#and also if there is less/more than 50 pages . ignore that

[astralzeraphias]

assigned blame

[blazehedgehog]

Ignoring how current writers have been nudging in this direction, do you think Sonic and Amy have any genuine chemistry with each other?

I'm going to upset a follower or two and say... no, not really.

Their dynamic started out as a trope: Amy, the kid, falls for an older free spirit. It's the same thing as a 9 year old reading an issue of, like, Tiger Beat magazine or something and developing a crush on Justin Bieber or whatever celebrity "cute boy" is currently the "in" thing.

The joke being that instead of fawning all over him from the pages of a magazine, Amy Rose confronts him in person, and he has to be like "Uhhhh, thanks, but no thanks." But she hangs around anyway because she's crushing super hard. It's meant to be cute and one sided and harmless.

It became a problem when Amy started getting aggressive about it. When she began talking about forcefully taking Sonic. It very quickly stopped being cute. There are multiple horror movies about that exact topic.

They thankfully backed down from that, and I didn't mind how simple and cute it was in, say, Sonic Unleashed, where it went back to being just this nice little crush she had. She was there to support Sonic.

Where I start to draw the line is something that started with Sonic Boom, where Sonic is portrayed as someone in a position to reciprocate Amy's feelings. It's supposed to be funny, but there's this undercurrent of "will they/won't they" where they both kind of get nervous when the topic gets brought up and neither wants to admit feelings for the other.

That's just as weird to me as the days where Amy was expressing her love for Sonic violently, because Amy is definitely supposed to be younger than Sonic.

This is its own whole can of worms, because some would (rightfully) say that ages in Sonic games don't matter. It's rare that anyone acts their age anymore, and that's true of the modern interpretations of the characters.

And then there's the whole thing about age differences in relationships at all. Some people are only comfortable with a difference of 2-3 years, while others are comfortable with much wider gaps.

I'm of the opinion that the older you are, the less it matters. If you're 50 and you're dating someone that's 40, I would argue there's not much difference there. The more mileage you have, the smaller the differences become.

But if you're, like, 15? And you're dating someone that's supposed to be 10 or 11 years old? Then it gets real weird, real fast, for a multitude of reasons. We grow up a lot in a very short amount of time. And I say this as someone who, when he was 17, had a girlfriend that turned 16 while they were together. I was sat down and given "the talk" about how, when I was 18, it would be a long time until she was also 18.

You know. For reasons.

So while you could say that the modern interpretations of these characters all act roughly the same age (with Tails and Cream as an exception), I still remember the days where Amy Rose was meant to be this young little groupie with a one-sided crush on this older guy that rejected her advances.

Flipping that script and saying that Sonic is actually a little reciprocal now...?

Ew.

Doesn't matter how appealing they make Amy to Sonic. Ew ew ew.

[murphychips]

a treacherous descent into werewolf romance fiction

okay so. this story begins with me being on facebook, scrolling through videos, and getting these adverts at the end of EVERY video clip from these sites:

and i mean EVERY single one. and out of deranged curiosity i ended up clicking them and checking out their previews only to find maybe some of the more garbage i've ever had the displeasure of reading. each advert was different and each story varied, but all of them had dogshit quality.

eventually, i wondered who was making this stuff; MULTIPLE apps were being advertised to me under a bunch of different names, and all of them were centred around werewolves or mafia or billionaires. sometimes all three!

so i downloaded a couple of apps to see if i could identify an owner, but those all varied too! most don't even have websites; the app is the only thing they have. almost none of them have author names, or any way to identify the writer, and there's no way to submit to most of them. eventually, i chased up a few of these apps on reviews to find most appear to be stealing content from across the internet:

some of these are stolen from amazon, others are stolen from similar apps are cross-posted, others--as one comment says--appear to be scalping from wattpad (and likely AO3 and fanfic.net, although i'm currently trying to find examples).

HOWEVER

one app that crossed my phone was Letterlux, which does feature a submit page and appears to actually promote original work! the genres remain the same--werewolves, billionaires, mafia, etc--and so i was like alright. this appears to be a publishing outlet of SOME kind. what's the catch?

the catch is the abysmal fucking offerings:

the 'exclusive' contract here is if you do the whole 'submit a thing and they extend an offer', whereas non-exclusive is you just posting the thing. but look at the numbers! look how low they are! $450 if your story is above 200,000 words????????????????? and you have to post EVERY DAY for the update bonus; if you miss more than 4 days, you're out of the running. HOLY EXPLOITATION BATMAN. never mind that for the non-exclusive, you get a measly $250 for 200,000 words and NO update bonus. with the signing bonus of a whole $50, that's $300 for 200,000+ words: a whopping 0.0015 per word.

another app that appears to promote original work is Galatea, owned by inkitt; it appears legit in that it's been advertised by a bunch of different places, i.e. Writer's Digest, and has a fairly slick site, but reviews from users say it's a scam--a less predatory scam than usual, but still a scam.

TL;DR, if you write heterosexual steamy werewolf romance, your shit is likely making money for some company in whoknowsistan, who use microtransactions to make you pay for individual books. and i haven't even TALKED about how some of these apps have some of the most crazy IP protection i have ever seen, such as banning you for an hour if you screencap ANYTHING, and hiding recorded videos:

but despite all this, and this horrible rabbithole of novel apps i've fallen down, nothing compares to me having to read all this fiction and realising that we are ignorant to the quantities of sheer bad werewolf writing out there, so much so that i'm honestly tempted to post my own straight-bait just to see how far i can get. things that i've noticed:

all the female protagonists start off as abused or hated and are saved by some Alpha/Alpha King/Alpha Demon/idk man

sometimes the werewolf aspect is just an inner wolf who like. yells at you sometimes?

there's gamma rank werewolves?

there's DELTA rank werewolves?????????????

i honestly think i'm becoming addicted to finding out just how unhinged some of these stories get, but that is beside the point: in the end, for the love of god, don't be a dumbass and use these shady apps, and do NOT submit to places who won't even give you an entire penny per word. also, check your shit; it might have been scalped for someone else's profit. okay. ciao.

[whyisstarkidfollowingmeshoo]

A post for all new and longtime Jeff Blim livestream viewers and chatters. Welcome! (updated on March 8 2024)

*check https://starkid.fandom.com/wiki/Jeff_Blim to compare facts here. For now, the wikia is more updated than this since everyone knows where it is. But this post has further information than the one in wikia.

Update (May 15, 2024) Thank you so much for following me. I apologize for not following back but I may find your posts (and like or repost them) when they have a Jeff Blim tag and other tags in my list. Update: May 27 2024. Watch Jeff's last stream where he checked his wiki. He said he will do some or a few edits and he made some corrections. I don't know when I'll check it myself. Any edits from other fans are highly encouraged. For me, there is no longer to add info here and on the wiki at least about his history. His wiki is already too long enough lol. Update: June 7 2024 Started slowly updating his wiki again and maybe make it even funnier or sarcastic lol maybe because of the way he reacted while reading it

Sometimes we read the same questions over and over on his stream and he has answered all of them in the past. Or accidentally ignores/did not read the old, repeated question, so he can't answer because he's busy doing stuff on the stream. And sometimes, instead of giving the answer to our fellow fans, we just give joke answers instead because we are that silly. I'm trying hard to remember fun facts/stuff he shared on his livestreams and will update if I can. Please help with mistakes on recollection to avoid fake facts. Thank you...

