#i fundamentally hate her as a human being and carry no respect for her whatsoever! and would kill her with hammers if given the chance!

[howldean]

with every genuine bone in my body i hope my mutuals who look forward to new music are excited to have new music. the absolute most love and light to you. furthermore keep that evil wretch far far away from me

[kob131]

thoughts on lostbelt 3 and its king ( and this extends to lostbelt 1 and 2

Actually watching Lostbelt 3 now. I’m gonna have to give three answers each because I don’t know if you’re referring to the worlds or the stories of the Lostbelts.

Lostbelt 1: The world is...incredibly sad, people forced to survive and leave others to die because of a cruel deal of the hand. It’s depressing as all hell.

The story is pretty damn effective in displaying the sheer despair of the whole arc. It’s really said to see Asterios fall so far into becoming a monster when you know that’s something he hated being seen as. I understand Kadoc’s angst and his sorrow, at how small and useless he feels especially after what Ritsuka did. And I feel so bad he had to watch Anastasia die in his arms since he clearly loved her dearly. Not to mention that Salieri’s story stands probably as the pinnacle of what the Avenger class is in Fate: A class of sad broken people, fueled by a revenge that they’ll never truly get nor will it fix them.

As for Ivan, I actually have a deep respect for the character. He tried everything he could to ensure that his people could survive. He truly did care for his people and despite the accusations that they lost their humanity, Ivan was a deeply human person. But after he secured survival, there was nothing else he could do. Things were so harsh that survival was all there was anymore. No more truly living to be happy, no more chances to improve things. Just...an end he tried to forstall.

Lostbelt 2: ... Honestly much of the same. They follow the same basic formula, setting, themes and ideas. The only stand outs from Lostbelt 1 are Napoleon pulling a Kamina (i.e. dying to set up the true protagonists in the most badass way possible), Skadi forcing herself to fight Chaldea (mad respect to her for doing that) and Brynhild and Sigurd finally having a moment together (love those two).

Lostbelt 3 (so far): ... Fuck. This. World. Like seriously, fuck this stupid unified empire BULLSHIT. Oh sure, there’s no war or conflict...because no one is allowed to have ANY FUCKING CHOICE WHATSOEVER. The so-called ‘peace’ is meaningless because no one actually gets to CHOOSE the peace. You either don’t know any better or you blasted for DARING to try and expand your horizons.

Like I get this idea of keeping people in the dark and basically trapping them in the stone age so they can’t stab the fuck out of each other but this peace is fake. It doesn’t have the understanding between two groups that allow each other to understand each, learn from each other and evolve as people. It doesn’t have the centuries of conflict and strife to lean from so that we can truly see a better path. It doesn’t have the maturity or the wisdom that comes from seeing the horrors of the world, nor the drive to make things better for the people who succeed you. This so called peace is empty and worthless because actual peace is not just the absence of conflict, it is the act of understanding one another and becoming better people. Which can only result FROM conflict. 

And this isn’t even getting into the numerous ways that the lack of freedom and worldwide knowledge makes both the world and the people worthless. Like, the beauty of this world comes from our freedom, which allows us to pursue what we want and become good at what we want. Because of that, each individual person carries with them a unique viewpoint, mindset and skillset which will inevitably lead to them contributing to the world in a way only THEY can. And the lack of worldwide knowledge is fucking stupid because guess why humans have advanced as far as we have. Because we shared our knowledge with each other, allowing each unique person to see what we understand thus give a chance to expand on that knowledge or correct it. 

Lostbelt 3′s world is the worst one BY FAR and I’m GLAD it gets removed.

The story is functional and works pretty well if you’re a person who hasn’t had these questions of ‘Is security or freedom better?’, ‘Is ignorance better since it means people will fight less?’ and ‘Should we have one guy leading us and dictate what we should do so there’s no conflict?’ But I’ve already been THROUGH this and came to this conclusion a long time ago: Freedom is better, Knowledge and Wisdom is better and fuck no, one guy in charge is a terrible idea.

As for the king: three guess of my opinion of the fucker. I can see good qualities in him but his fundamental ruling style is utterly disgusting.

So, was that satsifactory?

[bristolunifriendsofpalestin-blog]

Epigram Interview with Bristol FoP

In November 2016, Bristol’s student newspaper Epigram spoke to Bristol FoP committee member Alfred Davies. We are publishing this interview in its entirety as a reference point for Bristol FoP’s stance on various issues, particularly the BDS movement. 

1) You say in your statement that you intend to boycott future IPDG events, a move that they have criticised. Why will you boycott future events? Our society aims at raising awareness at the University of Bristol about Israeli settler colonialism and apartheid, and campaigning for the inalienable human rights of the Palestinian people, including the right of return of Palestinian refugees. We do not oppose dialogue per se, but believe that unless the fundamentally colonial context of the situation in Palestine is acknowledged, then the kind of “dialogue” promoted by IPDG only serves to perpetuate the view that this is just another conflict, and that the power to create peace on each side is equal.

A just and lasting peace can only be achieved when Israel’s system of settler colonialism, apartheid, and military occupation is dismantled. By inviting Mark Regev, a senior representative of the Israeli government who has consistently defended Israeli human rights violations for many years, IPDG are lending legitimacy to Israeli settler colonialism and apartheid, and that is something that our society cannot accept.

2)  What actions are Bristol FoP taking in the BDS movement? What about Palestinian solidarity student groups in the UK more generally? Since the launch of the BDS movement in 2005, the BDS call has been enthusiastically embraced by student groups across the UK. More than 30 UK student unions have now passed motions in support of BDS campaigns, and the NUS has adopted BDS as official policy. In the last week alone, students at Goldsmiths and City University in London have passed new motions in support of BDS. And the growing strength of the BDS movement in the UK is already having a clear impact.

