#euro 2020 live

[tategaminu]

the rayllum comic being the most expensive one as it should be 💅

[chiosavince]

[pedripics]

Pedri's unwavering obsession with bald men and going bald - a thread

He loved Iniesta so much, that as a kid he asked his dad to get 'Iniesta's haircut', not realising that Iniesta is simply bald

He dedicated a goal to his cousin... because he is bald

the cousin (Abraham) in question:

(yes apparently the obsession runs in the family)

His WhatsApp profile picture is this edit of him being bald with a moustache

(he told this story twice, once live on national television and once on youtube lmao)

Pedri promised to shave his head THREE times so far:

EUROs 2020:

World Cup 2022:

EUROs 2024:

This time he even got Lamine involved:

He also said recently that he dreams of going bald one day????

If you are bald, the chances are high that he's gonna love you

[txttletale]

Hi! Do you think you could link me to some resources about the problems/ evils of the EU? Would love to find some but it's hard to know what's reliable when I have no base knowledge in this area + you seem very well informed :)

sure. let's start with what the EU does to its own member states--in 2009, the EU bailed the greek government out of severe debt on the condition that they establish brutal austerity measures, cutting public spending and welfare. these measures served to immiserate and destroy the lives of thousands of greek people:

Greek mortality has worsened significantly since the beginning of the century. In 2000, the death rate per 100,000 people was 944.5. By 2016, it had risen to 1174.9, with most of the increase taking place from 2010 onwards.

[forbes]

Since the implementation of the austerity programme, Greece has reduced its ratio of health-care expenditure to GDP to one of the lowest within the EU, with 50% less public hospital funding in 2015 than in 2009. This reduction has left hospitals with a deficit in basic supplies, while consumers are challenged by transient drug shortages.

[the lancet]

The homeless population is thought to have grown by 25 per cent since 2009, now numbering 20,000 people.

[oxfam]

the most brutal treatment, however, the EU of course reserves for migrants from the global south. the EU sets strict migration quotas and uses its member states as weapons against desperate people fleeing across the mediterranean. boats are prevented from landing, migrants that do make it to land are repelled with brutal violence, and refugees are deported back to countries where their lives are in lethal danger. these policies have led to many, many deaths--and the refugees and migrants who do survive are treating fucking inhumanely.

After a perilous journey across the desert, Abdulaziz was locked up in Triq al-Sikka, a grim prison in Tripoli, Libya. Why? Because the EU pays Libyan militias millions of euros to detain anyone deemed a possible migrant to Europe [...] A leaked EU internal memorandum in 2020 acknowledged that capturing migrants was now “a profitable business model” [...] in Triq al-Sikka and other detention centres, “acts of murder, enslavement, torture, rape and other inhumane acts are committed against migrants”, observed a damning UN report.

[the guardian]

Volunteers have logged more than 27,000 deaths by drowning since 1993, often hundreds at a time when large ships capsize. These account for nearly 80% of all the entries.

[the guardian]

Refugees and asylum seekers were punched, slapped, beaten with truncheons, weapons, sticks or branches, by police or border guards who often removed their ID tags or badges, the committee said in its annual report. People on the move were subject to pushbacks, expulsion from European states, either by land or sea, without having asylum claims heard. Victims were also subject to “inhuman and degrading treatment”, such as having bullets fired close to their bodies while they lay on the ground, being pushed into rivers, sometimes with hands tied, or being forced to walk barefoot or even naked across a border.

[the guardian]

In September, Greece opened a refugee camp on the island of Samos that has been described as prison-like. The €38m (£32m) facility for 3,000 asylum seekers has military-grade fencing and CCTV to track people’s movements. Access is controlled by fingerprint, turnstiles and X-rays. A private security company and 50 uniformed officers monitor the camp. It is the first of five that Greece has planned; two more opened in November.

[the guardian]

i could go on. i could cite dozens more similarly brutal news stories about horrific mistreatment, or any of the dozens of people who have killed themselves in the custody of border police under horrific conditions. the EU is a murderous institution that does not care about the lives of refugees and migrants or about the lives of the citizens of any member state that is not pursuing a vicious enough neoliberal political program

[theanticool]

Since people are talking about Olympic women’s boxing for all the dumb reasons, let’s try to talk about the cool stuff going on this year.

The best boxer on the women’s side at the 2024 Games is arguably Busenaz Surmeneli. A 2020 Olympic gold medalist, the 26 year old from Turkey is looking to join Claressa Shields and Nicola Adams as the only women to repeat gold medals at the Olympics. She’s a 2x world champion, a champion at the Euro Games, and Euro boxing champ. She’s set to fight in the quarterfinals against Thailand’s Janjaem Suwannapheng.

I said Surmaneli is the arguable best fighter at the games because there is another elite boxer competing - Ireland’s Kellie Harrington. Another gold medalist from the 2020 Games, Harrington is the heir to Katie Taylor’s amateur dominance for Ireland. Harrington is an accomplished amateur with world championship medals, euro championship medals, and euro games medals. She’s got wins over people like professional world champions like Caroline Dubois, Maiva Hamadouche, Beatriz Ferreira, and more. Fantastic boxer. Set to face off with Beatriz Ferreira on Saturday (Aug 3) in the semifinal for women’s 60 KG. Which is a fantastic fight.

This year, the Refugee Olympic Team’s flagbearer was a woman named Cindy Ngamba. Originally from Cameroon, the young woman lives in the UK. She was forced to flee Cameroon as a teenager and picked up boxing in the UK at 15. She’s been unable to secure citizenship or a VISA. After coming out as lesbian at 18, it was determined they couldn’t send her back to Cameroon because it is illegal in the country. While Cindy wasnt considered a big favorite, she won her round of 16 bout against 3rd ranked Tammara Thibeault of Canada. One more win would secure her a medal at women’s 75kg!

Over in women’s 57 kg, we have Ashleyann Lozada. Lozada is the first woman to make it to the Olympics from Puerto Rico! Nesthy Petecio became the first woman to ever medal at the Olympics for the Philippines in boxing (and 2nd ever) when she won silver back in Tokyo. She’s announced she will retire after this Olympic cycle and is looking to give the Philippines only its 2nd gold medal ever! There are so many personal stories that I could go into. Hell, everyone is talking about Imane Khelif but not her story. She grew up rural village in Algeria, selling scrap metal so she could get bus fare to make it to the gym. Marcelat Sakobi, of Congo, used her exit in the round of 32 to remind everyone that there is an ongoing genocide happening in Congo.

[architect-2015]

Hand In Hand | mapi león

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In which Kennedy Russo and María León have been a couple since Russo debuted at Fc Barcelona in 2020 - this well know to the public - so after the Fifa WWC 2023 the lioness gives insight of the pain caused by the spanish federation, she tells the players story.

◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤

The Call Up

Kennedy’s life since joining Barcelona has been as sweet as it could be, a record breaking transfer from Manchester United, winning league title after league title, winning the Champions League after the heartbreaking defeat the previous year and The summer of 22’ winning the European Championship along side her little sister Alessia.

But the joys of her international careers do not match those of her girlfriends, after their quarter final knockout in the Euros tournament, the truth began to spill about the Spanish Football Federation: the lack of respect for players, the harmful environment and the disrespectful head coach - Jorge Vilda.

María León had always been one to speak her mind, never let her thoughts and opinions be squashed by others. So she did what was right - She took a stand.

Mapi and 14 other Spaniards resigned from the national team, with a dream for change. A dream that turned into a nightmare.

The Federation took no notice of these players.

The game carried on.

So when the World Cup call ups were around the corner, they knew they had to give up their childhood ambitions to win a World Cup, to stand up for what is right.

————

In the cozy living room of Mapi León’s home, the couple laid out on the sofa - arms tight around one another. A conversation needed sat unspoken plaguing the air.

“Would you be okay if i played?” a shy mumble left Kennedy’s mouth, she obviously wanted to play as anyone would in a World Cup but she also wanted to support her other half.

María shifted undeath the 27 year old, sitting them up and holding her girlfriends face in her warm hands.

“mi corazón, of course you should play, you’re coming off the back of your biggest international win you can’t give up on your World Cup dream just because of me. That can’t happen, I’ll make sure it wont happen.”

