#Opportunity Pursuit

[wickedzeevyln]

Stroke of Luck

There are two types of people pursuing success. One pursuing luck, the other opportunity. One is cursing the heavens for bad luck, the other thanking the above for the lessons that failure teaches. One attributes success to good luck, the other with a sense of fulfillment for whatever was won, was earned. —e.d. maramat Luck is so unreliable. Don’t count on it. Yes, it shows up when you least…

[forlouren]

Not to be the first soldier on the frontless of the woobification of Qimir (he is a villain, we know this, and I love him for it), but the lack of nuance, or rather the one-dimensional angle people who don't like his relationship with Osha have taken with him, irks me so bad. I get it. He is Sith, right. Treachery is their way; and what are the darksiders, if not self-serving?

But I feel like the specific phrasing of "the Jedi like you would call me Sith" implies so much about his own unique characterization, and I don't understand why we are glossing over it. It's not a self-identifier. It shows it isn't as much as a title he'd give himself, but a badge he'll wear since in the black/white viewpoint of the Jedi, he is not allowed to be anything more or less. His almost catty, "semantics" hammers in this fact for me, personally.

He strikes me as one who takes what he wants of the Sith code, and disregards the rest. I don't think it's a mistake that even after his reveal, we don't see him with the signature dark side eyes.

I say all this to say; Qimir's ultimate goal is not power, it is FREEDOM. *That* is what he is driven by. He craves to live outside the confines he deems as constrictive/oppressive, and have by his side, someone who wants the same.

So even while disregarding Leslye's interview; I honestly don't know how with what we've been shown in the show so far, aside from him being a sith, makes people think otherwise.

[essekthelysssideblog]

So before the finale happened and we got a conclusive ending I had this idea of how I wanted Caleb and Essek's epilogue to go-- and instead of Caleb going back to work at Soltryce, he created his own academy for wizards. And then when he died, Essek could take over as the headmaster (maybe in disguise, but with an established identity).

[brechtian]

Wait life update a) graduated ! which means b) finally free from my stupid college relationship I return to singleness with open arms and tears of joy it feels so good just me and my best friends against the world

[ekingston]

I'd like to request #33 for the writers ask, pretty please <3

33. Give your writing a compliment.

i think it has a very distinctive voice! which is one of the things i enjoy most when choosing something to read, so it’s been a supercool development!

[sassmill]

Right as I’m putting on my director cap again in a big professional way, one of the directors and educators that really helped shape my career has passed. Big artist emotions right now.

[release-by-eileen]

Pursuit's Dilemma

What are we really chasing?

[gromellette]

what's your thought crime Opinions

how nice of you to ask!

as a disclaimer, this is less about the commonly discussed concepts of mental illness & harmless sexual/romantic fantasies seen under the original post and more about the less than normal kinds of thoughts that can be harder to talk about in a neutral way for a lot of people. proceed with caution, i suppose.

i don't have anything to say about thought crime that hasn't already been said, i think. but i do hold, from my experience, controversial & unpopular opinions surrounding thoughts, desires, attractions, urges, and feelings vs. actions where it relates to violence and sexuality.

i don't immediately reign judgement on people who experience some or all of the above surrounding the likes of incest, pedophilia, necrophilia, bestiality, non/dubious consent/rape, mutilation/murder, etc. these things would be undoubtedly unethical and, to most, detestable to act on, but simply experiencing those feelings & thinking those thoughts & having those urges or desires is not something i'm interested in demonizing someone for. human beings are incapable of controlling their thoughts/feelings/attractions. if we weren't, we would never feel anxiety or grief or anger, people with OCD & intrusive thoughts would eliminate them before they appeared, queer people in conservative spaces and/or grappling with internalized homophobia would simply choose to not be queer. we know this isn't how it works, so why would it be any different for the unsavory ones, the socially unacceptable?

this isn't to say it's just chill that some people sit around having fantasies about certain things; i do think destigmatizing needs to also come with unpacking and rehabilitation where appropriate and measures to prevent violent acts, but the cultural obsession with morality is probably my biggest gripe with the conversation surrounding violent thoughts and violence in general; how morality is the highest priority, the means by which we must categorize the world in terms of "good" people and "bad" people, the end all be all to understanding and solving the issue of violence and, therefore, the only thing that really matters when observing these categorically "bad" people². all this, despite the fact that morality is entirely subjective and does nothing to actually prevent or treat violence because one's perception of right and wrong varies widely from person to person depending on endless variables. contrary to popular belief, the world cannot be broken down into such simple parts; good and bad, right and wrong, just and unjust. the world is nuanced, gray, and not altogether easy to understand.

i'm as passionate as i am about this (and about protecting freedom of speech and expression in fictional media where this topic is concerned too, another conversation altogether) because the shame and dehumanizing that happens in response to someone expressing violent thoughts or compulsions is what ultimately leads to real life harm¹. i believe it's important to foster an environment where people can feel comfortable talking about these things because with that comes feeling comfortable asking for help and preventing violence from the start, which is ultimately what we want, right? to listen to, show compassion for, and aid people with "immoral" thoughts (and predators, while we're at it) is to participate in creating a safe community for everyone³.

