#i also think people should start putting wings on species . i dont know man

[anonymousmothman]

I love star trek fanart so much because people will put tails on any species that isn't human . Cardassian? Understandable, they're straight up reptiles. Weyoun? I get it... it's a little critter. Andorian? Vulcan? Bajoran? I love it so much. Even if it "doesn't make sense in canon" it's so real to me. I think everyone deserves to have a tail because tails are cool as shit.

[kaeyapilled]

u should tell me more about asa PRETTYPLEASE

AUGH I REALLY DONT HAVE MUCH. does it have to be only the genshin related parts? well yes ill stick to that because he has like four different flavors depending on what universe i put him in. okay so

this is roughly what he looks like. i thought i had more good picrews of him but i dont apparently<//3 well heres some fun facts about him like in general to start

- best friends with my oc sofia who. i haven't really put into the genshin universe. but if the people ask i can talk about her too loll

- ambulatory wheelchair user, typically uses a cane, has Some chronic illness that i dont really know which,, pots probably. unspecified chronic pain. but the thing is im not chronically ill or disabled myself so i need to search more stuff before im super confident exploring this side of his character lmao

- sadly he is just like baizhu. the chronically ill doctor trope is already filled in genshin but there's always space for someone else! right!

- not pictured here but sometimes i make him have wings. i still haven't decided if he should actually have them or not. when he has wings only one is functional so he can't quite Fly

- wings or no wings he likes birds a lot!

- i chose his name because it means healer or doctor in....hebrew i think? according to google? and it also means just. "wing". in my mother tongue portuguese so kshdksh hitting two symbolisms with one stone

- now focusing on the genshin part. his father is the actual doctor in charge of the cathedral infirmary but is currently on the varka expedition (look this guy's father is. I don't know what to do with him. like in any universe. idk if i give asa oc syndrome and make him a full orphan or if i just leave the man alone because he's a solid guy! a good father! anyways i digress) and asa is in charge sort of in a similar situation to jean being acting grandmaster.

- i think he's besties with barbara. she's like a younger sister. because i think hes around jeans age. (and dilucs and kaeyas i think all of them r around the same age)

- he has an anemo vision but don't ask me how he got it

- catalyst user and healer but do not ask me like what sort of talents he'd have i dont know. don't ask me if he's a 4* or a 5* either i don't know,, but if he were to have a banner his like. title? idk? would be, and this is kinda stupid, Healing Winds of Birdsong - does it not sound like something you'd read on a genshin banner. i think does

- hes very devout to barbatos but at the same time i kinda enjoy the idea of him. questioning some stuff about the archons and gods too. like those medieval(? do not quote me on this) philosophers who thought extensively about religion and the human condition and. etc. does this make sense

- if he knew the annoying bard is no one other than the anemo archon i think he'd combust

- he picks up his fantasy testosterone prescription at the alchemy shop. the image of albedo and sucrose coming up with hrt is just too dear to me

- i want him and kaeya to kiss just because im a kaeya lover and. why not. but i don't have anything developed about them At All forgive me

do you want to see my cringefail voicelines i wrote?

Something to Share: Did you know that Mondstadt alone has over three hundred species of birds? Around the city area, you mostly see pigeons and falcons, but the diversity in places with less human activity is much bigger. Also, a lot of the birds migrate during the winter months, towards warmer climates like Liyue and even Sumeru. Oh, and— um... Forgive me, I seem to have been talking for a while... It's a topic that interests me.

Favorite Food: I tend to like more savory dishes. In fact, Sofia won't let me cook anymore, because I "put too much salt in the food". You know, I don't see the problem. It tastes fine to me.

- oh!! on the topic of favorite foods! i tried coming up with a special dish for him and i ended up picking northern smoked fowl because. vibes. but its a stamina dish and i kinda wish his special dish was a hp one.,, but anyway:

Special Dish: Doctor's Orders

Asa's specialty. The same recipe for smoked fowl with vegetables that's been passed down in Mondstadt for years, with the doctor's own twists. It's a little heavy on the salt, but it tastes really good overall.

plus character voicelines

About Barbara: Barbara? Oh, we wouldn't manage at the cathedral if it wasn't for her. I have taught her a lot, but the healing techniques she comes up with never fail to amaze me. Her presence always brightens up the place and soothes even the most ill of patients. I hold her in very high regards.

About Rosaria: I can't say I approve of Sister Rosaria's negligence towards her duties in the church, or of her blatant disrespect towards the Anemo Archon. That being said... I think I admire her conviction to simply do whatever she wants. Perhaps trying to force her into the role of nun is a bit foolish. This is the city of freedom, after all, is it not?

About Venti: The bard? *sigh* Archons above. He'll sing beautiful melodies about Lord Barbatos, then turn around and immediately slur out the most sacrilegious things I have ever heard in my life. Being around him for too long is exhausting and he always brings trouble. Yet, I find that I can't truly dislike him. Heh, he's an interesting one for sure.

and my entirely self indulgent and overly long About Kaeya voiceline:

About Kaeya: Sir Kaeya? Way too much of a charmer. That overly confident attitude ought to backfire on him sometime. It's easy to get swept away in all his smooth talk, but after a while you start to see it for what it is: a convoluted way to either change the subject or make you the center of his jests... *sigh* Well... I suppose that, when he wants, he isn't entirely awful to talk to... Hm? What? Who– who told you that? No! Why would I go to the tavern "just to see him"!? That's– *ahem* It isn't like that. Is it that far fetched that I might enjoy a drink during my moments of leisure? It's not my fault if the Captain is there all the time... Hmph, did Sofia put you up to this?

yeah. what else can I say about him. i thought of writing character stories for him but couldnt find enough ideas. here's the only salvageable paragraph:

... Asa can recall exactly what Mother Maria told him when he came to her, realization still fresh in his mind, desperate for some sort of guidance.

"The winds lead each of us through different paths. Barbatos has granted you with the power to choose whoever you wish to be; that is part of His gift of freedom."