Mapi’s voice was thick with emotion. She hadn’t given up on her dream - simply put it on the back burner - so the fact Kennedy would consider sacrificing hers made her angry. Not angry at her girlfriend, she could never be angry with her but angry with the world that power hungry men like Vilda not only effected her career but the game as a whole.

“Cariño you’ll go, you’ll play for your country, your sister, you’ll play for yourself and i’ll be here cheering as loud as i can being as proud as i can.”

————

The Tournament

The older Russo had excelled during the tournament, many sung her praises complementing her performance and goal scoring ability and her link ups with her younger sister.

She was making her opinion know with her now well recognised celebration, creating a ‘M L’ with her hands into the closest camera. A nod to her partner back home.

Getting through to the final was the best night of her career this far, celebrating with her team, her sister and her best friend Lucy Bronze - a women who had shared experiences of world cup disappointment like Kennedy.

To then find out Spain would be joining them well that was a feeling she couldn’t put into words, fear, excitement, being endlessly proud of her spanish friends for making to their first final but most of all anger, anger that María and many other couldn’t have their World Cup moment, anger their dreams had been taken away, anger that selfish men once again had come out on top.

————

The Final

{María❤️}

mi corazón, good luck with the game tonight. You’ll play amazing and hopefully you’ll be the one lifting that trophy! te amo! xxx

It was half time and the lionesses were down 1-0, a beautiful goal from Olga had put the spaniards infront. The eldest Russo had been yellow carded in the first 45 minutes for straight up shouting at the spanish head coach - every wrong action he made, she countered with a word to the referee or to his face. It was now clear that the young women had a strong desire to make this match miserable for the man. It’s the least she could do after all the damage he’s caused.

A speech from Sarina and Millie had instilled some determination into the squad but walking back out from the tunnel had been the thing to create a fire inside of Kennedy.

The second half had now been played in until the 87’ minute after a saved penalty from Jenni Hermoso, one in the opinion of Kennedy was well off the penalty spot.

A well timed pass from Lucy Bronze had Kennedy flying past the spanish back line, continuing her run towards Cata Coll, slotting it with a perfect strike into the top left corner.

The crowd erupts, before Kennedy could process what had happened, she had fallen victim to a human pile on- tears of overwhelming joy overflowed from her eyes.

A whistle was blown, a VAR check.

The words ‘possible offside’ had create a looming feeling of fear within the midfielder.

[CHECK COMPLETE: OFFSIDE]

The floor seemed to fall from beneath her feet, breath leaving her chest involuntarily, the spanish chants invading her ear as sobs left her mouth. Arms looked around her frame: Lucy. “Head up Russo we have time, we’ve got to keep going”

Many minutes of added time passed until the final whistle blew, they failed, they had lost. He had won.

Crashing to her knees - in that moment she couldn’t find it in herself to feel happy for her Barcelona teammates, she couldn’t begin to imagine how this would effect María’s international career, she could only feel the guilt seeping in. She was offside. She has ruined the lionesses chance of becoming world champions. She let her country down.

Whilst her time stood still as she laid there on the grass, the world moved on.

A delicate hand was placed in her back and her sister’s floral perfume surrounded her like a blanket of safety. Alessia. Her manicured hands hooked underneath her older sisters arms, pulling her into a sitting position.

All the adrenaline had left Kennedy , making a feeble attempt to support herself only led to her head falling onto the shoulder of her sister, looking for some form of comfort. A comfort she knew could only be provided by María.

It felt like hours that the sister duo sat on that pitch, their shirts now soaked with sweat and tears. A sobbing Lucy Bronze had joined the circle, arm in arm the three walked towards the tunnel of spaniards - who were eager to hold the trophy in their grasp.

The walk was agonising, through the rows of players, to shake hands and then to be bestowed with a silver medal. She like Mapi lived with a ‘second is the first loser’ mentality.

Her time on the pitch concluded with watching the trophy being lifted from afar, her eyes glued in the celebrations of the man she despised.

————

The Interview

“So Kennedy tell me how are you feeling?”

She hated interviews, especially after a loss.

“Uh- It’s hard you know. I’ve now had the opportunity to play in three world cups and i’m honoured to have done that but it’s just not a nice feeling to inch closer and closer every time to then fail, in the biggest moment of my career i was offside so… yeah it’s not a nice feeling at all.”

Anyone who was watching the interaction could tell that the Russo women was actively trying to keep her emotions at bay. Little things like tapping her foot, the furrow between her brown, and most noticeable rubbing her thumb harshly across the skin of her wrist - above a fine line tattoo of a lion.

“You are referring to your goal that was not allowed due to it being offside, do you agree with that decision?”

“Well it’s not up to me to undermine the decisions made by the referee, whilst some of them i do not agree with at the end of the day it’s not my job. I guess it just wasn’t in our cards to win today and yeah we’re all disappointed but we’ll come back from this. Train harder, play smarter. Our squad is full of young people who are no where near finished with their world cup dreams.”

“Now we saw you had some confrontations during the game with the spanish head coach, are you allowed to comment on that?”

“I mean i’m probably not but i can say i do not like Jorge Vilda, not as a coach and not as a person. When you are given the role of a head coach it is your job to keep your players safe, to respect your players, to respect the game and make sure your players have a good working environment. He does none of that. He abuses the authority he has been given and i find it disgusting. The RFEF and Jorge Vilda have shown on countless occasions their lack of professionalism.”

“And can i question you on your celebration from this tournament?”

“Of course so, my celebration is for someone back home, someone i said i would play for and i did. It was upholding my promise i made to her and to others that you shouldn’t let someone else tarnish your desire and whilst they cannot be here, i am so i said i’d carry that desire for all of us.”

“Is that in reference to the players of the spanish national team that are not here? You also said ‘she’ and it’s public knowledge that you and a certain Mapi León are in a relationship, did you see play for her”

“Every footballer has dreamt of playing and winning a world cup, and to be able to do that is the greatest achievement anyone could have. We know as players especially as women that things don’t always go our way - but to be able to stand up for what you believe to the scale those women did and continue to do is incredible, i’m so unbelievably proud of them because fear is a big factor in taking a stand. You could protest but if you fear the results, you won’t get anywhere. I stand hand in hand and in full support of those women. The game cannot progress unless there is change.”

————

Kennedy Russo - England national player - fined for statement made in a post match interview in regards to RFEF and Jorge Vilda.

In a post match interview after world cup final loss, Kennedy Russo who plays for the England National Team and FC Barcelona was fined by the RFEF for some comments she made on their in her words ‘lack of professionalism’

Whilst Sarina Weigman or The Lionesses are yet to comment on this, the decision was made to send Russo back to Barcelona prematurely.

————

Back home

There was no place she would rather be.

A silver WWC medal was sat on a shelving unit above her tv, among other items she had won over the course of her career.

Walking through the shared house towards the bedroom was the most exciting part. Finally being reunited with María after this last month.

Opening the door, a warm light flooded through the windows. Mapi laid asleep under the thin layer of sheets and a little black furball had taken his place on Kennedy’s pillow.

Taking a seat beside her girlfriend, her hand begins it’s course through her bleached hair. Leaning down she places a delicate kiss on her partners neck, seemingly waking her up in the process.

“Buenos días, sleepyhead”.

“Mmm? mi corazón? hola”

María shoots up from her position to wrap her arms around her lover, her face concealed in Kennedy’s neck. Tears of relief are flowing down her cheeks, she had missed this. She had missed her.

Russo shifts them so her girlfriend is sat on her lap whilst Kennedy’s back is against the light green headboard. Whispers of reassurance dance around the room as many kisses are placed on any exposed skin.

