#I know about banana republics

[seth-the-giggle-fish]

hey, quick question to the void, do you think bananas are native to the geographical locations that are now part of the United States? The original question for a class was:

"Think about a world in which there were no international trade.  What would be different in your life? Your career?"

To which I responded about the most important things, food, computers, transportation. My instructor responded with some comments and additional questions including why would we want to trade with other countries when the united states has a wide span of climates to grow all kinds of crops and specifically asked how the united states could create and grow banana groves.

[bereft-of-frogs]

so the 'Qimir/the Stranger is actually [ insert high republic character here ]' theories have started to escalate, Imri was one thing, today I saw someone suggest the Stranger is Cohmac and I laughed out loud.

But also sure. The Stranger is Cohmac. XD Why tf not. Except for all the, you know, 'humans don't live that long' and 'their descriptions and official character art do not match Manny Jacinto at all' 'it doesn't actually make sense' but people keep countering that with 'energy transfer' so I guess Qimir really could be anybody.

Wouldn't it be fucking hilarious if it was Azlin Rell. Fucking Azlin. That would be SO funny if he energy-transferred himself into Qimir to live another hundred extra years, to continue being the worst. It would be so funny. Absolutely no one else would find it funny but I would personally find it absolutely hilarious if 'scenic route guy' is Qimir

[girl-clownish]

the facists have the outfits, but i don’t care for the outfits. what i care about is music, and the communists have the music.

weelcome to my hot new cltohing store. im calling it Fascist Dicatorship

[crtter]

(hey, what fruit post?)

OK so. Important information in order to provide context: I’m Brazilian, born, raised and currently living in Brazil. With that in mind…

In 2019, I saw a post where OP was talking about picking berries as a kid and it got me thinking about the fruit *I* picked as a kid myself. So I made a random post about them that originally looked like this:

Now, both this fruit and this tree have their own names in Portuguese: pitanga and jabuticabeira. But I thought that, since English is the lingua franca of this website and all, maybe it would be easier for people to know what I was talking about if I used the English names for these plants. So I looked it up and got the names Brazilian (or Surinam) cherries and Brazilian grapetree. And I used them.

Turns out, these fruit aren’t, indeed, that well-known outside of Brazil and the post breached containment, so to speak. And it reached people that didn’t know that was how they were called in English and didn’t care to look it up. To them, I was someone spouting fake information online, and you know how people react to THAT. So people started calling me:

 • Stupid for thinking those fruits are actual cherries and grapes (not what I said)

 • Stupid for not knowing grapes don’t grow on trees (not what I said)

 • A stupid gringo for making up names for things that already had names in Portuguese (not what I am and not what I did)

 • A few other assorted insults such as an “European colonizer” (not what I am) and having my country called a “banana republic” (not what it is but even if it was, WHOSE fault would that be, huh?)

And this has been going on for FIVE YEARS. I’ve changed the original text to disclaimers that I DO know that’s not what they’re called in Portuguese and I DO know they’re not actual cherries and grapes to try and keep people from calling me stupid over this fucking post several times but they just don’t ever check if someone has already “corrected” me. Lately, I thought people had finally gotten over it but it picked up pace AGAIN today and people are already going “Uhhh but these aren’t grapes???” and I know it’s just a matter of time until the insults start again and I’m sick of it so now that Tumblr allows us to make posts unrebloggable I’m taking the fruit out back and shooting them all like Old Yeller.

[m00nlight-ramblings]

BG3 Companion Modern AU Headcanons

These random thoughts popped into my mind and I had to write them down. I love these little weirdos, and some of them probably don't make sense but OH WELL.

Should I do a Part 2 with more companions?? Let me know - my inbox and requests are open!

------

Astarion

This dude's got iPad kid energy - he loves to scroll Tiktok for hours.

He gets bi-weekly pedicures. And not the basic kind - the full on 1.5 hour long with the massage and the mask and the exfoliation.

His favorite holiday is Halloween. He plans his costume starting in August.

He'd be the type of person to be walking through a mall, see a Claire's, and spontaneously decide to get his ears pierced idk.

Is really into metal. Like, you'll come home and Metallica will be blasting and you walk into the bedroom and he's folding laundry and just like, "Oh, HELLO, Darling!" but will have to scream it over the volume in which he's listening to music

Will truly take an hour picking out the perfect wine to pair with your dinner...he's definitely a wine snob.

The cheapest article of clothing Astarion owns is from Banana Republic and it's an undershirt...everything else is ~*very fancy*~

Loves watching all types of vampire movies/TV shows. He can often be heard saying, "Oh no, they got that all wrong" under his breath.

He definitely reads like 1-2 books a week. He's recently really gotten in spicy smut books (he definitely got recommendations from BookTok).

For sure falls asleep to ASMR videos.

Gale

This man loves HGTV *queue Home Depot commercial music*

Has the most absolutely beautiful, clean home you've ever seen with about 30 bookcases CRAMMED with books. The books are the only disorganized thing in his home because he constantly is reading them, so alphabetizing them is useless.

Pinterest is his most used phone app. His boards are carefully curated. That man has a recipe/inspiration pic/quote for EVERYTHING.

Definitely volunteers at the animal shelter once a month. Often times has to talk himself out of bringing a cat home.

LUSH is his favorite store at the mall. He loves them bath bombs.

