#either group or psl

[plots4us]

i play ( a female oc ), and i am looking for ( M/F or F/F ) with ( anyone! ). looking for ( angst, friends to lovers, exes to friends to lovers, fake dating, genuinely anything! ) plot. this plot will be for ( GROUP / PSL i'm not picky). this plot ( WILL ) be chemistry based, ( WILL ) contain mature themes and will be ( PARA / HEADCANON ). reach me at ( itatchisimp@gmail.com on chats )

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[the-badger-mole]

Reaching for Hope

These last few months have been filled with the most horrifying stories and images coming out of Palestine, DRC, Sudan, Yemen, and too many other places around the world. We, in the US, have seen our president- our political leaders- roll over and not only allow the atrocities to continue, but to actually financially support and arm the perpetrators, despite the majority of us screaming for them to stop. To me, there is little difference between the Democrats and the Republicans at this point. Both parties are bought and paid for by the same people. As a new presidential election is coming up, I can't in good conscious vote Democrat. Not after what I've seen. Not as long as they refuse to hear us when we tell them we don't want Genocide Joe Biden or any of his cabinet to run.

But what is the solution?

I hate the feeling of helplessness I feel. I hate watching the horrors being carried out with my tax dollars. I hate that our "leaders" are more concerned with keeping the money from groups like AIPAC than actually representing the people who voted for them. They have put my finger on the trigger and they won't let me let go.

I'm trying to figure out how to make my voice heard. I've reached out to my representatives. I've done what I can to amplify voices that need to be heard more than mine. I can't claim any special effort in following BDS boycotts because the truth is, these aren't brands I have a whole lot of intentional contact with in the first place. As for Starbucks and McDonald's, I don't like either place so, cutting them off took very little for my part. I do encourage you to avoid all of these businesses, though. I don't know what else to do.

I will not vote for Joe Biden if he runs again. I will do my best to find down ballot candidates who's values are more in line with mine, but I will not give my support to a man who sees the atrocities being committed in Palestine and gives billions and weapons to the people committing these crimes against humanity. If the DNC is smart, they will be actively looking for candidates who don't openly support genocide, but let's face it, we ALL know how smart the DNC is. So, barring some drastic change, barring the DNC running a candidate who isn't on the take from AIPAC, who will actually pull support from Israel as they try to wipe out an entire culture for the sake of oil, I will be voting third party. I'm considering voting for Claudia De la Cruz of the PSL party, but there's nearly a year left, so I'm open to shopping around.

I know there are those that will say that pulling votes away from Biden is essentially voting for Trump. I know that there are those that will say that if the Republicans take the office again, they'll gut our rights. To that, I say, a vote for Trump is a vote for Trump and a vote for Biden is a vote for Biden. If the DNC can't come up with a better candidate and a better reason to vote for them than the same fear mongering tactics they've been using for years, then Trump is the DNC's fault. What has the Democratic party done to ensure our rights? What protections for voting rights have they passed at a federal level? What protections for education? For bodily autonomy? How do we have FOURTEEN BILLION to spare for freakin ISRAEL, but nothing for public schools? Nothing for student loan relief? Nothing for public health? Police reform? What good is the Democratic party if their only real platform is "Vote Democrat because we're not that guy"? If your conscious tells you to vote for Biden in November, so be it. As for me, I can't look at the man without seeing the blood of innocent men, women and children dripping off of him.

[wwarborday]

If you’re feeling hopeless and bad, btw, the answer is to organize.

Are you state politicians criminalizing trans people? Organize. Go to city council to try and create a trans sanctuary city. Find candidates in your state who are running on progressive platforms and volunteer in their campaigns.

Are there book bannings at your local library? ORGANIZE. Get people together. Go to your county board and protest, email, call, harass. Picket outside the library.

Worried about climate change? Organize!! Get people together to support state bills which help your causes! Call your local city council! Get in touch with

Unsure how to organize? Woah! Organize! Groups like the DSA, the League of Women Voters, the IWW, PSL, fucking Run For Something or the goddamn ACLU will all either have local chapters, nearby chapters, or a list of resources if you email them.

Organizing is as simple as showing up and getting people together, and it works. It works down both sides of the aisle. Begging on my hands and knees for people to understand that queer activism, the civil rights movement, and worker’s rights were not just a result of a few good marches, they were the result of years and years and years of building power and consolidating a base which could be relied on. This is how you impact change.

[choicesbookclub]

Welcome to the Choices Book Club! We are currently reading Crimes of Passion II as a group. The book releases a new chapter every Wednesday on the Choices App.

This Week’s Chapter: Chapter Eleven— Footage Not Found

Question(s) of the Week: 

Are either your detective or Trystan into fall coffee/teas? Either living their best PSL life this fall?

Pin the Crime on the Thorne Poll : Last week you voted for Vasili, who will you vote this week? [Vote Here]

How do you rate this chapter? [Vote Here]

Did you hold Orlenna? [Vote Here]

What did you think of the latest clues? Do you think they point to Bas, or is it a red herring? What about Kaspar and Emika's latest lie? Do you feel the lack of information about some siblings hurts or helps their cases?

If you have any chapter specific questions you'd like me to add, please let me know.

How else to Participate:

Post reactions, screenshots, videos, ramblings, theories,… whatever comes to you while playing

Create drawings, edits, moodboards, fics, headcanons, songs, poems, etc based on the chapters and/or characters

Create a profile page for your detective and/or royal and submit it for the Detectives’ and Royal’s Profile Page

Share your detective and Trystan choices (the pixel versions and/or face claim versions)

Catch up on any of the previous week's questions/prompts

Posts that tag @choicesbookclub and use “#choices book club” will be reblogged here

[Please read the full guide to the event and how to participate here]

[wheelie-sick]

[ID: tags saying "#how do you find such local groups? /genuine question"]

this tag was aimed at finding groups to help with in a more online way but the way you find offline activist groups is fairly the same either way.

to some extent you have to stumble upon activist groups. there are what I'd say are two layers of activist groups- the public facing groups and the private AGs (affinity groups - what's an affinity group?) what level of involvement you want to have is up to you and really depends on what you're doing. public facing groups (who may still be AGs) are where you'll want to be if you want to help with the digital side of activism. private AGs deliberately do not have social media presence.

Find groups through community

showing up and building trust is the best way to find activist groups. people will start to recognize you after a while and will begin to rope you into things. trust builds with time. you cannot expect to be involved in high risk action planning (or even participation) from the start. sometimes people will reach out to you if they recognize you as someone who shows up frequently but often you have to do the talking.

events like the aformentioned really really free markets are great places to start connecting with community even if you're not directly participating.

I would not attend political party events to seek out community unless your goal is to get involved in a political party. a lot of activists will explicitly avoid those events.

Find groups through the stamps

... this is where political parties can get helpful. sometimes. but mostly not.

public events are often advertised with "stamps" - icons representing different stamps (public facing organized groups) these flyers are usually posted on social media.. occasionally political parties like PSL, the party for socialism and liberation, will either make a flyer with stamps or will be a stamp upon a flyer. either way it's a consistent group that's easy to find and can help dive into actual activist groups.

I quite literally stumbled into this activism (was walking to class and discovered woah! and encampment! and went from there) so this is based on how we've been pulling people into the not-PSL side of activism. I'm sure there are more ways to get involved that people are welcome to add on but I'm not as familiar with them.

realized I forgot to make this post oops....

How to involve yourself in offline political activism without being on the ground at a protest

featuring advice beyond "call your representatives"

for a lot of people, and especially for disabled people, being on the ground at a protest is risky, difficult, or downright impossible. this discourages a lot of people from getting involved in offline political activism because they don't know where else to go and what else to do. activism-and especially direct action-require a whole lot more than just bodies on the ground.