I. The Content in his livestreaming. Well, most days we listen to demos, Jeff live composing his music/songs and some of them are spoiler-less clues to up-and-coming StarKid shows, showcase his difficult and complex relationship with Logic and Stream labs (gee, that sounds familiar. There is screaming/shouting and desk hitting, followed by amazing wit to calm his nerves) listen to him improv and say funny things sometimes based on what Chat is typing about. And have that clout chaser and clout black hole named Jon Matteson as his guest in his streams, most of the time via phone call. If Jon ever gets on his stream, good luck trying to get attention from Jeff on the chat lol. The bromance is strong in this one (although I have gotten Jeff's attention once while Jon was on stream but it was about Jon haha).

Sometimes Jeff just wants to hang out and talk anything, jam with his piano, answer personality quizzes that we give him, give out audition advices (Uncle Jeff's audition hotline. make sure to identify when he's being sincere and when's he's joking/being sarcastic), talk about his hobbies, do spreadsheet baseball... On his hot takes, they are plainly hot takes and you don't have to agree with whatever he says. His hot takes are, half of the time, for entertainment purposes only. Send acting audition help inquiries to Blimswork@gmail.com to make your dream work. More cheaper charges than the one in Broadway Plus. You can also DM Uncle Jeff on his active social media accounts (Twitch, IG) No silly messages pls. Just acting audition help business ONLY. His rates are 75 dollars per hour, 50 for half. To those who can afford, he has a patreon page if you want downloadable copies to the songs he composes on his streams. The link is in his Twitch and YT pages.

II. Music 1. He started learning the piano as a young boy. His teacher was a Russian woman (I can't remember her name). Then he switched to the trumpet and told his father he didn't want to play the piano anymore. 2. He was never a member of a drum corps but went to a camp for it by the The Cavaliers. 3. He only joined Amazin Blue, an a cappella group in UMich, because he wanted to be in a band. He ended up becoming their music director because he wanted every member to have a song where they provided the main vocals, which is something that he butted heads with previous music directors in the past. He won an award for a cappella arrangement for his work with Amazin Blue. Their two albums (Shades of Blue and Self-Titled) can be found in Bandcamp One of his former fellow members in AB is also famous now. The half of the team behind Dear Evan Hansen, Justin Paul.

5. He was a trumpet player at the church where he grew up. (one of his first jobs). 6. According to him, he used to listen to awful Christian rock while growing up. 7. His dad is a retired band director. 8. Likes The 1975 9. He mentioned in Feb 23, 2024 on his stream that he does not want to sing Get In My Mouth live again because he does not want to relive the memory of playing a giant spider. He still thinks it's a great song.

III. Jobs First: Taking out the trash for a neighbor. Second: Trumpet player at the church where he grew up. Third: High school - Trumpet player and played as an "executioner" at a Medieval Times Dinner Theater (??? I'm not well-versed about this as I don't live in the US). After college, while looking for acting jobs and writing TTO. New York City Fourth: Carrying signs for Disney at Times Square. Fifth: Theater Usher (his favorite job). Los Angeles Sixth: working for THAT infamous Los Angeles escape room that he got from Nick Lang. Seventh: Full-time streamer, actor, singer, composer, dancer, acting coach, Internet Uncle to 20+ nephews and nieces 😆 around the world. A. One of his fave TV jobs is his appearance on HBO's Veep because he loves the show. B. On the 911 episode where his chef character accidentally hurts himself, he said he didn't particularly enjoyed his time shooting that ep because he was strapped with a heavy object on his chest during the bloody scene. C. Shooting 24/7: Lego Maniac was fun Eighth: He said a few times he's not auditioning anymore and will only take roles offered to him. Whether it's a joke or not, let's just take that as fact for now lol. There was a phase in his life that he got tired of auditioning (NYC, while writing TTO).

IV. StarKid Stuff

(while answering a personality quiz and as of late 2023 or early 2024) Fave Hatchetfield musical: Black Friday. (while answering a personality quiz as of late 2023 or early 2024) Fave LiB: Nibbly. For the longest time, he considers "Lost Without You" as his/one of his favorite songs that he wrote because it's his first ballad. Generally, if you ask him what's his fave StarKid song or what's his favorite play/musical he was a part, he can't/won't choose because he considers all of them his favorite. 2. I've read this many times, Max Jagerman was never written for Jeff. He may replicate the energy but he is too old to play a high schooler. Can you imagine him doing the shirtless scene during Dirty Girl? His body is no longer like when he did Aladdin in Twisted. He is no longer in his 20s. 3. He said he had the most fun composing for Black Friday.

V. StarKid Tangent Stuff 1. As of Feb 2024, Jeff announced that Rim Tim Timmy is dead. RIP Rim Tim Timmy. :,-( Meanwhile, his sister (chat head canon and Jeff laughed at the name) Rim (Ram) Tam Tammy is alive and well, thank yewww.... VI. Movies 1. For list of movies he loves, check out Rim Tim Timmy's Movies Movies Movies. Yes, you don't know half/most of the movies he likes cause he's old and you're a Gen Z-er. Get a grip. 2. His first and only appearance so far in a full length film is in his brother's indie movie Mondo Hollywoodland. As of now, the movie is available to watch for free in some streaming sites. VII. Likes 1. Coffee once a day, most of the time spending 10 dollars a cup from a shop. He has thankfully quit on nitro. He describes it like a drug addiction he needs to curb. He wants the baristas who are serving him to have that indifferent vibe.

2. Spreadsheet baseball. He plays with classic/ old school famous baseball players. He used to just play on an excel spreadsheet that he made himself until a fan who showed up on one of the TGWDLM showings and told him that he can compete with other people online.

3. Is a fan of the up and coming sport of arm wrestling. He only watches people arm wrestle, not engage in one.

[mirisss]

What a boyfriend is for

Pairing: Sung Hanbin x gn! reader

Wordcount ≈ 700

Warnings: stress, anxiety, exams, not eating because of stress, food, eating, 

(y/n)’s POV

Being a college student is hard, especially when exams are coming up and no matter how much you study you feel like you don’t know anything. So the closer exams are, the more anxious and stressed out you become. That is me right now. I haven’t checked my phone all day as I've been trying to study, though the more I read the less I understand. I don’t think I’ve eaten all day, honestly, I don’t remember. I’m so close to crying, actually, if I think about it, I’m actually crying already, probs have been crying the entire day. I’m sitting on the floor, surrounded by books and my notes, yet nothing seems to help me remember or understand anything for the exam. 

It was close to 8.30 pm when I heard a knock on my front door, I thought it might be my neighbor who was worried after hearing my cries all day, so I ignored it. A minute later I heard the lock turning, someone was breaking into my apartment with a key?!? I began stressing over that, yet I didn’t move, only thinking over the scenario of someone breaking into my apartment. “Jagi? (Y/n)? Love? Are you here?” I was so anxious that I didn’t hear my boyfriend’s voice calling out for me, I didn’t notice him until he came into my room and sat down in front of me. “Hanbin?” “(Y/n), love, are you okay? I was so worried about you because you haven’t answered my texts or calls all day,” “I’m so stressed Hanbin, I’ve been studying for weeks yet I know nothing. I’m gonna fail, I don’t know what to do Hanbin,” Hanbin moved closer to me and wiped away some of the tears that were falling down my cheeks, and then he enveloped me in a much-needed hug. “Darling, I know how hard you’ve been studying, I’m sure you know more than you think, this is just your anxiety making you doubt yourself. Have you eaten?” “I don’t know, I don’t think I have, I’ve been so focused that the entire day just feels like a blur,” “Okay, I’ll order us some food, you go sit on the bed or on the couch and rest a little, you shouldn’t fry your brain,” “But,” “No buts, trust me,” With the help of Hanbin I got off the floor and went to go sit on the couch, waiting for Hanbin to join me. 

