#India-China stand off

[rudrjobdesk]

Manish Tewari Slammed S Jaishankar On China Issue Also Mentioned Former Defense Minister Krishna Menon

Manish Tewari Slammed S Jaishankar On China Issue Also Mentioned Former Defense Minister Krishna Menon

Manish Tewari On S Jaishankar: अरुणाचल प्रदेश के तवांग सेक्टर (Tawang Sector) में एलएसी पर भारतीय सैनिकों की 9 दिसंबर को चीनी सैनिकों के साथ झड़प हुई. इस झड़प में दोनों तरफ के कुछ सैनिक घायल हुए. झड़प के बाद चीन के मुद्दे पर विपक्ष ने केंद्र सरकार को निशाने पर लिया. बीते दो दिनों से संसद में भी इस पर हंगामा चल रहा है. वहीं अब कांग्रेस नेता ��नीष तिवारी ने चीन के मुद्दे पर विदेश मंत्री एस जयशंकर को…

[phoenix-creates]

Genshin Impact, Both the Game and the Community, Cannot Hide Their Colorism or Racism Anymore

This is going to be a long read. I refuse to stay silent.

I've played Genshin Impact on and off since 2021 when I was first introduced to it. I drew fanart but rarely participated in the fandom, as Genshin has one of the most toxic and racist fandoms that takes pleasure in driving off content creators of color, perpetuating racism within the communities, as well as harassing and threatening people who dare try to speak out about it. But, for as racist as the fandom is, what can I expect from them considering Hoyoverse as a whole has it's own set of racial problems.

It is clear from the release of Sumeru to the recent teasers of Natlan. Hoyoverse has colorism problems and racism problems and we're going to take a look at them here.

Before we begin, I want to take a moment to say that there will be a lot of information presented in this post. I ask that you read carefully and be considerate of every talking point presented.

Now, let's talk about Sumeru.

Sumeru, the fourth region released in Genshin Impact, draws a lot of real world inspiration from Middle Eastern culture, with even the geography mimicking the real world geography of China and India. The characters, music, food, and geography all draw inspiration from various different real world cultures, and just from a few glances, it is easy to see exactly where and what cultures they’re taking from.

Candace for instance, from name to appearance, draws inspiration from kandakes, which was the title of a queen mother in Nubian kingdoms. Even her accessories, her talents, and her weapon take pieces from other aspects of Egyptian culture.

Cyno, another character from Sumeru, is dressed in garb that mimics depictions of Anubis, the ancient Egyptian God of funerary rites and protector of graves. As with Candace, his talents and abilities reference Egypt.

Even Sethos, a newcomer to the game and also a Sumeru character, has clothes, skills, and a name that alludes to either the Egyptian God Set, the god of the desert and storms, the Egyptian pantheon in general, or the Ancient Egyptian King Seti/Sethos.

These three characters are tanned, anyone can see that, but if you take a closer look you'll notice that they're all around the same shade. Considering all three of them take inspiration from real world Egyptian culture, it is insane to me that they're all a similar shade of the same slightly tanned tone. It is unacceptable that they're all a shade or two away from white when all of them has some aspect of Egyptian culture in their character.

To further shed light on Sumeru's racist sins, there exists a long standing conflict in Sumeru regarding The Eremites, a race of people descended from the ancient, now-collapsed civilization who primarily live in the desert. These people are the enemies in the game. You read that right. The desert dwellers are the enemies and not only that, but unlike the treasure hoarders who disappear into smoke when defeated, the Eremites collapse to the ground like the Fatui.

Why do the Treasure Hoarders, a band of pale skinned thieves, get away but the Eremites, treated as if their culture is lesser, presumably die?

Worse than that, there is a long quest in Sumeru where a white academic from Sumeru spends nearly the entire length of the quest insulting an Eremite. The quest I'm referring to, Golden Slumber, is a multi part quest that has the Traveler accompanying a researcher named Tirzad who is exploring the ruins in the deserts of Sumeru. Throughout the quest, Tirzad spends most of his time complaining and insulting Jeht and Jebrael, calling the latter an uneducated brute whenever Jebrael tries to do anything. And the Traveler is no help, with dialogue options remaining neutral instead of rightfully telling Tirzad to stop.

What we have here is a white man stereotyping a man of color and assuming things about himself and his race due to his own racist biases.

Many players have called out the racism in Tirzad’s actions and this quest overall, but Tirzad at multiple times fails to see the error of his ways and leads the group into life threatening situations simply because he can’t believe an “uneducated desert brute” could possibly know more than him.

I could sit here and pick apart more aspects of Sumeru and it's failures to properly represent the culture it's using, but I want to get into the inciting incident of this entire post, which is Natlan.

When the teaser for Natlan was released, it was just another failure on Hoyoverse's part. To understand why, we can break it down into parts, starting with the character leaks:

Mavuika, presumably the pyro archon, with a name inspired by Māori fire deity Mahuika.

Ororon, a mispelling of the Yoruba god Ọlọrun, the creator deity in the Yoruban pantheon.

Kinich, named after the Mayan god of the sun.

Iansan, another character whose name comes from the Yoruba pantheon.

Xilonen, this name coming from one of the aspects of the Aztec goddess of maize and the goddess of sustenance.

Kachina, name inspiration directly lifted from the religious beliefs of the indigenous Pueblos people.

Chasca, name coming from the Incan goddess of dawn and twilight.

Citlali, a name derived from Nahuatl, which is a language from ancient Mexico.

Are you seeing something interesting with these characters?

Hoyoverse has shoved multiple different cultures under one region and whitewashed every character. They did the bare bones work of lifting names and small design inspirations from so many different cultures and using them in the laziest way possible. If not pale white, the few characters who are tanned are a mere shade darker than Cyno and almost the same shade as Kaeya. There is nothing darker in sight with any of these characters.

Cultural representation matters. If Hoyoverse can explore the cultures of Germany (Mondstadt), China (Liyue), Japan (Inazuma), and France (Fontaine), it is insane that the same sort of love couldn't be given to both Sumeru and Natlan, both nations where we should rightfully be seeing more people of color.

(Side note, we should be seeing more people of color in the previous regions as well, even as NPCs. Bi-racial people exist all over the world, not just in America. Quick google searches will show what I mean.)

I can already hear the arguments against me.

"But Hoyoverse is an East Asian company! They don't need to/don't care about representation!"

Oh really? Because Lilithgames, the company behind Dislyte, is a company based in Shanghai, China. And when you compare the variety of skin tones of Dislyte to Genshin, you cannot make the argument that a company based in Asia doesn't care about diversity. Hoyoverse does not seem to care, but don't make it a blanket statement for all companies.

Still not convinced? Bluepoch, a small Chinese company behind Reverse:1999, is responsible for this character:

Smite, a game published by Hi-Rez Studios and Tencent Games (A Chinese publisher), has a character based on Olorun. And they did just fine in their depiction of him:

And the director behind Tekken 7, Katsuhiro Harad, shared concept art of an Arab fighter they want to add to the game. Why? Because he wanted to make sure he was respecting Middle Eastern culture and asked for feedback to see what can be improved. He posted this concept art and asked the community for input to make Shaheen as accurate as possible:

But sure. Asian companies don't care.

"It's a fantasy world! It doesn't have to 1-to-1 mimic the real world!"

Oh really? So why are characters named after real world cultural figures, why is the food based around real world food, why are outfits somewhat inspired by real world garbs then? If you're gonna draw inspiration from something and use the real world in your game, the world is a diverse place. It is not all white nor all slightly tanned.

"You can always stop playing the game."