“I’m so proud of you Cariño but i’m so glad you’re back”

And while the World Cup had not gone the way anyone had planned, it was alright. This was all they needed - no medal could ever match the love they hold for one another.

wow a non WWE fic, i might start writing some more woso stuff but who knows also i dint speak spanish so some stuff might be incorrect ❤️

[mecachrome]

hi! @ anon here is my lando accent infodump lmao:

so like landos accent is an ancient secret scientists worldwide have been spending centuries trying to analyse... but im gonna try to sum it up to the best of my abilities

his accent definitely changed with both private school AND international karting / single seaters but what complicates the matter is that his accent was weird to begin with

so using the reference clips k already picked out bc theyre actually rly good:

lando starts off (as far as we know, obvs by the time we have interviews of him he was already heavily involved in karting) with a weird accent

the main building blocks are definitely standard southern / londony working class. but there's also a distinct bristolian twang: notice the "foinal" and "mah mayn competition" and "jamie caroloine" lol (beloved). that bristolian twang is the first thing that goes away once he goes to secondary & is pretty much imperceptible today which is incredibly tragic to me

aside from all that is the weird foreign quality which has stayed in his accent to varying degrees over the years: these sort of flat, almost south african sounding vowels

part of it is 100% his mum & flemish roots. like, the reason i mention south africa specifically is bc i rmbr multiple ppl throwing it out as a guess, & it makes a lot of sense to me considering the dutch influence on the ZA accent. theres also his dyslexia, which often makes him trip over sounds / unsure of some pronounciations / simplify words in his head, and im almost certain that also contributes to his vague 'foreign' tinges

BUT if it was just those things it rly wouldnt explain why it fluctuated sm over the years. like we leave 11 year lando off sounding slightly european, but by the time we return to him at his formula 1 debut in 2019 i see ppl in the comments genuinely unconvinced that hes even british. he pronounces small 'i' sounds as long (think "a-nee-thing") and 'a' sounds flattened almost into 'e's (think "beck" instead of "back"). my reference for plotting where landos accent is at has always been how he says the name max (convenient that hes had by now 2 championship rivals and a best friend with that name) because at its most exagerrated it almost sounds like "mex"

i think what happened to get him to that point was like. as soon as private school flattened the regional twang his accent became even more absorbent than it had been before, and hanging out with so many international people brought out the european aspects of his own accent as well as had him borrow a few of their pronounciations

in 2019-2020 he was either living with sacha fenestraz (french-argentinian, has subtle and imo very charming argentinian accent) or alone & struggled to reconnect with old friends, bc of first the pressures of his rookie year and then the pandemic. this all changed massively in 2021 - at work he got an EFL teammate, at home he had max move in with him, in his social life he started hanging out more with tom bale and connor hughes and british youtube circles. 2021 is also when his accent solidified way more as 'standard southern' & i think it makes sense considering everything

nowadays his accent still varies & still carries some shades of his unique foreign pronounciations but it rests pretty consistently at 'standard southern'. what pushes it into different directions a bit is probably hanging out w garrix & other dutch ppl, as well as him adopting maxf's horrible little habit of mimicry which has him either pulling out the bankai bulgarian even out of context or, on the opposite side, placing the completely incongruous 'bunda' and 'man' into his vocabulary. OH and the even more baffling occasional brummie touches, also from maxf

tldr lando does have the ambiguous euro accent but its a bit more complicated than just spending time in international circles bc i think he is predisposed to speaking like that

as an addendum bc the english class police will come for me: by working class i just mean not posh

HLKSDFHLH kira this is such a dense text i don't even need to add anything!!! i've also seen people be like >WHY DOES HE SOUND SOUTH AFRICAN??? which mildly amuses me but yes all of this makes sense! and omg sacha's accent is sooo fun to me, i remember watching this interview where he talks about it (answering in spanish while his parents spoke to him in french 😭) and identifying as more argentinian than his sister etc. it was very charming. anw tl;dr as you put it i think a lot of it is just him and maxf possessing a natural inclination toward mimicry and a wide social circle LOL

[workersolidarity]

[ 📹 Footage from on the night of February 29th, when the Israeli occupation forces opened fire on thousands of starving Palestinians gathered for humanitarian aid on Al-Rashid street in Gaza City. 118 Palestinian civilians were killed in the massacre and more than 700 others were wounded in the attack.]

🇮🇱⚔️🇵🇸 🚨

INVESTIGATION OF ISRAEL'S "FLOUR MASSACRE" CONFIRMS ZIONIST FORCES RESPONSIBLE FOR SHOOTING HUNDREDS OF STARVING PALESTINIANS

An investigation by Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor (EURO-MED) into the "Flour massacre", which saw 118 starving Palestinian civilians killed and nearly 800 wounded in what the Israeli occupation tried to blame on a "stampede," says it has produced evidence that the majority of casualties were actually caused by the firing of live Israeli bullets.

The Flour massacre occured on February 29th, 2024 near the Nabulsi roundabout on Al-Rashid street in Gaza City, where thousands of hungry Palestinian families gathered for the arrival of a humanitarian aid convoy carrying food to starving crowds that desperately needed sustenance.

Soon after the trucks arrived, gunfire erupted, including tracer rounds which could be seen in video evidence taken at the time, causing thousands of civilians to panic, running off in different directions in search for shelter.

The Israeli occupation authorities used heavily edited clips of night vision drone video to argue that nearly a thousand Palestinian casualties were a result of a stampede after Israeli forces fired rifles into the air to defend themselves from defenseless civilians desperate for food, whom they claim were looting the free food being distributed to the crowds.

So senseless was Israel's explanations for the atrocity, that even CNN's Christiane Amanpour, a normally deferential TV commentator who rarely resists the official narratives of the Israeli occupation, had to push back against Israeli officials on U.S. national television.

But a newly published report by the Geneva-based human rights organization, Euro-Med Monitor, says that many of casualties were in fact the result of the firing of live bullets that have been forensically analyzed and found to match those used by Israeli soldiers.

According to Euro-Med Monitor, "Many victims of the massacre" actually suffered injuries from "5.56x45mm NATO bullets," adding that, "this is a type of bullet fired from Israeli army weapons."

"A sample of 200 dead and injured victims revealed that they were indeed hit by this type of bullet, and that the bullets were discovered and examined at the massacre site along with shrapnel found in the bodies of the wounded and dead," Euro-Med said in its report.

After carrying out a forensic analysis of the type of bullets used, Euro-Med says it "discovered that [this type of bullet] is discharged from assault rifles like the M4 and Tavor, along with machine guns," specifically "light machine gun[s] or LMG" such as the "IWI Negev."

Euro-Med says its research "revealed that 5.56×45mm ammunition is a basic FMJ bullet used by the Israeli army."

"This type of bullet is imported from the United Kingdom on occasion, produced in 2020/2022, and licensed for use by the Israeli Ministry of Defense," the human rights organization said of its analysis.

Euro-Med added that the bullet "is also manufactured in Israel by IMI SYSTEMS," an Israeli company which manufactures weapons, ammunition and other military technologies, and "regularly supplies them to the Israeli security forces, including the Israeli army."

Citing testimony by Muhammad Yasser Washah, a local 17-year-old resident of Gaza City's Al-Sabra neighborhood who was present for the Flour massacre, along with its own analysis, Euro-Med said it retrieved a bullet lodged in the youths jacket after going through the bag of flour he had been carrying on the night of the atrocity.

After analyzing the bullet pulled from Washah's jacket, Euro-Med discovered that its "form and dimensions were identical" to the bullets mentioned previously, though this particular bullet is designed to penetrate several millimeters of solid steel.

Euro-Med recorded testimony from several witnesses to the horrific massacre, putting together a timeline for the events of that night.

According to witnesses, the Zionist army began "directly shooting at civilians" as they waited for food aid at "approximately 4:10am" on Thursday, February 29th.

By 5:30am, the Israeli occupation forces "raided the entire gathering, where many people were lying injured, killed or were attempting to flee."

Euro-Med says that many people were taken into custody by the occupation's soldiers, others were forced to flee south, while some "Israeli forces directly executed others and left their bodies on a nearby beach."

According to testimony given by a witness who asked for anonymity, Euro-Med quoted the witness as saying, "We were shocked when Israeli soldiers showed up and took a group of young men from Gaza [City]."

The witness added that “While the majority of them were fleeing to the beach, some were at the Nabulsi roundabout, others were evacuated to the south, and still others were killed and left on the beach.”

The witness also detailed the fate of a doctor named Muhammad Awad who had been detained by Israeli soldiers but was released soon thereafter, “he moved several steps away, they opened fire on him and wounded him in the shoulder…We were under siege until 6:30 am, and the injured were pleading with us not to leave them…The food and flour were covered in blood when I left."

A second witness who works as volunteer paramedic also asked for anonymity fearing retaliation. That witness told Euro-Med “In the hopes of receiving assistance, I went to the Nabulsi roundabout. As a precaution, I brought a first aid bag with me because I knew that similar incidents had resulted in shootings.”