Once our food arrived we began eating and I realized just how hungry I was. “What’s the topic for the exam?” “It’s on [insert topic/subject],” “Oh, what can you tell me about it?” “Well,-” Without realizing it I began telling Hanbin so much information on the topic I could write a 50-page essay on it. “OH! WAIT, WHAT?!? I, I know the material?” “Of course you do, honey you’ve been studying for weeks,” “But, earlier I didn’t know anything,” “Your anxiety plays a trick on you, the second you stopped overthinking it you knew the material. What day is your exam?” “It’s on the [ınsert date],” “I don’t have a schedule that day, why don’t I drop you off and pick you up, imagine I’m right there with you like right now,” “Hanbin, you’re the best, I love you,” “That’s what a boyfriend is for. I love you too!” He gave me a kiss on the lips before he motioned toward the food, reminding me to eat some more. I’m really lucky to have such a nice and handsome boyfriend who would also drop everything just to help me study, or send his bestie Zhang Hao to help me seeing as Hao has a degree as a college teacher. But for me, the kindergarten teacher's charm works better. Sung Hanbin, the man you are.

[centeris2]

oh I just noticed SSO posted a news article two days ago about the Hollow Woods. so I'm gonna ramble about it. under the cut so folks don't have to read it

uh of course glyph puzzles were being ignored. When 1 powder cost 50 light but only got you 10 (or 15?) light in return? It's way more cost effective to save up powders for satchels, or wait until the higher levels of glyph puzzles so the 1 powder investment is worth it. Not to mention the number of powders increases every single time so like... no? That's just not a cost effective way to spend powders. Still isn't, tbh. Now that I've unlocked the highest difficulty+reward I'll do each of the glyph puzzles once a day, maybe twice since they give more than the satchels do per powder.

but the fact that it takes until the hardest difficulty+reward (so a LOT of light invested into that path) to make it worth the light investment? Yeah no, that's not going to be one that people do right off the bat. Not to mention the issue where the fog doesn't actually reflect how big the area is, so I keep getting the "you left the area" message when I'm still standing in purple fog.

And of course the runecarving is popular, it went hand in hand with the firefly collection, you run around and then you go "oh hey thing on the ground/tree". And it didn't cost anything to do it, unlike the satchels and glyph puzzles. And chasing wisps can be difficult if your camera is finicky or if you are focused on other things and don't want to take off in a random direction.

It's also wild to me that this system of "chose whatever path you want!" is... idk. Pick Your Path except how dare you ignore these aspects of gameplay. But yes, making the other things feel rewarding as well is definitely a good idea to make them more appealing to people, because I do like the glyph hunt and I'd do it way more if it didn't cost me powders (or an ever increasing amount) and had a secret "you went too far" barrier that isn't the purple fog.

What do you MEAN you were surprised?? Did you folks not set the costs? How were you shocked that people hungry for content would gobble it up in a few days? I found all 100 spiders in less than 24 hours because it was finally something to do and because I'm a completionist! If there is a thing to fill out I want to fill it out. Not to mention it was FUN! Put on music or a podcast and just run around exploring the new area for hours! It was great! The only reason I didn't do it this time around was because I was busy and spend my time on other things.

Anyway. I have chilled out and now am taking a much slower approach to things because I've unlocked most things I want. I already own the magic horses and pets so no rush. I have no wardrobe space so no rush to unlock the clothes or gear. I already got the hair and makeup unlocks. I still have to unlock the Pandoric cosmetics, but I know those cost light to buy so not really in a rush to spend 3,200 light to unlock and then more light to buy each one.

There are some horse XP unlocks still, but ehhh it's so easy to get horse XP now that there isn't a rush there either.

I do, however, really enjoy the overall ideas. And I love anything that gives more makeup and hairstyles! More exciting makeup colors and unnatural hair colors!!! Now if only long hair models actually worked on the larger player model instead of just disappearing into the back.... but thank god it was finally something that wasn't a new color on the short page cut hair that every single damn NPC has.

[danidoesathing]

would it help if i asked you to infodump on hyperfixation

YES THANK YOU

Ok so like. I'll be the first to say I way prefer the music video's version of the World Ender story over the comics. I really like the fire motif Cobb has and personally I think the pacing of the MV's story is better (in the comics he killed Winthrop first and then forms the World Enders gang to help track down the rest vs in the MV him going after the employees first and forming the world enders as he goes along and killing Winthrop at the end).

But. but. ok so his origin in the comic is the same except instead of a house fire, it's a sinkhole below their house. We know the whole Yawning Grave thing and it does later come back in the comic. Additionally, he had actually worked in construction for Winthrop and had actually bought the land from him (while the MV implies Winthrop had started the house fire to acquire the land). The reason Avery goes after revenge this time is because Winthrop had sold the land knowing there was a very big structural issues underneath it but never said anything. Which, while still very evil, is much less actively malicious than him actively setting Cobb's house on fire with him and his family inside. The comics also plays with the flaws in Cobb's idea of justice and if these people are deserving of his vengeance. Specifically, there's a comic page that has this as a sort of narration:

"I suspect there are some who say that Andrew Winthrop is undeserving of such a designation as 'evil'.

Does money lust make you evil? How about ambition?

What if you'll do anything to get it?

Cobb didn't ask for the land documents when Winthrop gave him the plot for his home.

If he had, he would've known about that sleeping sinkhole.

Does ignorance make you deserving?"

ALL OF WHICH. IS OVERLAYED ON THE SCENE OF HIS HOUSE COLLAPSING INTO THE SINKHOLE. WITH HIS FAMILY INSIDE. AND HIM RUNNING INSIDE TO PULL THEM OUT.

WHICH. FUCKED UP AND EVIL ACTUALLY???

and I'm so so interested in what is going on with him now. the World Ender storyline(s) take place in the 50s, and the latest point we see him is in a brief cameo in Vide Noir (which takes place in 1967). During this time, we know that he passes the leadership of the gang onto Alex. We have no clue 1. why he passed the leadership onto to Alex or at all and 2. what he has been doing in the mean time (is he still with the Enders?? is he still going off killing to try and satisfy his rage??? has he stopped??? has he chilled out or is he still violently angry??? did he ever find a way to undo his immortality???). And then his appearance in Vide Noir just. leaves me with SO many questions. What is he doing in the club at all? Why was he down there? Was he there at all, or was he a hallucination/vision/ghost? why did running into him trigger another time space jump? is it because he's inhuman? what does that mean in terms of his connection to Vide Noir? if he was a ghost/vision/hallucination, what the HELL does that mean in terms of how he's related to Buck?? if he wasn't actually there, why does Buck see him at all when he's got no clue who/what the World Ender even is?? did Cobb know there was something up with him and his fucked up stasis with the universe?? or his encounter with johnnie?? does he know anything about the events of Vide Noir?? what was he doing??? what does it mean what does it MEAN

and then like. what the HELL is the World Ender curse?? is it the specific brand of immortality he has??? Cobb is the only immortal character that we know of, but he's not the only undead character and Secret of Life implies there's more out there (though that could be metaphorical, but its hard to tell when Lost and Time in Space turned out to be literal). The curse is referenced a few times in random places but I've still got no idea what it means. and what the HELL does any of it have to due with the concept of the Yawning Grave. Yawning Grave (the song) is one of the few Strange Trails songs that both has no listed narrator but also with no clear connection to any of the established characters (both then and now). As far as we know, the narrator of Yawning Grave is a deity/force of nature of some kind, but not much more than that. But the comics imply that Cobb probably has got some connection to it. which. how??? in what way??? Is he the actual narrator??? is it just a random lyrical reference or does it have actual effects on the lore?? im so curious about him and even if he's gotten so much content theres still so much about the guy we dont know.

