#but the states we'd be going to are progressive states

[faggotwalkwithme]

ughh

[sigynsilica]

I believe we aren't going to see substantial progress in the fight against child abuse until we start viewing children as people group. More specifically, until we stop viewing children as a parent's property, and start listening to their voices in the same way we'd listen to any oppressed class.

I'm sick of dancing around the issue, especially in front of parents who get offended when other people "try to tell them how to parent their kids". You know what, I don't want to make friends with people who think it's okay to treat other people as your property, for any reason.

Children aren't legally allowed to own property, even though they can legally earn money at fourteen.

Children who can cognitively process algebra are allowed to be denied healthcare if their guardian disapproves.

In many states, children are allowed to be intentionally hit if it leaves no substantial harm on their body.

It is considered morally neutral to hate children.

Children constantly have their experiences, perspectives, and worldviews tokenized because "they'll understand when they're older"

In many states, children are not even allowed to choose what name they are called by.

And don't give me the "their brains haven't fully developed yet! They could make bad decisions!"

Listen. Adult people with intellectual disabilities can own property. They can still get healthcare if their nurses or assistants deny them healthcare. You're not allowed to spank someone with an ID or slap them if they do something you don't approve of. If they earn money or other assets, it is legally their own. And I think anyone who unironically claims to hate disabled people will be flagged as an ableist.

The fight for disabled rights is far from over. That's not the point I'm making. The point is that it isn't about whether someone's brain is fully developed.

They don't care about the kids. They care about controlling the kids. They view children as their physical possessions.

[batboyblog]

I just wanted to thank you so much for all of your reporting on Biden. When I first voted for him, I was mostly voting against Trump, but over time he really won me over by delivering so much more than I could have imagined. I just read your post thanking him and it's making me tear up. He was the best, most progressive president we've had and I'm so heartbroken to see him go. Even if we win again one day and manage to get another president who delivers this much, I still think I'll always be a Biden Democrat at heart. He came from humble beginnings and dedicated his entire life to this country--a country who needed him but didn't want him or appreciate him. He did what he could for people whose identities he doesn't share, and he did it simply because he wanted to and it was the right thing to do. He did it even though they hated him. It makes me think of all the normal every day people who do their best to make the world better in whatever way they can and who get no recognition for it. Your posts would give me hope and they didn't mean "very little" to me. Thank you for doing your part. I'm wishing you strength and hope. 🤎

My grandfather and I talked politics all the time, he'd catch my eye across the room and wave me over and he and I would talk. I'm really glad he's not around to see this because he'd hate it, but I'd give just about anything to talk to him about it.

The last time I saw him in person and we talked shortly before he died in late 2019 he told me "It has to be Biden, he's the only one" and I didn't believe him, I didn't see it. I thought Harris, or maybe Gillibrand. The old man always saw more clearly than I did.

I was a lot like you, not being Trump was good enough, I didn't have high expectations, but to be clear not being Trump was enough and should have ALWAYS been more than enough.

Particularly after January 6th being the guy who saved us from Fascism, a coup, and oh yeah being a basically good person after the worst living American was President were all amazing! great!

But like you said he didn't stop at just putting everything back, he moved. Here was this old white guy, but really believed in diversity, in an idea of America I could be proud of, of not just paying lip service to diversity but really lifting up voices that don't get heard. A guy who reached the top but wasn't jealous and lifted up voices, Harris, Buttigieg, Deb Haaland, etc and let them be stars in their own right.

and the agenda, I'd basically given up that we'd really fight climate change, and yeah it was the 11th hour but he came in fighting like it was the 11th hour, like we really were gonna go to the moon. And high speed rail? and and and etc

There's a line in the Speech Hillary Clinton gave when she had to end her 2008 campaign for President, "And, when you stumble, keep faith. And, when you're knocked down, get right back up and never listen to anyone who says you can't or shouldn't go on." And I think that sums up Joe Biden.

A working class boy from the wrong side of the tracks in Scranton Pennsylvania with a stutter was never ever supposed to run for office. A kid from a state school who was too young to even be sworn into the Senate on Election Day was never supposed to win a Senate seat on his first try. And no one could have blamed him if after his wife and youngest child died leaving him a single dad of two little boy's in a hospital he'd given up on politics and stepped away. But he didn't he was sworn in in the hospital with his kids. He took the train every day to be back home with them at night.

Time and time again life tried to knock Joe down, but it never ever knocked him out.

I think the lesson is to really LOOK! at our leaders, really see them. There's so much cynicism that all politicians are rotten, that you shouldn't "idealize" them or whatever. I'm not saying to, but I'm saying see them for who they really are, who's a basically decent person working hard to make people's lives better, and understand the difference between that and something like Trump.

And its not up to them to save us, or... its that old joke? about the flood and the man who thinks God will save him? we got to pitch in to help save ourselves, great leaders are great but if a whole propaganda system tells everyone they suck they're not gonna be able to do much, we got to do the counter messaging, we got to talk to the real people in our lives and fight back and on-line and we have to go help us be cringe and give a shit and be earnest

[doc-art]

Part 4 of the D&D art/story summary!

After yesterday's castle conquering, everyone got up and got ready to head back to the town to reconnect with the rest of the party.

While we were getting ready, our bard, Courrier, pointed out Loa's total lack of clothing, which she did not quite understand, and that Lloyd did not notice until it was pointed out.

There was also a running gag of our DM not appreciating how often we'd split the party. Left to right: Dolmir the dwarf cleric, Lloyd the human fighter, Courrier the human bard, and Zzrez the goblin rouge.

Loa the minotaur left the party to head back to her home to spread word of her deeds, while we went back to Phandalin, the mining town. It was still in a bit of a rough state after the siege a few days prior, but held well. We reconnected with the other half of our party and had some fun with the dragon hatchlings.

Once we were together, we all set out to our final objective. One tricky part was that we recruited a doppelganger from earlier to assist us, and he took the form of our agent member--Sildar, so we had to sneak Sildar out so no one would notice the clone.

The way that Rebecca and Sildar decided to smuggle him out was a very interesting approach.

A harness under her outfit, the perfect cover. It's cover was foiled when we heard odd noises coming from her, and Zzrez found a loose strap and tugged on it, causing our hidden agent to become known.

After some journeying out of the town, we found the mystical cave we had been searching for the whole campaign. Inside we faced an assortment of creatures and beings, along with being magically antagonized from afar by a beholder deep in the cave.

It was an ordeal.

After we made progress in the cave, we doubled back to rest up. When we came back, there was a large sea of unusual goop blocking our way back in. However, back at the castle we raided to save our boss, our goblin rouge picked up (what we thought was a bag of holding, but was actually a Bag of Devouring!) and used it to clear the way, much to the surprise of the party members that did not know of its existence in her possession.