He THROWS DOWN at holiday parties...Christmas? Thanksgiving? The table is SET. The decorations are UP. He's wearing an APRON because he's been cooking ALL day. The playlist is PERFECT.

Speaking of holidays, he has matching pajama sets for everyone in the household. For every. Holiday.

Fall is absolutely his favorite season. "Sweetheart...have you ever watched 'When Harry Met Sally'? Perfect autumn movie...also I bought a new scarf today to go with my new peacoat. And mittens. And a new hat...it's getting cold outside."

He definitely has a Live. Laugh. Love. adjacent sign somewhere in his home

He definitely needs glasses to read. And he for sure has those librarian chains so that he can just take them off and they hang, instead of losing them.

Karlach

Absolutely loves to eat meals watching Youtube videos.

Imagine her in Times Square? She tears the M&M's store UP.

Is obsessed with documentaries. She often says things like "I can't believe there's so much stuff to LEARN out there!"

Definitely has a Squishmallow collection. And she rotates which one she sleeps with every night so they all get a chance.

Is absolutely the worst cook of all time but tries really really hard...however, she can make a mean boxed mac n' cheese.

Has an obsession with sugary cereal. There's always Cinnamon Toast Crunch or Fruity Pebbles in her cabinets.

Certified Switie for SURE.

Is really into astrology. Definitely has said, "Oh, you're just saying that because you're a SCORPIO" or the like many, many times.

Absolute Starbucks addiction (venti iced caramel macchiato, extra caramel).

Has monthly "girl's nights" (but everyone is invited) at her place. The rules are: pajamas only, junk food, romcoms, and a playlist of the best pop songs in the past 20 years.

------

How'd y'all like it...should I make a part two with other companions?! Remember my inbox is open and I'm accepting requests!! I'd love to write some stuff so send it in!

[rickmctumbleface]

I never thought I’d feel this. I knew America and its democracy wouldn’t last forever, nothing does, but I never imagined there would be a real risk to it in my own lifetime. For decades, I saw the news about other, less stable nations, and their citizens struggles for peace, protection, and prosperity. I always felt safe and secure, thinking America was beyond that sort of chaos, but between a brazenly fascist rightwing Republican party, their Project 2025 to erase democracy, and the Supreme Court now putting the president above the law like a king, we are effectively now just one giant banana republic; unstable, divided, and growing increasingly violent. If trump wins in November, America democracy will be effectively over. We will become a strongman-ruled autocratic state, like Putin in Russia, or Xi in China, or Kim in North Korea. These are scary times. I really don’t think a lot of Americans realize how close we are to coming apart. We are sleepwalking to our own demise, and we’ll have no one to blame but ourselves. You know how they say if you're falling in a dream and you hit bottom, you die for real? It's a good time to wake up now, America.

[potatowilde]

JAKE LOCKLEY/MOON KNIGHT COSPLAY RESOURCE:

🌙Ya know, I never thought to do this but I think it would be a wonderful tool for Cosplayers out there! I'm a Jake Lockley Cosplayer, and have done a wealth of research about his wardrobe from the series. I know as much about is as a fan could possibly know. I'll add to this thread fun trivia as I go I think… If you had any inkling of a desire to cosplay Jake here's some of my finds!! READ MORE UNDER THE CUT!

HAT - The most important piece. From my research it appears to be a Göttmann brand "Jackson Linen Driving Cap" Charcoal (https://www.goettmann.de/en/ ) You can cross reference with the metallic pin on the lefthand side of his cap.

The main site will offer vendors in various areas so check it out! Shop I used: https://scotlandhouseltd.com/collections/mens-summer-hats-caps/products/jackson-linen-flatcap-desert-color

GLOVES - The second big one. So these are not driving gloves, I learned, but interestingly enough shooting gloves. Note the armored knuckles, and the character's role in the show as a gunman. Now, I couldn't find the exact match but an awesome alternative is to purchase motorcycle riding gloves. I found a cheap pair on Amazon, because the next step after the gloves are obtained is to paint them. A talented artist on the MK Costuming team was the brilliant hand painter behind Taweret's ornamental pieces, Layla's armor, and these moon crescents. To paint the moons I simply masked the shapes with painter's tape and used silver acrylic from my local art supply store. It will take several coats.

Here's the glove alternative via Amazon "Harssiney Leather Motorcycle Gloves for Men,Touchscreen Riding Driving Biker Glove with Hard Knuckle Protection,Motorcycle Accessories for Man" :

JACKET - The third most important piece because it is also the most difficult to achieve. This was a custom made raw denim jacket by the MK team, with a 3D printed collar featuring a very unique design. Should you have the funds to pattern this and make to screen accuracy I'd love to see what you came up with! I took the budget friendly route, as it was more suitable for my purposes! For folks who end up making the jacket - Note that the lining is perhaps the same base material as the collar. It's a lighter color on the inside.

In interviews, MK costume designer Meghan Kasperlik has shared that the material is a raw denim, so it's helpful to start there as a base. For my purposes I found a raw denim jacket that was close ish to achieve the shape I wanted via Banana Republic Denim Jacket Dark Rinse. I opted out of the collar just due to budget and time restraints but I hope you can find creative solutions for it!

FINAL DETAILS AKA THE SHOES, THE TIE, THE SOCKS, THE PANTS, AND SHIRT - These will all be personal preference. I think they're readily available just about anywhere. I made a small Amazon stop for the Tie, Socks, and Shirt. AMAZON - Tie AMAZON - White Dress Shirt AMAZON - Rebok Classic Grey Socks JCPENNY - Dockers Gorden Mens Cap-Toe Oxford Shoes Black Already owned - Black slacks FINAL RESULT! Happy Cosplaying!!

