#and the protest 1) has nothing to do with police

[olderthannetfic]

You ever get a comment that makes you just sit back, cast your eyes upwards, and gaze at the ceiling as if awaiting answers? I got a comment on a fic I'm writing that has a (canonically) punk character and was informed that "real punks don't do arts and crafts", referring to the idea of 1. making your own patches 2. sewing them on 3. sewing clothes in general and 4. making signs in protest of/support of something. And I. I just.

My dad was in a punk band in the 90's, in the post-Soviet era of Central Asian punks when nobody had any money and were screaming into a microphone to work through the trauma the USSR put them through. Sometimes there wasn't even a microphone. Sometimes there was just a stage at a bar and decent acoustics and vodka. I promise you that they made things. I promise you they didn't just buy everything off of Poshmark that was marked Tripp NYC or put an order in on Temu for 5 yards of grommet trim. There was no internet access but more importantly there was no money. You know what there WAS? Anger. So. Much. Anger. Anger gets clothing torn and signs made and my dad onstage in a country where being queer is illegal to this day going, "We're the Maddest Faggots and this is our new song, 'Fuck Me Like Your Daughter'!"

They did "arts and crafts". They did so, so many arts and crafts. Shows don't advertise themselves. Someone has to draw and then photocopy a cartoon of the mayor sucking himself off and tape it up to every bus stop in Tashkent after the election. Drenching yourself in red paint and marching in protest of police brutality rarely works without paint.

I guess, in the grand tradition of punk, the counterargument is that no REAL punk would do arts and crafts, therefore, my dad was not remotely punk and neither were his associates. But if punk is so fragile that liking all the right music and being anti-authority and protesting inequality all counts for nothing if you so much as put one toe over the line into girliness... is anyone or anything punk? And is that a version of punk worth preserving?

It reminds me of people going, "Real punks don't have anything political on their vests/jackets!" and "No true punk would have that slogan on them, that's just stupid pinterest shit!" and "wow plaid lol. lmao, even. what a poser! go back to tiktok fr fr", etc. I get that these are all basically 'if I don't like it, it's not part of punk'. But diy is baked into punk. It had to be. That's what happens when your subculture involves a lot of poor people.

I am only 25 and I feel like an ancient being from the bygone days of yesteryear having kids interrupt me to say nuh-uh, that's totally not how things work.

--

People are incredibly embarrassing about punk in a very suburban US middle class way.

[dirt-nerd]

Hate to add to an already long and brilliant post, but a lot of these examples are about language and I also want to point out how Americanisation severely affects politics too, including in other English speaking countries.

For example in New Zealand we receive little formal education about our own political system but are bombarded daily with information about US politics. As a result many Kiwis vote in elections as if we were Americans, which is bad because our democracy works completely differently from the states.

Beyond elections, political discourse on both sides of the political spectrum is heavily impacted by Americanisation. The amount of times I have seen people (including myself) uncritically repeat some American turn of phrase with zero thought on how that applies their country is absolutely maddening. This is not helped by the deliberate meddling of American interests either; for example after the Christchurch mosque attacks (committed by an Australian who was partially inspired by Donald Trump), the New Zealand government banned automatic weapons and Americans (likely backed by the NRA) began bombarding NZ online spaces with heavy anti gun control rhetoric. This led to the hilarious yet worrying situation of far right Kiwis yelling about their "second amendment rights".

DO NOT LET SOCIAL MEDIA TURN YOU INTO AN AMERICAN

[esyra]

Haven't heard from family in days. I feel like it's time to accept they're gone. I know in my heart Palestine will, one day, be free, but it wasn't supposed to be like this.

We feared another Nakba, and it happened. 700,000 pushed out of their homes in 1948 to 1 million being forced to leave their homes in 2023.

We thought it couldn't get worse or more deadly than the Israeli invasion in 2014, and it happened. We lost 2,251 people in 50 days then. Now we're past 2,300 in one week.

What I heard most from my grandmother the first days it's that "this time is different". And I feel like a rock is crushing my heart in pieces because i've been hoping that speaking out, teaching people about the historical oppresion of Palestine would help but it's not helping. Nothing is changing.

I feel like I'm screaming into a void. There's some sympathy from people online, until I see content documenting Palestinian oppresion being flagged as 'hate speech' or check the comments of any updates on Gaza and it's: "blame it on hamas", "tell them to give up hamas", "the hamas asked for it". They're not even among civilians!!!!!

My heart feels full seeing the manifestations in favor of Palestine, then I see police forces breaking protests apart and remember that the people that can actually save Gaza don't care.

If there's nothing left to do but to watch the extermination of my people, then I'm going to beg for anyone reading this to please don't forget. Please.

Israel is hiding behind Judaism to commit genocide against Gaza. Netanyahu supported the Hamas militant group to prevent the establishment of the Palestine State, and now he's using them to justify his agenda of ethnic cleansing. He abandoned Israelis and left them to die because he cares more about seeing Gazans dead!

Every single person and institution supporting and financing Israel is complicit. I hope the deaths of every Palestinian haunts you for the rest of your lives and that you never find an ounce of forgiveness, for you do not deserve it.

Just as in the Iraq War, the US government is financing and cheering for the slaughter of millions of innocent Arab lives. The media is complicit by engaging in biased propaganda and other nuclear powers, such as the UK and Germany, are complicit too. You are fascists and war criminals and every drop of Palestinian blood is in your hands. I hope every single day, for the rest of your lives, you look in the mirror and see nothing but the blood you've helped spill.

This serves as yet another proof that not a single Western in a position of power, be it in the media or in government, sees Arabs as humans beings.

For decades, the US has comitted terrorism and crimes against humanity in the Middle East and has NEVER been held accountable. Over one million in Iraq; over 150,000 in Afghanistan; and now they'll turn Gaza into a graveyard. Punishing selected soldiers over the years does not erase the fact that the American military and its government validates their crimes during execution and are never punished for it.

Please never forget: Joe Biden is a genocidal terrorist, Rishi Sunak is a genocidal terrorist, the American Democrat Party and UK's Labour Party are led by genocidal terrorists, the European Union is led by genocidal terrorists, fuckass Walt Disney Company is led by genocidal terrorists; every celebrity that called for Palestinian death or stood by silently while ignoring our suffering is a genocidal terrorist.

May Allah protect the people in Palestine and grant the martyrs the highest level of Jannah. Wallah what keeps me here is knowing that the Akhirah is theirs. May Almighty Allah grant us imaan and Taqwa as high as the people of Gaza. Ameen.

[clustxr]

hi y'all. i know i don't make a lot of original posts here. however, on may 31st, i watched as my friends and peers were brutalized at the hands of cops from departments across california.

edit 6/12/24: students for justice in palestine at uc santa cruz has published a press release. it is easily the best way to understand what happened that night. please take a few minutes to read it.

uc santa cruz police made a statewide call for mutual aid in order to disband the gaza solidarity encampment located at the main entrance of the campus - initially established at the quarry in the center of campus on may 1, it moved to the entrance on may 20 in solidarity with the UAW strike. on tuesday, may 28, protesters barricaded the main entrance, cutting off the primary way of getting on campus; though the western entrance to UCSC was left unblocked (except for a few hours on tuesday), the main entrance remained obstructed until the raid began late on thursday night. this road blockage is what admin cited as the reason for the raid, along with "campus safety" and "academic freedom".

it's important to note that prior to blocking the road, students had been encamped for 28 days, and had been holding peaceful, law-abiding rallies since october. nothing worked. months of following the guidelines that admin had set, and of course student voices were dismissed and ignored by chancellor cynthia larive and cpevc lori kletzer (the latter of whom, by the way, showed up at 6 am "walking her dog" and smiled while watching her students get suffocated and beaten). the escalation would never have happened if student demands had been met at the very beginning.

hundreds of cops in riot gear from as far out as uc davis showed up to abuse students. over 115 arrests were made, including 3 ucsc professors, transported off by buses that were fifteen years past their intended end-of-use date and had also been servicing the campus prior. is this "campus safety"? is this "academic freedom"?

from just before midnight until approximately 9am on friday, cops kettled, suffocated, shoved, yanked, beat, and bruised students. one got a battery charge for writhing and bumping a cop after another slammed him in the head with a baton. another had a bag placed over their head, leading to suffocation, vomiting, and loss of consciousness. at least two protesters were confirmed to go to the ER that morning; many more have had to seek medical attention for lasting injuries.

arrestees were given a 14-day campus ban, including those who live on-campus (functionally evicting them & preventing access to their belongings), not to mention subjected to horrifyingly inhumane conditions:

you can find more information on various instagram accounts such as ucscsjp, ucscdivest, fjpucsc, ucsc_encampment, & jawsucsc. there's plenty of other organizations and people posting about this, too. please, don't let ucsc brush this under the rug. demand amnesty for the arrestees and protesters. contact any ucsc admin you can find. the uc has been utilizing police brutality to repress student voices across their institution, with ucla and uc irvine also being victims of this violence. do not let them get away with it.

free palestine, from the river to the sea. if seeing this violence sickens you, remember that this is not even a fraction of what the people of palestine have been enduring for decades. we will not let the university silence us, no matter what.