Like a gust of cool wind that brings with it epiphanies, something clicked inside his chest, like the pieces of a puzzle falling into place.

And it was on that day that the little girl who used to dream of nunhood grew into a sharp young man who named himself "Asa."

okay this is all I've got. for now

[daaziscoolbesties]

i yearn for one(1) thing only, and that is to have a nice, simplistic, cartoonish artstyle. an artstyle that doesnt rely on anatomy, but the "movement" of the drawing, if you get what i mean.

i dont want realistic proportions and traditional colors and basic poses and gradient shading, i want funky lil dudes in funky poses with funky styles littering my sketchbook :( but alas i havent figured out how to develop that kind of style yet, my brain wants anatomy to look nice but also i dont want to draw eyes. i dont want to take time out of my day to learn how to draw lips i want to draw a line that extends past the characters face. i dont want all my characters to have pointy chins with curved cheeks i want their heads to be round and friend-like or full of sharp edges depending on their personalities and styles. i want to give them all not-quite human ears, blob feet, simple faces, but at the same time i want enough detail to convey the story or emotion im trying to tell.

ive spent so much time recently agonizing over how to use 3d model websites, using real-life references and tracing over them for practice, color-picking from real images to try and do realism and failing miserably, but you know whats easier than that? funky little dudes. little dudes who do not care if their legs are too long or their hair is too bouncy. i dont want my characters to look human.

ive spent enough time on the artfight website to realize that most people who classify their characters as "human" have the most basic ass designs (no offense to people who like basic human designs its just not my thing) or its like dnd-medieval style outfits which i cant draw for the life of me (ive tried). again no offense to people who actively enjoy and draw characters like that. i just need my dudes to have that certain,,, off-ness to them. tails are cool. wings are swag (especially if they arent even like,, fully attached,, ), elf ears are so wonderful to me no matter how much theyre overused, horns are so much fun to draw, and colors!! i have no knowledge in the color theory department so this works great for me!! the only thing i really know is dont shade with black, other than that i just colorpick from references usually but i dont want to do that!! i want the colors to hurt people's eyes but in a satisfying way. like the character's design is so nice to look at that you dont mind your eyes hurting a bit. like how im enjoying writing this post even though its 2 am and the brightness on my computer wont go any lower.

and then another thing ive noticed from being on the artfight website is that a lot of people classify their characters that are anthro/have anthro features under humanoids/monsters. like i made a google form to find some people to attack and someone sent me in a character with some sort of animal (wolf? idk) arms and legs. like dude!! peak character design i love her. but me personally? i cant draw that shit, its so hard for me. i tried a while back and its just Not my thing. nothing against furries i just. cant. and i dont want to either.

and i got another submission that i accidentally deleted that was like full anthro/wolf-like like my comrade,,, i cannot draw animals what makes you think i can draw an animal who acts like a human lmao. i can do like. very basic tails, and also animal ears but i cant do the arms and legs and such i just dont know the anatomy, and i know i was talking about how i dont want to care about anatomy but i feel like for anthros you really do need to know at least basic animal anatomy so you know how the limbs look and shit and i dont have that knowledge and dont feel like gaining it.

and then there were some submissions that i absolutely adored. there was one that like, was vaguely human shaped but definitely was not a human. they had a dark-ish lavender colored skin and horns and tusks and like goat ears and a sorta fluffy tail with spikes on it and they had wings and such and they were such a pleasure to draw i love them. and they had a fairly simple outfit too, nothing too complicated. and then i also enjoy object head characters, theyre so neato to me. i got one of those and i really wish i had the motivation to work on it cause it looks so fun.

i want to make funky characters but id have nothing to do with them because the only book i ever tried writing (key word tried - never got past planning it out) had strictly human characters in it, and most of the books i read are humans/humans with powers in situations specific to them so id have no idea what lore to make with the dudes. assuming i have the motivation to make lore and backstory because honestly i just really enjoy character designing its super duper fun.

(side note a song about trucks doing the deed came on just now and its interrupted my flow, apologies).

i only have three actual characters right now. one is an original roleplay oc whos design is literally athletic shorts, an oversized long sleeved grey sweatshirt, long purple hair, and demon horns. the second one is my persona whos design some sorta medival knight outfit kinda thing? but not ugly it looks really cool (idk one of my friends designed it bc i won some contest from him but the drawing was on a super small scale so idrk the details,,,) with a plague doctor mask and crown, and shoulder length wavy brown hair, dyed bright pink at the end. and then my last one im not too comfortable using other places because theyre a character my friend is using in the story hes writing, and thats really the only place theyve been used. but theyre easily my favorite and im already writing a ton so ill talk about them too.

they're a sorta elf species thing from another planet, with pale green skin and pointed ears. they also have a tail, its like,, super thin, but with a feathery bit at the end. probably not the texture of a feather but i dont know how else to describe it. they have short, curly, almost-draco-malfoy-blonde hair that when it gets too long they can put in a man bun. their eyesight is kinda shitty so when they got to earth, they were exploring some supply closets around the airship. drop off area. thing. like airport but for rocketships and also fancier. yeah. they were exploring that area and found a nice big pair of round glasses with grey frames. and they also found a cowboy-style hat and a sharpie so they wrote their name on the underside of the brim of the hat and stole the hat and glasses (but left the sharpie in the supply closet).

yeah theyre my favorite, my absolute beloved, my child, so cool. i want more characters like them but with maybe a bit more snazzier designs. theyre super cool and all but they could have more pizzazz if they werent in a story where its too late to give them more pizzazz. i just want to be able to give my characters thigh-high boots with a bunch of buckles and fluffy hair with tons of accessories crammed in and abnormally large and long ears that can harbor many piercings and horns that can hold rings on them and special little details on their outfits like who knows what but i dont have any characters to do that too, so i have to make them from scratch, which is always hard especially when you have artblock.

and i also have like 17 characters i need to fully draw, line, and maybe color for artfight before august 1st. so i dont know. i have many things to do and plenty of time to do it but instead i spend my time halfway watching repetitive youtube videos that get boring or sleeping all damn day because i stay up too late doing things like this or i just do nothing at all and its tiring and frustrating but i also feel nothing about it like theres no consequence if i dont do it besides you know. not doing it, not gaining that experience, not making something i enjoy.

so i should do it but i dont for whatever reason, i think its called executive dysfunction but im not sure. this post started out very differently than it ended and i said somewhere up there that i was writing this at 2 am but now its almost 3. this is so many words why couldnt i have put this energy into something productive

[gayllamafromspace]

I dunno if anyone would be interested in this at all, but I have an original project I've been mulling over for the past few months. I mean COMPLETELY original. Original characters, world, cultures (that take inspiration from some irl religions and practices), gods/religion. Literally everything.

