#Fighting for justice doesn't have to be a big dramatic act

[remembertheplunge]

Everyday resistance

Rebecca Solint wrote an article in The Guardian today, February 3, 2025, in which she talks about other ways of standing up to authoritarianism than street protests and calling your senator. Her article is entitled “Fighting for justice doesn’t have to be a big dramatic act. It can be small."

She wrote that resistance  can be “woven into everyday life and our conversations and outreach communications.” …. “How we talk and how boldly we talk.”

In court this morning in Stockton California, I took a risk and talked about what I had heard on my commute to court on Democracy Now radio show. I learned that Musk over the weekend spear headed a hostile take over of parts of  the US government. I asked three other attorneys what they thought about it. One said that Congress is abdocating its responsibilities to protect the US Treasury. Another said he never thought that he would live to see something like this happen. I third lawyer said she was surprised at how silent people she knows are about the Musk Coup.I told her that here on Tumblr we are not silent. And that, in the future , what we say here will help historians know how we in 2025 handled Democracy in crisis.

In her article, Ms Solnit counsels against sparing with Trump Cultists over what is true. Be careful who and where you talk. But, talk. We need to know who’s there with us through this. We need to share information on the ground, where we live on line and off line. And, we will see what tomorrow brings.

End of entry

Note: Rebecca Solnit is a wrier, historian and activist.

The Guardian is an activist newspaper that speaks truth to power. 

[lactoseintolerentswag]

Rise Characterizations

Last month I did an in-depth re-watch of rottmnt s1 to take some notes on writing the characters of rise from their perspective and such. Figured I'd share what I found, but I'm also posting this bc my docs have a nasty habit of blipping out of existence.

We'll start with Raph bc he's the oldest of course, but I'll post the others sep. bc this is gonna get long!!

Raph Character Notes

Language Habits:

Catchphrases: "like a boss", "smash"

Verbalizes his attacks such as "smash", "knuckle sandwich", "power smash jitsu", "tonfa power jitsu", "mystic punch jitsu"

Uses older song titles for surprised exclamations or in place of cursing, most notably "jumping jack flash!"

Uses aave/bae, For example: 'em instead of them, 'ey instead of they, 'cause instead of because, forgoes the g in ing words (going becomes goin')

Uses less and less grammar the more he's stressed, and his voice will come to a higher pitch

Will speak in a softer tone to his little brothers if he's concerned about hurting their feelings. Aka babying them

Mixes up both metaphors and idioms. Would be one to say how the turn tables unironically

Does say "hero" a lot, lost count, especially in phrases like "hero town"

Refers to his brothers as "boys" or "fellas"

Refers to Splinter as "pop(s)" most often

Refers to strangers he's directly talking to as "bubs" or "hoss"

Personality:

Protective of his family

Plays up the hero act/has a strong sense of duty and justice

Impatient, rushes in without a plan (pre-movie), doesn't finish books until the end, falls asleep during "boring movies"

Oblivious, doesn't read into things beyond surface level. Struggles with empathy when something is beyond his understanding, but is still very emotional

Center of responsibility for his brothers, but also has a reckless sense of fun. As long as it's him doing the stupid unsafe thing it's fine

Carries the weight, in a literal sense he piggy backs his brothers, but will also use his body as a shield from danger. Unfortunately this also means he takes his brothers a little less seriously (Mikey the most common victim), and will try and either protect them from everything or as an oldest sibling everything has go "his way"

Doesn't do well in solitude. Needs to be looking after people to feel functional, and needs to be around people to feel safe

Clumsy, "takes horrible pictures", isn't very good at hiding, he's a big guy so it probably took a lot of time to find balance

A sweet guy who still won't shy from making fun of his family. Leo tends to be the brunt of his teasing since he is the most annoying, but he will also poke Donnie on his dramatics

Likes cute things!!! Has a teddy bear collection and loves animals. It's so cool how this isn't played off as a joke and he's still just as masculine for liking pink and cutesy stuff

Likes fighting!!! Gets a lot of energy out defeating bad guys (where he directs his anger towards), the one who is shown to train the most, and also weight lifts in his spare time

Doesn't do well under pressure, here the anger comes out the most. He gets stressed when it's all on him, especially since he tends to mess up the most in these moments

Miscellaneous:

Second to unlock mystic powers

Nicknames/codenames: "raph-a-doodle" by leo, "red rover" by april, "red king" by donnie

Teddy bear names: Doctor Huggenstein, Captain Snuggles, Cheech

Stinks: fear stink, amazement stink, sneaking up on people stink, victory stink

Seems to be less afraid of rabbits and more afraid of puppets

Went on his first solo mission at 13

Cannot lift a bus, at age 15

Thought about discussing fighting style, but I'm not as familiar with that concept and I've seen a couple posts dissecting such topic. So we'll end here for now. Hope this was helpful!!! I'll post the rest of the boys later and link here

Leo is up!!

Donnie is up!!

Mikey is up!!

Splinter is up!!

April is up!!

Cassandra is up!!

Baron Draxum is up!!

[normal-thoughts-official]

Okay. It's official. I fucking hate the way Choices is dealing with the "MC gets kidnapped" shit

They're focusing on the plot to the detriment of any emotional stakes, which is always a bad move but it's a particularly bad move when we barely understand what the threat is this time but have been missing these characters and wanting to see them again for three years. Every expression of feeling over MC's kidnapping feels rushed and squeezed in, like they're trying to get it out of the way so they can get back to the Valax shit. Imtura, Nia, and Mal made up in five seconds without us even understanding how exactly this awful fight went down to begin with. MC explains what happened while they were in captivity and they all just go to sleep. Not even a "holy shit MC, are you okay?" or "we will end her" or anything. We don't even get a general line of how they reacted like "they were horrified" "they were angry" "they were sad" "they didn't give a flying fuck" or something.

