#i know what degree i would definitely strive in because i take my electives in that degree

[earth-to-ezra]

i feel like my brains ripping itself apart so imma put a lil rant in the tags so i can maybe possibly feel slightly better without people having to come across this accidentally! :)

[battlinghurricanes]

DEIPHOBUS TIME!

I'm honestly not entirely sure how I got such a deeply involved concept for his character and motivations, but I definitely did. I just feel like he fits into an especially interesting place in everything and that there's a lot of great potential with him.

Shout out to @petalveinedwarrior for enabling me and also I'm very sorry for being incredibly long winded. My bad.

Also DISCLAIMER! I am NOT an expert on the Trojan War and all its surrounding mythology lol. This is just for fun, based on my own fairly limited knowledge of the myths (though I think I pretty much cover everything that’s relevant to this). These are just my headcanons woven with some details from various myths. Sorry if anything’s missing or inaccurate!

SO!

-

First and foremost, I headcanon Deiphobus as the oldest of Priam and Hecuba’s children after Hektor.

Hektor calls Deiphobus the dearest of his brothers, and to me, this is why. They are the closest in age and they were the closest growing up, best friends when they were young. They also get the closest to being on equal footing which means a lot to Hektor, who often feels distance between him and his other siblings because of being heir to Troy.

Despite the relatively equal ground and Deiphobus treating Hektor with a very casual familiarity, deep down, he idolizes him. Deiphobus adores and admires Hektor, ever a younger brother in how he looks up to his strength and intelligence and reliability but close enough in age to not feel the same envy as so many of their younger siblings.

Deiphobus is aware that he is next in line to inherit the throne of Troy after Hektor, and the possibility of that is more real to him than to the rest. He doesn’t envy or want the responsibilities Hektor has to bear being the first son and admires him for it rather than resenting him. He never wants the weight of Troy on his shoulders.

Additionally, as close as they are, Hektor confides more openly in Deiphobus than the rest of their siblings. Consequently, he has a more realistic idea of both the burden he bears and also the ways he struggles to manage it like any human would.

Deiphobus holds Hektor in the highest regard- he means the world to him. It is a strange and unique combination of relating to and understanding Hektor exactly as he is and then loving him so dearly for how remarkably he seems to do in all of it, all that Deiphobus adores and strives to be like.

Hektor calls Deiphobus the dearest of his brothers, but Deiphobus would never need to say the same of Hektor, that much has always been obvious.

Deiphobus himself is ferociously loyal, boastful and fiery proud, wild and energetic, and always quick to smile and laugh with a sharp sense of humor. He’ll defend his own with tooth and nail, Hektor first and foremost, and they make a well balanced pair. Hektor’s level headed sense of responsibility softens many of Deiphobus’s rough edges, and Deiphobus’s enthusiasm breaks through many of Hektor’s more anxiously formed reservations.

Deiphobus would do near anything for Hektor, to a concerning degree in the eyes of some, but Hektor, by his nature, isn't overly controlling. He doesn't want Deiphobus to change how he is. Mostly, the only place Hektor truly pushes him is on moral grounds, for better rather than for worse.

Deiphobus hates to spend time overthinking anything, which benefits him in some ways, but also frequently has him following the example of those around him without considering what might lean towards cruelty. Hektor never tolerates hurtful and needless rudeness or otherwise, and their friendship doesn’t spare Deiphobus his reprimands.

Hektor's needling, though, has him step back and reexamine his actions and the second look is generally what he needs to correct his missteps. Admittedly, he’ll sometimes act better in some way solely to please Hektor, but far more often than not, he’ll come to recognize why it’s best with time and continue that way from his own compulsion.

(He grows and his conscience sounds irritatingly like Hektor.)

Deiphobus is actually one of the best of his siblings at not holding a grudge. He might for drama or humor’s sake, but once a squabble is past, he’ll easily set it aside in favor of having fun with whoever he fought with.

Regardless of his flaws, Deiphobus is amiable and of the opinion that it’s never worth passing up a good time over some pettiness. He’s never one to ignore the value of little joys, no matter how fleeting they are.

Before the war, when he is still younger, there is Antheus. He’s the pretty son of Antenor, and both Deiphobus and Paris are quite taken with him. Paris’s involvement rubs him the wrong way, but he elects to ignore it as best he can. It doesn’t sit right to consider policing Antheus’s actions. He can hardly demand he stop seeing Paris while still insisting on his company, after all.

Besides, he can’t really complain. Antheus favors him with his presence often, laughing at his jokes, stealing off his plate when they share meals, tumbling with him when they wrestle. And when Antheus lifts his hand to idly toy with his lower lip as he smiles slyly at him, Paris is the last thing on Deiphobus’s mind.

Hektor teases him sometimes when he turns up ruffled from some exchange turned overzealous, but his flustered frustration pales in comparison to his excitement, so Hektor gets away with it. Oh, he loves Antheus and the feeling is so heady, better than the most potent wine.

Then it all shatters when some men rush into the palace with Antheus’s limp body carried between them. He was in the gymnasium with Paris, they learn. One throw from Paris with a warped discus and Antheus was gone. Deiphobus stares at the blood soaked in his lovely hair.

Deiphobus is ready to rip Paris apart, but when his brother is guided in after, there’s just no room for it. He’s in complete hysterics, shaking all over as he hyperventilates, and screaming would have gotten through to him no more than their family’s vain attempts to calm him down.

Paris is inconsolable afterwards. He retreats in on himself, though without any attempt to defend himself, first to give himself the blame. He makes for a pitiful sight, and at first, Deiphobus can’t stand being in his presence at all, to take his anger and grief out on him or otherwise.

It doesn’t take that long for Deiphobus’s anger to grow more painful than cathartic anyway and, well, it is hard to lash out at someone acting exactly how he feels. He feels the same heartbreak and pain he sees in Paris and he can’t find it in himself to rage against him when he’d rather just sit and cry himself.

Paris does take it upon himself to face Deiphobus after a time and claim responsibility for what happened that day. Deiphobus doesn’t forgive him, doing that feels... off, but he manages to convey that he won’t turn on him for the accident with Antheus. He thinks that might make Paris feel better but he can’t truly tell.

It all still hurts then, even as they try to get things to settle. Nothing but more time can do anything more to heal those wounds.

And time passes and then Paris returns from Sparta with Helen, and, well.

The brewing war doesn’t drive a rift between Deiphobus and Hektor, but it does force a new distance between them. The pressure on Hektor spikes and never eases, and the time he has to spare becomes exceedingly rare.

Much of the time the two would have spent for themselves together now shifts to working together to manage the complications that come with this new conflict; Deiphobus has new responsibilities to shoulder himself. More work, less play, but the mutual affection and respect between them remains just as strong as before.

Deiphobus can’t help but feel a certain bitterness over having the casual companionship of his brother taken away from him, but he does all he can to set it aside. He refuses to let it be another source of stress for Hektor, so often too caring for his own good, and he doesn’t hold it against him anyway.

As always, Deiphobus remains aware that these tasks could easily have been his and, privately, he feels woefully inadequate in the face of that possibility. And truly, it just serves to make Hektor even greater in his eyes, handling it all with grace he can’t imagine. He knows he’s not perfect, yet still, it’s hard to imagine that anything could ever truly bring Hektor down.

And so, Deiphobus helps his brother in the ways he can and loves him as ever, always ready and eager to fight at his side.

Deiphobus leads a contingent himself, and does it well. It comes easier to him to manage a smaller group like that. He does as directed and guides his men through the fighting. One can say what they will about his ability to lead, but his capability as a warrior is undeniable.

Things shift between Deiphobus and Paris as well. Much of Troy turns on Paris, some faster than others. Deiphobus ignores the greater dramatics which, in his opinion, help nothing. Still, it is often tempting to berate him for his flippant disregard of the battles so he does, which is, admittedly, not entirely unwarranted.

However, Deiphobus and Paris share a mutual, unspoken understanding that they simply cannot focus on the war at all times. Sometimes it must be set aside. This is more often true to Paris than to Deiphobus, but that invites Deiphobus to keep Paris’s company when he can no longer bear all the stress.

In turn, when Deiphobus approaches him like that, Paris can trust not to be reprimanded as he so often is, as that gets ignored along with the rest of it. So there are times during the war where the two can be found together affably, chatting about nothing important. Their personalities can still mesh in such moments.

And, well, it’s shocking how steady things can stay over nine years of war, but they do. Death and loss become far too familiar companions, but they can do nothing but keep fighting through that, and things proceed much as they have been.

Until, of course, Achilles.

With all the cruelty of fate, it of course follows after they get the closest to driving away the Achaeans as they ever have. Such a brief, amazing hope. In his unmatched fury, Achilles slaughters their soldiers, butchers many of his brothers, escapes Scamander’s rage through the grace of the gods, and drives the army behind Troy’s wall with his advance, except for-

Then-

Hektor is dead.

Deiphobus tastes blood in his throat screaming at the sight behind the chariot.

In a way, it’s a blessing that it takes twelve days to get Hektor’s body and another twelve to bury it. With his death, command of Troy and her allies has passed to Deiphobus, and he could barely lead his own horse after losing Hektor, much less an army.

Deiphobus falls to pieces. He can barely process it, losing the one he held in the highest regard, held every confidence in, believed in to his core. Hektor was the best of all of them and now he’s dead, leaving him shattered. Deiphobus is hysterical, wildly heartbroken.

In this time is when Priam first turns on his remaining sons. He lashes out at them as he prepares to ransom Hektor’s corpse, degrading them as the most worthless of his sons. Still half blind with tears of grief he can’t hold back, he thinks that it’s true in the same moment he thinks of how he will now have to take Hektor’s place, worthless ruin though he is.

Most often, Priam refrains from speaking of his remaining sons after that, and in rare, fleeting heartbeats he almost seems contrite over cursing them. Neither is enough though to keep him from savagely reproaching them in unpredictable instances as Troy continues to spiral towards its doom. Deiphobus shakily chokes down his father’s abuse without a word.

Of course, he returns to the battlefield once Hektor is buried, coming to truly learn the crushing weight of his new role. How did his brother bear this? Every day feels like one failure after another; he’s not strong enough, not smart enough to do this. He tries anyway, each day more taxing than the last.

Deiphobus can hardly bear Paris after Hektor’s death. A large part of him hates him for it, desperate to pin the blame on someone despite knowing deep down that he’s not responsible. Though, even then, part of him is drawn to Paris, broken same as him, shaped by a sort of desperation to grieve for their brother with him. Misery loves company.

His anger burns hotter, but now he can’t bring himself to berate him even in the way he did sometimes before all this. He never confronts him with his hatred, such that it is. He simply avoids Paris entirely, knowing that if he indulges in the impulse to curse him for what happened to Hektor, he would fall apart at the seams.

Even now he can’t face the truth of what happened and keep going. It is all he can do to try never to think about it.

And then, with the aid of Lord Apollo, Paris kills Achilles.

The undecided limbo of Deiphobus’s feelings towards Paris topples into something like affection the moment he hears of it, connecting them once more. Paris has destroyed Hektor’s murderer, avenging him, and that matters to Deiphobus more than anything else.

That night, the two of them drink together until it half kills them, close enough to keep knocking shoulders as they revile Achilles with the worst profanities they know. It’s the only celebration they can muster after everything, but they’re both laughing for the first time since they lost him.

(When the night grows damnably late, Deiphobus’s attempt to laugh turns into retching and Paris collapses to the ground when he tries to get up to help. They suffer the agonizing morning together.)

They make a strange pair from then on. Friendship would be a generous word given the still unavoidable tension between them, but they somehow manage to maneuver around that and share a certain closeness. They maintain it despite differences that grind against each other. Sad as it is, it’s one of the only things either of them have left.

Paris and Deiphobus also weather Priam’s spontaneous tirades together. Usually wordlessly, but there is something to be said for the company of someone enduring the same pain you are. It is a quiet solidarity, but a significant one.

They talk of the war far more often now. Every day it devours more and more of their lives, always harder and harder to ignore or set aside. On rare occasions, they do still manage it. Those conversations make for a breath of fresh air, though that does little to stave off the feeling of drowning.

And then Paris takes a poisoned arrow and dies.

Deiphobus doesn’t wail and sob in the same way he did for Hektor. He’s too numb for it now. It hurts in an unnatural, distant sort of way. All he can muster is a ugly, stilted feeling of shame for letting himself come to care for him in the first place. Of course he would die like the rest, he should know this by now. He crumbles further.

After Paris’s loss, there's only two reasonable options for what to do with Helen. Either they need to return her to Menelaus or arrange a new marriage and keep her in Troy.

Helen pleads to be returned to her first husband but Deiphobus competes with Helenus to be the one who weds her. Troy does not stop them. There is a quiet but tangible tension to the city and he doesn’t think their people would tolerate Helen departing. He competes with everything he has left and he wins. And they marry.

That first night, Helen stares at his back while sitting in her new place on his bed. She expected to be treated like a piece of meat, a feeling she's grown well used to through living her life under the eyes of men, but he's barely even looking at her. He fought for her hand with an undeniable, feral sort of desperation. What was it for if he doesn't even want her?

"Why?" she asks him. "Why bother going through every effort to marry me only to be so cold now? What do you want?" Her voice would cut razor sharp if only she wasn't so tired.

He turns to face her with bloodshot eyes narrowed in a glare, riddled with barely restrained anger and grief. "I'm not letting you leave," he forces out and Helen pushes down the urge to scoff because that much is obvious.

"It has to be worth something," he continues. "There has to be something we fought for. If we just let you go back, then it won't have been worth jack shit." He paces, not looking at her again. "I won't allow that. Don't think you can avoid all this so easily now that Paris is gone. There has to be a point. My brother is dead because of this shit! If you're gone, then what would be the fucking point?!"

His brother. He means Hektor. He means Paris. He means every last one of them, so many dead. He means Hektor.

Helen doesn't reply. There is nothing she can say to that. For all that it doesn't make a difference, what he's laid before her is something she knows well. She's spent so long now berating herself and blaming herself for all that's come to pass and she understands. She hates this, all she wants is to go home, but she understands him.

She knows that they both hate each other and themselves all in equal measure. What a wretched pair they make, Helen thinks.