I could, but that would mean letting them win and get away with their racism. It would mean letting Hoyoverse think this is the norm instead of the outlier. It would mean staying silent during injustice. I can do a lot of things, and exposing their issues is one of them.

"It could be difficult for them to implement dark-skinned characters."

It actually is not. Look at all the examples from other games and companies discussed previously. It's not hard. Plus, take a look at Wriothesley's concept art:

Originally, he had a different skin tone. So characters with different tones existed but got lightened and changed over time.

"I don't want [insert race here] in my fantasy game/it doesn't matter!"

Honey, you're just racist.

"Wow, I get it now. This is bad. What can I do to help?"

There are several ways:

Use Surveys and Feedback when you log into Hoyoverse games. This problem extends past Genshin, into HSR and ZZZ (a game whose ads promote itself with rap music and yet noticeably lack playable dark skinned characters so far). Use the platforms that they gave us in order to spread the word. Tell them that you're dissatisfied with the cultural appropriation and disappointed in Hoyoverse for taking certain cultures and whitewashing them. Email genshin_cs@hoyoverse.com if the feedback buttons aren't working for some reason.

Stop putting money into the game. A lot of companies listen when there's monetary loss involved. Show them that you mean business and stop supporting their business. You can also leave a one star and a review with your thoughts on their cultural appropriation.

Amplify the voices of those speaking out. There are plenty of posts out there better worded than mine that go in depth into a lot of these problems. Multiple voice actors of all ethnicities and backgrounds have spoken up about Hoyoverse’s injustices as well (many of the VAs from the game, including the voices of Albedo, Sucrose, Layla, Beidou, and even VAs for smaller NPCs have spoken out). When you see those posts, share them. Spread the word. Get those voices out there.

Shut down those silencing others. For as many posts out there trying to bring more light to this issue, there are others who try to shut us down. They continue to be racist and double down that nothing is wrong with Natlan. Do not let them get away with this. Show them this post or the myriad of other posts that exist. Tell them to shut the fuck up. Call them out. But don't let them silence anyone else.

If you've made it to the end and learned something, I'm glad. If you've made it to the end and want to further support me or anyone else in this fight, share this post and others like it.

Thank you for reading.

EDIT: As noted in this ask, the naming conventions of characters from other regions as opposed to Sumeru and Natlan. I’ll be adding a separate reblog to this post with a full list of naming conventions from each region.

[artifacts-and-arthropods]

Stone Turtle of Karakorum, Mongolia, c. 1235-1260 CE: this statue is one of the only surviving features of Karakorum, which was once the capital city of the Mongol Empire

The statue is decorated with a ceremonial scarf known as a khadag (or khata), which is part of a Buddhist custom that is also found in Tibet, Nepal, and Bhutan. The scarves are often left atop shrines and sacred artifacts as a way to express respect and/or reverence. In Mongolia, this tradition also contains elements of Tengrism/shamanism.

The city of Karakorum was originally established by Genghis Khan in 1220 CE, when it was used as a base for the Mongol invasion of China. It then became the capital of the Mongol Empire in 1235 CE, and quickly developed into a thriving center for trade/cultural exchange between the Eastern and Western worlds.

The city attracted merchants of many different nationalities and faiths, and Medieval sources note that the city displayed an unusual degree of diversity and religious tolerance. It contained 12 different temples devoted to pagan and/or shamanistic traditions, two mosques, one church, and at least one Buddhist temple.

As this article explains:

The city might have been compact, but it was cosmopolitan, with residents including Mongols, Steppe tribes, Han Chinese, Persians, Armenians, and captives from Europe who included a master goldsmith from Paris named William Buchier, a woman from Metz, one Paquette, and an Englishman known only as Basil. There were, too, scribes and translators from diverse Asian nations to work in the bureaucracy, and official representatives from various foreign courts such as the Sultanates of Rum and India.

This diversity was reflected in the various religions practised there and, in time, the construction of many fine stone buildings by followers of Taoism, Buddhism, Islam, and Christianity.

The prosperous days of Karakorum were very short-lived, however. The Mongol capital was moved to Xanadu in 1263, and then to Khanbaliq (modern-day Beijing) in 1267, under the leadership of Kublai Khan; Karakorum lost most of its power, authority, and leadership in the process. Without the resources and support that it had previously received from the leaders of the Mongol Empire, the city was left in a very vulnerable position. The residents of Karakorum began leaving the site in large numbers, until the city had eventually become almost entirely abandoned.

There were a few scattered attempts to revive the city in the years that followed, but any hope of restoring Karakorum to its former glory was then finally shattered in 1380, when the entire city was razed to the ground by Ming Dynasty troops.

The Erdene Zuu Monastery was later built near the site where Karakorum once stood, and pieces of the ruins were taken to be used as building materials during the construction of the monastery. The Erdene Zuu Monastery is also believed to be the oldest surviving Buddhist monastery in Mongolia.

There is very little left of the ruined city today, and this statue is one of the few remaining features that can still be seen at the site. It originally formed the base of an inscribed stele, but the pillar section was somehow lost/destroyed, leaving nothing but the base (which may be a depiction of the mythological dragon-turtle, Bixi, from Chinese mythology).

This statue and the site in general always kinda remind me of the Ozymandias poem (the version by Horace Smith, not the one by Percy Bysshe Shelley):

In Egypt's sandy silence, all alone,

stands a gigantic leg

which far off throws the only shadow

that the desert knows.

"I am great OZYMANDIAS," saith the stone,

"the King of Kings; this mighty city shows

the wonders of my hand."

The city's gone —

naught but the leg remaining

to disclose the site

of this forgotten Babylon.

We wonder —

and some Hunter may express wonder like ours,

when thro' the wilderness where London stood,

holding the wolf in chace,

he meets some fragment huge

and stops to guess

what powerful but unrecorded race

once dwelt in that annihilated place

Sources & More Info:

University of Washington: Karakorum, Capital of the Mongol Empire

Encyclopedia Britannica: Entry for Karakorum

World History: Karakorum

[mias-playground]

Almost 500 years ago, a tall African man arrived in Japan. He would go on to become the first foreign-born man to achieve the status of a samurai warrior.

Kidnapped as a child, Yasuke had ended up a servant and bodyguard to the head of the Jesuits in Asia, with whom he traversed India and China learning multiple languages as he went.

His arrival in Kyoto, however, literally caused a riot. Most Japanese people had never seen an African man before, and many of them saw him as the embodiment of the black-skinned Buddha.

Among those who were drawn to his presence was Lord Nobunaga, head of the most powerful clan in Japan. When Yasuke was presented to Oda Nobunaga, the Japanese daimyō thought that his skin must have been coloured with black ink. Nobunaga had him strip from the waist up and made him scrub his skin.

"His height was 6 shaku 2 sun (roughly 6' 2")... he was black, and his skin was like charcoal," a fellow samurai, Matsudaira Ietada, described him in his diary in 1579.

The average height of a Japanese man in 1900 was 5' 2" so Yasuke would have towered over most Japanese people in the 16th Century, when people were generally shorter due to worse nutrition.

Yasuke was not just different in height and appearance. He was also very muscular and well built. His strength can be compared to those of 10 men put together. He was indeed a born warrior, a hulk, and a samurai in waiting. One other feature that made Yasuke stand out was his level of intelligence. His mastery of the Japanese language in such a short time was a marvel to many. He was able to learn the culture and tradition of the people.

When Nobunaga realized that the African's skin was indeed black, he took an interest in him. Yasuke already spoke some Japanese and the two men got on well, according to academic Thomas Lockley, who has written a book on Yasuke. Nobunaga grew fond of Yasuke and treated him like family - the African was among a very select group of people allowed to dine with him.