[US centric but may apply elsewhere] Involve yourself in jail support. when your comrades get arrested they need support upon getting out [and sometimes with getting out, depending on your state]. organize or participate in getting support to those people. show up for the arrestees in your community.

victims of police brutality and their families need support! sign up for or organize meal trains to keep people fed while they/their family recover from traumatic experiences. work to fundraise to pay rent while people are out of jobs.

get involved in the community-focused side of the activism. get involved in free markets, unhoused outreach & solidarity, free meals, etc. it's community, not charity.

graffiti, y'all, graffiti. make stencils if you need to be fast, wheatpaste, sticker bomb, these are all important parts of sending a message. graffiti artists are valuable and you can become one!

if you can't do graffiti (or you can but want to do more) create materials so other people can do graffiti. create and print flyers for wheatpasting, design & print stickers, create stencils.

protests and actions often require materials that need to be bought, created, or assembled. getting involved in any part of this process is hugely helpful.

Car support- if you are capable of driving and/or own a car you can get involved in car support for marches and other actions. many actions require car support to protest activists, whether that be by blocking traffic for a march or participating in holding a roundabout while barricades are set up

Be the extraction plan- also requires driving and/or a car. when people leave actions they need a way out. sometimes they need a fast way out. sometimes they need help driving home because they have a chemical weapon in their eyes. being on standby to pick people up is a hugely important role in activism.

Not all direct action looks like a protest or march

the relevant direct action in your area is going to depend on where you live so unfortunately I cannot give you specific recommendations but I can tell you that you are capable of participating in direct action. direct action looks like so much and does not have to be a rally or march or other protest. you can find a way to participate that accommodates you.

I am definitely forgetting a lot so additions are welcome

[plotfinders]

hiya! my name is (sammy) and i’m located in (est). i’m currently looking to play (heath hussar, zane hijazi, kian lawley, jc caylen, oscar guerra/others from those youtube groups etc) against (any age appropriate male or female, canons and oc’s). i’m currently interested in the following plots: (slow burn, celeb/body guard, forbidden love, soulmates, anything). this will be for a (psls), and (will) contain mature themes. note: (either headcanons or paras) are preferred! please reach out to me on (chats @ thriftyboot) for more information.

who doesn’t love those youtube groups?!

note: please remember to check your invites!

[ashesonthefloor]

hello! welcome to my Halloween fic event masterlist. I assigned ships and gave a list of prompts I wrote myself to all the lovely writers, and this is what they came up with! please go give it some love <3 below are the links and prompts to all the fics and participating writers

OT4

baby you’re a haunted house (ot4) by me

“I’m working as an actor in a haunted house and when I scared you, you punched me in the nose. Now I’m bleeding and someone had to get me an ice pack, and you won’t stop apologizing. You’re lucky you’re cute” (except i changed the POV), with OT4, ao3 link found here

Muke

Everything is Never as it Seems (When I Fall Asleep) by @mikeycliffords​

“You’re a witch who found me as a stray cat on the streets and took me in. Problem is, I was cursed to be this way, and I’m actually human. When you did a spell wrong, you managed to get me back to my human form. Oops?” Or, one person is cursed to be an animal until they’re taken in by a kind witch. When a spell goes awry, they’re suddenly turned human again, with a lot of explaining to do, with Muke

Cashton

i know i don’t know you (but i’d like to skip the small talk and romance) by @clumsyclifford​

“You’ve come in and ordered a large pumpkin spice latte every day since September. Are you okay?” Or, one person has a PSL addiction (or whatever motive you’d like for them to keep coming in ordering fall-themed coffee and snacks). Their regular barista notices, with Cashton

got a river for a soul, and baby you’re a boat by @glitterblazercalum​

“Oh, fuck. We showed up wearing matching couples’ costumes to this party by accident and now everyone thinks we’re together.” with Cashton

Lashton

the monster mash, it was a graveyard smash by @pixiegrl​

“That’s not a Halloween costume? You actually look like that??” (could be fangs, horns, wings, literally whatever supernatural element you want) Or one person has supernatural aspects and spends Halloween night with the other person. The other doesn’t realize it’s not a costume until they’re gold/the next day/whatever you decide to do, with Lashton. ao3 link found here

To Fall And To Live, To Adore And To Give by @ashtcnirwin​

“Renting a cabin together”, with Lashton. link goes to ao3, not tumblr

Mashton

my only weakness (you know all my secrets) by @allsassnoclass​

“You’ve told me three separate times now you have a vampire kink and I’m starting to wonder if you know I’m a vampire.” Or, pretty explanatory. One person is a vampire. The other has a vampire “kink”. (Can also be them saying they like the aesthetic, or trying to hint that they know and don’t mind. Literally do what you want with it), with Mashton. ao3 link found here

Cake

haunting me forever from the start by @tirednotflirting​

“We’re part of the same group in this haunted house, and you won’t stop clinging to me every time we get spooked.” Or, one person is really clingy with someone else in their group. It’s a good thing they’re cute. They can either know each other or not, with Cake. ao3 link found here

I’m still seeing honey sweet by @kaleidescopeminds (aka meg, who tumblr is currently bullying)

making fall themed food/decorations, with Cake. link goes to ao3 instead of tumblr

[plots4us]

i play ( jeremy allen white ), and i am looking for ( m/f or m/m ) with ( anyone ). looking for ( open to a lot - romantic, fwb, exes, long term, friendships - lots of room for discussion ) plot. this plot will be for ( psl or group - would join a group if it felt like the right fit ). this plot ( will ) be chemistry based, ( will ) contain mature themes and will be ( para and headcanon ). reach me at ( twopartsetcetera on chats )

.

[solarpunkcast]

i don’t have the full context for the PSL (Party for Socialism and Liberation) business but there is something I find a little ironic about it. i’m not going to defend the weird shit they do, and I heard about the other absolutely disgusting bit where one of the local PSLs doxxed the victim in an announcement about sexual harassment they were investigating.

but the other part, about them monitoring members tweets seems... disingenuous. maybe i’m missing past context because I refuse to engage with twitter politics but here we go:

your comrades following you on twitter and seeing what you post doesn’t become “the party is monitoring you”, if you’re breaking opsec or airing grievances in an improper forum and individuals decide to bring it up within the group.

how much have we talked about opsec and infosec here? about COINTELPRO and how the class war is indeed a war? about how insurrection is needed because it is far past the time for NVDA?

what would you do if an affinity group member posted details that broke opsec that could hurt people, or aired out problems publicly that would be better off discussed internally? would that not be a bad thing? would that not give your enemies a way to fracture your group? how many times would someone have to do this before you either kicked them out or just didn’t tell them plans anymore?

while the PSL might have been wrong or overzealous in their current situation, if you want a lasting movement/group then you will inevitably have to make sure the people involved are not posting sensitive information. insurrection and anti-capitalism requires a certain level of discipline to protect each other, which is why we spread those posts about opsec and not showing people’s faces every couple months.

[moccahobi]

Prank Calls [Seokjin x Reader]

summary: A prank call that leads to more.

genre: fluff

rating: E for everyone

warnings: none!

a/n: This is my submission for my “Prank Calls” Prompt from @btsholidaybingo​!!

word count: 3.5k

Inside a sparse and dimply lit apartment, you resided, pacing the floor of your livingroom as you listened to yet another stupid caller. A frustrated sigh left you when you were finally able to hang up on the mysterious caller for the ninth time this week, you almost always listened to their whole speel before hanging up either out of pity or from desperately craving some social interaction with someone who isn’t in your inner circle A squeaky laugh ringing in your ears as you mulled over the latest call and tried to focus on anything other than it (ideally, you’d be focusing on your homework). There were so many questions about whoever this prank caller was though. You felt so stumped and didn’t know where to look or what to do. Carefully, you set your phone down on the coffee table before sitting back at your couch where you were supposed to be working on homework. 