[pastafossa]

Hey, Pasta! I have a sorta-dumb question, so feel free to ignore it. Soooo, I write fanfic-OC inserts a lot (Daredevil, TFAWS, Shadow and Bone, Daughter of Smoke and Bone), and I used to write the chapters - really more like oneshots - in a Gdoc and webshare it on Twitter because I hate plot and there was no need for any of that fancy fanfic page stuff. However, now that I'm on Tumblr, I have been told that the Gdoc method is insecure and troublesome (true) and that I should, if I may quote my sister, "Just post it in AO3 if you're gonna write so much."

I have the common writer's anxiety, so I've never been comfortable with sharing my work in such a public manner, but I decided that I may just make an AO3 account. But! I wanted the opinion of 1) a seasoned AO3er and 2) a writer I like and admire, so my question for you is: Is AO3 a site that you'd recommend/do you feel like there's a good community over there? Tysm!

This isn't a dumb question at all, and I totally get the anxiety to post in a more public way (and also thank you so much!)! So I've been on AO3 for about seven years now between my Pasta account and my old account. Before that I was a kid posting my first fics on ffn, I tried LiveJournal at one point, and I've obviously posted on tumblr, so I've tried a faaaairly wide variety of fic sites save for something like wattpad. And I have to say, even with its hiccups, AO3 is hands down my favorite fic site to write on, my favorite site to read on, and - imo - the best fic site out there for posting.

The tagging system is unmatched once you get the hang of it, and it makes it so, so gd easy for readers to find your fic based on whatever niche tropes or tags they might be looking for.

The way you can group fics together in a series is incredibly convenient.

They work hard to protect your fics and fic culture, defending it both from larger corporate entities and from puritans who believe fic shouldn’t exist - your content won’t every be swept away overnight like in the ffn purges of 2007 and 2012.

If your fic is plagiarized, they work fast. It took me less than 2 days to get a response from their team when dealing with the plagiarist last week.

No advertising, so not only are they not bound to rules by said advertisers, but your readers are free to read fic uninterrupted by ads (as always, consider donating if you can since they run on donations and are composed largely of volunteers!).

As the number 1 fic site, people will usually search for fics here first, so if you’re looking for readers or a community, this is the place to go.

As a writer, if you’re worried about troll comments, you can set each fic’s comment section to only registered users (so no guest comments). This weeds out the vast majority of trolls since most don’t want to go to the effort of making an account and waiting to get in. You will still sometimes get people willing to do that, or who’ll still go at you with their actual accounts, but I’ve found far less of an issue on AO3 than elsewhere - you can even set it, in that case, to ‘no comments’ or report the comments to AO3.

In my personal experience, the community is far friendlier on AO3 than on other fic posting sites. Probably 95% of my interactions and the reactions I see in other comment sections are positive, and the 5% is broken down 50/50 between either unintentional rudeness or actual trolls, which is manageable.

A few cons, in the interest of full disclosure, although ultimately I feel these are worth it for such a good site:

The site is mostly staffed by volunteers, and while they do their best, functionality updates can take considerable time. We only recently got a block button (preventing certain users from interacting on your fic), for example, and a mute button (so you no longer see fics from certain users) is still a ways off.

Comments are rare. I know there’s a ton of comments on TRT, and I am incredibly grateful for it and for the way it slides into comments on my other fics, but outside of big fics like that, interaction is a lot lower and it’s just something to know going in (although if you’re going from twitter into a fairly popular ship and/or large fandom, you might get way more interactions than from posting on twitter, so it’s all relative!). This is something I’ve found on most sites, and it’s the exact same way on AO3. Your hits will be highest, followed by kudos, and then comments. Generally speaking on oneshots, a 10% kudos to hits ratio early on (before repeat readers begin to push hits higher, since you can only kudos once but add a hit multiple times) is considered quite good. Lower that further for comments. After a bit, stop tracking the ratio because ultimately it’ll become meaningless, especially for chaptered fics where folks come back to read new chapters.

If you’re writing in google docs and try to copy+paste that into AO3′s form as is, you will learn very quickly that ao3 hates google doc formatting. You’ll get weird spaces where they don’t belong (especially if you use italics), the spacing will get fucked, all sorts of hiccups. I use the method from this tumblr post as a workaround. It’s a few extra steps but it’ll help you loads.

Speaking of: using their form to submit a fic definitely takes some getting used to. It’s a bit clunky I’m told, compared to other sites, but stick with it. My biggest advice here is, after pasting your fic in, do not post it yet. Use the preview function to see just how all the formatting is going to turn out. I’ve often found that it looks fine until I preview, and only then do formatting issues show up, which I can then fix. Again, extra work, but worth it for the pros listed above.

Honestly those are the only cons I can think of, and all of them are generally things you can either work around or adjust to as a writer posting there. They’re also absolutely worth it for such a good site, imo, and it’s the best I’ve found out of all of them. I have zero regrets posting on AO3 instead of another site. And I think you’ll come to love it, too, if you decide to join up!

[independentzaun]

SHIPPING INFO

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING FOR YOUR MUSES SO PEOPLE KNOW HOW SHIPPING WORKS ON YOUR BLOG.

Tagged by: @vastayan--vigilante

Tagging: @astrxae @saviourofzaun @misstantabismuses @bioniczaunites @arcanescion @elisethetraveller @perfect-fourth @gauntlets-shot @ whoever wants to do this take it and tag me.

1. WHAT IS YOUR OTP FOR YOUR CHARACTER(S)?

Honestly?…

Silco x Jinx (no it’s not healthy, no it should not be written as healthy, okay moving on).

Sevika x Mel Medarda

2. HOW LARGE DOES THE AGE GAP HAVE TO BE TO MAKE IT UNCOMFORTABLE?

Alright I can only answer this for myself. It’s really hard to make me uncomfortable so long as things are written correctly, and as respectfully as can be concerning the content involved. Use your tags, and approach things with the understanding that just because you should be able to write anything does not mean you should be writing it in a way that romanticizes it or ignores the issues within it. So age gap? Look come at me with whatever, and worse I’m going to say is “not for me, thanks”.

If you want a numbers based answer look I can do 20-30 age gap pretty easily. Silco is in his 40s inching closer to 50 than he’d like. Sevika is in her 40s.

3. HOW FAR DO STEAMY MOMENTS HAVE TO GO BEFORE THEY ARE CONSIDERED NSFW?

I’d say with clothes start coming off, or dry humping starts, or people start reaching under the clothes to reach certain areas. That said I’m not really too concerned one way or the other.

4. ARE YOU SELECTIVE WHEN SHIPPING?

Yes, and no. I’m selective in that I generally want build up, and development and it requires feeling like there’s a good back and forth both between the muses as well as between muns. I like being able to drop into someones DM’s and ask them what they think of one thing or another. If we never speak that makes shipping less likely a lot of the time. That said I’m not selective in that I’m open to just about anything so long as development happens that leads that way and/or the over all story line makes sense for it. Easy example. I don’t generally ship Jinx and Ekko actually for various reasons (don’t have an issue with it just normally not my thing) however I have a verse now with someone that has them as soulmates because I ADORE the angst and problems and character development and weirdness there. I also have a thing going between Silco and someone’s OC (love Irisa @astrxae ) that came about purely because of build up and development and I LOVE that. So Am I selective? Yes and no.