Yasuke was taken in by the warlord to become his weapon bearer. To be a weapon bearer to the most powerful warlord in the whole of Japan was a great privilege and honor. The weapon bearer must also be one who can be trusted with secrets, especially those relating to affairs outside the state. Yasuke’s hard work and diligence paid off, and within a few months, he was rewarded with a home in Azuchi Castle, which was located in the north-eastern province of Kyoto. Yasuke also received a stipend and was gifted with a Katana sword. History has it that the Katana sword is regarded as the symbol of a samurai warrior.

When Nobunaga bestowed the rank of samurai on Yasuke the idea of a non-Japanese samurai was something unheard of. As the first foreign-born samurai, Yasuke fought important battles alongside Oda Nobunaga.

Yasuke at Wikipedia

[eriong]

i absolutely LOVED listening to this when it aired live!! if you missed it, you can check out the entire show here.

This mix showcases the music from a small tribe living in the foothills of the Himalayas. Their genesis begins from a great boulder called Sinlung, possibly in the present Tailing or Silung of Yunan Province of today’s China. Starting off as a semi nomadic group of hunter/cultivators moving through Myanmar, and various pockets of the northeast India and a majority of the settlers in Tuithaphai, Manipur- The Hmar tribe is a group whose entire history has been a constant state of diaspora. Their music is heavily dictated by the lack of a script- passing down their stories through oral sounds. Almost every circumstance within the community has a story in songs to back it up. The mix starts off with the hunters call- a special song given to each Hunter, a victory hymn (Sikpui Hla) and some snippets of the melodious intonations of our spoken language. Throughout the mix- we see the contrasts between pre and post colonial Hmar Tribe, and how the eventual conversion into Christianity brings change in their sounds with nods to hymnody, protest folk, gospel, rockabilly, new wave, and 90's pop. Songs from the Hmar/Mizo heartlands that people from almost every generation can recall, despite its diminished stature in context of mainland India the musical prowess stands ingenously tall. Presently with the civil war that has been brewing in Manipur since May 2023 which almost all media outlets have refused to cover or amplify. I hope this mix serves as a vessel to remind us of a more peaceful time for the tribals before the threat of uprootment and forced displacement from the one place we thought we could call our home. Mixed by: Ruhail Qaisar @iakksakkath Mastered by: Julien Racine @racine.corporation

[monstersinthecosmos]

okay I think we should take inventory of what we learned about Marius's house.

In fact, the impression was one of comfortable messiness.

(i think the tiktok kids started calling ADHD clutter clustering or something LMAO marius de romanus cluster girlie i guess. thanks i hate it)

Here's some stuff that Marius had on his island!!!!!!!

stone benches

a lighted oil lamp on a stand

a pair of heavy wooden doors

a sarcophagus with a plain lid, cleanly fashioned out of diorite

The lid plated in iron and contained

a golden mask, its features carefully molded, attached to a hood made up of layered plates of hammered gold.

a pair of leather gloves covered completely in tinier more delicate gold plates like scales.

a large folded blanket of the softest red wool with one side sewn with larger gold plates

Magnificent Grecian urns on pedestals in the corridors

great bronze statues from the Orient

exquisite plants at every window and terrace open to the sky.

Gorgeous rugs from India, Persia, China c

giant stuffed beasts mounted in lifelike attitudes-

--the brown bear,

--the lion,

--the tiger,

--even the elephant standing in his own immense chamber,

--lizards as big as dragons,

--birds of prey clutching dried branches made to look like the limbs of real trees.

brilliantly colored murals covering every surface from floor to ceiling

a dark vibrant painting of the sunburnt Arabian desert complete with an exquisitely detailed caravan of camels and turbaned merchants moving over the sand

a jungle warming with delicately rendered tropical blossoms, vines, carefully drawn leaves

creatures everywhere in the texture of the jungle-

--insects,

--birds,

--worms in the soil-

too many monkeys in the jungle,

too many bugs crawling on the leaves.

thousands of tiny insects in one painting of a summer sky.

a large gallery walled on either side by painted men and women staring at me

Figures from all ages these were-

--bedouins,

--Egyptians,

--Greeks and Romans,

--knights in armor,

--peasants

--kings

--queens.

--Renaissance people in doublets and leggings,

--the Sun King with his massive mane of curls,

--people of our own age.

droplets of water clinging to a cape,

the cut on the side of a face,

the spider half-crushed beneath a polished leather boot.

a library, blazing with light.

Walls and walls of books and

rolled manuscripts,

giant glistening world globes in their wooden cradles,

busts of the ancient Greek gods and goddesses,

great sprawling maps.

Newspapers in all languages lay in stacks on tables.

Fossils,

mummified hands,

exotic shells.

bouquets of dried flowers,

figurines and fragments of old sculpture,

alabaster jars covered with Egyptian hieroglyphs.

comfortable chairs with footstools,

candelabra or oil lamps.

a forest of cages.

birds of all sizes and colors

monkeys

baboons,

Potted plants crowded against the cages-

--ferns and

--banana trees,

--cabbage roses,

--moonflower,

--jasmine,

--other sweetly fragrant nighttime vines.

purple and white orchids,

waxed flowers that trapped insects in their maw,

little trees groaning with peaches and lemons and pears.

a hall of sculptures equal to any gallery in the Vatican museum.

adjoining chambers full of paintings,

Oriental furnishings,

mechanical toys.

fine rosewood paneling with framed mirrors rising to the ceiling.

painted chests,

upholstered chairs,

dark and lush landscapes,

porcelain clocks.

A small collection of books in the glass-doored bookcases,

a newspaper of recent date lying on a small table beside a brocaded winged chair.

the stone terrace. where banks of white lilies and red roses gave off their powerful perfume.

a pair of winged chairs that faced each other

a dozen or so candelabra and sconces on the paneled walls.

brocade cushions

[icekingofhope]

who is your favorite character from LMK? And your least favorite?

oh well I have many favorites of mine although my main favorite is the camel ridge trio (Peng tusk and azure) they are honestly not just my most favorite villains of lmk but in media

And what the season 4 special did to them was such bullshit but I already went in why I hate the special before

Cause like I can see their cause and actually rooted for them to win in season 4 I can see why they want to dethrone the jade emperor and why they wouldn’t let anyone stand in their way!

especially considering the times of ancient China cause let’s face it despite how beautiful and amazing the ancient times were…they were really problematic cause like slavery was a thing and normalized back then

and we also have problems in modern society with politics world hunger etc so it would make since why azure Peng and tusk would do the things they do and I can understand why they felt so betrayed by wukong cause imagine your leader who you haven’t seen in 500 years (assuming they didn’t even know he was sealed away under a mountain) and hearing about him again but he is working for a monk who was a celestial to get scriptures from India and your said brother had attacked not only demons but your old sworn brothers as well and even killed one (aka macaque)

I would honestly feel betrayed and angry myself yet I love how azure doesn’t hate wukong or hold grudges he literally was gonna keep him in the scroll till he killed the jade emperor then he would have released him and help him see reason

like I can talk about these three All damn day they are my absolute favorites of mine and they deserved a lot better then what the special did (and azure definitely did not deserve to be villainized and transformed into some type of tyrant and don’t say “well he had a lot of power so-“ my friend he was king before and from what I seen in jttw he was a great leader he literally calls his soldiers little wind cutters and don’t say they were always evil keep in mind it was wukong who attacked first they weren’t gotta hurt the monk or anything it just when wukong attacked they got pissed off cause it this)

and it makes me sad that people would hate these guys subjecting them to stereotypes that Peng is a asshole azure is a evil person and Yellowtusk…well who cares about him? Cause like all three of them are amazing characters in the show and book and mythology (even though it’s mostly Peng who is most of the mythology)

anyways for my least favorite…

it has to be either xiangliu or the mayor

unfortunately I could care less for xiangliu like I personally think he is a massive hypocrite and also batshit insane-

like he is not a monster he is just a psychopath cause who in their right mind literally starts the end of the world CAUSE OF FUCKING CHAOS?!