Not that they make much of a pair at all. They're rarely ever together. Deiphobus camps outside whenever he can, and when he can’t, he goes out of his way to avoid her. Helen accepts it as the best she can expect from the truly miserable situation this has become. The war drags on, but the truth hangs in the air that Troy is losing.

Then the horse.

The people, starving so desperately for peace, bring it inside the walls. Deiphobus tries to be cautious. He tries to think of what Hektor would have done. He commands Helen to walk around the horse, calling out in the voices of the Achaeans' wives. If there's some wretched spy or invader, let them show themselves. He'll kill them.

No one answers. Deep down just as desperate for peace as them all, he breathes a sigh of relief and leaves the damn horse.

He hopes the Achaeans filled their mouths with blood, biting their tongues as hard as they must have.

Troy is burning. The Achaeans fill the streets with slaughter; they are everywhere. Reunited with her husband after so, so long, Helen tells Menelaus where Deiphobus is. And so, Deiphobus dies alongside Troy.

(Deiphobus and Hektor meet again in the Underworld and Deiphobus tries to apologize for his failure to keep Troy safe. Hektor will hear none of it, refusing any of the anger he has every right to put on him. Still, a long time passes where Deiphobus silently and anxiously wonders if that was a lie, if Hektor truly does hate him for what happened.

Hektor keeps throwing him tense, unsettled glances sometimes when he thinks he’s not looking, even though he never says a thing. Each one worms further and further underneath his skin and he starts to squirm under the conviction that he’s done something wrong. Something Hektor holds against him.

When it finally grows so unbearable that Deiphobus confronts him about it at last, Hektor flinches and doesn’t disguise his fear and upset. Deiphobus braces himself. But then, mangled in with confusing, ashamed apologies, Hektor recounts for the first time how he died.

Athena luring him to his death in Deiphobus’s shape, speaking in his voice. How he turned to face Achilles believing he had support. When he called for a spear from his brother, he was alone.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I think of it at all, I’m so sorry I let you believe I was angry with you because of it. I’m not, it had nothing to do with you, you shouldn’t have to know of it at all. I just- remember it sometimes. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”

Deiphobus feels nauseous. Hektor looks even more so.

“If I had actually been there-”

“No! Don’t do this. Achilles would have just killed you too.”

“We wouldn’t have died alone, then.”

They clutch at each other, these battered remnants of their souls, carrying with them the wounds of their lives.)

[inescapcble]

This isn’t really an intro as much as an UPDATE featuring a biography and some changes I’ve realised as I’ve gotten to know Leah’s character better, but given that I’d still recommend y’all give this a once over. Thanks to everyone for getting involved with her and my other characters, and I’m excited to do so much more with her. <3

BASIC INFO ;

Name: Leontine Artemisia Morgan

Nicknames: Leah (by select friends & family only), Madam Prez (slang)

Gender & Pronouns: cis female, she/her pronouns

Age & DOB: Forty | 14 February, 1980 | Anchorage, Kentucky

Zodiac Sign: Aquarius

Orientations: Bisexual / biromantic (with a lean towards women)

Relationship Status: In a ( secret ; open ) relationship with Princess Ivana of the Netherlands ( @ofivana​ )

Nationality: American

Religion: Agnostic

Neuroses: Undiagnosed Asperger’s syndrome (note: I, the mun, have diagnosed Asperger’s!)

FAMILIAL ;

Hometown: Anchorage, Kentucky

Father: Kenneth Morgan, CEO of Morgan Financial

Mother: Candace Morgan (d. 2019)

Siblings: Bocephus ( @hxll-0​ ) and Elise ( @ofchampagnetears​ ) Morgan (b. 1992)

OTHER ;

Languages Spoken: English, Latin, French, Italian, German (incl. Swiss, Austrian and Bavarian German), Spanish, Portuguese

Educational Background: Institut Le Rosey, Harvard University, John Hopkins University

Occupational History:

1. Intern / Political Assistant at Capitol Hill (2002-06)

2. Representative for Maryland’s 2nd District (2006 special election — 2010)

3. Junior Senator for Maryland (2010-2016)

4. 45th President of the United States of America (20th January, 2017—)

Achievements: Youngest and first female president of the United States; shortest initiation in Society history. If I listed her political achievements we’d be here a while, folks.

THE SOCIETY ;

Codename: Adrasteia 

Meaning: Adrasteia means “the inescapable,” which I chose as her label. It’s another name for Nemesis, the goddess of divine retribution, which i found quite fitting because she’s always managed to rise above people and attain what she wants, even if it is through using her parents’ money and power to her advantage at least in part. And now she’s the defender of the free world, in the most powerful office in the world — don’t make an enemy of the inescapable, for the inescapable will always get you.

Traditionalist or Reformist: Leah struggles to shoe-horn herself into either camp, but she supposes in general due to her own ideas that she’s some kind of reformist, even if that reform doesn’t include party islands and hedonistic displays. She prefers more power for women within the Society; more space for non-established families and for people to get in on their talent alone.

Goals In The Society: Her own advancement. To make her rowdy siblings see their own potential, and perhaps find a bond with them that feels less like she’s that cousin you don’t see often and don’t know very well. Ultimately, to be the Grand Archon, where she can make the most positive change. To use the Society to get rid of the Twenty-Second Amendment so she has more time to create further equally positive change for America. 

Opinion On The Society: It’s something she was always meant to be part of, but something that needs to be tweaked to fit the time that it’s in. Some people’s definition of ‘tweak’ is too far, but ultimately the most important thing is that she’s in it. Certainly she values it as an honour.

PERSONALITY ;

MBTI: ENTJ-A

Enneagram: Eight, with a Seven wing

Temperament: Choleric

Hogwarts House: Slytherin

Inspirations: Birgitte Nyborg (Borgen) | Kidz & SOS (Take That songs, inverse) | Peggy Carter (Marvel Cinematic Universe) | Official Secrets (film)

Tropes: The Ace, Armour-Piercing Question, America Saves The Day, The Chessmaster, Contemplative Boss, Married To The Job, Workaholic, Badass In Charge, Brainy Brunette, Deadpan Snarker, Iron Lady

YOUR MUSE AS ;

A piece of art: The Kiss by Gustav Klimt

A song: Under The Ladder by Mélovin

A book: How To Use Your Enemies by Baltasar Gracián

A movie: Official Secrets

A TV show: Borgen

A historical era: Ancient Greece if she had to choose one, but she’s more one to look to the future than the past.

A historical figure: Artemisia of Caria

A colour: Royal blue

An animal: Lioness (she’s got the name for a reason.)

YOUR MUSE’S DREAM ;

JOB: She’s sat in the Oval Office, folks, she’s doing it.

VACATION: Leontine doesn’t have time for vacations, especially not if she’s attending Society events, but if she did, she’d like to go to the Acropolis.

DAY: One day where Bo and Elise are calm; getting to go on a real date with Ivy and be proud of it.

AS A CHILD: To be President of the United States.

LAST NIGHT: I can’t tell you, because she didn’t sleep long enough to reach the appropriate stage and dream.

THAT THEY GAVE UP ON: She’s never given up on a dream. Never once, not unless she realises it was wrong in the first place. She’s not someone who gives up.

THAT THEY HAVE RIGHT NOW: Constitutional change; getting her siblings into the Society

BIOGRAPHY ;

TWELVE years — that was how long Leontine Artemisia was the sole daughter of Kenneth and Candace Morgan, but also how long it took them to forget why. Through generations of the Morgan bloodline the same issue had persisted; a work-ethic that was either partly or entirely based upon an unattainable ideal of perfection. 

Which, in itself, led to relationships like the parents’ own. Lacking in healthy emotional expression ( particularly on the side of the born Morgan, less so in his softer-hearted wife ) and with at least some business element regarding a ‘practical’ or ‘advantageous’ match. It wasn’t an arranged marriage, not quite, as they had found each other — mostly — alone, but neither could it be said to be a ‘love match’ the likes of which fill the daydreams of any hopeless romantic. 

And then, from there, they hadn’t realised how it would impact any child of theirs until it was too-little, too-late to do anything about it. When the nifty Morgan motto had already taken hold, dug itself into the young girl, going deeper with every comment Kenneth made about how she could be ‘better,’ or ‘how do you expect to be like me or your grandfather?’ 

It became Candace’s — being the far more empathetic parent, the one who was there when Leah fell and who had attached herself to her first-born in a way she would not attach quite the same with inevitable additions — goal to get her as far away from her husband’s influence as possible, so that she might have half a chance at coming fully into her own. Except, prior to achieving that goal, the terrors ( I’m sorry, the twins, but they were, and are, terrors ) came into the trio’s lives, and Leah was both no longer alone, and more alone than ever.

Which suited her fine, or at least she said it did. After all, she was still her mother’s favourite, anyone could see it. Could feel it, where Kenneth had turned his attention to the young babes to see which child would offer him the legacy he craved; because Leah’s goal — politics; the highest seat in the land, even then, regardless if she had to claw her way up there with her nails or not — didn’t particularly interest him at the time ( Morgan Financial needed an heir, and he was consistently frustrated at his eldest daughter’s disinterest ) and would interest him even less after she came back with European ideas from her next destination: the Institut Le Rosey in Switzerland, where she would meet a whole host of future A-Listers and members of the Society, including one Étienne de Polignac.

When she returned from Le Rosey at the age of eighteen, her next destination was already settled: the famed Harvard University, to study political science. Of course, she could be nothing but the hardest worker, something she would not let her university boyfriend — as much as she loved him at the time — get in the way of; it was clear Kenneth’s message had gotten through to her ( too well, as she would never feel good enough, always striving to impress him, when it was impossible ) when she chose career over her love life upon graduation. 

Because from a young age she had set her eyes upon the White House desk, organised her life around that ultimate dream; pursued law and civics, and abandoned the healthy social lives of others her age. While other members of her family could have been considered high-society socialites, all she knew was her own ambition. Quickly Leah herself became the pedestal for her siblings to follow — except, not her politics, as Kenneth would indicate by sending the twins to Phillips Exeter rather than Le Rosey — and was a point of pride when her parents decided she ought to go to public events; after all, she had to learn how to relate to people, didn’t she? Her first motto, and a tattoo she has that’s always hidden by her clothing, is: change your stars, if you try, you’ll succeed.

Leontine moved to Maryland after Harvard, where she worked as a political advisor at Capitol Hill for one of the Democratic representatives ( whilst balancing a second degree, in international relations, at Johns Hopkins University due to its proximity to Capitol Hill ) until she was of constitutional age to stand for election in the House. She won Maryland’s second district — rather than standing in her birth / home state of Kentucky — and then, upon turning thirty, became the junior senator for the state; however, these early political years were all overshadowed by one event: the war in Iraq, with which she vehemently disagreed, and which has continued to influence her strong anti-war stance throughout the rest of her political career.

‘The rest’ of her political career including her run for President in the 2016 election, resulting in the thirty-six year old defeating Republican nominee Donald Trump in the most resounding fashion since the Nixon landslide. And even then the opponent managed to win Massachusetts; not so here. 

She grew up privileged, of course she did, and she’s found her balance between being at peace with and being very aware of what led her to where she is today: the Oval Office, the young trailblazer wherever she went. Leah Morgan’s ‘brand’ is record-breaking, perhaps ( after all, she very quickly charmed people to her favour to admit her into the society as a 25-year-old initiate, a Societal record that still to this day stands. ) 

Leah’s mother Candace, however, was killed in a ‘car crash’ last Thanksgiving, a tragedy which she has not processed; she hasn’t any understanding of how to deal with grief — none of the Morgans do — so, at some point, it’s all going to come back to her.

But she was raised on ‘this is good, but you can always do better,’ and that shows more than anything in this woman with a lot of dreams and even more ambition.

[carcino-generic]

HOW HUMANS ARE HAVING THEIR LIVES RUINED BY KARKAT VANTAS

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ALRIGHT, HERE’S THE BASICS OF CAPITALISM FROM A WORKING CLASS AMERICAN. I WANT TO START OUT BY SAYING I DON’T GIVE A SHIT ABOUT EUROPE, CANADA, AUSTRALIA, OR ANY OTHER “FIRST-WORLD” COUNTRIES. I DON’T KNOW WHO TORIES ARE AND I DON’T CARE ABOUT EMMANUEL MACRON. FOREIGN AFFAIRS ARE NOT MY CUP OF TEA THANKS. I HAVE ENOUGH PROBLEMS WITH DOMESTIC POLITICS. ALSO DON’T GET ON MY ASS ABOUT CALLING IT AMERICA INSTEAD OF THE U.S.A., CANADIANS DON’T ACTUALLY WANT TO BE AMERICANS AND IF THEY DO THEY’RE MORONS FOR REASONS THAT WILL BECOME CLEAR AS YOU READ ON. 

YOU KNOW HOW IN A NORMAL SOCIETY, TRADE IS DRIVEN BY RESOURCES AND PRICES ARE DETERMINED BY THE AVAILABILITY, COMPLEXITY, AND DIFFICULTY IN PRODUCTION OF A PRODUCT? SO IMAGINE YOUR COUNTRY GETS ENOUGH MONEY, POWER, AND SHEER BLIND DEVOTION FROM ITS CITIZENS TO THROW ALL THAT IN THE GARBAGE, AND THEN IMAGINE THAT EVERYONE CAPABLE OF MAKING MEANINGFUL CHANGES AT A FUNDAMENTAL LEVEL, WHILE REMAINING WITHIN THE CURRENT SYSTEM, IS OWNED BY SOMEONE WHO BENEFITS EGREGIOUSLY FROM EVERYTHING STAYING THE SAME, AND EVEN MORE EGREGIOUSLY FROM THINGS BECOMING WORSE. NOW IMAGINE THAT WHEN I SAID “SOMEONE” I MEANT “ONE OF MAYBE FIFTEEN MEGA-CORPORATIONS THAT OWNS EVERY OTHER BUSINESS IN THE COUNTRY,” AND WHEN I SAY “EVERYONE CAPABLE OF MAKING MEANINGFUL CHANGES...” I MEAN POLITICIANS WE ELECT TO PRETEND TO REPRESENT OUR INTERESTS WHO HAVE IN REALITY BEEN BOUGHT OUT BY CORPORATE INTERESTS AND RISK LOSING THEIR JOBS IF THEY MAKE LAWS THAT THREATEN THOSE CORPORATE INTERESTS’ BOTTOM LINES. BASICALLY, WE INVESTED ALL OUR POWER INTO PRIVATELY OWNED MONEY SINKS AND FORGOT TO CARE ABOUT THE THINGS THAT MATTER, LIKE THE ACTUAL CITIZENS? OKAY THIS IS GETTING AWAY FROM ME, WE MIGHT HAVE TO START FROM THE BASICS. 