The witness explained how shortly before 4:30am, the humanitarian aid trucks "passed the checkpoint and the Israeli army started firing, throwing stun grenades and smoke bombs" as an Israeli tank advanced towards the crowd.

“I treated several injured people with first aid. I discovered that some had suffered injuries to their chests, while others had suffered injuries to their limbs," the witness recounted, adding that, "while I was trying to pull out one of the injured people, the tank came forward, and I was forced to flee the scene." The witness concluded by saying, “there was a large number of dead and injured people.”

Euro-Med Monitor goes on to lay out four "key pieces of evidence confirming the Israeli army's involvement in the killing and wounding of starving civilians," including signs of injuries on the bodies of the dead and wounded, footage released by the Israeli occupation authorities themselves, as well as "audible evidence of gunfire emenating from Israeli tanks positioned near the coast."

The Human Rights organization also pointed to video evidence published by the Zionist occupation, which despite being heavily edited, shows the "sheer panic and intimidation that struck all of the civilians present - including those relatively far away from the aid trucks - and pushed them to flee in all directions in order to seek shelter."

Euro-Med also warned that Israeli shootings of starving Palestinian civilians attempting to receive humanitarian aid has "become a regular practice."

The organization stated that over the last few weeks, "Israeli forces have directly attacked and killed dozens of people in Gaza City, including on Salah al-Din Street and in the vicinity of the Kuwait roundabout, where it has occurred no less than twice since the Flour Massacre."

The most recent example of this kind of attack came just last night when, according to Euro-Med Monitor, "many civilians were injured by Israeli violence near the Kuwait roundabout."

The Euro-Med report goes on to slam the Israeli occupation for "starving the people of Gaza, killing the starving people, and obstructing the entry and distribution of humanitarian supplies, especially in Gaza City and the northern Strip, demonstrat[ing] Israel’s aim of forcibly displacing the Palestinian people there as part of its genocide, ongoing since 7 October 2023."

The investigation goes on emphasize that the Zionist army's "extrajudicial executions and intentional killings of Palestinian civilians" who have not taken part in the hostilities, "amounts to serious violations of International humanitarian law," and are considered "war crimes and crimes against humanity as defined by the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court."

"These crimes, which Israel has been committing against the Gaza Strip’s people since 7 October, violate the right of Palestinians to life in accordance with international human rights law, and constitute acts of genocide," the Human Rights group added.

Euro-Med concludes it's report by urging the international community to take action to "force Israel to halt its starvation campaign" against civilians in the Gaza Strip, "in order to prevent the impending catastrophe of mass famine there, and to hold Israel accountable for its crimes and grave violations against the Strip and all of its Palestinian residents."

The Geneva-based human rights organization also issued a call for a "more effective and decisive" international intervention to "ensure the safe, complete, and reliable delivery of humanitarian supplies to the Gaza Strip without any hindrance," and "thus guarantee the provision of and access to" basic goods and services desperately needed by the starving population in the Palestinian enclave.

#source

#videosource

@WorkerSolidarityNews

[nomaptomyowntreasure]

Based on some of the comments on The Kintsugi Kid, and, I think, the surprise at the amount of denial and self-denial in it, here's a very brief and incomplete history of homosexuality in association football (soccer, we can call it soccer). I know the story is fiction but anyway, this is my rant into the void, basically.

Justin Fashanu was the first professional footballer to come out publicly and be openly gay in 1990. After coming out, he transferred clubs yearly, sometimes multiple times a year, until his suicide in 1998 amidst media allegations surrounding his sexuality. His brother continued to give interviews stating that Justin wasn't gay, but merely an attention seeker.

Unsurprisingly, the tragedy and hostility that struck his life after publicly coming out persuaded other gay footballers that coming out would not be a good idea. 

Some minor league players come in the early 2000s, mostly after their retirement, some during their active career - for example Messi (not the Messi) who's the first Brazilian football player to come out in 2010. After coming out, he transferred clubs yearly, sometimes multiple times a year. What a coincidence!

Also in the early 2000s, Luis Felipe Scolari (ex-Chelsea manager) goes on record to say he would have thrown out of the team a player whom he found to be gay. 

In 2005, former manager Alan Smith speaks of "the last taboo in football": "I've had players over the years who were single and read books and so others [other players] said they must be gay... I think being openly gay would be something very difficult to live with in football... You can get drunk and beat up your wife and that's quite acceptable, but if someone were to say 'I'm gay', it's considered awful. It's ridiculous."

Also in 2005, the Football Association held a summit aimed at tackling homophobia in football. In that same year, when the BBC asked all of the twenty Premiership managers their opinions on the issue as part of an investigation, all twenty refused.

Many heterosexual players are victims of homophobic abuse - both on and off the pitch, sometimes due to their "unladdish hobbies". Rio Ferdinand gets away with calling someone faggot live on air.

In 2010, Max Clifford says he would and has advised gay players to stay closeted: "It's a very sad state of affairs. But it's a fact that homophobia in football is as strong now as it was 10 years ago. If you'd asked me in 2000 whether I thought we'd have a famous, openly gay footballer by 2010 I would have said yes.

Robbie Rogers, an American football player, played for second-tier English football club Leeds united when he came out in 2013 - and announced his retirement almost in the same breath. He later returned from retirement to play for LA Galaxy, and become the first gay football player in the MLS. In 2013. He did play internationally for the United States, though was not called back for international games after his coming out. What a coincidence!

The first international player to come out as gay is Thomas Hitzlsperger who was a German national team player. He came out in 2014, one year after his retirement. During his active career, he had a long-term girlfriend.

So we're in 2014, and there's no openly gay football player in any major teams or with an international career. Most players who have come out since 2014 either came out after their retirement, or play for very very very minor leagues.

In June 2021, at the delayed UEFA Euro 2020 tournament, Germany national football team captain Manuel Neuer was investigated by UEFA for wearing a rainbow captain's armband and risked potential fines - they investigated it being a political statement.

The next major league player and first international player to come out whilst actively playing is Jakub Jankto, he came out in 2023 (yes, last year) and currently plays for a Series A team in Italy. He used to play for the Czech Republic but has not been called back for international games after coming out. What a coincidence!

In June 2022, it was revealed that homophobia made up the majority of online abuse aimed at footballers.

Here are some more supporting articles:

Homosexuality in association football

Homosexuality in English football

[boxboxblog]

Driver Profiles: Esteban Ocon

Hello, this is part of a series where I focus on one driver on the current (as of Oct 2024) grid and give an overview over their career and driving styles. I will be going in championship points order. Enjoy!

Name: Esteban José Jean-Pierre Ocon-Khelfane

Age: 28

Nationality: French

Years in F1: 8 (Manor 2016, Force India 2017-2018, Renault/Alpine 2020-Present),

Number: 31

WDCs: N/A

Driving Style: Known as one of the most aggressive drivers on the grid (up there with Magnussen) Ocon is particularly feisty when fighting for positions and overtaking. He balances this aggression with a rather smooth way of driving, and he is the least jerky driver when coming into the apex. He is also well known for strong performances in the wet, pulling out some stellar qualifyings and race results in these difficult conditions. One downside of his style is that this aggression often leads to on-track clashes. He is rather well known for being somewhat reckless, especially in midfield fights.

History:

(Young Ocon, middle, after wining a karting race)

Born into a standard middle class family, Ocon's family actually had to sell their house to afford his professional carting career. He started when he was 6 years old, and lived out of a travelling caravan for most of that time. In 2006 he finished 8th in the Minime class of the French Championship. He won the championship in 2007 and continued his success by winning the Cadet class in 2008. He then spent three years racing in the KF3 category and competed in the Spanish Championship and Italian Open Masters. He won the French KF3 title in 2010 and finished as 2nd in the WSK Euro Series in 2011 behind, behind future F1 WDC Max Verstappen. During this time he attracted F1 attention, being signed to a sister management company to Renault.

(Ocon in the lead during his karting days)

In 2012, Ocon made his debut in single-seaters, taking part in the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0. He finished 14th, having won a few points scoring positions and one podium. He also participated in a partial campaign in the Formula Renault 2.0 Alps, finishing 7th and achieving two podiums. He remained in the series for 2013, and recorded one pole position and two race wins. He finished the season in 3rd behind future F1 teammate, and rival, Pierre Gasly.

