#are ok with china violating human rights

[beardedmrbean]

Hundreds of Tibetans protesting against a Chinese dam were rounded up in a harsh crackdown earlier this year, with some beaten and seriously injured, the BBC has learnt from sources and verified footage.

Such protests are extremely rare in Tibet, which China has tightly controlled since it annexed the region in the 1950s. That they still happened highlights China's controversial push to build dams in what has long been a sensitive area.

Claims of the arrests and beatings began trickling out shortly after the events in February. In the following days authorities further tightened restrictions, making it difficult for anyone to verify the story, especially journalists who cannot freely travel to Tibet.

But the BBC has spent months tracking down Tibetan sources whose family and friends were detained and beaten. BBC Verify has also examined satellite imagery and verified leaked videos which show mass protests and monks begging the authorities for mercy.

The sources live outside of China and are not associated with activist groups. But they did not wish to be named for safety reasons.

In response to our queries, the Chinese embassy in the UK did not confirm nor deny the protests or the ensuing crackdown.

But it said: "China is a country governed by the rule of law, and strictly safeguards citizens' rights to lawfully express their concerns and provide opinions or suggestions."

The protests, followed by the crackdown, took place in a territory home to Tibetans in Sichuan province. For years, Chinese authorities have been planning to build the massive Gangtuo dam and hydropower plant, also known as Kamtok in Tibetan, in the valley straddling the Dege (Derge) and Jiangda (Jomda) counties.

Once built, the dam's reservoir would submerge an area that is culturally and religiously significant to Tibetans, and home to several villages and ancient monasteries containing sacred relics.

One of them, the 700-year-old Wangdui (Wontoe) Monastery, has particular historical value as its walls feature rare Buddhist murals.

The Gangtuo dam would also displace thousands of Tibetans. The BBC has seen what appears to be a public tender document for the relocation of 4,287 residents to make way for the dam.

The BBC contacted an official listed on the tender document as well as Huadian, the state-owned enterprise reportedly building the dam. Neither have responded.

Plans to build the dam were first approved in 2012, according to a United Nations special rapporteurs letter to the Chinese government. The letter, which is from July 2024, raised concerns about the dam's "irreversible impact" on thousands of people and the environment.

From the start, residents were not "consulted in a meaningful way" about the dam, according to the letter. For instance, they were given information that was inadequate and not in the Tibetan language.

They were also promised by the government that the project would only go ahead if 80% of them agreed to it, but "there is no evidence this consent was ever given," the letter goes on to say, adding that residents tried to raise concerns about the dam several times.

Chinese authorities, however, denied this in their response to the UN. "The relocation of the villages in question was carried out only after full consultation of the opinions of the local residents," the Permanent Mission of the People's Republic of China to the United Nations office said in a letter from September 2024.

It added: "Local government and project developers funded the construction of new homes and provided subsidies for grazing, herding and farming. As for any cultural relics, they were relocated in their entirety."

But the BBC understands from two Tibetan sources that, in February, officials had told them they would be evicted imminently, while giving them little information about resettlement options and compensation.

This triggered such deep anxiety that villagers and Buddhist monks decided to stage protests, despite knowing the risks of a crackdown.

'They didn't know what was going to happen to them'

The largest one saw hundreds gathering outside a government building in Dege. In a video clip obtained and verified by the BBC, protesters can be heard calling on authorities to stop the evictions and let them stay.

Separately, a group of residents approached visiting officials and pleaded with them to cancel plans to build the dam. The BBC has obtained footage which appears to show this incident, and verified it took place in the village of Xiba.

The clip shows red-robed monks and villagers kneeling on a dusty road and showing a thumbs-up, a traditional Tibetan way of begging for mercy.

In the past the Chinese government has been quick to stamp out resistance to authority, especially in Tibetan territory where it is sensitive to anything that could potentially feed separatist sentiment.

It was no different this time. Authorities swiftly launched their crackdown, arresting hundreds of people at protests while also raiding homes across the valley, according to one of our sources.

One unverified but widely shared clip appears to show Chinese policemen shoving a group of monks on a road, in what is thought to be an arrest operation.

Many were detained for weeks and some were beaten badly, according to our Tibetan sources whose family and friends were targeted in the crackdown.

One source shared fresh details of the interrogations. He told the BBC that a childhood friend was detained and interrogated over several days.

"He was asked questions and treated nicely at first. They asked him 'who asked you to participate, who is behind this'.

"Then, when he couldn't give them [the] answers they wanted, he was beaten by six or seven different security personnel over several days."

His friend sustained only minor injuries, and was freed within a few days. But others were not so lucky.

Another source told the BBC that more than 20 of his relatives and friends were detained for participating in the protests, including an elderly person who was more than 70 years old.

"Some of them sustained injuries all over their body, including in their ribs and kidneys, from being kicked and beaten… some of them were sick because of their injuries," he said.

Similar claims of physical abuse and beatings during the arrests have surfaced in overseas Tibetan media reports.

The UN letter also notes reports of detentions and use of force on hundreds of protesters, stating they were "severely beaten by the Chinese police, resulting in injuries that required hospitalisation".

After the crackdown, Tibetans in the area encountered even tighter restrictions, the BBC understands. Communication with the outside world was further limited and there was increased surveillance. Those who are still contactable have been unwilling to talk as they fear another crackdown, according to sources.

The first source said while some released protesters were eventually allowed to travel elsewhere in Tibetan territory, others have been slapped with orders restricting their movement.

This has caused problems for those who need to go to hospital for medical treatment and nomadic tribespeople who need to roam across pastures with their herds, he said.

The second source said he last heard from his relatives and friends at the end of February: "When I got through, they said not to call any more as they would get arrested. They were very scared, they would hang up on me.

"We used to talk over WeChat, but now that is not possible. I'm totally blocked from contacting all of them," he said.

"The last person I spoke to was a younger female cousin. She said, 'It's very dangerous, a lot of us have been arrested, there's a lot of trouble, they have hit a lot of us'… They didn't know what was going to happen to them next."

The BBC has been unable to find any mention of the protests and crackdown in Chinese state media. But shortly after the protests, a Chinese Communist Party official visited the area to "explain the necessity" of building the dam and called for "stability maintenance measures", according to one report.

A few months later, a tender was awarded for the construction of a Dege "public security post", according to documents posted online.

The letter from Chinese authorities to the UN suggests villagers have already been relocated and relics moved, but it is unclear how far the project has progressed.

The BBC has been monitoring the valley via satellite imagery for months. For now, there is no sign of the dam's construction nor demolition of the villages and monasteries.

The Chinese embassy told us authorities were still conducting geological surveys and specialised studies to build the dam. They added the local government is "actively and thoroughly understanding the demands and aspirations" of residents.

Development or exploitation?

China is no stranger to controversy when it comes to dams.

When the government constructed the world's biggest dam in the 90s - the Three Gorges on the Yangtze River - it saw protests and criticism over its handling of relocation and compensation for thousands of villagers.

In more recent years, as China has accelerated its pivot from coal to clean energy sources, such moves have become especially sensitive in Tibetan territories.

Beijing has been eyeing the steep valleys and mighty rivers here, in the rural west, to build mega-dams and hydropower stations that can sustain China's electricity-hungry eastern metropolises. President Xi Jinping has personally pushed for this, a policy called "xidiandongsong", or "sending western electricity eastwards".

Like Gangtuo, many of these dams are on the Jinsha (Dri Chu) river, which runs through Tibetan territories. It forms the upper reaches of the Yangtze river and is part of what China calls the world's largest clean energy corridor.

Gangtuo is in fact the latest in a series of 13 dams planned for this valley, five of which are already in operation or under construction.

The Chinese government and state media have presented these dams as a win-win solution that cuts pollution and generates clean energy, while uplifting rural Tibetans.

In its statement to the BBC, the Chinese embassy said clean energy projects focus on "promoting high-quality economic development" and "enhancing the sense of gain and happiness among people of all ethnic groups".

But the Chinese government has long been accused of violating Tibetans' rights. Activists say the dams are the latest example of Beijing's exploitation of Tibetans and their land.

"What we are seeing is the accelerated destruction of Tibetan religious, cultural and linguistic heritage," said Tenzin Choekyi, a researcher with rights group Tibet Watch. "This is the 'high-quality development' and 'ecological civilisation' that the Chinese government is implementing in Tibet."

One key issue is China's relocation policy that evicts Tibetans from their homes to make way for development - it is what drove the protests by villagers and monks living near the Gangtuo dam. More than 930,000 rural Tibetans are estimated to have been relocated since 2000, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW).

Beijing has always maintained that these relocations happen only with the consent of Tibetans, and that they are given housing, compensation and new job opportunities. State media often portrays it as an improvement in their living conditions.

But rights groups paint a different picture, with reports detailing evidence of coercion, complaints of inadequate compensation, cramped living conditions, and lack of jobs. They also point out that relocation severs the deep, centuries-old connection that rural Tibetans share with their land.