I DON’T KNOW HOW YOUR SOCIETY WORKS, BUT IN OURS, YOU START OUT AS A LITTLE BABY. AS SOON AS YOU’RE PHYSIOLOGICALLY CAPABLE OF EXISTING FOR CONSECUTIVE HOURS WITHOUT THE PEOPLE WHO RAISED YOU, THEY SHOVE YOU IN A CLASSROOM AND START FEEDING YOU A MIXTURE OF COLONIAL, PSYCHOLOGICAL, PHILOSOPHICAL, AND POLITICAL PROPAGANDA. THAT’S ALSO WHERE THEY TEACH YOU HOW TO SOCIALIZE WITH KIDS YOUR AGE AND SHIT. FOR SOME KIDS IT’S THE *ONLY* PLACE THEY CAN LEARN TO SOCIALIZE, BECAUSE THEIR PARENTS ARE TOO BUSY, ABSENT, OR PROTECTIVE TO BRING YOU OUT TO INTERACT WITH PEERS. EITHER WAY, THIS IS WHERE KIDS FORM THEIR CONCEPTS OF BOTH PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS AND SOCIAL CONTRACTS. THE TRAUMA OF RACIAL AND GENDER PROFILING IS NASCENT HERE, BUT OH BOY IT INTERNALIZES QUICKLY. (MORE ON HOW PEOPLE OF COLOR, THE WAR ON DRUGS, AND PROFIT ARE ALL LINKED LATER ON, OR MAYBE JUST LOOK UP A VIDEO ESSAY ON IT IDK.) 

IT’S PRETTY MUCH THIRTEEN YEARS OF THIS SAME SHIT, ESPECIALLY THE PROPAGANDA BIT. KIDS GROW UP BEING INDOCTRINATED WITH THIS COMPLETELY WHITEWASHED VERSION OF REALITY, BELIEVING CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS* IS THE SHIT AND CAPITALISM IS THE ONLY EFFICIENT MODEL FOR MODERN SOCIETY. THEY’RE USUALLY TAUGHT ALL ABOUT WORLD WARS I AND II, THE VIETNAM WAR, THE COLD WAR, AND THE SPACE RACE, WHICH (BY UNEQUIVOCALLY POSING AMERICANS AS THE GOOD GUYS AND THE SOVIETS AND CHINESE AS THE BAD GUYS,  CEMENTS THE CONCEPT THAT CAPITALISM INHERENTLY RULES AND COMMUNISM INHERENTLY FAILS) FURTHER INDOCTRINATES KIDS. IF YOU’RE REALLY AN ALIEN I DOUBT YOU’VE SEEN THIS IMAGE, BUT EVERY SINGLE AMERICAN EARTHLING HAS:

THIS GUY IS NAMED UNCLE SAM, HE’S BASICALLY AMERICA’S FURSONA. HE EXISTS TO PRESSURE YOU INTO SIGNING UP TO FIGHT IN A WAR. HE WAS USED A LOT IN THOSE WARS I TALKED ABOUT UP THERE, ESPECIALLY THE FIRST THREE. HE’S NOT AROUND SO MUCH ANY MORE BUT THE GENERAL SENTIMENT IS. HERE’S HOW. 

WHEN YOU GRADUATE FROM HIGH SCHOOL, THE LAST “REQUIRED” STAGE OF SCHOOL, YOU ARE EXPECTED TO MOVE OUT AND GET A JOB TO SUPPORT YOURSELF. BUT NOWADAYS, IF YOU WANT A JOB THAT PAYS FOR YOUR HEALTH CARE, LETS YOU STAY HOME WHEN YOU GET SICK, GIVES YOU DAYS OFF TO GO TO FAMILY EVENTS SUCH AS WEDDINGS, FUNERALS, THE BIRTH OF YOUR CHILDREN, AND OTHER UNIMPORTANT DRIVEL THAT DOESN’T MAKE CEOS MONEY, YOU BET YOUR ASS YOU’D BETTER GET A COLLEGE DEGREE. HAVING A DEGREE IS THE NUMBER ONE WAY YOU CAN GUARANTEE THAT YOU MAKE MORE MONEY. THAT ALL SOUNDS FINE AND DANDY, EXCEPT NOW YOU HAVE TO PAY SOME INDUSTRIAL-SCALE LOAN SHARK MORE THAN YOU’LL EVER HAVE IN YOUR 401(K) TO LET YOU GET YOUR HIGHER EDUCATION. A LOT OF PEOPLE END UP OWING UPWARDS OF FIFTY GRAND TO A PRIVATELY OWNED LOAN AGENCY BY THE TIME THEY’RE TWENTY-ONE, BECAUSE AS FRESH ADULTS THEY WERE TOLD THEY WOULDN’T GET A WORTHWHILE JOB UNLESS THEY HAD A DEGREE. BUT HERE’S THE THING: A LOT OF TIMES, JOBS LIKE THAT WON’T EVEN HIRE YOU UNLESS YOU HAVE A MASTER’S DEGREE NOW! THAT’S ANOTHER TWO YEARS OF CLASSES AND ANOTHER HUGE CHUNK OF MONEY YOU NEVER HAD TO BEGIN WITH. 

OF COURSE THERE ARE LESS EXPENSIVE OPTIONS, LIKE TRADE SCHOOL AND COMMUNITY COLLEGE. BUT REMEMBER THE PROPAGANDA I MENTIONED? IT’S SO PERVASIVE, A LOT OF YOUNG PEOPLE DON’T EVEN CONSIDER TRADE SCHOOL AN OPTION NOW, BECAUSE WE CULTURALLY VALUE THE “INTELLECTUAL” JOBS—DOCTOR, LAWYER, ENGINEER, ACCOUNTANT, BUSINESSMAN—WHICH ARE STRANGELY ALSO THE CAREER PATHS THAT REQUIRE THE MOST INVESTMENT OF TIME AND MONEY! NOW IF YOU DECIDE TO BE LIKE ME AND GET A JOB RIGHT OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL BECAUSE THE EDUCATION INDUSTRY IS A PUTRID WASTELAND, YOU’RE AUTOMATICALLY LOOKED DOWN UPON. A LOT OF TIMES PEOPLE WHO ARE PURSUING LESS LUCRATIVE CAREERS THAT INTEREST THEM***, INSTEAD OF THE BIG MONEY JOBS, ARE DISPARAGINGLY ASKED IF THEY WANT TO “END UP WORKING AT MCDONALDS.” I DON’T PERSONALLY WORK AT MCDONALDS BUT THIS SHIT STILL OFFENDS ME. BUT THEN AGAIN I’M A MILLENNIAL SNOWFLAKE SO WHAT DO I KNOW. 

ACADEMIA HAS A LOT OF ITS OWN PROBLEMS BUT I’VE ONLY HEARD THOSE SECONDHAND, SO LET’S LEAVE THAT HELLSCAPE TO ITS ELITISM AND STAY WITHIN THE BLUE-COLLAR SUBCLASS. COMMON PARLANCE WILL REFER TO THREE MAJOR CLASSES: THE LOWER CLASS (DIPLOMATICALLY CALLED THE “WORKING CLASS”, HA FUCKING HA!), THE MIDDLE CLASS (WHICH THEORETICALLY MAKES UP THE MAJORITY OF THE POPULATION), AND THE UPPER CLASS (FUCK THOSE GUYS BUT WE’LL GET AROUND TO THAT LATER.) THIS MODEL IS PRETTY MUCH JUST DESIGNED TO CREATE TENSION WITHIN THE PROLETARIAT, BUT HANG ON A SECOND, I JUST REMEMBERED YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT THE PROLETARIAT IS YET. 

SO BASICALLY, THERE’S NOT THAT MUCH DEFINABLE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE “MIDDLE CLASS” AND THE “WORKING CLASS.” WHEN YOU THINK OF WORKING CLASS, COLLOQUIALLY, YOU THINK OF THOSE LOSERS THAT WORK IN THE SERVICE INDUSTRY OR DRIVE TAXIS OR (AND THIS IS INCOMPREHENSIBLE TO SOME PEOPLE) HAVE NO JOB AT ALL. THE MIDDLE CLASS IS MORE LIKE TEACHERS AND MIDDLE MANAGERS AND GUYS THAT BUILD SOFTWARE REMOTELY FOR MICROSOFT. REALLY THOUGH, THERE’S NO WAY TO DRAW A DEFINITIVE LINE BETWEEN THESE PEOPLE. THE BEST WAY TO DEFINE CLASS IN AMERICA, (AND ALSO APPARENTLY GERMANY, AT LEAST IN THE 19TH CENTURY,) IS TO SEPARATE THOSE WHO PRODUCE GOODS AND THOSE WHO OWN THE GOODS THAT ARE PRODUCED. THERE IS NO “MIDDLE CLASS”, THAT’S JUST A MEANINGLESS THING TO STRIVE FOR BASED ON WHAT WHITE FAMILIES IN SITCOMS LOOK AND ACT LIKE. 

WORKERS WHO PRODUCE GOODS AND SERVICES ARE THE BACKBONE OF SOCIETY AND THEY’RE CALLED THE PROLETARIAT. THEY ARE SERVICE WORKERS AND JANITORS AND TAXI DRIVERS AND HOTEL VALETS, BUT THEY ARE ALSO ELECTRICIANS AND PLUMBERS AND MECHANICS, AND THEY ARE LAWYERS AND DOCTORS AND PROFESSORS, AND THEY ARE YOUTUBERS AND INFLUENCERS AND SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGERS. THE PROLETARIAT IS ANYONE WHO MAKES MONEY BY SELLING THEIR LABOR. THEY CAN BE CONTRACTORS SELLING THEIR LABOR TO INDEPENDENT BUYERS, OR FREELANCERS SELLING THEIR LABOR TO MULTIPLE LARGER BUSINESSES, BUT MOST OF THE PROLETARIAT IS DIRECTLY EMPLOYED BY SOME KIND OF COMPANY OWNED BY A MEMBER OF THE BOURGEOISIE. 

THE BOURGEOISIE IS KIND OF A MEME AT THIS POINT BUT THEIR IMPACT ON THE WAY WE LIVE IS FUCKING INESCAPABLE. THEY’RE PEOPLE WHO *BUY* OUR LABOR, ACCRUE CAPITAL BY SITTING ON THEIR (SOMETIMES LITERAL!!!) THRONES, OWNING COMPANIES AND PEOPLE, SOMETIMES BEING A PUBLIC FIGURE (LIKE ELON MUSK) WHO RAKES IN ADORATION FROM HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF MINDLESS TWITTER DRONES WHO STILL BELIEVE IN CLASS MOBILITY****, OR SOMETIMES BEING A SHADOWY FIGURE IN THE BACKGROUND (LIKE THE KOCH BROTHERS) WHO JUST PASSIVELY RAKE IN THE BENEFITS OF OUR HARD WORK AND CAN’T BE ASSASSINATED BECAUSE NO ONE WOULD RECOGNIZE THEM IF THEY WERE SEEN AT KROGER. THEY ARE USUALLY BORN WEALTHY, BUT VERY RARELY THEY CAN USE THEIR CHARISMA, INTELLIGENCE, SOCIAL CONNECTIONS, AND INTRINSIC PRIVILEGE AS A WHITE PERSON TO YANK THEMSELVES UP FROM THE PROLETARIAT (READ MY CLASS MOBILITY NOTE FOR MORE!!!) 

SO THE RESULT OF THIS CLASS DIVISION IS AS FOLLOWS: 

THE PROLETARIAT NEVER EARNS THE ACTUAL VALUE OF THEIR LABOR. A “SMALL” CHUNK IS ALWAYS TAKEN OUT FOR THE PEOPLE AT THE TOP, WHO “RUN” THE COMPANY (BUT REALLY THEIR JOB IS USUALLY TO EAT FANCY LUNCH AND TELL RACIST GOLF JOKES TO RICH INVESTORS). IN FACT, WAGES ARE USUALLY ENTIRELY DISSOCIATED FROM THE ACTUAL PROFIT THE COMPANY MAKES. FOR A BUSINESS TO BE PROFITABLE, IT HAS TO PAY THE EMPLOYEES IT RELIES ON LESS THAN WHAT THEY BRING TO THE TABLE, WHICH MEANS MOST COMPANIES ESTABLISH A BASE WAGE THAT’S EITHER EXACTLY THE STATE’S MINIMUM WAGE OR A COUPLE CENTS HIGHER TO COMPETE. THEY LITERALLY PAY THE LEAST THEY LEGALLY CAN. SOMETIMES *LESS*.

YOUR JOB IS EXPECTED TO BE THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN YOUR LIFE. EXHAUSTED AFTER YOUR FORTY, FIFTY, OR SIXTY HOUR WORK WEEK? THAT’S JUST NORMAL, THEY’RE NOT SQUEEZING THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF LABOR OUT OF YOU THAT THEY CAN WITHOUT KILLING YOU! WANT TO TAKE A FEW DAYS OFF TO SPEND TIME WITH YOUR WIFE AFTER SHE GAVE BIRTH TO YOUR INFANT CHILD? SORRY, YOU’RE OUT OF SICK DAYS. MISSED THE BUS AND THERE’S NOT ANOTHER ONE FOR AN HOUR? IT’S YOUR FAULT FOR NOT HAVING A CAR OR SPENDING FIFTY BUCKS ON AN UBER. TRYING TO GO TO YOUR FIFTH FAMILY FUNERAL BECAUSE ALL YOUR RELATIVES ARE DROPPING LIKE FLIES AFTER A HARD SIXTY YEARS OF LABOR? OOH, SORRY, YOU ONLY GET FOUR FUNERAL DAYS A YEAR! NEED TO GET ANOTHER JOB BECAUSE YOUR CURRENT ONE DOESN’T PAY ENOUGH? WELL, YOU FORGOT TO DISCLOSE IT TO YOUR BOSS AND THEY FIRED YOU FOR TWO-TIMING THEM! A JOB IS MORE OF A COMMITMENT THAN A SPOUSE, AND IF YOU HAVE OTHER PRIORITIES, YOU WON’T LAST LONG. 