Now he may probably come back in next season I don’t know but right now I hate him

for the mayor….to me I don’t really also care much to me he is just the lady bone demons servant and it sucks cause like we don’t get to see why he is the way he is and why he fellows lady bone demon like a lapdog

and it feels weird at the end of the season 3 special he is nowhere to be seen i feel like if they expanded his lore more i may would have find him cool but like there is barely shit about him

(also I kinda hate his design it just looks so basic like I’m not asking for full details but make him not look like a business man with a bad haircut)

so yeah my main favorite is azure Peng and tusk and my least are either xiangliu and mayor

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

Brazil’s rising role as a geopolitical heavyweight

Brazil takes center stage as host of this year’s G20 Summit, marking a defining moment in the nation’s ascent as a geopolitical powerhouse. Dina Ting, Head of Global Index Portfolio Management, explores Brazil’s economic ambitions alongside its increasing influence in shaping the future of international economic cooperation.

For many people, Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro evokes images of sunny beaches and colorful celebrations. But the city’s biggest international event of this year (in fact, the largest since the 2016 Olympic Games) will likely involve more suits than bikinis. Next month, for the first time, Brazil will take center stage on the world’s preeminent platform for global economic cooperation as host of the G20 (Group of 20) Summit in Rio.

The coalition, which includes the United States, China, India, the European Union, and most recently, the African Union, represents the world’s major economies—accounting for roughly 80% of global gross domestic product (GDP), 75% of global trade and two-thirds of the global population.1

Since taking office early last year for his third non-consecutive term, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s (Lula) has spent much time abroad trying to raise his country’s global standing. His efforts may be paying off. A recent Pew Research survey found that most Brazilian adults are optimistic about their country’s status as an international power.2

Beyond the G20, Brazil is also slated to play host for other high-profile events, such as the UN Climate Change Conference (COP30) and the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit in 2025, while concurrently pursuing membership in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Continue reading.

[jobaaj]

🔴BREAKING NEWS: Putin is in North Korea! He has promised support to Kim Jong Un!! 🤔 What happened?

▪ On his first visit in 24 years, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited North Korea yesterday.

This marked a significant diplomatic engagement between the two countries.

▪ Despite arriving at 2:45 am local time, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was waiting on the tarmac for President Putin.

The early morning arrival did not deter Kim Jong Un from personally welcoming Putin.

▪ The two leaders embraced, shook hands, and completed a few formalities before heading together to the state guest house.

Their warm greeting included a hug and a handshake, signifying strong diplomatic ties.

They proceeded to the state guest house after completing necessary formalities.

🧐 Why?

▪ This visit is Russian President Putin’s attempt at solidifying the two countries’ relations.

Strengthening diplomatic ties is a key objective of the visit.

▪ With the increasing isolation of both countries globally, the visit aims to improve bilateral relations and sign new economic and military agreements.

Both nations face international sanctions and diplomatic challenges, prompting them to seek closer cooperation.

The focus includes potential economic collaborations and military partnerships.

▪ Some experts suggest that Russia could request more military supplies from North Korea in exchange for food and energy supplies.

There is speculation that military aid might be exchanged for essential resources.

Such an arrangement could benefit both countries amidst their respective challenges.

😲Interestingly:

▪ According to North Korean media, President Putin praised ‘Comrade Kim’ and vowed to fight off Western sanctions together!

▪ Moreover, the state-run newspaper there also said that both countries will be working to build a trade and payments system that ‘will not be controlled by the West’!!

▪ The US has expressed serious concerns over President Putin’s visit and support for North Korea. 🥸Analysis:

▪ The world is getting divided into two major factions: the West and the Non-West.

▪ With this visit to North Korea and the visit to China last month, President Putin is solidifying support for Russia and the non-West faction.

▪ On the other hand, the US-led West faction is constantly trying to control to other via sanctions and other threats. ❓Which side should India stand on? Can India balance being on both sides?? Follow Jobaaj Stories (the media arm of Jobaaj.com Group for more)

[cursedvibes]

Tengen for the character thing (+sukuna or uraume too if you feel like it)

I already answered Sukuna and Uraume, so I'm choosing grumpy grandma :D

favourite thing about them

I love how she falls in such a morally grey area. Dark grey even if you ask me. She's not a villain (yet) and most of the main characters look up to her in some way, don't dare to question the status quo she set up ages ago, but the more we find out about her, the more sketchy everything about her becomes. She uses human lives and bodies to prolong her life and keep it in a state she's comfortable in. In contrast to Kenjaku or Sukuna, she doesn't have to worry about a natural death, so this really isn't necessary for her and yet she uses these people to avoid change. You could say she would threaten civilization or the Japanese population otherwise if she doesn't merge, but we have seen that she can hold on for quite some time with barrier techniques. And if she's such a threat, then wouldn't it be more ethical to take yourself completely out of the equation? Lock yourself up or kill yourself instead of sacrificing others to keep you as you are? That doesn't even touch on all the sorcerers that die almost daily due to the system that she set up and upholds. Add onto that her protecting Kenjaku by keeping their existence secret and likely even ensuring their survival after each six eyes battle. And now we have the new layer of her connection with Sukuna, where she clearly has some sort of fascination with his body and has meddled with it before, not unlike Kenjaku. Love how she's not just some old conservative, but there are layers to her and what she's doing or her inaction.

least favourite thing about them

Need more of her backstory and interactions with Kenjaku and Sukuna. Also, she's just so wonderfully frustrating in her stubbornness. If she has a position, she'll really dig her roots in like the tree that she is and won't budge (although other times she's so whimsical in that "come what may" attitude she shows before Kenjaku breaks her barrier and where she decides that she might as well go along with Kenjaku's plan and evolve because it's inevitable...could've realized that 1000 years ago). Could've avoided so many deaths if it wasn't for that. Not really a "least favourite" because I love her for that, just something that makes me want to shake her a bit.

favourite line

"You asked me what I'm doing. All I need to do is distract you." (distraction=standing around...Kenjaku is so easy when it comes to her)

"It wasn't that I was confident. Just like how the seasons are naturally changing, I thought that it was inevitable for something like this to happen."

"That child's objective is to force the evolution of all human beings throughout Japan."

brOTP

Yuki. Love their forced cohabitation where both clearly want to be as far away from each other as possible, but also can't resist talking. Would've liked to see what their everyday life looked like when they weren't discussing plans to stop Kenjaku.

OTP

TenKen. I absolutely love their relationship. How they contrast each other, how they push each other to further extremes both intentionally and unintentionally and there's just so much to speculate about their past and what they might've been like before they broke off. There are so many little hints at what their relationship used to be like and how they really feel about each other, it makes me insane.

nOTP

Tengen/Sukuna. Just...no. Don't see that at all.

random headcanon

I'm not sure if she was born outside Japan, but I imagine during the 200 years before she came into the public eye and created her cults, she was travelling around China, Korea and India to learn more about jujutsu and especially barrier techniques and that's how she gained such proficiency in it.

unpopular opinion

evolved Tengen > human appearance. I just think that even her "thumb" form is so much more interesting than what she looks like fresh after a merger. I really would like to see her gradual ageing process and how she turns from just an old lady into a more cursed form. Also I'd liked to see her in her old form in general aka before she started the first merger or just before she was planning to merge with Riko or any other Star Plasma Vessel.

song i associate with them

Deebu - River of Memories I often listen to this and other Deebu songs while writing TenKen fics. It has a nice mix of chill, dreamy, but also rooted in the past that fits very well with Tengen I think.