"These people will essentially lose everything they own, their livelihoods and community heritage," said Maya Wang, interim China director at HRW.

There are also environmental concerns over the flooding of Tibetan valleys renowned for their biodiversity, and the possible dangers of building dams in a region rife with earthquake fault lines.

Some Chinese academics have found the pressure from accumulated water in dam reservoirs could potentially increase the risk of quakes, including in the Jinsha river. This could cause catastrophic flooding and destruction, as seen in 2018, when rain-induced landslides occurred at a village situated between two dam construction sites on Jinsha.

The Chinese embassy told us that the implementation of any clean energy project "will go through scientific planning and rigorous demonstration, and will be subject to relevant supervision".

In recent years, China has passed laws safeguarding the environment surrounding the Yangtze River and the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau. President Xi has personally stressed the need to protect the Yangtze's upper reaches.

About 424 million yuan (£45.5m, $60m) has been spent on environmental conservation along Jinsha, according to state media. Reports have also highlighted efforts to quake-proof dam projects.

Multiple Tibetan rights groups, however, argue that any large-scale development in Tibetan territory, including dams such as Gangtuo, should be halted.

They have staged protests overseas and called for an international moratorium, arguing that companies participating in such projects would be "allowing the Chinese government to profit from the occupation and oppression of Tibetans".

"I really hope that this [dam-building] stops," one of our sources said. "Our ancestors were here, our temples are here. We have been here for generations. It is very painful to move. What kind of life would we have if we leave?"

[nanjokei]

on what is considered "official art" and conduct between fandom across the globe

i think there is a fascinating cultural difference between what is considered free to use by fans in the """west""" in general and specifically japan. in recent years, the playing field has become somewhat leveled: most people who are in the know know that fanart should not be reposted or used without permission whether it be for copyright reasons or just out of respect for the human being who made it, but it's ok to use what is agreed upon to be "official art"—

er, what IS official art? if you ask the answer is different between regions. tying back to strict copyright, a lot of japanese fans will consider even anime screenshots a big no-no, because they are not yours, unless they were posted to be used (for example when an official twitter account gives out heavily embellished promotional graphics to use as icons and sometimes headers). so really, there isn't any such thing as "official art is ok" unless the express worded intention of the rights owner is "you can use this". of course, not everyone observes it, but it IS upheld and kinda faux pas to violate. and i said japan specifically because other nearby countries like s korea and china, their fandoms aren't so strict (i assume bc the rights holder can't do shit outside of japan), but they still uphold rules if a creator says it out loud. i'll come back to this later

for us, official art is anything coming from the horse's mouth really, be it magazine scans, promotional art, standing images, art from the original artist/mangaka, game files— these are free reign to this side of the globe culturally. it's not a social faux pas and in fact considered more ethical to do this (but not to be trumped by just making your own rendition, still). now for stuff like magazine scans, that stuff is definitely very NG because it's sold, you have to buy the magazine to see it. but due to inaccessibility in early animanga fandom days (and honestly, for a lot of magazines, you still need savvy to get your hands on them), a culture of sharing with others was born. the topic of how and why cds and magazines are still alive in japan is a conversation on its own so i won't go into it. it's a whole can of worms we can open another day.

for anime and commercial games, it's honestly whatever right? like who cares. what i wanna circle back to is individual creators tackling the culture gap here. your indie game, web manga/novel, music etc creators of the world/internet. though i'll mostly use indie game devs as an example as those cases i am most familiar with. in japan AND other eastern countries, there's a level of respect leveraged to the individual creator's wishes— they're usually simple requests like DON'T USE OR EDIT MY ART. my beef here is, why do people on this side have so much trouble respecting guidelines? some creators will allow people to use even in-game files, so long as it isn't edited. but they ask, for example, their personal art not be used.

a segway but, this is also a difference that exists in japan (i'm not sure about other places), but an artist that works on an official work... not all their art is "official art"! for example, an artist who makes art for an otome game. they may doodle a character they like. i think by our definition, this is considered official art, but in reality it is FANART. a lot of them will cover their asses just to be safe and explicitly state it's fanart so it's not misconstrued as official art— often either so as not to influence the work with their own personal expressions OR not to get in trouble with the rights holder. this is really important to know in this topic

and yes, even if the characters belong to an individual creator, sometimes their art can be personal art that they don't want people to use. it's really not hard to grasp and yet there are cases of artists being peeved by the actions of overseas fans (i try to avoid using "western" as much as possible bc its such a weird term that leaves a bad taste in my mouth, eastern too but lol). one case where a creator halted a translation project due to them being sick of overseas fans using and editing their art after trying to get them to stop several times but to no avail. i'm surprised this isn't happening more often because honestly i'll be frank for a second and say that while they tend to skew young, fans of free games have no excuse. i understand it's either immaturity or "it's online so i can take it" culture OR most likely, i think it is the cultural misunderstanding of "it's official art". but also in that specific case, a certain western indie game dev commented that that creator "should be grateful that people are playing their games at all". are you for fucking real?

you literally only see """western""" fandom commit such faux pas though. is it individualism? is it because i am raised in a collectivist culture that i don't fully get it? the subject fascinates me until it gets to thinking about the disrespect of indie creators. then i just get kinda smad

[blogquantumreality]

On Morality and Legality

@strkid

I said I would take up the issue of morality and legality separately, as this was posed to me: "Why do you adopt the legal system of the most evil place on earth as some sort of guideline for your own moral beliefs?"

I want to preface this by saying I saw the reply I'm pasting below and it's honestly a good 'in a nutshell' response, but I'll get a bit more general in a moment.

Ok, so as promised, more general commentary here:

Short answer to the question - I don't.

Long answer to the question - I've spent some time when I was younger reading about exactly this kind of thing and a good book that kind of helped solidify my stance on the matter is this one: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/614699.Ain_t_Nobody_s_Business_if_You_Do

To summarize, a crime cannot be rationally a crime if it is an action you do to yourself. The author calls this a "consensual crime", and obviously what you do to yourself you do with your own consent. (I don't want to get into the weeds too much with this, so for the sake of convenience I'm restricting this category of 'crimes' to those committed by fully competent adults to themselves.)

Okay.

Where the law conflicts with the morality is this: A legal system should, ideally, detect, deter, and/or punish a harm done by a person against another person.

By that foundational logic, murder is obviously a crime, as is rape, assault, and any other thing you do to someone else without their consent. This extends quite obviously to theft, and can, with some effort, extended to purely financial offences such as fraud.

This also means that it is an obvious absurdity to make drug use a crime since it is a thing you do to yourself and not someone else.

But take note of an omission: It is entirely legal to fail to do something and yet allow harm to come to someone.

The law as generally written conceives of active harms but not passive ones as a general rule.

This means, for example, that you can stand on a street corner, watch someone rob someone else, and do nothing to stop it and you will have committed no crime - no harm - in the eyes of the law.

However any thinking, decent person in the world would argue that alone is not sufficient; morally and ethically, you are obliged to try and stop the crime if you can.

And that is why it is incorrect to make the claim that I use a legal system as a guideline for my morality: because I don't think adhering to the strict letter of the law is sufficient to guide my actions with respect to other human beings.

"Okay, but a bank - a corporation - was involved! Legally it's not a natural person, so there!"

True, but it can be worked out that theft of money from a bank ultimately has to be paid for in some way - ideally in less profit for the shareholders, but that's not really what happens. Instead, worker wages get reduced, or the taxpayer has to subsidize the loss through deposit insurance.

And this can still be considered a harm - very indirect, but it's there. The morality of the way a bank treats people aside, the legality of the bad check ATM deposits is pretty open and shut.

A tangential discussion follows under the cut:

I'm going to address the term "evil place" with respect to the USA separately and argue that, prima facie, that is a gross exaggeration. By certain metrics, the United States' politico-economic structure hurts the poor more than other countries' systems do, but that only truly holds water when comparing across most other high and middle income countries. It utterly fails in comparison to Russia or China, to cite two examples of countries whose regimes are embroiled in ongoing severe human rights violations and a gross abuse of population surveillance.

[ryukisgod]

“You’re a communist but you have an iPhone?

Checkmate”

Me:

[the-bjd-community-confess]

Soooo, just a question. To the people who say they'll unfollow, disavow, and whatever people who buy the HP dolls... are you gonna do the same to people who buy from Asian companies? Especially Chinese. Most of the countries where BJD's are produced are incredibly cishetero normative, LGBT-phobia is still widely normalised and encouraged, even within the laws, despite many LGBT people's effort in those countries. Especially transphobia!

And before you're like "Well the companies might not share the viewset of the Government" Ok ... did you ask? Or are you just hoping you're supporting an ally by buying from them? Or is it ok as long as you don't know if they're raging homo/bi/transphobes? Schrödinger's transphobia I guess. "I can keep buying, as long as I don't know, that way I'm always right!"