How had they gotten your phone number?

 It wasn't public information. There shouldn't be a way for random strangers just to get your phone number. Someone asking if your fridge was running is not a spam call. 

Why did someone have so much fun with pranking you that they have done it nine times?

Who the hell was it?

Why haven't you blocked them yet? 

Well... that last one you have an answer for... You just can't bring yourself to. Despite the annoying prank calls and horrible jokes, they were some of the few stranger interactions you'd had in a while... Plus the person had such an attractive voice. 

Squeaky laugh and all. 

Maybe... if you had the nerves to do more than an instinctual eye roll and hang up you’d have the answers to all of your questions. You could try to strike up a conversation and learn about this random caller… maybe even make a new friend. 

You were shy though. Even if you wanted to do more, you didn’t have it in you normally to do that. It’d have to be a rare event to make you be able to actually strike up a conversation with a stranger. 

With a deep sigh, you turn back to the tv and pressed play on the random episode of some random show that you were watching as you slowly did some work. You'd be spending the night with Minji and Sunha tomorrow and although you loved them, they took a ton of energy from you… and you had so much homework that absolutely had to be done at some point. You tiredly picked at the secondhand couch before you readjusted the volume to be louder. One of your next door neighbors was causing a ruckus and although you didn’t mind when occasionally interrupted your show, you didn’t want to hear what they were saying… it would be too much of a distractant from the bits of homework you were doing. If you had the energy to interact with people this evening, then maybe you’d have asked them to be quieter or even saw if it was some sort of hall event that you could join in. You didn’t have the energy though and you surely didn’t have any energy to try to insulate your apartment more. For the most part your neighbors were decent at being respectful. It was a perk of living off campus. 

Somehow, you managed to do a whole hour more of light homework before another prank call interuppted you (this time with a dumb joke before they hung up) and you figured that even though it was still early (a whopping 2:30 at night!), it would be best to call it an early night. 

The next day, you woke up groggily, did some homework, and attended your classes as normal. Well.. it was mostly normal. You went to campus a little earlier than you tend to because you wanted to try one of its cafe’s latest drink that Sunha was gushing about last week. Apparently it was the next best thing since PSL and that even if you weren’t a PSL fan, you had to try it… it wasn’t that good in your opinion but you were also very picky about your coffee and didn’t care for dessert drinks much. 

At the end of your school day, you also walked across campus to Minju and Sunha’s shared dorm instead of taking the bus home and enjoying a relaxing night full of doing some more homework  and watching a random show. The dorm building and surrounding space was crowded with people having fun and relaxing all around you. At one point, you even had to quickly jump out of the way of a volleyball that someone hit wrong and sent flying. It was an odd sight for you since you didn’t venture to this side of campus often and it showed. You inexpertly maneuvered around people, occasionally staring at the odd sight for a little too long as you struggled to make it to your friend’s dorm. Somehow, you managed to make it to the dorm without bumping into anyone. Cold air blasted you as you entered the lobby space and checked in, no one batting an eye at the visitor. The lobby was grand (for a college), a fancy kitchen that was often shown off for tours (and was chronically dirty) and a large, unlit fireplace greeted you as you looked around. Large group seating areas with worn-in and stained chairs littered the floor, people pulling them every which direction to fit their needs. The best part of the lobby was the two large flat screen tvs that hung over the fireplaces. Some people were sitting and talking in the chairs but most had pulled them around the tvs to watch some movie or show. 

Despite your curiosity about what was playing, you simply moved to one of the stools in the kitchen area and sat down. Sunha was coming down to let you up and you wouldn’t  figure the show out by the time she arrived anyways. 

Sure enough, Sunha came down and before the show’s next scene,  you two were walking up three flights of stairs to get to their dorm. A night of movies, food, and gossiping awaiting you. It was a comfortable and fun time and occasionally one of Minju’s other friends would join but tonight you were guaranteed that it was only you three, something you were grateful for.. 

“You have missed sooo much drama, Y/n-ah. I literally. It is crazy. You know that Kim Seokjin moved out after him and Pak Sooji broke up… well you wouldn’t believe it but since then, she’s had like five different guys over! I am starting to think that the rumors of her cheating are ture.” Sunha started as soon as the door to their dorm was closed, a bag of popcorn and a glass of wine finding its way into your hands as they kept talking, filling you in on everything that you missed.

You weren’t really one for drama but, especially when meeting with Sunha and Minju (after not being able to for a whole month), you humor it some. 

“Oh I doubt that! I think they just grew apart.” 

“Minju! Growing apart doesn’t include loud fighting as well! My friend, Jisoo, lives next to Pak Sooji. She said there was tons of screaming and yelling the night that Kim Seokjin moved out. She almost called the police apparently.”

“She’s over dramatic. They didn’t have that bad of a fight. I was in the dorm. The walls are thin. There is no way others wouldn’t have known what the fight was about if that was the case.” 

You simply nodded along as Minju and Sunha bickered over what possibly happened, content to watch and listen and learn about everything that you apparently missed. You lived off campus and didn’t keep up with the social interactions of everyone on campus anymore. Just those who you enjoyed spending time with. Sunha and Minju quickly went off topic, instead talking about how one of their professors is having a kid and his students were planning a surprise party for him. It was cute and by the end of the night, the three of you had planned the whole party out to a T (even though you hadn’t had a class with that professor in a long while, they were a campus favorite). 

It was almost midnight when the first of multiple calls from your prank caller started.

“Hello. We have your pregnancy test results.” They started, a laugh distantly heard in the background.

You rolled your eyes and put the phone on speaker, signaling for Minju and Sunha to listen (they’d heard a little about your prank caller but hadn’t heard any of what they’ve said before), “Yeah? Am I pregnant?” 

The prank caller coughed and you heard more laughing, “Yeah. With… with a foodbaby.” 

“Oh? Makes sense.” You said lamely, your drunk mind too slow to think of anything but not wanting to hang up.

You heard laughing from Minju and Sunha as well as some on the prank callers end.

“Why do you keep calling me?”

“What? I-I… This is the first time I’ve called, ma’am. I work at the pregnancy clinic… in the… the place where doctors work… the…”

“Doctors office?” Someone near him supplied and Minju laughed again as someone in the background of the call started coughing.

“Yeah! I work at the doctors office.”

“Sure.” You sighed and hung up before rolling over and looking up at your friends. 

They broke out laughing immediately, Minju bending over as she laughed so hard, her bed squeaking as she heaved. Laugher struck you as well, your eyes closing with tears as you kept laughing. It was contagious and you soon felt like you couldn’t stop. It was almost too much. You did stop though. 

When the number called again.

“Hello. I am Pippinpaddlelopsin.” The prank caller said in an obnoxious accent, “I would like to order a taco.” 

“Yeah. We don’t have tacos here sadly.” You started, fuzzy mind trying to think of something to say as you smacked your lips together and looked around the room, “Just… just bolts.”

The person on the other end snorted, “Yeah? How many can I buy then?” 

“Uhhh… Just one. Actually… someone just bought it.” You smacked your lips together as you kept talking, eyeing Minju as she barely held her laughter in.

“Shame. Can I get your number instead then?” 

“What?”