5. WHO ARE OTHER CHARACTERS YOU SHIP YOUR CHARACTER WITH?

Obligatory I will never force anything on anyone, but.

Silco x Vander, Silco x Viktor.

Sevika x Vi, Sevika x Jinx.

Now my Jinx has a very poor understanding of boundaries, and doesn’t really separate types of love instead generally lumping people into “Important People” she cares about and… well… everyone else. So all of these could go any number of ways.

Jinx x Caitlyn, Jinx x Viktor, Jinx x Vi.

6. DOES ONE HAVE TO ASK TO SHIP WITH YOU?

It’s less about asking, and more about seeing how things develop and if it leads there or not. People are always welcome to come talk to me about it though, and offer ideas and plots. Just don’t get upset if I say no thanks, or something similar. If things seem like they are getting to that point though I do like discussing it, and making sure both muns are on the same page and wanting the ship and everything else.

7. ARE YOU SHIP OBSESSED OR SHIP MORE-OR-LESS?

If you mean ship obsessed in terms of sexual/romantic relationships, I enjoy them but don’t have to have them. If you mean ship obsessed in terms of relationships in general including platonic, and family, and the like than oh absolutely yes I adore exploring different types of relationships.

8. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SHIP IN YOUR CURRENT FANDOM?

Honestly it’s a toss up between Silco and Jinx, and Silco and Vander.

9. FINALLY, HOW DOES ONE SHIP WITH YOU?

Toss your character at mine, see how they interact, and than come (nicely/respectfully) yell ideas and headcanons and the like at me. It’s generally not that difficult to be honest. I’ve gotten some very random ships going before in the past.

[villainship]

[Writing WIP Questionnaire]

Reflecting on my drafts folder w/ the previously-skipped section of the questions I was answering here.

If you read this: . . .don’t look @ me. LOL. (Exposing my secrets -- and also hiding from them.)

-

Sum up one or more of your wips!

Most aren’t for tumblr-posting, mind u. But:

(Divided up by which character has narration rights)

-a Vette story I keep forgetting abt, where she is trying to figure out TD’s post-binge fate on Nar Shaddaa, having decided she’s actually invested in this weird Sith’s wellbeing.

-Quinn experiencing TD’s response to betrayal (TD: “I’m not mad, I just want you to acknowledge your life is in /my/ hands. Forever.”)

-like 4 separate WIPs of ‘joint midlife crisis’ Zahied & TD engaging in their unsanctioned fraternizing in early times/getting to know each other -- however eagerly (TD) or reluctantly (Zahied). -Alliance-era, mid-50s Zahied thinks hard abt where he is, tells TD he ready to dump him (probably. Soon. --For real, though. NO relapses. When it’s done it’s /done/, 100%. Swearing off this shit- . . . Yes, he’ll still teach ur damn kids their hand-to-hand fighting.)

-Alliance-era TD, fraught with relationship issues/feelings(???) beyond his comprehension (dumped by his boyfriend; wife still touchy that he is hot for his boss; boss ignoring him b/c 1. she has never considered him significant or attractive 2. she’s busy with the happiness of being reunited with her bug husband), takes a team (incl. his Apprentice) to Hoth for a mission, where they lose contact with home base & can’t send an update to confirm they’re still alive. --He thinks that’s fine he didn’t want to hear from anyone there for a While anyway-- (but something else Will go wrong.) -Agent Vensys is assigned as chaperone for traitor-on-probation Sith Lord Liio (going Where? idk) -- which may be AU content, or I might make it canon. . . or I might split off into 2 different versions (one where they potentially makeout a little, & one for sailing the crack ship onward to far-distant horizons that veer OOC for at least 1 of them). Lolll. -(?canon?) Kallir has a nice day. -Kallir runs afoul of a posse of Imperial troops privately harboring anti-Sith sentiments in a garrison on Taris (? question mark). (Visiting pumpkin Agent was witnessed holding hands with a Sith who recently came by) -- I’m evaluating how much violence I’ll include as canon. (Less than I wrote. . . but some. He definitely gets bullied. Punches someone in the throat. Maybe knifes a guy a little bit?? I wrote that scene, but I’m not sure it’ll fit.) -Kallir undergoing an entire ordeal living among space pirates & becoming slightly unhinged. -in AU: Kallir (the Minister of Intelligence), dragged away from the tail end of a formal ball, puts up with Vensys plying his charms at him (again)

-total shipping AU: Kallir, Liio, & Zahied, lonely hearts club, attempt to distract one another from mountains of baggage in the only way that comes to their minds when they recognize everyone else is hot and thirsty. (Fellas. . . you’re a mess. Sorry I’m so into that.)

Which story took the most research?

Well- the extent of research I’m willing to do is stuff like “what’s this place/object look like in SWTOR?”, or “what does the internet say about these star wars aliens?”

Which story has the most lore?

TD going to Hoth to blow up a Star Fortress maybe (regrettably, I don’t know the relevant lore & I’ve been incapable of doing the gameplay I want to do to get there).

Current word count of all your main wips?

I do Not track those stats. . . I think I know which are the longest, though.

-Part 1 of Liio/Kallir/Zahied AU is. . . 54 pages (for. . .3-4 scenes, essentially. dkfshgkjf). -Part 2 combined WIPs are 15 + 6 + 3 + .2 (a paragraph) (split up due to time-jumping mid-draft, starting a new file, & returning to unfinished business when I feel like it)

Fic that isn’t a total departure from character canon: -Part 1 (of the in-depth edition) of Kallir’s pirate story is a 32 page WIP, w/ an 18-page side chapter (which might not get any longer) -Part 2: 6 pages so far.  -Aftermath follow-up: 7 so far.

How many projects do you have going on right now? Are there any that you doubt you’ll ever finish?

(My answer to question 1 is more-or-less my entire list) It’s hard to say I Won’t finish anything, but also--I don’t often finish writings.

What was you first major project? How far along is it?

And I wouldn’t necessarily call any of them ‘major’ projects (pirate fic got pretty big--but. idk). . .

My first SWTOR fic was for TD & Quinn, and I got lost on it. lol. It’s one of those drafts that feels convoluted to look at (there’s a lot of patchwork pieces), & I’m not sure exactly how much of it is worth having in there or what I actually Want to write into it. (Quinn is hilarious to write, though.)

What are some tropes and character dynamics found in your wips?

. . . gay little scene-slice stories of charged & intimate interactions--aggressive or/and soothing. Just people having their emotional problems in various Situations (sometimes amid danger/stress. . . sometimes when they are trying to enjoy themselves. . . Sometimes those mix).

So. . . tame (generally tame.) psychological whump (mainly psychological.) I Guess. H/C-aligned.

Describe the setting of one or more of your wips

All my stories are in settings of Convenience, and usually defined more by who is there than details of the place itself. (eg. I’m picturing “Kallir gets bullied for having a Sith bf” somewhere on Taris b/c it seems like the kind of place where the military doesn’t get a lot of oversight). Nothing too exciting (or original).

What are some things that inspired your stories? Real events? Maybe a dream?

Game events sometimes, of course. ehehh.

I also have. . . not uncommonly come up w/ concepts for scenarios based on outfits. (Pirate fic arose b/c I previewed the Belsavis zap collar on Kallir. Vensys’ formal outfit was the starting point for that AU fic with the formal event)

What story are you the proudest of? Why?

I dunnoooo-- I have. . . a weird relationship w/ my writings. I don’t have consistent feelings about them (whether I think anything is so good or absolutely Unbearably terrible/cringe changes based on my own moods), and. . . A lot of the time I’m ashamed even making some/most of them for various reasons.