BECAUSE THE BOURGEOISIE OWNS SERVICES THAT SHOULD BE PROVIDED BY THE GOVERNMENT, LIKE HEALTHCARE, HOME AND AUTO INSURANCE, A LOT OF HIGHER EDUCATION ESTABLISHMENTS, CREDIT BUREAUS, LOAN COMPANIES, AND HOSPITALS, PROFIT IS THE MOTIVE THERE TOO! WHICH MEANS IF YOU HAVE ANY KIND OF INSURANCE, NEED TO BUY A HOUSE OR A CAR, WANT OR NEED AN EDUCATION, ARE CHRONICALLY ILL, OR JUST EXIST ON A GENERAL BASIS, COMPANIES ARE RIPPING YOU OFF. YOU ARE BASICALLY PAYING THOUSANDS A MONTH FOR THE CHANCE TO GET *SOME* OF YOUR MASSIVE HOSPITAL BILL COVERED IF YOU GET IN AN ACCIDENT. THIS ONE IS NEAR AND DEAR TO ME. FOR UNIMPORTANT REASONS, I MANAGE TO RACK UP A LOT OF DEBT EVERY YEAR GOING TO HOSPITALS AND URGENT CARE, CALLING AMBULANCES, PAYING FOR MEDICATION THAT DOESN’T WORK. DID YOU KNOW YOU’RE CHARGED NIGHTLY TO STAY IN HOSPITALS LIKE THEY’RE GODDAMN HOTELS? LIKE IT’S A FUCKING VACATION? AND DID YOU KNOW THE BILLING DEPARTMENTS OF EACH OF THESE PRIVATELY OWNED ESTABLISHMENTS IS MADE UP OF UNDERPAID, OVERSTRESSED MEMBERS OF THE PROLETARIAT WHOSE JOB IS TO FUCK UP YOUR BILL SO YOU OWE MORE THAN YOUR VISIT ACTUALLY COST? 

MEDICAL FACILITIES ARE ALSO PUSHED TO SELL OVERPRICED DRUGS THAT DON’T WORK TO PEOPLE. HEADS UP, GUYS, BUT ANTIBIOTICS DON’T WORK AGAINST VIRAL INFECTIONS, AND YET THEY’RE PRESCRIBED FOR THE FLU AND COMMON COLD EVERY DAY. AND SOMETIMES THE DRUGS DO WORK, BUT THEY’RE STILL OVERPRICED! IF YOU’VE BEEN ON THE INTERNET AT ALL THIS YEAR YOU’LL KNOW ALL ABOUT THE INSULIN CRISIS, WHICH WAS CREATED ARTIFICIALLY. BASICALLY THE PEOPLE WHO OWN INSULIN (YEAH, *OWN* A LIFE-SAVING MEDICATION) RACKED UP THE PRICE SO MUCH THAT PEOPLE COULDN’T FUCKING AFFORD IT ANYMORE, DESPITE A NORMAL DOSE OF INSULIN COSTING LIKE FIFTY CENTS TO MAKE?? OR, HOW ABOUT THIS—THEY INVENTED THIS COOL NEW CHEAP PAIN-RELIEVING DRUG CALLED FENTANYL AND DISCOVERED THEY COULD MAKE A SHIT TON OF MONEY OFF IT, SO DOCTORS PRESCRIBED THE HELL OUT OF IT UNTIL PEOPLE GOT SO ADDICTED TO IT THAT TENS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE DIED OF OVERDOSES. OH, DID I SAY “PRESCRIBED” IN THE PAST TENSE? MY BAD, THEY CONTINUE TO PRESCRIBE IT EVERY SINGLE DAY. IF YOU HAVE CHRONIC PAIN AND ASK DOCTORS NOT TO PUT YOU ON PAIN MEDICATION, A LOT OF TIMES THEY WILL STILL PUT YOU ON PAIN MEDICATION. IF YOU EXPLAIN TO YOUR DOCTOR THAT YOU KICKED A HEROIN ADDICTION AND YOU REALLY WOULD NOT LIKE TO HAVE OPIOIDS PUT IN YOUR BODY, THEY WILL PROBABLY STILL BE LIKE, HUH, SUCKS FOR YOU, AND PUT OPIOIDS IN YOUR BODY. 

DO YOU WANT TO CHANGE ANY OF THIS? PERHAPS PETITION YOUR LOCAL POLITICIAN, OR GOD FORBID, STATE CONGRESSMAN, TO PASS A LAW THAT YOU THINK MIGHT IMPROVE YOUR LIFE? WELL, IT TURNS OUT YOU NEED A LOT OF MONEY TO RUN A CAMPAIGN NOWADAYS, AND POLITICIANS ARE ALLOWED TO BE SPONSORED BY BIG BUSINESSES, BECAUSE BUSINESSES ARE PEOPLE. SO IF YOU’RE THE SENATOR OF NEW JERSEY OR WHATEVER, AND YOUR CONSTITUENTS WANT YOU TO VOTE TO RAISE THE MINIMUM WAGE, BUT YOUR CAMPAIGN IS OWNED BY WALMART, WHO WANTS TO KEEP PAYING ITS WORKERS ELEVEN BUCKS AN HOUR, YOU HAVE THE CHOICE BETWEEN MAKING A COUPLE LITTLE WORKING CLASS IDIOTS ANGRY OR GETTING ALL YOUR FUNDING FROM WALMART PULLED BECAUSE YOU THREATENED THEIR PROFIT MARGINS. 

NOT ACTIVELY DYING FROM A TREATABLE ILLNESS, WASTING AWAY FROM DRUG ADDICTION, OR ENTRENCHED IN SLAVERY TO A CORPORATION WHOSE PRODUCT YOU DON’T BELIEVE IN? GREAT! DID YOU KNOW THE PLANET WILL BE ON FIRE IN LIKE A FEW DECADES? OIL AND GAS COMPANIES HAVE SO MUCH INFLUENCE OVER THE LAWMAKERS THAT ARE SUPPOSED TO PROHIBIT THEM FROM RUINING THE PLANET, THEY’VE PUT THE ONUS OF SAVING IT ON INDIVIDUALS’ SHOULDERS. REDUCE YOUR CARBON EMISSIONS BY TAKING THAT HOURLY BUS (YOU’LL EITHER BE FIFTY MINUTES EARLY TO WORK OR TEN MINUTES LATE!) OR RECYCLING YOUR SHIT (BUT IF YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOUR MUNICIPALITY CAN’T RECYCLE, THEY’LL THROW THE WHOLE BATCH OUT WHEN YOU PUT TRASH IN) OR TURNING THE LIGHTS OFF IN YOUR HOUSE (JUST EAT DINNER IN THE DARK YOU PIECE OF SHIT) OR INSTALLING SOLAR PANELS ON YOUR HOUSE (FUCK ME FOR RENTING I GUESS?) THERE IS SO MUCH WE CAN DO JUST WHENEVER TO SWITCH TO SUSTAINABLE ENERGY, BUT EXXON AND BP AND SHELL OWN SO MUCH INFLUENCE THAT WE’RE JUST *NOT*, AND LEAVING THIS WASTELAND OF A HOME PLANET TO OUR FUTURE GENERATIONS. BUT AT LEAST ELON MUSK BUILT THIS REALLY COOL LOW-POLY BETHESDA LOOKING PIECE OF SHIT FOR US TO MAKE MEMES ABOUT

HERE’S THE SKINNY OF IT, PEOPLE. THERE’S NO OUT WITHIN OUR CURRENT SYSTEM. EVEN IF YOU DID THE MAGIC AND PULLED YOURSELF UP BY YOUR BOOTSTRAPS AND NOW YOU’RE A BIG BOY WHO OWNS HIS OWN COMPANY, YOU LEFT BEHIND A BUNCH OF PEOPLE WHO DIDN’T WIN THE BIRTH LOTTERY LIKE YOU DID. INNOCENT FOLKS ARE DYING OF HUNGER OR ILLNESS THEY CAN’T AFFORD TO TREAT, CRASHING CARS THEY CAN’T AFFORD TO FIX, WORKING THEMSELVES LITERALLY TO DEATH TO SUPPORT THEMSELVES OR THEIR FAMILIES, AND SCRAPING BY WITH A MEASLY ALLOWANCE OF FREE TIME WITH WHICH TO UNWIND AND CATCH UP WITH OTHER PEOPLE. THEY DON’T HAVE TIME TO WATCH THE NEWS, THINK CRITICALLY ABOUT THE SOCIETY THEY LIVE IN, CONCEPTUALIZE UNIONIZING OR REVOLTING OR BUILDING GUILLOTINES. THEY WANT TO KEEP US EXHAUSTED AND STRUGGLING BECAUSE IT’S WHAT KEEPS THEM COMFORTABLE UP THERE, KNOWING NO ONE HAS THE ENERGY OR THE GALL TO TOUCH THEM. THE ONLY FUCKING WAY TO ESCAPE THIS HELL WE’VE CREATED IS THROUGH REVOLUTION. WE NEED TO SCRAP THIS WHOLE THING AND START OVER. BUT I THINK THAT’S ANOTHER ESSAY. ANYWAY I HOPE THIS WAS THOROUGH ENOUGH FOR A LITERAL ALIEN SOCIETY. 

TL;DR: WE ARE ALL FUCKED IF WE DON’T OVERTHROW THE RICH. 

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*CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS IS SOME EUROPEAN WHO SAILED THE WRONG WAY AND ENDED UP IN THE AMERICAS. HE AND HIS BUDDIES RAPED AND PILLAGED THEIR WAY THROUGH A BUNCH OF INDIGINOUS COMMUNITIES AND DECIDED THIS COUNTRY WAS “FREE REIGN” TO SETTLE IN. HE IS HAILED AS THE AMERICAN ODYSSEUS AND CREDITED WITH THE “DISCOVERY” OF AMERICA BECAUSE OF COURSE ALL THOSE PEOPLE WHO LIVED HERE FIRST DON’T COUNT??

**I DON’T KNOW SHIT ABOUT WARS EITHER BUT LET’S GET INTO IT FROM THE POV OF A GUY WHO PASSED HIS WORLD HISTORY CLASS WITH A STRAIGHT B MINUS. 

THE FIRST WORLD WAR: I DON’T GIVE A SHIT ABOUT THIS ONE.

THE SECOND WORLD WAR: THE ONE WHERE A BUNCH OF SCIENTISTS AND GOVERNMENT OFFICERS BOMBED A COUPLE OF CIVILIAN SETTLEMENTS IN JAPAN AND I’M PRETTY SURE AN *ENTIRE HAWAIIAN ISLAND* JUST TO SEE WHAT HAPPENED. TURNS OUT IT KILLED A BUNCH OF CIVILIANS. HUH! WHO’D HAVE EXPECTED THAT! OH IT ALSO TURNED AN ENTIRE GENERATION OF OTHERWISE DECENT FOLKS INTO RABIDLY PATRIOTIC IDIOTS, BECAUSE THE PACE AT WHICH THIS COUNTRY CHURNS OUT PROPAGANDA DURING A WAR IS FASTER THAN THE SPEEDING RUBBER BAND I SHOT WITH MY FINGERS AT THE TEACHER WHO WAS EXPLAINING WHY EVERY OTHER COUNTRY WAS IN THE ABSOLUTE WRONG DURING THIS CATASTROPHE.

VIETNAM: OKAY SO BASICALLY PEOPLE HATED THIS ONE BECAUSE THEY REALIZED SOLDIERS WERE GOING ALL CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS ON THE COUNTRIES WHERE THEY WERE STATIONED. ENOUGH SAID. 

COLD WAR: THIS IS NOMINALLY A WAR BECAUSE THE GOOD OLD U.S.A. AND ITS HATEFUCKBUDDY THE U.S.S.R.† DID THIS WITH WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION 

(EVENTUALLY THEY DECIDED TO PUT THE FINGER GUNS AWAY. I’M GONNA LET YOU TRY TO PUZZLE OUT ON YOUR OWN HOW COUNTRIES “PUT AWAY” NUCLEAR WEAPONS CAPABLE OF ENDING ALL LIFE ON EARTH.)

SPACE RACE: THE U.S. AND THE U.S.S.R. HAD A FUN COMPETITION TO SEE WHOSE DICK WAS BIG ENOUGH TO GET TO THE MOON. SCIENCE IS RUINED. 

***ARTISTS, WRITERS, JOURNALISTS, VIDEO ESSAYISTS, AND ANYONE ELSE WHO ISN’T EITHER OWNED OR SPONSORED (THAT’S A FANCY WORD FOR “OWNED”) BY BIG BUSINESS TEND TO BE THREATENED BY POVERTY. PRETTY MUCH ANYONE WHO CAN FREELANCE ACTUALLY, BECAUSE WORKING FOR A CORPORATION PROVIDES THE SAFETY NET THAT SOCIAL PROGRAMS WOULD OTHERWISE TAKE CARE OF IF SOCIAL PROGRAMS WERE FUNDED EVER. 

****ALSO KNOWN AS THE AMERICAN DREAM, IN WHICH *ANYBODY* CAN MAKE IT IN THIS COUNTRY IF THEY TRY HARD ENOUGH! UNFORTUNATELY THIS IS A MYTH, AS YOU CAN SEE BY THE FACT THAT I AM STILL REALLY POOR, AS IS LIKE 90% OF THE COUNTRY. PLUS CLASS MOBILITY WORKS REALLY HARD TO KEEP MINORITIES IN EXTREME POVERTY, BECAUSE IT DOESN’T EXIST AS AN ISOLATED SYSTEM AND ANYONE WHO THINKS IT DOES IS A DUMBSHIT WHO’S BOUGHT INTO THIS EVEN MORE THAN THE AVERAGE DUMBSHIT. 

†RUSSIA’S COOL NEW NAME WHEN IT TRIED OUT SOCIALISM

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Saw this on Instagram and not gonna lie- it kinda bugged me. Some of these points are accurate, some I disagree with but I see the argument for, others are out and out wrong. Usually the inaccuracies are due to purpously inflammatory phrasing, which is understandable since its a meme but the issues are to important for the language to stand fully uncriticed. Basically, I know it’s just a meme but I wanna pick it apart since this stuff is important and quite frankly I’m a little bored.