We resumed our descent into the cave and met up with a band of minotaurs led by Lloyd's lover, Loa, who were there on a mission to kill the person responsible for the problems we had been facing.

We found them in the middle of a fight against some flaming, flying skulls.

It was a good fight, and Rebecca, who Lloyd failed to notify properly about his minotaur girlfriend (Loa), was surprised to meet her and her gang. The confusion was quickly resolved, however!

Once everything was cleared up, we continued forward together and made our way to the source of the magical horrors of the cave--a beholder. On the way, a subordinate to Loa questioned her leadership and charged ahead, taking with them two other minotaurs and leaving her with us.

The fight against the beholder was a difficult one, but we came out on top. The other minotaurs, through bard trickery and high aggro, fought each other, with the pale-minotaur (the guy going against Loa) being defeated by her and sent into the fires of the magical forge we were at.

Dolmir also considered the plan of throwing a bag of poisonous mushrooms into the mouth of the beholder, but was unable to since it quickly fell to the assault of multiple minotaurs and our whole party. He also took an axe to the shoulder from the mutinous minotaur, and our bard and goblin shared a moment.

After the fight, Lloyd and Dolmir got an armor upgrade.

[nekropsii]

your staunch defense of transfeminine people in a community where we're so routinely mocked and sidelined does not go unnoticed or unappreciated.

you're doing a fantastic thing

Hey, I'm glad it's doing something!! It was... Kind of radicalizing realizing that no one's fucking normal, actually, they just say they are. But the really, really radicalizing thing - the thing that got me to start being very loud and aggressive about it all - was getting hit with wave after wave of misdirected Transmisogyny for two reasons...

I acknowledged Transfem reads of characters exist, and stated that I actually - gasp! - enjoy some of them, even over the popular Transmasc readings of the same characters. Getting hit with backlash for this was expected, but I didn't foresee how that would manifest. Several people - all self-reporting as trans men, weirdly - flooded my notes and inbox talking down to me, treating me like I'm stupid, and that I don't understand Transmasc struggles (I do, I just distinctly was not talking about them), and... Most vexingly, treating me like I'm a woman, and acknowledging me as such. By saying I, for example, preferred a Transfeminine reading of Dave over the popular Transmasculine one - by simply bringing up trans women in a conversation that didn't include putting them down - I had apparently branded myself as a stupid bimbo woman in their eyes that desperately needed mansplaining to. By discussing trans women positively, I had branded myself as an "other", and needed to be treated as such. I don't understand why it was all trans men doing this - you'd think they'd know better than to start misgendering and condescending people just because they started talking about feminism or trans rights. You'd think they'd understand meeting feminism with traumadumping is inappropriate.

I put a Cis Woman in my Webcomic, and she apparently wasn't feminine enough for some fucking people. Mind you, none of us on the Dev Team ever really thought that she was any degree of Masculine. She was never designed to be masculine, and she wasn't designed with transness in mind. We'd always referred to her internally as a cis woman. She just happens to have broad shoulders, narrow-ish hips, an Adam's apple, a bigger nose, and some serpentine heat pits on her face that happen to look like facial hair.

This is her. The uncanny, ugly, mannish freak who should've just been a boy. She looks normal! She's just a regular woman! Apparently, when you tell people that what human beings would identify as sex characteristics are totally randomized on an alien bug species because that alien bug species literally only has one sex, that's cool and based until it's applied to women? Even then, these are all traits that some normal human cis women have in real life. What's even more jarring is that almost all of the Transmisogyny thrown at me over Tejuri's appearance was done over fucking Cohost - the website people fled to specifically to escape Tumblr's Transmisogyny. The site that touts its pride in getting rid of all Transphobes. God.

I've noticed that people often preach their alliance not as a genuine statement but as a way to keep with the trends. A lot of reblogs on posts about loving trans women are viewing them as either a body ("loving trans women" taken as synonymous with wanting to have sex with them), an object ("loving trans women" taken as their value being synonymous with their romancability), or a token (saying that you "love trans women" is the latest political trend in progressive spheres, and professing this makes you look like a better person, even if you don't mean it). I've learned recently that a lot of people don't know anything about Queer Theory or Transfeminism. A lot of people apparently don't even realize Transfeminism exists. It's been a fucking wild past few months. Things I thought were just basic human decency and common sense apparently need to be stated, because it turns out my standards for what counts as "basic human decency" is a lot higher than most. Wild. @_@

Every time someone pulls this stupid horseshit on me, I get more annoying and more powerful. Nothing's gonna make me back down. At the end of the day, I have the privilege of being able to shut up and stop facing harassment. That's not a privilege trans women have. It's why true allies cannot stop fighting even when it does get a little hard. We can put the weapons down. They cannot.

Every now and then I think about the phrase "Trans Women are the Women of Women". Every day, it becomes more true.

[dandorime]

Reginald and Phoenix sit across from one another at an ornate table, each facing an open briefcase. The air is thick with tension. Phoenix is on the brink of a breakdown, his mind racing through the chain of decisions that brought him here, desperately searching for a way out.

He finds none.

Across from him, Reginald looks grim, but somehow a sense of serenity graces his features.

It is the look of a man prepared to accept his fate.

Phoenix: I... I can't do it.

Reginald: You must, agent. It's your move.

Phoenix: Then I forfeit!

Reginald: We both know that won't work. The rules clearly state-...

Phoenix: TO HELL WITH THE RULES!

Phoenix bangs a fist on the table, his face at last cracking into a grimace that reveals the pain welling in his heart.

Phoenix: WHY? Why did it have to be this way?! Why does it have to be you?

The handler is silent. Pensive. Mulling over all the same little ironies as his agent, but far more experienced in the cruel turnabouts of a long life in the espionage field. To his agent, they are still a bitter pill. To the wizened handler, something closer akin to aged wine, but no less bitter.

Phoenix: When I joined up, we were a team. We did this together.

Reginald allows himself a little smile as the memories flit through his mind. Phoenix was naive at the start. Rough. Unseasoned. But he learned fast, by god.

Phoenix: I thought that we'd get through to the end... I thought we'd make it together.

The hurt in his agent's voice still stung him every bit as deeply as the moment he'd revealed his betrayal. It had been a matter of necessity, not a failing of moral conscience. For the greater good. For their only chance at survival. It was fate, not choice, that turned them against each other in the eleventh hour, and fate that now dictated the ultimate outcome.

Phoenix would understand that someday, Reginald told himself.

Someday.

Phoenix: I can't go forward alone, Reggie. Please.

Reginald: You can, Phoenix. You can, and you will. The truth is... you don't need me anymore.

