#Failure to protect

[radchalice]

If anyone is familiar with the Ruby Franke child abuse case, I’ve been wondering why her husband hasn’t been charged with failure to protect. Women who are actually physically abused get charged with it often, and even receive harsher sentences that the man who was abusing her and the children. So Ruby Franke’s husband was “kicked out” and just left the kids there, knowing what was going on. Don’t tell me he was powerless and could do nothing.

My Amber Heard/Johnny Depp opinion as an actual lawyer is that on the exceedingly rare occasion that a prima facie case can be made for a woman's guilt of a violent crime the media always take it and run with it, while at the same time ignoring the far worse violent crimes men commit every day. Often this results in overly harsh punishments for the female defendant and, in a disturbingly high number of cases, straight up sentencing an actually innocent woman. I don't know if Amber Heard 'did it' and I have very little faith in the legal system to get to the bottom of it. But I'm fairly sure that, regardless of what is uncovered and who was at fault, Johnny Depp will be fine.

[itspileofgoodthings]

one of the things that continues to strike me on reread is how much the character of Darcy, and Austen through him, finds Mr. Bennet dead. And how much Elizabeth, in growing and changing and discarding her past blindness, has to move past her way of seeing her father and thus of seeing reality, because the two are connected! Darcy’s letter exposes her father’s flaws to Elizabeth in a way she’d never been able to see before. Most especially the way his laziness and neglect of his own gifts have hurt his family and that ultimately he doesn’t. care. Not enough to change. It literally says that she comes home from Hunsford and tries to laugh at her sisters’ and mother’s folly (the way she used to; the way her father has taught her to by example for her whole life) and she can’t anymore! It sticks in her throat. She is grieved by the failures that she sees in him, all the more so because she IS his favorite and she loves him! And the thing about Mr. Bennet is he never changes. The Lydia/wickham situation exposes to him sharply his own conduct and the consequences and he feels it! Because he is neither stupid nor unfeeling. But he, like everyone, has free will. And he chooses not to change when the opportunity presents itself. He even jokes about how quickly his feeling bad will pass and how soon everything will go back to normal, to his laziness and his selfishness. He is set in his ways and he serves as a contrast to Elizabeth’s personal journey because he embodies a version of a person she could have become and was in danger of becoming if her only goal at all times was to laugh at and judge people from the sidelines.

[blizardstar]

Me when Ashton Greymoore is denied honorable and meaningful self-sacrifice, and now must face the reality that they MUST keep living after it’s All Over

[the-one-with-spider-brainrot]

uh oh spaghettio looks like watching their brothers execution wasn’t enough

[eatmoresoupss]

damian posting again. sorry. i am annoyed by people saying/writing damian as emotionless. that could not be further from the truth. one of his character flaws is that he will sometimes be ruled by his emotions. he’s quick to anger, he’s ESPECIALLY quick to guilt. he’s described as a person who can’t disconnect from his emotions as effectively (not well, because disconnecting from your emotions is not necessarily a good thing) as others. i just don’t get that characterization. he’s an emotional kid, i think that’s an interesting concept. little kid HUGE feelings who grew up in worlds in which concealing and disconnecting your feelings was actively encouraged (this, to me, is both the LOA and the bats), that’s a compelling conflict! the idea can rock both damian and those he’s around, as he grows older and more assured in himself, he can challenge those ideals. and he might not always be right, but challenging the ideals surrounding emotionality is still a worthy story beat in my mind.

[piracytheorist]

Yor worrying that her disappearing because of her job would mean she betrayed the Forgers vs Yor realizing that the risk is worth protecting them.

Grey colours, the Forgers as she first met them having their backs at her with empty, disappointed faces, vs bright, warm colours, the Forgers as she now knows them facing her directly and smiling at her.

She starts the story feeling like an outcast, fearing that no-one, not even her brother, will accept her as she is. That people will turn their back on her, and her life will continue being colourless and lonely.

Then her life fills with colour, with people who will face her head-on and accept her. She develops into confidence that the Forgers care for her and is reminded that even if she ever has to leave because of her job, the knowledge that she protects innocent people...

and that this work of hers will be acknowledged...