I mean, it's been known since 2019 the shit Ringd0ll wrote about the Hong Kong protests, and people are still buying from them, despite the company literally supporting police brutality and the CCP's overreach of power, when no other company from China did that. (For anyone wanting to excuse RD via ThEy hAd tO!" That was all on RingD0ll, which they published all over their business pages. I mean, I was specifically talking about LGBT rights, and acceptance, but what about human rights? Are you going to call out anyone buying from Chinese companies, and tell them they're supporting the Government performing human rights violations? For a fully optional hobby. It just kinda feels like this is done now to get those extra brownie points, but you don't wanna put your money where your mouth is.

Like, let me say it like this, it feels like people only care so long, as it's related to pop culture, and from the West. Because that way you can cry the loudest, and sit on your throne if self-righteousness, but you don't actually have to change anything about your buying habits or interactions with the hobby at large. And you don't have to even put basic effort into figuring out who you're buying from, or what their beliefs are. It's like you gotta be spoonfeed the shit people, and companies do, and even then you'll ignore the issues easiest to you, while crying out loudly about the things you have to put little effort into, to be outraged about. This isn't even a situation where you can say that "it's unavoidable to buy BJD's from Asia, esp China." like happens with essential services or food products, when you try not supporting mega companies who got their fingers in every hole. This a wholly avoidable part of life, and the hobby.

~Anonymous

[watch-grok-brainrot]

Jin Guangyao's Violation of 忠孝仁义

So I had written about WWX and his strong sense of 忠孝仁义 last week. While I was writing it, I kept on thinking about JGY and how he managed to violate all of these virtues. I wanted to go into this characterization of him because I find it so interesting how opposite he is to WWX in the decisions he made. (Warning: i’m not nice to JGY here so if you don’t want him dragged, don’t read?)

忠- loyalty, devotion, fidelity (usually for country or monarch)

(Can I take a moment to talk about how much I LOVE THIS SHOT?! The blood of WRH on the camera lens, WRH falling over, the sudden shift to brightness that mirrors the scene in ep 50 where JGY obscures the sun in his bow (picture above the read more cut)! I can’t get over how much I LOVE the lighting and the way WRH collapses, making way for JGY to become the new sun. Foreshadowing much CQL Crew?!)

This one might be a stretch depending on how you read JGY. I fully believe he went to work for Wen Ruohan as Wen Zhuliu did -- seeking someone who will value his skills. However, WZL died for WRH and JGY just bided his time. (Note: While we know very little about Wen Zhuliu, we know he was at least 忠 and 义. He died for WRH and Wen Chao and refused to let WC desecrate Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan’s bodies. For that, I have to give him respect. He, despite everything, still had that jianghu sense of 义. Also, the man can count. And knows what a golden core feels like.)

So we know JGY gave Lan Xichen the maps, but he also lured them to Nightless City where the puppets were waiting. Had WWX not brought out the Stygian Tiger Amulet, would JGY have murdered WRH? Or would he have stayed in the shadows forever? As a viewer I have no idea what JGY is thinking, what he’s doing, or what he’s hoping for. He hides so well his intentions that there is debate about if he really was helping with the Sunshot Campaign or not! That isn’t something you can say about someone with loyalty. 

What upsets me further is that Nie Mingjie, having been JGY’s superior officer, sees JGY more clearly than LXC can. NMJ has seen JGY murder and has seen the level of self-serving vindictiveness JGY is capable of. In the case of the Sunshot Campaign, this self-serving attitude made JGY become a double agent uncommitted to either side. Too bad NMJ could not convince LXC of JGY’s duplicity. I’m gonna blame those dimples. 

The fact that we do not know JGY’s intent really shows his lack of 忠. If You Stand For Nothing, JGY, What Will You Fall For? (Answer: Himself and that is not 忠)

孝 - filial piety (deference to your lineage)

So for 孝, you’re supposed to respect your parents, honor your parents, and defer to your parents. What are you not supposed to do? Kill you father. That’s what.

So this should’ve been a really short section because that’s pretty cut and dry. But I want to look at what JGY says to JGS when JGY brings in Sisi and the other women. 

(He’s so creepy in this picture! *shudders*)

“父亲,我给你找来了你最爱的女人. 有很多个. 你高兴吗?”

“Father, I have brought you your favorite -- women. There are many. Are you happy?”

(Translation note: you can translate the line as your favorite women or your favorite -- women. I chose to translate it as the latter due to the context.)

First of all, the tone. JGY’s voice is breathy. I can almost hear a smile. He has zero moral qualms about this. He addresses his father as father, not dad or anything close. But he does acknowledge that relationship. And then he says he’s brought JGS’s favorite. There’s a slight emphasis on the favorite there. And it’s creepy. JGY adds the next line and goose bumps start to form on my skin. He knows his father’s sins and he’s punishing his father with it. Why are you doing this JGY?! And at the end, when it asks “Are you happy?” his voice is so sinister I want to scream. JGY clearly knows what he’s doing. He knows exactly what it means to be 孝 and chooses to make a mockery of 孝, to make a mockery of his father, and to kill his father. 

And then, after he watches JGS die, he tells Sisi and the other women to continue -- to desecrate JGS’s body. This is about as un-孝 as one can get! Remember, WWX and JC were willing to die to get JFM and YZY’s bodies back so they could be cremated and honored. The difference here is night and day! Yes, JGY was very good to his mother, including building a Guanyin Statue in her likeness and sparing Sisi who was a friend of his mother’s, but I cannot get over how much of an abomination he was toward JGS (even if JGS deserved an awful death).

仁 - benevolence, humanity, love of man

JGY has no 仁. Does JGY love anyone other than himself? Maybe his mom. (He might have some 仁 towards Su Sh*t She but that’s only suggested by the last couple of episodes.) That’s really it. He might have loved Jin Ling as his nephew. He might have loved LXC for LXC’s kindness and brotherhood. He might have loved Qin Su as whatever relationship he thinks they had. But when push comes to shove, JGY has zero benevolence towards anyone. He’s willing to kill Qin Su, take Jin Ling hostage, and take LXC hostage. (He also has no 义 but that’s the next section!)

And there’s ep 23. When LXC, JGS, and NMJ were discussing what to do with the Wens,  JGY suggested the Wens be imprisoned at QiongQi Path. Since WRH had ordered the slaughter of multiple clans, including the Jiangs at Lotus Pier, doing the same to him would not be considered unreasonable. Ruthless, yes, but a good show of might and order. This acceptance of murder is due to the concept of 诛九族. 诛九族 (zhū jiǔ zú) is one of the most severe punishments in ancient China. The character breakdown makes it fairly self explanatory:

诛 - to execute, kill, put to death

九 - nine

族 - family, clan,ethnic group, or tribe

诛九族 condemns you and your entire family to death (Depending on the source, some say it’s you + 8 types of relatives. Some say it’s everyone related to you from 4 generations above to 4 generations below).

By suggesting the Wen remnants be imprisoned and not slaughtered, JGY presented himself as 仁. However, by turning around and slaughtering the people per JGS’s wishes, JGY knowingly chose the immoral path where blood flowed like rivers. 

(Also! The way this shot pans down makes me think about how JGY is descending into a hell of his own making...)

义-  righteousness and code of brotherhood

Good god, 义. I have so many feelings about 义. Let’s start with some history because CONTEXT is so important. So when you ask a chinese person on the street to give you an example of 义, I’m willing to bet one of the most common answers you will get is 桃园结义 (tao yuan jie yi, or peach garden/grove establishment of brotherhood). This is THE story of fraternal love between non-blood related men. 

So quick and dirty synopsis of 桃园结义 and the three kingdoms story (I actually haven’t read it and it’s been a while since I actually tried to figure out the plot… so hopefully this is all correct!). Three men (刘备、关羽、张飞/ Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei) met on the streets, fought each other, became besties, and decided to start a rebellion. They took over one third of the country with the oldest (刘备) being the monarch and the other two working at his side (a little Yunmeng bros feel there, right? You’ll be the leader, I’ll be your right hand man). And they died for each other. 关羽 was the first to go. To seek revenge, 张飞 worked his men to the rebellion. Two of 张飞’s subordinates ultimately decapitated him while he was sleeping and brought it to their enemy. 张飞’s head and body are buried in two different cities in China (doesn’t this make you think of NMJ’s fate? Because it did when I was thinking about this and I wanted to cry. Also, 张飞 started out as a butcher. SERIOUSLY CQL/MDZS, can we pretend to be SUBTLE!?). 刘备 continued seeking revenge. Prior to 关羽’s death, the three kingdoms were in semi-equilibrium where the two smaller ones were allied against the larger. However, 关羽 being killed by their kinda-ally destroyed the delicate balance between the three kingdoms. 刘备 could’ve tried to make peace but he wasn’t going to let his sworn brother’s murder go unavenged. They all died in the end but with honor and brotherhood intact. 刘备 and 张飞’s determination to avenge 关羽’s death epitomizes the virtue of 义. They are willing to die for eachother. 