[mvrkieboo]

justice for the victim. justice for all of the women in south korea who are victims to egregious misogyny, cyber and non cyber sexual harassment, sexual molestation and sexual crimes.

as I am also part of the percentage of women who have experienced sexual assault before, i plead to all of my fellow female czennies to prioritize your identity as a woman first before being a fan.

this is not a kpop scandal, this is a sexual crime case. how can you defend a man who relies on your interest in him for his livelihood over a fellow woman who has experienced what you have experienced, whose nightmare experience is a gruesome reality for women all around the world?

you are a woman first before you are a fan.

edit :

i also want to point out that there is currently a movement in south korea where south korean women are now refusing to marry and procreate with south korean men as a form of protest for the deeply rooted misogyny in sk culture, legal system and how it's all around them altogether (search : 4B movement in south korea) because of this misogyny, crimes against women (sexual crimes especially) are usually punished with a slap on the wrist. messed up, right?

if you've been on twt and your feed algo is anything like mine, you would know that south korean women are BEGGING the global audience to shed light on their fight because even their own media scarcely covers it.

just the other day a south korean woman made a thread of how she discovered her older brother had been secretly taking inappropriate pictures of her when she had been a minor and her brother a collegiate. the outcome of this being known by their parents is that;

1. no police reports were made even though her brother basically curated and DISTRIBUTED cp of her through telegram

2. the parents slapped her for retaliating against her brother by beating him with a baseball bat

3. the parents pressuring her to forgive him and get along like they used to

and even though it's an uncomfortable truth, these kinds of horrors are common in sk—and the legal system let these assholes slide. the government is responding to this nationwide issue that is currently crippling its birthrate by doing nothing—but instead try to give incentives for younger people to marry and procreate.

i know you're devastated by the news of taeil being dropped out of nct for being charged with such a heinous crime, i know you're worried that this might taint nct forever as a group and might cripple them in the long run. im worried for nct too, but i beg of you to see the bigger picture.

it is estimated that 70% of sk men are involved in these telegram gcs, in which they would share inappropriate pictures of women (strangers, friends, and even OWN FAMILY MEMBERS) around, and would even curate and distribute deepfake porn of MINORS.

your bg idols are still men. if even allegations of them are out, PLEASE side with the victims first because you do not know these men personally, and they're relying on you to earn money.

sk women are crying out for help and this is the fight that we should be focused on.

help them. all you have to do is just listen to them.

[enigma-the-mysterious]

Komuram Bheemudo: "Make that bastard kneel now!" Part 2/?

Hey! Hey! Hey! Remember how the whole point of the public flogging was to make Bheem kneel?

Who am I kidding? We are reminded of it constantly throughout the flogging

Ram's failed attempt #1

Ram's failed attempt #2

This bitchiest bitch to ever bitch

Ram's failed attempt #3

This asshole dickfuck vomitted straight out of hell

Ram's failed attempt #4

And in the end, Bheem has his way. He falls, but he does not kneel. They break him, but they cannot be bend him. They can command him, threaten him, brutalize him, but they cannot subdue him. He is the tiger, he cannot be tamed.

But!

BUT!

BUT!

You know what detail makes me go absolutely feral is interesting?

Bheem is not the one who kneels after the flogging.

RAM DOES!

RAM IS THE ONE WHO IS BROUGHT TO HIS KNEES AT THE END OF THE FLOGGING!!!

And I don't even mean this in a metaphorical sense (though that one is true as well)

Ram. Is. Physically. Kneeling. Beside. Bheem. I cannot stress this enough.

This is a KEY moment in the movie. It's a turning point.

We know that seeing the unarmed civilians rising up against the armed British forces in the wake of Bheem's defiance is what spurs Ram to finally, FINALLY arrive at his epiphany. His idea of what a revolution is and how it can be achieved is too narrow, too rigid, too costly. The sacrifices are too many and at what point will the ends justify the means?

But to change his viewpoint (again both literally and metaphorically), RAM HAS TO BEND FIRST! Once Ram bends, only then can he finally SEE!

And what is it that makes Ram bend? It's his LOVE FOR BHEEM! His love for Bheem changes him.

So these, that is, the shots where Ram is SEEING a revolution, an actual revolution in action, sparked by nothing more than Bheem's song and his indomitable spirit....

....come AFTER these shots. Where Ram is compelled by his love for Bheem to bend down and kneel

Compare this with Ram's introduction scene.

There is a revolution going on. People show up in front of a police station on the outskirts of Delhi to protest the arrest of Lala Lajpat Rai, a prominent Indian political figure, in Kolkata, armed with nothing more than torches, flags, and their righteous anger.

Ram watches the revolution. But he does not SEE it. He is so focused on his distant goal that he is blind to what is right in front of him. What is literally staring at him in the eye.

So, what does Ram do with his myopic worldview? He quashes the revolution. He stamps out the very thing he is fighting for. He breaks the spirit of the revolution, the spirit of the people, and he watches stone-faced as the protesters limp away, defeated. All because he cannot SEE the revolution for what it is.

So, with these two scenes in mind, we understand that this is not the first time Ram has witnessed a revolution. The people's uprising in the wake of Bheem's torture is nothing new to him. He has watched it all before, has actively participated in snuffing it out even.

Here, Ram STANDS tall, straight, rigid, focused, unbending.

Here, Ram is ON HIS KNEES.

The only factor that changes between these two scenes is the presence of Bheem..... and Ram's love for him. It's Ram's love for Bheem that bends his inflexible worldview. It's Ram's love for Bheem that makes him take a step back and actually see the true meaning of revolution. It's Ram's love for Bheem that shifts his perspective. It's Ram's love for Bheem that makes Ram willingly give up a 15 year long mission he has been toiling endlessly for.

Love is THE MOST powerful force in RRR. No amount of pain, grief, anger, heartbreak, trauma, brutality or violence can wipe it out. It is love that shines and love that emerges victorious. And after the flogging, Ram's love for Bheem is the most powerful driving force in his life, more powerful than a lifelong mission, more powerful than a promise made among tears and blood.

The visual storytelling and symbolisms in this movie are insane. I am going to scream about them for the next 80 years.

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Mini Meta]

[narwhalsarefalling]

rey i need ya gen fic bnha recs

congratulations, i have a whole ass collection. but here's some faves. A collection of both oneshot and multichap!

Gauntlet Thrown - pikahlua

Pro hero Katsuki Bakugou has deigned to apply for a teaching position at UA, and the lucky bastard who gets to conduct the job interview is none other than Shouta Aizawa.

Second Chances - amarisllis

Aizawa’s heartbeat is pounding against Katsuki’s ear, so loud and fast that it blocks out everything else. Katsuki’s arms flail, unsure what to do now that he’s being hugged by his teacher who’s never really cracked more than a tiny smile in their presence before. Wha— Oh. Oh, oh shit. Aizawa is crying. “Sensei—” “You were dead.” His voice breaks on the last word. Oh. Shit.

candid - OwlF45

The Commission passes a new requirement for hero licenses: pass a mental simulation. For Izuku, a holder of One For All, this idea ends in catastrophe. A series focused on the simulation, and everything that comes after.

Switchblade - Cacid

"I’m only two minutes late!” Izuku protested. Had he missed the start of an important test? None of the national, standardized tests were supposed to happen this month and even being two minutes late to one of those wouldn’t elicit this sort of reaction. They were discussing their career interest forms today, but that was it. Nothing time-critical was supposed to be happening. “Midoriya, you were reported missing a week ago. No one has seen you for eight days. The police have been combing the city for you.” "I’m sorry. What?” Midoriya Izuku went missing for a week and turned up in a back alleyway with skills he's never even heard of and no memory of how he came by them. He resigns himself to never learning the truth of what happened to him, but he shouldn't waste this chance should he? He could become a hero with reflexes like these. (Russian Translation available)

Razzmatazz - xylophones

Izuku has plans for everything. He plans out what to say to the cashier when ordering coffee, he plans out his homework before even opening his textbook. He has a whole ten-year plan for how he’s going to get into UA’s hero course and get his hero license fully quirkless. He plans for every wild, unlikely scenario he can think of because his anxiety gets so bad if he doesn’t go through every possible outcome, every way his life could landslide into disaster–– but Izuku never planned for this. For once, he doesn’t have a plan and he doesn’t have time to think of one. All he can see is Yagi-san’s lined, kind face looking resigned as he stares down the villain in his shop. Yagi-san, who is the closest thing to a father figure Izuku has ever had. Izuku doesn’t think. He just moves. (Or: Izuku saves the number one hero, gets a hero license way earlier than anyone wanted, realizes that maybe hero society isn’t as great as he thought it was, and everything just kind of falls apart from there.)

third couch is the charm - laurenshappenstobemyhusband

Shouto trained for years to control his ice. Encasing everything in ice whenever he sneezed, got angry or startled, or just whenever he wasn't paying attention always got him into trouble, and he's glad he finally has complete control over his right side. Unfortunately, he can't say the same about his flames. OR: Todoroki sets three couches on fire, which apparently is too many, so now he has to take quirk control classes with Kaminari and they bond over mutual destruction

All's Well - Vexfulfolly

Trigger + Katsuki Bakugou = One hell of a precarious situation OR What it's like to be a walking bomb.