... is enough to give her the strength to carry on.

[nxcturus]

Ok so hear me out; Eternal Sugar x Golden Cheese

Also bonus doodle cuz these girlies for sure have a height difference <3

[mysteriouspersonrambles]

You know the most fucked up thing about ch. 120 is that it reinforces Teru’s character. It reinforces the fact that he is an exorcist first, brother second. He struck with precision, even though he called his brother’s name he still struck. I wonder if he knew what he was doing or if it was all muscle memory at that point. If all he saw at first was a supernatural attacking a person and not his brother. Did he know in his heart that his brother was gone or did he hold out hope that he could break the possession. Do you think he’ll lay awake at night think more about what lies at the bottom of the well, or that he didn’t hesitate to strike his brother the one he gave up so much for.

[tomorrowusa]

« [I]n 1994 Ukraine, which had the third largest nuclear arsenal in the world, relinquished its nuclear warheads as part of a complete nuclear disarmament. It did so in exchange for iron-clad security guarantees from the US, UK and Russia. Donald Trump’s betrayal of Ukraine (or, worse, active sabotage by cutting it off from some intelligence sharing) and in-process realignment of the US with Vladimir Putin’s geostrategic objectives guarantees that no state will ever do anything similar in the future. »

— Alexander Hurst at The Guardian.

In 1994 under an agreement known as the Budapest Memorandum, Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapons in return for security guarantees. Donald Trump has removed those guarantees. In doing so, Trump has increased the likelihood of nuclear war.

As Hurst explains...

[I]n 1994 Ukraine, which had the third largest nuclear arsenal in the world, relinquished its nuclear warheads as part of a complete nuclear disarmament. It did so in exchange for iron-clad security guarantees from the US, UK and Russia. Donald Trump’s betrayal of Ukraine (or, worse, active sabotage by cutting it off from some intelligence sharing) and in-process realignment of the US with Vladimir Putin’s geostrategic objectives guarantees that no state will ever do anything similar in the future.

Russia would not have attacked Ukraine if the latter had nukes. Because of Trump's failure to support Ukraine, other countries will try to acquire nuclear weapons because they know they can't count on American promises and treaty agreements.

Trump has made this a less safe planet in addition to jeopardizing American national security.

[scribz-ag24]

Grovyle's got some emotional baggage to work through.

[faithfulpuppy]

I do feel like I owe Jin Zixuan an apology because I was totally ready to buy into the "he's a silly peacock and he's mean to shijie" line on a first watch. But really I don't think he did anything wrong. At the point where the engagement was broken off he was like "I don't want to be in an arranged marriage" and like he had nothing cruel to say about Yanli he just was bummed about being betrothed to a stranger. Which is really really valid!! He did really hurt her feelings in the Sunshot Campaign but his understanding of the situation did make her look pretty bad and on top of that if I'd successfully gotten my arranged marriage called off and they tried to reinsert themselves into my life I would probably speak more harshly than absolutely necessary (consider also: at war and probably being given too much responsibility for a 17 year old so not a lot of patience to spare). Then by the Phoenix Mtn night hunt he'd managed to convince her he wasn't interested when actually he'd formed an organic attraction to her so there was much fumbling to be had since she was preemptively rebuffing his genuine advances based on their previous interactions. Genuinely it was rather brave of him to confess his true feelings in front of everyone at the end of the hunt.

[borgialucrezia]

hot take but juan would never have allowed lucrezia to be maritally raped in front of others while he watched. given how impulsive and reckless he is especially when any man outside his family is near his mother or sister (let alone when a man demands public humiliation of his sister), he might even kill the king of naples the moment he utters lucrezia's name with zero regard for "the good of the family." despite his concern for status and his obsession with meeting expectations to gain his father's approval, he would never tolerate such a violation of his sister's honor. because the situation isn’t just a petty insult to lucrezia but it's also a deeply personal insult to him. juan prioritizes personal honor and would react violently and immediately to any perceived slight against his family, disregarding political consequences (including his father's wishes.)