Even Imtura's grief, while definitely the best written one out of the four, felt like it was dealt with in seconds (I'm yet to play with my Imtura-romancing MC in my other acc so I'm not sure how it goes with her in the bathhouse but it shouldn't take romantic involvement for the grief to last). Even when Valax shows up a second time it doesn't feel like they're as terrified of the idea of losing MC again as they should be

There are some pretty good angsty lines and moments but they always pass so quickly it feels like they're brushing it all off. It almost feels like fanservice. "See, here, your LI kisses you as if pouring all the longing of a year into it. And then you go to sleep. Happy?" No, actually. For fuck's sake, you have to dig deeper than that

The only moment we had that wasn't plot related was bathhouse scene, which was cute, but felt entirely out of place. They just made up, they still don't even know what happened to MC, if MC's okay, they barely had the time to catch up and they're just carefreely dunking each other in the water? It could have been played like a cathartic "finally having fun after so long of suffering" sort of deal at least and then it would work, but it simply wasn't written that way and it just feels like their entire dynamic is botched and weird and we're supposed to forget that for the last year MC was gone and Imtura had a massive fallout with the rest of the group. They keep alternating between these super dramatic declarations and lines and acting as if nothing has happened, and it just doesn't work. Take the time to deal with the emotional consequences of the LITERAL INCITING INCIDENT OF THE STORY, then you can jump into battles against the big bad hot gorgeous goth woman. This just feels like they don't want to deal with it and are just throwing some lines here and there so we don't complain

Don't get me wrong, I'm generally enjoying the story and I'm happy to have the gang back, but PB's not doing their own plot justice, especially considering they've supposedly been writing this for three years. The emotional stakes are always what carries a story, even a fantasy/action one. We have to care about the characters, which we do because we have since book 1, but it doesn't seem like the story does and it gets more and more disappointing every week

[e-the-village-cryptid]

I love the way that Andor shows us the sheer mundanity of the choices that everyday people are faced with in the gradually but steadily tightening grip of fascism. Because in real life, picking a side doesn't look like a big dramatic moment where Luke or Anakin chooses The Light Side or The Dark Side for once and for all. It looks like Brasso and Bix deciding to provide what help they can to Cassian fleeing the consequences of an unjust police state, or on the flip side, Timm deciding that his personal gain is worth briefly siding with the Imperials, or in the middle, Pegla deciding to simply step back and be a bystander. It looks like little acts of defiance and humanity. It looks like Bix and Paak making the decision to send that message just on the off-chance Cassian could get the chance to say goodbye to Maarva, despite knowing the risks. It looks like Brasso doing his best to subtly buy Bix a few extra seconds to run from the Imperials chasing her, even if he couldn't stand up and fully fight them in that moment. It looks like community, like the citizens of Ferrix warning each other of danger and holding their funerals whenever and however they goddamn want to. At every turn, the characters of Ferrix are faced with small, everyday choices to step up or step back. They might not even realize they're picking a side in a larger war. But these mundane choices gradually shape their role in it, and their consequences are very real.

But Andor also shows us that however difficult these decisions, and however dire and even fatal their consequences, it is still a privilege to be able to make those decisions at all. Because characters like Cassian, and Cinta, and the prisoners on Narkina 5 never had a choice. They were taken from their homes, ripped from their families, and placed in this fight whether they wanted to be or not. And so they rely on people like Bix, Brasso, the Paaks, Mon Mothma, Vel, and so many others who do have the choice to choose them, to choose justice over their own personal safety and stability. And they do choose, and they do suffer for it. But at least they got to make that choice themselves.

And it asks: What would you choose? If the choices were small, if they were presented not as Good vs. Evil but something more personal, more complex? If your safety, your livelihood, even your family were on the line? What do you choose? At each turn, do you step back or step up? Do you help your friends, your neighbors, your community? Do you engage in a million tiny braveries? Or do you keep your head down as the net closes, hoping your silence will save you, not waking up until you find yourself as surely ensnared as those whose plight you ignored?

[wannajointhecrabcult]

Masks and Music

(Part 1)

Part 2

I didn't think that my last post would've gotten ANY notes at all, so imagine my surprise when I find out that people actually liked it. After that suprise I thought why not and make another one so here we go! This is a Miraculous/Batfam crossover.

Imagine that Damian gets sent to Paris because the fam doesn't want him to become an emotionally constipated sad boi like Bruce and think that a change in scenery would help.

They don't know about the whole Hawkmoth situation because SOMEONE from the justice league decided that the while thing was a prank DESPITE that it was an ENTIRE CITY calling instead of a single person.

Like, aren't you guys supposed to be the world's greatest heros or something?

Who hired you?

Damian being the grumpy lil kid that he is holds a grudge and decides to not accept any calls or video chats from his family or tell them about Hawkmoth because that's what you get when you send someone across the world against their will.

(and because of plot convenience shhh)

Anyways, Damian goes to school as instantly adds Lila onto his mental list of people he needs to get rid of.

I mean, seriously, he's only been is the room for what, 15 seconds and he's already getting a migraine?

Great. Juusssttt great.

