using herbal laxatives.

Basti (Enema Therapy): Uses medicated oils or herbal decoctions to cleanse the colon.

Nasya (Nasal Administration): Clears the head and sinuses by applying herbal oils through the nose.

Raktamokshana (Bloodletting): Purifies the blood, traditionally done by controlled blood removal.

Clinical Lab

Later, we proceeded towards the pathology lab. There was a general lack of organisation. Urine samples were placed on the table out in the open. We were introduced to advanced machinery like the centrifuge. Syringes and other meds were stored in the refrigerator.

OT Block

Then we went to the Operation Theatre Block. This part, the Major OT was still under construction with exposed concrete walls, but the minor OT was functional with surgeries being conducted. Dr. Priya showed us the various instruments. There was a labor room which was not occupied.

Agnikarma

Finally, we were in the agnikarma department where Dr. Priya introduced us to various instruments to treat joint pain without the need for painkillers. The shalaka was one such tool. The pointed end is heated and then briefly touched to the skin to treat various ailments like joint pain, musculoskeletal issues, and certain skin conditions. Aloe vera and turmeric were common treatment methods. Bowls were placed for cupping therapy. To our astonishment, Dr. Priya picked up a container from the shelves and showed us leeches inside. The saliva of leeches contain anticoagulants. While feeding on the blood, these substances are released into the bloodstream thereby helping in improving blood flow and reducing symptoms of varicose veins.

Exploring more

After the tour was over, we decided to split up and observe different areas all over the hospital. We made a list of all the equipments, items, and other stuff kept inside every ward. Then we started observing the people around us.

Since we had enough information about the structure of the hospital, and we were tired and hungry, we decided to leave and come back tomorrow to uncover more. bye.

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tortoisesshells · 2 years ago

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As I'm someone who hasn't seen Mercy Street yet, can I ask if you would recommend it and if so why?

Depending on what you're looking for in a period drama, but generally: yes! With some caveats?

Pros:

It's a show that tends to signpost Big Historical Moments (the Battle of Antietam, President Lincoln's visit) in the middle of the US Civil War for ease of keeping track of the context, even as it dabbles in speculative history (a fairly ridiculous assassination plot)- there really was a Union Army Hospital in the former Mansion House Hotel in Alexandria, Virginia; many of the named characters (Mary Phinney von Olnhausen, Henry Hopkins, the Green family, Frank Stringfellow) are based on real people mostly.

There are so genuinely great (and genuinely, bafflingly bad) costumes, so you'll have something to look at - and even laugh at.

The cast is largely very good even when some of the writing decisions are. hmm. a lot. Seriously - half of the cast are established actors who just get to go ham. There's a fair amount of scenery chewing on the way to Performances.

Mary Phinney von Olnhausen is a great outsider character who is thrown/throws herself headfirst into the butcher's shop of a Union Army Hospital in the US Civil War, and purely in the sense of having a narrative thru-line, she's a great POV character on the chaos (medical and moral) she finds there. Also, she's played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead (who is entertainingly described as 'sufficiently plain'. which. okay. I wish I were as plain as MEW.) She has a belligerent into romantic dynamic with surgeon Jed Foster (Josh Radnor, proving he can act) who is an absolute tire-fire of a human being, but who tends to follow her pretending very ardently that he would not lie down in a puddle if Mary asked him to, because he can afford to have his fancy waistcoats laundered while she's living out of a carpet bag. He's an ass and cannot help but stick his foot in his mouth constantly, but he gets Character Development and enjoys very little of it.

I personally really enjoy the soundtrack, especially this cover of "Johnny Has Gone For A Soldier". If you're doing something about the US Civil War there's got to be at least one haunting camp song, dammit.

Cons:

If you're more squeamish than not, you'll be at least a little uncomfortable - any way that someone could die in a mid-19th century war, they will. The sound design for amputation and trepanning is weirdly good, for whatever that's worth. I'm not sure that last is a con, but it seems worth mentioning.

The writing is breakneck. Nothing gets to breathe. Jed gets over a morphine addiction in the space of two episodes. Chaplain Hopkins has a crisis of faith that's resolved in two episodes. Emma Green, the oldest daughter of the Confederate owners of the hotel, pulls a near total about-face on her politics in - you guessed it - the space of about two episodes. And this is what gets screentime! Offscreen, we have allusions to major fights over Charlotte Jenkins' school run in the freedman's camp adjacent to the hospital, Mary Phinney von Olnhausen's tragic widowing, Jed Foster's Divorce Plot, Samuel Diggs' application to attend medical school ... there's always something world-ending going on, but there is not time to dwell when the fate of a nation and certainly the fate of whatever poor soul who caught a minie ball/typhoid/gonorrhea hang in balance for the episode.

At best, the show dabbles in the political/cultural dimensions of the US Civil War: it's primarily concerned with the Case(s) of the Week and the relationships between the main and minor characters - in a world where US popular cultural depictions of the US Civil War have been largely dominated by Confederate apologia from the late 19th century through to the late 20th, it left me wishing that Mercy Street (while being the first period drama I'm aware of where the romantic lead almost certainly voted for the Constitutional Union party in 1860) had been more interested in discussing race and slavery and the US Civil War. It suffers by comparison to other series which were explicitly about race and slavery and the coming war (Underground, for example).

Pursuant to these last two points: I think, sometimes, the show doesn't know what it wants to be - or isn't allowed to be what it wants to be. Is it a straight hospital drama complicated by no one knowing what antibiotics are? Is it a romantic drama? Is it a political thriller? An espionage thriller? Is it a War Is Hell war story? Is it a coming of age story? Is it a treatise on 19th century masculinity (and, conversely, womanhood) as determined by race, class, and region? It's got a runtime of less than 12 hours total and it tries very hard to be all of these things. Stuff falls to the wayside.

Mercy Street put Patina Miller, Norbert Leo Butz, Donna Murphy, & Bryce Pinkham in one lousy hospital and there was no musical episode.

I'm not really much of a Mercy Street authority, though - I hope no one minds if I tag in @jomiddlemarch, @sagiow, @fericita-s, & @mercurygray? who are all longer-standing fans of the show than me.

i just run around in the background with absolutely batshit crossovers.

#polkaknox talks

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