“Total support for Isreal”

This is true of the official platforms for each party. That being said I think it’s important to note you will find Democratic candidates and office holders with more moderated views on Isreal and (increasingly so) candidates who strongly support Palestine. There is no such moderation or diversity of opinion on the Republican side. If you want to cast your vote for someone who doesn’t support Isreal you might find that in a Democrat especially in the House of Reps, so be sure to look up your local candidates because they might surprise you on this one.

“Do Wall Streets bidding”

Wall Street is basically begging for Dodd-Frank to be repealed, and no Democrat is gonna do that. A Democratic administration created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and since 2010 there have been 3 separate bills introduced by Democrats to improve/reinstate the Glass-Steagall Act. (The most recent was a bi-patrician bill sponsored by Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), John McCain (R-AZ), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), and Angus King (I-ME)) I understand how a lack of success can make it feel like Democrats are just doing Wall Street’s bidding, but that’s not the case. There are certainly differences in the level of regulation Democrats are asking for, but the broad strokes is Democrats want regulations put on Wall Street, while Republicans believe Wall Street can be trusted to do whatever they want.

“Unlimited Military Spending”

Much to my chagrin, this is true. Regardless of party affiliation it’s good for any elected official to say they brought jobs to the district, and more fighter jets mean more jobs building fighter jets. No one wants to rock that boat.

“Hostility to Russia, Iran, & China”

This one has multiple parts with varing degrees of debatablity. For Russia the Obama Administration tried to soften relations but Putin basically responded “No thanks Toots” and proceeded to violated Ukraine’s sovrienty, back a dictator using chemical weapons on his own people, and meddle in our elections. Basically the Dems tried but it’s a two way street and Russia’s gotta be on board too. Meanwhile Trump and the Republicans seem to be fine with Russia paying militants to kill Americans and undermining democratic norms in the 2016 US elections as well as a bunch of other European elections so seems like they want to get along with Russia whatever it fucking takes. So I’d say there’s a pretty big difference on that one.

Regarding Iran, there’s not much difference between Democrats and Republicans. Both are skeptical about Iran and don’t want to risk the alliances we have with other middle eastern nations in order to tighten bonds with Iran. HOWEVER, the Iran Nuclear Treaty was a huge step forward in calming tensions which damn near every democrat supported. And the Republicans basically yeeted it into the sun for no good reason. So at least democrats don’t want to make shit worse with Iran. As for China 100% hositlites would have remained the same with a Dem and probably most Republicans. But at the moment Republicans support an active trade war with China which is only making our relations with them worse. So for both Iran and China the Dems gotta get at least some points for not wanting to make shit worse.

“Full Spectrum Dominance.”

Yes. Both parties want the US to a strong political and economic force on the world stage without any major foreign threats. (TBH I struggle to see the problem with this because that dominance could be used to give every nation wi-fi and tasty cookies just easily as to perpetuate rampant injustice especially when its so vauge as to what they mean by Full Spectrum Dominance. But I don’t have nothing against you if you don’t want the US to persue dominance as goal.)

“Let Money Rule politics”

Campaign finance reform is a complicated issue because there isn’t 1 clear answer for how to do it. Campaigning costs a lot of money and candidates have to get that money somehow, unfortunately there isn’t really an answer for how it needs to be done that can’t in some way be attacked for not going far enough or not solving the real problem. So while Democrats generally try to find solutions and create reform, it is perfectly understandable and reasonable to feel they aren’t actually solving anything. However I think it’s important note (given how important this years election is) that Joe Biden has been very consistent on voting for campaign finance reform for the past 40 years, even going so far as to create a system of public funding for congressional elections in the early 90s. So if this is a high priority issue for you Joe Biden has a strong record on it.

“Neoliberalism Rocks!”

I’ve found online the term “neoliberalism” is used to describe such a wide range of policies it’s becoming less and less clear exactly what a person means by saying “neoliberalism.” So how accurate this claim is really depends on how you define “neoliberal.” That caveats aside, traditionally both parties have their neoliberal cohorts, and they do wield a far bit of power since they usually are the “deal makers” who talk more with the other side and create the compromises which get broad enough support to pass. However, the Republican Party has been drifting away from neoliberal policies for some time and has been completely sprinting away from them since trump was elected. For example here are some policies self described neoliberals love which recent republicans have taken a massive shit on; Free Trade, easier immigration, and a carbon tax. Neoliberals are inherently in the middle so yes both parties have neoliberal segments (Bill Clinton, Bush Senior for example) but Republicans are rapidly running further and further right, so if not already accurate to say “Neoliberals universally identify as democrats” it will be soon.

“Spy on Everyone!”

This is a bit hyperbolic but yeah mostly. While there are officals on both sides who want to stop or at least curb the survalince state when talking about the respective parties as a whole there aren’t big differences on changing this, at least not public ones.

“Screw the Old and the Poor!”

This one is just so wildly overstated as to be impossible to really discuss/debate effectively. I could say this is false because both parties agree we should strive to eleminate poverty but they differ on how. I could also say this is true because neither party has proposed a solution which would actually help end poverty, or I could say this is false because the Democratic platform includes issues like raising the minimum wage and expanding the social safety net which will help the poorest Americans. There’s no way to really analyze for accuracy because its so broad and emotional that it’s really more of an opinion statement than anything. (To be clear, there’s nothing inherently wrong with such a statement. In many ways they are critical to the nations broader political discussion. it just doesn’t lend itself to what I’m looking to do with this post and I felt it would have been dismissive to just say “it’s an emotional argument so I don’t care”) The only substantive thing I can say here which still fits into my general structure is no candidate wants to do anything against old people because old people vote in big numbers. It’s the reason despite talk of cutting medicare and social security Republicans haven’t actually tried anything substantial on those issues.

“Oligarchy not democracy”

This is another one that gets caught up in definition. If you use the strictest definition of democracy and a broad definiton of Oligarchy then yes this is right but otherwise it really depends on how you define oligarchy. The majority of Americans have the right to vote, thus they have a say in what our government does. This would generally meet the most common definition of democracy and neither party wants to change that (at least not officially.) there is no bi partisan call for the wealthiest 1% or even the wealthiest 10% of Americans to have exclusive control over our governance. Of course that’s the most inflammatory version of this statement, and I doubt that’s what the person who wrote it was saying. The more likely definition of oligarchy this person was using is a government where an elite class hold a disproportionate share of political power rather all political power. In which case it’s very very hard to agrue the US isn’t an oligarchy. I mean even if we put aside the more heavily debated question of how strongly political power and money are, I think everyone would agree my senator has more political power than I do. Plus, the founders didn’t want “mob rule” they were terrified of a populist leader rising up, so they didn’t create a pure democracy. Instead they made republic, which one could argue is simultaneously an oligarchy and a democracy. This means when anyone looks to maintain the current american system even in the broadest strokes it could be agrued they’re supporting oligarchy over democracy. However you could just as easily argue they’re supporting democracy. The line between oligarchy and democracy aren’t as clear as we’d like them to be. (And of course when you bring the “how strongly are political power and money connected” debate back into the picture it only gets more obscured). Now, to finally get to my point, the degree to which the US is an oligarchy is unclear and so is the degree to which each party supports maintaining the oligarchical elements. However I think saying that either party doesn’t support democracy is inaccurate. BUT I also think it is vital that we recognize under Trump the Republican Party has tolerated repeated undermining of our democratic system risking serious and dangerous backsliding into totalitarianism. The Democratic Party has not engaged in this backsliding at all and has fought against it as much as they can, and you absolutely must understand that as you vote this fall.

“Vive US imperialism!”

Yeah this is pretty much spot on. I mean I don’t think either political party is looking to conquer Cuba or to steal Baja California from Mexico but yeah the bulk of people in each party are at the very least not invested in reducing what has been called “Neo-imperialism” which is almost certainly what this statement is referring to, so while I could get this on the technically but that would be disingenuous.

“outlaw third parties”

Third parties are legal. No one wants to make them illegal, the constitution also wouldnt let them. The problem is our voting system makes third parties mathematically unstrategic. You could argue they are functionally unallowed and there’s no insensitive for either party to change that so the idea here isn’t to far off, but outlawing third parties is such a bold claim, and that mathy disadvantage is drastically reduced in local races. So if you support a third party or want to create a third party, go for it. Just know that your efforts will be best spent starting local.

“Crush the left”

Pretty sure “the left” here means self described socialists and further left in which case yes. the establishment of both parties are still scared by the s-word and even worse the c-word because no one wants to be the USSR. But there are loads of people who would define the left as the democrats and the Democratic Party doesn’t want to crush Democratic Party. (It doesn’t mean to be a self destructive idiot but sometimes it just can’t help itself) so again I know what they’re going for here but little astrisk for other people might not.

“Regime change is cool.”

If regime change was something both parties liked there would be US troops in Venezuela right now. The oldest Democrats might not be out and out against all regime change but no democrat (and plenty of Republicans quiet frankly) want to repeat the Iraq War. When it comes to regime change worse case something democrats and republicans disagree on and best case something they both agree is bad.

TL;DR- there are key differences between the political parties, regardless of what a meme might say. It’s not the 90s anymore so those differences are pretty big and only getting bigger. To each there own on who and what they support, so do your research and learn which party and which candidates best represents your values.

PS- if it’s Donald Trump go jump of a bridge.

[such-a-common-girl]

Professor Winchester (Dean Winchester x Reader AU) Chap. 1

Professor Winchester Masterlist

Word Count: 2,613

Professor!Dean Winchester x Reader AU

Summary: A few years after being accepted into your dream college, everything’s going well. Your grades are good, your social life is booming, all your assignments are easy...  Except for the damn essay that Professor Winchester assigned you. Based off this request.

Chapter Warnings : Language, alcohol usage, mentions of sex, mentions of student/teacher relationships

‘Similar to the effects of the mythical creature the basilisk, Medusa…”

You groan out as you sit at your kitchen table, your fingertips typing away at your laptop in an attempt to start the introduction paragraph of your research essay that’s due tonight. You tend to be a procrastinator, which never works well, and more often than not leaves you immensely stressed out.

You shake your head, deleting the first sentence all together before taking a long sip of coffee. Only three hours to get the essay done. Three hours until the deadline. Damn Professor Winchester for giving you such a challenging topic.

Normally, you love his class. He’s easily one of the most laid back, chilled out professors you’ve had throughout your three years at the University of Kansas. His love for Greek Mythology is unlike anything you’ve seen before. His lectures are nothing short of interesting, as he somehow manages to make even the most minuscule of things seem like the most amazing thing in the world. The tests are hard, but as long as you pay attention and take notes in class, you’ve always been fine.

Unfortunately for you, the subject of your essay that Professor Winchester had assigned you is something that you’ve yet to go over in the class, leaving you completely clueless.

“You’re still going at that thing?” Your roommate and also best friend, Nina, enters the kitchen as she walks past you.

“Yes,” You groan, twisting your body around in the chair to face her. “I just want to get it over with, but every time I even begin to write something, my mind goes blank. I can’t think of one single thing, which is fucking terrible because this damn paper is two hundred points. That’s almost as much as finals.”

“Why are you even taking Greek Mythology, anyways? That’s not even a requirement for your major. Don't tell me you’re becoming one of those students obsessed with Professor Winchester. ” 

“I needed another elective for the general education requirements and this one seemed the most interesting. It is, I wasn’t wrong, but it’s challenging.” You frown.

“Professor Hottie’s class isn’t so easy, huh?” Nina raises her eyebrows. “No wonder I see all those desperate students dropping out of his class after a few weeks.”

“He may be easy on the eyes, but his class is certainly no easy A.” You sigh. “Sadly.” 

There’s no denying that Professor Winchester is attractive. Beyond attractive. He was the talk of the freshman class whenever you had first gotten accepted into this university, almost every women (and some men) were so desperate to get into his class just to be around him, it was almost sad. More than half of them would drop it as soon as they realize how difficult it is, despite being told repeatedly by older students that his class was actually challenging.

You, on the other hand, aren't taking this class just because of the teacher. Sure, you’re attracted to the man. So is seemingly everyone else on campus. But, you know that there’s absolutely no way in hell that that would ever happen, and you’re not planning on pursuing your measly crush on Professor Winchester. You’re here to learn and get your degree so you can become a teacher, not so you can have a one-night stand with one of your professors and risk getting kicked out of university.

“Well, I guess I’ll leave you to it, then.” Nina says, grabbing a bag of chips out of the cupboard. “If you want to go out later tonight after you finish, celebrate or something, let me know. I desperately need to get drunk.”

“Things not working out so well with Matt?” You ask as you begin to type some more, not necessarily paying attention to her but not wanting to be rude and dismiss her completely.

“I don’t know.” She sighs. “He’s getting attached. Friends with benefits is more complicated than I had expected. But anyways, I’m going to leave you alone now to wallow in your own problems. The last thing you need is to worry about mine, too.”

“I promise, as soon as I finish this stupid fucking essay, I will go out and get drunk with you and we can talk all night about your problems with Matt. Sound like a deal?” You grin at her.

“Deal.” She smiles, taking a bite of her Doritos. You take a deep breath and begin to write. At this point, you can’t strive for perfection anymore. The deadline is quickly approaching, and a mediocre paper would have to do.

A few hours later, your essay is completed (and very much half-assed) with only minutes to spare. A huge weight is lifted off your chest as you push the “submit” button online, relief spreading throughout your body. The stress is gone, and the readiness to go to a bar and get drunk is filling the void.

“Nina!” You yell out, shutting your laptop screen.

“Did you finish?” She yells back from her room, the high volume of the television almost drowning out her voice. Your neighbors probably hate you.

“Hell yeah I did!” You say enthusiastically. “Now let’s go get some drinks!”

-

“He’s just so clingy.” Nina sighs, taking another drink of her martini.

You’re currently sitting at a bar, one that is a few towns over since she didn’t want to take the chance of accidentally running into her boy-toy. The place is full and buzzing with people, which is normally not your scene, but you could deal with it tonight. The both of you needed this.