punishment begets more violence, not less, and it's troubling how popular the opposite sentiment seems to be. i'm frankly tired of seeing people make black and white moral judgements that are not at all black and white (i.e. thinking about something one has never acted on). it's okay to feel a way about things but, as far as i'm concerned, a person's actions are far more important than what goes on inside their head, or what they choose to write, draw, read, or watch for that matter (unless it's legitimate pornography involving real life parties right like obviously that is very bad because it results in and perpetuates real life harm, lets be reasonable here BUT even in these cases, the answer is not to demonize. there could be cases in which a person might very well be incapable of change or remorse (debatable) and in those cases, sure, but i believe the majority of the time such violence can be not only treated, but prevented by recognizing their humanity and doing what we can to foster it. the ultimate goal being, of course, to prevent violence. but i digress, that is another conversation also lol)

¹ James Gilligan has talked extensively on this topic, the correlation between shame & violence, and how treatable and preventable it really is if we could dispel the notion that predators are inhuman, some sort of separate evil species incapable of treatment and understanding and "deserving" of punishment. His book, Preventing Violence, is a great place to start, or this interview if you can't access it (highly recommend, it is a fascinating read). ² See also James Gilligan. Morality is the Problem, where he talks about morality as a means to justify violence on both sides of the coin.

³ i also feel it necessary to make clear that it's not anyone's, and particularly any victim's, responsibility to bear the burden of showing compassion to or otherwise protecting someone who has harmed or wanted to harm others. i just hope to highlight the importance of recognizing and considering the humanity in those individuals because the most effective way of changing someone for the better is allowing them the space to do so, should they be receptive to it. because monsters don't exist, human beings who do unforgivable things do. and, yes, even those human beings need compassion from others.

[locallibrarylover]

thinking about seduction deduction again. autism 4 autism or whatever

[hell-nurse]

God please bring me back as a white cis gay man in California from a stable economic background when I die 👏🏼 amen 🙂‍↕️

[feluka]

❤♥️ Save a Gazan family ♥️❤

@amalashuor, her husband, and their baby girl Maryam are constantly on my mind.

Amal, who was still a student when the attack on Gaza interrupted her pursuit of a Master's degree, has had to evacuate time and time again, seeking shelter for her family.

Every time she asks "why isn't my campaign making progress? Who can I speak to to get help?" I feel like I've failed her. Her campaign, which has a very reachable goal, has been stagnating.

We don't know how many opportunities they will to cross the border. We can't take chances. Time is of the essence. If the time comes and the border opens and they haven't reached their goal yet, I don't know what I'll do. They cannot separate, so they must have enough to evacuate all three of them.

Please, please donate, and if you can't, share as far as you can , as urgently as possible.

Let's get them safe. ❤

#175 on this vetted fundraiser list.

[bagheerita]

I'm sure there are scenes that better represent Dukat as a character, but taking the gift rejected by his romantic pursuit and turning around to immediately give it to his daughter is one that really just sums him up imo.

[borngeniusworld]

Be Shameless About Your Hustle and Dreams

Success with@iamborngenius In a world that often glorifies overnight success and instant gratification, the importance of relentless hustle and unwavering commitment to your dreams cannot be overstated. The journey towards success is rarely easy, but it’s the relentless pursuit of your goals, coupled with an unapologetic attitude towards your ambitions, that can set you apart. Embrace Your…

[shinynewmemories]

No but the Hunger Games really said "what do you hate more- the atrocities or the people who commit them against you? Because like it or not there IS a difference. If you hate the people who commit acts of pure evil more than you hate the acts themselves, what will stop you from becoming just like your enemies in your pursuit of justice? What will keep you from commiting those very same acts against THEM when the opportunity arises? And what then? The cycle of pain and suffering will never stop. Round and round it'll go. Nothing will ever change. But. BUT. If you hate the atrocities. If you hate the vile, senseless acts MORE than you hate the people who did them to you. If you are able to see that evil is evil regardless of who does it... The cycle ends with you. No, you may never get justice. But you will never be responsible for making others, even your enemies, suffer the same crimes you have. The atrocities will never be committed by you, never by your hand. And that's the way you change the world. It's the ONLY way" and that's why I am sure it will never stop being one of the most relevant works of fiction ever created

[olayemi30]

The Transformative Power of Courageous Pursuits

When was the last time you did something that scared you or moved you out of your comfort zone? Two years ago, I got the opportunity to take part in MasterChef UK competition; it wasn’t something that was on my radar but when the thought came to me, I fully embraced it before the sheer terror of it paralysed me. It was the scariest thing I had ever done up to that point. I have moved continents,…

[icypiece]

I haven't done much coding lately, but I decided to look at my solution for the narcissistic number challenge I did back when I was still regularly doing coding challenges on codewars. And I was a little distressed at how messy it was (the function called "narcissistic"), but then I was a little smug when I managed to do the whole thing more succinctly and without using unnecessary steps/list creating (the function called "narc_2").