“Your number… can I get it.”

“No.”

Their laughter this time was more like screeches when you hung up and Minju almost fell off her bed as she cackled. This time though, you weren’t laughing. You were simply staring at your phone before adding the prank caller to your contacts as “Pippinpaddlelopsin”.

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

If what Minju and Sunha told you was true, you talked to the prank caller and their friends two more times that night. You just so happen to have a very hazy memory of all of it and only know that at one point you asked them for a taco which they didn’t have. There was also a moment after you chugged a glass of water where you called them, said nothing, and promptly hung up. 

Sober you wasn’t laughing though. Instead you were grimacing as a number labeled “Pippinpaddlelopsin” texts you the Monday after the large amount of mutual prank calling that happened the night before. 

What you didn’t expect was to actually enjoy the texts he sent you. At first, they were more random things, like asking if you wanted a taco at 2am (you said no), but about a month into the random texts, they started to get more personal with “How was your day”s (and actual conversations).

Pippin had apparently learned your name during your mutual prank calling (courtesy of Minju yelling it) yet he still hadn’t given you his name. You did know for a fact now that he was one of your neighbors because he admitted to getting your phone number from the communal bulletin board during one late night conversation. Every once in a while, you’d try to guess who he was and even scared your sweet neighbor down the hall when you momentarily thought that Pippin was him, but he still hadn’t told you who he was. Of course, as he kept telling you that your guesses were wrong, you kept getting closer to finding out who he actually was and you were determined to find out who he was. Minju was adamant that Pippin was your new neighbor Kim Seokjin. Sunha was putting her money on the teen who lived in 304 (who she claims has a large crush on you). You honestly didn’t know who Pippin could possibly be and found thoughts of who he could possibly be taking up your time almost as much as actual conversations with him.. 

“I am just saying. Call him and invite him over! We can have a girls and Pippin night!” Sunha said for the umpteenth time that night.

They had come over earlier after they’d finished classes and wanted to relax in a larger space than their tiny dorm (which you felt like would feel much later if they just cleaned it up some). It was all fine and dandy until they both started theorizing about who Pippin was and if you and him would ever end up dating (which while you kind of had developed a tiny tiny crush on the anonymous texter, you firmly stated that it would never happen). It was getting annoying. You loved your friends very dearly, but their constant theories didn’t help you and your desire to know who Pippin was. 

“No! Pippin is a neighbor! He is probably busy. Besides, our night is for us. Not some boy to crash and sweep Y/n off her feet.”

“I am right here, you know!” You chimed in, rolling your eyes before going back to playing online games on your phone.

“Wait… what are you doing on your phone?” 

“Playing games. What else would I be doing?”

“I don’t know! Texting the love of your life maybe?” 

“Ok that is extreme.” You laughed anxiously, “Pippin isn’t the love of my life. I barely have a crush on him.”

“So you admit that you have a crush on him!” 

“Oh fuck this! Give me your goddamn phone.” Minju sighed anxiously before snatching your phone from your hands and doing something on it. 

“What are you doing?” 

“Omo!” Sunha exclaimed as she read over Minju’s shoulder, “Omo!”

“What? What are they doing? Sunha!” 

Your pleas fell to def ears as the two of them did something to your phone (the longer they had it, the more you started to suspect that they were texting Pippin) and it wasn’t until five minutes later when you finally yelled at them that they gave it back, all the while they were looking like sad puppies. 

Even as you scolded them for using your phone without permission, you felt no remorse. They should know better than that and now you had a long apology to send to Pippin as well. Sunha and Minju left shortly after that. You were too upset at them to let them stay and they understood that you needed space. Eventually, you would meet up and talk it over and move on, but for now, you wanted to be angry and you wanted them to think about how rude and invasive what they just did was. 

You didn’t check your phone the rest of that night, even the dings of your phone mounted as Pippin messaged you. It was all too much. After almost three hours of trying to calm down, you found yourself in the kitchen, nursing a cup of calming camomile tea and trying to think over the worst case scenarios. Pippin could stop messaging you entirely because of the major breach of privacy that just… 

You sighed.

He knew some of your secrets. He could blab about them to whoever listened… but did you really think that Pippin was that kind of person? 

A knock at the door stopped you in the middle of more calming breaths. Slowly, you walked over and looked through the peephole, confused as to who would be at your door late at night. It was Kim Seokjin. Your new neighbor who you rarely saw. 

Why would he be at your door?

Slowly you opened your door, a confused look on your face and the more you opened the door, the more the confusion grew. He was panting, a thin layer of sweat on his face, and a small potted plant in his arms.

“H-Hello?” You started unsure as to why he was here, “How can I help you?” 

“God, Y/n. You confess through text and then don’t respond when I say who I am and that I like you back and when I come to see you all you have to say is that? You’re so fucking adorable.” Seokjin said, a smile growing on his face as he pulled you into a hug.

What?

You confessed through text?

He likes you?

You’d never talked to him though… unless…

He was Pippin?

And did Minju and Sunha confess to Pippin for you?

“Y-your Pippin?” 

“Yes, and I want to ask… Will you go on a date with me, Y/n-ssi?” 

What?

You took a step back, your mind running at 100 steps a minute before you quickly turned around and ran to your phone. There were probably a hundred unread messages from Pippin… from Seokjin. 

How.

You’d been talking to Seokjin this entire time? 

What.

In shock you looked back at your door but Seokjin had followed you inside and was looking at you with a concerned expression. You looked between Seokjin and your phone repeatedly, your brain seeming to process the situation slower than molasses. The slowly changing look on Seokjin’s face wasn’t helping either.

“Y-You’re Pippin?” 

“I am. I said that in text an hour ago… are you ok, Y/n-ssi?” 

Do you tell him that your friends confessed for you? 

Shit.

After the breakup he went through recently?

“I… I was so scared after I sent that… the confession that… I… I haven’t checked my phone since. I… I was so sure that you’d shut me down and I… I wanted to prepare myself for that.” You lied, hoping it was believable.

For a second, Seokjin looked more confused than you felt before he nodded, “Well, I’m not turning your confession down. I think I like you romantically too. I want to try.” 

You nodded slowly as blush sprung across your face, “That would be nice.”

“Yeah. It would be.”

“So…” Seokjin started before he extended the potted plant for you to grab, his ears a bright red, “Would you want to go on a date with me now? I know it’s late but I’d love to… if you want that is.”

Blush rose on your cheeks more as you accepted his plant, “I-I would love to… Just give me a minute to get ready? You caught me off guard.”

“Of course. Take all the time you need.” Seokjin opened and closed his mouth before he continued, “Is it ok if I wait here or would you rather I wait in my apartment and we can meet when you’re ready?” 

“You can wait here. I will be finished soon.” You said before running off to put the plant somewhere and grab a bag to hold your wallet. 

In less than five minutes, you were ready and with butterflies fluttering in your stomach, you left with Seokjin on your first date. It was amazing. The next day, you messaged Sunha and Minju and had a conversation about what they did wrong, what they could do better in the future (just not steal someone’s phone and all), and how amazing your date was.

On your third date, you confessed about what actually happened that led to him confessing. He blushed and the two of you had a good laugh (he also seemed glad that you gave your friends a stern talking to after). By the fifth date, you were fairly positive you were madly in love with Seokjin and by the time you two had your sixth date, you found yourself regularly hanging out with him outside of dates. From studying together to getting together with his friends and yours and doing stuff as a large group, you found yourself falling more and more. During your graduation party, Seokjin and you managed to sneak off to your bedroom for some quiet and in each other's arms, you shared “I love you”s. By the time Seokjin graduated undergrad as well and you were well in your grad school, you’d managed to find a nice spacious apartment to share. 