El Manisero - Lila17

"that fic where Sero runs a peanut cartel at UA"

see it all in bloom - aloneintherain

Todoroki said, “It feels like a family reunion.” (Social media fic, counting down the five months to Class 1-A's ten year reunion.)

and i know these don't REALLY count because they're mine, but here's my OWN gen fics that I had a GREAT time writing

And in the forest, I can be free

His prosthetic leg was covered in stickers. Her hands were stained with marker ink in wonderful multicolor. She could color outside the lines. She could color inside the lines. She could color the skin pink or the hair black or whatever color she wished. She could ignore the lines entirely and just draw whatever she wanted. Chiasaki would have never allowed any of this. She doesn’t freeze or feel that horrible feeling in her chest at the thought of him anymore. Instead she only felt... Something else. It was a warmer feeling, one that settled in her gut. It took a few days of this new feeling to be recognized and named- anger. She wasn’t as afraid anymore, that had grown into anger. How could anything in this so-called “sick” place ever be bad? She admires her color-stained hands, the shoes that were allowed to remain dirty, the softness of fresh mud during a rainstorm under her hands. Sand between her fingers, dust wiped away from glass to reveal a view of the forest. Eri doesn’t care if she’s cursed. She doesn’t care if this entire world is covered in little germs that would make her sick. Eri loves it so much. - A look at Eri and her relationship with cleanliness

Within Rime and Reason

1. He reached up to touch the base of his scar. Somehow, without the red hair framing it, it looked almost like a birthmark. Less of a harsh, angry burn scar and more of a memory. He didn’t look like a man with a tragic past, he looked like a boy. If he wasn’t completely blind in that eye, he would almost believe it was one. “You look so manly,” Kirishima breathes. “No,” Todoroki says with a smile. “I look like my mother. I look womanly.” 2. And suddenly so many pieces of the puzzle drop into place. His eye is unseeing. White pupil. Milky iris. With the skin around it poreless and hairless. Easy to cover up with makeup. Oil-less and unmoisturized. Like a scar. Like a burn. “Todoroki,” Mina says softly. The brush she’s holding drops to her lap. “This isn’t a birthmark I’m covering up, is it?” - Todoroki gets a makeover. Emotional conversations happen.

have fun and enjoy!

[ailithnight]

A King In Arkham

Henceforth, you will need an AO3 account to read this there.

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Danny was having a very confusing week.

It started with being kidnapped from his room in Arkham by a human tank that called himself Red X. Red X took him to a "safehouse" which was actually a repurposed warehouse. Then fed him the first non-hospital meal he'd had had in months.

Danny is a bit ashamed to admit he moaned at the first bite of a burger from the local fast food franchise. He'd all but forgotten how good food could be. Despite the mask, Danny got the impression that X was giving him a look at the sound. What kind of look, Danny wasn't sure.

Confusion or amusement would make sense. Danny could certainly imagine himself confused or amused if he heard someone moan into their Nasty Meal. But for some reason, some instinct told him that the emotion behind the look was closer to anger with an undercurrent of sorrow. Which Danny just couldn't wrap his head around. What about him appreciating a good burger could make X angry and/or sad?

Then again, maybe Danny shouldn't bother trying to wrap his head around Red X's behavior at all. The whole experience with him made no sense. He kidnaps Danny, apparently as a favor for someone who wasn't Vlad. Feeds his victim and puts him in bed. (Its too soft, too warm, Danny can't sleep in it. X gives him another one of those weird looks when he finds Danny splayed out, not quite dozing on the cool concrete floor.)

And the next day just, drops Danny off in some random woman's office at the Gotham Gazette's headquarters. Leaving him there at the ass crack of dawn like his job was done, instead of meeting with anyone to hand Danny off to whoever he'd been kindnapped for. Nothing about his interactions with Red X made any sense.

But of course, that was just the start of the week.

The woman who came in to find Danny in her office then proceeded to, well, scream first, which was an entirely justified reaction to finding an Arkham patient in you office the day after a break out. But then, instead of turning him over to the authorities, she gave him a bottle of water and proceeded to spend the next several hours 'interviewing' him. It was afternnon before she finally called security to have Danny returned to Arkham. If he hadn't still been so used to skipped meals from his time Before, he's sure his body would have been protesting the extended interview loudly.

Once the police picked him up, they interrogated him for another few hours about how he escaped. Danny was nothing but honest, though of course they didn't believe him. No one did these days. But that's okay. Eventually they were able to pull the Arkham security tapes to corroborate Danny's story. Once the saw it for themselves, they finally relented and called a transport truck to take Danny home.

Of course, then the Arkham guards had to spend an hour reprimanding him for the 'escape attempt'. He tells them earnestly that he had nothing to do with his own kidnapping. No one believes that of course. It seems they think that Danny's previous good behavior was a manipulation tactic.

They tell him no one will be falling for that again. That's fine. They tell him he's lost privileges for a month. That's fine too. Tell him he's lucky they don't move him to the max security wing. Danny doesn't think he'd mind if they did.

Finally, finally, they let him go back to his room around 7:30. It's a couple hours yet until lights out, but Danny doesn't care. He almost collapses into the thin mattress. It is by no objective means comfortable. But it is familiar. And Danny finds comfort in that. He falls asleep easily.

Some hours later, after lights out, Danny jolts awake from a... dream? It wasn't quite a good dream, but it wasn't quite The Nightmare either. It's already slipping out of his mind, but he has the vague sense it involved X and burgers and a chill creeping in his throat.

It must couldn't have been an entirely pleasant dream. For one, Danny doesn't get good dreams anymore. For another, he opens his eyes to a familiar black void hovering above him, the pit in his stomach deepening with her lingering touch.

As much as her presence makes his sins weigh heavier on his soul, Danny can't help but give Spectra a small smile. That... startles her, he thinks. In an instant, the cool hand leaching warmth and resonating with that hollow ache inside him is gone. He misses it.

The next morning, Danny has a new therapist, again. Seeing this one is a punch in the gut. There aren't really a bunch of similarities. Just blue-green eyes and long red hair. But just those 2 is enough to hurt. To remember that Jazz will never get to be here, sitting in that chair, talking to her patients, making Arkham a better place like she'd wanted ever since she heard Harley Quinn's story. Jazz will never get to chase her dreams and it's all his fault.

Danny tries, he really does and even mostly succeeds, to not get lost in his own head while they go through the normal routine. It's always the same question. Except... this time it deviates. Dr. Sparrow doesn't press at the self harm issue like all the others. She presses her lips, clearly dissatisfied with Danny's answer, but she lets it slide.

"Would you like to talk about the break out, Danny?" For the first time in 3 long months, Danny has heard a new question. Of course it's that one, but still, it's new. Danny can't decide whether or not he likes it. He shrugs.

"It happened. I got kidnapped." Dr. Sparrow is looking at him weird. She doesn't look unhappy or doubtful. In fact, she almost looks understanding, like she believes him. She looks too much like Jazz. It hurts. Danny looks away.

"You understand why it is difficult to believe you were an unwilling victim, don't you, Danny?" He shrugs. "Not only are very few people privy to the information that you are a patient here, but security footage also doesn't show you putting up any kind of a fight against your supposed kidnapper." She even sounds like Jazz, presenting her logical arguments.

"I... I don't know what you want me to say." She sighs.

"I just want to understand. I can't help you if you don't talk to me, Danny." I can't help you if you don't talk to me, Little Brother. Danny can't help the full body flinch. Anger, misplaced aggression surges under his skin. It feels like ice in his veins.

"Understand what! Everyone I love is dead because of me! Because I tried to take one shortcut and couldn't handle the consequences! And this! This is the better outcome! This time I won't hurt any more people." The reminder of what his grief causes makes the anger evaporate, leaving behind that familiar hollowness. "That's all that matters. As long as I don't get anyone else killed... Vlad is the only one who could hurt me in any way that matters. S'long as I don't end up with him, I don't care."

Danny is pretty sure he knows what J- Dr. Sparrow is going to say about that. He doesn't want to hear it. He can't stand to hear it. So he lets his mind slip away. When he tunes back in, the guard is there to escort him back to 26B. He glances at Dr. Sparrow. Her grim frown and worried eyes are too familiar. It makes the hollowness shudder, a spark of oh so dangerous care catching inside.. He wants to... he needs to...