[bloodmoonmuses]

the weatherman's weathered heart | mark lee

genre: weatherman! mark lee x reader, enemies to lovers, slowburn-ish

[previous chapter] [series masterlist]

chapter two: the shirt

You resent letting your sense of justice prevail as you slither into Mark’s junky ass Prius. It’s cluttered with files and binders in addition to textbooks that are strewn haphazardly across the backseat. Most of the books are about meteorology, but you spot a music theory textbook as well.  

You sit quietly in the passenger seat, fiddling with your hands. Despite having a driving license, you don’t have a car of your own, resulting in you usually catching a ride with Hongjoong when needed. To be honest, you don’t really have many friends outside of Hongjoong. Perhaps you need to get out more- you’ve forgotten how to socialize. The awkward atmosphere is suffocating.

For a bit, you contemplate calling the whole thing off. Maybe this wasn’t necessary. Maybe you could be a nice person for the sake of being nice, instead of extorting the man for a shirt.

Then, you glance at your top, the coffee stain staring back at you angrily. It was a gift from Hongjoong, actually- a silk blouse he had thrifted in Japan. You wear it so often, it’s worn at the seams. It was due for a replacement anyway. Now you could do so on someone else’s dime.

At last, Mark breaks the silence. “What store do you wanna go to?” he asks. Since it’s thrifted, you’re not even sure where your blouse is from, nor do you know where to get something similar.

“Could you, um, check the brand on my tag?” you ask.

Mark gives you a look. It’s a mostly neutral one, but there’s something in his eye as he puts his phone down to fulfill your request. “Here,” he says, “turn around.” 

You do as you’re told and Mark places his fingers on the collar of your top, flipping it outward to read the tag. Briefly, his fingertips make contact with your neck, sending a shiver down your spine. You hope he doesn’t notice you shudder.

“It says…Banana Republic. I think there’s one across town.” When Mark pulls away from you, you instantly miss his warmth. The feeling of loss settles in your gut, the ache extending to your tender fingertips. 

You’re touch-starved. And it’s cold out. (-is what you tell yourself to justify your yearning body.  Shaking the thoughts away, you put on your seatbelt. 

Mark puts the address into a navigation app and drives away from the printing shop. When you’ve been riding for a few (silent) minutes, you get a text from Hongjoong:

HJ (derogatory): [Spotify Link] “Make His Pockets Hurt” by Lil Kayla. Listen Now!

You: [eye roll emoji]

HJ (derogatory): u know what to do.

You roll your eyes, in real life this time, stifling a laugh. Mark eyes you in the rearview mirror. 

“What’s so funny?” he says, pouting for being left out of the joke. Cute. 

“Nothing!” you say. You close out of Hongjoong’s message, putting your phone back in your purse. 

The Banana Republic you arrive at is desolate. There’s an old lady at the cashier, who genuinely looks like she’s on the brink of death- respectfully. You and Mark linger around the front entrance, unsure of how to proceed.

You glance at him. “Should I… grab a few things and try them on?”

“I don’t care. As long as I can get that paper edited,” he retorts, aimlessly scrolling on his phone. Not cute. 

“Suit yourself.” You begin to peruse the blouse section, picking up a few beige ones. One has a ruffle at the neck, one has a bow and the final one has puffy sleeves. As you gather options, Mark takes a seat in the waiting area outside of the dressing rooms.

“Okay, gonna try these on,” you tell him, gesturing with your head. Mark waves you off wordlessly, promptly returning to his phone.

You end up liking the blouse with the bow the most. It’s a little cuter than your usual style, but you wanted to try something new. When you walk out of the dressing room with the top, Mark looks at you incredulously. 

“You’re getting that?” he says.

“Well, what would you suggest, Mark?” You’re a bit agitated. You wanted this to be an in-and-out situation, not a day-long ordeal. Also, what’s wrong with the bow blouse? It’s nice!

Mark looks you over, again, then glances at the blouse as if it had cursed his mother. “Anything but that.”

Now you’re the one pouting. “I don’t really care about your opinion. So.”

“I’m not paying for that hideous thing,” Mark states, crossing his arms with finality. 

You sigh, attempting to make your voice sound less annoyed. “That takes me back to my previous question. What would you suggest?” 

Mark looks around. “Gimme a sec.”

Before you know it, Mark is heading towards the blouses, scanning the selection. Instead of all beige, Mark picks up an array of tops in jewel tones. He looks at you, then the tops, then you again, deciding to put down a maroon top.

“Too flashy.” He simply says. Mark shoves the pile of tops into your arms, jutting his head towards the dressing rooms. “Are you gonna try these on or what?” 

So pushy, you think, but you do as you’re told. This time, you walk out each time you try on a new top, Mark giving feedback on each option.

The plum top ages you, Mark says. The golden blouse is cut too similarly to the despised bow top, and the lighter green top is too fluorescent. It isn’t until you walk out in an emerald blouse with a v-neckline, that Mark’s critiques come to a halt.

“What? This one’s hideous too?” you say. You swear you see his eyes flick downwards for a half a second. Your face gets hot.

Mark coughs. “It’s fine, I guess.”