Agnes Obel - Broken Sleep There are a bunch of Obel songs that fit Tengen in my opinion, but this one is the most on-point with the lyrics and music. Fits her isolation and her wasting away in her tree.

favourite picture of them

suit!Tengen <3

I like the way her real body looks now too. Kind of a mix of the more masculine image she projects and how she used to look in that one sketch we saw. So she's thinner, her eyelashes longer, but the rest is the same. Although her biceps still looks relatively muscular all things considered, so I think she must've put on more muscle since we saw her in that volume sketch (around Edo era I'm assuming based on the clothes and this probably being shortly after a merger). There she seemed almost fragile, but not so much here, despite being more withered.

And of course cursed womb!Tengen. She looks so cute. Like a little gummy bear.

[quillpokebiology]

Ooc: Places that I think should be pokemon regions

I want these so bad omg.

Texas, USA

As much as a dislike Texas, a region based on it would be nice. It could also bring a lot of neat pokemon. Imagine the wild areas too!

South Africa

Or just an African region in general. I don't have a reason for this other than the cool pokemon that could come with it, and I have pokemon OCs that are from a pokemon version of South Africa. It probably won't happen because Japan has a lot of xenophobia and racism, but I can hope (They added a Hawaiin region and I know that's US territory, but all 3/4 Kahunas were Hawaiin and dark skinned, so it could be closer than we think)

Egypt

5th grade me made an Egyptian pokemon region called Asaro. I never worked on it much, but I remember making a ghost type eeveelution that was a mummy (it was a regional variant of the OG ghost type I made). If they were to ever make an African pokemon region, Egypt would be the best one.

Italy

I literally have no reason for this other than I think the towns could look nice.

Australia

I think the next pokemon region is going to be Asutralian because each gen gives us a hint to the next (Example: Pokemon swsh showed art of a cherry and a grape in the hotel, which is pokemon sv). For Pokemon Scarlet, we got an image of a mountain that resembles a mountain in Asutralia.

I think an Asutralian region would be super cool. I actually had an Australian region in 5th grade called Sonin, and I want the Australian region to be real so bad to bring 5th grade me peace.

Midwest, USA

Reason? I live in the Midwest, and I want a region where I can stand in and be like "Omfg, I live here." Specifically, I live in Nebraska, but the entire midwest is the exact fucking same, so it doesn't tmatter if they choose one state or combine all of it. I even have some cool fakemon ideas! Example: a cardinal fakemon that looks like a thief, a maid raccoon because they're actually pretty clean, and the early grass types you find that turn into hot plant ladies could be corn. My friend actually made one when we were younger, and I made a map of it during quarantine. I remember making a cool town that was underground and held a ground-type gym leader.

China

I don't have any reasoning for this. I just think it'd be neat. OH WAIT! I just remembered an old fakemon I made named Fumo! It was a starter for a Chinese based region I don't remember the name of, and it was a red panda. I remember liking it a lot, and I might redraw it some day!

India

India is a really big place, and it'd probably be the biggest region. Honestly, they might just have to choose a section of India. But India has a lot of culture, and also has 1 billion people, so a lot of fans would be able to relate to it.

Mexico

There's actually an artist @voidarkana who is working in a Mexican region on their insta. I'm actually surprised we haven't gotten one, or at least hinted at one sooner (I can because Japan is xenophobic as hell). Buy there could be cool things with a Mexican region. And could you imagine the mythical and regional variants??? Imagine an Alebreje pokemon, or a Dia de los Muertos Houndoom!

Brazil

I made one in 5th grade (I made a lot of shit in 5th grade). I don't remember what it was called. I think it was Bravo or something? Idk. I want this because RAINFOREST WILD AREA. Imagine climbing on these massive vines with the newer graphics, and being able to go on the canopy! Or imagine a town in a rainforest and it'd be a cool treetop city! It'd be like Fortree city, but so much better!

Germany

Germany has a lot of culture, which I think would be fun to explore in pokemon. Plus, they could make SO many pokenon off of the Grimm's fairytales.

California, USA

California is gross, expensive, and polluted irl, but it could be super nice in a pokemon game.

Canada

I made a Canadian region named Calle in 5th grade, and I liked it a lot. It's where I had a Buneary regional variant that was ice type and had these cute little slippers. And one of the starters was an ice type hare, and I thought it was super cute.

Greece

A YouTuber had an idea for one, and I liked it a lot. I don't remember who made it, but they had the idea of the gym leaders being based off the gods, and the champion being based on a Greek Hero. That'd be so cool!

[rottenfox]

Genshin Theory from a noob: Language

Alright, well I'm in the middle of a 24 hour sleep reset so sorry if this makes no sense, but I've just got into Genshin and have recently caught up with the archon quests. One thing that I really enjoyed have been how each nation built their culture and government around the ideals of their nation. I'm sure those who are interested in this already know this but I'm still going to type it out for my sleep addled mind.

Mondstadt: Freedom- loose theocracy/police state w/ nomadic-like cells; based off the old Gemadic + Latin middle ages?

Liyue: Contracts- rigid capitalist structure w/ formal religious roots; based off China (though what dynasty, I don't know)

Inazuma: Eternity- rigid clan power w/ smaller clans controlling their own islands mush closer; Based off shogunat Japan

Sumaru: Wisdom- academic body w/ nomadic? Natives? Based off India and the middle east (mostly Egypt)

Fontaine: Justice- Judicial system w/ an oligarcical prison system?? (Idk how you would describe the fortress) Based off France.

Shneznia: ???- possibly also a theocracy w/ the God herself ruling; based of Russia.

I would put the Pyro nation but like I said, I'm new to Genshin and too tired to research properly. MOVING ON

We know these nations were built by the Archons to nurse their ideals but something that is only brought up a few times is the language barrier -or the lack of it. We know there are other languages, since is brought of a few times when something it written in "common" but it's surprising that EVERYONE can speak it. Despite the name, common as a language type, wouldn't make much sence. Which that got me thinking about how the languages would form and mix together.

Remember that language is never linear and alway mixes with the other languages around it. And for one language to be considered "Common" in the vast world known as Teyvat. So before we can ask what is Common, we have to analyze the other languages and see how they formed.

THE GOD LANGUAGE

And before we even start with the nation's, we have to start.... with their gods! Now, the gods of Teyvat grew their followers and mirrored their cultures to enhance their faith and spread their power. This also means that before the birth of Common there had to have been another universal language only the gods and immortal spirits spoke to communicate with each other. Personally, I like to think that it sounded like old Latin since the Lesser Key of Solomon was written in that language.

We can substantiate this with the fact that Morax had to make Mora instead of their being a currency that his people already used. The creation of currency is a sign of outward growth since it means foreigners can now enter the economy with only the minted coin and not, say, a herd of goats or bails of wheat.

As to what that language sounded like would entirely depend on how gods/ spirits are formed. I imagine it would be innate to them upon birth or manifestation since both seem to naturally come from the earth. Hell, each God might sound completely different but because their language is built off universal concepts and the elements, they just naturally understand eachother.