In CQL the parallelism to the 桃园结义 imagery is obvious to anyone who has a cultural background that screams Romance of Three Kingdoms at you. Let’s take a look, ok?  

A quick Google image search yields these images (I couldn’t choose): 

You know what they look like? This (from ep 40): 

You know what 桃园结义 looks like when mainland China made a live action? This: 

And you know what that reminds me of in CQL (ep 23)? 

Are you freaking out now about the visual parallels? Ok. Good. Because we’re moving onto a tiny bit of text comparison because i’m excited and i can. 

Per Romance of Three Kingdoms (note: historically inspired novel, not history), 刘备、关羽、张飞 swore the following oath: 

“念刘备、关羽、张飞，

Hope that Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei

虽然异姓，既结为兄弟，

Even though we have different last names,since we have sworn to be brothers

则同心协力，救困扶危；

Then let us unite our hearts and efforts towards helping the needy

上报国家，下安黎庶。

Repaying our country, bringing peace to the people.

不求同年同月同日生，

We do not ask to be born on the same day of the same month of the same year

只愿同年同月同日死。

But hope to die on the same day of the same month of the same year

皇天后土，实鉴此心，

Heaven and earth, verify our hearts

背义忘恩，天人共戮！”

If we turn our backs to righteousness and forget charity, may we be slaughtered by all. 

Now, let’s look at the oath said by the 3zun:

“神明在上。

Brilliant gods above, 

今日我兄弟三人在此立下重誓，

Today, we three brothers swear a solemn oath here 

上报仙门，下安黎庶 ， 

To repay our cultivation sects, To bring peace to the people.

天地同证，如有异心，

Heaven and earth be our witnesses. If we become disloyal, 

千夫所指，天人共怒”

May a thousand men point their fingers at us and may we be incite the anger of all

Even some of the wording is verbatim. The parts I bolded are what I was excited by since they’re either parallel or verbatim. 

The first set of lines: 上报国家，下安黎庶 and 上报仙门，下安黎庶 . (Remember when I guessed in my WWX post that since there are no countries, the cultivation sects are the target of 忠? This is my proof that I was right!) My hubris aside, this is the part of their oath where they swear to be both 忠 and 仁 together. The wording is verbatim except for the part that doesn’t apply to the CQL universe! 

The second set of lines: 天人共戮 vs 天人共怒. The sentence/phrase format and message is identical-- betray this oath and incur wrath.  (I can’t help but headcanon NMJ wanted to say 天人共戮 because it’s so much more metal but JGY was like, that’s really severe and convinced LXC to side with him to get it changed.)

Even the structure of the oaths are similar. Both oaths start with an introduction (we are three who want to be brothers), both oaths ask the heaven and earth to see them (Heaven and earth, verify our hearts & heaven and earth be our witnesses), and both oaths call upon the wrath of the people for vindication in case of betrayal. The CQL version is an abridged version of the three kingdoms oath and the writers set that up along with all the imagery because they want us to be constantly thinking about the three kingdoms bros and their amazing “even after death we’re still brothers” sense of 义.  They want us to compare JGY’s 义 with that 义 and find JGY lacking. 

The obvious betrayal of 义 is NMJ’s death.  Not only is JGY the cause of NMJ’s death, he butchers (i’m cringing at my own pun... but it’s so accurate) NMJ’s body so that NMJ’s spirit cannot rest. 

But, to me, what JGY does to LXC is betrayal on par with what he does to NMJ (and not dissimilar to what Xue Yang does to Xiao Xingchen). As we went over in the section about 仁, JGY says one thing so that LXC suggest JGY handles the matter. When everyone leaves, JGY does the un-仁 thing, essentially with LXC’s blessing. JGY kills NMJ but he does it by asking LXC to teach him how to play guqin. LXC becomes an unknowing accomplice (like XXC who becomes the killer of tongueless victims of corpse poison). 

So remember in my WWX post how I said WWX took on what he perceived as JC’s debts so JC doesn’t end up 不仁不义? JGY says one thing and does another in front of LXC. He knows LXC cares deeply about being righteous and kind. He knows LXC wants to do good. And he leads LXC down a path of self doubt and regret. LXC ends up teaching JGY the techniques that kill NMJ. LXC lets JGY handle the Wen remnants. Thus, unlike WWX who tries to absolve JC, JGY intentionally puts LXC into the position of 不仁不义. 

Can WWX and JGY be more diametrically opposed (foes)?

[argumate]

ok whether or not something is "genocide" DOES have consequences beyond "non-binding UN resolutions". If a state (or the international criminal court) finds genocide, that state is then legally obligated to cooperate with all the other states to do everything it can to stop that genocide. The parameters of that aren't 100% clear but it's certainly a more serious obligation than what is entailed by calling what's happening in China "injustices" or "grave human rights violations" or whatever.

But it has to be the organ of the state which has the authority to speak for the state at international law, which in constitutional democracies isn't usually Parliament - so e.g. the Canadian Parliament declaring it a genocide (iirc) doesn't really mean anything.

the US doesn't recognise the ICC, right?

so it's kind of circular: if the US wants to do something it can declare genocide as a justification, and if it doesn't want to do something it can argue that it's not quite over the line to count as genocide, but clearly whether it's genocide or not is not the deciding factor here, it's whether the US wishes to do the thing that the declaration of genocide would facilitate.

[holdmyhopeinyourhands]

Thank you for not being ignorant about people in Middle East, most of the time people choose not to speak about it, they don't care or don't know. But people are people there too. 🙏🏼🙏🏼

They are. They really are. Real life people, living their lives under a terrible kingdom yes, but people non the less. And the fact that nobody seems to care unless they're talking about how terrible and backward the country itself is, pisses me off. Especially since all these so called holier than though western countries we live in are perfectly fine carrying out those same human right violations (even much worse) in said Middle Eastern and African countries. But I guess those crimes are only bad when their own government hurt then. But when western nations drone strike the fuck out of them. It's liberty.

The hypocracy burns my skin.

I'm pissed at those fucked up governments and regimes in those Middle Eastern/African countries but I ain't about to turn a blind eye on all these western nations who're doing so much worse to said countries for their own profit.

Fuck them all.

Also, newsflash! Saudi Arabian people enjoy motorsports just as much. Like wtf has their population ever done to be punished for their governments actions? If you all are willing to be ok with GPS being held in China and the like, you might as well bite your tongue about this one as well. Or fucking cancel every other human rights violating countries GPS.

I'm personally for that. But watch most people not even care.

Sigh

[hey-hamlet]

BNHA AU Ideas : Quirk Ranking (Parts 1 and 2)

Also on AO3!

TL;DR: Quirks ranked are ranked by risk level, these ranks are stored in chips placed right next to the brain stem. People on both ends of the spectrum are suffering, but its all for the sake of safety.

Right?

Part 1: Background

Ok so, the Quirk ranking AU

When you are born, you are given a chip. This chip can be read by scanners in places like shopping centres, government buildings, hospitals etc.

It will have a rank on it, as well as an ID number. ID numbers can only be read by government official scanners in government buildings, prisons, and the rank updaters

America, Japan, China and Dubai are the only countries to mandate chipping, most other countries have outright banned it and a violation of human rights. People from these other counties are given a traveller’s chip in a bracelet they need to keep on them at all times.

These chips open doors, literally. You can’t ride the train without one, can’t enter schools or hospitals or public areas. Removing your chip is seen as something only the worst villains do; like you’re trying to erase yourself from society.

Blanks and Metallics have the highest rate of villainy out of the other rankings, but metallics and blanks are very rare overall. Still, it doesn’t help their perception and these numbers are touted frequently by chipping supporters.

Quirk ranking isn’t objective! Quirk ranking is often influenced by the bias of the doctor, like All might’s quirk being ranked low because he was so nice and heroic, and Shinso’s being ranked too high because the doctor was scared of it.

About the ranks

Blanks (5% of Population)

Just called blanks or quirkless. Its what everyone’s chip reads unless/until their quirk comes in some “high risk” areas will deny entry to blank chips because of “risk”. Because everyone thinks of blanks as kids, not the quirkless, these laws are rarely disputed. Allowing entry of blanks into private businesses is a higher insurance cost so some areas can't afford to let the quirkless in, or use it as an excuse to turn them away.

It was originally the opposite, people with quirks were kept away from the quirkless because they were apparently an inherent risk. Propaganda from the times was along the lines of “You’d watch a tiger. Just because it hasn’t bitten anyone doesn’t mean it doesn’t want to” and “Chip them like the dogs they are.” This has been heavily covered up in recent years as an ugly part of Japan��s past.