“I don’t do clingy. I am a no-strings attached kind of girl, he knows this. He knew what he was getting into.” She sighs. “I just don’t know what to do. The sex is too good to just drop him, but I don’t want to hurt his feelings by telling him to back off, you know? We were friends before all of this.”

“Can’t help ‘ya there, sister.” You swirl your drink with your straw. You’ve only had one drink, so you’re not nearly as tipsy as Nina is. “I’m about as clueless as it gets when it comes to guys.”

“But you’re so pretty!” Nina hiccups, giggling.

“Yeah, well, my mom kept me on a pretty tight leash growing up.” You admit. “She wanted me to go to some big-shot school, become a big business woman like she is. Kind of didn’t allow me to focus on anything except for my school. Unfortunately, her hopes and dreams for me were squashed the moment I chose to come to KU. I like it here, though. It’s nice. I don’t regret my decision.”

“She wouldn’t even let you have a boyfriend?” Nina’s jaw drops in shock.

“Nope.” You laugh. “I mean, I’ve been more adventurous since I came in here as an innocent, little freshman. I’m no virgin. But I’d definitely say that I have nowhere near as much experience as you.”

Nina giggles again, downing the rest of her drink. You do the same, not anywhere near as buzzed as you’d like to be. Out of the corner of your eye, you can see a few men walking into the bar. You don’t bother giving them a second look, not giving much thought to it. Guys in a bar? Who would’ve thought!

“Holy shit, Y/N.” Nina’s eyes go wide, her gaze following the men who had walked in. “You’ll never believe who’s here.”

“Matt?” You give it your best guess. Who else could possibly be here that she’d be having such a reaction about?

“Professor Hottie, and his just as hot friends.” Nina ogles. You whip your head around, and sure enough, he’s sitting at the table behind you with a group of his friends. Some of them you recognize as other professors from the school, such as Professor Novak and Dr. Garth, and one of the other men you recognize as Professor Winchester’s brother, Sam. He had pictures of them together on his desk, which is the only reason you know that.

“We have to leave!” You begin to up. “I came here to get away from him and his absolutely terrible assignments. Seeing him is serving as a reminder that I probably am getting an F on it. Besides, it’s just weird being here with him, being in the same place while me and you are getting drunk. He’s my professor.”

“That he is.” Nina nods. “Your professor that’s looking you up and down right now.”

You look back over at them, and certainly enough, Nina is correct. He’s looking at you as if he’s trying to place your face, until a look of shock crosses his face. He waves slightly, his face becoming a little flustered.

“Hey, Y/N!” Professor Winchester calls out, his voice slurred a little bit. “What’re you doing here?”

You look over at Nina, panic obvious in your face. You know it’s entirely inappropriate to have a conversation in a place like this with your teacher, especially since the both of you have obviously had a bit to drink. Nina only smirks at you before lightly shoving you his way, whispering “go get some experience, tiger,” in your ear.

You blush at Nina’s words as you approach the table of men, all of them looking up at you.

“Hey, Professor.” You say awkwardly. “I’m just here celebrating finishing that essay you assigned us with my roommate. Girl’s night. You?”

“You can call me Dean, this ain’t class.” He laughs. “Guy’s night. I’ll be honest, wasn’t expecting to see you here. Thought we were far enough away from campus. Oh, guys, sorry, forgot to introduce you to Y/N, here. She’s my student in my honors college Greek Mythology class.”

“So you’re the smart girl that Dean here is always bragging about, huh?” Dean’s brother, Sam, smiles at you.

“I wouldn’t say bragging. She is one of my best students. The only one that ever puts any effort into her work. Most students don’t really give a damn about my class.” Dean snorts, taking a drink of the brown liquid that a waitress sat down on the table. You can tell he’s drunker than he looks, and you feel slightly uncomfortable intruding on their “guy’s night” like this.

“I think you might be slightly disappointed with my essay.” You admit. “Pretty half-assed.”

“S’alright. You gotta pretty ass, so it makes up for it.” Dean slurs, and your eyes widen. Did your professor just hit on you? In front of other professors? Sure, they’re his friends, but... He’s definitely drunk.

“Thanks?” You laugh. You know at this point, you should leave and not make this any more awkward than it needs to be. It’ll already be uncomfortable on Tuesday when you have to go to his class, since he just not-so-subtly flirted with you. But, as you start to leave, Dean’s mouth turns into a frown, motioning for you to come back. 

“Why not, right?” You grin, not sober enough to deny his offer at this point. You look back over to Nina, who’s already sitting at the bar again, chatting it up with some random blonde man.

“Yeah, why not.” He smiles, his eyes crinkling at the corners. 

“So, Y/N, what's your major?” Sam asks you, pulling up a chair. You gladly take a seat, your arm only inches away from Dean’s.

“Double majoring in Education and English. Believe it or not, I want to be an English teacher. The only reason I’m even taking Professor Winch- Dean’s class here is because I’m required to take one more elective and since my next year will be so jammed pack, this is the only time I have for it.” You admit. 

“Smart girl.” Professor Novak- or should you call him by his first name, too?- comments. “No wonder Dean likes you.”

“C’mon guys,” Dean puts his hands up in the air, glaring at him. “I never-”

He’s cut off by a waitress bringing another round of shots, setting them down on the table. You’ve decided this is where you’ll draw the line, not about to take shots with your goddamn history professor, no matter how attractive he looks right now. 

You turn your head, preparing to tell Dean bye. But, as some twist of fate, Dean has also turned his head to tell you something, making your lips accidentally brush each other. Instead of pulling away like you thought he might have, he begins to move his lips against yours. His lips taste like straight liquor. You freeze in shock, not knowing what to do. When he realizes you're not kissing back, he pulls away quickly, a look of guilt on his face. 

“Shit, Y/N, I’m so sor-”

“I’ve actually got to go, I’ll see you on class on Tuesday, Professor.” You manage to stutter out. You can hear a mixture of “oh man, you’ve had too much to drink” and “nice one, professor smooth” coming from the men as you practically sprint away from the table.

You grab Nina’s arm as you walk out the door, already pulling out your phone to call an Uber. She’s giving you bewildered and confused looks, not understanding why you just ran out of there like that.

“What the hell happened back there?” She cocks her eyebrows. “You see a ghost or something?”

“He just… He was very drunk.” You squeak out. Obviously, you’re flattered. He’s a very attractive man, and if someone wouldn’t be affected by his blatant flirting, you would be surprised. But, you know that not only was he probably too drunk to know what he was saying. He’s your professor, he wouldn’t… Right?

“Very drunk as in he didn’t recognize you and tried to hook up with you, or very drunk as in he made a stupid comment and embarrassed you?”

“A mixture?” You shrug your shoulders, your cheeks still red. “He recognized me, alright. Then he said he’d excuse my shitty essay because I have a nice ass. I noped out of there the minute a round of shots came by.” You purposely leave out the kiss part. 

“Look at you!” Nina squeals, jumping around excitedly. “Getting hit on by the eye-candy of teachers! You have no idea how jealous all those girls who got turned down would be right now! I’ll admit, I’m even a little jealous!”

“He was drunk, he didn’t know what he was doing.” You groan. “Don’t tell anyone this, alright? I’m hoping that he won’t remember this. I don’t think that I’ll be able to look him in the eye if we both remember what just happened.”

“Why, though? Thinkin’ about how he would destroy that as-“

“Don’t finish that sentence.” You groan out, making her giggle. “He probably won’t remember, right?”

WANT TO BE TAGGED IN THIS SERIES? LET ME KNOW :)

[chaotic-weevil]

Judy Ahrens is NOT our friend

So, the May special election is here, and chances are you’re not too worried about it. Most candidates are unopposed, there’s just one or two measures on the ballot, and all the positions seem to be fairly harmless.

Well, this is sadly not the case. Everyone living in the Three Rivers School District area (most of Josephine County except Grants Pass, and parts of Jackson County) gets to vote in one of the most important races for our community.

Likely the only contested race on your ballot, TRSD Board position two has incumbent Danny York going up against a Judy Ahrens.

Mr. York has my vote, and I beg you to give him yours. 

I’m sure you’ll want to know why.... but first, TL;DR:

this is a long post. basically, the gist is that Judy Ahrens is a terrible person and we need to make sure she cannot win this election. If you don’t want to read all my analysis, go ahead and skip to part 4. If you don’t want to read any of it, just go check out her website yourself. Make sure to read her bio page.

With that out of the way, let’s delve in: 

At first glance, Danny York seems the lesser option. York has an extremely brief statement in the voters’ pamphlet, and no college education, while Ahrens boasts an Associates, and has a long, detailed statement. And of course, Ahrens is a woman, and the conventional knowledge is that women are better in leadership positions.

But some parts of Judy Ahrens’ statement rubbed me wrong, so I did some research. And what I found terrified me.

To start, let’s analyze her statement in the voters’ pamphlet. I’ll go section by section and address each of the points.

Dear Voters:

While living in Southern California, I was heavily involved with the PTA, the Eastwood Site Council, and many other activities related to children. Then nine years ago I moved to Josephine County. It’s gorgeous scenery and friendly people still awe me and my passion for providing the best education for our children continues right here.

So far, so good. We learn she has experience with education and leadership positions, and a love for this community. But wait ‘til she gets to her platform:

Why I’m running:

1. To guarantee that Parents’ Rights come first. Parents currently are fighting against a bill in Salem which forces vaccinations on all children attending Oregon public schools. I back these parents 100%.

“Parents’ Rights” is a term you see thrown around here and there. Usually, this means parents’ rights to control the curriculum or content their children are exposed to, or to have medical & bodily control over their kids. And usually it comes from the Christian Right, which I’m a little wary of (that’s the folks with the sin signs that like to go to local events and yell on megaphones about how queer people are going to hell).

In this case, Ahrens is taking the medical side of the Parents’ Rights issue, cleverly appealing to anti-vaxxers on both ends of the political spectrum (the religious my-body-is-my-temple folks and the no-chemicals-for-me hippies alike). However, as we’ll see shortly, she quickly extends this into the more morally concerning social arena.

2. To protect traditional family values which are currently under attack. All sex education materials and instructions should be scrutinized for age appropriateness and content by a committee that includes parents.

Nothing makes this bisexual pro-LGBT-rights guy uncomfortable quite like the phrase “traditional family values.” It might as well be code for “homosexuality is a sin,” and is usually accompanied by extreme bigotry. Needless to say, we don’t want bigots on the school board. And phraseology like “currently under attack” means she sees gender and sexuality diversity as an organization or movement trying to attack a way of life. That’s not who we are, and that’s an extremely toxic, harmful mindset.

But wait.... there’s more! I don’t know how Ahrens crammed so many red flags into one bullet point, but her take on sex ed is also disastrous. Sex ed is crucial, especially in low-income rural communities like ours. Kids need to know about consent and sexual abuse, safe sex practices, how to get birth control, healthy and unhealthy relationships, hygiene and sexual health, safe/unsafe masturbation, gender and sexuality, and so many other things. Current curriculum isn’t perfect, but schools are getting better at this, especially in Oregon.

Parents simply do not know better than professional educators what their kids need to know about sex. Surveys have shown that parents tend to think their kids are less sexually active/aware than they are, at pretty much every age and development level, so parents likely won’t think a lesson is age appropriate until it’s too late for some kids. And many parents who view sex, or pre-marital sex, or maybe just teen sex, as a bad thing might want abstinence-only sex ed, which is highly ineffective.

But the biggest problem is that this ties directly into Ahrens’ other problematic views. Having already pegged her as a likely member of the Christian Right, I can already guess what “sex-education materials” she’ll want to get rid of: anything having to do with LGBT+ issues, abortion, masturbation, sex for pleasure, or birth control. And these are arguably some of the most important roles sex-ed plays, giving marginalized students or students who cannot ask at home access to valuable, impartial and trusted information.

At this point, I’m getting pretty uncomfortable with Judy Ahrens, but the worst is yet to come.

3. To make sure academic achievement is the No. 1 priority above all other programs in the Three Rivers School District.

Okay, so this isn’t so much a social justice or moral issue; but why? Yes academics should be a priority, but school should also focus on the arts, physical activity, extracurriculars, and (personally I think this should be #1) students’ mental health. But this isn’t too big of an issue, I can easily let it slide.

Our current statistics show:

     - Third Grade English Proficiency 43%      - Eighth Grade Math Proficiency 35%      - 12th Grade Tracking for Graduation 68%

Yeah, that’s pretty concerning. We should probably address that. But check out her “solutions”:

My solutions for such low results:

A. Have only the best phonics-based reading instructions used in the early grades. Also have rigorous teaching programs for mastering spelling, grammar, and writing skills.

B. Re-examine Common Core, the dubious government standard for math instruction. We need to get “back to basics” and teach fundamentals if we want our students’ math scores to improve.

This is just beyond me. I don’t have a degree in it (tho I will in a few years!) but I know a fair amount about linguistics and pedagogy. I also went to elementary school in our district. “Phonics” is an extremely broad and vague category that generally means teaching letter sounds. My teachers did this. I’m pretty sure most teachers do this. But guess what; they’re trained but professionals who literally study how to teach kids to read and write. “Only the best phonics” sounds vaguely Trump-esque to me. In any case, it wouldn’t be a huge shift from the current policy, and kinda sounds like she doesn’t know what she’s talking about.

Which only seems more likely when you get to the second paragraph. Common Core is far from perfect, yes. But calling it the “dubious government standard” is too reminiscent of the Parents’ Rights philosophy. I guarantee you the average parent doesn’t know a better way to teach math. Additionally, Common Core literally is an attempt to go back to the basics. And it was implemented because math scores were abysmally low. People criticize Common Core because it’s not what they’re used to, but all it’s really doing is teaching kids to connect abstract ideas with concrete scenarios. Which is what math is all about.

C. Provide programs that instill strong patriotism in our students, including having all classes begin each day with the Pledge of Allegiance.

Uh-oh. Okay, so I have no problem with patriotism. But this sounds.....fascist? America-centrist? America First-ish? Nationalistic?

I’ve never liked the pledge of Allegience. For one thing it goes directly against the establishment clause (”under god”, seriously? I’m religious but that still bothers me), but also, we should be teaching our kids to think openly, to make their own decisions, and to be their own agents. And definitely not to just repeat-after-me and sign-on-the-dotted-line. If we want our kids to be patriotic, we should show them the true face of this country, encourage them to get involved, tell the good and bad sides to our history. Make them patriotic by giving them reasons to be, not by having them memorize a pledge they don’t even understand all the words to. Which brings me to...