. . .BUT. I was (and still am) pretty proud of how I wrote our charas in the pumpkin-meets-Severine mini-story from a While back (which I just re-blogged cuz of the improvement edits last night). hehe. On fire w/ that one, writing a couple of my favorite personalities--successfully (I’d say) channeling a character that’s not even mine. 

And I don’t feel like I wasted my time if it’s a gift 4 a friend & I’ve been able to make their day with it. <3 We luv our charas. hell yeaaaaaaa

[papirouge]

I turned 30 yesterday and I didn’t magically turn into an old wrinkle hag that gets cruelly ignored by the world and made to cry for being too “choosey” when I was in my 20s. These scrotes lied to me 😤

Happy birthday, anon!!🥳

Nah your 30s are the best years. You're finally starting to enjoy life instead of....struggling your way through it.

Your 20s are all about learning and messing up, and you should be grateful for all the lessons you probably learned during this decade.

In your 30s, you're starting to enjoy life & treat yourself. You're becoming more confident and self-aware. You also become less patient with bs which makes you more picky (with how you spend your time, relationship quality, money, etc.)

There is so much more to life than being bothered by whether you're being desirable to men depending on your age... You REALLY have to deconstruct this pickme bs mentality because it won't lead you anywhere. Moid opinion = 💩. Do you think aging scrotes are bothered on whether they're still hot? those dudes are out there...FAT, porn addicted, arrogantly sporting receding hairlines, yet STILL feel entitled to have a hot girlfriend. As much as it pains me to admit it, maybe we should take a few pages off those idiots book...🤷🏾‍♀️

I'd rather be married in my 50s with the love of my life and we love each other until death than marrying at 23 and spending years struggling with a bum. Sure, not every young marriage end up unhappy, but what I'm saying is that there isn't a typical path for you to find happiness. Maybe God wants you to fall in love and settle down later because He wants you to focus on other things for now.

Centuries ago, women of our age would never have thought in their wildest dream of having the life that we have....but some chicks are out there being angsty because a scrote didn't wife them yet. Tragic.

[fawdwd]

CA Final Preparation Strategy for the Last One Month

Students, you have less than a month until your Nov 2024 CA Final exams. You must be wondering how you will cover such a large course in that time and how to prepare a last-month CA Final revision plan. Don’t worry that nothing can happen to you because you are in the worst conceivable situation. You should count yourself fortunate that you have finished the course because there are still a lot of students who haven’t finished. It’s now time for review. Give it your all; ICAI will match 50% of it, and that’s all you need to pass this test.

You need to create a study plan, go over your material three times or more in advance of the exam, and practice a lot of questions to ensure you understand the material in order to achieve a solid CA Final score. Don’t waste your time, though, if you are intelligent enough to remember everything after just one rewrite. It’s time to work hard and with total commitment. A whole day’s worth of study is required.

Nevertheless, we are presuming that you successfully finished your CA Final course one time. You can also review all of the information about the CA Course on this page.

CA Final Preparation Strategy for the Last One Month

Creating brief revision notes should be the first step in the CA Final Revision Strategy from last month. To revise, you can either bring your handwritten notes on exam day or use a summary book. If you find that writing summary notes is a waste of time, use some professors’ summary modules instead.

But keep in mind that you have to have read the content you are preparing for the exam day. Do not take the one-day preparatory leave with new material.

Cover RTP and MTP

RTP and MTP must be covered by students as soon as they finish the course. Think of it as a component of your editing. It will provide you an accurate idea of how to approach the paper. Don’t wait to begin RTP and MTP until you’ve finished all the subjects.

Rather, you ought to cover RTP concurrently. You won’t need much time because it only addresses one or maybe two questions from each chapter. Finally, you can choose MTP. To be ready for the tests in November 2024, download the PDF versions of the Agrawal Classes CA Final sample test papers and the ICAI CA Final previous year papers.

Focus on Amendments

Don’t ignore the amendments; ICAI wants you to be informed about all laws and provisions at all times. Attempt to cover them first, particularly when we discuss topics like law, DT, and IDT.

Mnemonics for ISCA

For most students, ISCA is a weakness when it comes to passing the CA Final. This could be the result of having trouble remembering such details during the exam and mastering the technical terminology.

Thus, it is advised that you study this material by using mnemonic devices. Google searches and teacher’s notes from the days when mnemonics were utilized to teach this topic are also good resources. CS Executive December 2024 Exam Preparation

Must Cover AS, IND AS, and SA

This section of Accounting and Auditing AS IND AS is highly rated, and compared to other sections, SA is quicker to read and requires less effort. Aside from this, they are excellent scorers who never enter the incorrect amount of AS, IND AS, or SA. If you can’t remember such a number, just begin with the name.

Write the Section Numbers

If you don’t write down the section numbers, you might believe that your IPCC score was good. But remember that this is the CA Final, not the IPCC, which is five times more difficult. Your fundamental understanding of the sections is assessed at the IPCC level, but the ICAI wants you to be an authority on every topic when you reach the Final level.

Try to write all of the section numbers, even if you omit the subsection or clauses. Do not, however, state the incorrect section number if you are unable to remember it throughout the exam. Alternatively, you may begin with “According to the guidelines of Income Tax Law 1961..” The best way to prepare for Sections is to write a Section number.

Cover Relevant Part First

While we do not advise our students to study selectively, given the limited time, it is best to go over the most crucial subjects that your teacher has covered first.

Since your teachers have extensive experience in this area, go over those themes from all of the subjects first. Since they are familiar with the ICAI’s questioning style, start with their recommended subjects.

Watch the Revision Videos

Instead of wasting time on revising the entire concepts, you can watch the revisionary videos available on YouTube, which helps you a lot in revising the concepts, and you can directly start with the questions.

Revise the PM

The PM is frequently questioned by ICAI. Therefore, it is preferable to review the PM if you have already completed it. It is a little harder to review the PM than the AMA, but you can choose whatever questions you believe are important for the test.

Writing Skills

In the CA Exam, the presentation is a significant component. Take it seriously as it awards you with important marks. Thus, take a close look to the writing style of the ICAI Material, whether it is the SM, PM, or suggested replies, and begin rehearsing the questions.

Regarding theoretical subjects, you should first clarify the examiner’s request before writing the pertinent section number and provision. Lastly, you should provide your conclusion and any relevant case law.

Manage your Time

The majority of pupils truly only dream about attempting the entire paper. You may be laughing at me, but ICAI papers are really long, and you will need to move quickly to finish the entire work. If you haven’t started working on it yet, do so right now.

Always allow yourself enough time to complete Mock Test Papers—at least fifteen minutes before the real exam. This will introduce you to the process of attempting the entire paper.

Important Points Summarized for Last Month of CA Final Preparation

It is recommended that candidates review all of the key subjects covered in the CA final course and take topic-specific notes. This will make things easier for CA final exam candidates the day before the test.

The final candidates’ only assignment during the last month of the CA is revision. Practice guides, mock exam papers, and revision test papers should all be solved by them.

Time management is a critical skill for CA final candidates, as it is imperative that they finish their CA final papers on schedule. It is therefore recommended that CA final candidates practice in accordance with the time-bound structure.

For applicants vying for the CA finals, completing practice exams in full is crucial. 

They will be able to evaluate their own performance and how well-prepared they are for the CA final exams thanks to this.

Candidates need to allocate their time and grasp the importance of the marks.

The most crucial thing for candidates to do in the final month before the CA final test is to study nonstop with little breaks.