You roll your eyes. “Then let’s get it. I guess. Need to get back to the shop anyway.”

After changing out of the shirt, you walk up to the register behind Mark. Maybe you’re overly frugal, but sixty dollars for a piece of fabric is insane to you. Hongjoong will be happy, at least. Though, the top looks nothing like the one he got you. 

As she’s ringing him up, the lady behind the register looks at you and Mark. “Buying this blouse for your partner here, I assume?” Then she turns to you. “This color is gonna look lovely on you.” 

Mark scrunches his nose. “Not my partner,” he quickly amends. “We’re… uh.. acquaintances.”

With that, the two of you exit the store.

The car ride back to the printing shop is even more awkward than the ride out. You feel bad for practically blackmailing the guy, especially considering there was no guarantee the newspaper would edit the article. Speaking of which-

“So if it isn’t tax fraud, what did you do?” you say without really thinking. The curiosity was killing you. You expect Mark to brush you off immediately, but he answers promptly.

“Huh? Oh, you mean the article.” He turns into the parking lot, switching off the ignition. You look at Mark, expecting him to exit the car, but he sits. For a moment, he’s lost in thought, eyes far away from the small space you share. 

“Hey, I’m just kidding-” 

“I’m-” Mark cuts you off, “divorced… and the journalist included my ex wife’s name. It read more like a tabloid than a genuine interview. I was just expecting something more… earnest. Not sure why,” he admits. 

You’re not exactly sure how to respond to this. If anything, you’re fascinated. Mark looks so young, no older than 25. 

He’s fallen in love, gotten married and divorced in that time? It must’ve been a pretty bad fall out- he can barely get the word “divorce” out of his mouth. Plus, the lengths he’s willingly to go to to have this article axed is evidence enough of the hurt. This wound is fresh. And that “journalist” is an asshole. 

“Don’t do that,” Mark says, looking at you through the rearview mirror.

“Do what?” 

“Pity me,” Mark says. “Don’t pity me.” 

“I don’t pity you,” you huff. “This whole situation sucks. I’m really sorry.”

Mark chuckles. “Don’t be sorry either.”

“Sorry- I mean, okay.” 

A beat passes, during which neither of you say anything, and Mark shifts to look at you. For real this time. Not through a mirror.

“Do you think they’ll change the article?” he asks, voice barely above a whisper. 

Probably not, you think. But for his sake, to rid his eyes of the pain glistening in them, you hope to god those assholes at the newspaper get rid of that part as requested.

“Yeah. Of course.” You exit the car, shoulders tense with anxiety.

Hongjoong is at the front counter, sketching in a notepad, when you and Mark walk into the printing shop.

“Have fun?” Hongjoong inquires.

“Not really,” you say, placing your shopping bag on the counter. 

Hongjoong inspects its contents, humming in approval of the blouse. “Not bad,” he says.

Mark scoffs. “Should I take down your number?” he asks you.

“Yeah, probably.” You write it down and hand it over. “I’ll shoot you a text when I hear back from the newspaper goons.”

Mark laughs at this and leaves. The yearning in your gut returns. 

When it’s time to close up the shop, Honjoong packs up his things with record speed. Slinging a messenger bag over his shoulder, he says, “Wanna come over for drinks?” 

“Yeah, I’ll take a cab to your place. Gotta make a phone call real quick.” you reply.

“It’s okay, I’ll wait for you,” Hongjoong contests.

“Don’t wanna hold you up. Get outta here, nerd.”  You wave your hand at him, shooing him off. 

Hongjoong lingers in the entryway regardless, shooting daggers with his eyes. “You and your secrets…” he says.

“Secret? What secret?” You quirk an eyebrow, feeling sheepishly defensive. 

“Save it. I’ll let it slide this time,” Hongjoong states. “My place in thirty?”

You nod.

“Cool.” He lights a cigarette on his way out.

With Hongjoong now gone, you take out your phone and call the newspaper office. You’ve been printing for Jackson for years now, so you’re sure he can make an exception this one time- even if a little schmoozing is necessary. You put on your kiss-ass voice, hyping yourself up as the phone rings.

“Hey, Jackson! It’s _____ at Jagerman Printing Co.! Yes… Um, we actually had a power outage here. That, coupled with the order screw-up by the intern… we’re swamped over here... Just scrap the whole thing? Oh, it’ll be fine. Yeah, of course! I’ll take a bit off of next week's orders. And I know your daughter’s birthday party is coming up, so consider her invitations on the house. Sounds good! Thanks!” 

When you hang up the phone, you sigh. Canceling a whole week of orders for a guy you just met… It wasn’t exactly logically sound. You’ll have to open commissions to account for the dip in income- extra work you can take up without Hongjoong knowing. Without Mark knowing.

Kindness for the sake of being kind. Before you head out to meet up with Hongjoong, you text Mark:

You: the newspaper goons had a change of heart. have a nice night :) 

Early the next morning, you beat Hongjoong to the printing shop. You watch the sunrise from your desk, its light flooding the room with a golden sheen. Briefly, you think about your actions from the night before. Surely you were out of your mind. Canceling a week’s worth of printing for some smarmy weatherman? It’s ridiculous. 

Well, it’s too late now. It’s not like Hongjoong would care. He’ll be happy to hear the lack of work necessary on a Friday. He’s probably hungover from last night anyway. The door swings open.