(Ocon during Eurocup Formula Renault days)

Ocon made his debut in F3 during the 2013 season, racing for F3 powerhouse team, PREMA. He continued with them into the 2014 FIA F3 European Championship. He topped the standings at the first round at Silverstone Circuit and remained in the lead of the championship for the rest of the season. With three races left, Ocon clinched the F3 2014 title. He had won nine races and recorded fifteen pole positions. This was one of the most standout seasons of his career, and one that helped ensure a F1 seat later.

(Ocon his F3 championship winning year)

Ocon moved to the GP3 Series for 2015. It was a fantastic year for Ocon, mostly due to his consistantly high results. While he only won one race that season, his regular podium finishes allowed him to win the title that year. The next year he took part in the 2016 DTM season, as well as being a reserve driver for Renault. He was only able to take part in the early season races, as halfway through the year he was pulled up to F1 backmarker team Manor Racing to replace Rio Haryanto.

(Ocon with Manor)

His first season (half season) with Manor was not a standout performance wise, as he never hit points, but it paved the way for Ocon to join Force India for their 2017 season after Manor left F1. His first year with Force India he teamed Sergio Perez and had a relatively solid year. He regularly scored points, even with some high-points finishes, and his highest finish was 5th. That year he experienced significant friction with his teammate (a running theme) and they made contact several times, sometimes resulting in retirements or massive position drops. However, he still had a good year and finished 8th in the championship.

(Ocon and teammate in the 2017 Force Indias)

2018 was a more negative year, as Ocon had a string of bad luck and run-ins with both his teammate and other drivers (memorably a physical altercation with Max Verstappen). He did not finish as high in the points that year, and it was further complicated after Force India went into administration. The team's assets were bought by Lawrence Stroll and it became clear that Ocon would not be returning to Force India for the 2019 season. He did have an informal agreement with Renault for that season, but he was dropped after they signed Daniel Riccardo instead. For the 2019 season, he served as the 2019 season he served as the Mercedes reserve driver.

(Ocon on podium with Lance Stroll)

2020 Ocon finally signed with Renault to partner Riccardo, and had a mixed bag year. He achieved his best result ever and his first podium at the Sakhir GP, but also experienced a lot of mechanical failures during races throughout the year. He ended the season 12th in the championship behind his teammate. 2021 Renault rebranded to Alpine and retained Ocon, now partnering Fernando Alonso. This would be the year Ocon achieved his maiden GP victory at the Hungarian GP. he showed his extreme skill in wet-weather conditions during this race, and solidified himself as a skilled driver in complex weather. The rest of the year was rather normal, as he scored several points finishes. He did match his WDC teammate rather closely, which is a feat.

(Ocon after maiden win)

2022 was a better year with some higher points finishes. He achieved his best championship finish since 2017, ending the season in 8th. 2023 Alonso left Alpine, and he was partnered by childhood rival and fellow Frenchman Pierre Gasly. The two would match each other pretty well, and have similarly middling seasons for both 2023, and 2024 so far. Halfway through the 2024 season Alpine announced they will not be retaining Ocon for the 2025 season. Shortly after, Ocon was announced for the 2025 Haas lineup.

Major Races:

2017 Canadian GP - Ocon's first points finish, he showed he could handle the pressure as a rookie (bar his time with Manor) and showed the first glimpse of the consistent points he would score later.

2017 Mexican GP - A very strong midfield performance from Ocon. He used strong defense against much faster cars and finished the race in 5th place, his highest at the time.

2018 Belgian GP - His most impressive qualifying to date, he was able to achieve a P3 start in extremely wet conditions. One of the earlier indicators of his skill in the wet.

2020 Sakhir GP - Ocon's first podium, he climbed his way up the field from 11th. It was a rather chaotic race, and he kept calm in the face of multiple crashes, safety cars, and pit stop drama.

2021 Hungarian GP - His first victory came in the most chaotic race of 2021. After several frontrunners were taken out by a crash, Ocon battled midfield drivers for the top step, including 4X WDC Sebastian Vettel. His mistake-free race earned him his 1st place finish.

That is all for Ocon, up next is Franco Colapinto.

Cheers,

-B

[deadpresidents]

I'm a Euro here in Belgium and know this is big question to answer but how do you think America will eventually come to its senses re: Trump and the maga people

Hello Belgium, I'd love to visit your country someday! It looks beautiful -- all of the photos I've seen of Belgian cities make them look like the setting for a fairy tale and watching In Bruges made me want to visit even more.

As for your question, almost 63 million Americans voted for Donald Trump in 2016 and, after a disastrous four years that dangerously threatened the stability of American democracy and often seemed like a concerted effort to viciously divide the nation, do you know what happened? Nearly 75 million people voted for him in 2020. And, four years after that, guess what? After the country was pushed to the brink because Trump incited an insurrection that attacked the U.S. Capitol in a desperate attempt to hold on to power and disregard the results of an election that he clearly lost, after being impeached twice, and after being charged with 88 felonies that made him the first American President to face criminal prosecution, Trump easily coasted to once again becoming the presumptive Republican Presidential nominee.

So, when will the people of the United States come to its sense regarding Trump and MAGA? It doesn't appear that they will. Win or lose in November, I don't know if this country can pull up out of the death spiral that it has been in since Trump came down his stupid escalator and announced he was running for President in 2015 and began actively poisoning any semblance of civil discourse still left in this nation.

Honestly, after November 5th, I might need to come live in Belgium or somewhere in Europe if enough Americans don't recognize that ELECTIONS HAVE CONSEQUENCES. We barely survived one Trump term; I don't think we'll be able to ride out a second one.

[pigeon-smidge]

🇵🇸 🛑pleas don't scroll ‼️Hi, I hope you are well. My name is Mohammed Atallah, I live with my parents, six sisters, a little girl named Malak and a little boy named Ameer in North Gaza. I created this link to fund a bone graft in my left hand which was shot by an explosive bullet, to rebuild our destroyed home and to evacuate my family from Gaza to a safe place.And donate any amount to safe life .. I will appreciate your help❤️ Can you please help as much as you can . Press all buttons on my wall , I beg you to visit my page, view it, and donate via the link in the bio💔Donate and share widely 🆘🆘 Every euros will make a difference 🙏I urge you to donate. Even the smallest amount can make the biggest difference. Not only he needs to evacuate with his family, but he is in dire need for surgery! The IDF has shot his arm with an explosive bullet. Not a regular one. AN EXPLOSIVE ONE. So he needs to get it treated right away! Otherwise, he will get an infection and it may lead to amputation. WE DO NOT WANT THAT TO HAPPEN, DO WE DO?So contribute! Make sure to reblog and share his story if you are unable to do so.Help my family. War is devastating. There is nothing left to live. No schools, no universities, no home, and no dreams. All dreams have been shattered. I hope for help before it is too late Please share on Twitter and tumbler and Instagram The campaign has been documented @90-ghost 🍉

If you can donate, please please do. Share as well, as a simple reblog and pasting the link somewhere can help more people see. It can save lives. It brings more attention to these stories that desperately need activism.

If you can’t, please share.

Arab.org actually allows you to donate FOR FREE to Palestinian refugees with clicks. You can normally click once per day but if you use different browsers, devices and open it from different platforms on mobile you can do it more often.

Peace for Palestine and the world. No one deserves to be hunted for simply existing.

We can all coexist peacefully. We are all human. 

[sometimes-men-need-help-too]

Helpline for male domestic abuse victims struggles to cope amid pandemic surge

This was back in 2021 but I wanted to share it anyway

A helpline for male victims of domestic violence is struggling to cope with the volume of calls because of a 35 per cent spike in the numbers seeking help during the pandemic.

Men’s Aid Ireland says it dealt with about 5,500 contacts during 2020, a figure it projects will grow again to 9,000 this year based on a further surge in January and February.

Kathrina Bentley, the organisation's chief executive, said calls are also getting "more worrying and concerning" and their "seriously stretched" three part-time helpline staff are struggling to cope with demand.

“During the last week of January and first week of February, within 10 days we had five very serious suicide situations at the end of the phone,” she said.

“ We had to get Garda assistance for two of them, ring ahead to a hospital for a third and we talked the other two men down.”

The common thread in calls is an abusive relationship, in 95 per cent of cases involving a wife or female partner.