This would also mean that their people would most likely have a language that their respective god created, if Liyue and Sumaru/the desert dwellers have mean anything. As to what and how they formed I do have an... unfounded theory. I still have not finished all the story quests so forgive me if I get things wrong. I will also be using each nation's cultural stand-in as their language; ie German for Mondstadt, Manderin for Liyue, ect.

MONDSTADT

Starting with Mondstadt we have the King Decarabian, the small wind spirit Barbatos, and the minor gods/ elemental dragon of Mondstadt with would become the four winds. Since we don't know how long King Decarabian ruled and there is no mention of him having rivals, we can assume the majority of the humans in the area were his to rule. Especially since he didn't even regard the wolf god as a threat during the Archon war and the fact that the people made Venti as their god without him having to kill other gods to keep it. We can assume the rest of Four Winds didn't have humans to look after either during that time, being uninterested in them.

This would mean German is one of two of the most purest... base language. The indefinite isolation the Tyrant put them through meant that they most likely never spoke to foreigners before the rebellion, but with the freedom Barbatos gave them, they were quick to leave and explore past their nation. This would explain why the Adventure's Guild Headquarters is in Mondstadt instead of each nation having their own.

As for what it sounds like I think it would still have the harshness of German thanks to the origins with the God of Storms but has also gained a softer, rounder note with Barbatos's ascension. They also have a penchant for borrowing words from other languages as the people spread out through Teyvat. Tying that with their friendliness with foreigners and you quickly find yourself with the beginning of a mutt language, something we will bring up later. For now let's move on too...

LIYUE

Liyue is by far the most complicated when it comes to their language history, since it seems like the majority of old gods vyed for power and land there as well as the dozens of Adepti that roamed the land. It's to assume that it was more of a conglomerate of villages that spoke their own version of Common rather than each god exclusively influencing their followers language. Think how the Nordic languages interact with each other, that was basically how Liyue's former languages.

Soon, with Morax coming into power, that common language became Manderin and was probably about as complex as well. I imagine dialects are still very big their though, along with unique naming conventions based on region. I think that their would be a good amount of Teyvat's version of Latin in it because of the fact that gods and adepti were so close to humans.

Manderin would probably be one of the strongest languages in Teyvat, passing German and just behind Sumaru's language. Though there is an argument for it having the strongest influence with it's proximity to Teyvat's economy. As to what it sounds like, I think it would vary by region but would gave the bounciness of Manderin but with the rolling undercurrent of Latin- if that makes sense. It would also have quite a few loan words from Sumaru in particular and would be one of the wordiest language thanks to needing to state the parameters of a contract extensively. And while there is an honorific system, it's more modern and our next nation...

INAZUMA

I will start this section by saying, I really didn't read/ pay attention much to Inazuma. So this may all be wrong.

Inazuma being a collection of islands so far from the mainland gives it a lot of uniqueness compared to the other languages and cultures. Logically...it should be the most unique of the other nations... unfortunately, this is still a gacha game and so there has to be a Japantm. So I'm probably going to say that the original Baal separated the islands from the main land... or that the God of Vortex pushed them even farther away from Liyue.

Either way, I imagine they would actually have Two "languages": the common Japanese borm form the natural progression of being separated from Liyue we see mirrored in real life, and a more ancient language used exclusively in religious work and meetings with gods and spirits.

Compared to Liyue, Inazuma is even more devout to their gods, building so many shrines and interacting with spirits even more than those in Liyue thanks to the smaller amout of space. So while they had a similar situation as Liyue, the humans were at higher beings mercy even more. I imagine that the humans at that time kept an even stricter honorific language. With the politest version using so much Latin syntaxes a form of respect.

With the raise of Baal and Eternity taking power, I imagine that polite speech coming to a halt while the rest of the language evolved until they became two separate languages. If you thought Liyue's combination was weird then think of Japanese and Latin mixed together. It would probably be the most complex language with the honorific system being to strong there in particular.

SUMARU

Sumaru interested me the most, since it is thee nation of Wisdom, and I love the fact the modern Sumaru is based heavily on India! That being said, language-wise... I'm a bit at a loss. Because they have the Desert-dwellers (which I will now be calling Arabics because I hate that usage), they had a full blown language before the Dendro Archon. But it's very obvious that there was a major shift after King Desheret death.

It could be because of the Akademiya's push to worship Buer that they completely morphed the language, creating something of a class language where only the learned and elite can speak. It would be interesting, especially since I don't think such a thing has happened in the real world. It would help that the Arabics stayed in the desert, keeping not only their language, but their features as well while the academics became pale and evolved their language to reflect that of Buer. (Which you could say because they stayed inside all day studying but idk. Still wish they made them dark.)

Egyptian Arabic would probably be the oldest mortal language still spoken in Teyvat and may have moved far from any Latin tie before Buer came to power. I can also see modern Arabics wanting to separate their language from the academics because of rising tensions, as it to say "They are not us."

The academics on the other hand would probably be just as wordy as Liyue since they research. Though I think the Akademiya's disdain for lesser languages might lead to them never officially borrowing words. This, of course would lead to a casual speech that would use loan words and a formal speech that is used in papers and events would be 100% Hindi. Hindi would also be a major language since it would be the language of science/ alchemy with also being the only place of formal education in Teyvat. This Hindi probably has major roots in Latin in an effort to be like their god. But they aren't the most Latin. That would be...

FONTAINE

So Fontaine is fun because it is the only nation we know so far that IS a Latin based language irl and we can make several connections with the God Language being Latin with this.

So with the Nation of Justice being so tied with the idea of truth as well, it's pretty ironic that it was built on a falsity, with Fontainians being Oceanids. Specifically, they were the familiars of the Hydro Archon...

I hope you know where I'm going with this.

When the Oceanidss became human, the Latin they spoke had to be reformed, after all the "True Latin" can only spoken and understood between gods and spirits, so their now mortal use of Latin had to be tweaked. And slowly but surely, it became the Latin language we see their today: French!

It would be the youngest of the languages with soooooo many borrowed words; most of them from Liyue and Sumaru so it's more of a mutt than how our France likes to portray it's language.

There isn't much else to say (that won't insult the Franks) so let's skip the Nation of War and move on to what little we know about...

SNEZHNAYA... AND KHAENRI'AH

So, like I said, I'm new to the game and have not played through all of the story quests. So this is pure speculation though I did read just a bit wiki in my state to know about Khaenri'ah and the Abyss's tie to Latin. You would think that means my theory of Latin being the language of the divine but not really. In fact if "True Latin" was the language spoken by the gods and spirits, it would make sense that it would be the language of Alchemy, astrology and magic. And with Khaenri'ah being so old it would definitely have Latin-like text.... which brings me to my theory...

Khaenri'ah is Italian. HEAR ME OUT!

I always found it strange that the fatui harbingers had Italian titles despite their nation being Russian. But then I learned the the Fatui was started by a Khaenrian who have everyone their titles. And with Italian being so close to Latin it would make sense why so much of their text still reads Latin. Especially if they saw Latin as the script of the world. If anything Khaenrian's insistence on using Latin script could be seen as an insult to the gods, as if saything they were equals. The Abyss also speaks Latin most likely since it's another ancient force in Teyvat though I imagine it... gives off a feeling of dread for all who listens... unless they're already insane.

As for Snezhnaya. I still want to wait before giving a full analysis.

COMMON

alright I've spent 4 hours on this and I'm crashing so it's gonna be short. The basis of Teyvat's common language is mostly going to be German since Mondstadt were most likely the first to travel and interact with the other nations. It would then be mixed with Manderin as Liyue's financial power grew and their language formalized. Hindi probably had a bit of influence as well but since Sumaru is very elitist only a few borrowed words slipped in. I can see the same happening with the rise of technology in Fontaine though it will probably be on a much smaller scale.