You expect to see Joong, but when you lift your head, it’s Mark. You walk to meet him at the front of the shop. He’s not in a suit today. Instead, he looks way more his age. He’s in a band tee and jeans. Perhaps this was what his fashion advice was founded on. It’s a stark difference from his weatherman get-up. Mark is also holding a bouquet of flowers.

He places the flowers on the counter delicately, beaming at you. “For the shop,” he states. You make a mental note to buy a vase for them.

Mark’s smile is absolutely blinding. You look away like someone just waved a flashlight directly into your eyes.

“I don’t know what you did- or if you did anything, but I just wanna say thank you,” Mark says. 

What a change in tune for someone who literally spilled coffee on you without a second glance just a day ago. Maybe this weatherman isn’t so bad after all. 

“Um, I didn’t really do much, in all honesty, but I’m glad everything worked out.” you respond.

You’re not sure why you felt the need to lie. Actually, you know exactly why. You’re too prideful. 

“Well, thank you anyway. I could literally cry,” he retorts with a chuckle.

“Please don’t,” you say jokingly. 

Mark thinks for a moment. “How can I repay you?”

“Like I said, I didn’t do anything. And you already got me this shirt.” You gesture to the emerald top from yesterday.

If you knew he’d be here today, you wouldn’t have worn it. However, as you were getting dressed this morning, you couldn't stop thinking about the way your stomach ached when Mark looked at you yesterday.

“What about I treat you to dinner?” asks Mark. “So we’ll be even.”

“I’m good, thanks.” You didn’t intend on him feeling indebted to you.

“Okay, “ Mark pivots, “Can we grab drinks instead? I’ll pay. Tomorrow 6pm.”

“With all of your weatherman money?” you joke.

Mark’s phone rings.

“I’ll text you,” says Mark. When he answers the call, he continues mouthing to you as the person on the other end of the line begins to speak. “Text me back.”

“No promises,” you mouth back.

As Mark exits the shop, Hongjoong enters. He does a double take at Mark, then looks at you inquisitively. “What was that about?”

“Nothing,” you say as a blush creeps up your neck.

a/n: unedited and feedback is always appreciated! <3

[viharmons]

Hello! I'm sorry to bother you but you seem to know a lot about exacts, and I have a question that's been irking me ever since I started collecting. It's alright if you aren't able or don't want to answer though!

So I know for sure that Violet wears the Free People Scandalous Lace Top in the color Navy Blue (The color of the top looks different under various lighting, sometimes it even looks Teal. I just know that it's some shade of Blue)

But I'm curious to know if she wears this top in any other colorways? I've seen a few collectors say that she wears it in the Purple or Dusty Green colorway but from photos that I've seen of her she appears to only be wearing the Blue one

Here are some pictures I found of when she wears the top throughout the show...

But like I said, none of these appear to be any other color than Blue. The lighting in the show is terrible so I could be completely wrong. Even if you don't know the answer for certain, I'd love to hear your personal opinion!

Thank you so much <3

i personally think she only wears a navy colored one and a teak one. there's a teak colored scandalous lace top with white thread on the sleeves and the collar of the shirt, which she wears with the banana republic cardigan.

that's just what i think.

[smytherines]

Oh my god this got so long. I swore to myself that I was going to be normal about this and not just dump all of my headcanon immediately but like

Do you ever think about the fact that in the 1950s & 1960s there just were not that many nuclear weapons blueprints out there (and most of the document stealing was done by long term plants, not high risk guys like Curt & Owen)

If you were a spy during the Cold War you were most likely doing regime change. You were arming, training, and supplying coups. You were helping set the stage for American or UK capital to set up shop and repress and enslave Indigenous populations and export every drop of wealth possible from the global south. You were fighting a proxy war against "communism" (which often just meant workers striking for better conditions, at least intially) all across the globe.

With that context I think a lot about the coup in Guatemala in 1954, where the CIA trained and armed the coup and overthrew the democratically elected president of Guatemala (Jacobo Árbenz Guzmán) at the behest of the United Fruit Company. Árbenz was left of center, and he had land reforms planned that would compensate UFCO for their land, appropriate it, and redistribute it to workers. Guatemala offered to pay the value listed on UFCO tax documents (1.2 million), but UFCO demanded 16 million

If I start talking about this I'll never stop, but long story short UFCO had spent 50+ years gobbling up all the land in Guatemala, grew Bananas and exported them for massive profits, and terrorized or outright massacred Indigenous workers to keep them in line. The 1954 coup and the subsequent I think its 36 years of civil war in Guatemala is all down to the CIA doing a coup because the head of the CIA (Allen Dulles) was on the board of United Fruit and they wanted that blood money baby. It was a genocide.

Hard swerve back into it here: I don't know about Owen, but at least Agent Curt Mega had a *very* good chance of participating in the 1954 coup. In creating a literal Banana Republic (a puppet government controlled by US interests). I tend to think Owen was there too because it's more interesting that way. I think it's a mistake to focus exclusively on the Russian cat vs mouse and ignore the larger geopolitical context of the cold war.

Owen "dies" because of Curt's hubris- not just the drinking and talking him into risks he isn't comfortable with, but with his job at A.S.S., because someone else points and Curt shoots. In my headcanon Curt helped to create a banana republic that harmed and killed an incredible number of people, and he is just as careless when he leaves his banana peel on the stairs and "kills" Owen. Curt is absolutely firm in the belief that he is one of the good guys. And I think Owen was prolly the same way- until his body got wrecked and he got abandoned by the man he loved and he had a long, long time to think about the foreign policy of his government and what he and Curt really *did* on their fun lil spy jaunts.