He sits in the back of the class with what seems to be the only person with brain cells in this room.

The dark haired girl just looks over and sees the disgust at Lila written all over his face and gives him a silent empathetic nod.

'This is unfortunately normal here.' she tries to convey through the small action.

He just nods back to show his understanding before turning around to observe the others.

In a few minutes Ms. Bustier walks in the room and asks him to introduce himself to the class.

It looks like the teacher never told the class that they were getting a new student because they all have to do double takes when they realize that there's a new face in the room.

He gives them the bare basics, telling them that his name is Damian Grayson, he's from America, and that he doesn't want any of them to talk to him before sitting down.

Clearly the teacher wanted him to say more or scold him for being so rude but a glare shut her up.

Later during a break period Lila tries to flirt with him and brags all about how she's met so many different celebrities and her achievements.

He tells her off and tries to move away but her nails are digging into his arms as she tries to convince him that he should stay away from Marinette.

Before he can maim her, the dark haired girl comes out from behind him and starts spraying Lila down like an unruly cat with some sort of strong smelling liquid from a spray bottle.

Lila screeches and stomps away.

When he turns to his hero the girl explains.

"It's a mixture of shredded lemon, expired maple syrup, vinegar, and pomegranate juice. I call it People Repellant but Thot Begone works too. Oh, and I'm Marinette by the way."

He eyes her hand before shaking it.

"Damian, though I assume you already know that. Can I get some of that by the way? I know a couple insufferable annoyances that would benefit from a spray down.

Marinette just blinks for a second before she bursts out laughing and that was the start of a great friendship.

Together they:

Make fun of Lila in the back of class.

Help eachother with homework (they only cheat off eachother when they REALLY need help)

Prank Lila in odd ways (Hey, just because she found hundreds of furbies hidden around her house that turn on one by one in the middle of the night effectively scaring the crap out of her when she's trying to sleep doesn't mean that it's their fault. She had it coming.)

Break a couple laws (shhhhhhh. Those toy stores don't need those furbies anyways).

Dare eachother over stupid things (they still insist that the cereal incident was caused by the other).

And overall become closer as friends.

They bring out the overdramatic chaotic gremlin child in eachother.

One time when Damian goes over to Marinette's place to work on a project he finds her singing a Disney song to herself on her balcony.

This isn't the first time they've caught eachother singing.

One time Marinette caught Damian in the art room at school humming one of the many annoyingly cheesy and catchy songs that Dick likes to listen to.

Despite him explaining the embarrassing situation to her she still teased him for weeks after.

He'll never get to live it down.

Damian shakes his head to get rid of the flashback when a devious smirk spreads across his face as a revenge plan comes to mind.

After carefully placing his stuff on the floor he sneakily makes his way across the space until he's right behind her.

That's when he joins in.

Screaming at the top of his lungs at first, effectively giving her a mini heart attack before eventually quieting down to a normal singing volume.

She glares at him, annoyed by his loud and obnoxious entrance before she starts singing again.

They eventually end up full Disney movie dramatically performing around her balcony with dance moves and over dramatic acting.

Is it bad that actual birds and other animals are appearing and joining in?

Damian totally kept one of the pigeons.

He named it Dolores.

(He later trained Dolores to attack Rossi on sight.)

When they're finished they end up on the floor out of breath.

They stay like that for a few minutes before Damian sits up.

"That. That was fun. I don't think I've actually ever sang before."

Marinette jolts up in suprise and turns to face him.

"Really? I never would've guessed. You have a really nice singing voice."

He would deny till his dying breath that he blushed when she said that but he covers it up with a smirk.

"Well I guess that's just because yours is so terrible in comparison."

He squawks when she jabs a finger in his side.

"Pshh. As if. Besides, my singing skills can't be worse then your gaming skills." She challenges with a cheeky smile.

"ExCuSe mE?!"

And that's how they spend the rest of the day playing video games, leaving the unfinished project to be completed on a later day.

Good thing it isn't due until 2 weeks time.

After a couple of hours playing video games, creating many possible Lila murder plans, eating pastries, and joking around, it's time for him to leave.

As Damian left for his place he got a feeling that something big was gonna happen.

Marinette also got the feeling but they both ignored it.

Little did they know, someone just happened to walk by and starstruck by the amazing singing they recorded the performance before posting it on the internet.

Imagine the duo's suprise when they wake up the next day to find themselves trending on the internet.

Luckily the video quality was pretty trash so their faces weren't identifiable but the audio was loud and clear.

The world was talking about the cute couple singing to their hearts desire on a balcony. If that's not cliche and adorable then the world doesn't know what is.

The assumption about their relationship status left them looking like tomatos but that didn't stop them from wonder why they didn't notice a creep recording them.

Damn Disney songs and their unnatural ability to distract people.

Of course Lila took advantage of the rising popularity of the video and talked about how she taught the two people in the video how to sing and gave them tips.

The two just walked past the idiot squad and sat down in their seats, making a mental note to come up with a prank later, when the akuma alarms came on.

They fall into their normal routine of Marinette running out to find a place to transform as Damian covers for her.

Oops did I forget to mention that Damian found out her identity because she crashed through his window in the middle of the night still transformed and asked him what's the answer to question 24 in their science homework because she just defeated an akuma by herself and was running on 20 minutes of sleep?

My bad.

Anyways it turns out today was the day Marinette had officially had enough of Chat's bullcrap.

It was gonna be a normal akuma situation.