Tears stream down agent Phoenix's face as Reginald takes careful note of the contents of his briefcase, then quietly closes it. He offers his agent -- his friend -- one last smile, hoping to soften the finality of his parting words:

Reginald: It has been the highest honor and pleasure of my life to train you and follow your progress, Agent Phoenix. Let me leave you now with no regrets.

Phoenix looks truly stricken. There is nothing more he can do, no plea he can make. They are being watched, after all.

Reginald: Push the button, agent.

Unable to bring himself to witness the end, Phoenix shuts his eyes tightly and reaches a trembling hand towards the mechanism in the briefcase on the table before him. There is a soft click, then an electrical tone.

"You sunk my battleship."

Cheers and applause erupt from the audience as the Agency Game Night Championship crowns its new king. He is the first in two decades to defeat longtime Battleship ace Reginald Crane, and the rejoicing is no small affair.

Only Phoenix himself is without joy. He hurls the tiny plastic briefcase off the desk and collapses, burying his head in his arms as he weeps.

"You beat him! You did it!"

"I knew he could do it. That's why we couldn't put him and Crane on the same team..."

"Phoenix, you've won!"

At what cost? Phoenix thinks, the words repeating over and over through his tortured mind in the voice of his handler, who swiftly disappears like a ghost into the celebrating crowd.

At what cost...?

[harukamitsuki]

The issue with Momo is that she's pigeonholed into a really stupid fighting style to begin with. Hero/villain fights in MHA are just duels basically like when two rams butt heads with each other in an unga bunga game of one upmanship and hitting your opponent progressively harder. Her quirk is trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.

Using her quirk in the middle of a fight to create a counter to that specific foe is pointless when the true measure of her power is prep time. It's the worst way to use her power.

She could, with the aid of some scientists, create things greater than the mech suit Izuku and All Might use. The costs are utterly irrelevant because she can prototype anything. Who cares if it costs billions to make a weapon or a device when she spends NOTHING to create anything. The author even stated that it's possible for her to make food with her quirk, just that it wouldn't taste very good unless she understands the structure of flavors and whatnot. So she basically has no limits besides the bottleneck of picturing what she needs to make in the middle of a fight. Which is eliminated if she prepares her gear in advance.

She can invent materials that do not exist in nature but she understands the molecular structure of. Super durable metals that weigh very little. Composites of various materials that would require intense machining to put together or are impossible entirely with our current understanding of science. This is the benefit of her being a rich girl and being able to pay other people to think for her. Or better yet, she could offload all of her thinking to Mei Hatsume, who would handle the research and simply print out everything that Momo needs. Mei violates reality on a daily basis. What's she going to do with unlimited materials and someone who doesn't care if she breaks things, just that she gets results? Imagine a fleet of AI controlled Iron Might suits that Momo directs and controls from an APC she created and is hiding in at a remote location.

The tools already exist within canon for these pieces: UA robots have AI. There would have to be schematics for every piece of the super suit. Her counters would involve watching the progress of a battle and then creating a new robot to go attack her enemy while she hides at a distance. Also, because she can create anything as long as it's not alive, she could rapid fire generate vaccines if taught how to make them by qualified experts, given that many vaccines are dead samples of a virus anyways. She has objectively one of the best abilities in the entire series, in the same tier of abilities like Overhaul and a fully realized Poltergeist.

Yeah, I agree. Momo would be terrifying if she had time to prepare - she'd be a mini-Nedzu in that sense.

The fights in MHA are very lackluster. Yeah, they're flashy and sometimes there's creativity in it, like Ochako's plan to take down Bakugou, but 90% of them are just 'punch harder' and 'hit faster'.

I mean, All Might versus All for One had the stupidest final moves. All for One has this collection of quirks, and yet he choses to... make bigger fist. Punch with bigger fist. And All Might just punches him really hard.

Horikoshi made a villain who could pull anything out of his arse, and we'd just figure that he stole it beforehand, but his 'ultimate move' is just big fist? Come on!

Using her quirk in the middle of a fight to create a counter to that specific foe is pointless when the true measure of her power is prep time. It's the worst way to use her power.

I will have to disagree. It's far from pointless, because you can't predit every fight you're in. Nighteye had foresight and he couldn't do that. All for One couldn't do that. Nedzu couldn't do that. Nobody can do that.

Information is hard to gain, and you can't prep without knowing what you're up against.

If she focuses all her effort on planned-for fights, she'll be sorely unprepared if someone attacks her before she knows about it. If they jump her randomly, or she can't gain a single drop of information about her opponents.

Yes, she'd be incredibly behind the scenes, creating everything she could theoretically need for a fight she's prepared for. She'd be great as a support hero, even.

But, let me ask you a question: what if she can't prepare?

...

Yeah. if she doesn't know what's coming, she can't prepare, and that makes your argument, that her adapting mid-battle is pointless, moot. She has to be strong in both of these aspects.

Preparing before a fight or a raid, and adapting mid-battle.

Again, Momo is only really limited by Horikoshi's creativity.

I was actually discussing the potential of her quirk with a friend of mine, and we both agreed that she was easily one of the most powerful and versatile characters, and Horikoshi didn't do her justice.

There were a lot of things discussed. Grenades, molotovs, pipe bombs, for one. Small things that do a lot of damage. We also thought about poison and poison gas, though she wouldn't use anything deadly.

Let's pair her up against 1-A students, shall we?

Vs Aoyama: Make a mirror, maybe even a highly reflective suit of armour, and he's done. Or a gun.

Vs Ashido: Water balloons of pH 13-14, and her acid is neutralised. Or a gun.

Vs Asui: Flamethrower. Or a gun. Anything long-range or heat-based to make her dry out.

Vs Bakugou: Throw gunpowder at him and let him blow himself up. Or liquid nitrogren to make him freezing cold. Or a gun.

Vs Hagakure: Going by plain ivisibility, Momo can make thermal goggles and find her.

Vs Iida: Lube up the ground and watch him spin into oblivion.

Vs Jirou: A wall of rock wool, and her sound waves are redundant. Or a gun.

Vs Kaminari: Copper poles to attract lightning away from her, or a mirror again. Or a gun.

Vs Kirishima: Bombs. Of any kind. Whittle away at his defence at a long-range.

Vs Kouda: Surround him in rock wool or make a speaker to drown his voice out. Or a gun.

Vs Midoriya: I'd say a gun, but he can dodge them... Fuck it - acid. Use acid.

Vs Mineta: A gun.

Vs Ojirou: A gun.

Vs Satou: A gun.

Vs Sero: A gun.

Vs Shouji: A gun. Failing that, use a molotov.

Vs Todoroki: Flame retardant for his fire. For ice, just dodge until he gets hypothermia.