If Owen was in Honduras (where they staged the Guatemala coup), then he has to reckon with the fact that he "died" due to *his own* hubris as well. He has to process that he joined the intelligence game because he grew up during the Blitz, during WWII, but that post WWII Britain was doing the same imperialist bullshit the US was. That Owen wasn't saving the world, he was destroying it. He was crushing half the planet under the thumb of British power. He was enacting the very genocides he joined up to prevent. That's why he wants a world with "no more agencies, no more spies, no more secrets."

So when Chimera offers Owen the chance to undermine US & UK interests, to take the power out of their hands by using and discarding a ridiculous n*zi, Owen just goes for it. I don't subscribe to the Chimera brainwashing theory, I like to think Owen joined Chimera because post-banana he became ideologically aligned with Chimera.

I imagine Chimera pulled him out of the rubble and got him back on his feet, and whispered in his ear about US/UK imperialism. We can argue about whether the ends justify the means, whether he goes too far, whether Chimera has pure intentions (doubt), but Owen isn't just some nightmare monster. He tells Curt "you've been blind" and "no one's innocent." He calls Curt a "caveman" and what is it, an "arrogant brute?" He has a rationale. He believes he is right. He's kind of a dick about it, but he has radicalized in a way Curt hasn't.

I think Owen sees Curt as clinging to cool guy spy shit (and the macho straight guy facade) instead of seeing the world for what it is. I think he probably also thinks about Alan Turing, about the UK arresting gay men- men who had previously been considered national heroes- for doing what Owen does (loving a man). I think he thinks about the US doing an elaborate and very public witchhunt of communists and gay people and anyone else who doesn't conform to good ol American capitalism. I think he insults Curt because he has been through a lot of shit that has changed his perspective, and he cannot believe that Curt *still doesn't see it*

I know there's the whole "DMA killed 1147 people, mostly girls from ages 14 to 22" kickstarter joke, but I'm sorry as much as I love Cynthia it'll be a cold day in hell before I believe anything the US state department says.

I don't think Agent Curt Mega is a perfect adorable babygirl who has never done anything wrong, I don't think Owen is (and has always been) a cruel and sadistic comic book villain. I think these are two men who loved each other in a time where it was very difficult, in a profession where they are literally the property of their respective governments. Where they could be arrested and forced into conversion therapy if they were discovered.

I think they were flawed (Curt cocky and careless, Owen condescending) but loved and respected each other as best they could, and when a massive trauma hits them they break different ways. Curt remains the lawful good, but Owen reframes his sense of right and wrong. I tend to think he did legit torture a lot of people, and even enjoyed it, but I think it was people related to these proxy wars, people related to these coups. People who could advance Chimera's objectives

I think Owen tortures Curt because he hates him, and he doesn't kill Curt (despite having soooo many chances) because he loves him. Owen has so much hesitation in the staircase scene. When Curt brings up their relationship he wavers and his face softens and his gun drops. He brings the gun back up, but despite having Curt at gunpoint for like 3 minutes he doesn't kill him. He hates him, but he loves him. If Curt takes the chance to talk to Owen, then maybe...

But Curt is convinced he is the good guy, which makes Owen the bad guy. And bad guys get put down like dogs. The ideological split is something Curt can't handle, so he shoots and kills his unarmed ex-lover. He just needs a win. He needs it to be over.

I don't have anything against anyone else's headcanon, I think it's a testament to how good Spies Are Forever really is that nearly 8 years later so many people still spend so much time taking apart this comedy musical about gay spies. But for me, it's more compelling if Owen is traumatized and flawed and ideologically opposed to the heroes of our story. I think it's more interesting that Curt kills the man he spent 4 years pining for because he can't accept the possibility that he could be the baddie.

Oh god I have to stop this is too much. But yeah. I've got feelings.

[anonymoushouseplantfan]

I would love to hear your extended thoughts about how you thought Invictus went. Any wins or mostly fails? Fashion? Their relationship? I always love your perspective…

I was struck by how fragile and unhealthy she looked. I don’t think she wanted to be there (or he wanted her there).

But they don’t get enough press when they go solo and they needed solid numbers from this event. I don’t think they hit the numbers they needed, btw, and the documentary ratings spoke for themselves.

The fashion was too neutral and the brands didn’t make much sense. I think mall brands are a good idea generally, but you can’t wear Banana Republic to a major event when you wore Hermes to the dentist and on the plane. It doesn’t make sense.

I noticed there was no “heartwarming game show” segment, so that pitch went nowhere.

I just don’t know where they are going with this. They are on a big “I’m just as royal as you, Willy” kick with dueling NATO pics and NY events, and I don’t think it’s going to have the effect they expect. They don’t seem to realize that actually having the working royal job matters.

[qqueenofhades]

Speaking of Jack Smith and the indictments, follow up questions if you feel like answering! What do you think the chances of a conviction before the 2024 elections are? And (more worryingly to me), how much will convictions matter given they don't actually stop Trump from running or potentially being elected?

I've been following the investigations pretty closely, until I figured out last night that there are no laws against running for president from prison, and nothing stopping an imprisoned president from pardoning themselves. @_@ And while no one running for president from prison has ever gotten much of the vote, I have a terrible feeling that's one of those terrible firsts Orange-kun could pull off.