Anyway, I have some OCs that I've been trying to flesh out a story for. Their names are Lyra Cygnus, Raith Vera, and Tori La Joya. There are some side characters of course (Quinton La Joya, Elaena Cygnus-La Joya, Susane Roe-La Joya... then the gods: Melanna, Ludor, and Zara)

Lyra is cannotically a Lesbian, Raith is Pan, and Tori is Demi/Polyamorous.

Ages:

At the beging of the story Lyra is 19, Raith is 70(she's a vampire, physically she is 20), and Tori is 12 - almost 13. This is when they all get together and meet.

When the real shit starts happening, Lyra is 22, Raith is 73, and Tori is 15.

By the end of the story, I'm thinking that Tori should be 19 or 20. So that would make Lyra 26/27, and Raith would be 77/78.

So the whole story takes place over the span of 7 to 8 years, with a few flashbacks and junk.

-------------

What will the plot be? I'm still trying to figure that out. I do know that there will be war/battle/prophecies/magic and things like that.

Basically though, there's a prophecy about a human gifted by Zara with magick who would end the war between man and magick(a human hasn't been directly gifted for over a century, all witches at the current time are hereditary magick users - descended from the witches who were blessed well over 100 years ago.)

Now, all of the strings attached to that shit weren't accounted for. I'm trying to be as vague as possible lol. I do have pictures of my lovely children tho! I will reblog this with them.

Anyway, people die, people get hurt, horrible shit happens. There will be racism and political problems, along with religious clashes. Humans basically decided they they are the superior race and had begun worshiping their own God - a fake one, but it's all really a political sham in order to keep control and stuff. Only magical races, and some humans, worship the REAL gods.

The Gods:

Melanna, the first God. Goddess of creation, light, darkness, love, and authority.

Ludor, the second God, created Melanna (he was once a mortal Nymph, they fell in love and she made him a god) he's the God of life, death, reincarnation, balance, and change.

Zara, the child of Ludor and Melanna. She is closest to the mortal races of Renowyn (the world they live in), she's the Goddess of peace, magick, mortality, and fate.

Mortal Races:

There are of course all of the animals from this world.

Avians are a race of winged humanoids that were created in Melanna's image. They are diverse, and basically the messengers of all races. (Think Angels, but less ethereal) They were the first race created, they have free thought and individuality. The only thing Melanna asks is that they always seek new knowledge and insure that freedom is never stripped from those undeserving. Avians can live a very long time, 300 years at most. An Avian society can be best compared to one of ancient Rome or Greece. Avians can use magick.

Nymphs were the second race Melanna created, and the race that Ludor came from. The Nymphs have horns, pointy ears, and tails. The are humanoid, like the Avians, but lack the defining wings and longer life spans. Nymphs can only live up to 100 years. The Nymphs were created to bring peace and fertility to the earth. They're culture can be best compared to that of Native Americans. There are 4 different types tribes. The forest tribe, the desert tribe, the valley tribe, and the snowy tribe. Ludor had been a descendant chief of a forest tribe, he united all of the tribes and became the head cheiftan of the Nymphs.

(Avians and Nymphs have long been at odds, they eventually had built a wall separating themselves from eachother. The wall built to avoid further conflict, like the kind that created humans)

Humans were created by Melanna striping traitorous avians of their wings and magick. They were exiled to another continent. The former avians, now humans, in question had enslaved and tortured nymphs under the impression that "they are inferior and do not deserve to exist in their disconnect from Melanna" (Avians have a closer relationship with Melanna than Nymphs do). The rebel Avians shunned the knowledge of the Nymphs and stile their freedom, so Melanna saw fit to punish them. They went directly against her wishes. (This all happened before Ludor was made a god) Human society is comparable to medieval times - kingdoms, kings/queens, lords/ladies, dukes/duchesses, etc.

Witches/seers were created by Zara. Humans who she saw as worthy to give the gift of magick and foresight too. (She asked her mom first, don't worry) Witcher are the reason that Werewolves and Vampires exist. Their culture is comparable to paganism/Celtic/nordic traditions. They are a race of discovery and practice. At one with nature.

Werewolves were created when a coven of witches attempted to punish human criminals by turning them into wolves so that they would be hunted. (The criminals were rapists, murderers, pedophiles, etc) the coven was tacked during the ritual which caused the curse to go wrong. Instead of being turned into wild wolves, they were turned into bloodthirsty monsters that would be to shift during the full moon. Pure blooded werewolves have no control in their wolf form, and the only remaining pure blooded werewolves are all incestuous. Werewolves with delluted blood (werewolves that crossed with humans) gain more control and less monstrous forms as the gene is passed down. Lyra is decended from werewolves and has more humanity in her blood than beast, so she can shift whenever she wants (there is still the urge to shift during a full moon, but she can resist) and she is full conscious and aware of what's going on while in wolf form. The diluted gene can only be activated if someone descended from werewolves is scratched or bitten by one. If a normal human is bitten nor scratched the would will get infected and kill them. The saliva of a werewolf attacks the white blood cells and would prevent the wound from healing on a normal human. They would bleed out and die.