Ladybug trying to fight the poor butterfly victim while chat noir either doesn't show up, tries to do everything on his own to impress her and ruins the whole plan, or just watches and complains about how she needs to get over her denial and date him BUT

This time he decided to actively try to push her in the akuma's way therefore putting her in SO MUCH MORE DANGER than she was already in.

Now she had to dodge out of the akuma's way AND CHAT'S!

WhAt ThE fUdGe?!?!

You think possibly killing Ladybug and trying to force her to beg for you to save her is gonna make her like you?!?

Just how hard did you hit your head when Gabriel dropped you on the floor when you were 2?

After the akuma was eventually defeated Ladybug told Chat to meet her on an abandoned rooftop that night because they needed to talk.

Chat being the oblivious person that he is (I swear I don't actually hate chat noir, this is for the plot I'm sorry) thought that it was for a love confession and became overly smug before leaving.

Making sure that he isn't following her, Marinette meets up with Damian at his place (school's over because of the attack) and asks him to help.

Later that day when the two miraculous holders meet up Ladybug distracts the Catboy by flirting with him while Damian uses his ninja skills for something other than sneaking up on her and giving Marinette mini heart attacks.

From behind he quickly hits a pressure point causing the other boy to fall unconscious.

Using her ALMIGHTY GUARDIAN OF THE MIRACULOUS powers, Ladybug takes Adrien's ring away and places a spell on him that makes it so he will never be able to use another miraculous ever again.

After they take Adrien home Marinette gives Damian the ring and Night Prowler is born.

He promises to do everything in his power to make sure that Selina and his family doesn't find out for the sake of his pride.

We'll see how that goes.

Night Prowler first officially appeared during an akuma named 'Break Dancer'.

Ironically, she was a ballerina that had to drop out of the finals in a competition because she broke her right leg the day before the show.

She could turn civilians into back up dancers and forced them to perform against their will.

They also worked as minions who would attack the duo for her while she stayed a safe distance away.

It was pretty obvious that the akumatized item was the music box held inside the bag that Break Dancer had slung around her shoulders but the real question was how could they get to it without becoming attacked by the backup dancer or becoming one of them.

Luckily (eheheh), a car with an open window playing music just happened to pass by before driving off.

Before it drove off, the music coming from the car was loud enough to play over the music box which caused some of the minions to become free again and run off.

Ladybug called her lucky charm and a Bobby pin landed in her hand.

As she looked around she noticed a store a couple blocks away that had a couple radios.

Unfortunately, the store was locked and closed.

Fortunately, she knew how to pick locks and a Bobby pin did come from her lucky charm soooo......

Who is she to deny literal gods.

They break into the store and grab a radio, and a speaker and rush over to where the akuma was causing chaos.

They turn on the radio, connect the speaker and turn the volume on as loud as it can go before flipping through the stations for a good song.

If they're gonna fight with music in the background they're gonna be picky about it and wont settle for anything other than epic.

While fighting they eventually get swept up in the music and end up singing along.

It's nothing less than full on majestic.

When the fight is over and the akuma is purified they find out that someone recorded it and posted it on the internet as well.

Now everyone knows that the beloved hero of Paris and her new partner were the two people singing on that balcony.

Ummmmm.....

Good thing that the video quality was trash right?

If it weren't for that their identities would've been busted the moment they started singing in hero form.

Luckily there aren't many people other than Damian that know what Marinette's singing voice sounds like so they're okay.

Well.... They WERE okay,

Until a certain rockstar and his agent came across the two videos and put two and two together.

So now King Sting (bee!jagged) and Peridot (turtle!penny) have joined the team.

Poor Penny, now she has to deal with two gremlin children and a some sort of bizarre man-child.

The next akuma confused the group quite a bit.

He didn't really do anything but sit on a rooftop waiting for the miracle team to show up.

They were all suspicious of him at first but when they did reveal themselves to him he explained his situation.

He was akumatized because his favorite rock band broke up but he didn't really want to take their miraculouses away.

He just asked if they could perform another song for him and he would give his akumatized item to them.

They all sorta looked at eachother and collectively went 'screw it why not' and sang another song.

If they were great before, they are absolutely AMAZING now.

Well that's what happens when you add a famous rockstar to a team of singing superheros I guess.

The akuma was blown away and true to his word handed over the rolled up picture in his pocket and was purified despite of Hawkmoth's nagging.

Haha screw you Hawky.

This time the ordeal was recorded by a news station and the 'hand over the akuma in exchange for a song' thing became a trend.

There were still normal akuma's that didn't follow follow it but those were far flung between.

It seems like Hawkmoth was getting annoyed by this so there started being less akuma attacks over the months.

Because of this some people were actively trying to get upset to attract one of the purple butterflies.

They traded one good thing for another I guess.

To stop that from happening the group started performing in public as superheros during concerts and festivals.

Because of this they became quite well known outside of Paris as well.

Is it ironic that more people know them as a band rather than a superhero team now?

When Marinette learned that they could change what their superhero costumes looked like if they put enough will into it she squealed.

Marinette designs superhero performance costumes for them whenever they have a festival to play at.

Whenever asked about their outfits they always reply with MDC.

Marinette's business gets really popular after that.

And since no one knows who MDC really is, she doesn't have to worry about the whole "Oh no me and my family are gonna be in danger!" thing

It's a win win!

Overtime they basically become a second (or third for some people) family to eachother.

Damian becomes more 'kid like' and open to others,

Marinette becomes more confident and overall happier,

Jagged gets to hang out with his awesome niece and her 'maybe more than just a friend',

And Penny gets a new outlet for stress and has so many more crazy stories to tell people.