Little kids celebrate getting their quirks in as they can now enter 90% of areas rather than 30%. Some places like arcades, gyms, dojos will ban blanks from entering full stop, no exceptions.

Colour Spectrum (90% total)

Blue/Purple (22% Population)

Non-threatening. Cant be used to harm people directly, includes a lot of animal mutant quirks and those without obvious offensive abilities.

Can be teased as kids but don’t tend to face any real discrimination (blues can be exceptions as some schools/jobs will find reasons not to hire them). If they become heroes they are typically children’s heroes.

The quirk doesn’t need to be weak to be ranked low, simply needs to have a low-risk factor, but many people view them as weak because they lack offensive capability. UA has been trying to change the entrance exam for years to allow these ranks to have a fighting chance but the heroic’s commission won't have it.

Green/Yellow/Orange (60% Population)

These quirks are very useful and the most well-liked, and least mistreated. Strong and simple to understand, medium risk. Easy to contain.

Most heroes are in this area of the rankings, but people with these quirks tend to do well whatever carrier they take.

Orange quirks are a little bit “scarier”. Either they are more difficult to contain or have uncomfortable aspects like mental quirks, blood control, etc. Still, they don’t tend to be treated badly.

Red (8%)

The start of the “Scary” quirks. These quirks are very strong, even from a young age and have inherently violent capabilities, but are still ranked low enough that they aren’t too feared, and there are no restrictions placed on their chips.

Kids with red quirks are the top dogs of the school. They get away with a lot too, with quirks strong enough to be hard to deal with but not so strong that 2 adults can’t control them.

Basically, the limit for this is “could 2 heroes take you out if you were a villain?” and if yes, it's red.

Reds sometimes have damaging backlash, often what keeps them out of bronze (i.e., navel laser)

Metallics (5% total)

Bronze (4%)

Now these quirks can do some damage, these are the start of the movement restrictions, but most in bronze view them as badges of pride. Bronze chips cant enter places like hospitals, daycares and nursing homes without taking quirk control classes. It's pretty common for bronze kids to take a week off in kindergarten to get them all out of the way so they can get their permissions updated.

There is a mix of fear and respect from bronze quirks, they are either seen as top dogs or villains in the making. Being a hero is a top job choice for people with this ranking.

All might’s quirk was ranked bronze when he entered the playing field, but many people theorise it should have been ranked gold. Still, All might helped the popular perception of metallics in the country, making them far more popular.

Silver (.8%)

These quirks aren’t popular. Heroics is seen as the only respectable career for them, even with quirk usage classes some hospitals won't let them enter. It’s rare they will be attacked due to their strength but people are often afraid of them, many bosses won't hire them because they “pose a risk” 

Gold (.2%)

Same as silver really, very very rare.

Monochrome (So low it can’t be estimated, around 0.0000000001% of all quirks)

Black (???% - presumably more common than white)

There are no recorded black quirks in Japan so there are no current restrictions.

White (???% - presumably less common than black)

All for One is the first recorded white quirk in the world, and currently, the only person to hold such a rank.

Restrictions are extreme. No quirk scanners will let them enter, mostly just because the only person with a white quirk is a 200-year-old bogey man of a villain.

Most of the character's quirk's official rankings:

White: All for one, One for All (Izuku's time, with the addition of black whip + the other 6) Black: N/A Gold: (One for All at All Might's prime, but he never updated his quirk ranking) Silver: Half Hot Half Cold, Creation, Voice, Portal Bronze: Explosion, Dark Shadow (ranked for his poor control as a child), Mind Control (was only ranked this high because the doctor was prejudice), Overhaul, Fierce wings, One for All (All Might's Offical ranking) Red: Navel Lazer, Acid, Electricity, Twice, Mustard Gas, Blade Tooth, Compress Decay, Cremation, Muscular, Hell Fire Orange: Cement, Engine, Zero-G, Sugar Rush, Earphone Jack, Chronosatsis, Elasticity Yellow: Somnambulist, Blood Control, Harden, Transform, Magnesis, Blood Curdle Green: Frog, Clone, Dupli-Arms, Pop off, Mimicry, Air Jet Blue: Erasure, Tail, Tape, Foresight Purple: High Specs, AniVoice, Love Blank: (Izuku's original official ranking, Yagi's original official ranking)

Part 2: Plot

So Izuku has been ranked as blank his whole life, then he suddenly gets a quirk. All Might asks him when he's going to get his chip updated and Izuku looks at him with steel in his eyes. 

“I’m not going to. I’m going to be the number one with a blank chip and show them how stupid their system is.”

Yagi is so proud of his boy and they have a cute little moment

On the day of the entrance exam, Izuku isn’t sure the doors will let him in, but they do thankfully.

When Izuku blasts the zero pointer into itty bitty pieces the teachers look at his file and share a “wtf” look with each other because this kid is meant to be quirkless.

After the quirk assessment, Aizawa asks Izuku about it and he sheepishly explains his quirk came in super late and that he wants to prove people with blank chips aren’t worthless.

Aizawa tries not to smile and tells him to hurry up and get better at controlling his messed-up quirk.

And Izuku does. He gets fully cowl before the sports festival because Aizawa throws a few tips around and it clicks a little earlier

Present Mic hears about Izuku sticking it to the ranking system and quickly decides this kid is amazing.

With his silver ranking, no other school would let him teach. He couldn’t visit Aizawa in the hospital after the USJ until he was moved from the ICU, and people always said he’d become a villain.

He knows silver restrictions are mild compared to blank but he empathises and is quietly cheering him on.

The only students in 1A that know he has a blank chip are Uraraka, Iida, Todoroki and Bakugo

Iida and Uraraka saw him get barred entry at a store and he had to sheepishly explain. He confessed to Todoroki at the sports festival. Bakugo has known him his whole life.

Well, that is until the licensing exams.

See, the doors lock on him. They won't let someone with a blank chip enter the exam. Izuku is crying a little because it's embarrassing and he doesn’t want the class to know.

In a show of solidarity that he’ll never admit to, Bakugo refuses to enter until Izuku is cleared to go in. When the rest of 1A find out about it, they refuse to enter as well. They stand shoulder to shoulder around Izuku daring the proctors to say anything rude to him.

After seeing this Inasa doesn’t go after Todoroki as hard in the exam, they manage to talk it out just prior to the last part, they still fail because they are both kind of out of it but they end the exam on good terms.

The heroics commission is on UA’s ass, pressing them into getting Izuku’s quirk graded because he's a “danger” and “a wildcard”

This pressure increased after black whip manifested during the camp attack, and after the villains kidnapped him and Bakugo

UA tries to shield Izuku from this as much as possible, only the first quirk assessment is mandatory and doesn’t need to be updated after the age of 6, it's optional after that. Izuku keeps seeing his mother throwing away important looking documents but he doesn’t ask why.

He overhears Ectoplasm telling Nezu and Aizawa it would just be easier to make him get his chip updated so the heroics commission stops threatening to pull their funding

Aizawa and Nezu are mad, and Izuku feels a little better but he still feels super guilty about the whole thing

The villains tried to play into the “you’ve both been mistreated because of your ranking” it doesn’t work at all.

By the time we get to the Overhaul arc, Izuku has manifested 4 of the previous holders’ quirks and the heroics commission is crying out for his chip to be updated, calling parallels to AFO but Nezu politely tells them to go fuck themselves.

Nighteye never once mentions Izuku’s blank chip and he's very grateful for that.

The 8 precepts are very interested in him, his multiple quirks and late manifestation may be able to help with the eradication of quirks.

The first time Izuku sees Eri, a chip reader in a store goes off because she doesn’t have one. He refuses to give her back to Overhaul, they take her back to Nighteye

Nighteye is furious until Izuku explains the girl doesn’t have a chip. That either means she has never been entered into the schooling/medical/government systems or its been illegally removed. He tells him he still shouldn’t have done that but it wasn’t a bad call.

That night, on his way back to UA, Izuku is taken by the 8 precepts.

They are furious and they know exactly how to ruin his life.

Using one of their contacts in the heroics commission, they get his chip updated to what the heroics commission thinks it should be.

Izuku wakes up, hurt and feeling violated and sore. He's covered in weird markings from Overhauls quirk but has no memory of it being used on him

Confused, upset and afraid he uses his quirk to run back to UA. Upon reaching the gate, it slams shut and alarms start blaring.

He breaks down sobbing.

1 minute later the staff of UA rush to the gate, expecting AFO to have broken out of prison for revenge. Instead, they see Izuku, covered in scares, battered with parts of his hero costume missing, sobbing on the ground.

Nezu checks his emails.

“Thank you for allowing us to update Midoriya Izuku’s ranking chip. His new ranking is: White. Have a nice day.