The thing with all this is that it is, for America, completely unprecedented political and legal territory. As such, while we can speculate and infer from what has happened thus far and what would normally be on schedule to happen next, we simply can't be sure. As I have said and as we all need to prepare ourselves for, Trump WILL be the GOP nominee at the time of the 2024 election, and if you thought he and his deranged cultists were dangerous to American democracy before, that's nothing compared to what they would be now. Which means we have the obvious task of all working as hard as we fucking can to get Joe Biden re-elected and given back full Democratic control of Congress. That is and remains Job Number One.

Next, Trump's only play is to delay, delay, delay as long as possible, in hopes of miraculously winning and canceling all the charges against himself like a proper banana-republic Autocrat-for-Life. That is obviously a terrifying idea, so see above: need to make sure it doesn't happen. The good news is that Biden beat Trump last time and if we do our part, he can do it again. Democrats are over-performing their 2020 margins by an average of 7+ points in the last 20 special or off-cycle elections, and while this isn't a sign to think we've got it in the bag and can just relax, it also means that the electoral trends are overall much better for Team Blue than they are for the Group Of Pfascists over there, especially since state-level Republican parties are basically bankrupt after throwing away so much money on pointless Big Lie challenges. Trump and his entire vindictive fascist apparatus is, again, terrifying. But it is not genuinely popular or in the actual majority, and we need to approach it like something that can and must be defeated, and not some unstoppable demonic force.

As such, we also need to recognize that even if Trump does go on trial and get convicted on any number of things before November 2024, which is still something of a long shot just because Merrick Garland dragged his feet on this for so long, he will try every bullshit delay tactic and appeal that he possibly can, in hopes of elevating it to a Trump-appointed judge and/or SCOTUS (he will try AS HARD AS POSSIBLE to get it to SCOTUS, since like every good mob boss, he thinks he owns them and they're obliged to bail him out). We don't know the timeline on that or what the effects will be, but as I noted last night, the benchmark for "progress on holding Trump accountable" constantly shifts and doesn't seem to be acknowledged, even when we are in the realm of the unprecedented for any former American president. And yet we do continue to make progress, and as I say whenever there's a development on that front, the LAST thing we should do is pre-emptively throw up our hands, despair about how it still doesn't mean anything, or just won't work. I know pessimism is easy and hopelessness feels like our default setting; the last almost-decade has kicked the absolute SHIT out of us and I won't pretend otherwise. But nonetheless, this is still happening. We just have to hang in there and do our part.

If we do that, and trust that Jack Smith and co. do theirs (as they have been doing so far), then things will probably, in fact, be okay. We cannot ever make the mistakes of 2016 again, which is why it's so maddening that a significant minority of leftist-identifying people seem determined to do exactly that, but it's certainly not as if all hope is already lost and the indictments will be a magic wand to speed Trump back to the White House (again, God forbid). We have to keep that in mind and our eyes on the goal, so yeah. We can do it and we must, and that's about all there is to it.

[mycatsaidwhat]

Things I’ve heard professors say pt. 14

-you guys turn in your assignments, that’s so selfish of you 

-have any of you ever been on a sinking ship? Other than this university? Or the American republic in general 

-and then in this next Federalist painting we have the image of the Bible upside down in the hands of Democratic Republicans, because subtlety

-there is a solution to that, and that is called alcohol 

-yeah it’s not particularly diplomatically conducive to assassinate the leaders of the country you’re trying to wage an alliance with. It would be like if Biden met with Trudeau and shot him.

-the US calling their 1790s an “Indian problem” is like Russia saying they currently have a “Ukraine problem”   

-Thomas Jefferson coined the term “coo coo bananas.” It’s right there in the Declaration of Independence 

-*students point out that Tennessee and Kentucky are mislabeled on a professional academic 21st century map of early American colonies* so anyway–

-(student) do you want us to write our essay as if we’re addressing someone who doesn’t know anything about the American revolution, like our past essays?

(professor) Just write it like an essay, Skyler, Jesus  

-the french motto is “liberty, equality, fraternity.” now this doesn’t mean that all the men are going to join a group and paddle each other while drunk, but lots of shit happened during the french revolution, so who knows 

-I know what you’re all thinking--but what about the serial killer polygamist?!! 

-and because every artist thought they were a poet in the 18th century, there is a horrible rhyme at the end of this political cartoon 

-*trips over a wet floor sign* what are you trying to assassinate me for?

-profilers have feelings too, I guess. Actually no, no they don’t, what am I fucking saying 

-i stole all the textbooks so you don’t have to 

-if anyone is bored enough to read John Locke–

-*trying to flip to the the correct map in his slideshow* where in the freaking hell– 

[ewingstan]

ask game. what philosophical experiment should i be really opinionated about due to alec vasil

PHIL 269: ALEC VASIL STUDIES. PROFESSOR LEO MAL.

OFFICE HOURS: APPOINTMENT ONLY

WEEK 1: The Bat case

Thomas Nagel, What is it Like to Be a Bat? (Seeking experiences impossible in one's own body, failing to be understand others without becoming them)

WEEK 2: Philosophical Zombies

Robert Kirk, Sentience and Behavior (Dollboy Chic, beings without internality, empirical problems in determining whether others have emotions at all). Further reading: Daniel Dennett, The Unimagined Preposterousness of Zombies; David Chalmers, Zombies and the Concievability Argument

WEEK 3: Mary's Room

Frank Jackson, What Mary Didn't Know (Effect of isolation on range of experiences, desire to understand something made impossible by inability to experience it). Further reading: The Stanford Encyclopedia's entry on Qualia: The Knowledge Argument section 4.1 Doubts About the Thought Experiment. Students should focus on discussion of Dennett's "Blue Banana Trick."