Vs Tokoyami: Flashbombs or a flamethrower.

Vs Uraraka: A gun.

... Yeah, a lot of people are weak to guns.

[kaidanworkshop]

Workshop Progress: Spring Update

Happy Pride Month Workshop Spectators! It's hot out there, so make sure you're staying safe and hydrated while celebrating in your respective communities. A lot has been going on behind the scenes since our last update; we've been busy tying up loose ends across the board as we finalize Kaidan Revoiced: Community Expansion, which is frankly, very tedious - lots and lots of spreadsheets. Nonetheless, all the miscellaneous minutiae we're ironing out is to ensure our upcoming surprise to the community, [REDACTED], runs smoothly. We've also got one final poll for you before our official release, then it's back to the grindstone for the Workshop staff as we focus on splicing and processing the last lines for implementation. As per our last poll, the community voted to have us postpone the mod release until it is in a finalized state.

Afterwards, we spent most of April going over the script one final time to catch any extra lines we may have missed for our commission covering the last of the original Kaidan 2 script. We also held a few live sessions on our Discord going over the few bits of Workshop Original content that will be going into this first version: the alternative platonic Autumnwatch route, the Nickname & Pronoun system, and the rewritten Pieces of the Past quest. All in all, this new content amounts to just over 100 extra lines; this version of the mod will be preserved indefinitely on our mod page in the future. As we move forward with creating and implementing more Workshop Original scripts post launch, users will still be able to download and use this version if they prefer. Finally, throughout the end of April and all of May, we've been running a closed beta for KR:CE with the help of volunteers from other Skyrim modding teams. We've been able to track down a few more bugs, confirmed that our new quest fail safes work (woo!), and discovered a handful of mods that were incompatible with KR:CE, requiring us to move a few things around.

During our closed beta testing, we did get a recurrent piece of feedback that we'd like to discuss with the community at large. Similar to the audio distortion Kaidan has in Kaidan 2, the voice lines for the Dremora in Kaidan's personal quest, as well as Myriah, the priestess in the forest wedding, are very badly distorted. One of the key reasons the Workshop was formed was to address the audio distortion that existed in the Kaidan 2 mod, so it feels incomplete to not address this issue. We'd like to hire two new voice actors to rerecord these lines for implementation, the cost of which would be approximately $40 - $60 USD total (due to how few lines we need), taken from our current budget surplus. As always, we turn to the community regarding any decisions relating to how we allocate your donations; you can vote on this proposition here through June 14th. As always, we thank you for your interest, your patience, and your support! We can't wait to announce [REDACTED], and the official release date of KR:CE to the community.

[pudding-parade]

Sorry, but I have to get political on all your asses, at least those of you who live in the US. It will be a one-time thing on this subject, the only thing that I will say here about the election before it happens. And yeah, I'm going to say this on a blog devoted to a stupid video game. Why? Because I know that I have younger American people who follow me here, and if y'all are like some of the younger people I've talked to in real life and online in other venues, I have concerns. So I'm going to say all this as an old-ass, progressive American. Because if I can wake up one apathetic mind out there, it will be worth it. And if you're pissed at me for making a single political post at this important juncture, then fuck off and unfollow me or send me nasty messages or whatever you want to do. I don't care. And I'm not cutting this, either.

My dear followers: Donald Trump cannot -- CANNOT -- become president again.

Late last night, Trump posted on his Truth Social account a video containing language and images reminiscent of the World War era. It was about his fantasies of what America would be like, should he win the general election in about five months. It contained suspicious imagery and phrases like "creating a unified Reich." Does that sort of language sound familiar? Especially when combined with his rhetoric about immigrants being "vermin" that "poison the blood of our country?" Ring any bells? I'm sure it does for any German folks who might read this.

Trump's post was only taken down about 12 hours later, after backlash over it, and then Trump claimed that a "low level staffer" posted it, not him. Which is either a lie OR he was lying when he said previously that only he and his campaign's communications director have or will ever have access to that account. If you want more info about this, here's a short video from Jesse Dollemore, an independent commentator:

This election isn't about liberal/progressive vs. conservative. It truly doesn't matter what your personal ideology is because this election is about saving democracy. This is about preserving your freedoms, because we won't be able to do anything about any other issue, whatever our individual ideologies and pet issues are, if our basic freedoms upon which this country was founded -- freedom of speech and to protest, freedom of (and from) religion, freedom of the press -- are chipped away until they are gone. Because that's what autocrats do. They want freedom only for themselves, and Donald Trump and his cronies and hangers-on are all autocrat wannabes.

And if you -- Yes, you, even if you're sitting in the middle of blood-red state -- don't vote for Joe Biden, you will be doing your part to hand the autocrats what they want, because a non-vote or a vote for anyone other than Biden is in fact a vote for Trump and autocracy. Similarly, you must also vote for Democrats for all other positions, local, state, and federal so that America's overt flirtation with autocracy that's been going on since at least the 1990s might finally end once and for all.

Yes, yes, I know: "But Genocide Joe!" Think about it: Do you seriously think that Trump, who licks Netanyahu's asshole because he sees him as the kind of "strong man" that Trump wants to be, is going to help Gaza? Or that he'll go against Putin and continue aid to Ukraine? Because if you think that he will do either of those things, I have several bridges I'd like to sell you. No, Trump is going to "put America first." He says it all the time, and what he means by that is that he will do nothing except whatever it takes to keep himself and his cronies in power while also isolating America by severing ties to our allies. Gaza will be given to Netanyahu just as Ukraine will be given to Putin, should Trump win, and he won't give a shit. In the end, Biden (and Harris, should she have to take over) will listen and help Gaza, maybe not as much as we'd like because the Middle East situation is complicated and there are no simple solutions, but a Biden-led government will certainly help more than another Trumpian government would. And Biden will definitely continue to aid Ukraine, because that situation isn't complicated at all.

And in the end, it's not really about Ukraine and Gaza, though they are of course important. It's about us. Should Trump get into the White House again, he will surround himself with people who want America to be a plutocratic and authoritarian autocracy, very similar to Putin's Russia. This is not hyperbole. This is fact. A vote for Trump -- either actual or de facto by fucking around with not voting or voting for a third party because you think it's a "protest" -- is a vote to end democracy, plain and simple, which might very well mean that you'll never be able to protest again another day.