Everything was falling into place.

[spaceexp]

The Betelgeuse star turns pale: "It's boiling!"

Astrophysics logo. Jan. 15, 2020 The brightness of one of the brightest stars in the Milky Way has dropped drastically since mid-November.

The Betelgeuse star weakens. (Photo: AFP / P. Kervella)

The giant star Betelgeuse has seen its luminosity fall for a few weeks. The event puts astronomers in effervescence, because it could announce its explosion in supernova, an extremely rare phenomenon in our galaxy. Located in the constellation Orion, this "red super giant", almost a thousand times larger than the Sun, shines brightly in the winter sky, where it is visible to the naked eye thanks to its orange color. The star was among the ten brightest in the galaxy, but since mid-November, "its luminosity has dropped drastically, in the order of 70%", explains to AFP Pierre Kervalla, from Paris Observatory - PSL.

 Image above: Wide-field view of the region o Betelgeuse Orion Alpha Orionis star (yellow pale star) . Image Credits: IAU and Sky & Telescope.

Alerted by amateur observers, astronomers launched a vast observation campaign in December, mobilizing the largest telescopes on the planet, including the Very Large Telescope in Chile. "It's boiling!" We have set up a research group around the world to use all the instruments capable of imaging the surface of Betelgeuse, ”says Eric Lagadec, from the Lagrange laboratory of the C��te d'Azur observatory. Hundreds of amateur astronomers are involved, and "spend their nights in their gardens or their favorite observation sites" in order to provide additional measures, says this CNRS researcher. Several hypotheses Several hypotheses have been put forward: it could be an ejection of gas forming dust and hiding the radiation, or else the death of Betelgeuse. The latter scenario would result in a supernova explosion. If it seems unlikely in the near future, it makes astronomers dream: the star at the end of its life having no more "fuel" (from nuclear fusion), its heart would collapse on itself and would form a neutron star, a very compact object that creates a shock wave completely dislocating the star, all in just a few hours.

Image above: Location of Betelgeuse Alpha Orionis. Image Credits:NASA/ESA/STSci/OPO/Hubble/A. Dupree (CIA). From Earth, we would then observe with the naked eye a point as bright as the Moon in the day and night sky. To this would be added a nice spectacle, "that of an echo of light propagating around, like circles in the water", specifies Pierre Kervalla. After several weeks, this point would disappear and form a nebula, visible in the sky for thousands of years, like that of the Crab, residue of the supernova which occurred in 1054 which was reported by Chinese astronomers. "An unforgettable spectacle" “It would be an unforgettable spectacle for all of humanity. I hope to be able to see a supernova in my lifetime, ”says Eric Lagadec. Because this phenomenon only happens once a century in the Milky Way, and the last formation of supernova observed dates back to 1604. The Betelgeuse explosion is expected since the star, "only" 10 million years old, is indeed at the end of its life. But it's hard to predict exactly when she will die, as there are no warning signs. “It's a bit like an earthquake; the day before the explosion, the star will be the same, ”underlines Pierre Kervalla. It could therefore happen in the coming weeks as in 100,000 years.

Giant star (supernova) explosion

Either way, it would be safe for our planet, which Betelgeuse is 600 light years away. "If we see it explode from here, it will mean that the explosion took place physically 600 years ago," recalls Pierre Kervalla. Scientifically, the event would allow astronomers to follow directly, and for the first time in history, the different phases of the explosion, a precious gauge to measure the expansion of the Universe. We would also understand what will happen to the future generation of stars. Related articles: A giant red star is acting weird and scientists think it may be about to explode https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2019/12/a-giant-red-star-is-acting-weird-and.html Betelgeuse Braces for a collision https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2013/01/betelgeuse-braces-for-collision.html The Flames of Betelgeuse https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2011/06/flames-of-betelgeuse.html Related link: Paris Observatory - PSL: https://www.obspm.fr/-observatoire-de-paris-.html?lang=en Images (mentioned), Animation, Text, Credits: ATS/Paris Observatory (PSL)/NASA/Wikipedia/Orbiter.ch Aerospace/Roland Berga. Greetings, Orbiter.ch Full article

[workersolidarity]

So...

kinda bothered by all the Red Baiting I see online by the so-called "Left" when it comes to the criticisms of Trump and the GOP

I though this garbage would die out when it became clear after the Mueller Investigations that Trump, nor anyone else in the GOP were Manchurian Candidates secretly working for Russian Government, but just rather your typical, run-of-the-mill Corrupt rich guy.

Clearly I was way off and the Red Baiting bullshit isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

Looking at the first ten responses to a recent Tweet by Trump, I found 6 of them were just Red Baiting Right-Wing Reactionary Propaganda, and the other four were just snark and non-Red Baiting memes.

None of the responses involved the slightest but of critical analysis, not even mixed within the snark and memes.

I immediately found something upon my own critical analysis of the Tweet worth pointing out, as Trump was equating fear with respect and Unity, which he assumes will help him to succeed.

I was quick to point out that fear=respect=unity=success was the same formula previous Fascists like Hitler and Moussillini both used. Which of course didn't end well for them since Hitler committed suicide when his defeat was imminent, and Moussillini was publicly hanged and dismembered.

My point is to show how simple it is to criticize Trump and the GOP in legitimate, non-reactionary ways, and it's just as simple to come up with something more clever and humorous.

But instead, 60% of the people I saw on Twitter, most of whom are Petite Bourgeois Liberals in the media world, but many aren't in that world, but are clearly being influenced by Reactionary Herd Mentality, just copying the Right-Wing commentary and social media snark they're accustomed to hearing on MSNBC and CNN.

This isn't a mistake, it's not accidental that this is the thoughtless direction the Trump/GOP Critic crowd has taken when responding on TV and Social Media.

The fact is that Democrats, having lost the 2016 election by letting Trump get to their Left on Economic issues while simultaneously stoking outrage and Nationalism, have no legitimate path to taking down Trump from a Progressive position. Not that they want to either. They don't seem to want to risk helping a "Socialist" get elected in 2020.

Instead the media crowd can only criticise Trump from the Right. Even when they make a serious attempt at criticizing Trump/GOP policies, they fall flat, sounding unconvincing and forced. All they're left with is snarky Red Baiting memes, innuendo about Manchurian Candidates, sounding just as deranged and conspiracy minded as Republicans.

Liberal media figures are only capable of attacking Trump's Immigration Policies from the Left. But because of affects of decades of Neoliberal Free Market Fundamentalism, and successful Fascist Propaganda blaming the poverty inducing results of these policies on Hispanic and Islamic Immigrant Communities, the masses have become highly skeptical of Immigration Policies mostly tailored specifically to keep deflationary pressures on wages domestically. You can't really blame people for seeing through this facade and then falling for the Nationalist Propaganda of the GOP.

So once you realize this, it becomes clear that the Liberal critics are left with two choices. Either they move Left into Social Democratic territory and attempt a more honest if unconvincing line of attack against the Right, or they can dive headlong down a rabbit-hole of continued conspiracies and Reactionary attacks from Trump's Right, continuing to defend the Free Market dogmatism and Corporate Free Trade Policies of the last half-century.

Of course we all know the Neoliberal Paradigm is highly unpopular with most people and become more unpopular by the day, and so they've instead gone whole-hog on the Red Baiting and Conspiracy theories.

Now we seem to have large sections of the White Working Class convinced by the Nationalist Propaganda out of sensation of frustration and a realization of false choice Bourgeois Democracy offers them.