Vampires were also created by witches through a curse. A man, basically Jeffrey Dommer, was supposed to be cursed to never walk in the light of day again, least he die. He would forever be hungry and never be able to sate his hunger. There was a miss pronounciation, and the whole thing went to shit. He was indeed always hungry, but he would feed off of the blood of humans. He could not walk in the light of day or he would burn and die. But he gained unimaginable speed, agility, strength, and heightened senses as well. He went off on a murdering spree, but on his way he had accidentally turned some people. These new vampires were furious and killed him in his own palace. They turned their families. Vampires could live virtually forever, because their body would no longer decay over time. Like the werewolf gene, as the venom was passed down from vampire to human, it's potency would lessen. Within 4 generations of vampires, they had developed a tolerance for sunlight, they could easily get a sunburn, but they would not die. They could feed on the blood of animals rather than humans, and even live off of human food. Garlic though became a common allergy, ingesting it could give them a severe stomach virus and possibly burn holes into their stomachs. Raith is one of the most humanlike vampires of the time, so human that she actually has full functionality of her womb. She does still need blood though, and she can tolerate werewolf blood in small amounts.

Shapeshifters are the species created when werewolves and witches have children. They have a weakness to magick, but they can shift their appearance to look however they imagine it. If wounded, they will revert back to their original form until healed. Their original form is just like a humans.

Fae are the more reclusive species of Renowyn. They are created when Nymphs and witches have children. They are nature spirits at heart and have close relationships with the earth, their magick is plant based. They can turn invisible. Sirens are a rare subspecies of Fae. They live in the depths of the ocean and only come on land during the high tide. Many are the love children of Fae and shapeshifters. Normal Fae have pointy ears (down cast... I'll show a picture in the reblog), sharp fangs protruding from the bottoms of their mouths (think orcs?). Sea Fae/Sirens have webbed ears, fingers, and fins on their arms. During low tide they sport the usual fishtail or tentacles, but during high tide that are more humanoid. They can camoflodge, but they can't turn invisible.

ANYWAY!!! I just wanted to share my random stuff. I guess show that I do kore than just fan projects? I dunno, I just wanna talk about this stuff with somebody, get opinions and see if anyone is interested.

Please, please I'm begging, no one steal this from me. I've poured my heart and should into this, please don't take away and call it yours. I know that's a massive risk when putting my stuff on here... but please, have a heart and leave my story be, this passion project is more than just a drabble. It's a life goal, I want to create something from this and share it with world. Dont be an asshole and crush my dreams by stealing it and making it your own... I will condone making your own OCs out of the taxes and stuff, just credit me with #Renowyn or just #GayLlamaFromSpace Original Project or whatever... or just @ me lol. That is if anyone would be interested in creating (a) character(s)? I dunno. Just... this is here now. I'll probably be posting more about it.

[thefanficfaerie]

West Wing Quote Challenge

I think I have watched The West Wing about 4 times. It has become one of my favorite shows. It has some of the best quotes. And I really wanted to do a challenge while I was watching. But I had the Disney Quote Challenge and didn’t feel that was right. So here is my West Wing Quote Challenge.

Here are the Rules: 

1. You can only use the characters I have listed. No Peter Parker (except in the case of Superfamily). No Bucky Barnes or Sebastian Stan. I am not in any way, shape or form attracted to Sebastian Stan. So I won’t read it.

2.  Send in an ASK with your character choice and quote. You can double up but no more than two people per prompt and they have to be different characters. Once a prompt is full I will cross it out.

3.  If your story is more than 500 words please use a read more. I will not reblog any story that does not have a read more.

4. The preference is reader insert. You can do OFC just let me know.

5. No angst unless it has a happy ending. No cheating fics either. 

6. When you post please tag me and use the tag #west wing quote challenge.

7. THE MOST IMPORTANT RULE!!! HAVE FUN!!!! Cause that is what writing is all about.

8. Due Date. I dont have one yet. 

Characters

Steve Rogers Tony Stark  Stony x Reader Stony Stucky x Reader Rafael Barba  Jim Kirk  Leonard McCoy McKirk x Reader McKirk Robb Stark Aaron Hotchner  Eomer Chris Evans 

Quotes

1. I want this back in the cardboard box it came in. I don't want to see you or talk to you 'til that's done. 'No way' is not an acceptable answer. 'I tried' is no longer an option. You started this thing, and you're gonna damn well going to finish it with either a blue ribbon or a great big deafening silence.

2. "Never Doubt That A Small Group Of Thoughtful Committed Citizens Can Change The World."

3.  "I Have Wit, I Have Charm, I Have Brains, I Have Legs That Go All The Way Down To The Floor, My Friend."

4. About a week ago I accidentally slept with a prostitute.

5. "Decisions are made by those who show up."

6. One last thing: While you may be mistaking this for your monthly meeting of the Ignorant Tight-Ass Club, in this building, when the President stands, nobody sits.

7. My father gave this to me, and his father gave it to him, now I’m giving it to you.

8. Watch this.

9. Person A: If you were in an accident, I wouldn’t stop for beer.      Person B: If you were in an accident, I wouldn’t stop for red lights

10. Person A: What are you holding?       Person B: [Name] said you liked goldfish.       Person A: The crackers. The cheese things you eat at parties.

11. Just stand there in your wrongness and be wrong and get used to it.

12. How tall are you? I can’t believe we are the same species.

13. I drink from the keg of glory, Donna. Bring me the finest muffins and bagels in all the land.

14. Person A: When you flirt with me, are you doing it to get something ?          Person B: No.       Person A: Why are you doing it?       Person B: I'm doing it to flirt with you.

15. Why is there hugging? 

16. "So, if I'm gonna jump off the cliff, and you're gonna get pushed off the cliff, why don't we hold hands on the way down?"

17. There is no such thing as too smart. There is nothing you can do that is not going to make me proud of you"

18.  "You don't have the power to fix everything... But I do like watching you try."

19. "Your wife's beautiful, too. How'd you get her to marry you? Did you trick her or something?"

20. "Happiness is my default position."

21. The only thing you ever had to do to make me happy was come home at the end of the day."

22. "Can I assume from your total silence and blank faces that you're all with me?"