How bad could Trump be, you ask? Who cares who is president? Well, have a look at Project 2025. It's a 900-page "playbook" for the next "conservative" administration. (In quotes because there is nothing "conservative" about these people, including Trump and his cronies; they are radicals.) It is nothing less than a plan to destroy the federal government, the Constitution, and the freedoms that it enshrines and protects, which means the end of democracy. They published a similar tome before Reagan was elected, and once he was in, Reagan followed through with a lot of it. I have no doubt that Trump would, too, given that his "Agenda 47" platform is basically the same. Here is an article that summarizes Project 2025 and details some of its directives. And here is an article from Time Magazine, of all things, where the writer of it interviewed Trump about his vision for America, should he win. The first line of the article is, "Donald Trump thinks he’s identified a crucial mistake of his first term: He was too nice." You can read the transcripts of the interviews, too, so you can rest assured that the interviewer isn't being hyperbolic.

It ain't good, folks. Part of this extreme-right agenda is ridiculously expanding the power of the executive branch so that it would no longer be checked and balanced by Congress and the Supreme Court, which effectively turns the presidency into a dictatorship. And if Biden does not win, at least some of this bullshit will come to pass, especially because Trump already has the Supreme Court in his pocket. And he'll be able to appoint more young, far-right lunatics to that, too, should he win.

I'll repeat that Trump CANNOT win. I'll be the first to say that, as a pretty extreme (but also pragmatic) progressive, I'm not Biden's biggest fan, for various reasons. He is way farther right than I am, though he has been far more progressive-friendly than I expected and he has gotten some very good things done. But even if he wasn't and hadn't, he will preserve democracy and because of that, I will be voting for him without hesitation. I won't even have to hold my nose. Trump and his cronies in Congress and the Supreme Court will destroy democracy if you -- Yes, YOU! -- let them. And if you let them by deciding not to vote or doing some sort of lame "protest" vote, especially if you live in that handful of states where every presidential vote matters, you will have no one to blame but yourself and others like you. People being apathetic or doing "protest" votes is what got us Trump the first time around.

For fuck's sake, do the right thing.

[mirai-e-jump]

TV Guide Dan, LDH Special Issue dan the Girls ft. Yuzuki Hirakawa Interview (translation below)

Publication December 1, 2023

-RESOLUTION-

"Hirakawa-san, you entered the entertainment industry after winning the Grand Prix in the vocal and dance category of LDH's, "LDH Presents THE GIRLS AUDITION" held in 2018. Please tell us why you took part in the audition."

Hirakawa: I've always liked LDH artists. I would go and see their live performances, and I watched "Weekly EXILE," a music information program that was being broadcast at the time. Then, I heard the announcement that they'd be holding an audition for female artists for the first time in a while. Before that, auditions had been limited to singing and dancing, but the auditions I attended included various categories, including singing and dancing, as well as acting and modeling. At the time, I wasn't interested in the entertainment world, but my parents and those around me recommended I do it, so I did it partially out of curiosity. However, as judging progressed, before I knew it, I won the Grand Prix…is how it felt. I like singing, but I didn't have any dreams of becoming a singer. After joining the agency, I took singing, dancing and acting lessons equally, and during those lessons, I decided to pursue acting.

"Winning the Grand Prix helped you in deciding to pursue a career in the entertainment industry."

Hirakawa: I was in my second year of high school when I won the Grand Prix, and I had to move from Kumamoto to Tokyo by myself, so I was determined, or rather, I felt I had no choice but to do it. The final stage of the audition was a training camp exam, where about 10 finalists spent a week together. While there, I met other kids who were seriously working hard to pursue their dreams, and I realized that I could no longer be half hearted in my efforts just because I had been chosen. However, when I made my debut as an actor in the stage play of "Moryo no Hako," I didn't know what to do or what was expected of me on the stage, so I just went along with things. It was only last year when I was cast as the role of Rita Kaniska (PapillonOhger) in "Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger" that I was able to proudly say, "My profession is an actor. Actually, before I was cast for the role…there was a time when I was wondering if it was okay to continue down this path, or if I should look for another one. That's why I was so happy when I was chosen to play the role, and thought I could continue as an actor. However, I was alittle anxious before the broadcast started. Rita is the king of Gokkan and the Chief Justice of the International Court of Justice, but their gender isn't clearly stated, and their face is almost invisible, being hidden behind their collar and hair. Since this type of character hasn't been seen in the Super Sentai series before, I couldn't predict what kind of reaction we'd get from the viewers. But thankfully, the positive feedback I've received since airing started has made me enjoy filming even more.

"We feel that characters who don't specify their gender are appropriate in the current era."

Hirakawa: I'm grateful to have been given such a role. I've always thought that my appearance, personality and voice were (gender) neutral, so I was happy to have landed the role of Rita. At first, Rita was a calm and quiet character who didn't say much, but as the story progressed, they're able to rely on others, and gradually become able to express their feelings in public. Slowly, their humanity and cuteness is showing, and I hope that my performance will make the character even more beloved.

"We feel like it's more difficult to express a character that changes gradually, rather than one that changes drastically, but do you find it difficult?"

Hirakawa: I'm not sure…personally, I don't find it that difficult. More than the changes of Rita in the story, I think the relationship between me and all the cast members were the biggest change. As filming progressed, the relationship between the cast members deepened, and I feel that we're able to understand each other. I think this naturally led me to express myself in the role. The atmosphere when Rita and their retainer, Morfonia (Hasegawa Kasumi), are together has also changed. Of course, this happened after the halfway point of the story, but it also reflects the fact that the cast members have become closer to each other.

"And now, "Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger Character Book: The Bonds Connected by Moffun and Racules?!" featuring Rita, Morfonia, and Hymeno Ran (played by Murakami Erica) is on sale. Please tell us your thoughts after looking back on the photo shoot and interview."

Hirakawa: In the TV series, Rita and Hymeno, and Rita and Morfonia are sometimes filmed together, but this is probably the first time that Hymeno, Rita, and Morfonia are together. This was the first time doing an interview with the three of us, so it was very refreshing. Rita is called the "Immovable King," a character with very few movements. So, there aren't that many posing variations, but Hymeno and Morfonia moved alot to add variety, so I felt thankful for that (laughs).

"In episodes 32 and 33 of the TV series, there was a collaboration with "Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger." You co starred with Shiono Akihisa-kun, playing the role of Souji Rippukan (Kyoryu Green), who also belongs to LDH."

Hirakawa: The day after it was decided that I'd be appearing in King-Ohger, I had work to do with Shiono-san, and when I told him, "I'm going to be your junior in Super Sentai," he said to me, "I know it'll be a tough year, but please do your best." He also said, "I hope we can work together again somewhere." At that time, I never imagined that I'd be able to work with Shiono-san in King-Ohger, so I was really happy when the collaboration episodes were announced. We only had one day of filming, but I was able to hear stories about the "Kyoryuger" days, and I was deeply moved by being able to appear in the same scenes for the first time. The collaboration episodes were directed by Sakamoto Koichi, who's famous for his action direction, and although we had to fight more enemies without transforming than usual, since I like action, it didn't bother me, and it was a valuable experience. I'm also working with Amano Kousei-san, another senior at LDH, who plays Grodie Leucodium starting from episode 30. Since Grodie is Rita's enemy, they have many scenes together. Amano-san is very considerate, lending us things to cool our necks when we were on location during the hot season. Also, he gets involved with me on Twitter, and is a really funny and friendly person. However, once he gets into his role, he completely changes, which I think is amazing.