One day while she's in the living room on the sofa watching 'The AristoCats' Damian just barges into the room and dramatically flops over onto of her.

He just lays there with his head in her lap and the rest of his body sprawled on the couch.

After everything that has happened this is normal for them now.

Without asking any questions or talking at all they just watch the movie together with the occasional remark or quip between them.

Around half way through the movie Jagged kicks down the door, effectively scaring the crap out of the two teens, while Penny follows behind him with an apologetic look on her face.

At first Jagged was yelling about something having to do with'Fang' and 'Dragon' and 'Miraculous' but after taking in the domestic atmosphere of the room he just sits down on the floor and joins in on watching the movie.

Penny, shaking her head in both amusement and exasperation, sits down on another chair and does the same.

While combing through Damian's hair with her fingers Marinette looks around the room.

'My life can't get any more complicated, can it?'

Oh boy, she just jinxed it.

This is just an idea I've had bouncing around in my head for awhile and I couldn't resist the urge to write it out. I AM planning on making a part 2 so if you like this keep an eye out for that. I'm by no means a fast writer though so it will take a while. But then again not many people will probably read this soo.... Yeah.

[notafraidofredyellowandblue]

Richard Kruspe interview 'Welt' 2009

By Laura Ewert.

Some of the usual stuff (Richard's difficulty with dealing with the Rammstein democracy, this-record-is-the-last, being happy vs being meaningful, the 'old marriage' comparison) but i liked the part about the orginal lyrics of Pussy being too 'platt' which translates to 'flat' or 'uninspired' and they changed it to insert a bit of humor into it, because even though it must exhausting for the band themselves, i think the qualitycontrol within Rammstein is a good thing really.

(also, i think Richard got a bit annoyed with the interviewer, which i can understand.. 😇)

English translation:

"Rammstein are too smart to be right-wing"

They are Germany's most successful rock group. On the new album "Liebe ist für alle da", Rammstein, as usual, played the bugbear. WELT ONLINE spoke to their guitarist Richard Kruspe about porn, national symbols and the imminent end of the band.

Black hair, heavy rings, black-rimmed eyes - Richard Kruspe looks exactly as one had always imagined a Rammstein member to look. The 42-year-old sits at a large table in a room of the Universal record company in Berlin, smokes and smiles friendly. The discussion again can start: Are Rammstein dangerous provocateurs or ingenious creators of their total work of art?

WELT ONLINE: Mr. Kruspe, the current Rammstein single "Pussy" entered the German charts at number one. Despite a video that cannot be shown uncensored on television.

Richard Kruspe: Any other band would have said: We can't make a porn, it'll never be shown on music television. I heard that over two million people saw it in two weeks like this. So there are other ways too, you don't always have to bend. "Pussy" is very independent compared to the other songs on the album. Our singer Till initially only wrote the text in English and I thought it was borderline at first.

WELT ONLINE: In terms of content?

Kruspe: Yes, in terms of content. It was just too much. There is a certain kind of humor that I find good, but there are limits. Then at the request of the band Till wrote the German verses. In that way the text got a humorous touch that I can live with. It's not exactly what I define as Rammstein, but Rammstein simply is a mix of six different people.

WELT ONLINE: Who actually had the idea for the porn video?

Kruspe: We asked the director Jonas Åkerlund. He listened to the song and after three hours wrote an email back: "Let's start a revolution, let's do a porn". All you could see on the faces of the band members was a big grin.

WELT ONLINE: But you have had yourself doubled?

Kruspe: Well, that's the big question. It doesn't matter. It was a nice challenge. I always thought the porn business was dirty and cold, but it's not at all. All the people there were extremely friendly and very accommodating.

WELT ONLINE: The text is not particularly friendly and accommodating.

Kruspe: I cannot and will not say anything about the text. I am not the text writer.

WELT ONLINE: But you said earlier that the first text version of "Pussy" was a bit too much for you.

Kruspe: No, it wasn't too much for me. It was just too uninspired for me. The German verses gave it a certain sense of humor that I can support.

WELT ONLINE: It is said that this text should be understood as a criticism of German sex tourists.

Kruspe: If you see it that way.

WELT ONLINE: I don't see it that way. But can you tell me what your understanding of the text is?

Kruspe: For me it's a party song, nothing more and nothing less.

WELT ONLINE: The line "Put bratwurst in your sauerkraut" is excellent to roar along to when drunk.

Kruspe: I think that's extremely funny.

WELT ONLINE: What about those who don't understand this humor? Drunken hordes of men on the way to the "Blitzkrieg with the meat gun"?

Kruspe: There is aggression in every society. They are acted out differently. My children, who are 17 and 18, don't do that. The only thing I can do is make sure things are different in my small circle. But when you start thinking about these things as an artist, you start limiting yourself. But I have a problem with censoring myself. I grew up in a system where I was constantly censored.

WELT ONLINE: Doesn't the question of responsibility arise?

Kruspe: I'm not someone who goes out with a raised finger and says: That's how you have to do it. We never did that.

WELT ONLINE: But don't you also say that you want to criticize something by exaggerating social situations?

Kruspe: Yes, you could say that. But that still doesn't mean that we tell people how to live. Everyone is responsible for their own life. Everyone has to have their own experiences in order to learn from them. We are not the Messiah.

WELT ONLINE: So is your music just acting out your own personalities?