“Hitting me, kicking me, spitting on me, telling me I’m a useless father, telling me I’m crap, telling me I don’t bring in enough income,” she recounted the calls.

“One man said he sleeps in the spare room and his wife soaks his mattress during the day with cold water and leaves the windows open before he comes home from work. So he sleeps on the floor.

“There are pure emotional and psychological games, men who have no access to funds, their partners controlling their finances.”

Funding

Ms Bentley said the organisation sought and was refused funding for a 24/7 helpline from the State’s child and family agency Tusla, which she criticises for allocating 1 per cent of its domestic, sexual and gender based violence (DSGBV) funding to the service.

Along with the Men’s Development Network, it is one of just two Tusla-funded services dedicated to male victims.

Men’s Aid Ireland has €244,000 funding for its six staff operation this year, an increase of €5,000 on last year.

In January, about 600 men contacted the service, and at least 80 calls were missed because the helpline – which runs from 9am to 5pm on weekdays – can only deal with two callers at any one time.

“It is really worrying,” said Ms Bentley. “Every phone call, we can save or change a life, that is the frontline day to day reality of it. Our small organisation took on the war that is the pandemic of Covid, and the war that is the pandemic of violence, but we are in the trenches with no ammunition.”

Ms Bentley said callers include accountants, gardaí, politicians, doctors, gardeners, postmen, the military, tradesmen and the unemployed.

Some are on the minimum wage while others “live in multi-million euro houses and behind the front door is domestic violence”.

Many are victims of coercive control – “a silent, invisible pattern of abusive behaviour over time” – which she says is “catastrophic for families, children as well as men’s lives and their careers”.

Ages range from 19 to 83 years old, but particularly between 40 to 55.

“It is incredible for a man to have the courage to pick up the phone in the first place,” she said.

“How disappointing and heartbreaking it is when no-one answers that phone.”

‘Bad patch’

Citing a report by Cosc – The National Office for the Prevention of Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence – that shows one in seven men experience domestic abuse in their lifetime, and 95 per cent do not contact gardai, Ms Bentley suggested the numbers not seeking help could be as high as “a couple of hundred thousand”.

Ms Bentley said callers often don’t see themselves as victims of domestic abuse and hope it is a “bad patch” that will pass because they don’t want the family to break up. “When you ask them how long it has been going on for, and they say three to six years, well that’s not a bad patch in a relationship, that is an abusive relationship.”

In response to calls in a parliamentary question for a 24/7 national helpline, Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman said the Government was currently carrying out an audit of DSGBV services.

There was no comment from Tusla.

[desperatelyseekingcannibals]

A Mads poll with a difference!

A poll of Mads Mikkelsen movies where the selection is based on range of factors, including but not limited to: genre, writer/director, country of release, date of release and 🎉vibes 🎉

Some of the movies may fit in more than one category, so vibes have mostly informed those decisions.

Round Two:

Choose your fave!

Three European contenders! A Mads for every mood...

From 1996-2001, 2002-2006 and 2009-2020.

En kort en lang (Shake It All About) is a 2001 Danish comedy-romance about couple Jørgen and Jacob whose lives change after Jacob proposes to Jørgen, and then promptly falls in love with a woman. Mads plays Jacob, the idiot who will be lucky if Jørgen takes him back!

Exit is a 2006 Swedish thriller about investment businessman Thomas who is arrested for the suspected murder of his business partner. When he tries to call his lawyer, the phone is answered by someone he believed to be dead. Mads plays main character Thomas alongside Alexander Skarsgård.

Druk (Another Round) is a 2020 Danish comedy-drama following a group of teachers who decide to divert themselves from the boring lives by testing Skårderud's theory regarding humans having a blood alcohol content deficiency. Mads plays Martin, a history teacher who dramatically derails his life over this alcoholic pursuit.

[scratchybongvt]

$1,000,000 Pole Vaults Challenge! (Sidemascots 1.5)

Vinicius: We invited 30 of the best mascots to compete for pole vaulting glory!

Sumi: The last person to fail a Pole Vault wins $1,000,000!

Haddaf: Correction: $1,000,000,000!

Everyone: $1,000,000,000?!

Haddaf: Thanks to today’s sponsor: The Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund!*

*not literally sponsored, we’re a non-profit, except for Sumi.

Everyone: The Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund?!

Vinicius: Forget the previous episodes! This is the most controversial episode we’ve ever made!

Haddaf: The Saudi PIF: get out of here if you don’t like money! #ad

THE SIDEMASCOTS!

Vinicius: Season 1! The most controversial series on tumblr!

Sumi: Most controversial? After a few episodes?

Vinicius: yeah, and?

Sumi: …

ROUND 1

30 mascots remain!

Sumi: Good luck Vini!

Vinicius: Thanks Sumi!

(Vini attempts but his pole breaks)

Sumi: oh.

Fail.

(Transition)

Vinicius: Good luck Sumi! Bring me the cash prize so that I can pay my hospital bills!

Sumi: You do know winter mascots are bad at summer sports?

Vinicius: Woah-oh.

(Sumi attempts but obviously failed)

Fail.

(Transition)

Vinicius: Default Olympic masco- I mean Miraitowa.

Miraitowa: Default Olympic mascot? I quit.

Sumi: Fail. It’s all your fault.

(Transition)

Sumi: Wenlock!

Wenlock: The Ironwork from the Thames!

(Wenlock attempts but got pulled by Giorgio Chellini)

What did I do?

Vinicius: Fail! Potato potato.

(Transition)

Sumi: Honohon!

Honohon: Take off, WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!! THIS IS HIGHER THAN I EXPECTED!

Vinicius: Who in the right mind use jet packs

(Honohon explodes)

Sumi: Fail.

(Transition)

Vinicius: Soohora-

Sumi: Fail.

Soohorang: Why?

Sumi: Winter mascots fail anyway.

Soohorang: Potato potato!

(Transition)

Vinicius: Burke!

Burke: For the braves, or falcons, or United. Whatever!

(Burke attempts but fail)

Vinicius: Fail!

Sumi: Well that explains every Atlanta franchise.

Burke: (the disrespect.)

(Transition)

Sumi: Borobi!

(Borobi phone rings)

Borobi: Guys, I have a date with Tazzy mate. Maybe next time…

Vinicius: Fail.

(Transition)

Vinicius: Olympic Phryge!

Sumi: She’s still in therapy.

Vinicius: Oh I forgot about that. Fail.

Sumi: Rest in peace Paralympic Phryge.

Coal: Don’t worry, mascots-

Vinicius and Sumi: SHE DESERVED TO DIE ANYWAY!

(Transition)

Sumi: Cobi!

(Cobi attempts but fail)

Vinicius: Vini, Vinicius, he drinks Brahma, Vini, Vinicius, he eats Fejioada!

Sumi: Fail.

(Transition)

Vinicius: Vivi.

Vivi: You do know the Expo isn’t a sporting event?

Sumi: shit.

Vivi: #webegyoupleasevisitthemitsubishipavillionatnestyearsexpowehavefeastableshonest #ad

(Transition)

Sumi: Italia-Chan- WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!

(Wenlock pulls Italia-chan on her back)

Wenlock: Revenge for the Euro 2020 final!

Cobi: Les Grandes Equipes! THE CHAMPIONS! (That was referring to Spain’s Euro 2024 win against England and nothing to do with me having PTSD of Real Madrid winning the UCL!)

Vinicius: Fail.

(Transition)

[Generously illustrated by @verarussin8. If you want to illustrate at least one part of any episode of the Sidemascots, DM me!]

Vinicius: *sighs* Myaku-myaku…

Sumi: What’s the problem?

Vinicius: Are you running out of ideas?

Sumi: No?

Vinicius: Fail.

Myaku-myaku: Thanks for the otherwise wonderful time guys…

(Transition)

Sumi: Clyde the Thistle!

Wenlock: Hey Clyde, pass and we’ll allow Scottish Independence!

Clyde: Scottish Independence? Grow up you bloody fluke!

Vinicius: Fail!

Wenlock: LONG TO REIGN OVER US… GOD SAVE THE KING!!!

(Transition)

Vinicius: Petr-

Sumi: Fail! Don’t try to bite the pole Petra…

(Intermission)

Sumi: Intermission, hit like to win $1,000,000*!