"Since our magazine mainly features men, we'd like to ask what kind of men Hirakawa-san likes."

Hirakawa: Someone who's firm and flexible. When he messes around, he'll completely mess around, and when he talks about serious matters, he's serious. I'm the type of person who gets excited when I'm having fun, so ideally, I'd like someone who has the same enthusiasm as me, and to take the initiative and have fun doing whatever it takes, instead of being drawn away from me (laughs). Also, I think it's wonderful if he can say, "Thank you" and, "I'm sorry" for even the smallest of things, and if he cares about family.

"If you could be reborn, would you prefer to be male or female?"

Hirakawa: I'd like to be male. I used to play with my brother, who's 5 years older than me, and his friends, and I wanted to be a boy too.

"Well then, if you could be a man for one day, what would you like to do?"

Hirakawa: I wonder…(taking time to think), I guess I'd do some muscle training. If I can become a muscular man like Kaku So-san, my co star in King-Ohger, I'd like to go to the gym and train my muscles until he admits defeat! Kaku-san said he can bench press 120 kg (265 lbs), so I'd like to aim for that too and show off my muscles to everyone (laughs).

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for possibly being a dick to my friends?

I (15, genderfluid) have had a group of friends since I was 12-13 (all about my age, mostly F but varying degrees of gender). We'd have the occasional drama, mostly started by my now-ex friend (let's call her A) (15F), but everything was pretty okay.

That was until about February, when my friend, B (15F) broke up with A. B told me that A had been saying some nasty things about me behind my back (that I'm sensitive, ugly, annoying, etc). I was hurt, because I thought A was a good friend prior to learning this. I confronted A about it (I didn't tell her that B told me), and our relationship got a bit rocky from there. I ended up blocking A for my own mental health.

Quick context break, from what I can piece together, A would call me sensitive because I would protest her and others joking about suicide.

Things started getting hairy when our mutual friend C (15M) told everyone that he didn't think I was sensitive, and that the casual joking about suicide had caused him a lot of problems. A then immediately did a 180 and tried to end the drama between us by getting B to send me messages she wanted me to hear. However, despite apparently wanting to end the drama, she did not apologize to me, and instead said, "I'm not sorry, because in my eyes you are sensitive," amongst other things.

Around this time, my then-partner, D (14NB) broke up with me, citing they weren't in the right mental state for a relationship. A week later, they started dating B.

I was feeling really hurt and lied to at this point, and I kind of cut off D until C got me and them into a group chat to talk through our problems. We made a bit of progress and talked through our feelings. I was two hours ahead of them at the time, though, so it was past midnight for me.

A slightly important part of this story is that I have a tendency to write self-indulgent poetry about my feelings. This includes one about the red flags I noticed in me and D's relationship, but ignored. To wrap up the conversation and get to sleep, I sent that poem to C and D instead of a proper explanation of some of the stuff I was mad at D about. (In retrospect, this was a very stupid idea. But I was desperate for sleep, so?)

A couple days later, C explained to me that the drama between me and A had kind of messed him up, and that for his own mental health, he would go no-contact with me for a while to work on himself (which is fine, that's respectable).

Afterwards, B seemingly got mad at me for the whole poem thing, so I asked her about it. We had what I felt like was a mature conversation, and wrapped up most of the problems she had with it (mostly that it looked like I had compared D to an unsavory public figure, which I explained was not my intention). I also sent an apology to D for insulting them and causing any problems with that poem. They said it was fine, and that they weren't that offended.

Today (just barely, in fact), B blocked me, stating that I talk too much shit and cause a lot of problems.

Tldr;

Why I might be TA: There's a very real possibility that I do talk too much shit without realizing it, especially because, in the past, I've been known to not realize when people are uncomfortable with my actions unless they directly tell me.

Why I might not be TA: I feel like, for my situation, and knowing only what I knew at the time, I made justified decisions.

[batboyblog]

But it is worth noting, of course, that non-college-educated people in the top 20% (such as due to inheritance or such) still voted R, and at higher frequencies.

Right now I feel politically homeless. The Republicans are obviously not an option. I disagree with the progressive Dems on foreign policy, but I disagree with the centrist Dems on economics to a great degree.

Yes, I mean the whole break down of who in what economic group (and then splitting it by race) voted for which party is not cut and dry, I just wanted to express frustration at the idea that if we just were "like FDR" or were progressive or whatever, people would flock to the Democratic banner and we'd win FDR in 1936 style landslides forever and always Aman. Because very clearly Joe Biden modeled himself on FDR or LBJ and did a bunch of very progressive stuff and like... the landslides and overwhelming popularity failed to show up. Its just annoying to see that take over and over when its clearly not true, now, I support all that stuff because I think its good stuff to do, but also lets be realistic its clearly not a vote winner (I don't think its a vote loser as such either)

personally I'm pretty comfortable being politically homeless. In a general sense I'm a Democrat but that really only describes any at least semi-serious person anywhere on the left of center of American politics. I personally believe in American leadership in the world, are we perfect? nope, but history shows us that one country is usually the lead, the agenda setter, the tone setter, the Primus inter pares, etc and if I have to pick between us and the other countries who want to be setting the agenda, what China? the techno-totalitarian state? Russia? thats literally waging a war of genocide as we speak? no thanks I'll take the flawed USA over those two any day. But I'm also progressive, I don't believe in a "little" interference by the state in abortion or trans healthcare I think people should be left alone to make their medical choices with their doctors. I believe in a role for the state in the economy, I believe in strong climate action (thus why American leadership in the world, China and Russia don't want to do shit on climate change) and that more immigration is a good thing.

and honestly I'm okay not fitting neatly into one camp with set answers for all our policy questions. We live in an age where aren't thinking, at all, much less for themselves, everyone spits out slogans with no meat behind them "Make American Great Again" wtf does that mean? "Green New Deal" huh? "Defund The Police" but we don't really mean defund we mean complex explanation followed by someone yelling "yes we do, abolish the cops!" "Free Palestine" "DOGE" "Make America Healthy Again" "raw milk!" "no cops at pride" we're all just yelling CRAP! and no one has any thoughts much less answers. So I'm not worried about fitting into a home, and having like minded people, if I agree with people 100% on everything political, I'm gonna start to get worried. Any political movement has to be big tent, has to involve people who don't agree on everything, doesn't mean you give up on what you believe in, you fight for it in the tent, and sometimes you lose and you sit it out because you don't get anywhere taking your toys and going home, you just keep fighting till you get what you want.