WEEK 4: Ring of Gyges

Plato, The Republic Book 2 sections 359a-360d (Propensity of people to act unjustly when not being observed or when they know they'll escape consequence)

WEEK 5: The Experience Machine

Robert Nozik, Anarchy, State and Utopia pages 42-45 (Flatness of a life constructed from simulated experiences, value of directly-performed actions vs the experiential quality of actions)

WEEK 6 Dropping-Gold-Bullion-from-a-Plane-and-Breaking-Someone's Arm case

Seana Valentine Shiffrin, Wrongful Life, Procreative Responsibility, and the Significance of Harm (Impermissibility of harming someone to benefit them without their consent [see: widespread harm in the Vasil house to induce triggering, Alec breaking promise to Taylor in order to benefit her via torturing Sophia])

FURTHER READINGS WILL BE DETERMINED AS THE SEMESTER PROGRESSES/ONCE LEO REMEMBERS MORE CASES DEALING WITH BODILY AUTONOMY. FINAL WILL DETERMINE 90% OF YOUR GRADE. IF YOU TALK TO ME OUTSIDE OF OFFICE HOURS I WILL CUT YOU.

[casp1an-sea]

VERY important question for your oc ask game: 🐌 for Reese?

Reese: (Running into the library covered in dirt) Master MASTER PICKLE MAAAAAAASTER

Pical: (Looking exhausted turning around slowly) Yes Ree- WHY ARE YOU SO DIRTY????

Reese: I fell out of tree but that’s not important (mumbles) If it wasn’t for Bob being a krif- (stops themself)

Pical: where in the republic did you find a tree? We’re on Corsocaunt

Reese: Excuse me I’m trying to show you something (huffs)

Pical: Yes, right, what is it?

Reese: Zac gave me a Dokma! (It’s a Star Wars snail)

Pical: He What?

Reese: (holding it up) He brought them back from him and Master Jin’s trip to Atollon

Pical: Reese What Did i say about referring to Master Jinera as her nickname? (shakes head)

Reese: I don’t know I wasn’t paying attention. Anyway I named him Sargent glob. I made a throne for him out of sticks! One day he will RULE THE GALAXY MWAHAHAHA- but like in a cute way

Pical: Mhm mhm… how do you intend to care for Sargent Glob?

Reese: I was thinking you maybe could 🥺👉👈

Pical: Reese…

Reese: PLEASE 🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🙏🙏🙏🙏

Pical: Alright Fine.

Reese: (Jumping and hugging him) YAY! (Sergent glob feel to the floor landing on his back. Reese quickly helped him back up) Oops. I Forgot I was holding him heh heh…

Pical: 🤦‍♂️

—————————————————————————

@xen-blank, @thehollowwriter, @l7k-a, @ferris-the-wheel, @keii-starz

@krenenbaker @elenauaurs @the-banana-0verlord @edith-is-a-cat @dove-da-birb

@theosb0rnway @fizzydreamz @ravenwing0110

@diabollicallyangelic @xentari94 @tomatette

@dragonflies-draw-flame @sunshinechildskywalker

[selamat-linting]

after simmering over antimemetics division for a day or so, i can confidently say its not just an allegory for fascism, but its also about capitalism. fascism isnt some uniquely evil idea that come out of nowhere and slithered through society invisible until it becomes too big to ignore. fascism is merely a symptom of something bigger despite the atrocities. but it can be understood without some kind of special training. so it would be rather disingenuous to straight up equate scp 3125 to just fascism. instead, in antimemetics division, scp 3125 is the capitalism metaphor, the world ending scenario it caused after breaking into the world is the symbol for fascist societies.

after all, fascism is capitalism is crisis. if you let capitalism go on, eventually before you know it the world is ending, people are murdered in droves and you will wonder why no one noticed anything until the very end?

scp 3125 is the end point of almost all antimemetic scp's. something so vast, all encompassing, interconnected, permeates the fabric of reality and was so horrible, you almost cant defeat it. as more and more of scp 3125 breaches the universe, the more it manifested seemingly unrelated horrors out of nowhere. similar to how as capitalism reaches its logical end, multiple seemingly unrelated crisis started happening. either from climate change, destruction of indigenous societies, etc. until we see it in its worst forms.

the victims of antimemetics, forgotten and erased, can be seen as the violence of wage labor and social murder happening almost daily in order to keep the gears of capital running. people will forget anything, they will forget there is a memorial the size of a skyscraper the way people forget about banana republics, sweatshops, ethnic massacres, etc.

so, how do they stop the xk class world ending event? they stop scp 3125. how do they stop it? with a better idea. a better idea that has to survive countless attempts at killing it. in the end, its not just the idea. but the people, the foundation, countless unnamed and forgotten goi's, their cooperation, the countless training and asynchronous research, the ability of antimemetics personnels to backtrack, adapt, and think outside the box , learn and preserve information about the fights and wars they lost for the future to use. sorta like how you fight capitalism tbh.