Kruspe: When making music, of course, a dynamic of its own develops that you have to live with. These are things that cannot be influenced.

WELT ONLINE: The cover of your album is reminiscent of paintings by Rembrandt.

Kruspe: Hieronymus Bosch is a better comparison. The cover was created in collaboration with a Spanish artist who just tried things. Journalists are always entitled to question the meaning. But good things happen out of a certain naivety.

WELT ONLINE: What is that metal toothed monster up there on the cover on the right?

Kruspe: It should be some kind of alien. I already forgot. It was pretty good what the artist had thought out. Some kind of alien that eats up all consumption. Very philosophical what he has built there.

WELT ONLINE: And the naked woman lying on the table has her hands chopped off, right?

Kruspe: Yes, but that shouldn't be taken literally, in the sense that a woman is being massacred.

WELT ONLINE: It looks like an offering.

Kruspe: I see more the abysses of this world in the picture.

WELT ONLINE: Next to the woman on the table are two men closing their pants. Are you one of them?

Kruspe: No, I am not.

WELT ONLINE: It's a rape scene really, isn't it?

Kruspe: If you want to see it that way. I always find art interesting when it leaves things open.

WELT ONLINE: Let's come back to ...

Kruspe: ... to the difficult questions? Don't you have something else to talk about? Something nice? About life?

WELT ONLINE: I still have one question about the record.

Kruspe: Okay, one more.

WELT ONLINE: You are clearly using national symbols. Be it the German flag, the desk reminiscent of pictures of Hitler's speeches ...

Kruspe: Yes, but in a very humorous way. "I can't get laid in Germany" is very funny.

WELT ONLINE: Well I don't think you're right-wing.

Kruspe: No, we're too smart for that (laughs).

WELT ONLINE: Why does sex always have to do with fighting and war in your songs?

Kruspe: For me, sex always has to do with passion. I am a romantic. On the other hand, I like it dramatic. We'd have to go back a long way to my childhood to see what might have gone wrong. I believe that musicians more or less unconsciously always bring things across in a dramatic and painful way. At least that is how it has to be for Rammstein.

WELT ONLINE: Are you a believer?

Kruspe: Religious? No. I believe in justice.

WELT ONLINE: A justice that arises out of the human being, or one that is imposed from outside?

Kruspe: I think there is an idea. Some say this is God. Before things are done or before they arise, there was always an idea from which there is also a sense of justice. Do you understand? I believe that it is important in life to be punished for certain things. I believe in the fate principle and the karma principle.

WELT ONLINE: But if there is this punishment, won't Rammstein face a hefty punishment?

Kruspe: We only speak out what is reality or what is part of society. The Church used to say what is good and what is bad. That's bullshit. Just because someone has a sexual orientation that the Church classifies as evil doesn't mean it is wrong. On the contrary.

WELT ONLINE: Does "love is there for everyone" also mean that any form of sexual love, including that which is socially ostracized, is a part of humanity?

Kruspe: "Love is there for everyone" is a very Christian thought. Of course you have to ask yourself, is love really there for everyone? I would wish it to be that way. Can we forgive those who misunderstood love? I often think about it and fail and get a little further and go back again. Especially when you turn 40. A lot happens there. Especially with men.

WELT ONLINE: Yes? What?

Kruspe: For me there are two options in life. Be happy or be meaningful. And as a musician you naturally try to lead a meaningful life. The big problem with me is that my longing for happiness is great, but the strength I need to be creative comes from suffering. Even if you do not suffer, you try to bring it into your life somehow in order to be able to create again. A cycle. If I were happy I'd know I would never write again. I tried to find happiness outside of myself. And now at 40 there comes the point where you try to find something inside me that makes you happy.

WELT ONLINE: Can't you catch the creative moments by now?

Kruspe: I used to try drugs. I used cocaine a lot. You reach dimensions that you would otherwise never be able to reach. You can edit a kick drum for eight hours. This creative power comes to me in different moments. It's buzzing in the air and the only thing you can do is be open. And then the moment is gone again. As if a cloud is passing by and you reach for it and then wait for the next cloud.

WELT ONLINE: One hears that the current record could be the last of the band. Is Rammstein going to dissolve?

Kruspe: At the moment I couldn't imagine going back to the studio with the experiences of the last record. But I could imagine touring further. In a band you're trapped in an image. It's like a soap opera that never ends. You have your character and you play it. And then this Rammstein democracy. We have discussions every day. Everything is talked about and talked about. And voted. In a band you don't have that kind of sexual discharge that you would have in a relationship. It's like a long marriage with us. You just don't like to sleep together that much anymore.

[urkpoppsychic]

Seventeen - Personality reading

S.Coups: This young man is really fast and straightforward, talkative, clever and intelligent. He is not the guy who take things slowly. He is a speedy when it comes to thinking and decision making. He is competitive and love to get the attention and like to be a little extra. He is someone who can be controlling and chained by his own stubborn ways like a slave to his negative habits. Maybe someone who is very sensitive to addictions. like gaming/drugs/food/alcohol etc. he has the needs of it. If someone hurts him he make sure to step on their toes. He is ambitious and competitive and striving for success. He is not afraid of conflicts, He is very stable and powerful. This is someone who loves people, nature and animals. 

Jeonghan: First of all this person is normally a very happy person, he loves to bring people together and celebrate. But he is someone who have difficulties by sharing his emotions and feelings, he won't show or tell his emotions verbally.  Because he is guarding his heart. He maybe feels that he is the wrong place and that the world around him stagnant and stuck. He may feel often miserable. He believe there is somewhere better. Stuck with toxic patterns He is afraid of failure. 