[go-to-two]

if you had to write Hailey’s exit with everything already in canon that happened to Upstead up until the beginning of the finale, how would you have written her & Jay’s resolution, with the go ahead that you had Jesse willing & available? Would you?

It probably wouldn't have been super centralized to her full season tbh. When I knew Tracy was out (which they knew before the season began) and I had Jesse there (which again, they did) I would have established in the first episode that they were in contact in the background (because they were in contact in 10x20). The divorce that did nothing but destroy their development wouldn't have happened. Hailey would still have gone through the stuff with Jo (side note, I guess she isn't coming back?) and the Matson stuff (sans weird father/daughter references). At some point in the middle of the season, she'd learn Jay is coming back to the states and he asked her to talk. She ignores him. The season progresses, and Hailey would end up exactly where she did at the end... looking at Jo's life, Voight's life, and herself, and she would make the choice that she wants to heal and wants more for herself than burying everything in the job or unhealthy coping cycles. She would make the choice to leave (without needing Voight's permission to do so). Her final scene would have been her in a new city (don't particularly care which one). She sits in a cafe with a new badge on her hip, waiting. Jay walks in, sees her, they both smile nervously. Fade to black.

Edit: I'm so sorry I did not read the ask close enough 😭

To actually answer your question... going into the finale with everything canon, it would have been when she was searching her laptop for alternate careers. Each option was just another way for her to run away from her problems, and she would realize that. She would stop looking at jobs and pull up his contact in her phone. We'd see her hesitate on whether or not to call. In her final scene, we'd still see her get in a cab and arrive in a new city, and Jay would be there waiting to meet her at the airport (bonus points if it's in a truck)

[sunnirayss]

An Introduction... ⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡⋆

I've had this blog for like 8 years or so, but never actually posted my own content until this week. I may post more frequently going into next year (or not), but if I do it seems fitting to make a post formally introducing myself and this blog.

I go by a few names but you can just call me Naj. I'm 22 and also genderfluid, so go ahead and use whatever pronouns you think fit best :)

I'm a reality shifter who also practices/has a great interest in all things:

manifestation

law of assumption/the teachings of Neville Goddard

lucid dreaming

astral projection

meditation

the void state

various kinds of witchcraft (especially chaos magick)

the occult

other esoteric and spiritual practices

I found shifting back in May 2022 but wouldn't actually make any progress until 2023 after looking into law of assumption.

I've already shifted and also plan on respawning in the not-so-distant future. I have a lot of DRs (like probably around 60+ at this point?) but my main ones are a waiting room and a better CR.

I will make the occasional posts, but expect a lot of reblogging (shifting/LOA stuff, fandom stuff, and cute animals).

My Boundaries (may change)

Be kind, or at least respectful. If you wouldn't say it someone in real life, don't say it someone online.

Don't try to debunk or insult my beliefs, experiences, or practices. It doesn't make you sound smart, just like an asshole

Feel free to ask me for advice or my perspectives on things. As long as you're respectful and clear with your question, I'll probably answer it.

DMs are open if you're 18+, just be respectful

DMs are closed to minors, but feel to interact with the blog since there's nothing NSFW on here

Do not ask me to shift you, manifest for you, make you wake up in the void, or anything similar. I'm not going to spend my time or energy just manifesting things for complete strangers on the internet, and you shouldn't be depend on a complete stranger to make your dreams come true.

Do not ask me to somehow prove shifting/manifesting/etc to you. Even if I did, people would only focus on painting that proof as fabricated somehow and we'd be right back to where we started.

Do not ask for my takes on controversial shifting topics such as "race changing" or morality (shifting to "bad" DRs to do immoral things). Any debates on these topics quickly devolve into petty arguments and name calling from my experience, so there's zero point in trying since most people have already made up their minds (myself included).

All shifters are welcome, except anyone who wants to be judgemental. It makes zero sense to police what other people do in their own DRs, focus on your own!

Other Socials and Helpful Documents

Reddit: u/sunnirays

Spotify: naj cymin

I made a lot of posts on Reddit and before I left the shifting community, I compiled a document with links to the most helpful ones + plus some other resources that really helped me learn how to shift. Then I copied all of my posts into a seperate document in case something happens or people just want to read them offline.

You can find both in the pinned post on my Reddit and linked below:

dividers by @cafekitsune

[myonmukyuu]

stream stellar stream

🎀🎙 thoughts incoming

Watching the live version of Stellar Stream reminded me - man, I really love this song.

Although I still haven't been able to watch the movie (JP exclusive ....) I've been getting little blips of context here and there and there's this repeated emphasis on Ayumu's growth and I really like it!!

Ayumu starts out the series as someone who is very uncertain and prefers staying in her comfort-zone. Her anxious tendencies kept her firmly glued to Yu's side and as she grows we get to see her gradually bloom into someone more confident. Stellar Stream is a song about Ayumu running face first into the unknown and embracing it. Something that the Ayumu at the very beginning wouldn't even dream of. As well as a demonstration of what Ayumu has become, I think Stellar Stream is also a perfect sendoff for her. If the writers are cooking up some graduation arcs, Ayumu is probably in the perfect state to receive it ahahah.

Anyways, this isn't actually an Ayumu deep-dive word dump, it's a SetsuPomu word dump oopsies HAHAHAHA. I just wanted to set some context...

Stellar Stream Ayumu is very cool. There's the pink and prettiness we'd usually associate with Ayumu with this touch of cool that emphasizes her growing confidence and ambition. The black half-cape and finger-less gloves almost come off as 'heroic' (similar to SGbNamida).

It made me think about how Setsuna would think Ayumu is probably the coolest person alive. I can imagine her radiating with admiration from the backstage.

It reminds me of this magazine page about the 2L solo songs. It's hard for me to find the page but I do promise it exists. It featured some art of Ayumu in her Say Goodbye Namida costume and had a little comment from Setsuna. Setsuna compares her to a "hero" or heroine, I don't really remember the wording, only the sentiment. And it's not the only time Setsuna compares Ayumu to a "hero" . There's also this little short where Setsuna compares Ayumu to an "unassuming hero who slips from the darkness to defeat the villain". Setsuna has also compared Ayumu to, on multiple occassions, the heroine of a dating sim. This isn't really related but I think it says a lot about Setsuna.