*definitely a scam but still, please like, we beg you.

Intermission over!

(Transition)

Vinicius: La’eeb!

(La’eeb opens a portal and goes through the bar)

Sumi: You can’t cheat!

OC IV: well technically he did pass the bar, PASS!

La’eeb: LONG LIVE QATAR!

(Transition)

Sumi: Chenchen!

Chenchen: 这是什么狗屁挑战？我退出！

Vinicius: Fail. Chinese people.

(Transition)

Vinicius: Someity!

Sumi: Someity, stop meditating!

Someity: …

Vinicius: STOP MEDITATING!

Someity: …

Sumi: Fail.

(Transition)

Sumi: Mighty Red!

(Mighty Red obviously failed the pole vault)

Vinicius: That sums up Liverpool this season. Fail.

(Transition)

Sumi: Sanic!

Vinicius: You mean Sonic?

Sumi: No, Sanic!

(Gotta go fast, gotta go fast)

Vinicius: We can’t allow people who don’t know how to pole vault. Fail.

(Transition)

Sumi: Schuss-

Vinicius: fail. What a waste of everyone’s time.

(Transition)

Vinicius: Herbie the hammer!

Announcer: Substitution: Herbie off, Hammerhead on!

Wenlock: shit Wenlock, baby! You’re just a shit Wenlock, baby! Oh, unless you want to talk about West Ham United, COME ON YOU HAMMERS!

Sumi: Fail.

(Transition)

Sumi: Moongcho!

(Moongcho fell limp.)

Vinicius: for god sake.

Soohorang: DOES ANYONE FROM ANY REGION IN SOUTH KOREA HAVE A STOMACH PUMP?

(Transition)

Vinicius: @crackheadfromsainsburys!

Crackhead: I’m not here to do challenges…

Sumi: Then what is it?

Crackhead: I’m here to promote my new series: Battle for Olympus!

Vinicius: Fail! And good luck with your new series, you’re gonna need it.

Crackhead: Ha- what?

Vinicius and Sumi: THE SIDEMASCOTS SEASON 1!

Crackhead: Oh.

(Transition)

Sumi: Orry the Oryx!

(Orry gets bribed by the Saudis, Olly takes it anyway)

Vinicius: Fail!

(Transition)

Vinicius: A Bull?

(Perry puts his hat on)

Vinicius and Sumi: Perry the Bull?!

(Perry attempts but fail)

Sumi: Ha, his name doesn’t work. Fail.

(Transition)

Sumi: Copper!

Vinicius: I thought he was electrocuted!

Copper: I barely survived that one!

Sumi: Oh great. Roll on.

(Copper attempts but gets electrocuted again)

Vinicius: Well Copper is a very good conductor of electricity.

Sumi: Fail!

(Transition)

Vinicius: Hello kitty!

Sumi: From Pakistan!

Hello Kitty: I am a little boy :)

Vinicius: Disqualified for making cringe! Not even Kuromi do that!

(Transition)

Sumi: The Asian Unicorn!

(Someone brought in a Frenchman)

Sao La: Philippe Troussier? No chance!

Vinicius: Fail! Just like Vietnam in their World Cup qualifying campaign.

(Transition)

Vinicius: Last but not least…

Sumi: Mukmuk!

Mukmuk: (I’m going to kill you for not apologizing to Miga for the past episodes!)

Sumi: Woah oh… AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

(Sumi was being chased by Mukmuk)

Vinicius: Fail. Potato potato.

ROUND 2

1 mascot remain!

Vinicius: Sigh, La’eeb wins the $1,000,000,000 pole vault challenge!

La’eeb: LONG LIVE QATAR!

Miraitowa: This challenge is as corrupt as this year’s Asian Cup! Good luck doing the same in the World Cup qualifiers!

La’eeb: Thanks- what?

Haddaf: Congratulations! Here’s your prize in the container right here!

La’eeb: Yay! (Opens and gets in the container) Wait, why there’s nothing in there?

Vinicius: Woah oh…

(The container is being closed and gets carried by a helicopter piloted by Haddaf)

Haddaf: SAUDI PRO LEAGUE!

Sumi: Great, who’s gonna pay for our hospital bills now?

Vinicius: Holy, you look so screwed up!

Coal: Don’t worry, mascots-

Vinicius and Sumi: SHUT UP COAL!

Vinicius: Ow, my back!

THE SIDEMASCOTS!

Vinicius: Season 1!

Sumi: Just a heads up that we do not endorse the Saudi PIF in any way! That wasn’t in the script!

Vinicius: But the cameo of Haddaf is!

Sumi: We need 50k likes so that we pay our hospital bills!

Vinicius: Next time, mascots play FC25!

Sumi: Remember, set the follow button to cook…

Vinicius and Sumi: OR YOU’RE IN THE HOOK!

Tom: HA, BOTH OF YOU INJURED, KNEW IT!

Coal: Don’t worry, mas-

[darker-than-darkness]

Little rant about getting an autism/adhd diagnosis as a person under the trans* umbrella.

Right of the bat: I am (as of now) only self-diagnosed, with strong suspicions of autism or possibly audhd. My psychiatrist agrees, but can not give me that diagnosis without consulting a therapist. Nonetheless, I will refer to people of the above mentioned minority (unfortunately) as a collective “we” for easier accessibility.

I also identify as nonbinary and transmasculine, using they/he pronouns and I have had my coming out as trans* in 2015, albeit mistaking my identity as genderfluid in the beginning. Since 2020 I have been labeling myself correctly, had my social and public coming out and was even able to get my name recognized by my university.

I am certain of my identity, hence why I feel like I can speak for the trans* community. As mentioned above, I’ve completed my social transition, whereas I am still awaiting a proper referral for surgeries and a legal change.

I also want to apologize in advance for my language potentially being a bit too scholarly for a site such as tumblr. I am a university student of English and American studies and this comes naturally with the occupation. I also feel it helps me get point across more distinctively and precisely. I will however try to give examples to illustrate my thoughts.

That being said, here’s my main thesis:

I feel like we do not get enough recognition and struggle more to get diagnosed in the first place. Let me elaborate.

A lack of therapists worldwide makes it nearly impossible to get diagnosed with anything these days, but self-diagnosis after extensive research gets devaluated and ridiculed.

Whilst autism in cis women has started finally getting the recognition it deserved (don’t get me wrong, this is amazing) and cis men have been able to get a diagnosis often at an early age, we are a blind spot in the field of psychology.

It is impossible to get a therapist specializing in both gender and neurodiversity, even though they are closely linked. You have to weigh out which of the topics you want to tackle first, whilst both need to be regarded together, not separately. Therapy for both has the purpose of saving a life, but is impossible to achieve.

For the past three years I have been trying to get a therapist. I live in a big city in Germany, and whilst therapy is covered by public health insurance, many are unable to find any therapist, let alone a suited one. The one or two (out of the hundreds that exists) have long waitlists of a year and above and whilst you can pay for therapy sessions, many students like myself, who live on the bare minimum, can not afford paying 300+ Euros a month that weekly sessions would cost.

I also feel like many of us get disregarded for our special interests, hyperfixations and other symptoms. They can vary so much from those of cis women and/or cis men. We many times show symptoms of both cis men and cis women, many times show neither or ones exclusive to trans* individuals.

Of course these symptoms always vary greatly from individual to individual, yet especially in those who are afab or amab they get overshadowed or falsely attributed by/to the many mental illnesses/symptoms we have because of not identifying with the gender we were wrongly assigned at birth. I will come back to those mental issues in a bit.

I, for example, share a special interest for makeup and fashion, stereotypically seen as more feminine interests, and a special interest for motorcycles, cars, wrestling and many other stereotypically male interests. These are obsessive and hinder me in everyday life.

Not only are stereotypes harmful wherever they may apply, them being seen as such, they get disregarded as special interests/hyperfixations that come with neurodivergence. The symptoms are ignored and wrongly attributed (those aligning with the gender you were assigned at birth) or not attributed at all (those that not aligning with the gender you were assigned at birth) to a potential autism/adhd diagnosis.

However, some special interests/hyperfixations I’ve observed in many trans* people are those relating to the struggle unique to trans* individuals. They can include trans* or lgbtq+ rights, politics in general, the science behind being trans*, activism, hate crimes, police violence, gender reassigning surgeries and many others.