23. "No, I did not. Let me be perfectly clear I did not do that. Except...yes, I did that."

24. "I don't know what kind of salad it is, I'm eating a salad, okay? I'm doing it, do I have to know the names? There's no difference between them, it's a bowl of weeds! Some of them have cheese, this isn't the kind with cheese, does that answer your question? "

25. "Nature, like a woman, will seduce you with its sights and its scents and its touch, and then it breaks your ankle, also like a woman.

26. Can I have a couple of aspirin or a weapon of some kind to kill people with?"

27. Person A: "I'm just going to change my shirt."      Person B: "You look bad. You're tired. You slept in the office. It's Friday. Go home."       Person A: "Why?"       Person B: "Because I think you're putting too much faith in the magical powers of a new shirt."

28. There’s literally no one in the world I don’t hate right now.

29. You're a smart savvy woman who could easily consider world domination for a next career move.

30. There’s no one in this room who wouldn’t rather die than let you down.

31. We should organize a staff field trip to Shenandoah what do you think.

32. I didn’t realize babies came with hats.

33. I’m sorry to be rude but are you a moron.

34. So it’s ok to have sex in a hotel but not my apartment.

35. I want us to talk because I like the sound of your voice. 

36. With that, I’m going to get a cupcake. 

37. I embrace the cold. I luxuriate in the cold. I fight the cold with more cold. 

38. You really think we have a secret handshake, dont you?

39. I’m telling your mother, you forgot where she lives.

40. Everytime you talk, I hear that sound that plays when pac man dies.

41. Person A: If they find out you’ve been there I’m going to shove a motherboard so far up your ass.        Person B: Technically, I outrank you.        Person A: So far up your ass. 

42. I need some pie.

43. You know I could beat you up anytime I want to sir. 

44. Well, you go girl.

45. My problem is I want to jump him when he says things like that. 

46. Ignore him. The rest of us do. 

47. Just once in this job I would like to end the day feeling as good as the day started. 

48. Pumpkin patch, is there anything I can do to get you to go to the movies for eight hours?

49. “My getting killed would be bad enough, but that is not the nightmare scenario. The nightmare scenario, sweetheart, is you getting kidnapped.

50. You are a very powerful and handsome man. 

tags; @auduna-druitt @captain-rogers-beard @pinkamour1588 @captainsbabysitter-blog @tilltheendwilliwrite @pegasusdragontiger @prettyyoungtragedy @4theluvofall @promarvelfangirl @outside-the-government @nomadicpixel @star-spangled-man-with-a-plan @after-avenging-hours @starshiphufflebadger @medicatemedrmccoy @imoutofmyvulcanmind @onedarksea @whiskey-cokenfanfic @all1e23 @girl-next-door-writes @barnesrogersvstheworld @beccaanne814 @haveyouseenmymind @imamotherfuckingstar-lord @invisibleanonymousmonsters @janeykath318 @kaunis-sielu @wickedsingularity @meganlpie @redlipstickandplaid @madpanda75  @theycallmebecca

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The Problem Isnt Just Trump. Its Our Ignorant Electorate.

For many of us, mornings have taken on a certain nauseating sameness. We roll out from beneath the blankets and, before the scent of coffee has reached our nostrils, we are checking the news feeds for the latest semi-literate tweet coughed up by the ranting, traitorous squatter occupying the Oval Office.

The rest of the day is spent in a kind of horrified suspension, holding our breath, waiting for whatever outrage will inevitably belch forth from the White Houseonce a bastion of seriousness and decorum, now ground zero for the demise of western democracy. How many lies will Trump spew today? Which dictators will he suck up to? Will he smear a Gold Star family? Attack a woman who dares to call out his smarmy predations? Unveil a puerile, racist nickname for a Senator or member of his own cabinet?

As much as we loathe it, however sickening it might have become, every day seems all about him, a former game show host and real estate failure, a hawker of rot-gut vodka and bullshit degrees from a fraudulent University who once styled himself as the Donald. The cable news shows lead with his most recent flatulence, the op-ed pages brim with intimations of doom, late night comedians are having a field day.

He is the president and, thus, bears watching. But we would be mistaken to think that he is truly the center of our universe, a man with a plan, commanding the heights, directing the action.

Virulent as he may be, Donald J. Trump is a symptom not the disease. Without us, he would amount to nothing more than what he had always been before the bizzaro presidential election of 2016: a foppish narcissist desperate for any measure of affirmation; a joke; a nothing. He did not create his voters. They have been there all along, seething with sometimes justifiable anger and suffering their various insecurities. They created and enabled Trump. And make no mistake, in all their vulnerable humanity, they are us: Gullible, compliant, distracted, marinating in irony.

At root, we the people are the problem.

We are understandably reluctant to impugn the intelligence and integrity of our fellow citizens. It is arrogant, uncivil, bad form. Who are we, any of us, to hold ourselves superior? When Hillary Clinton referred to some Trump supporters as deplorables, she was roundly castigated on all sides. How dare she? Yet it is an uncomfortable reality that anywhere from a fifth to a third of our electorate can be fairly (if gently) described as low-information voters. If the results of numerous polls and questionnaires are to be trusted, they know very little about the world they inhabit and what they do know is often woefully incorrect.

Surveys conducted every two years by the National Science Foundation consistently demonstrate that slightly more than half of Americans reject the settled science concerning human evolution. They are not unaware that virtually all credible scientists accept the overwhelming evidence that we evolved from earlier species. They simply choose not to accept that consensus because it doesnt comport with their deeply held beliefs. Many also embrace the absurd notion that the earth is only six thousand years old. Astonishingly, in the early 21st century, around a quarter of our citizenry seems unaware that said earth revolves around the sun.

It is a mistake to regard concern about such ignorance as effete snobbery or elitist condescension. While misapprehensions about basic astronomy, earth science and biology may have little impact on these folks daily lives, does anyone actually believe that similarly uninformed views arent likely to affect their grasp of policies regarding, say, climate change? Income inequality? Gun violence? Immigration?