D. We need to provide teachers with honest and accurate instructional materials in order to give students a solid background in American History and the U.S. Constitution. 

Okay, so I actually completely agree with this. However, I suspect that my and Judy Ahrens’ ideas on what is “honest and accurate” may be more than a little different. For me, I think the key here is making sure to teach the bad as well as the good, and be frank about the ways that the US has violated and still does violate the very rights and liberties we strive to protect. Only by recognizing one’s faults can one grow stronger, and the same can be said of a society or nation. Given her love of patriotism, I suspect Ahrens wants more of a whitewashed, postitive portrayal of our history. But she’s unclear (perhaps on purpose) so I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt on this one.

Let’s make our schools great again.

This is an *obvious* echo of MAGA. Which should scare you.

I would appreciate your support and vote on May 21, 2019. 

So that’s that for her pamphlet statement. But it got me concerned enough that I decided to do a little more research. And found out just how disastrous she really is.

Part Two: Under the Surface

So I went to her campaign website. It’s not very well designed, or secure, but you can check it out if you want.

Most of the content there is pretty much verbatim what’s in the pamphlet, but there’s a few noteworthy additions:

Following the daily pledge of allegiance, she calls for “a minute of silence.” I don’t know why.

The sex-ed clause has grown: “We need to protect traditional family values which are currently under attack. All sex education materials including classroom videos, textbooks, and discussions should be scrutinized for age appropriateness and content by a committee that includes parents. AND....parents must have the final say if they want to OPT OUT of any such activity/instruction they feel inappropriate for their child.” She definitely wants to make sure children don’t have to get subjected to educational, important information about sex (because sex is evil?). Curious how discussions can be scrutinized by parents, I’m assuming ahead of time.

She mentions participation in Vacation Bible School and Right To Life March (an anti-choice organization), confirming my suspicions that she’s firmly within the Christian Right. Which is not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s definitely cause for concern.

She has a list of “patriotic holidays” she wants to instill in students. One of them is Columbus Day, an extremely problematic and racist holiday.

Finally, there are two  aspects of her website that led me to dig deeper.

Part Three: Silencing Abuse Victims

So, in her bio on her website, Ahrens brags about banning a book:

Promoting traditional family values, helped to stop a certain controversial book (with heavy sexual content) form getting into Ocean View School District school libraries.

I was curious, so I investigated. Wanna know what the book was?

I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

Apparently her complaint was that it had sex scenes that were inappropriate for children. If you’re unfamiliar, the novel is semi-autobiographical, and includes descriptions of the sexual abuse Angelou faced as a child. It’s heavy stuff for sure, but also extremely important. It’s widely regarded as one of the most important pieces of feminist literature, and it tilts white male dominant America on its head. I read it when I was 12. It was disturbing. But it’s a book that is meant to disturb, and I’m very glad I read it when I did.

Now, I wouldn’t recommend that book to an eight year old. But this was in a middle school environment (read: kids aged 11-14). In fact, there was already a limitation: only eighth graders could check the book out. So we’re talking 13-14-year-olds. Now that may still seem young, but by age 12 most girls are already used to sexual harassment, and one in four will have been sexually assaulted by age 16. So reading the story of a survivor could be very helpful.

My biggest issue with this, though, is the way Judy Ahrens portrays it. “A certain controversial book”, she calls it, “with heavy sexual content.” It sounds meritless, obscene, pornographic. Instead, it is a renowned work of literature. Banning this book is not just removing some uncomfortable sex or disturbing abuse from the shelves; it is silencing the voices of victims and of women of color, voices which we should be raising.

This tale is a warning: Judy Ahrens favors censorship. This is scary. We already know she doesn’t like sex ed; will she fight to have educational books removed from libraries. Will she try to ban books that have gender and sexuality diverse characters? Given the next and final story in our saga, I’d not be at all surprised.

Part Four: Homophobic and Proud of It

It stands to reason that I, being a member of the LGBT+ community, would be most bothered by this. But I think, anyone would be bothered by this. Any decent, non-bigoted person, that is.

Right in the middle of her bio page, is this lovely gem:

I was elected in 2002 to the Westminster School Board with my continued theme of "Back to Basics." While in office, I, with the help of two other board members, lead the controversial fight against the homo-sexual issue.

WE WON ! [sic]

So, hopefully y’all can see exactly waht’s wrong with this, and I don’t have to say. But it’s obvious as can be. Blatant homophobic bigotry. “The controversial fight against the homo-sexual issue” is such a hurtful way to say that, too. So anyways, she’s shown herself to be a gross homophobe.

But I was curious, so I dug deeper, and boy did I find a story. In 1999, the State of California passed a law adding gender identity and sexuality to the list of things on the basis of which students could report discrimination. By 2004, every school district in California except Westminster had incorporated this new language into their policy. Westminster refused to modify their anti-discrimination policy language protecting trans students. Press at the time (and this became a national story) described Judy Ahrens as the board member most opposed to protections for trans kids. She was quoted as saying that the state law promotes homosexuality and that she’s “really sad that the moral compass isn’t out there” and “disappointed that economics is trying to outweigh morality and protecting our kids in this district.”

This was in 2004. It’s 2019 now. Much has changed. Maybe she could have changed; I would have been maybe willing to accept that. But she’s literally proud of this. She is using it as a campaign point.

If Judy Ahrens wins this election, it will send the message to lgbt+ kids in our district and everywhere that voters don’t care about them or their safety. If Ahrens wins, it will send the message that bigotry is a viable way to run a campaign. If Ahrens wins, it will send the message that hate wins.

So please, join me in voting AGAINST Judy Ahrens.

Vote for Danny York, who is neither particularly qualified nor severely unqualified, but is infinitely better than the hateful, bigoted, religious-extremest Ahrens. Keep our district welcoming and accepting of diversity.

And don’t only vote. This matters. Tell everybody. Make noise. Write letters to the editor. Share this, on facebook. We can defeat evil, but only if we join and rise to face it. So join, and rise. Please.

Ballots must be received by May 21. Probably for the best to return it by the 19th or 20th at least.

[duaneodavila]

Big Win For MAGA Hats At Supreme Court

In a largely expected decision, the Supreme Court today ruled that the government cannot restrict a person’s clothing choices while they are voting.

The ruling came down 7-2, and perhaps the margin was a bit of a surprise, but the First Amendment arguments made by the majority are not. It’s entirely consistent with majoritarian First Amendment views that white people can harass and intimidate black people — especially black people who dare to try to vote — in a myriad of ways as long as they don’t get physical. Freedom! As long as the whites don’t actually throw the banana at a black person while they are filling out their ballot, well, this Court would allow whites to brandish their potassium-rich snacks in any way they like.

Sorry, I’m butthurt because I’ve been to Mississippi and I know what black people have to go through in order to exercise their franchise. If I pull my Harvard-embossed sweatpants over my red ass, I get the decision here. It’s a totally normal way to view the world, if your “normal” perspective in through the lens of blinding privilege.

The case at issue is Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky. Some guy went to vote in Minnesota, and wore one of those “Don’T Tread On Me” T-shirts. You know, the “MAGA hats before MAGA hats, but after the Klan hood fell out of fashion.”

Minnesota election monitors informed him that the shirt violated Minnesota’s ban on “political insignia” at polling places.

The ban is in place to prevent voter intimidation while people are trying to vote. We already have various bans about “electioneering” in and around polling places. You can’t plant a lawn sign within X feet of a polling station. And these bans have been largely upheld as a necessary impingement on free speech. If you can’t wear a sandwich board in support of a candidate, it stands to reason that you can’t wear a T-shirt in support of a candidate.

Taking it one step further, it stands to reason that you shouldn’t be allow to wear a shirt with a slogan on it that has been associated with a candidate either. The difference between a voter pasting a “vote for Trump” bumper-sticker on their forehead and wearing a MAGA hat seems irrelevant to me.

But the Supreme Court was not willing to take that extra step. Chief Justice Roberts, joined by the other four conservatives, as well as Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Elena Kagan, struck down Minnesota’s political insignia ban as overbroad:

It is “self-evident” that an indeterminate prohibition carries with it “[t]he opportunity for abuse, especially where [it] has received a virtually open-ended interpretation.” Jews for Jesus, 482 U. S., at 576; see Heffron v. International Soc. for Krishna Consciousness, Inc., 452 U. S. 640, 649 (1981) (warning of the “more covert forms of discrimination that may result when arbitrary discretion is vested in some governmental authority”). Election judges “have the authority to decide what is political” when screening individuals at the entrance to the polls. App. to Pet. for Cert. I–1. We do not doubt that the vast majority of election judges strive to enforce the statute in an evenhanded manner, nor that some degree of discretion in this setting is necessary. But that discretion must be guided by objective, workable standards. Without them, an election judge’s own politics may shape his views on what counts as “political.” And if voters experience or witness episodes of unfair or inconsistent enforcement of the ban, the State’s interest in maintaining a polling place free of distraction and disruption would be undermined by the very measure intended to further it.

That is not to say that Minnesota has set upon an impossible task. Other States have laws proscribing displays (including apparel) in more lucid terms.

Again, there is a universe in which Roberts’s reasoning makes a lot of sense. Damn near anything can be “political” these days. We live in a polarized nation where the very facts of our reality are debating in the political arena. I could wear a shirt with a polar bear on it, and some conservative could tell me I was making a “political” statement about reality of climate change and our need to do something about it. Which of course I would be. The Minnesota ban does indeed have the potential arbitrary enforcement.

And, not for nothing, but more often than not, arbitrary speech restrictions are more likely to be deployed against minority voters, than for their protection. If I had to guess, this is why Ginsburg and Kagan were on board with Roberts’s opinion. Professor Rick Hasen is on board as well. There is reasonableness in this opinion. I vote in a white suburb, so one can imagine how a white poll worker would react if I walked in wearing a black power shirt and my pick in my hair.

Again, Roberts is being reasonable, at least reasonable from the perspective of white man who need not concern himself with this country’s history of suppressing the vote to non-whites and women. Roberts once gutted the Voting Rights Act because he personally decided that racism was over in the South. He can do a lot worse than this.

Still, as I said in my preview of this case before oral arguments, I would be willing to cede my right to my non-violent sartorial choices while voting, if I could take away the white supremacists’ rights to try to intimidate voters with their sartorial choices.

That’s the aspect that the Court’s majority either doesn’t get or doesn’t care about. These alt-right slogans are speech, sure, but they are code words for the violent destruction of non-white Americans. White supremacists aren’t stupid. They know that they can’t just roll around saying obviously bigoted things — only the President of the United States can get away with that. His fanboys still have to use their GOP-issued dog whistles. So they wear a shirt or a hat to signal to other that they are on the same team… the team of ripping families apart like they are a litter of puppies and making the South rise again.

In dissent, Justice Sonia Sotomayor offered a compromise position. I think poll workers can be trusted to identify the brown shirts, and Roberts thinks that the ban is broad and vague. Sotomayor would have asked Minnesota to simply clarify its ban:

I disagree, however, with the Court’s decision to declare Minnesota’s political apparel ban unconstitutional on its face because, in its view, the ban is not “capable of reasoned application,” ante, at 19, when the Court has not first afforded the Minnesota state courts “‘a reasonable opportunity to pass upon’” and construe the statute, Babbitt v. Farm Workers, 442 U. S. 289, 308 (1979). I would certify this case to the Minnesota Supreme Court for a definitive interpretation of the political apparel ban under Minn. Stat. §211B.11(1) (Supp. 2017), which likely would obviate the hypothetical line-drawing problems that form the basis of the Court’s decision today.

It’s unfortunate there’s no lefty equivalent to the MAGA hat. I would love to wear something that white people could take one look at and know that I’m not here for their BS and it’s dangerous to talk to me about it.

But there can be no lefty equivalent. Because people on the left don’t believe in ethnic cleansing or placing certain people’s children into concentration camps. And if we did believe in that, we certainly wouldn’t put it on a hat for everybody else to see.

Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky [Supreme Court]

Elie Mystal is the Executive Editor of Above the Law and the Legal Editor for More Perfect. He can be reached @ElieNYC on Twitter, or at elie@abovethelaw.com. He will resist.

Big Win For MAGA Hats At Supreme Court republished via Above the Law

[queermusicalensembles-blog]

Snippits from Interview with Jessie Riggins and Matthew Novotny

J- We currently do not have an executive director on the board, so I am acting executive director, as well as being president of the board.  It is a lot of work. But it is going good.

 Do you ever experience conflict between board members who play in the ensemble and those who do not?

J- Not really, sometimes they say that they don't have as good of a point of view since they do not play in the ensemble. But it is nice to have them because they are not as emotionally attached to the group in the same way playing members are. This makes it easier for them to help the board make unbiased decisions.

Do ensembles have a say in what is played by the ensemble?

J- Ensemble members have a say in what we play for the christmas concert, however, for all other concerts, the rep we play is decided by our artistic director Lee Hartman.

How has this organization changed in the four years you have been involved?

J- We have grown both in numbers and in musical ability. We are tackling music now that we could not have managed four years ago.

Do you like that change?

J- I do. Sometimes it is a little too ambitious, but for the most part I like the change.

What are some ways you feel that the organization has created a safe space for individuals in the KC Metro area?

J-That is the whole point of the organization, to have a space for people to come and play music and have fun and not worry about, ‘Oh, this person won’t like me because I am gay or bisexual’.

Taking that as your mission for the organization, do you feel that you are all doing a good job achieving this goal?

J-Yeah, I think we are. We are about 30% straight allies, so it is nice to have ally support in the organization.

Have the allies always been a part of the organization?

J- The allies numbers have been growing, but I think that is just a generational thing. People who are my and Mathews age in our 30s and younger, it is just a part of our everyday life.

M- I remember when straight people first showed up and the group said, ‘they are straight, we can't let them join the organization.’ Which I disagreed with because I felt that the organization was about inclusion of people over every sexuality/orientation. Because as far as I can see, straight people have often given us more support than any of the GLBT individuals have. It has been a good change.

M- This whole shift really happened in our organization about eight or so years ago.