I'm not editing this. Feel free to add your opinions and theories in the comments. I'm gonna suffer for 5 more hours now.

[peonycats]

CAN YOU EXPLAIN TO ME INDOCHU

i deadass havent heard of it before but it seems neat and ya seem like the expert on it so i was wondering like what is their vibes and stuffs

SDHGHSGHSAJ I HAVE NEVER POSTED IT BUT OKAY I CAN TRY TO EXPLAIN? (thanks to my indonesian friend for helping out again weee)

Sukarno, the leader of the Indonesian independence movement and the first president of an independent Indonesia, cultivated a close relationship with Mao's China as part of an anti-imperialism alliance and the wider NAM movement, as well as his own "Guided Democracy" philosophy. However, after Suharto ousted Sukarno from power, he cut ties with the PRC and banned Chinese literature, culture, and characters; he went so far to ban Chinese Indonesians, particularly those on Java, from using their Chinese names.

Mao even went so far to fund Sukarno's attempt at creating an alternative to the Olympics, GANEFO (Games of New Emerging Forces), even though it was only ever hosted twice lol

There's a significant Chinese diaspora population in Indonesia and despite facing cultural suppression from the Suharto era government and anti-Chinese sentiment from Native Indonesians, have markedly impacted Indonesian culture and history as a whole.

The current Indonesian president is Pro-China and maintains close ties between Indonesia and the PRC.

So (according to people way more enthusiastic about Indochu than I am) Indochu is appealing because of how grey both of these countries are as well as their relationships- they have a long, mixed (and sometimes very sensitive) history with each other with a lot of potential. Realistically, today they probably wouldn't consider each other notably close partners, as it's more because they just happen to have certain interests line up, such as standing against western economic domination and security guarantees. But hey, I see the chemistry 🤔

This is of course, assuming you actually meant to ask about indonesia x China and not India x China, which in that case gosh... SORRY FOR WASTING EVERYONE'S TIME....

(But I'm currently writing a oneshot collection which heavily features India x China and shows off a lot of what I enjoy most about their dynamic, so give it a read! I also have multiple India x China fics up there so those are an option as well)

[freudianslumber]

TIGER MAN Master List

It took longer, but here is the master list and completed work for my second Elvis fanfiction.  Comparing with “Today, Tomorrow and Forever”, this story is more plot heavy and involves more original characters, some of them are foreign and with their own back stories.  Since the storyline is set in a historical background, writing also took more care and research, e.g., multiple times I had to look up if something actually existed back in the early 1940’s.  In addition, all the Elvis songs mentioned needed to be from way back then.  Considering these challenges, I’m overall pleased with the final product. Specifically, I think I’ve made some headway in terms of depicting the psychological evolution and emotional conflicts of my characters.

If anyone is reading this, enjoy and Merry Christmas!

Note: Once again, both original version in English and Chinese translation of this work are available on AO3.

Summary: The year was 1941, bandmates and secret lovers Scotty Moore and Elvis Presley got caught red handed by Scotty’s fiancée, and this led to the young men being thrusted headlong into the China-Burma-India theater of World War II as members of the first American Volunteer Group (The Flying Tigers).

Chapter 1:  Caught in the Heat

Chapter 2:   Flying Tigers

Chapter 3:   Lost and Found

Chapter 4:   Battle of Salween Gorge

Chapter 5:   Guest and Hosts

Chapter 6:   Fleeing from Danger

Chapter 7:   The Stand-off

Chapter 8:   Chamber of Darkness

Chapter 9:   Peace in the Valley

Chapter 10:   Garden of Roses

Chapter 11:   Life and Death

Chapter 12:   The Long Way Home  

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

Konstantin Kisin - The Speech The World NEEDS To Hear

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn once said that the strength or weakness of a society depends more on the level of its spiritual life, than on its level of industrialization. If a nation's spiritual energies have been exhausted, he said, it will not be saved from collapse by the most perfect government structure, or by any industrial development. A tree with a rotten core cannot stand.

When he was allowed to leave the USSR Solzhenitsyn went to the US, where he was given a hero's welcome. But he quickly realized that American society was far from perfect. He started lecturing Americans about the problems he saw. Americans don't like that. Like Solzhenitsyn, I come from the Soviet Union, but I have no intention of repeating his mistake. That's why I've come to Britain, where you love being told what's wrong with you by foreigners.

But I do have to be honest. Six months ago, when Jordan and Philippa asked me to come here and speak at ARC about the importance of audacity, adventure and a positive vision for our civilization, I was honored and delighted.

But as I stand here today, after watching crowds openly celebrate mass murder on the streets of our cities, after watching the police spend more time debating Islamic theology on Twitter than enforcing the law, I'm starting to lose faith. I don't know how long our civilization Will survive.

For years now many of us have been warning that the barbarians are at the gates. We were wrong. They're inside. Now look, I'm not going to be all doom and gloom, there are positives as well. I mean, say what you want about Hamas supporters, at least they know what a woman is.

But joking aside, I have to be honest. I've been in a dark place these last few weeks, so I did what I always do when I don't know what to do: I talk to my wife. It's not the only time I talk to her, but you know, get the point. And she said, look, you need to clear your mind, take a few days off, let's go on holiday. And I know, it's a weird thing to say, I don't like going on holiday, cause I love working, and I hate spending money. Protestant work ethic in a Jewish man's body. My wife is exactly the other way around, unfortunately.

But she was right. She's always right. That's her best and most annoying quality. So, we went to Barcelona. Beautiful city. And as we were walking down the main tourist street, La Rambla, many of you will know, when you get to the bottom, you hit the Christopher Columbus Monument. It looks like a giant column with a pillar of Columbus on top pointing towards the New World. And this reminded me of my son, Nikolai. He's 16 months, and this is what he does, he sits on my hip and points in the direction he wants to go. Treats me like a horse, basically. And if I don't act quickly enough, or if I don't comply, he does what all toddlers do: he throws a tantrum and starts screaming. How dare you! You have stolen my dreams with your empty words! And when he does, we read him a story and put him to bed. We don't give him a standing ovation in front of the UN.

Anyway, trigger warning, I am going to talk positively about Christopher Columbus. I know he committed some pretty sizable microaggressions, but he also changed the world. Do you know why he changed the world? Yeah, he tried to reach India and by accident discovered America. But why go west to India? Europeans had been trading with India and China for centuries via the Silk Road. Why risk your life to go out on a limb? There were many reasons of course, but the main one was the decision to try and reach Asia by going west, was not made out of choice. Europe was desperate. Only a few decades prior, in 1453, the Ottomans sacked Constantinople, and they cut Europe off from the Silk Road. The West Was facing a huge challenge and a new threat. No smaller than the one we face today. And like us what they needed was another way.

But when Columbus took his idea to go west to India to the kings and queens of medieval Europe, they laughed at him. They didn't laugh at him because he was some misunderstood genius, he wasn't Galileo. They laughed at him because he was wrong. If you go out in the street and ask a random person why Columbus discovered America, they'll tell you he worked out that the Earth was round. Not true. By the time Columbus set off on his voyage in 1492, people had known the Earth was round for two millennia. There's probably more flat Earthers now than there were in the 15th century. God bless the internet.

The reason Columbus discovered America is not that he'd worked out that the Earth was round. The reason is that he massively underestimated the size of the planet. They were right to laugh at him. He was wrong. But he took that wrongness, he persuaded 90 other men to get into three boats smaller than the size of this stage, and sail into the unknown. And he persuaded Queen Isabella of Castile and King Ferdinand of Aragon to fund his voyage.