Over the past five years, thanks to the actions of student groups, multiple UK universities have been pressured to cancel contracts worth millions of pounds with companies such as security giant G4S and French multinational Veolia which are deeply complicit in Israeli apartheid and settler colonialism, and both of these companies have now stated they are withdrawing from the Israeli market.

Bristol Friends of Palestine is committed to being a part of a movement that supports Palestinians and seeks justice and peace for all people in the region. The situation at present is dire, with Palestinians forced to live in some of the most inhumane conditions imaginable. We have plans to hold public events to let our fellow students know about the situation in Palestine to encourage them to join the campaign. We are also planning to organise events as part of Israeli Apartheid Week next year.

3)  How important do you think it is to encourage university institutions to boycott? Academic institutions in the UK contribute to the problems we have in the region. There are extensive collaborative research programmes between Israeli universities and those in the UK. For example, there is partnership between UoB and Bar-Ilan University in Israel, which in part consists of collaborative research into cyber security. Given Israel’s human rights record, and their willingness to use the internet to undermine individual security and privacy, we should be very concerned about this relationship. This is particularly so given the close working relationship between Israel’s universities and its security sector.

Another key aspect is pressuring universities to divest from companies complicit in Israel’s occupation and oppression of Palestinians, such as HP, who provide technology for the biometric ID cards use to restrict Palestinians’ movement, and for Israeli naval forces, who are key in maintaining the blockade on Gaza.

4)  What was the result of the motion that passed last year to boycott Occupation goods? Has any action been taken?

No specific action has yet been taken as a result of last year’s motion, which targeted Israel’s illegal settlements. These settlements are enormous cities that rob Palestinians of their land, their natural resources and their livelihoods. They are widely condemned internationally as illegal and a barrier to peace, including by our own Government, so it is wonderful that our union has adopted such a policy. We are discussing what steps need to be taken to ensure the policy is implemented properly.

We are hoping to also build on this and to initiate a debate amongst students about the other measures we can take as a union. For example, there is a sense that only targeting Israel’s settlements is futile if the UK - and our unions - continue to allow trade with the rest of Israel. During last year’s debate it was clear that many students were supportive of a wider boycott and I think this is something that students here at Bristol should be discussing.

5)  The NUS voted last year to boycott Israeli goods, but following this the president accepted a sponsorship from Coca-Cola, who operate illegally on occupied territories. Do you feel that the NUS is making progress in terms of the BDS movement?

The NUS is a national body that represents millions of students, so it is natural that there are a plurality of views on the situation in Palestine and on whether boycotts are an effective tool for advancing justice and peace. Over the past years, the NUS has adopted divestment policies designed to ensure that the union does not contribute to fuelling the conflict or the oppression of Palestinians. These policies represent the views of a large number of students and are reflective of dozens of campaigns in campuses around the country. Indeed, boycott motions have been passed at a large number of student unions. Students feel strongly about the suffering of the Palestinians and it is right that students should ask their national union to advocate for them on this important topic. Boycott motions have also been discussed and passed at a number of other UK unions, amongst them the UCU and the TUC.

That NUS has such a policy is itself progress, and more work can be done to ensure that it is implemented throughout the organisation. I understand that a mistake was made regarding Coca-Cola’s endorsement of an NUS event, with most of the NUS’s elected representatives refusing to attend the event. The matter was dealt with internally by the NUS to ensure that future events and activities remain inline with the organisation’s policy.

There is no doubt that global calls for challenging Israel’s impunity through economic pressure have grown considerably over the past 10 years. As well as unions – innumerable church groups, political parties, local councils, banks and international dignitaries have supported full or partial boycotts of Israel to bring them in line with international law. The NUS’s own policy is small but significant and will contribute to the growing sentiment in Britain which supports the human rights of Palestinians.

6)  New president Malia Bouattia has been criticised as anti-Semitic in her capacity as a Palestinian rights activist. Do you think Jewish students feel victimised by BDS action, and is the BDS movement taking any action on this? How would you respond to accusations that Israel is being unfairly singled out?

I think this question is a really important one. The BDS movement is a struggle against the actions of a state, not against those who identify with a certain religion. It is so important not to conflate the two, and BDS campaigning that is carried out on campus must be done so in a way that is respectful of all students, like our campaigns in Bristol. BDS campaigners in Bristol are proactive in denouncing and looking out for any kind of hate crime, including antisemitism, and vocal in doing so. This is a struggle for Palestinian human rights, not against any group of students. Jewish students have a long tradition of political engagement at all levels of the student movement, and all measures must be taken to ensure that the NUS remains a place where they feel they can express themselves politically.

There is no place for racism whatsoever and our communities, now more than ever, must stand together to ensure that we reject divisiveness and discrimination. Part of our togetherness is in finding healthy ways of disagreeing within our union. If a student or group of students feel that they are not represented on a certain issue, they should engage with their union and campaign for the issues they care about. Sometimes their perspective prevails, other times it does not, but this is the nature of working in a democratic union. If students feel strongly that the NUS’s current policy does not represent their view they can continue to put forward their arguments in the NUS’s democratic bodies.

I do not share the view that Israel is being unfairly singled out. In fact, the opposite is true. There are very few states in the world that have been shown such levels of unfailing support despite consistent violations of international law. Israel benefits considerably from its global connections, particularly its relationship with the US, the EU and the UK. The economic benefit that Israel accrues enables it to enact its illegal policies in Palestine. In that sense, it is the UK (amongst others) that is providing Israel with the material capabilities to continue the oppression of Palestinians. Those advocating boycott are saying that the UK should not be providing Israel with the means to continue these brutal actions.

Epigram article: http://epigram.org.uk/news/2016/11/israeli-ambassador-appearance-inspires-fresh-boycott-action