"I'm sorry, Dr. Sparrow. For shutting down." Her eyes widen, concern vanishing into shock. "You remind me of my sister. She wanted to be a psychologist here too." With that, he turns around and lets the guard lead him back to his room.

The rest of the day is mostly a haze to Danny. He's peripherally aware of someone bringing around lunch, then later dinner. Danny briefly picks at the food, but he doesn't think he's hungry.

The third day starts with them telling him Dr. Sparrow cancelled there therapy session. She won't be seeing him anymore.

That's good.

She doesn't need to waste her valuable care on him. She's better off treating someone who could actually get better. Someone who can do more than just not cause trouble. Someone worthy of a life outside of Arkham.

It'll take them at least a day or 2 to assign him a new doctor. Danny expects the rest of the day to be a blur in his room. But some time after lunch, a guard comes and escorts him to a section of the hospital Danny has never been before. The visitation wing. There, waiting in a small privacy room, is the Head Doctor, the Cheif of Security, and a stranger in a trench coat who for some reason makes Danny's skin crawl with a desire to get very far away very fast.

The Cheif of Security looks at Trench Vibes, clearly disgruntled. "Is this really necessary?"

Trench Vibes responds in a heavy British accent. "Official Justice League Dark business, mate." Danny's surprise is almost enough for him to actually feel it. "Word has it, kid's got ghosts. I'm just hear to check up on that." Head Doctpr sputters a moment.

"Surely you don't mean to imply the ghost's could actually exist? Ghosts are not real, sir." Trench Vibes snorts.

"Sure. Next you'll tell me that magic ain't real either." Head Doctor opens his mouth to rebut, but then a golden light swirls around Trench Vibes' fingertips and that seems to make the Doctor rethink a few things. "Now, if you'll give me a few minutes with the kid, then I'll be out of your hair." He waits for the Doctor, Chief, and guard to all leave the room before he even looks at Danny. "I really hope I don't have to be the one to tell you your a little bit dead, kid."

"Danny."

"John Constantine."

Welp, no reason to lie here. ". . . I know I'm half ghost."

"Good. Well, not good that you're half dead, but good that you know. That would not be a fun conversation. Not that this one is much better. You're being haunted?"

"Not much anymore. It's okay." Trench Vibes, John Constantine, just gives Danny a disbelieving look. "Honest Mr. Constantine. I think they're getting bored since I won't fight them anymore."

"Anymore?"

"I'm from Amity Park. Ghost fights were a pretty regular thing there."

"I'm sorry, what? You're telling me there's a town under seige by ghosts and we didn't know about it?"

"You didn't... know? I mean, it's probably fine now. The ghosts mostly came to give me grief. Plus, I'm sure Vlad has dismantled my parent's portal by now."

"Portal?"

"To the Ghost Zone."

"Your parents had a portal to the Infinite Realms!?"

"Is that what you call the swirling green place?" Mr. Constantine sighs. He reaches a hand into his coat, but comes up empty. Whatever he was reaching for must have been confiscated before he could bring it into the hospital.

"So let me get this straight. Your parents opened a portal to the... Ghost Zone. No doubt flooded your whole town with enough ambient ecto to allow powerful physical manifestations. You somehow ended up half dead. Ghost start appearing. They fight you, you fight back, and now that you've left this Amity Park, those ghosts followed you here to continue haunting you."

"Pretty much."

"Why did you stop fighting back?"

". . . We aren't in Amity anymore. They can't hurt anyone."

"They've been hurting you." Trench Vibes has a scathing deadpan. If Danny could muster any feeling, he might be ashamed. Of course, as it were the closest thing he's experiencing to feeling right now is that prickling sensation that he should not be anywhere near Mr. Constantine.

"They can't hurt anyone that matters." Mr. Constantine abruptly stands.

"Nope. Nope, nope, nope. I am not equipped for this. I am reporting back to the Bat and then I guess I'm going to Illinois to figure out what the hell happened and why Dark didn't know about it." Mr. Constantine vanishes in a flash of light. A few seconds later, the guard comes and takes Danny back to his room.

At some point during day 4, Walker visits. Again, the surprise is almost strong enough to break through the cold hollow feeling in his chest. Almost. Walker had only visited once, the day they sent him here, to gloat over seeing the Halfa Punk finally imprisoned for his crimes.

The warden glances around his empty room, then settles for staring at Danny. Time passes, lunch and dinner a blur where Danny, for the 4th day in a row, barely eats a third of each meal. Walker is stares at him the whole time. It's kind of creepy and Danny almost wants to snap at him. Almost. Instead he lies on. his cot and traces cracks in his ceiling like he's looking at constellations. Finally, just after lights out, Walker does more than stare. He speaks.

"Effective immediately, your previous sentencing has been overturned and all other charges are dropped. You are no longer Wanted, punk. Keep your nose clean. I never want to see you in my prison again." Danny spends most of the night thinking about Walker's change of heart and not being wanted as a ghost anymore.

The fifth day is mostly normal. Spectra shows back up. Danny doesn't make the mistake of smiling at her or acknowledging her at all really. He doesn't want to scare her off again. He missed her. She seems upset. She practically gouges his heart out with the ferocity with which she plunges her clawed hand into his chest to feast. She's not in the slightest gentle with how she drags more and more misery from him, through him. Danny doesn't mind the ache. He's just happy, to whatever empty extent he can be happy, that someone is reaping some meager benefit from his still beating heart.

Day 6 passes much the same with Spectra hovering over him the whole day.

Finally, day 7. The final day to finish out the most disorienting week of Danny's short life. The grand finale of confusion starts with Danny back in the visitation wing. Spectra stays with him right up until they walk into that same little room from 3 days ago, where Danny sees Mr. Kincaid, the social worker he met once when he arrived in Gotham, and a man in a fancy business suit. Mr. Business stands up and smiles, looking for all the world like Danny had made his day by walking in the room.

"Hello Danny, my name is Bruce Wayne."

[my-pjo-stuff]

AU where Luke manages to barely survive TLO, but with everyone but the gods still thinking he died. Due to his role in the prophecy and Hermes' begging, the gods allow Luke to live under three conditions: 1. He is forever exiled from the immortal/mythical world as a whole. 2. He is never allowed to purposefully seek contact with any other demigod or other mythical being ever again

3. He is never allowed to ever tell anyone of what happened if they do not know of the events of the Second Titan War already.

Now this is obviously not Luke's dream scenario, but he can live with it. Ofcourse does he still despise the gods and camp, but he's smart enough to know that he can do litteraly nothing against them. So he does the only thing he can do, he settles with what he's got. And honestly? There are worse things than Luke's life in the mortal world. He managed to get himself a nice, well paying job organizing and planning events for people. (Who ever knew his years of experience in taking care of the Hermes Cabin would ever come in handy?). He's got himself a good flat to live in, some friends, and even contemplates getting himself a dog. He volunteers at a homeless shelter every other weekend and has an all around nice life.

Ofcourse that'll be messed up pretty quickly. In this AU Percy got sort of lost during his time on the streets without his memories. He doesn't find Camp Jupiter like he did in canon, instead somehow finding himself in the city Luke decided to settle in. Not that Percy knows that. Anyway, it's a rainy and cold night and Percy is all alone. Hungry and with no money to go anywhere the kid decides to to the next logical thing- rummaging through dumpsters and hoping to find something semi-edible. Experience taught him that most people don't really like homeless teenagers going through their trash though, and he really doesn't want to end up in police custody. So he pulls up his hood over his head and decides to search for a smaller dumpster that doesn't seem to be too closely surveilled. After looking around a bit he finally manages to find a good candidate. A nice group of trashcan at the side of one of these multi-flat residential buildings.

He immediately get's to work.