and then there's cesare, who is more tender and caring toward lucrezia than juan ever was. but he prefers careful planning over recklessness. as much as he desired to cut out the king of naples' heart, he ultimately prioritized his ambition to remain in his father's good graces hoping to gain control of the papal army even at the cost of his sister's public humiliation. he suppressed his feelings, stood by his father and allowed lucrezia to be humiliated while witnessing it as a form of self punishment while silently grappling with guilt for not standing up for her. lucrezia felt betrayed by the person she trusted most because she believed that cesare owed her the rage and protectiveness she desperately desired against the man who had made her feel violated. yet he left the situation unresolved and traveled to france to get married without taking action even though he could have avenged her by plotting the king of naples' death. instead, lucrezia took matters into her own hands by giving micheletto her approval to act.

and no this post isn't about who loved and cared for lucrezia more (since both brothers failed her in different ways). instead it's about how juan has always been an unstable fuck up who's destined to fall short of the family's expectations. his impulsiveness in situations where the family faces personal harm or humiliation could ruin everything for rodrigo. unlike cesare who aligns with their father's expectations and ambitions, juan lacks strategy and consistent awareness of their surroundings. it's why cesare is essentially their father's ideal protégé because he embodies everything their father ever desired in a son.

in juan's case, his actions have always been driven by a desire for his family's acknowledgment and love but he always uses flawed methods to protect them. methods rooted in his fixation on their honor rather than in fulfilling the family's ideals. this is why almost every attempt he makes has a tragic outcome and why he doesn't conform to their father's expectations and ambitions in the same way cesare does.

[polysyndetonaddictsupportgroup]

I just want you to know that in light of your posts about the Zen'in Clan trying to make Megumi kill one of his dogs, I now have a headcanon that when the white dog dies at the detention center, Naoya sends him a card saying "Congratulations on finally getting your dog killed!" and half of the Zen'in Clan have signed it. Someone doodled the white dog with lil X's for eyes. A true family bonding moment for everyone but Megumi.

You’re actually really close because in the backstory that lives in my head, the sword the Zenin clan always gives him to kill the dog is the black blade that he uses in canon. It’s the Ten Shadows’ sword that they typically receive when they kill the dog and ergo come of age. Megumi goes back to his room after the detention center and finds it on his bed. Yuuji’s blood was still on him. He doesn’t know how they found out so quickly or how they got into his room, but he never feels safe in that room again.

But he kept the sword, and he didn’t tell Gojo where it came from. It was meant to be a reminder to himself.

Next time, when it comes down to it, he needs to be the one to die. And then he would never again have to feel the way he did when he saw that fucking sword and realized that someone like Itadori Yuuji died for a person who didn’t even want to be alive.

[skeletorg]

take the reins captain

[lacnunga]

"He and I were slaves together. When he was hungry and like to die, I shared my food with him. And when he was cold and like to die, I kept him warm. He might have died a hundred times had it not been for me."

two little guys

[citrusai]

i think it's crazy some people jumped to the romantic conclusion of the love between mythal & solas when it seems the devotion was different than that where the evanuris called him a "dog" in a derogatory sense understanding that she used his loyalty as a shield for herself and didn't waste time to cast aside his doubts & fears about the evanuris to cement herself as a god.

i also think it's crazy to not acknowledge the parallel that the loyalty he feels for lavellan is born out of love and understanding and not duty, it is born out of choice. he does not owe her or the inquisition anything. he just met these damn people. and regardless of how his friendship / companionship with mythal started, by the time the evanuris rose it was deteriorating and she cared not for his opinions past her own blind ambition. i think there's a parallel that mythal also could not see solas for who he was, which was not a weapon for her to wield, but a person who was deeply caring and empathetic to his people. whereas lavellan saw him as an equal, and as a friend she could lean on. hence him saying lavellan saw more than most when talking about his character & beliefs.

which also by the end i think is why mythal gave the last of her power to him for atone for her own mistakes in not heeding his warnings, a final olive branch to an old friend. that and she knows her next body is ab to send his ex gf on his ass so she gets a laugh in the end either way.