- The Heroics Commission of Japan”

[alexsmitposts]

Battlefield Social Media: The West’s Growing Censorship Censorship in the West flourishes as tech giants turn social media back into traditional programmed media. The United States, United Kingdom and the European Union are fond of passing judgement on nations around the globe regarding “free speech.” While it is increasingly clear to a growing number of people that this “concern” is disingenuous and aimed at merely defending agitators funded and directed by Western special interests in these targeted nations, the West still likes to fashion itself as a sort of champion of free speech. Yet back home the Internet has been taken over by social media and tech giants like Google, Facebook and Twitter. Their platforms clearly serve as online public squares where everything is discussed and even election campaigns play out. Yet these companies have, over the years, begun to eliminate voices of dissent against a notion known as “consensus.” If you are speaking out against “consensus” you are in real danger of disappearing from these platforms. Some of these platforms, like Google-owned YouTube, serve as the livelihood to people who have for years built up their audiences, produced hundreds of videos and when their accounts are deleted for speaking out against the “consensus,” they have their livelihoods destroyed. In the wake of these incremental “purges” is a chilling effect with content creators self-censoring or even withdrawing entirely from Western social media. It is the sort of very real censorship the West has crusaded against in fiction around the globe for decades. Concensus or Else A more recent example is Google’s decision to ban ad revenue for those going against the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) “consensus.” CNBC in their story “Google will ban ads from running on stories spreading debunked coronavirus conspiracy theories,” would claim: Google next month will ban publishers from using its ad platform to show advertisements next to content that promotes conspiracy theories about COVID-19. It will also ban ads that promote those theories. In cases where a particular site publishes a certain threshold of material that violates these policies, it will ban the entire site from using its ad platforms. Those “conspiracy theories” might include questioning the official death rates of COVID-19. Yet even the British government itself has been recently forced to investigate its statistics regarding death rates, vindicating the very sort of people who would have been either forced into silence or forced to give up ad revenue. The London Guardian in its article, “Matt Hancock orders urgent review of PHE Covid-19 death figures,” would admit: The UK health secretary, Matt Hancock, is ordering an urgent review of the daily COVID-19 death statistics produced by Public Health England, after it emerged that they may include recovered former sufferers who could have died of other causes. False reporting over deaths to hype COVID-19, induce greater public panic and pave the way for billions in government handouts to pharmaceutical giants is at the very core of many of these so-called “conspiracy theories” Google seeks to silence through its campaign of financial coercion. Imagine if this chilling effect was achieved sooner. Would the British government have even bothered investigating its faulty statistics if there weren’t people suspicious of them? The chilling effect this has over openly discussing something as serious as COVID-19 considering its socioeconomic impact is truly alarming and much more so because it is happening in the so-called “free world” overseen by its self-appointed arbitrators in the US, UK and EU. A similar campaign was carried out to purge Google, Twitter and Facebook of anyone allegedly connected with “Russia” who also so happened to be anti-war and anti-NATO for waging those wars. Entire lists are compiled by Western government-funded organizations which are then submitted to these tech giants for purging. The Western media writes accompanying articles announcing, justifying and spinning the purges… but also sending a warning to those left about what is and isn’t going to be tolerated on these platforms. Social Media Transforming Back into Programmed Media Content creators are faced with two decisions; to either self-censor themselves to protect their work, their audiences and their livelihood, or to accept the possibility they will eventually be “purged” (censored) and need to rebuild their audiences from scratch on platforms with far fewer potential readers, viewers and patrons. Social media, of course, is no longer social media in this sort of environment, but more akin to the sort of programmed media giant Western special interests built their power on over the course of the 20th and early 21st century. Private Public Squares? Of course the defense is that Google, Facebook and Twitter are “private companies”and can do as they please with their platforms. In reality, these companies work in tandem with Western governments whether it is fomenting political destabilization abroad or creating “concensus” at home. The notion that censorship is “ok” because the US, UK and EU governments launder it through private companies ignores the close relationship these companies have with the government and how their platforms have been transformed into defacto public squares and critical channels of public communication and participation. The West’s growing overt censorship leaves it with a choice; to either accept that it is in reality as guilty of censorship and manipulating the public as it has claimed its opponents are, or continue pretending it isn’t but at the continued cost of its legitimacy upon the global stage. There is a very good reason the West is in decline around the globe and why its attempts to leverage notions like “human rights” and “free speech” against nations like China or Russia are increasingly impotent. That reason can be found, at least in part, among the growing number of purge lists, censorship campaigns and calls for “consensus” across Western social media. Finally, the increasingly overt nature of censorship and controlled narratives promoted by tech giants like Google, Facebook and Twitter should have them facing restrictions and bans around the globe. Why should any nation host a “public square” where discourse is entirely controlled by interests oceans away? Why shouldn’t a local alternative be created instead where the revenue is kept locally and if narratives are to be controlled, controlled in a way that best suits people locally? It is ironic that, China for example, is condemned for not allowing Google, Facebook and Twitter to operate freely within their information space because it is a violation of “free speech,” even as Google, Facebook and Twitter cudgel free speech on their own respective platforms. How much longer will the world tolerate these double standards? How long until individuals, organizations and even entire nations begin creating alternatives to Google, Facebook and Twitter to at the very least balance out the lopsided power and influence they have collectively accrued and abused?

[the50-person]

HONG KONG UPDATE 7 OCT 2019: NBA

This is a patch-up update.

Technically happened slightly earlier but the uproar fully happened on 7 Oct 2019.

NBA "controversy":

Houston Rockets manager Daryle Morey tweeted in support of HK protests.

Huge uproar in China, China banned NBA and Houston Rockets games.

Chinese Basketball Association suspended cooperation with Rockets.

China pressured NBA to fire Morey.

Morey deleted tweet, wrote a new thread regarding situation. However, note that he has not really apologised.

NBA star James Harden kowtowed to China and apologises for manager's tweet: "We love China."

Joe Tsai, new owner of Nets, issued open letter promoting the CCP party rhetoric and condemming support for HK protests.

Joe Tsai erroneously called HK protests a "separatist movement" and a "threat to the Chinese psyche". Also mistakenly calls Morey's new twitter thread an apology.

Untrue as HK protests are demanding universal suffrage and true democracy promised to them BY CHINA.

Apparently fighting for freedom, rights and democracy is a threat to the Chinese psyche.

Joe Tsai: Cofounder & major shareholder of Alibaba (deep ties to CCP), board member of NBA China, owns NBA Nets, owns Barclays Center. His stand is not surprising.

Note: Alibaba owns South China Morning Post (SCMP), the only major English news in HK (all others were driven by gov to an independent online existence) which has sounded increasingly pro-CCP and has published many problematic, biased and untrue reports and opinions. Some of its reporters are ok, but the editors are problematic.

Anonymous Chinese scholar ran data analysis and found that there was a high possibility that most of the Twitter accs attacking Morey over the controversy did not seem to be real people.

Most accs (~5,800) created very recently, few followers, few engagements.

I think it is a high possibility, since experience tells me that as incensed the Chinese are, many won't + don't know how to climb the Great Firewall. Climbing it is illegal, though CCP has double standards and closes on eye if it's to propel their agenda.

NBA issued two versions of statement in Eng and Mandarin. Kowtowed in both but a lot more in Mandarin.

English ver: Recognise that Morey's views have deeply offended many in China, which is regrettable.

Mandarin ver: Extremely disappointed in Morey's statement. No doubt he's severely hurt the feelings of Chinese fans.

NBA said it backs free speech after backlash, downplayed Chinese statement.

NBA's Adam Silver supported freedom of speech.

Chinese now supporting 9/11 terror attacks after Silver's statement.

Many Chinese companies have cancelled deals/agreements with NBA and Rockets.

Online opinions:

"See how this is not only HK's fight? Now they're making Americans, NBA's team manager, apologise for a tweet supporting HK."

"Societies whose freedoms are defined by totalitarian states do not remain free."

"China expansion is real when people in a free country have to apologise for speaking the truth and standing for what is right."

"More reliance, less integrity. If any corporations wish to do business in China, they'll be requested to support China's political agenda and lose freedom and autonomy."

"Opening the Chinese market was sold to us as democratising them. Turns out it was the other way round."

"Daryl Morey is right! His willingness to speak the truth is a great embodiment of the NBA's global social responsibility. CCP denies freedom of speech, even though we are telling the truth. Let us hold the CCP accountable for its violation of human rights."

(Pic 10) Tiffany And Co have also pulled an ad that looks very similar to the Eye4HK campaign pose run by HKers in support of a woman blinded by bullet shot by HK police.

#freedom of speech #censorship

[the-bjd-community-confess]

Comparing recast buyers to entitled Karen's and r/choosingbeggars make so much sense. Add in r/entitledpeople.

Seriously, you have the exact same premise: Karen feels entitled to an artists work, but doesn't want to pay the full price, or just doesn't respect the artist, and because everything and everyone is secondary to Karen's entitled self, she's going to support intellectual art theft, because who cares about the artist?