All Luke wanted to do on the other hand was bring out the trash he forgot to take out yesterday when he went out. Instead what he sees as soon as he get's near his building's designated dumpster side a scarily thin teen rummaging through his trash in far too dirty clothes. Everyone who knows Luke will tell you that the guy has the biggest soft spot for the homeless, and especially for homeless children and teenagers. So when he sees the kid going through the trash in the pouring rain it doesn't take long for him to connect the dots. It's dark and the rain makes the vision even worse, so Luke doesn't realize who exactly he's talking to when he asks the kid what they are doing. The kid doesn't respond, just going rigid, so Luke keeps talking. He asks if they are cold, or if he should call anyone for them. Luke questions whether they ran away or are fleeing from someone. He also offers the kid to come inside, get out of the rain and someplace warm. They could take a shower, get their belly filled and a nice night of rest. Or they could wait outside and just take a warm meal, Luke understands that they gotta be suspicious of everyone living on the streets. Especially older men offering a place to stay. Percy knows he shouldn't take the offer. He has no idea who Luke is or wether or not this is a trap. But part of his mind just knows that he knows that guy. Not to mention his stomach still growling in protest and him being freezing cold in the rain. So he decided to go inside with Luke against all common sense. The older is just glad he can get the poor child out of the rain. He doesn't realize that the kid is Percy until the two are already back in Luke's flat, and Percy takes off his hood to introduce himself. (Listen, the guy just invited him inside- Percy thinks it's fair for him to introduce himself and ask the other's name). Luke just PANICKS internally, because wtf what is Percy Jackson doing here?????? Shouldn't be be at camp???? or at school???? Why does he act like they don't know each other???? He barely manages to avoid freaking when Percy asks what his name is, and why he's helping him. Luke introduces himself (maybe Percy just didn't recognize him? He did grow his hair out-) and just says that he's got a soft spot for the homeless. Percy still doesn't recognize Luke, and instead get's told to go take a shower by the older. And that he'd slay down a few of his own spare clothes for him to wear. Percy follows it, and Luke just slumps together as soon as Percy's gone and he set down the clothes he promised him. The whole reason he sent him to shower is so Luke can have his mental breakdown for a second and figure out how to proceed. Percy obviously must have hit his head or something, considering his complete lack of even the slightest of reaction to him. But why isn't he at camp or with his mother? When Percy returns Luke decides to attempt to figure out what happened to the guy. He pokes at Percy, asking what he's doing here. Where is parents are, if he got any place to go. The younger would have been suspicious normally, but the guy seems pretty nice and he has an odd sense of familiarity to him- so he intends to tell Luke the truth. He has amnesia, got no idea who he is or where he comes from- but he's followed by monsters. Which is why he's on the run and on the move. He also asks after the meal Luke promised. The older, despite being confused af, quickly decides to get Percy something to eat. By now it's clear that something more is going on, but Luke isn't sure what. He would contact Camp Halfblood if he could, tell them to get Percy. But the conditions of his amnesty forbid it. He isn't sure how much he can tell Percy of his past either due to the same reason. But he can't just let the kid run around all around either! Just look at him- he looked like a feral raccoon before Luke picked him up, And he's even more tired and thin than his 12 year old self. Luke's pretty sure that if he let's Percy go now he might just die on the streets or something.

 So he does the next best things, he explains to Percy that he's a demigod kid of Poseidon- that's why the monsters follow and attack him- and that normally he should be at a place called Camp Halfblood. He doesn't know why he isn't there right now, but that he needs to return as soon as he can. Luke confesses to Percy that they have a...history, so to speak. And that he probably wouldn't want to hang around him much longer would he have his memories- Luke can't really elaborate much on that though due to some rather personal reasons.

Percy isn’t really sure what to think of this. On one hand, this story sounds absolutely nuts. On the other, part of him just knows that the guy is telling the truth. Yet Percy also knows what is following him, and he simply doesn't want to risk going to wherever this "Camp Halfblood" is. He doesn't know what Luke means with "history", but he seems nice enough- and certainly strong. Percy asks if Luke can go with him, Luke says he can't. Percy replies travelling alone is too dangerous, he's got monsters trailing him. Luke, feeling a bit guilty for what he'd done to Percy in the past while also taking pity on him, decides that it should be fine if he stays here for a while. Camp surely sent out more than enough scouts that should discover Percy sooner or later. Until then we just tell the mortals that Percy is Luke's younger brother coming to visit for an internship with him.

[goldenfigtree]

Noise Complaint

Summary: AU where Leon Kennedy's first day isn't being attacked by zombies but handling a noise complaint which leads to a... miscommunication on your part

Pairing: Leon Kennedy x Fem Reader (no use of y/n)

Warnings: Fluff

A/N: Okay this is Part 1 of a concept that I thought was pretty humorous. part two here! The Porch Swing.

Feel free to let me know what you think :)

The police car door shut abruptly from the force of Office Kennedy’s arm. Hands dropping to his side, he feels the ground pulse a rhythm beneath him. His eyes scanned the area before they planted on the view of a house, neon lights projecting out of it. He let out a sigh of agitation. 

When he told the chief he was ready to go on patrol this wasn’t exactly what he meant. He figured he’d be doing what he signed up for in the first place. Helping people, not telling partygoers to keep their music down. It was definitely given to him because no one else wanted to do it. Give the rookie the dirty work while the other more experienced officers do the real work. That’s definitely what they did. But hey, he had to start somewhere. With a huff of encouragement to himself, he approaches the house, which is practically vibrating with party music and boisterous laughter, and knocks. 

To no avail.

Tightening his lips, he knocks again.

Still nothing.

He holds up his fist to knock on the door one last time until the door suddenly swings open, revealing you. A red cup in your hand and the other hand gripping for dear life on the door knob as you hold your weight against the door. 

“Heyyyy” you slur, a bubbly giggle trailing behind it. lowering his fist, he hesitantly greets you back, 

“Uh.. hi. I’m here because we received a noise complaint for this locat—“ 

“Oohhh” you interrupt, “that’s right, the noise complaint” in a fit of giggles you smile at him mischievously. For what reason, Leon had no idea. But seeing that you were obviously drunk, he just figured you were just saying things, to say things,

“Right” he gingerly responds, narrowing his eyes at your demeanor, “I’m going to have to ask you to turn down the volume a bit” 

“Uh huh” you say mindlessly before grabbing his wrist and pulling him into the chaotic environment,

“Leslie the stripper is here!” 

“The what?!” Leon exclaims. However you don’t hear him over the loud music and drag him through the crowds of people, “I’m not a stripper!” He yells over the music 

“Yeah I know you’re a stripper! You know you’re actually a half hour late!” You yell back, 

“No, I said I’m not a—“ 

“Leslie! There you are!” Once you find a familiar face wearing a bridal sash, you come to a sudden halt, Leon bumping into you in the process with an annoyed groan, “the stripper is here!” You teasingly say in a sing-song voice. 

While you were fully convinced that officer Kennedy was a stripper, her friend panically glanced between you and him, “um, that’s an actual cop” Leslie says sheepishly. You, still drunk and still brutally honest, turn your head to look at him. Your eyelids lower and lift as you shamelessly check him out, 

“Are you sure? He’s too hot to be a cop” the sentence alone makes the hairs on his arms stand up and all the blood in his body rush to his face. With all the patience he has, he takes a deep inhale and leans forward to speak to Leslie,

“There’s been multiple noise complaints about this party so I suggest you put this party to rest or I will” Leon says loud enough for both you and Leslie to hear. Before you could protest, Leslie swings an arm around you and covers your mouth with her hand. 

“We’ll close it down, sorry about the inconvenience” Leslie says apologetically while you try to wriggle free from her grasp. Begrudgingly, Leon moves his way through the crowd until he finally makes it to the door. Relieved to finally be out of the chaos he sits in his police car and leans his head against the headrest, 

“One hell of a first day” he murmurs to himself. 

—

The next morning was less chaotic than the booming music and the overwhelming smell of alcohol of the night prior. However, against his will, he was reminded of last night by his fellow police officers once he walked in, asking how the patrol went. Not wanting to be the laughing stock of the police station as a cherry on top, he failed to mention the part where you called him a stripper. 

Yeah, he still hasn’t gotten over it. 

After a bit of poking fun, he started his work day with paperwork. Although boring, he’d take filling out forms over being mistaken for stripper anyway. He hoped the mindless work would take his mind off of it. Yet, it only made him dwell even further. The thought of it made him aggressively swish and press his pen tip harder on the paper as he signed his signature in one designated box. 

“Hey Rosa” His head snaps up at the sound of a familiar voice. He couldn’t forget that voice even if he tried. Turning he sees you conversing with the receptionist at the front desk,

“Hey how’s it going?” The receptionist greets 

“The usual, just dropping off lunch for Will” you casually say, holding a paper bag in one hand and a pair of sunglasses in the other. Standing up from his desk, he readies himself to confront you once and for all. One foot after the other, he gets closer and closer to the front desk. However, you’re so enthralled in your conversation with the receptionist that you only look up when he clears his throat. You look at him and politely smile, in which Leon doesn’t return, 

“Hi, I’m Officer Kennedy” 

“New recruit? I don’t think I’ve seen you before” Your polite smile soon drops when you notice Leon giving you an incredulous look. All of a sudden, all the things he was going to say to tell you off fell back into his throat. His tongue felt like it was stuck to the top of his mouth, “Are you okay? You don’t look so good” you ask softly, your eyes filled with concern. 

She doesn’t remember anything from last night? Of course she doesn’t remember she was drunk! What was I thinking?

His mind was spinning. Expecting a careless, bigmouthed partygoer, he is instead met with a nice girl with a pretty smile. How the hell was he going to get out of this without looking like a dumbfound idiot?

Clearing his throat he tries his best to calm his nerves, although it was a bit of a dumpster fire in his mind at the moment, “Do you… need something?” He musters to ask. Flashing a sweet smile again, you lift up the paper bag you were holding, 

“My brother works here, just dropping off his lunch. He always forgets it” 

“Ah.. well it was nice to meet you” Leon weakly greets with a shy grin backing away from the receptionist desk slowly to his own desk.