Profound knowledge gaps like the aforementioned reveal an inability to think critically and leave a person vulnerable to all manner of chicanery. We are all ignorant about many things. Dont get me started on my dismal grasp of mathematics! But the hallmark of a sound education is not glorying in what you think you know, but, instead, appreciating the vastness of what you dont know.

If ignorance is the key that opens the door for charlatans like Trump, improved education, whether in school or in the public square, would seem to provide an obvious solution. But here we confront the perverse Dunning-Kruger Effect identified by psychologistsessentially, the less we know, the more certain we become of our superior knowledge. We have also discovered that exposure to facts and evidence does not always have the expected impact. Many people, when confronted by irrefutable proof that some core belief is incorrect, dont change their minds but dig in their heels. What feels right to them must be right and no amount logic and reasoning will dissuade them. Emotion trumps evidence.

Not too long ago, I fell into conversation with a woman aboard an airplane. Our chat somehow turned to health care. She offered the opinion that people who couldnt afford health insurance didnt deserve medical services. Why should she pay for someones care when they were obviously too lazy to earn their own money?

Because Im my own kind of fool, I rose to the bait. Did that mean they should be allowed to die in the street? I wondered. Well, no, she said. That would be inhumane. They could always go to an emergency room. So she was willing to pay for their care, I observed, but only in the least efficient, most expensive manner. This gave her momentary pause, but she quickly regrouped, simply repeating her prior assertion: Why should she pay? I didnt ask who she planned to vote for in the then-upcoming presidential election, but given that she had also voiced the opinion that women were, by virtue of their gender, unqualified to be news anchors, Im guessing it wasnt Hillary Clinton or Jill Stein.

She is hardly the worst example of an unthinking voter. Bill Maher once invited onto his show former GM Executive Bob Lutz. One supposes that such a fellow has benefited from an adequate education and that hes open to reason. Yet, when the subject of climate change arose, Lutz denied it was happening. A bunch of nonsense as far as he was concerned.

As it happened, Maher had also invited Neil deGrasse Tyson, an astrophysicist, educator and Director of the Hayden Planetarium. Tyson patiently explained why Lutz was misinformed. The planet was warming. Humans were largely to blame. This is how we know.

You might expect an educated person to respond by at least engaging on the topic. Tyson was, after all, vastly more knowledgeable on the subject at hand. Had their roles been reversed, with the topic being cars, I have no doubt he would have deferred to the automaker, asking questions, trying to improve the state of his own knowledge. Not Lutz. You could see him shutting down before Tyson had even warmed to the topic (no pun intended). As Upton Sinclair famously put it, Its hard to get a man to understand something when his salary depends on him not understanding it.

Anyone who has watched the focus groups of Trump voters has seen this sorry dynamic played out again and again. Everything, no matter how tawdry or malicious, is excused or minimized. You get the feeling these folks would accept the sexual molestation of teenage girls as a trade-off for Neil Gorsuch. In fact, many did in supporting Roy Moore.

Welcome to the Post-Truth Era.

Much has been written about the impact social media and the internet in general have had on how people receive and absorb information. By now, we are all familiar with bots, trolls, phony scandals and the tendency of folks to hunker down in their own info-silos. The old adage that a lie is halfway round the world before the truth gets its socks on has never been more salient.

Consider the recent attacks on one of the young Parkland shooting survivors. A teenager who had just witnessed classmates being gunned down at his own school quickly discovered that speaking up for common-sense gun regulation resulted in vicious trolling and the viral lie that he was a paid crisis actor. This was similar to what befell the grieving families of the small children murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012. Imagine waking one morning in a state of searing grief over the violent death of your baby to discover that some odious prankster like Alex Jones is telling his gullible audience that the whole tragic incident was staged, that your child was actually a paid performer doused in artificial gore and posed in a gruesome tableaux of death.

That Jones and his ilk have not been thoroughly shamed and driven from the public sphere says a lot about our growing tolerance for vile nonsense.

Trump did not invent Fake News. The Big Lie has been the stock in trade of con men and tyrants since time immemorial. But he understands its value. Alternative facts as his lickspittle factotum, Kellyanne Conway infamously put it, has long been his metier. Hes a bullshitter, a phony and now hes our president.

This shouldnt have happened. But we let it happen, though Trump did have plenty of help

Unsurprisingly, the Fox propaganda machine and any number of right-wing radio ranters enthusiastically clambered aboard the Trump Train. They were abetted by many in the mainstream media who, mindful that Trump lured eyeballs to advertisers and too timid to call him out as the carnival barker he so obviously was, went along for the ride. A number of Republicans in Congress dismissed him at first. But when it became clear he had a shot at winning and that his devotees comprised at least half of their party, they scurried to adopt him as their useful idiot.

Its true that we are not all equally culpable. Roughly three million more people voted for Trumps chief opponent. But the right-minded among us didnt do enough to forestall the plainly looming disaster. The proof of that is the Trump presidency itself.

So, if we in our various incarnations are the problem, then what is the solution? Is there any way out? Wed better hope so. Whats certain is that its on us. We made a wreck of our government and its up to us to fix it.

There are positive signs:

A once compliant media has begun to take the gloves off. Genuine conservatives, outraged that their movement has been hijacked by philistines, are sounding the alarm. People are rising up and calling BS. For every Sean Hannity there is a Rachel Maddow, Jake Tapper or even Shepard Smith (at Fox News, no less!). For every Paul Ryan, there is a David Frum or Max Boot. Frothing crowds at CPAC are countered by the #MeToo movement and impressively eloquent teenagers fed up with politicians of any stripe who cower before the gun industry. On a good day, a John McCain or Jeff Flake will stand up to the cringing accommodationists in their own party. And, of course, Donald Trump himself, along with his corrupt lackeys, face a formidable foe in the person of Robert Mueller.

NSA Director Admiral Mike Rogers recent testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee should mark a turning point, though he merely confirmed what has been apparent for some time: that even as our nation is under attack from a Russia determined to subvert our democracy, the president has not directed any relevant agencies to defend the country. This is a violation of the oath Trump swore on inauguration day and smacks of treason. We have entered uncharted waters.