Imagine this exact same scenario in any other job. "Sorry Mr/Miss IT person, we know you created this program in your time, and you've worked years on honing your skills, and improving, but we found this random corporation who ONE TIME bought your program for personal use, decided they'd make a bunch of copies and are now selling it as their product. Sucks to be you I guess, we just don't think you deserve getting paid for your work. :)"

Like, even thinking you aren't morally bankrupt is a joke. You're basically supporting the theft of any small time artists, and small businesses, for your own entitlement. "UwU but the recaster bought the doll, and I wouldn't have bought the legit anyway."

1) So? Does that suddenly committing intellectual property theft is ok? 2) Maybe you just shouldn't buy it at all, if you can't shell out money to support the people who actually create these things.

And before someone starts that old shit with "well you illegally stream movies from (insert MEGACORP! Eg DIsney)" which we've had SEVERAL TIMES on this blog.

1) No I don't. 2) Of all the things you had to defend, it just had to be a company like Disney who doesn't even pay their artists properly, and who refuses to pay royalties to writers of books they're still selling, and who support death camps in China. (Seriously, anyone remember the anon who was all like "Bet you stream Disney without paying, so how dare you say you're against theft? Suzie, p-sure people who stream Disney's shit are more concerned not giving money to corporations supporting slavery, and human rights violations. Highly doubtful that Chucklefuck mcArtist is committing slavery by making their own dolls, their own product and then selling it, as a one-person-business, or Mini Muffin mcSmallBusiness probably isn't either with it's ca 10 employees.)

Anyway, you're entitled Karen's. If you're proud of being so, fine. Get the haircut, and be done with it. If you don't value artists, if you don't value people trying to make a living, and would rather happily watch these people go under because yo entitled ass felt the need to support thieves of small businesses... have fun. (Not like these Karen's actually care about anyone but themselves.)

~Anonymous

[bronanlynch]

series: the untamed. I don’t know anything about it talk to me about the untamed

ok so! thanks for walking directly into the hyperfixation ambush where I am physically incapable of shutting the fuck up abt this bc it consumed my entire brain! first of all the untamed is. the live action version of mdzs/mo dao zu shi/gdc/grandmaster of demonic cultivation and I tag everything as mdzs bc I started reblogging stuff abt it before the show came out and I’m too lazy to change my tagging system now and I answered that ask meme abt it here but it uh. will make absolutely no sense to you probably

the tl;dr of the plot is that it’s abt being gay and hunting monsters and pining and doing necromancy in fantasy historical china. half of the story is the main character’s tragic backstory before he dies tragically but he comes back to life a bunch of years later and then gets married to the love of his life so like. it’s fine

Favorite character: the main character, the guy who does necromancy and dies and comes back to life. he’s a disaster, he’s beautiful, he does necromancy for the very valid reason of wanting to stop other ppl from doing various war crimes and other human rights violation, he’s an adhd icon who got kicked out of class for backtalking a teacher and has never sat still or correctly for a single second of his life, he wears all black and does the necromancy by playing the flute, he does a lot of swooning with like. tasteful trickles of blood on his face, he doesn’t realize that 1) he’s in love w his best friend or that his best friend has been in love w him for a very long time until after he dies and comes back to life even though they keep saving each other’s lives and making dramatic declarations abt how much they care abt each other. basically my ideal man.

Second favorite character: the main character’s best friend/future husband (they’re literally for real married in the novel I am not making this up) is a repressed nerd who basically starts out as that one tweet that’s like “I had feelings for someone when I was a kid and didn’t know what to do abt it so I wrote them a note that said ‘get out of my school’” and then realizes that maybe being lawful is not the same thing as being good

there are also several very cool women who deserve better, including one who is a doctor who also has a sword and basically adopts the main character as her annoying little brother. she has big lesbian energy I don’t care how popular it is to ship her w a man

Least favorite character: aside from. y’know. the actual villains who are mostly the people doing the war crimes that the main character is mad about, the love interest’s uncle did a really shitty job raising him and continues to disapprove of his life choices in a way that I personally do not care for. also he’s a bad teacher which is my personal least favorite type of character

The character I’m most like: the dramatic gay flute-playing necromancer. obviously

Favorite pairing: the main couple Invented Romance. but also the cool lady doctor and the main character’s sister have some Vibes

Least favorite pairing: lots of ppl including apparently the ppl who made the show ship the cool doctor lady w the main character’s brother instead which I personally think is a wasted opportunity

Favorite moment: ok so. there’s this bit fairly early on, they’re still repressed teenagers who have just started to acknowledge that they’re friends, they get stuck in a cave together w a monster that they’re fighting. they both get injured in the process and there’s lots of tenderly cleaning wounds while fondly calling each other dumbasses. and then the love interest plays a song that’s 1) named after their ship name and 2) plays while you see various clips of their Gayest Moments Together So Far which is A Lot considering this is still not that far into the show. love when the show makes a canon amv so the fandom doesn’t have to do it for themselves.

Rating out of 10: for the show specifically 9, they do lose a point for not being able to be explicitly gay due to censorship but they do a damn good job making it clear how gay it’s supposed to be. so much ~yearning. I personally don’t like the novel as much bc some of the more explicit scenes make me personally uncomf but that’s. a whole other thing. there’s also an animated show that I haven’t watched yet but that’s next once I finish the live action

[ranmagender]

Looking at the notes of some of my recent posts ive determined that theres certain subsections of the human race that exist.

People whose morals seem not to be "if i cant be 100% certain my actions dont hurt others its immoral" so therefore stealing from walmart is ok.

People who believe that disliking Modi's hinduist nationalism is just misinformed westerners.

People who believe China has the right to violate the democracy of Hong Kong

People who believe "the jews" are behind the onslaught of domestic terrorism in the US

I just gotta say if you fall into any of these categories just know I find you disgusting and please dont interact with my posts.

[evilelitest2]

What is a tankie?

Tankies are..hmmm.

Ok you know how the founding fathers of hte US were like “Omg liberty, freedom, human rights” but then clarified it to be like “Oh wait...only for us, not for anybody else, we still are keeping slaves”

Tankies basically are communists who are like “Omg its terrible how capitalism leads to the violation of human rights...but its totally cool when the dictators we idealize do it, thats fine, Stalin did nothing wrong”.

Basically Tankies are people who stan The Soviet Union, Maoist China, or even North Korea, and basically argue that totalitarian regimes responsible for horrific human rights violations did nothing wrong.   If you ever seen people being like “oh yeah, Stalin’s purges were justified” or “The Cultural Revolution was a good thing actually” those are tankies.  Not as bad as Alt Right folks, but still high on the list of “groups who really need to just go away” 

[thegreymoon]

Sorry, You didn't really say or do anything to make me think that you are Asian. I thought that I read sth in your lj where u said that you were and just run with it. It was a long time ago and I must have misread. Also, you don't really post a lot political stuff, it is more like I notice it more because when I visit your page I skip all Merlin related stuff and am interested in the rest so again my fault. As for my ise of imaginary- yeah, it was passive agressive, altough not intentionally so

… my bad. I rarely engage in political conversations online because it never ends well, especially when my views clash with 90% of tumblr users so I am used to combative tone and it was unnecessary.. As for SJW I am not sure if that is dissmissive term as it discribes the “movement” well? I am not native speaker and am aware that it can be used as derogative term, but was also convinced that it is used by people on the left if political spectrum. I asked you why you are mainy interesetd in USA because I was working under the assumption that u are Asian it seemed to me weird that a person coming from China/Japan etc would be championing social justice in USA when it not that big of a problem(or at all IMO) whie ignoring very real problems in their own country. But since you are not Asian and you post political stuff rarely you are right it is a silly discussion. The fault is completely on my side. I am allergic to these kind of stuff and you are one of my favourite writers so I exaggerated. Once again sorry.

As for the rest of your response: I also come from relatively poor country that was screwed over by both Britain and USA and many other countries, and I don’t agree with many of their policies (or most) but I don’t hate them and believe that as much as people like to say they start wars for the oil etc it is not really true. There are many political and global players and everyone single country is motivated by greed it is only that not every country can exercise their power.  