“You too, see you around” 

And with that, he resumes his paperwork, his mind spinning like a tire rolling from its axel. Not sure what to think anymore when it came to you. Was he supposed to act like nothing happened? He didn’t know if he could. Subconsciously shaking his head free from his dwelling he decides that it’s a problem for another day.

[riverkingmarley]

My kind of core reason I didn’t like season 2 was the lack of political backdrop for the show.

Something I loved about the original was how all the characters seemed to like and care about each other but were torn apart by politics. Vander and Silco being close until whatever happened at the protest tore them apart. Jinx and Vi being ripped apart by Silco’s power grab and later by Vi’s unwillingness to stay with her sister when she kills cops. Jinx and Ekko basically fighting for the same general goal but Ekko refusing to ally with Silco’s methods. Jayce and Victor torn apart by Jayce’s loyalty to power and victor’s deteriorating health caused by Piltover’s pollution.

None of these people really hated each other personally but we’re all fighting because of the pre-existing political situation putting them at odds.

But in season 2 arc 1 they fight because Cait wants to kill Jinx. This wouldn’t be a problem in itself if they didn’t have this be shown to lead Cait down a path of police brutality and dictatorship that is never dealt with outside of her feeling kind of bad at the end.

Then arc 3 has everyone fighting Victor and Ambessa.

I have no idea what politics Victor is suppose to represent if any so that part isn’t compelling. Especially because it ignores that Victor was dying and it was implied his illness was caused by pollution. His whole story around wanting to help Zaun is twisted into being a bad thing. Which again isn’t awful except that nothing is done for Zaun in the end and they just act like all the problems were resolved.

I found everything with Ambessa really interesting though. Not just because she’s a compelling villain but because I found Mel’s story baffling. Why did she take over her mothers position in the end? Why did she say “you are no Medarda” to her mother? Wasn’t the point to show that her mothers facist ‘we are all equal on the battlefield’ ideology was wrong? Was the lesson just that Medarda wasn’t doing a good enough job? Is Mel just going to do the same stuff her mother did now? That all felt like it came out of nowhere.

The lack of solid politics in the show made it feel like a lot of the characters were just going through the motions rather than a real plot pushing the narrative forward.

Other assorted thoughts:

Did that child know she was going to suicide bomb Jinx’s dad at the end of arc 2? Why did she do that? Was she worried Vander was going to kill the soldiers? Did she just want to disrupt the battle to save Jinx? If so, why did she stand next to Vander when she did it? Not super clear what happened there.

At the beginning of arc 2 when the have that black and white sequence that ends on a shot of caits face I though the shadow on her lapels were suppose to make it look like she had swastikas on her shoulders but I guess that was just a coincidence lol.

Cait and Vi broke up with Cait hitting Vi hard enough to bring her to her knees. Then Cait has a training montage where she learns to fight more and be more like Ambessa. Then when Cait and Vi reunite the first thing that happens is Cait uses the techniques Ambessa taught her to hurt Vi. And somehow this is framed like a meet cute moment where they get back together and not showing how Cait has sunken further and further under Ambessas influence. And then the next part of Vi’s plan involves Cait hitting Vi again.

It’s crazy that Cait is just hanging around at the end after gassing civilians in arc 1. That’s such an anti climactic conclusion. I would have had her living in a cave for a decade to try and come to terms with what she did or something. You can’t gas kids then just walk that off.

Jinx is going to kill herself and then Ekko stops her and they have some sort of heart to heart off screen. But then at the end jinx uses the same weapon she built to kill herself with to explode Vander and herself to save Vi. So the message is… suicide is good? If I were writing it I would not have the suicidal character use their suicide weapon of choice to kill herself in a heroic moment.

I think there was a missed opportunity in showing how Maddie is presented as super pro cop and then becomes a spy for Ambessa as a way to show how Piltovers and Noxus aren’t that different despite their more liberal front.

We’re the purple bleeding Noxians the ones upgraded by Victor? That wasn’t super clear. Purple hadn’t really been victors colour for a while.

It’s weird that they brought back the woman that Jayce killed the child of but it didn’t really affect him or the story. Like when Jayce killed that kid it made him realize that Piltover was wrong and he tried to give up power to resolve things peacefully but he has basically no opinion or impact on Zaun in season 2. Jayce was confronted by the fact he murdered a child and the fact a statue of Caitlyn’s mother got caught in the middle had more of an impact.

The dialog in arc 1 didn’t feel right to me. Did anyone else have that thought? Idk it just felt too cutesy and self referential for coming right after the episode where jinx bombs the council. Maybe that was just me though. I thought it was much better in arc 2.

I though Vi’s ‘i choose wrong every time’ line was a little weird. I feel like all her wrong choices in the show were abandoning Jinx. 1. After jinx bombed the factory 2. After jinx bombed the bridge 3. When Vi became a cop to hunt down jinx. What other bad choices did she make? I feel like the other stuff wasn’t in her control. And then trusting Jinx and letting her out of the cell is framed as the wrong choice? Idk.

Can’t believe they had the sex scene happen in a prison cell. Awful optics with the massive amount of sexual violence perpetrated by cops in cells and the back of Cop Cars. They should have just gone to Caits office or something.

Did Sevika talk at all post arc 2?

I thought Sevika’s arm was a little too silly. I’ve seen some people point out the whole gambling aspect of it which I cool but I think the shark face is just a little too wacky for her character. I cringe every time I see the design.

I cant believe they brought Sky back and still didn’t give her a character outside of ‘woman who exists to impact Victors arc’. It was one of the worsts parts of season 1 and now it’s bad in season 2 as well.

I don’t know why they killed Heimerdinger. They already had a way to write him out of the story by dropping him in the other dimension and I didn’t feel anything when he died. Falls flat.

[sonicboomseason3]

this is really fucked up, but one of the reasons why actors tend to not speak out on big political topics is because on some contracts, production companies will include clauses such as not being able to publicly contradict their political beliefs. this is enforced through either monetary penalties and non disparagement agreements, but they both serve the same purpose of having a legal precedent to publicly punish actors who do it

i was originally just gonna respond to this with an "ok" and nothing else but then i caught a good handful of people in my notes dickriding an actor who doesn't even know that they exist (and really only him because i haven't seen anyone doing the same for marsden or pally) so ykw how about i just take this opportunity to bring up a couple of other sketch things that keanu has done that show that he isn't nearly as cool as everyone wants to believe:

the party with netanyahu isn't actually the only time he's rubbed elbows with a prominent israeli - he actually trained with IOF special ops vet aaron cohen in order to play john wick (and on the off chance that anyone wants to dismiss cohen as some guy who was just in the IOF decades ago and left that shit behind, just take a look at his history here). cohen on his own is just an absolute piece of work and a cursory glance at his social media should tell you everything in case the past couple of sentences didn't

and since people want to play the fucking "keanu attended that party a decade ago!!1!" card with me (interestingly enough nobody's doing the same for marsden even though the thing with him was way back in like 2004) i'll go for something relatively recent: he's friends with killer cop toni mcbride. in 2020 mcbride shot and killed daniel hernandez and subsequently got sued by his family for it (guess whose movies they've requested that people boycott?). around the 0:10 mark of this video of the two of them meeting up, they make jokes about "shootin' newton," which is a chant lapd newton division cops came up with to reference the high amount of police shootings that happen there. also in case none of this is enough for you mcbride's a proud trump supporter so yeah she's just a full-on white supremacist and keanu not only decided to hang out with her for a day but also evidently knew enough about the lapd to know about "shootin' newton"

but back to anon's original point, am i supposed to care that he could potentially get fined for saying shit? this past week, hundreds of college students and faculty, most if not all of whom are significantly worse off than an a-list celebrity like keanu, have been brutalized and arrested for protesting the genocide on campuses. and somehow an actor with a net worth of $380 million can't say or do anything lest he run the risk of being fined or fired or whatever

[fromchaostocosmos]

So there goes another youtuber that I am no longer going to be subscribed to.

I'm sorry but if you are going to about the student protests and say nothing about the rampant and widespread antisemitism that is a part of said protests then you are not serious.

If you are going to be talking about Israel and it's actions and your only source is Al Jazeera then you are not serious.

And if your final conclusion is that both USA political parties are the same, both presidential nominees are the same and so you won't be voting then you are not serious.

When you have a platform the things you say and do have consequences. Advocating to not vote or even just rationalizing why you won't vote is dangerous even at the best of times when the GOP is one of the two parties in this country. But this is not the best of times and so it is beyond dangerous to doing that.

Especially when Trump is one of the nominees and he is some one who has no interest in rules, checks and balances, or really anything other then total unlimited power.

The reality is that by not voting millions of Americans rights and lives are risk. Access to abortion, civil liberties, any notion of curtailing police brutality, queer rights, same sex marriage, trans rights, and so much more the I can list.

That is what is being endangered because you refuse to vote, something which already is a privilege.