Whats clear is that we need to use all non-violent resources at our disposal to rid ourselves and our country of the dangerous infection spreading from the White House into our body politic. These are not normal times and our usual reflexes will no longer suffice.

Trump is a problem of our own creation. We must become the solution.

Ron Reagan is an author and political commentator who lives in Seattle and Arezzo, Tuscany.

Read more: https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-problem-isnt-just-trump-its-our-ignorant-electorate

from Viral News HQ http://ift.tt/2Daf3yw via Viral News HQ

[thefanficfaerie]

West Wing Quote Challenge

Still plenty of quotes if anyone wishes to participate 

Here are the Rules:

1. You can only use the characters I have listed. No Peter Parker (except in the case of Superfamily). No Bucky Barnes or Sebastian Stan. I am not in any way, shape or form attracted to Sebastian Stan. So I won’t read it.

2.  Send in an ASK with your character choice and quote. You can double up but no more than two people per prompt and they have to be different characters. Once a prompt is full I will cross it out.

3.  If your story is more than 500 words please use a read more. I will not reblog any story that does not have a read more.

4. The preference is reader insert. You can do OFC just let me know.

5. No angst unless it has a happy ending. No cheating fics either.

6. When you post please tag me and use the tag #west wing quote challenge.

7. THE MOST IMPORTANT RULE!!! HAVE FUN!!!! Cause that is what writing is all about.

8. Due Date. I dont have one yet.

Characters

Steve Rogers Tony Stark Stony x Reader Stony Stucky x Reader Rafael Barba Jim Kirk Leonard McCoy McKirk x Reader McKirk Robb Stark Aaron Hotchner Eomer Chris Evans

Quotes

1. I want this back in the cardboard box it came in. I don’t want to see you or talk to you ‘til that’s done. 'No way’ is not an acceptable answer. 'I tried’ is no longer an option. You started this thing, and you’re gonna damn well going to finish it with either a blue ribbon or a great big deafening silence.

2. "Never Doubt That A Small Group Of Thoughtful Committed Citizens Can Change The World.“

3. "I Have Wit, I Have Charm, I Have Brains, I Have Legs That Go All The Way Down To The Floor, My Friend.”

4. About a week ago I accidentally slept with a prostitute.

5. “Decisions are made by those who show up.”

6. One last thing: While you may be mistaking this for your monthly meeting of the Ignorant Tight-Ass Club, in this building, when the President stands, nobody sits.

7. My father gave this to me, and his father gave it to him, now I’m giving it to you.

8. Watch this.

9. Person A: If you were in an accident, I wouldn’t stop for beer.    Person B: If you were in an accident, I wouldn’t stop for red lights

10. Person A: What are you holding?      Person B: [Name] said you liked goldfish.      Person A: The crackers. The cheese things you eat at parties.

11. Just stand there in your wrongness and be wrong and get used to it.

12. How tall are you? I can’t believe we are the same species.

13. I drink from the keg of glory, Donna. Bring me the finest muffins and bagels in all the land.

14. Person A: When you flirt with me, are you doing it to get something ?          Person B: No.      Person A: Why are you doing it?      Person B: I’m doing it to flirt with you.

15. Why is there hugging?

16. "So, if I’m gonna jump off the cliff, and you’re gonna get pushed off the cliff, why don’t we hold hands on the way down?“

17. There is no such thing as too smart. There is nothing you can do that is not going to make me proud of you”

18.  "You don’t have the power to fix everything… But I do like watching you try.“

19. "Your wife’s beautiful, too. How’d you get her to marry you? Did you trick her or something?”

20. "Happiness is my default position.“

21. The only thing you ever had to do to make me happy was come home at the end of the day.”

22. "Can I assume from your total silence and blank faces that you’re all with me?“

23. "No, I did not. Let me be perfectly clear I did not do that. Except…yes, I did that.”

24. "I don’t know what kind of salad it is, I’m eating a salad, okay? I’m doing it, do I have to know the names? There’s no difference between them, it’s a bowl of weeds! Some of them have cheese, this isn’t the kind with cheese, does that answer your question? “

25. "Nature, like a woman, will seduce you with its sights and its scents and its touch, and then it breaks your ankle, also like a woman.

26. Can I have a couple of aspirin or a weapon of some kind to kill people with?”

27. Person A: “I’m just going to change my shirt.”     Person B: “You look bad. You’re tired. You slept in the office. It’s Friday. Go home.”      Person A: “Why?”      Person B: “Because I think you’re putting too much faith in the magical powers of a new shirt.”

28. There’s literally no one in the world I don’t hate right now.

29. You’re a smart savvy woman who could easily consider world domination for a next career move.

30. There’s no one in this room who wouldn’t rather die than let you down.

31. We should organize a staff field trip to Shenandoah what do you think.

32. I didn’t realize babies came with hats.

33. I’m sorry to be rude but are you a moron.

34. So it’s ok to have sex in a hotel but not my apartment.

35. I want us to talk because I like the sound of your voice.

36. With that, I’m going to get a cupcake.

37. I embrace the cold. I luxuriate in the cold. I fight the cold with more cold.

38. You really think we have a secret handshake, dont you?

39. I’m telling your mother, you forgot where she lives.

40. Everytime you talk, I hear that sound that plays when pac man dies.

41. Person A: If they find out you’ve been there I’m going to shove a motherboard so far up your ass.      Person B: Technically, I outrank you.      Person A: So far up your ass.

42. I need some pie.

43. You know I could beat you up anytime I want to sir.

44. Well, you go girl.

45. My problem is I want to jump him when he says things like that.

46. Ignore him. The rest of us do.

47. Just once in this job I would like to end the day feeling as good as the day started.

48. Pumpkin patch, is there anything I can do to get you to go to the movies for eight hours?

49. “My getting killed would be bad enough, but that is not the nightmare scenario. The nightmare scenario, sweetheart, is you getting kidnapped.