Without any kind of United Socialist Movement in the US, or even a coherent Center-Left Social Democratic outlet for the people's frustrations, this has left them susceptible to calls of Nationalism, Racism, and Xenophobia coming from the GOP Right, as well as the Red Baiting and Conspiracy theories coming from Democrats and the Liberal media ecosystem. Of course this led us to the Trump Era, and inevitably leaves us open to a far more competent, dangerous Fascism in the future.

The only option we have is work harder and faster than ever before to educate Workers and Organize ourselves into a coherent Revolutionary Movement based on the Principles of Marxism-Leninism.

The descent into madness isn't going to get better on its own. The two-Party dichotomy of Bourgeois Liberals and Bourgeois Fascists leave us with a Political System that will see the Fascist gain control 9 times out of 10.

Under the twin threats of Fascism and Climate Disaster, we have no choice but to stop fighting amongst ourselves for scraps of media attention and instead build up a serious, Militant, Vanguard Party capable of defending the Working Class, raising the consciousness of the Proletariat, and challenging Bourgeois Rule.

Failure isn't an option anymore. There are countless Marxist Leninist Organizations out there doing fantastic work. Some are small and unknown, others have a reputation with the Labor Movement, and still others have done great work on analyzing the History of Revisionism and have been working on strategies for years on how to combat it.

From the Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), Party For Socialism and Liberation (PSL), the Progressive Labor Party (PLP), the American Labor Party (ALP), all the way down to working groups within the Marxist Center, as well as local Organizations like the one I joined the New Orleans Worker's Group.

Of course there are even more I haven't mentioned but that's my point. All these groups and more are working Independently and separate without any common Goals, Strategies, Tactics or even basic coalitions or basic communication channels.

That's Not a Winning Strategy!

This is too important a time in History, just as importantly it's too great an opportunity to miss just because of individual egos and ideas of turf.

We must begin conversations across Organizations to begin the work and process of consolidating our various organizations into a Vanguard Party of the Proletariat. Fuck the name or where it's headquarters are. It's more important that we do the work of fighting for the Workers and Uniting the Proletariat under a common Marxist-Leninist Movement! We have the greatest opportunity to build a Socialist Movement capable of challenging Capitalist right here in the Imperialist core! People are rediscovering Socialism and we're allowing the Revisionists, Anarchists and Social Democrats of the DSA define Socialism in the 21st Century!

We cannot allow these Right Opportunists to define our Movement for us just so they can hand it over to the Democratic Party betraying the Working Class again as they always inevitably do!

This is our moment, and we have little choice but to seize on it by the very nature of the external forces acting on Imperialist Society.

This is the first time in nearly a Century when the Socialist Movement is growing instead of shrinking. To fail the Workers now would be an unforgivable mistake. All Marxist Leninists have more in common worth fighting for than differences that can be worked out better through inter-Party Dialectics.

The Bolsheviks didn't begin by rejecting everyone they disagreed with. Instead they built up a Socialist Movement within the RSDP and alongside the Socialist Revolutionaries and even the Liberal Cadets until the Left had become a force in Russian Politics. They didn't begin by splitting with the Mensheviks and fighting the SRs and Cadets.

Once they had sufficient strength, then they broke with the Mensheviks. Then they were capable of proving themselves the legitimate Party of the Proletariat through their constant work Organizing, fighting Tsarism and Capitalism, and by showing through their actions why they were the true representatives of the Russian masses and not the Opportunists, the Liberals and the Anarchists.

And it wasn't until after they became the Venguard Party leading the October Revolution to victory that they could afford truly battling the Reactionary Bourgeois Capitalist pretenders during the Civil War.

When the dust had finally settled, they finally had the strength to consolidate their power, and it wasn't until all this was completed that the Bolsheviks now had the strength to purge the Opportunists and Revisionists within their own ranks.

We cannot expect to start a Socialist Movement by rejecting people before we've even begun. We have to educate first, argue internally second, and only when that process has failed does it make sense to reject a member from a Vanguard Party.

Yes, we also cannot afford to allow Social Democrats to corrupt the meaning of Socialism and confuse the Workers. That's obviously unacceptable and cannot be allowed in the Party. But a bit of Pragmatism and restraint within an organization of dedicated Marxist-Leninists would be wise.

As long as a Comrade or Cadre doesn't violate the rules and principles of Democratic Centralism post-debate, as long they don't actively contribute to disunity, then some level of dissent isn't just acceptable, it's preferable. We have to be a Movement capable of self-reflection, self-criticism, and accepting outside criticism and reflecting on that. Lenin and Stalin understood these points of pragmatic reflection very well. They were constantly critical of one another and the Party and yet always fought to preserve unity within. Nothing says these two principles are mutually exclusive and in fact it's brought up repeatedly in the writings of all the most historic figures within the Movement.

So I'm trying to make an appeal to all the disparate Parties and Organizations currently working Independently towards the same goal without a common line, a common strategy or even basic communication.

We all know it makes no sense and yet we've done nothing to bridge the gaps in decades.

Well, within our current time and place, with a revival of Socialist interest, it's incumbent upon Revolutionaries to immediately begin the hard work of unifying Marxist Leninists Organizations into a Vanguard of the Proletariat.

We have no choice! Our actions as Communists today, may very well shape the History of tommorow, and the survival of people across the world, at a time when the Imperialists have made it undeniably clear their willing to destroy the entire planet to continue their rule, may come down to our ability to Organize ourselves.

Just something to keep in mind as my Comrades consider their contributions to the Movement.

[sigurimit]

Opinions on the Party of Socialism & Liberation (PSL)?

I have a meeting with PSL about joining them because I’ve been relatively unhappy w the umbrella orgs of the org I chair for. I’ve read a lot about them and they seem like a Party worth joining, quite unlike CPUSA, and if anyone knows anything abt them from personal experience I’d love to hear. I’m a great organizer and agitator so I can make my way into most leftist circles, especially considering I founded and chaired Denver Socialists. I’d like my services to go to good use in whatever group I join, and I’d really just like to find the best one.

And don’t recommend RCP to me either, lmao.

[ageofkings]

Brazil 2018 elections: context and what to learn from it

I'm going to write a long post as a brazilian person who would like people to understand what happened in these elections. The rise of far-right is, obviously, linked to economic and moral crisis, and I believe the given context should help show exactly how this happened in Brazil.

First of all, we lived a military dictatorship from 1964 to 1985. It was bipartidary as a way to say there was any opposition at all but it made no difference, considering that elections were indirect(that is, not chosen by the actual population, holding power within military hand). It started with a coup d'état lead by the military supported by the USA against the president João Goulart, who while not being a communist at all, was left-wing. However, communist accusations already existed when Juscelino Kubitschek, who actively made it easier for international companies to enter Brazil, was the president. Even if the politician is open to capitalism, they can be painted as a communist for not following exactly USA's plan for them. Remember we're talking about Cold War, and tons of João Goulart's actions affected the USA directly.

While there was strong resistence to the military takeover, some may argue that there was popular support. That's because of the heavily spoken of(at least here) "Marcha da Família com Deus pela Liberdade", translating to March of the Family with God for Liberty: it was headed by people afraid of the "communist danger" in the name of democracy, of all things, and the Catholic Church, then an absolute majority among brazilians. Communism was associated with atheism, and the name of the march might show how big of an influence the Church was in this process.