Because lets not forget that 1) many people all over the world do not have the this right or in many countries like Russia for example they may call it voting, but it is not really voting when the winner is already decided beforehand

2) there are people in the USA who can not vote like for example undocumented people, do you think that not voting will protect them and their rights.

Frankly the whole not voting thing sits on foundation made of hypocrisy which is about a useful as building a house on quicksand.

I'm so sick and tired and also disgusted by leftists refusal to condemn antisemitism, to actual educated themselves on both antisemitism and Israel, Palestine, and the history. As well this whole refusal to vote thing.

I'm also so disgusted and really tired of bullshit hypocrisy when it comes to antisemitism. The way that leftists will not examine their own biases, systemic and endemic antisemitism, just how far back antisemitism goes and just how many things have roots in antisemitism, and more.

If you would like you watch the video for yourself you can do so here.

[itsnothingofinterest]

My Big Dumb PLF Advisor Theory for the War Arc

Alright, I said I’d do it, so here’s my entirely self-indulgent rambling on what I think would be interesting theory post on what I think the unaccounted PLF Advisors, especially the first ranked Advisors we’ve barely seen anything of, will do this arc. Since a few of them have been rising to brief prominence this arc, but strangely only the 2nd ranks. So the League’s top henchmen of established designs must get to do something too right?

Namely, tying into my theory of a My Hero part 2 fuelled by how, among other reasons, this is a really anticlimactic final battle[1]; I think a big play on the Advisors’ part will be a coordinated move to salvage the villains’ operation from AFO’s incompetence and help the League escape this unwinnable conflict & live to be saved another, more dramatic day.

In other words, it’s a revamped prison break-out theory.

The time? Right after the war, since Geten mentions he & Compress have nothing to do until then and I decided to read that in as conspiratorial a way as possible: that they have something planned to do after the battles ends.

With the in mind, what would this salvage operation look like:

Well as said, though many Advisors are unaccounted for in this war, the stars of this theory are the 1st ranked Advisors. Of whom; 1 is imprisoned, 1 was seen with Spinner for a panel before Spider-guy took focus, and the other 5 have not been seen as I’m aware.

Additionally, targets they might be interesting to hit are:

The apparent police station seeming to house the PLF higher ups, assuming Garaki really is in the same place as Compress & Geten.

Whatever location is housing the other ~115,000 PLF soldiers. (If they also have the 10,000 jailbreakers to round us out at a nice even eighth of a million, that'd be great.)

Gunga & UA are both interesting cases in that, the PLF effort definitely needs people here picked up, yet it's very possible those people could do it themselves. Maybe that could be Machia's big roll in proceedings. And of course Shigaraki’s Warp can still come into play.

Need to pick up Spinner, Spider-guy, and maybe any unconvinced heteromorphic protesters from Central (probably bug woman's job).

Skeptic could use a rescue.

And if they wanted to pick up the villains from Kamino, the aquarium, & the stadium, that'd be fine, but there’s not a lot of villains there and we don’t really care about any of them anyways[2]. So, y'know...

That’s the rough priority order anyway; amounting to 7~9 targets if they wanted to be thorough, although there are a few that could get skipped. But is thorough even an option? Unless electric guy can break out of wherever he’s being held himself, aren’t there more targets here than Advisors left active? Well there’s also a ton of unaccounted for 3rd ranks and more 2nd ranks, but I have another idea.

You see: I prank’d ya! I’m also incorporating yet another wild theory of mine that accounts for that. I also think there’s even more unaccounted for, secret Advisors. 

After all, we’ve only got Advisors for 7 of the 9 Lieutenants of the Liberation Front. That’s pretty weird right? Why don’t RD & Trumpet have advisors? They’ve got the same position and roughly as much seniority & experience as Skeptic. Well, I propose they do have advisors, their existence was simply kept from Hawks. A classic big-shonen-villain-group trope I’m sure you’re all familiar with.

But if so, you may wonder, why would they be hidden? Well I’ve got a theory on that too; it’s because they’re the heroes Geten mentioned Compress talking too and getting information from. We know the MLA has hero members, so if a few didn’t go to any meetings for Hawks to spot them at, perhaps their duties keeping them away or perhaps as a back-up plan a la Machia; they might still be active and able to talk with jailed Lieutenants & hit as many locations of interest as they like[3].

It also means an established villain like Compress or Redestro could be behind the operation. And as much as I think an Advisor masterminding this plot would be cool, it could border on “coming out of nowhere” for an unestablished villain to pull this off, so that alternative might be for the best.

So yeah, basic rundown of the salvage operation is pretty simple after all that set-up. I kind of figure the #1 Advisors would all get their own thing to do where they can, make a name for themselves;

As said, Spinner’s bug woman Advisor could rescue him, she is right there after all,

Maybe Skeptic’s could bail him out.

Twice’s Advisor Sanctum (1 of like 3~4 names we’ve got so far so I really hope he’ll get something) could rescue the grunts,

If we do get secret advisors then they might free Geten & Compress,

and Compress’ lightning guy could help from the inside of wherever he’s jailed,

Etc, etc. the details aren’t the biggest thing in the world and they’re hard to pin down anyway with so many skipable targets.

Oh but actually now that I think of it after talking about it above, it’d be really cool if Machia picked up Toga & Dabi after however their final talks with Uraraka & the Todofam go. Assuming his injury in 385 didn’t kill him; it’d be a nice epic roll for him in this arc.

And yeah, that’s the basic idea all laid out at once. Is it hopeful & optimistic given the villain writing we’ve been getting? Maybe. But it also answers a few nagging questions in the background like what Compess heard from the heroes. And besides, I like being hopeful & optimistic with the villains.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[1] I don’t want to repeat myself to much but for goodness sake, the heroes basically won back in 343. You could argue AFO had a chance to win alone until 378/379 when he lost control of Tomura, but that’s gone now. AFO would barley have a chance of winning even if he could a) get OFA, b) get it into Tomura, and c) regain control over Tomura; none of which he seems able to do. Everyone else has been on the backfoot since AFO warped them all into a trap. The war is lost. It’s why I changed my theory to have any break-out occur after the war instead of during. The PLF can do naught but escape; like Kamino or Jaku.

[2] Besides Moonfish, they have to pick up Moonfish.

[3] Man I went into a lot of detail to propose that the villains have the skilled man-power to rescue villain forces that probably aren’t worth rescuing. The aquarium, stadium, & Kamino might barely break 100 villains between them tbh. Whelp, guess that’s just what a self-indulgent theory post is like. It’s where the fun comes from.

[loudlittledemon]

Helpful protest tips!

What to WEAR:

Generic non-bright/non branded clothing, comfortable shoes (three pairs of socks- see section below ‘so you got pepper sprayed, ow’)

Goggles

Face mask (anything that can easily be tied around the mouth and nose.)

Important phone number (emergency contact or lawyer) written on arm w/ HENNA as sharpie washes off when you sweat

What to BRING:

Bottle of water for drinking and in case of pepper spray.

Cash and Identification card (the cops will 100% get you for obstruction if you don’t Id yourself- more instructions for police encounters below)

First aid supplies

Throat lozenges (you’ll be shouting a lot)

Make sure your sign/poster has a stick long enough to see the sign above your head while your hands are at your waist. A short pole means extending your arm above your head for the whole march and that gets tiring real quick.

Ear plugs

Snacks

Do NOT bring:

Phone. Seriously. If you do bring the phone, turn OFF Face ID, turn off fingerprint id, turn off data, roaming, put it in airplane mode- basically turn it into a brick that cannot be accessed any other way but by manually typing a password.

Don’t bring weapons. All they need is one excuse to say a protest is suddenly a riot.

Contact lenses. If you get pepper sprayed you want to minimize eye irritation. Taking out contacts with pepper sprayed fingers or having pepper spray stuck behind contacts is not ideal.

WHAT TO DO IF YOU ARE APPROACHED/DETAINED BY THE POLICE:

1. SAY NOTHING unless asked for ID. Identify yourself and then

2. only ask if you are being detained, and what the charges are.

3. Shut up. No, seriously. If you are detained do not speak at all. No small talk, no chatting with the other detainees. The only word that should come out of your mouth after identifying yourself and asking if you’re detained is “Lawyer”

4. Comply with all commands even though it sucks. You don’t want to rack up charges.

SO YOU GOT PEPPER SPRAYED (this applies to both liquid and aerosol)- OW:

Shit sucks. DO NOT RUB. Have a friend pour clean water into your eyes, flushing them for a good 15 seconds while wiping the rest of the spray from the face with a clean cloth (which you can find by removing your shoes and taking the inner layer of your 3 pairs of socks, see what to wear) and then stop. No milk or anything like that just straight water. After the initial rinse do not rinse again as water can reactivate it. Have someone with clean hands hold their eyes open and expose eyes to moving air (ie. fan them) if not able to do this then blink a LOT. It’ll suck for 30 minutes or so but not following the above it’ll suck for longer.