Relatively they are not the worst, it is just that since USA tries to paint themselves as heroes they are held to different, much higher standards than other countries. To sum it up, I am not defending their foreign policies, they have done a lot of wrong and are shortseighted but I still think that are better than other superpowers that will soon take over like China or maybe India. Also, I don;t understand why would you include global warming in your answer?why do you believe it is their fault

I am trying to leave as “green” as I can, I am a vegetarian and I believe we should do everything to preserve environment, but I wouldnt want my country to sign any deals concerning CO2 emission as long as other countries do not do the same. Otherwise, they would just cripple their economy and not help the world? As for Trump(if you are still interested) I find him the epitome of self-important, conceited stereotypical american but still so much better than alternative and despite distaste. would still vote for him. Because he at least apppears to be anti globalist and has a much higher moral ground than Hillary. what are his SPECIFIC actions that you find so abhorrent? Anyway, what I alluded to in my message was not politics of USA but the social justcie issues, like support BLM or me to movement(I am not sure if you posted enything regarding that, so srry if I presume wrongly) which I find are absolutely not based on facts and despite that people still perpetuate that, and if u don’t agree you are racist and sexist. No arguments whatsoever. It is also silly to me when I see the posts about the West being this cesspool of sexism while honour killings or FGM is nearly a non issue on social media or racism when considering the West is still the least racist place in the world when you compare it to China/India/SA or any other place. So, I find the social media effort to be misdirected and controlled by emotions. Even the indigineous people issued you mentioned. Americans get so much shit for their history, while pretty much every single country that exist was created by conquering or displacement of the previous population(u just have to go far enough down the history). So, yeah wht happend to Indigenous people and dissappearance of their whole civilization is a great tragedy but not the first and unfortunately not the last in human history. Why are we hearing about it but not about Anuit people or Persian or Byzantians? it is so imbalanced. Ok, anyway, sorry for the rant it shouldn’t be directed at you and tumblr is definitely not the place for it. Sorry if I offended to you. As I said I love your writing, “DC” is my all time favourite fic, and because I creepely once read through all of your lj(including asks and responses) I(like an internet creep and stalker)liked you and thought you seemed smart, well balanced and knowledgeable so I guess I felt entitled to to make the ask. Wish you all the best in life. 

No worries, I’m sorry I came off so aggressive in my answer. I did actually live and work in China for a while during my LJ days and it’s entirely possible I may have tagged myself as being there on my fandom profiles at the time. It was a happy period for me and I talked about it a lot to anyone who had the patience to listen, so it’s very plausible that you have read something about it on my LJ! I’m very sorry if it was misleading, but I was only ever an expat there!

I used to be a lot more open about my real name and real-life dealings in fandom communities, but that almost backfired spectacularly, so I locked down a lot of stuff because it could do me quite a bit of damage. 

OK, I concede your point that if you remove the Merlin stuff, a lot of what is left on my Tumblr is going to be either me reblogging cats or raging about social injustices (oops) 😅

I’d just like to make it clear that I absolutely do not hate either the USA, the UK or any other country in the world. Like I said, people are people, and disgusting policies are disgusting policies and every single country is guilty of them. It’s just that some have a bigger impact and are more visible. My own country is a source of so much shame and anger for me, it far outweighs anything the UK and the USA could have ever done because it’s personal, but our nonsense is just not something that I come across when casually scrolling through Tumblr, so I don’t reblog it. It’s possible to love a nation and its people and still be critical of the evil they have done. 

Also, let me just clarify that I’m bothered by all injustices and human rights violations everywhere, but usually there isn’t a post about them when I’m scrolling at 2 am at night that I can reblog. The USA is just… low hanging fruit, and let’s face it, from where I stand, hating on their president, the white supremacists, the Nazis, fundamental Christians, racists and the Republicans in general after what they have turned into is not hating on the USA, but rather cheering on the sane part of the country to get rid of this toxic waste ASAP. The same goes for Brexiteers in the UK and I am so, so sad for all the people that are going to suffer because of it. 

Of course, I’m aware that China and Japan have issues and human rights violations that are mind-boggling, but again, they just don’t appear on my dash very often, or at least not in English or from a source I can easily fact-check. The Japanese and Chinese stuff I follow is mostly art, nature and pictures of pretty clothes. My knowledge of either of these countries is very superficial compared to Western countries, which impact me directly, so it really isn’t my place to appoint myself as a champion of human rights in the Far East when my own country and continent are a growing dumpster fire that cannot be contained.  

On the subject of global warming, I’m not blaming the USA (entirely, because they, of course, played their part, but so did the rest of humanity). I’m enraged by their governing body’s rhetoric as of late, the denial of climate change, every single action that Trump took since taking office (such as withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement), him making ignorant, snide remarks in the middle of the polar vortex just days ago while people were suffering, deliberately sabotaging scientists and spreading dangerous, false information when each and every single country should be all-hands-on-deck if we want to avert a disaster of global proportions (especially with all the signs pointing to us being too late already). Nobody is suggesting that the USA should unilaterally reduce carbon emissions, all countries in the world must do it and develop the technology to make it feasible to convert to clean energy. And yes, the USA, China and other giants have to lead the way because they are the ones with the power! My poor, tiny country is not the one that can impact anything, so yes, the USA is absolutely more responsible to lead the way forward, but instead of at least moving in the right direction, Trump is deliberately lying and sabotaging all effort because he likes the money he gets from Big Oil companies, and he’s giving a platform to religious nutcases for votes, who think that there won’t be a global disaster of epic proportions in the near future because God promised Noah he would never again flood the entire Earth in the Old Testament. It’s not even the outright evil that is bothering me the most right now, but the mind-numbing stupidity. 

I have nothing but loathing for both of the Clintons. They have caused so much destruction in my country and I do not want good things for either of them, ever. I will never pretend that Hillary Clinton is anything even resembling a good person because you do not reach that level of power by having a conscience, but at the very least, she is not a rapist and paedophile that the general public knows of (which is more than we can say for her husband, btw). Trump has no moral high ground whatsoever, IMO. He has done everything imaginable, from scamming charities (this was proven in court) to raping minors (see Epstein). He has no redeemable human characteristics and is not even intelligent enough to pretend that he does, which is at least one thing that Hillary has going for her. I’m not going to sit here and list all the reasons why Trump is abhorrent because a) it cannot fit in a Tumblr post b) I would be sitting here for years. 

I will also not engage in discussion about whether or not BLM is a valid movement, ever. I don’t understand what you mean when you say it isn’t based on ‘facts’. Which, facts are in doubt, exactly? It’s based on multigenerational, still ongoing trauma and persecution of an entire race of people! I’m neither black nor an American, but I believe African-American people when they talk about the terror they experience on a daily basis in their own country. I have eyes and I have ears, I know plenty of white people and have insight into how they think because I too am white and have been raised with similar bullshit. I have lived in Africa for years and seen things with my own eyes. I will never not take the side of black people when they protest racism anywhere and I will never not believe them when they talk about police brutality, race-based violence and systemic racism in countries built on slavery. 

Of course, I’m not saying racism doesn’t exist in other places and in other forms, but talking about one does not negate the other. 

Also, I don’t understand the point you’re trying to make about the West not being sexist because other places have it worse? I’m sure I misunderstood this, so forgive me if that is the case. FGM is terrible, yes, but that in no way invalidates other types of gender violence that still ruins the lives of countless women. Just because the women in, say, Saudi Arabia have it worse, that doesn’t mean that the women here or in the USA should not talk about issues that directly affect them (and, btw, I have absolutely been outraged about Saudi Arabia and FGM and shared posts about both). All are bad! This is not a competition. 

On the topic of you saying that America gets so much shit for its history, which you think is unjust, I have to mention that European settlers killed up to 95% of Native Americans in some areas in relatively recent history. Just days ago, I was reading an article about how they killed so many people, it actually changed the global climate! This is genocide on such a massive scale, my brain can’t even comprehend it, and yet here we are today, with Columbus Day and Thanksgiving as holidays while the surviving Native Americans suffer all kinds of indignity and discrimination, so no, I don’t think we are talking about it enough and I feel that America deserves all the shit it gets for its history. IMO, it is not getting enough shit! The fact that there are other issues out there that need to be talked about too and are being silenced does not in any way take away from any of this. 

Anyway, let’s not argue about which country is The Worst™ and which human rights issues are more worthwhile than others because that is pointless. We already agree that all governments are corrupt, that evil happened and is still happening all over the world and that all human rights issues are important. I firmly believe that if they were to be evaluated by a psychiatrist, 99% of all high-ranking politicians would be diagnosed with serious clusters of antisocial personality disorders. Most of them would do anything and the only thing stopping them is whether or not they can get away with it. The remaining 1% cannot really do much and keep both their conscience and political power intact. 

In any case, the last thing I want in life is to get into Tumblr discourse with LJ people, so how about we just put this behind us? Let’s agree to disagree on who is worse, Trump or Hillary, because that is a pointless disagreement, especially since neither of us is an American and this is getting out of hand. I feel like we are actually miscommunicating and talking about different things. We seem to be arguing different points, so all of it is coming off worse for both of us than it really should be. Also, I wish you hadn’t sent me this ask anonymously, because I now have no way of responding to you except publically, and Tumblr is seriously not a good place for this. 

On a happier note, I’m very glad that you enjoyed DC! I’m very sorry for the extremely long hiatus! Unfortunately, I’ve been going through things that stopped me from writing for a long time. I hope that one day I can still come back and finish that story, in spite of everything! Have a good day/night! :)

*hugs*