Fast foward to already existing military dictatorship. While not as many people have died as in, for example, Chile under Pinochet, there was still torture, murder, people dissapearing and exile. And then they might say or you might think: "the only ones who would be murdered or tortured would be those opposing the dictatorship, so if you were not a terrorist, you should be fine!" I know how surreal this sounds but this is an actual thing that has been said on the topic of our military dictatorship more than once. Except one, it isn't ok to murder or torture someone because they oppose a government being overthrown. The direct opposition, like the ones actively fighting militaries, were not the only victims: it is highly suspected that Juscelino Kubitschek(the guy I mentioned earlier that is definitely not a communist) was murdered in 1976, in what was made to look like a car accident. Kubitschek was popular among brazilians and I argue he still is remembered in a good light, which might explain to you why dictators would want to murder such a personality. Now two, there are more reasons to complain considering the dictators sucked at governing?

To counterargument the "bad government" point someone might point out the "Milagre Econômico" or Economic Miracle, a boom in brazilian economy that wasn't real. How so? While our Produto Interno Bruto(PIB, in english known as Gross Domestic Product or GDP) did grow, it was in the hands of the already rich, such as great farmers who increased their production for exportation. You can't even claim it was an attempt to make private companies grow since anything that wasn't already big was forgotten, so neither is private business growing nor are state companies benefitting the population. Just making your GDP grow won't make your economy work! Anyway, inflation grew afterward and even people in the military were complaining(namely poor people who felt it). No matter how much you censor media, when most of the country hates your guts for making them miserable you can't hold on that long, so dictators started to transition to democracy. End. Understand that the elected president Bolsonaro supoorts this dictatorship.

Now let's take a look in 2002. That's when Lula was elected president for the first time, after running a ton of previous times. This man created PT, "Partido dos Trabalhadores" or Worker's Party, came from the working class(and organized strikes!) and is considered the first left-wing candidate after the dictatorship. Say what you will, the guy made some real changes to the country. He ended hunger in Brazil, invested heavily in social programs to remove people from misery, there was an increase in employed people, among other things. Of course, it wasn't perfect; in fact, to be elected, Lula had to align himself with more conservative parties and make himself less radical, otherwise the rich and middle class would not vote for him. Many actions helped the rich, especially great farmers(since economy became, and still is, dependent on commodities).

Conservative parties would not accept so easily to share power with parties so aligned to the left as PT. Internal conflict began and it has been since revealed that there was major bribery involved to make the goverment's social projects be accepted, in what was called the "Mensalão". Either way, Lula got reelected and later elected and reelected Dilma Rousseff as his successor, even if Dilma did not have the same popularity as Lula(and hers only decreased, actually). It is clear to all that Dilma was elected because of PT and especially Lula's legacy.

Dilma faced economic problems, besides protests in 2013 against the raise in bus passes(which isn't responsability of the president but it escalated GREATLY through the whole country and became a generalized protest against the government and corruption) and the disaster that was World Cup in 2014(honestly I don't even remember if it was corruption claims or the fact that people thought it was irresponsible to build stadiums while the country was dying or something). Things slowly turned into "this is PT's fault" and some even asked for military intervention like in the dictatorship, a request carried over to 2018 elections. Dilma just wasn't that popular and the fact she got reelected is, again, mostly because she was Lula's chosen successor. Nowadays, she is treated like a ghost even by the party.

Although she wasn't awful like you'd think, the media painted her as such: a major television station, "Globo", had a big role in this. In fact, the television station is only one of the medias through which it works, and the Globo group actually supported the very dictatorship I've spoken of at the beggining of this text before even having a television station. They have only admited and apologized for this in 2013. They also supported the candidate Fernando Collor de Mello in 1989 by editing the recording of the final debate between him and Lula; Collor won and was impeached later at the discovery of a corruption scandal benefiting himself and others close to him, besides implementing neoliberalism in a disastrous way. As if not enough, Globo viciously spoke of "Operação Lava Jato" or Operation Car Wash, a great corruption investigation that involved inumerous parties. The problem is, PT was clearly a target: everything was done to incriminate its party members, including affirmations that Lula and Dilma knew of all corruption happening and agreed with it. Many of the politicians spoken to were given deals, so that if they gave away someone else's name they might walk out free or have reduced penitences. One particular scandal from this operation, that is still ongoing, regards corruption in Petrobrás, one of the biggest companies of the country(although it has been progressively sold away).

During her second run, Dilma was impeached in 2016 under the claim of "pedaladas fiscais", translated as fiscal pedaling. Not exactly some war crime or corruption scandal, just tactics, and it has been pointed out that it was done in previous governments. Ironically, her vice president Michel Temer(from one of the conservative parties PT had aligned itself for support) wasted no time in making fiscal pedaling legal as soon as he became president. I must also add that Lula was arrested under corruption claims, with one of the fastest trials and investigations we've ever seen, proving that even if the claims are true, the arrest was always of political interest. Funny how corruption always existed in this country but if you may have done it(and in a much smaller scale) and you're left-wing, it's jail time; and for some reason when it is someone from PT being arrested it's big news, but most other arrests from other larties are irrelevant. That's how you throw a coup!

Now, who is Bolsonaro, the now elected president? Jair Bolsonaro has been a federal deputy for Rio de Janeiro(a state heavily associated with factions, gangs and criminality) and part of the city council. He has been thkurgh numerous parties, but spent most of the time in the 21st century in PP, "Partido Progressista" or Progressist Party(fun fact, don't take most of the party names literally because most of them don't align with the party's politics) until switching to PSL, "Partido Social Liberal" or Social Liberal Party for 2018 elections, since PP was involved in corruption scandals that Bolsonaro never addressed. He comes from a military career, having been considered mad by some military members, although others voted for him for his military benefit projects. Essentialy, he was a nobody.

Bolsonaro is a defensor of the torture from the dictatorship, homophobic, racist, misogynistic man, among other things. He has declared such things out loud and his electors either agree with it or believe he "won't really do that". For those who innocently believe in the best of Bolsonaro, why vote for a man who spent 27 years having near to no relevance as a deputy and passing no interesting projects? Simple: even though he has been in politics for so long, he selled himself as renovation by surfing in "antipetismo", the hatred for PT.

Bolsonaro grew through his hate, simply because he was in media. This is a very important part of his whole campaign: he only grew because he was given a platform. Even if most of the people who shared his content did so to say it was hideous, it was spreading him no less. In fact, Bolsonaro went to few debates during elections; while at first it would seem to be because of the stab he was a victim of during elections(yes, he got stabbed by a random guy who used to be linked to left parties so this information was used to turn it into a murder attempt by the left), at one point his doctors said he was allowed to go to debates, but he choose not to. In fact, at one point while there was a debate, Bolsonaro simultaneously gave an interview to another television station, which is illegal(because you're giving more TV time to that candidate when they should be debating with other candidates). Bolsonaro strategically ignored all debates from the middle to the end of the elections because not only his speeches are awful, he has no real knowledge of his own political plans. He claimed that he didn't have to know economy because he won't be an economist, so if anyone wanted to know about it, they should talk to his appointed economist Paulo Guedes(who wants to go for neoliberalism, a fact that attracted many self-proclaimed liberals).

Truly, the only great difference between candidates from PSDB, "Partido da Social Democracia Brasileira" or Brazilian Social Democracy Party and Bolsonaro is outright hate speech and the lack of political knowledge, since PSDB has been running as the main opposition for PT for years with the promise of neoliberalism. So why Bolsonaro instead of PSDB if at least PSDB's candidates have the decency of ignoring the poor without saying it out loud? Things were so bad that even Geraldo Alckmin, a great figure in PSDB and 2018's candidate, said he feared Bolsonaro in power. The television station Globo, even after playing a major role in PT's demonization, was considered a liar; not because of their speech against the left, but for including very shallow talk of LGBTphobia and racism. Even though it still has some influence, it managed to be hated both by conservative right-wingers and the left.