The moral of the story is, it doesn't matter how wrong you are as long as you've got rich friends.

That's not the moral of the story. The moral of the story is, the history of our civilization was not made by people who always got everything right. It was made by people who'd made mistakes too. It was made by people who dared to believe that they could solve the problems they faced. The story of the West is a story of audacity.

The big debates of the last decade, the culture war, the polarization, are about one thing and one thing only: the future. There are people like us in this room who believe that our future is to be prosperous, powerful and influential. We are the majority. But there are also some people whose brains have been broken by an excess of education, who believe that our history is evil. That we do not deserve to be great, we do not deserve to be powerful, that we must be punished for the sins of our ancestors. To them, our past is abominable, our present must be spent apologizing, and our future is managed decline.

My message to those people is simple: how dare you. You will not steal my son's dreams with your empty words.

But Jordan is right, we need a positive message too. So here it is: from the dawn of time, human beings have had to work to make the world a better place. We captured the mystery of fire. We invented the wheel. Today we build buildings that would shock and awe almost every human being that has ever lived. We split the atom, we spliced the genome and we connected the world through microcomputers that fit in our pockets, that allow us to do amazing amazing things.

This morning, I destroyed someone on Twitter with facts and logic from the toilet. It's magic! Remember your grandparents? Remember them? If I could go back in time and transport the grandparents of your grandparents into this room, just four generations ago, they would think they'd been abducted by aliens. that's the progress we've made. We haven't made that progress by whining and acting like victims. We've made that progress by unleashing the creativity and talent of people like us here in this room.

But I do think we've forgotten what adventure is. Being adventurous is not ordering extra-spicy chicken at Nando's. Wrong reference for this room. Let me try again. Being adventurous is not ordering extra-spicy chicken from your personal chef.

When Columbus and his men got on those boats and took a journey into the unknown, they sailed to certain death. You know why? It's not because they were braver than you and I, it's because they knew something we forgotten: all death is certain. And so I say to our friends in the world of business, you've made your fortunes by maximizing your returns on your investments. We are in the fight of our lives. there is no greater return on your investment than to protect and preserve our civilization.

And so I invite you to follow in the footsteps of Elon Musk and Paul Marshall and Ben Delo and many of you here who are using your fortunes for the betterment of humanity.

I say to our friends in the media: truth matters! We are in the fight of our lives. There is more to life than clicks and downloads. Let’s move beyond the culture war where all we do is bat away the litany of slanderous allegations about our history. Let’s set the agenda. Let’s remind our fellow citizens why we are where we are. Let’s remind them that we are the most tolerant, open and welcoming societies in the history of the world. We’re not embarrassed about our past, we’re proud of it.

And to my colleagues in new media especially I say this. The legacy media is dying for a reason. They cannot be saved, they cannot be reformed. Let’s stop complaining about them and start building the media empires of the future ourselves. We have everything we need. We’ve even got rich friends now.

I say to our friends in education and academia: I understand that many of you feel like the French Resistance or Soviet partisans, stuck behind enemy lines, undermanned and out gunned. And you’re right, we are in the fight of our lives. So keep fighting for every young mind you can. It will be worth it.

And finally, I say to our friends in politics. Many of you here are conservatives. I’m not, I look terrible in tweed. That’s why I identify as politically non-binary. But I can tell you conservatives something. You will never get young people to want to conserve a society and an economy that is not working for them. We will not overcome Woke nihilism as long as young people are locked out of the housing market, unable to pair up, unable to have kids, unable to plan for the future.

I know it’s difficult, and I know that whoever solves the housing crisis may well pay the price at the ballot box. This is true of many pressing issues too, or at least you think it is. But you did not get into politics to get re-elected. You got into politics to make a difference.

We are in the fight of our lives. And if courage means anything it means doing the right thing and being willing to take the punishment if you have to. Let me say it again: all death is certain. We do not get to choose whether we live or die. We only get to choose whether we live before we die. Thank you very much.

[thebunnylord]

List of things that were supposed to happen in my scrapped countryhumans talent show fanfic

-Hawaii does an Elvis impersonation and performs blue suede shoes

-Hungary spends the entire show trying to solve a Rubik’s cube. When his five minutes on stage ended, they just moved him off to the side so he can continue. He doesn’t solve it

-Poland and Vatican’s talent was performing Exorcisms, and brought a possessed woman on stage to exorcise, but got kicked off immediately by UN. So they begrudgingly decided to perform their exorcism in the boys bathroom, which got stopped halfway through by both UN and ASEAN who understandably did not want a demon running around on the Asian country’s section of the building. Oh yeah, in my ch AU, Poland was a priest and was trained in demonology by Vatican and is certified to perform exorcisms.

-Northern Ireland and England dressed as their secret drag queen personas, along with Wales who dressed in her drag king persona, and they all “danced” (it was mostly them doing uncoordinated dance moves like the worm, the running man, and the epileptic octopus.) to Scotland’s bagpipe playing. And then they all jumped onto each other’s shoulders and fell over.

-Serbia’s performance of a Diss song that she composed that mostly made up of her playing an accordion and dissing all of the countries that have wronged her, or she hates, both past and present. The big finale was when she started insulting Ottoman empire and calling him names, when both Turkey and Ottoman Empire jumped up and chased her around the auditorium while she continued to hurl insults at them, both EU and UN had to chase after the trio to get them to stop.

- a few of the African countries put on “Africa” by Toto.

-America’s western states do a crummy half hearted line dance to “finally Friday”, the northern states perform “Blame Canada”, and New York performs a Broadway number (unfortunately… his song of choice was “springtime for Hitler”) they were all supposed to do a group number, but split due to creative differences.

-Mexico played a quiet folk song on his guitar which was well received.

-Austria played a classical piano piece with Germany as the page turner, Germany fumbles with the pages causing the pages to fall onto the floor, Austria playing the same measure over and over in a panic as Germany struggled to collect all of the pages before giving up, and running off stage in embarrassment.

-France and a few of her states perform “do you hear the people sing?” While Normandy performs “bring him home”

-Austria-Hungary with help from German empire performs a classical music piece, but then gets interrupted by someone’s phone.

-Italy sings a song and then ends it with a sudden cart wheel.

-India, Brazil, Kenya, and Australia bring a VERY VERY DANGEROUS AND HIGHLY VENOMOUS BLACK MAMBA ON STAGE to demonstrate their venomous snake handling skills, they tried to get someone to come on stage to HOLD THE SNAKE. But that got nixed real quickly.

-Mauritius does a dance with his cloned dodo bird, Captain Lewis, which then walked off stage and fell into the audience.

-Britain gets introduced on stage as “performing a nice number by Bach”, he has his suit on, a top hat, and everyone thinks, “oh, he’s going to play the number on his violin”. Nope, he lowers his tie, tucks his pants inside his big, tall, platform boots, and unbuttons his collar to reveal the spiked collar underneath, and whips out his old electric guitar and plays friggin’ toccata and fugue in D minor like a legend.

- Norway, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, and Estonia try to do a Black Death metal performance with their band, “Estonia and the Nordics”. It was just them screaming, banging on their instruments, and smashing their guitars while Estonia, the lead singer, gets a bout of anxiety and stands awkwardly on the stage looking at her feet unable to sing.

-Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and China tried to perform the dance of the little swans (Russia’s idea, no one else wanted to) but only Russia practiced and China was a last minute edition as Kazakhstan quit that day, and not even one second into the music, the whole thing dissolved into a massive fight and Belarus running offstage to go snitch to Soviet Union.