Joshua: This person is very creative and have amazing abilities. He is very successful with every direction he may choose, He is a manifesto  but he doesn't know how to use it. because he feel stuck and he puzzles a lot. as if he his holding himself back. He is afraid to show all his talents. He is afraid to be judged and also he may feel often misunderstood while he focused more on appearance over substance and truth. He likes to avoid responsibility and hide. He often gets confused and feel lost in his head and unable to see the bigger picture. This person make sure that he showed his gratefulness to people that he loved. family friends and his community means everything for him. 

Jun: This is someone who puts efforts into the way they look and are very passionate and sensual people. He is very attractive and passionate. His appearance and his image is important to him and he cares what other people think of him. He is someone who likes to date around to feel whole. he may sometimes be grumpy or moody, and need someone who can make him lightened up. and can be indecisive. He might sometimes feel that he is unable to deliver what the audience/co-workers/other parties wants from him.  He may feel unsupported in his work. He is someone who wants to make someone happy and give the emotional fulfillment. He is dreaming for a happily ever after, Having a family, career, house. He is romantic and put his children and partner on a pedestal. 

Hoshi: This person is a young-soul, he may act or behave immature, is because he is not fully developed as a person, he is still growing and learning to become better and a mature human. He is a free-thinker, someone who seeks freedom, and is idealistic. He is life student that always is learning. He needs to feel accepted by others to open up. He is sensitive and gentle, warm and sweet. He maybe act a little shy at first. He is very good at telling others that he is fine and happy, even when he isn't. He is youthful and playful. He is someone who wants to impress others and can act needy or greedy to materialistic or emotional things. He is caring towards others, He will forgive someone easily after a fight or conflict. He is patient and artistic. 

Wonwoo: This person is clever and his mind is full of ideas. He has great communication skills and is intellect how he wants to tell his message. He will confront the issue and will not lose an argument. He love taking a risk, He constantly need to get stimulated and is competitive. Sometimes he get lost in his head and need to be grounded. He believe things are a lot worse than they actually are. He is someone who will hide in the background and he is hardly noticeable He feel emotionally misunderstood. On the brighter side this person is very warm, sensual, loving, charismatic and beautiful. He is creative and have nurturing instinct. He is a family-oriented person. 

Woozi: This person is mysterious and intuitive. Someone who is secretive and private and will not share his vulnerable side to others. Until his guts told him it feels right to do so. He has a hard shell and isnt easy to understand who he is as a person. only his closest friends and family knows him the best. He have a lot to do with facing his fears in order to grow stronger. They sometimes need to lie or hide their truth out of fear of others reactions. He may sometimes feel a outsider. Maybe health and mental issues and may need help from others. He is highly developed when it come to his intuition and is sensitive. He is wise and kind and nurture to others. He is empathic and he is good with children and animals. He put the blame on himself first and reflect on it.

DK: This person is always busy and active, when he needs his rest he is loved to have his own quality time (alone time). To recharge his energy. He knows how to make his workplace to a playground and try to have fun with his friends and co-workers. He is someone who goes with the flow. He sees his job as his hobby, and he don't need much money to live happy. He is independent and active in mind and observant, maybe sometimes dishonest about some things. He is most of the times positive and he is always in a blissful state. He wants a harmonious life and avoid toxic people. (stay out of the drama.) He has a strong idealistic values and very romantic towards lovers. He will gives his lover everything. 

Mingyu: He is someone who thinks quick and fast. no hesitation, and not patient. everything needs to happen now. He is opinionated and may sometimes step on other people's toes by accident for being too clever and intelligent, and being talkative.  even though he may steps on others people toes he is someone who dont like conflicts at all. He will often carry the load to keep others happy. When he feels attacked he may feel emotionally and be dramatic about it. He see the world in different perspective, He daydream often and is visionary. This guy is genius but will not always noticed that side of him. He is someone who will get easily offended or hurt. He don't really know how it feels to be secure. and has doubts about love. He may is anxious about rejection or get hurt. While he may is a jealous type when it comes to his lover. 

The8: He is optimistic, happy, confident, he is youthful and carefree, no matter what age he is, He is very sensual. He may sometimes be stuck with his past. He avoid his confrontational emotions by seeking pleasures and sensual experiences. He seems like a happy person but on the inside his tears are behind his smile. He is very kind. He may sometimes act immature. but he also may feel alone he is kinda desperate for love and often looking for it at the wrong place and time. He maybe is needy and have emotional issues. 

Seungkwan: This person is creative and intuitive, He is skillful and has a lot of knowledge. He dream big and he move successfully in any path he will choose. He speaks his mind and is intellect. He is someone who will use his intelligent to manifest. Play smart or don't play at all is this person. This person is focused on long term goals and ambitious. He loves to go for an adventure and being patient is not his strongest point. He may sometimes put others first and forget about himself. he find it difficult to say no to others and he loves to make others happy instead of himself. He will look to a lot of sides of the situation and use his logical brain to make a fair decision/conclusion. Justice is his value. 

Vernon: He is wise and smart, he is self-reliant and confident. He enjoy spending alone in his own space. He knows who he are and he isn't afraid to show it. He always seems to be in a good mood and loves to bring people together. He will make sure that everything that he will organized will looks beautiful and perfect. He also make sure that he looks amazing too. He is fun to be with and is full of smiles and giggles. He is carefree and lay back. He loves to work together as a team and will be a kind/nice co-worker to team up with. He is always ready to help other people. People can rely on him. 