Anyways, it makes me think... At some point Setsuna became captivated by Ayumu and started perceiving her as someone who is cool and heroic. Which is kind of at odds with Ayumu's usual perception of being cute, pretty and pink? When Ayumu had first met Setsuna, it was watching her perform CHASE for the first time. Ayumu had her world expanded... But when did Setsuna really "meet" Ayumu? If we go by the anime timeline, Setsuna didn't really get many opportunities to meet Ayumu until the climax of season 1. Ayumu largely kept to herself/Yu for most of the season too. My interpretation is that Setsuna was quietly watching from the sidelines before trying to make friends with her as the season progresses. My yuri-goggled interpretation is that Setsuna had a crush on a pretty girl and couldn't work up the courage to get closer until the end of the season.

So why does Setsuna feel this way? What makes Ayumu "cool"?

SetsuPomu is a funny ship to me... It's very easy to explain why Ayumu might have romantic feelings for Setsuna. (ie. Setsuna being so critical to her character growth helps) but it is a lot harder to definitively claim that Ayumu's feeling are romantic since she has other "targets". (But we're here in the LL shipping community so does this even matter???) I find it funny because with Setsuna it's probably the other way around. It's very easy to claim that she has a crush on Ayumu. Like pathetically easy. (Girl, you wrote a self-insert fanfic where you were Ayumu's childhood friend and a knight with her as the princess I think she really has it down bad.) but the "why" is a little more vague. Emphasis on "a little" since Season 2 and Nijiyon really nail the Setsuna-side of things. But regardless I'd like to go into deeper detail because that's what I do as the CEO of SetsuPomu.

As a disclaimer... though honestly this disclaimer should've been at the start. This is 60% headcanon conjecture! If I kept firmly planted to the concept of "canon" I wouldn't be shipping SetsuPomu.

I think Setsuna's admiration began from something really simple.

Ayumu listened to her.

Setsuna has a lot of anxiety related to being "too much" when it comes to her passions. She believes in "shouting her love" but is also very afraid of rejection and confrontation. When the idol club disbanded, I think this would've been the height of that anxiety.

I think Ayumu's very simple act of listening to her and being receptive to her interests really kick-started their friendship. It's so easy to find bits and pieces of this.

Some games over here.... some novels over there... and Ayumu isn't just politely going along, she has a genuine growing interest and I think it makes Setsuna feel very safe to be passionately herself around Ayumu. It's a two-way street too with how Ayumu has this tendency to be hesitant to try new things until someone takes her hands and guides her a little of the way. Then, before anyone knows it, Ayumu can fall into a similar kind of obsession as Setsuna and that really fires Setsuna up!

Setsuna and Ayumu have this friendship where they both feed into each others' passions. With Setsuna's lonesome nature before becoming a part of Nijigasaki, this is really new for her so yeah. An innocent crush on Ayumu isn't hard to imagine.

Okay so it starts with admiration but when does it become "awe" of Ayumu's "coolness"?

Setsuna sees in Ayumu what she thinks she herself doesn't have. And ironically, ones of those things is "courage". Like I mentioned before, Setsuna is very afraid of confrontation and conflict. She disbanded the idol club indirectly as student council president. She lives a double life in an effort to please everyone and that whole conflict she had with Shioriko in SIFAS was broadly caused by her being unable to keep up that double life.

Courage is something that Ayumu has. Even if Ayumu herself isn't fully convinced. In general Ayumu only needs a little push to get going, but once she does get going she actually is quite assertive and brave. Even in her conflict with Yu in season 1, Ayumu herself decides to confront Yu. (Setsuna needs to be chased and cornered to be confronted).

Setsuna is also has a hard time dealing with failure. When things fall through she tends to do rash things like disband the club or idk, cancel the school idol festival maybe? I view Setsuna as a little racehorse with blinders on. As she runs at full speed, things at the wayside tend to blur and if she trips its catastrophic.

But Ayumu takes it slow.

Unlike Setsuna, Ayumu isn't afraid of mistakes. Even at the very beginning with Yume e no Ippo, she might trip and stumble but she will always move forward one step at a time.

I think Setsuna holds deep admiration of this. Ayumu is cool because she doesn't let her doubts hold her back like Setsuna does. (<- Setsuna's perspective).

Ayumu, to Setsuna, is really cool.

And when Ayumu's courage takes her to doing things like... I don't know, flying internationally to spread school idol activities because a fan emailed her, Setsuna thinks that's crazy cool and something a hero would do!!!

While Setsuna very much wants to be the hero, she admires Ayumu for that very thing

after all, Ayumu saved her too.

Anyways, Stream Stellar Stream

[chaosblast]

hello!! i mean no offense, but i feel like a provlem with the 'sorry girls, i'm gay' art as well as other pieces is that they feel a bit... queerbait-y? for lack of a better term. of course, i understand that it was definitely unintentional, but a drawing like this, as well as other pride pieces where uni is presented wearing the gay pride flag (the flag is the lgbtq+ flag in specific, but this flag is being used a way to represent her alleged identity as a "gay man.") uni isn't out in the comic, and there ARE transfeminine people who originally identify as gay like uni, but these pieces make it seem like that the character is a gay man, and you're proud of the fact that the character represents this group of people. i don't believe representation should ever be the goal when creating a character. but a gay character is a gay character, and many people (who are not disgusting transmisogynists) might've felt like they were queerbaited due to the handling of these aspects of her character outside of the comic. again, i mean no ill will, i just wanted to shed some light on certain things

weellllll i didnt make any of those drawings, the only one i did was the sorry girls im gay (and not the original sketch either) the fact of the matter is all of those drawings with the gay flag were made prior to uni's trans identity being made public, they were meant to help keep it a secret, just as uni keeps it a secret in the comic itself. and there's a reason it was hidden for so long- it wasn't planned to be revealed prior to it being revealed in-story but at some point i think it was decided it wasn't worth it to keep it a secret anymore? because we'd just be misgendering her for aaaages otherwise. and this has unfortunately created a problem of people believing uni being trans has no plot progression. which like... yeah, it doesn't! we haven't gotten there yet! it was going to take years and years to get there. uni being revealed as trans outside of the comic =/= uni coming out in the main comic. i get why people may feel queerbaited but as you've stated, it wasn't intentional. the plan was 100% to keep it a secret until she came out in-comic but it was kind of hard to keep it up for that long. could you imagine us he/himming and 'queerbaiting' uni for the next like, ten years? insane. definitely not sustainable. that definitely would've made it worse. i'm sure there are ways it could've been handled better, that's a valid thing to point out, but we were still a bunch of kids/young adults just doing our best when the reboot started. i believe i was like, 16? maybe 17? it was such a long time ago. things are just different now. i hope that's a sufficient response- and don't take any of this as like, official word, the ZCP has disbanded so i'm obviously not a part of it anymore, i'm just a guy speaking on my own here.