Bolsonaro's image was worshipped as that of a legend. Even if he did barely anything as a deputy, his speeches were seen as fantastic and proof of how he wasn't afraid to say what he thought was best. However, all of Bolsonaro's supporters did not come from here; while it was a high amount(people suspected he could manage 20% of votes), it was not the amount he managed by the end. But after such a growth, and with his name in every media, anyone who wanted to get rid of the big, bad PT could do so by voting in him. Bolsonaro might have been elected, but with much less votes or not elected at all if PT wasn't running, since the great majority who did vote for him just hated PT. I will not really debate if that would be the case as it is still quite the topic among some of the left, but PT has been criticized for trying to go for its 5th mandate in a row; even if it were not a dictatorship, it was easy for the media to sell it as such and demonize PT further. People who tipically voted for center candidates or used to declare vote for no one at all found themselves voting for Bolsonaro.

I find important to notice that in the Northeast region, formed by 9 states, not a single one had Bolsonaro leading. in fact, Haddad won there with values varying from 60% to over 70%, a reality quite different in states more to the south of the country. That's because PT's greatest weakness and strenght is being PT: the party's legacy in Northeast is massive, considering the region was historically ignored by the government. Its countryside is very hit and dry, and lack of water and misery was the rule; the urban cities were not in a much better state, with no investment whatsoever. It doesn't hurt to say that it also concentrates a great amount of black and poor population, due to the great strenght of slavery in this region back in colonial times. PT did a massive job there, so they would easily vote for PT again. Even with all the propaganda against PT, which did influence voters in urban locations, the party is still strong and Northeast in general seems to have a strong conscience regarding candidates of Bolsonaro's type.

That brings us a key problem when we're talking about other regions: historical education. People who allow themselves to ignore Bolsonaro's speech, while majoritarily richer, also include poor people who fell for his neoliberal promises of a better future(it is important to remember that the economic problems Dilma faced included crisis, with people losing jobs and everything) and talk of "good dictatorship times"(which people now won't even bother saying was a dictatorship because "there were elections" and "only terrorists died"). Suddenly, the fact a dictatorship existed was being doubted by growing smaller medias(reforcing the idea that Bolsonaro is an antisystem candidate as well as his speech), and the historic of racism(black people are more likely to be among the poor thanks to slavery and how its end was dealt with, which was by ignoring ex-slaves completely) was laughed at by years of claiming that a diverse country like Brazil couldn't be racist. Racism and homophobia were dismissed because "any more rights would be privilege" when murders are still very real.

I cannot stress enough how much of a role fake news played in these elections: Bolsonaro spread for years that the left and PT were trying to implement "gay kits" including books that taught children as young as 5 or 6 about sex(ironically, the book he appointed barely spoke of gay relations at all). It was repeated over and over and was a strong argument among families against PT, even though PT proved it was a lie many times. Bolsonaro was only forbid to spread the lie at the very end of the elections, when the damage had already been done, and still he spoke of it again and another time after being elected. The electoral justice did nothing about him(and many other problems during this election), proving that the system wanted him elected more than the people did.

Again: Bolsonaro was elected because the media did a really good job in demonizing the left, and especially associating it with communism, the "totalitarian regime that killed millions". It has become common to associate fascism and nazism to the left, because the political spectrum is seen as less state equating right and more state(the great evil!) equating left. If you make a bad government or were associated with corruption scandals, you're left. They made it seem as if the left purposefully gave the poor only enough so that they would be dependent on them. There were also heavy nationalist tones, with people screaming their country's flag would not be red(communism!) and they only want what's best for Brazil. Bolsonaro also brought religious tones along with his moralist ones; in fact, his campaign slogan even mentions Christian God. Catholic Church this time was more left-leaning, but Brazil has Evangelicalism as a strong religion, as well as Bolsonaro's own faith, leading to him grabbing many votes from this population.

The great takeaway from this is: people in Brazil have not learned what is left and right, and it made it easy for the right to exploit it. Even with a dictatorship and corruption scandals so recent, brazilians had their history distorted and were led to Bolsonaro in the most convenient moment. Many of the strategies used are similar to those of Cold War and mirror our dictatorship strongly, which should probably explain to you why Bolsonaro has used the USA as a role model for years and has always been eager to have Brazil linked to Donald Trump. People don't necessarily hate minorities(although some do), they were driven by the narrative of left corruption and excess of minority rights in a still moralist country.

Hopefully this has been enlightening. Give people political education!

[plotfinders]

hiya! my name is (piper) and i’m located in (gmt). i’m currently looking to play (christina aguilera/hailee steinfeld/bailey sarian/open to others) against (any age appropriate male, canon or oc). i’m currently interested in the following plots: (slow burn, celeb/body guard, forbidden love, soulmates, from different worlds, i'm open to anything). this will be for a (psl or possibly group if you prefer that), and (will) contain mature themes. note: (either headcanons or paras) are preferred! please reach out to me on (chats @ raspberrycruiscr) for more information.

its been awhile since i've seen a hailee steinfeld or a christina aguilera! this one is definitely tempting...

note: please remember to check your invites!

[storm-alert]

PSL update

I have midterms to study for (and I'm genuinely failing micro econ so if anyone here is interested in tutoring me pls show up) so I'm gonna procrastinate n make an update post woohoo

The group stages are now over! As you all know, we've started the Pakistan leg of the competition and now we've reached the qualifiers! Karachi Kings, Quetta Gladiators, Peshawar Zalmi and Islamabad United have reached the qualifiers while Lahore Qalandars (for the 4th year in a row) and Multan Sultans (for the 2nd year in a row - this is also their second appearance in the competition) have finished last and second last, respectively and so are out of the competition.

Also should point out that ALL of the foreign players have flown to Pakistan for this leg despite the threat of war (which has pretty much dissipated - lol @ India for that huge ass scare they gave us) so kudos to them! In particular Shane Watson from Quetta Gladiators has also flown out which is a huge deal because he's the first big Australian name to come to Pakistan in like 12 years or smth so!! thats huge!!

the matches have been pretty intense esp yesterday's Karachi vs Quetta where Quetta needed 5 off of 6 balls and Karachi won by 1 run thanks to Usman Shinwari's brilliant last over where he got 3 wickets! Hassan Ali also got a hattrick vs Karachi today so that was pretty entertaining (he plays for Peshawar).

We have 4 matches left which are

Peshawar Zalmi vs Quetta Gladiators who play in a Qualifier on Wednesday at 7:00 pm (+5:00 GMT)

this match is between the teams who topped the table and decides who goes directly to the final aka the winner will go directly to the final while the loser will have to play in eliminator 2 vs the team who wins eliminator 1 (ie either Karachi or Lahore as written below). It's a bit confusing so do send me an ask if u don't understand!!

Interesting players to watch for this match are

- Darren Sammy, Hassan Ali, Tymal Mills (who is a fave of mine), Keiron Pollard, Liam Dawson from Peshawar Zalmi

- Shane Watson, Dwayne Bravo and others from Quetta

Islamabad United vs Karachi Kings in the Eliminator 1 on Thursday at 7:00 pm (+5:00 GMT)

Interesting players to watch are

- Shadab Khan (the captain!!) + others from ISLU

- Babar Azam, Mohammad Amir and Colin Ingram from Karachi Kings

Eliminator 2 on Friday @ 7:00 pm (+5:00 GMT) (winner of eliminator 1 vs loser of the qualifier)

Final on Sunday @ 7:00 pm (+5:00 GMT) (winner of qualifier vs winner of eliminator 2)