Dino: He is warm,loving and charismatic, and beautiful. He will show openly his affection towards others. He is intelligent and artistic. He cares about the environment and he will be a excellent parent/partner. He is protective and maybe a little possessive. He sometimes have moments that he is unable to relax. His mind is full and messy, he may has troubles with his messy room. He may sometimes feel a little ill. He is sensitive and will also get hurt easily and is afraid of rejection, hurt or loss. He is hungry for success and money. He also is stubborn and isn't a fan of taking advice from others. He may have some control issues. 

[mikeellee]

Sad and my english is not as good as it should be.

Murder is one part of the job, really. Nowadays you can be a villain without rely exclusively on murder or any violence. Not that should matter much for Silver, no. The villain has a body count - his power make his life as complicated as easy. A lovely contradiction- and while he preens himself as not happy-gun, of course, murder is often on the table.

I DID THAT. He thinks to himself. I REALLY DID THAT.

The fallen hero wasn't ever a big name hero-more like he doesn't have a chance to be one- and it is graved in his mind. Killing Tempest was too easy, laughable so, however, Tempest is his soulmate...Silver murder his soulmate.

"I'm his friend" Silver lies through his teeth as the landlady inquiries about Silver. "He had to leave, thing of last minute. A situation with the family" makes a sense and a small revence as if Tempest is indeed solving some dramatic situation with his strained family.

The landlady nods. "Well, but what about the rent?"

"I'm here to pay on his behalf. See, he asked me to come here..."and he pays the rent still spinning the tale of Tempest going to a family vacation. "I was wondering is Tempest going ok lately? He seemed...down last time I saw him"

And dead...very much dead.

"Well, I think he was lonely...he was trying to find his soulmate, kept saying how he could save him...but I think his soulmate is dead" the woman confessed sadly. "I hope I'm wrong...I really do. He is such a good boy"

Now

Now Silver is left alone. In a room that belongs to him...his soulmate, the one he killed so cruelly. The room has space theme. Has posters of Star Wars and Star Trek and many draws can be seen.

"You were a good artist" Silver looks around and wonders more about his soulmate. The draws, the books, his notebook- he doesn't dare to open. Killing your soulmate is crime enough for his life- and finally, his playlist. "And you ....wanted to save me? Sorry" feels awakard to say.

--

Killing a soulmate is an act of self harm. Of course his power is cut of half. Of course he is nit well, but ir brings some comfort coming to the Tempest's room again and see his draws. Look at the best where he sleeps.

It makes things...better.

He coughs a bit of blood.

But is doable.

--

Silver knew the heroes had the body. Knew he was dead and yet, it is still a shock to see the league of heroes public assessing the situation. Tempest is dead, murder by a villain (his soulmate) and people claim justice.

The heroes want a private funeral. He doesn't have family. And his family and friends were the league.

"He was looking for his soulmate...but a coward took his life. I apologise to his soulmate, you may never know Tempest as we know...that is the biggest tragedy of all this shit. We all lose someone amazing ...and for nothing"

Silver looks down.

I lost my soulmate for nothing.

--

Silver is coughing way more blood. His vision is getting blury. It doesn't matter, he needs to go to Tempest's room again. Sadly for him, the landlady menaged to put one and one together and called the heroes. They aren't pleased to see Silver.

"What are you doing here in his home?" One of them barks. For sure a fight would issue. Silver has fought those guys before...he could win.

Except he cough blood in front of them, lost the balance and fall to the ground. He is looking at the window of Tempest's room.

His vision is blurry.

--

"Hey, wake up" the leader of the heroes greet him and uncourteous as one can imagine. She didn't reach such position by being all nice. "Silver, right? It seems you killed your soulmate"

"And...now you will kill me" said with finality. He accept the fate, maybe he could see Tempest and apologise to him, maybe if reincarnation does exist then can have a second chance.

"Heroes don't kill" replies in a neutral tone. "Besides, in a way, you're Tempest's soulmate...the last piece of him..."

"He...thought he was loney..."

"He was looking for you. Well, he found you"

"Please, just end this"

"No" shakes her head. "You will be alive, pay for your crime. Live with the guilty. This is what you deserve" and she sighs and takes something out of her pocket. It was a bracelet, it is donned with his favorite color. "He knew you like yellow...so he asked around to know how to make a bracelet...for you"

Silver is left alone. Alone with a yellow bracelet.

I killed my soulmate. What am I now?

Prompt

- Hero x Villain

- Soulmates

‘Villain’ is one of your typical, irritated and overpressured characters, and after an extremely difficult day, sees someone they’ve been watching for a few days, is incredibly sick of this person, because they represent everything our Villain hates, so in a deserted alleyway, our Villain murders the ‘Hero’ (not listening to the Hero’s protests as they point out their matching marks on their necks), and the Villain goes on with their day. When the Villain gets home, they see their mark has changed colours to show that they have met their soulmate, so they end up trying to work out who it was they met, and on their way to work a week later, they see a ‘Missing’ poster, with the Hero’s face, and the Villain finally sees the mark, prompting them to see the Hero’s landlady, who reveals she is unsure of who to contact about the month’s missing rent, due to the Hero’s lack of family or friends. The rest of the story revolves around the Villain trying to work out who this person was, with little titbits of information from the Hero’s boss, or local barisa, etc, falling more in love with the Hero as the story goes on.