50. You are a very powerful and handsome man.

@suz-123 @angryschnauzer @theycallmebecca @all1e23 @avengerofyourheart @imamotherfuckingstar-lord @mywritingsblog @misssavenger @xemopeachx @vintagemichelle91 @rauliskafan @captainrogerss @after-avenging-hours @barnesrogersvstheworld @esparzaist @madpanda75 @tropes-and-tales @girl-next-door-writes @goingknowherewastaken @musikat18 @bookcaseninja @captain-rogers-beard @haveyouseenmymind @justareader @letsgetfuckingsuperwholocked @redgillan @ruckystarnes 

[thefanficfaerie]

Last Day to sign up for the West Wing Challenge

Here are the Rules:

1. You can only use the characters I have listed. No Peter Parker (except in the case of Superfamily). No Bucky Barnes or Sebastian Stan. I am not in any way, shape or form attracted to Sebastian Stan. So I won’t read it.

2.  Send in an ASK with your character choice and quote. You can double up but no more than two people per prompt and they have to be different characters. Once a prompt is full I will cross it out.

3.  If your story is more than 500 words please use a read more. I will not reblog any story that does not have a read more.

4. The preference is reader insert. You can do OFC just let me know.

5. No angst unless it has a happy ending. No cheating fics either.

6. When you post please tag me and use the tag #west wing quote challenge.

7. THE MOST IMPORTANT RULE!!! HAVE FUN!!!! Cause that is what writing is all about.

8. Due Date. I dont have one yet.

Characters

Steve Rogers Tony Stark Stony x Reader Stony Stucky x Reader Rafael Barba Jim Kirk Leonard McCoy McKirk x Reader McKirk Robb Stark Aaron Hotchner Eomer Chris Evans

Quotes

1. I want this back in the cardboard box it came in. I don’t want to see you or talk to you ‘til that’s done. ‘No way’ is not an acceptable answer. 'I tried’ is no longer an option. You started this thing, and you’re gonna damn well going to finish it with either a blue ribbon or a great big deafening silence.

2. “Never Doubt That A Small Group Of Thoughtful Committed Citizens Can Change The World.“

3. "I Have Wit, I Have Charm, I Have Brains, I Have Legs That Go All The Way Down To The Floor, My Friend.”

4. About a week ago I accidentally slept with a prostitute.

5. “Decisions are made by those who show up.”

6. One last thing: While you may be mistaking this for your monthly meeting of the Ignorant Tight-Ass Club, in this building, when the President stands, nobody sits.

7. My father gave this to me, and his father gave it to him, now I’m giving it to you.

8. Watch this.

9. Person A: If you were in an accident, I wouldn’t stop for beer.   Person B: If you were in an accident, I wouldn’t stop for red lights

10. Person A: What are you holding?     Person B: [Name] said you liked goldfish.     Person A: The crackers. The cheese things you eat at parties.

11. Just stand there in your wrongness and be wrong and get used to it.

12. How tall are you? I can’t believe we are the same species.

13. I drink from the keg of glory, Donna. Bring me the finest muffins and bagels in all the land.

14. Person A: When you flirt with me, are you doing it to get something ?          Person B: No.     Person A: Why are you doing it?     Person B: I’m doing it to flirt with you.

15. Why is there hugging?

16. "So, if I’m gonna jump off the cliff, and you’re gonna get pushed off the cliff, why don’t we hold hands on the way down?“

17. There is no such thing as too smart. There is nothing you can do that is not going to make me proud of you”

18.  "You don’t have the power to fix everything… But I do like watching you try.“

19. "Your wife’s beautiful, too. How’d you get her to marry you? Did you trick her or something?”

20. "Happiness is my default position.“

21. The only thing you ever had to do to make me happy was come home at the end of the day.”

22. "Can I assume from your total silence and blank faces that you’re all with me?“

23. "No, I did not. Let me be perfectly clear I did not do that. Except…yes, I did that.”

24. "I don’t know what kind of salad it is, I’m eating a salad, okay? I’m doing it, do I have to know the names? There’s no difference between them, it’s a bowl of weeds! Some of them have cheese, this isn’t the kind with cheese, does that answer your question? “

25. "Nature, like a woman, will seduce you with its sights and its scents and its touch, and then it breaks your ankle, also like a woman.

26. Can I have a couple of aspirin or a weapon of some kind to kill people with?”

27. Person A: “I’m just going to change my shirt.”    Person B: “You look bad. You’re tired. You slept in the office. It’s Friday. Go home.”     Person A: “Why?”     Person B: “Because I think you’re putting too much faith in the magical powers of a new shirt.”

28. There’s literally no one in the world I don’t hate right now.

29. You’re a smart savvy woman who could easily consider world domination for a next career move.

30. There’s no one in this room who wouldn’t rather die than let you down.

31. We should organize a staff field trip to Shenandoah what do you think.

32. I didn’t realize babies came with hats.

33. I’m sorry to be rude but are you a moron.

34. So it’s ok to have sex in a hotel but not my apartment.

35. I want us to talk because I like the sound of your voice.

36. With that, I’m going to get a cupcake.

37. I embrace the cold. I luxuriate in the cold. I fight the cold with more cold.

38. You really think we have a secret handshake, dont you?

39. I’m telling your mother, you forgot where she lives.

40. Everytime you talk, I hear that sound that plays when pac man dies.

41. Person A: If they find out you’ve been there I’m going to shove a motherboard so far up your ass.     Person B: Technically, I outrank you.     Person A: So far up your ass.

42. I need some pie.

43. You know I could beat you up anytime I want to sir.

44. Well, you go girl.

45. My problem is I want to jump him when he says things like that.

46. Ignore him. The rest of us do.

47. Just once in this job I would like to end the day feeling as good as the day started.

48. Pumpkin patch, is there anything I can do to get you to go to the movies for eight hours?

49. “My getting killed would be bad enough, but that is not the nightmare scenario. The nightmare scenario, sweetheart, is you getting kidnapped.

50. You are a very powerful and handsome man.