Last Month’s Plan for CA Final Exam

Candidates must arrange their plans such that they address all of the crucial and significant subjects first. Furthermore, applicants should not skip any topics from the CA final curriculum as they are all required to be covered in the exam.

It is recommended that candidates go over the full syllabus in detail and take notes so that they may review all the key aspects of each course on test day.

It is recommended that candidates take brief notes on each topic to facilitate their comprehension throughout the exam.

Important Points to Note

Applicants should always make an effort to practice and write.

Applicants ought to make an effort to write a self-note on each subject.

Candidates for the CA finals might consider taking the ICAI practice exams.

MCQs for both categories should be practiced by candidates.

Attempt to commit headers to memory for candidates.

Candidates should confirm that they have answered all of the faculty members’ questions. Students need to have a firm grasp of every concept for the CA final exams.

Explore More : https://agrawalclasses.in/

[hlekani-666]

<098> Atheist Republic Newsletter 14: For those who think discrimination against atheists isn't a thing.

In 2012, Greek citizen and scientist Phillipos Loizos created a Facebook page mocking Elder Paisios, the late Greek Orthodox monk seen by many as a prophet. On the Facebook page, he referred to the monk as "Pastistios", giving a nod to Pastafarianism. He also replaced his face with an image of pastitsio, a Greek beef dish. For this, Loizos was arrested for blasphemy. He was later found guilty of "insulting religion" and sentenced to ten months in prison.

Much of the discrimination atheists experience in places like America is caused by distrust and fear that is rooted in ignorance and misunderstandings making it difficult to quantify the degree of discrimination; but several surveys and studies over the past several years reveal pervasive and continuing problems world-wide that should not be ignored.

Even though those claiming no religious affiliation is on the rise (according to a recent Pew Research Center survey, the number of young people doubting the existence of God has doubled in five years), a survey by Bertelsmann Stiftung found that 50 percent of Americans consider atheism to be threatening. There are more atheists than ever, but they are still in the minority; and their beliefs, attitudes and values are largely misunderstood.

Theists frequently accuse atheists of not having any moral convictions, of being nihilists and hedonists and of being less trustworthy than their religious peers. In 2012, Psychologists at the University of British Columbia and the University of Oregon presented results of a study that demonstrate distrust of atheists is comparable even to rapists in certain circumstances; and according to former Governor of Alaska and 2008 Republican Vice Presidential candidate, Sarah Palin, atheists are "dangerous" and "must be stopped."

Atheist students often report being excluded and even bullied because of their atheism making them feel isolated and unsupported by teachers and support staff as well as alienated by peers.

After publicly expressing concern about the the Ten Commandments plaque that was hung on the wall of his Oklahoma high school's biology classroom, Gage Pulliam and his eighth grade sister experienced the kind of harsh responses and isolation familiar to atheist students who take a stand for the separation of church and state in their schools.

Students who are isolated are at a greater risk for poor academic performance and depression. Atheist students also experience religious pressure from teachers and administrators making them feel like they have nowhere to turn to for help - a problem articulated by AR writer Lee Myers who also provides contact information and various methods of reporting infractions if you or someone you know has been the victim of a Church/ State violation.

The bullying in schools and other types of discrimination atheists experience in North America and Europe is occasionally overt and blatantly cruel. But more often, there are passive assumptions that affect the way people interact with the nonreligious and the decisions they make about friendships, hiring and firing, social involvement and exclusion, etc.

Atheists have:

had their charitable efforts rejected

been fired

had their advertising rejected

been forced to take part in religious ceremonies

been denied the opportunity to form groups and organizations

been denied participation in various organizations

These are all acts that would be unacceptable if taken against a religious person; demonstrating a double standard that exists in many countries today. Christians often pressure local law enforcement and governments, citing "religious protection" to obtain unfair advantages or prevent more equal opportunities for atheists and humanists. They often claim that if atheists are granted the same rights, it will infringe on their "religious rights". Christians are allowed to refuse services to people whose life choices they find distasteful. Muslim students can refuse to receive academic instruction from female professors. Christians can hand out Bibles on school campuses or put them in hotel rooms. Religious organizations and clergy receive special tax exemptions. And the list could go on.

In the United States, it's also virtually impossible for an openly atheist candidate to win an election. In the 20012 election season, a poll revealed that just over half of Americans would vote for a "well-qualified" presidential candidate who was also an atheist. There are currently ZERO admitted atheists in the United States Congress and ONE in all state legislatures. Six states have laws preventing atheists from holding public office. Even though these laws aren't enforced, they represent the difficulty faced by any atheist wanting to run for office. In fact, the candidate doesn't even have to publicly claim to be an atheist, she/he just has to be loosely associated with people who might have atheist ties, as demonstrated in the case of 2008 Senate Candidate Kay Hagen who was targeted in a Republican smear campaign for attending a fundraiser held by two liberals who were heavily involved with the ACLU, fighting for the rights of the oppressed and who also happened to be atheists.

We also cannot ignore the legal mistreatment and physical harm perpetrated against atheists around the world. In "The Freethought Report 2013," the International Humanist and Ethical Union reported egregious human rights violations against atheists and other nonbelievers, including the use of the death penalty for various violations against the established religion in 13 countries.

Egyptian activist and blogger Alber Saber was arrested for insulting religion. He was violently attacked in prison and on December 12 of this year, he was sentenced to three years in prison after being found guilty of blasphemy. He was released on bail and fled the country.

In Indonesia, civil servant Alexander Aan was attacked by a mob for criticizing Islam on Facebook after saying he'd become an atheist. He was arrested and found guilty of blasphemy via the internet and sentenced to two and a half years in prison.

Indian humanist Sanal Edamaruku, president of the Indian Rationalist Association embarrassed the Catholic Church on national television by debunking the weeping Jesus "miracle" proving it was actually the result of a leaky drain. The Church complained and the Mumbai police arrested Edamaruku on charges of "hurting the religious sentiments of a particular community." Edamaruku has fled India and is currently living in Finland.

Turkish citizen, Fazil Say is a world-renowned pianist and an atheist. He was arrested and charged with insulting Islamic values via Twitter after he quoted several lines from a poem. Following a retrial, he was found guilty and sentenced to 10 months in prison. The sentence was suspended and the case will be dropped if he doesn't commit another crime within two years.

In Tunisia, Jabeur Mejri and Ghazi Beji were given a prison sentence of seven and a half years for their cartoons of Muhammad that they posted on Facebook. Beji fled the country but Mejri is currently serving his sentence.

An unnamed (for his protection) atheist Afghan citizen has been granted asylum in the UK because it is believed that were he to return to Afghanistan, he would be persecuted and possibly face the death penalty for blasphemy under Sharia law.

The problem of atheist discrimination and mistreatment should not be ignored - neither should it be exaggerated. We should not make the problem out to be more than it is and we should not play into the "who gets it worse?" competition; but, just like all forms of discrimination, we shouldn't ignore it either.

We can continue to make people aware of discrimination against nonreligious people and we can also take opportunities to let our atheism be known. Many people fear atheists because they think they don't know any. They might assume that all the "good people" they know are religious. But as more of us openly share our views, people will realize that some of those "good people" are actually atheists.

Atheist Republic advocates against religious oppression and violence toward all people around the world. We believe atheists have a right to live without fear of incrimination just like anyone else. Atheists should be free to speak out against ideas with which they do not agree and should be encouraged to stand up against the imposition of religion.

Link To Original Post:

[wytfut]

Excelsior Henderson 25+

This past weekend a couple of X owners I know within the community took off to Born Free Texas for rally down there. Frank Nowacyzk and Mike Seastrome.... And yes nonbelievers, they rode them there.