I suppose we, as those these issues relate to in many ways, naturally have a closer connection/desire to indulge in these topics in detail. However, this, once again, gets disregarded and not attributed to the neurodiversity but rather the issues with gender.

Coming back to a point briefly mentioned above, many of us have been wrongly diagnosed many times within our lives. Many of the symptoms naturally coming with everyday life as a trans* person have been signed off as standalone diagnoses. These include depression, anxiety, body dysmorphia, anger issues, escapism, low self-esteem and self-worth and even suicidal/homicidal thoughts.

The collection of wrong diagnoses throughout ones life, if one is lucky enough to have a therapist in the first place, comes naturally with both being trans* and having autism/adhd. This not only stems from the lack of knowledge in the healthcare system, but also the struggles we experience.

I, for example, have had both a diagnosis for social anxiety and depression through my teen years. Looking back, unsurprisingly so. I was bullied to oblivion for being outed (as both trans* and bisexual) whilst growing up in a small, Christian town. I say being outed, for both times I have been outed by those I wrongly assumed to be my friends/allies.

Transphobia and homophobia were part of my everyday life. Most human interactions I had were horrible, causing me to struggle with low self-esteem. Being ridiculed daily plus getting my trust broken so often, together with an immense burden of being overwhelmed by the noises of a school classroom caused me to go mute for most of 8th and 9th grade. I’m assuming I do not have to explain the concept of selective mutism to those reading, but this is what eventually caused my social anxiety diagnosis.

Of course, someone being bullied constantly plus struggling with severe personal trauma (I do not want to elaborate this, for it is beyond the point) will feel sad, have meltdowns (I would throw things around my room, clear my desk with my arm, punch walls and have yelling fits) and cry constantly. I was ostracized for being “the weird kid” with “weird hobbies and interests” and the loneliness made me extremely sad. Naturally, a depression diagnosis came my way.

Now, I am not saying people can not have multiple diagnoses. I, myself, do and many others do as well. Not only do many people have both autism and adhd, many people also have further mental illnesses that make their life hard.

I, for example, have been diagnosed with bipolar in my early adult years (around age 18/19). It is genetic in my case, but ever since taking medication for it, I have been doing much better. That, however, has not calmed the symptoms I personally attribute (potentially) to “my” autism/adhd. They are also not side effects of my medication, that has been ruled out.

Talking about the health system brings me to another huge flaw both people with neurodiversity and trans* individuals struggle with. Organizations and officials meant to help letting us down, failing us and making us the problem.

It starts with the health system. Simple things like autism in adults (no matter their gender identity, but especially for cis women and trans* people) not being diagnosed properly, being trans* still being (mainly legally) considered a mental disorder in many countries and vital health treatments being denied are quite literally killing us.

The suicide rates in trans* and neurodiverse people are at an all time high, the US is infuriatingly going back in history with their law-making and removing safe spaces whilst simultaneously endangering trans* individuals. That possibility of being hatecrimed both for not being cis as well as being neurodivergent has risen drastically. It shocks, angers and saddens me.

As an individual living in Germany, we might have public health insurance but not enough therapists, as previously elaborated. This and trans* people still having to go through multiple discriminatory processes to even get their gender recognized are just a few examples.

Of course we are often also failed by politicians, law makers, courts, police and any other institution that is there to defend and uphold democracy. If we even are lucky enough to live in a democratic state and not a monarchy with a power hungry heir or a state claiming to be democratic whilst their leader is clearly a dictator. (Looking especially at Russia, here.)

In Germany, for example, the government had promised to simplify the process of legally changing your name and gender by April of 2024. So far it has not made any progress whatsoever and with openly right-wing parties on the rise in most states the chances of it actually happening are minimal.

There is also a huge issue with police and not understanding who they’re protecting versus pursuing. Autistic people are often seen as aggressive in their meltdowns, causing them to be detained even when not the culprit whatsoever. Trans* people often have to let people from their opposite gender perform invasive and humiliating searches on them, something a cis person legally can contest. But we are not as lucky.

Some of the worst institutions when it comes to accommodation are schools. Trans* and neurodivergent students often get picked on by their teachers (for example through misgendering or being called upon even in their mute/overwhelmed stages). Trans* and/or neurodivergent students often get reprimanded for causing trouble, even when not the perpetrators. Neither the teachers nor headmasters seem to really care.

I have a more distinct anecdote for this one. I distinctly remember getting suspended from school for two days and having to come to the headmasters office with both of my parents in 9th grade. When I was in my teen years I had an admittedly unhealthy hyperfixation (I call it this for it was obsessive and involuntary, beyond my control and took my focus of school and any other responsibilities.) on school shooters, particularly Columbine. This was in 2015, so before liking True Crime became normalized.

Of course, as any teen I scribbled on my desk in school. Unfortunately scribbling the nicknames of the Columbine shooters was not the smartest idea. I didn’t understand that at the time, however. My sociology teacher saw after some students had told on me. I was sick that day and had no way of defending myself immediately. So instead my parents were called. I was in big trouble.

Not speaking with my classmates (due to my selective mutism) didn’t help. Neither did the fact that, due to my gender disphoria, most of my clothes were black oversized shirts, combat boots and cargo pants. I had short hair (that I had dyed black at the time.) and wore stark emo makeup. I not only fit the weird quiet kid in the back of the class stereotype perfectly but also dressed like the shooters I had been focusing on.

It was the second headmaster that called my mother. I have to give him a bit of a compliment here. His first question was not what I had done or what I was thinking. It was wether or not I was okay. (Which obviously, I wasn’t.) Unfortunately, reality looked very different when in the headmasters office.

The headmistress had returned from her vacation and absolutely tore me to pieces. She was convinced I was planning a school shooting myself. From telling me she should have just called the police, to telling me my behavior was unacceptable and inappropriate, telling me I vandalized school property (it was in pencil, I didn’t), to telling me everyone was afraid of me and all the school knew, she threw every accusation my way. It was not only intimidating, but I’ll always remember how much I had to mask in that moment.

Unfortunately the second headmaster didn’t help, telling me I should maybe look for happier interests, like flowers and bees. (Literally his words.) They didn’t understand, neither of them, that it was involuntary. I had no control over it. But neither did I. Back then, I didn’t know hyperfixations existed. I remember how guilty yet confused I felt, not understanding why everyone was so worked up about a simple scribble.

In retrospect I know the reason for the outrage. But never will I understand why on earth one would react so cruelly. The rest of my time there was hell. Half the school knew me as the person who planned a school shooting, stupidly believing I actually would. They didn’t know me, of course. Jumped to conclusions because I was different and didn’t fit in.

This school failed me hard time, just like the school before had. I’m still surprised I managed to finish tenth grade, with a friend in my class even. (We had bonded after I explained the situation to her.) I was lucky enough to go to a different school after a year of a mental health break, together with said friend who also had many issues with the school we went though, even though she was a neurotypical cis woman.

Moral of the story is: I am appalled how many times we get failed and disregarded.

But of course we do. For we, as trans* and neurodivergent people, have mastered masking. We had to pretend/were raised as a completely different person from who we actually are. Had to pretend to be and conform with a gender we were assigned at birth, even though we knew we never identified with. Had to pretend to be one of the neurotypical ones because we didn’t want to be even more different. We already didn’t fit in, neurodiversity was not something we needed.

Unfortunately, without a proper diagnosis, we never knew differently. Didn’t know why we always felt out of place, or why we suffered from constant imposter syndrome. How could we, when people constantly told us we were “normal” or “just a little sad” or “a bit of an outsider.” They didn’t see we needed help, even when the cries for help were as big as having morbid hyperfixations, injuring ourselves to fit the gender identity we wanted to fit (self-mutilation as well as wrong methods of for example binding).

No one helped us then.

And still, no one helps us.

Self-diagnosis is a last resort for many of us and many of us are not lucky enough to ever recognize who they truly are.

And that they’re okay the way they are.

I guess I’m writing this for the “weird kids.” The kids that were ridiculed for being different, the kids that never knew why they couldn’t seem to fit in. I see you. I used to be you. And only if we rise up, we cause an uproar, can anything ever change.

If you read this far I thank you. Feel free to leave comments, like, ask questions. My inbox is always open, also for anonymous questions.