SO THE PEPPER SPRAY WAS AEROSOL/GOT IN YOUR MOUTH:

Don’t panic.

Rinse mouth + spit.

Breathe through your nose. It feels like you are dying, you are not dying.

Take a seat, try to relax. It’ll last about 30 minutes, if it lasts longer than that or you cannot take a full breath, seek medical attention. If skin has blueish tint do not wait, find an emt.

SOMEONE WANTS BLOOD? THEY ARE NOT YOUR FRIEND:

if someone at the protest tries to rile people up or incite violence the best thing to do is to ignore them, tell others around you not to engage with any hate. Like online just ignore the trolls because if you interact that’s what they want. And they’ll be real assholes about it too, but just act like they’re not there

WHAT TO DO IF-

If there is a hint of violence from either side, get out of dodge. we ain’t here for that.

If the cops use pepper spray, affix those goggles, wet your mask with clean water, hood up.

If I missed anything feel free to add. These are just from my personal protesting experience and I am by no means an expert, and there’s probably a bunch of better guides out there! Just be safe out there everybody.

[redgranola]

Sharing this here, from Chad Loder over on Bluesky. Because it seems relevant. The following is copy and pasted directly from his thread. You will need to be logged in to Bluesky to read the links, hence me laboriously copy and pasting

https://bsky.app/profile/chadloder.bsky.social/post/3lh42quaiys2z

In my self-defense classes I focus on how most people are socially conditioned to follow the norms of a civilized, polite society — and there is a MENTAL SHIFT required to use violence to defend from violence.

I'm reminded of this while watching our elected officials dithering and delaying. 1/

Marc MacYoung in his book "No-Nonsense Self Defense" talks about the Criminal Interview — a process by which a would-be attacker decides if you're safe to attack.

They start by crossing a small boundary, like approaching you on the street and then standing too close. They observe how you react. 2/

Most people will be uncomfortable with a stranger approaching them on a dark street to ask the time. Our instincts tell us we're in danger.

But many people will freeze or go along, not wanting to violate the norms of polite behavior.

A predator will note this lack of pushback and then escalate. 3/

The key to the Criminal Interview is that the would-be predator operates unconstrained by norms — all options are on the table for them.

The predator is testing how far they can push their potential victim before getting pushback.

The predator is trying to figure out "Can I get away with this?" 4

I think the fascists who are now carrying out a coup in the US have spent the last 8 years conducting a Criminal Interview of the Democratic party.

They've concluded, correctly, that the Democrats are incapable of making the mental shift required to do what's necessary to defend themselves. 5/

In these scenarios, the predator counts on their willingness to use tactics higher up on the "escalation ladder" than what the victim is willing to use.

By the time the victim makes the required mental shift, it's too late. The predator has already maneuvered them into a disadvantaged position. 6/

One could make a plausible argument that the Republicans began their Criminal Interview with the 2000 election.

After the "Brooks Brothers Riot", Democratic leadership not only acquiesced to a judicial coup, those leaders pleaded on TV to pacify a population who were ready for mass disobedience. 7/

The stolen 2000 election ushered in Bush and Cheney's lawless admin.

The invasion of Iraq was authorized with 40% of Democrats helping.

Obama never held Bush and Cheney responsible for torture and war crimes.

Last year, Biden named an aircraft carrier after Bush. Harris campaigned with Cheney 8/

In the mass protests throughout Trump's first administration, Democratic mayors and Democratic governors called out countless riot police and National Guard to brutalize and arrest protesters.

Democrats did the same with last year's campus protests over Biden's support for genocide in Gaza. 9/

Biden appointed a feckless, center-right Attorney General and did nothing while his Garland waited nearly 2 years to appoint a special prosecutor for the violent Jan 6 coup attempt.

We were told someone named the Senate Parliamentarian, who nobody voted for, was the most powerful person in DC. 10/

At every step, the liberal insitutionalists insist that the only valid means of resistance is the rotten husk of their institutions.

Anyone who tries to stop fascism using non-instutionally-approved means will be lectured, scolded, pacified, and — ultimately — violently suppressed by the state. 11/

We find ourselves with a Democratic party suffering from a chronic and fatal failure of imagination.

Clinging to the forms of institutions no longer up to the task of stopping fascism, while using what little remaining power they do have to suppress those whose eyes are open to the danger. 12/

Thus, the leaders who we elected nominally to protect our democracy are not only FAILING to protect democracy, they're actively preventing communities from doing what is necessary to protect themselves.

It reminds me of the WTC facilities personnel who told 9/11 victims not to evacuate the towers.

Here is Marc MacYoung's essay "The Criminal Interview".

It's well worth reading, even if only for traditional self-defense reasons. nononsenseselfdefense.com/interview.htm

I'll conclude this thread with a link to an excerpt from Richard J. Evans's excellent 2003 book "The Coming of the Third Reich".

He describes the paralysis and fecklessness of the liberal democratic Weimar government in the interwar period, their failure to take decisive action to save the Republic

Link to another thread by same author. This post is getting kinda long and there's still part 2, so moving on. This is a spinoff the first part

https://bsky.app/profile/chadloder.bsky.social/post/3lh5csvfmoc2h

Let's talk about the "escalation ladder". At any point in a conflict, you have a number of self-defense options ranging from lower risk (legally, ethically, physically) to higher risk. On the bottom rung of the escalation ladder are options like raising your voice. At the top would be deadly force.

Most people have legal, ethical, and social considerations that dictate how they react to a perceived threat. A person involved in a conflict is faced with a dynamic decision-making process: as the conflict unfolds, which rung of the escalation ladder is appropriate for the current situation?

When weighing options on the escalation ladder, several factors come into play: 1. The accuracy of the person's assessment of the current threat level. 2. The person's skill or familiarity with the appropriate reaction. 3. Fear or reluctance to engage due to potential negative consequences.

The first factor, rapid and accurate threat assessment, is often what people mean by "street smarts". Accurate threat assessment requires experience, and it's environment-specific. "Where you from?" means different things depending on context. It's important to know what conversation you're in.

The second factor is your level skill or experience. We're less likely to choose a rung on the escalation ladder if we feel unskilled or unpracticed with it. Regular training and conflict simulation is important. Good instructors drill things like yelling in someone's face "GET AWAY FROM ME!".

The third factor is fear or reluctance to engage in a self-defense option because of negative consequences. This is a complex exercise because your identity and place in societal hierarchies makes a big difference what the legal, social, and physical ramifications you might face for self-defense.

Here are two simple examples of how social hierarchies dictate self-defense response: 1. A man corners a woman and asks for her number. She may decide it's safer to give him a fake number than to reject him outright, because she knows men often escalate with women when they get rejected.

Another example of how social hierarchies dictate self-defense options. 2. A Black person is confronted by a white person. When deciding how to respond, a Black person have to weigh their *individualized* risks: police showing up shooting, the way our so-called criminal justice system works, etc.

A self-defense instructor who fails to take into consideration real-world factors like racism and patriarchy is doing a disservice. That said, if you want to be safer, develop skill through practice at multiple rungs of the escalation ladder. Having more options across the entire range is key.

If you ONLY practice drawing a firearm from concealed carry, you've put your only option at the very top of the escalation ladder. Most scenarios don't present themselves right away as an immediate threat to life necessitating deadly force. It's often unclear in the moment what the threat level is.

Many of us are familiar only with the very bottom rungs of the escalation ladder: "quietly acquiesce" and "complain", and the very top rung: "deadly force". This is a recipe for freezing up in a dynamic situation. The same could be said for how we think about activism and political resistance.

If your awareness of resistance tactics is limited only to the extremes of the spectrum: voting, petitions, and peaceful marching on one end; armed revolution on the other — you may be feeling frozen in this moment. Take the time to learn about direct action tactics in the middle of the spectrum.

Most people imagine they would know what to do if armed nazis began going door-to-door rounding people up. "Ah, this is it. This is the moment where we use force." Leaving aside people's capacity for self-delusion, I'd also argue that threats do not present themselves clearly until far too late.

Examples of direct action tactics in the middle of the spectrum: • Physically blocking an ICE deportation bus with your bodies. • Working with a tenants' union to do eviction defense (blocking sheriffs or security guards from evicting a family) • Organizing an "Underground Railroad" type network

The purpose of mid-spectrum direct action is to increase the cost & complexity of the enemy's operations, while putting the enemy in a dilemma. Their dilemma is: "How do we achieve our objectives without overreacting so much that we galvanize more resistance?" Basic counter-insurgency doctrine.

No enemy has infinite resources. Not even the US government. If resistance is widespread, at multiple levels, your enemy will achieve fewer things, at higher cost and more slowly. Resistance over here means they have to shift focus from over there, taking pressure off other resistance groups.

It's unfortunate that the history of the Civil Rights movement has been rewritten as "We marched peacefully until our enemies grew a conscience". MLK and SNCC accomplished a major shift in policy using a deliberate, low-grade insurgency carried out with incredible skill and decades-long strategy.