Looking at the pictures, looked like a great time.... home style with no frills. Just my type of gathering.

They met John Oates who was also attending. .... as an aside.

In their comments reporting back to all of us nonparticipants of the rally..... There was a comment made, that most of folks attracted to the 2 X's, had never seen one. And I'd possibly assume never heard of one too.

This comment astounds me. As long as I've owned my X, it never ends...... "what is that?" or "I've never seen one". It makes me giggle.

In the early years of EH (1999-2000), EH factory.... pounded marketing. Being in the EH world, it surprises me how much money was spent to get the name out there. Myself I'm constantly falling across marketing items I had no idea were even thought of.

Even with all of the marketing they did, when I bought my X, it was surprising how many motorcycle people hadn't ever heard of them. And there was a dealership right here in Lincoln Nebraska.

Occasionally, thru the years I'd run into "older bikers" who had been present at Daytona or Sturgis (1997ish) unveiling of the "new" motorcycle. Nice to see their grins, remembering those events.

OR.... a really old biker, who knew of the old name (1911-1931), and knew someone who had one back in the day .... usually 40's. Really enjoyed meeting these guys.... lots of hidden/unknown history. Easy to laugh here, as before I knew about EH, I had no idea there was such a critter back in that era either. Same battle?

Being neck deep into these fine beasts, I find it hard to understand that more people don't know about them. From a human nature point of view. Yeah.... its not accurate.

A large portion of owners in this community, have gone out of our ways to promote the bikes name. This tumblr account, Youtube, and owners being involved with the motorcycle community, a website, the facebook page, rally's, pokerruns, etc.

Us as a community, we will show up with all of our X patches, tshirts, dress shirts, jackets, coats, ball caps, stickers..... etc etc. And its almost comical the reaction we get from the ignorant.

My thoughts partially, its due to attrition. The older bikers with the old timey stories are dying off. Its not hard to figure out...

Back in 1999, when Super X first came out, and you were 25 years old, that'd make you at least 50 now. Another side of it, heavy cruisers (the category X's fit in), are becoming passe. This is not the motorcycle making money in the current market, unlike the mid90's thru around 2015 or so. Back then HD had 6 month waiting lists, as they couldn't keep up with the demand.

In turn it means less people involved in the heavy cruiser class. Less knowledge of "other" motorcycles..... etc.

As well known, I'm all about these bikes, I've got the sickness. If I'm around another biker for a bit of time, and I trust them.... I promote/offer them to "take it for a spin". Besides promoting the "name", its important to me, that people get to experience the ride...... "I just road an Excelsior Henderson, of which less than 2000 were ever made". That's quite quite the statement a person can say to themselves and friends. I beam when I do that...

Our community seems to be growing older. From what I can figure, I'm #5 in age seniority. I maybe wrong, as I just got back onto facebook on the EH page, I don't know most of them.

But looking at that facebook page..... there is quite a few younger owners out there..... lots in late 30's to their late 40's.

I keep hoping that we can attract even younger owners,.... owners in their early 20's. But the current motorcycle trends are not heavy cruisers, and this age group is all about buying power. Not sure, but there maybe 1 or 2 in this age group that I know about, but not their names.

When I get asked "what is this".... I try my hardest to pace myself. I can easily come across as some sort of nut, almost chasing the inquisitive away, puking out irrelevant trivia that nobody cares about.

The good meetings, I keep my answers short, testing the water, of this person (are they really interested? or are they just being polite?).

As far as I know, I've only gotten one person interested enough to go buy one. Thats a lot of tongue wagging.... LOLOLOLOLOL

Story is, Frank and Mike rode there and back with NO ISSUES. There was a long period of time, where any owner taking his X out for a spin questioned themselves "what kind of adventure will occur today?".

Old guys I used to ride with back in the day, recommended I drag a big commercial magnet behind my bike. And of course lots of laughs.

Most likely promoting our bikes is going to be never ending. But its fun part of owning one.

Its cool to think, that someday, our bikes will become just as valuable as the Excelsiors and Hendersons of old are today. Very probable though if that happens, it'll be long after I'm gone.

Long live Excelsior Henderson!! An American made motorcycle company...

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

"ONTARIO REFORMATORY BARNS ARE GUTTED BY FIRE," Toronto Star. August 3, 1934. Page 14. ---- Fire breaking out at the Ontario reformatory brick and tile plant in Etobicoke township to-day destroyed three barns and badly damaged the milk-house。 The live stock, which had been tied in the stalls for the morning milking, was rushed to safety by Guard Alfred Pearce, assisted by 15 inmates of the institution. Prompt response to the alarm by Mimico and New Toronto fire brigades prevented the further spread of the flames, but the dry hay which filled the lofts burned too fiercely to be checked with the limited water supply available. The blazing cow stable, where the fire was discovered in the loft, is shown above in (1). The horse stable (2) was a complete loss.

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"BLAME FARM BUILDINGS LOSS ON SMALL MAINS AT PRISON," Toronto Star. August 3, 1934. Page 14. ---- Government Ignored Advice of Chief to Put in Larger Ones ---- LIVESTOCK SAVED ---- Had recommendations been carried out as urged by Mimico and New Toronto fire chiefs, who advised a larger watermain at the Ontario Reformatory brick and tile plant, two of the three farm buildings gutted by fire early to-day could have been saved, firemen stated.

The fire was discovered shortly after 5 a.m. by Guard Alfred G. Pearce, who, with the assistance of 15 inmates, got all the stock, harness and implements out of the blazing building as the roaring fire, which began in a haymow, was fanned by a breeze from the northwest and began to eat away the timbers.

The entire spring crop from the institution farm, which packed the lofts to the eaves, was destroyed, the cattle barn, where the fire started. and the horse stables, were burned to the ground, and only a thin shell of the piggery left standing.

Livestock Taken Out The shouts of Guard Pearce when he discovered the fire aroused A. E. Springstead, cattle man, who telephoned the alarm which brought the Mimico and New Toronto brigades, In less than five minutes, through the prompt action of the inmates on the milking and stable gangs, all the livestock was taken out of the burning building.

While the rescue work was going on, other members of the institution staff under W. Farrell, attempted to fight the rapidly-spreading flames, using a line of hose, two chemical machines and 20 hand fire extinguishers.

The Mimico fire brigade, closely followed by New Toronto, was the first to arrive and connect up the hose, but due to the small water main the pump could only feed one line up to 80 pounds pressure, which hampered the work.

Water Was Scarce The New Toronto fire-fighters were also hampered by the lack of water and could not use their pump with any degree of efficiency. The origin of the fire is unknown and the damage, which will be high, is as yet unestimated.

"Every man of the 15 Inmates working with me did his bit and worked hard. No one could have done any more than they did. The livestock was out in less than five minutes," Guard Pearce stated.

Forty head of cattle, 12 horses and about 50 pigs were taken to safety. The bull, disturbed by the fire and before it was tied. almost disputed the right-of-way with the racing New Toronto fire truck as it drew into the grounds.

When the fire was at its height, a dense pall of smoke was blown over New Toronto, bits of charred wood and ashes falling in the streets over a mile away.

"We could have saved two bulldings if we had had enough water" Fire Chief William Spindler Mimios, told The Star. "We couldn't draw enough water from the six-inch mains. Last summer Deputy Chief Waltes of New Toronto and I inspected the place and among other things asked that a larger water main, a 10-inch one, be laid, but the government didn't do it. There is the same condition at the Industrial school. They need new hydrants there too. The ones they have are only for 11-2-inch hose and that is of no use to us."

[a-roby4896]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: Life Update.