Matt, how long have you been a part of the organization?

M- About 11 years at this point.  I still play in the ensemble, which is great. It is better than doing everything else.

M-Well, it is hard because when I took over, we had less than twenty people, and we had just lost our founding director. So it was like everybody needed to know how to get everything done in the organization. We used to need people from the LGBTQ band in St. Louis to come just so we could have a large enough ensemble to play the music. But now we are to the point that we are starting to fall off the stage because there are so many of us. So it is really a good thing.

J-St. Louis also has an LGBTQ ensemble called Band Together.

Since you started playing four years ago, how did you get into being a board member?

J- Lee kinda pulled me into it, and I also am the kind of person who just agrees to everything.

J- We are starting to get a lot of younger individuals. And I think the political climate has had a large effect on that. People are starting to be more and more comfortable with the idea of joining as either an ally or an LGBTQ individual.

M-Also, a lot of gay bands have problems growing because they simply try to be a gay organization. But to be successful they need to do more than just exist as an LGBTQ ensemble. They also need to have social events, a board organization, and make good music. Because you really want the group to interact with the community and grow both socially as well as musically. Because we are all a family for one another, and that has helped us really bond together. Even with the political climate- when Trump got elected we all started to meet up more often. And that day he was elected, almost the whole band met up and just talked about all of our thoughts and concerns in the comfort of our ‘family’.

That is something Dr. Thurmeier mentioned, that the social aspect of the ensemble sometimes seems more important than the music itself.

J-Mhmm, I think that first of all, we are a community band. Then the identity behind that is that we are a gay and lesbian community band. If you google Kansas City Community band, we are always one of the first to come up online.

M- A lot of people want to join the ensemble that are not LGBT accepting, and we allow them. But they do not tend to stick around for too long. And it isn't that we try to hide it either. Our logo is a big rainbow banner.

M- That was before our time. But it is really just a process, and one of those things is that you have to organize a board. And the people on that board have both personal feelings and feelings about what the organization must do- and it can be difficult to do what is best as a board member in those situations. We also had to figure out how to manage money. Such as for a non-profit, you can make money, but it has to be put into that organization. For us we often use it for educational purpose. I remember we used to operate the whole organization on $7000 about six years ago. As soon as we got the backing of Arts KC, we started to have a lot better fortune in finding funding. That is where Lee helped us out a ton. Organizations will respect you more when you have leaders with doctoral degrees who are much more informed on what they are trying to achieve. 

M- It’s different from a normal community band. All the banks and community pitch in the make the concerts work, music is from the high school band library, they don’t pay money for rehearsals. Gay bands don’t have that ability in the same way

M- If it wasn't for band, I would have a lot less friends. Before band I was a super introvert and didn't like to socialize with people, but now you see me and I can go talk to anybody about anything. And it has made me into the leader and person that I am today where I can manage my relationships with people much better. The Freedom band is where I started to develop my own identity, and that is why I started to get involved with the national organization- where I try to help other ensembles find ways to experience some of the growth that I have felt. At first, I was rejected from being a board member. But the ensemble was patient and taught me that, and when I was twenty five the board trusted me enough to be the executive director and to lead the organization. It was probably the biggest professional development that I have seen in my life.

J- It got me out of Warrensburg and became my whole identity. Today, when I introduce myself to people I say my name first, then I tell them about how I am affiliated with the organization. It is always first before everything.

M-I was always the same way. I never told people about my day job as a security officer, rather I told them how I was a director of the board for an ensemble or the treasurer for a national LGBTQ organization. Not that I say these things to brag about the title or the distinction, but instead because these ensembles mean so much to me. Band has just been my life. Without that I would be normal and boring, which is fine. When I came to KC I had nobody really. I was right after I was essentially kicked out of the military for being gay, and the pride band became my family quickly.

M- I am also a part of the national chapter of the gay band association. We do a lot of things with ensembles, like organizing the gay games, which is like an LGBTQ Olympics. I am the treasurer and membership chair for the national committee. I have been on the board for two years, but I was a board member for a year and a half before Obama’s inauguration. We got to march in both of Obama’s inauguration parades which was amazing considering I was carrying the US flag for a gay band, and I was a person who was kicked out of the military for being Gay. Being saluted by everybody down the street was a profound moment for me. And having the pride of this amazing band behind me with the context arching through DC really meant a lot to me and my community

J- We have a two hour practice every week where we are able to meet up and socialize with everybody in the band with us, while also working on music. Which is one of the greatest benefits of this ensemble.

M- I think that since we are an LGBTQ ensemble we have a definite emphasis on the social aspect of the organization. And I think that it is important that the organization have that. Because it is all about finding the proper balance between a social organization, but also a musical organization.

J- We have a wide variety of levels of players in the ensemble. Some of us have advanced degrees in music, while others have not really played their instrument in 15+ years. So it is always unique challenge to try to get everything to work out just fine.

M- We are willing to take any body who is playing though. We used to have a saying that said, “If you are out of the closet, then why isn't your instrument?” We have been active as organization for about fifteen years.

J- We have really been striving to play music by underrepresented composers. Last year for instance we had a concert of all female composers. But we love to play rep by LGBTQ composers. We also also work a lot with churches for performances and spaces to play. Some of our friends are Metropolitian community Church and Trinity Lutheran Church.

For individuals who want to join, what would you tell them?

M- Check out our website and think about what they can do to be involved. We have members who do not play but still support us. We are always willing to build our community, because everybody is welcome in our ensemble.

[sandralow97]

Semester 1 - January 2017.

Hey readers! Welcome back to my blog. As your read this post, I’m already in my Semester 2 now, but before delay any longer and let all the old memories becoming a history, I want to share my personal experience in detail for you all. Which I did mention in my previous blogpost that I’ll write one regarding on my current Physiotherapy course. Let’s start. It was a decision made on last Christmas, 2016. Without being procrastinate, I just did it by enrolling myself into Physiotherapy course in INTI, Nilai. I remembered I was in a dilemma between doing psychology, or physiotherapy. As for law, it has been disqualified long ago. I’m glad that I did not choose that path because as soon as I realised the life of a law student, it wasn’t any of my passion. However, choosing physiotherapy wasn’t my super-confirm choice too. It was a result of “elimination” on all the tertiary courses that are available. So, I will encourage you not to be too worry or concern over what you want to study for your UNI level, I’ve only decide mine two weeks before class commence. I meant that you don’t need to stress and be confirmed of what you want to pursue, but just putting options and choices on the table is the first step. Sooner then, you’ll find favour and somehow everything just falls into place. I couldn’t find any best word to describe my semester 1, Physio in Nilai except being grateful. I’m really thankful for all that happened and I’m so blessed to be in such place, meeting the right company of friends, learn new things, strive for studies, grow under pressure and do life together. Firstly, I want to share about my group of friends. We have 16 in total. I’ve actually written in one of my old blogpost, the starting was “Let’s start talking on my degree course-mates that I met in INTI, I’m sure a lot of people have been wondering how it goes. For this first January Intake, there’s only 16 of us in Physiotherapy course. Surprisingly, it’s an odd to know that guys’ population are greater than girls who take this course for our batch. In addition to that, God’s favour is upon us. We are known to be the closest 1st Semester batch ever. It was last Tuesday, we had our very first class day trip down to Subang as an early celebration of CNY before we all head back our hometown. It was a great bonding day and eventually that outing pulled us closer to one another. I have a good feeling that we’ll be able to pull it through for the remaining 4 years of journey studying together. Be it for the great, worst or challenging moment, we’ll stay and fight to be one. I’m looking forward to greater things ahead and definitely create more memories along the way.” To continue the above story on my beloved fellow course-mates, our friendship became stronger and closer when we have planned multiple -outings, the “CNY outing”, “MitSui Outlet outing”,“Mid-valley” and “After-finals Sunway outing”. All these outing have make our bond stronger and built a memorable memories to look back one day. Moreover, we did Korean Spicy Noodle Challenge, went Karaoke, Pool playing with Bobby. Towards the end of semester, when we have some free time before finals, we somehow went Cyber café with the guys for counter strike game. For the girls of my course, we actually had two times of sleepover at Yong Jing’s house. Not forgetting one night in my room, where we had three of us squeezing in a single bed. As for our guys of my course, most of them are quite sporting and active, Wey Loc as our captain for previous sports meet has continued his role and started out a work-out plan, “Say-No-More” challenge to keep our body healthy and ensuring a productive time in Nilai. I’m really grateful to be placed in this batch of semester as the size of our class is just nice and easier to bond together. We even came out with our own short film within this semester, “Kisah Tenabi”. The purpose of this film is to serve our MPU assignment marks and for entertaining purposes, it wasn't the best product which we have planned out in the beginning because of time-limit and there's some complications throughout the process. Our script was changed twice by the lecturer because of certain reasons. A big thank you to our scriptwriter, Henri Junior who finally made this story-line a success and approved by lecturer before shooting can be further progressed. However, I want to highly appreciate and give credit to the VIP, the real hero who put double the efforts in making this drama a success - Jonathan Chew. Also not forgetting everyone who has taken part in this process of filming. It was indeed a long, time-consuming and tiring process. Yet, it's worth to see that this came to past and we made it through our little short skit. As for my club activities in INTI, I joined Taekwondo, Frisbee and Physio club (compulsory) initially. As time passed by, I have stopped going Frisbee training without any reason xD. I feel guilty. However, it’s fine for me as long as I’m still continuing my taekwondo training. I’m as proud and happy as I have successfully promoted to green belt within a year. My plan is to get black belt by 2019, before I finished my studies in INTI. In Physiotherapy, it is a 4 years duration course. Three years of theoretical studies, while the remaining one year, which is the last year is for clinical posting, as a student physiotherapist trainee. Under the first semester, there are two major subjects, which are anatomy and physiology respectively. These are the fundamental knowledge and understandings that must be acquired as a health care student. I was really encouraged along the way because I managed to achieve good result by God’s grace. I even achieved an A+ for my Anatomy subject. When I said this, I’m not trying to boast or brake about, but really really, I never would have imagine to be in such place but because of God’s favor upon me throughout the period of studying and exams. Not forgetting that I was actually in rock bottom of my life last April, May until finals approach. God is gracious and good Father, He indeed has not forsaken me when I cried out for help and His divine strength during that difficult period time of my life. As for another two minor subjects, which also counted in GPA are University English and Psychology respectively. At first, I was really unhappy of the English to be part of our course structure for this Semester. All my life, I thought language subject should have ended in my high school long ago. Yet, it proceeded to my college, and now until my Uni life. I was really frustrated and upset. However, we have no choice but to just do it. It wasn’t any easy time for me because English has always and forever a challenge for me personally. The difficult part was to write 4 essays in 2 hours’ time during finals. Apart from compulsory classes, we were privileged enough to be offered extra session, guided by our seniors to reinforce our learning and revision on our studies, known as P2P. It caters to only semester 1’s newbies. Through this time of learning, we actually gained a lot of tips and advice in how to study effectively and access material resourcefully. One of my long-waited miracle, has been answered by God after 5 months, which is the cancellation of MUET requirement for 2017 students. For my church life, I have been attending Acts church for the moment. One highlight was the Fairstival Conference, where there’re varieties of electives to learn and be eyes-opened. I thank God for Carolyn in looking after me and praying for me throughout that period time. Another woman of faith is Elisha, she is like an older sister to me and just happened to live in the same block as me. She brought me out to Palm Square for movie when I was in stress and down. She was more willing to hear from me of my struggles, life problems and direct me into God’s way and His truth. I love to hear from her as she always have great insight and her living and faith in God is forever inspiring. I feel her presence is like an angel appeared to my life in supporting me which sent by God in this season of my life which I’ve asked for. To sum everything up, it has been a great journey for the past 6 months studying in Nilai. It’s an interesting one and God has showed me his assurance and favor. I’m blessed by His favor throughout the entire semester, it will not stop there. I will hold onto God’s promises and continue to live a favorable, abundant life for the next semester and toward the time that comes.

[gabrielofgoodnews]

Respuesta de Gabriel

Dear Denise,

I would hope that you realize the irony of your actions: The very man you are condemning is the man whose actions you are imitating. For someone who hates our President so much, your attempt to use social media to put me down for my beliefs sounds strikingly familiar. I want you to know, as I mentioned to you in private, that I do not appreciate your use of foul language, derogatory claims, and false accusations.

 I would also hope that you are not so naïve to think that this world is black and white. The time we have been placed on this planet is highly complex, but such is our lot. It is a world full of information, misinformation, truths, half-truths, haves, have-nots, privileged, unprivileged, underserved, underrepresented, developed nations, developing nations, and everything in-between.

 I know you are a good, well-meaning, and well-educated Latina full of a passion that drives you to support your beliefs so fervently. I admire you for this and I wish you the best in your endeavors. There are several points upon which we can agree, but of course you did not incite me to hear about our common ground.

 Therefore, please see my responses to your questions and arguments below:

 1.        How is someone who vehemently voted for the current 45 supposed to lead a coalition of Latinx law students?? At a social justice institution?? You helped perpetuate the very violent conditions you claim to be helping asylum seekers from!

          a.     Your argument claims that someone who voted for Trump helped perpetuate today’s violent conditions, cannot lead a group of Latinx students, and cannot identify with a social justice (Jesuit) institution.

          b.     First, we should consider the meaning of “perpetuate.” Per the Oxford dictionary, perpetuate means “to make (something) continue indefinitely.” (https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/perpetuate). This presupposes that “something” is already occurring. Therefore, you admit that these violent conditions of which you speak were already in existence before I voted.

          c.     Next, though my vote did not bring such violent conditions into existence, you claim that my vote will make those violent conditions continue indefinitely. (https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/indefinitely). In order to address this second point, I would like to expand on “the very violent conditions [I] claim to be helping asylum seekers from.” (Denise). Although you make this claim without having heard the stories of the asylum seekers I am helping, I would like to inform you. These violent conditions exist in the countries from which they are fleeing. For example, it may be that the asylum seeker is fleeing terrorism, cartel activity, or persecution. Furthermore, such asylum is usually sought when the violence they are fleeing cannot be effectively combatted by local governmental institutions. For example, the police or federal agents from the asylum seeker’s country may be unwilling or unable to protect the local citizens from violence. This is precisely why they are seeking protection in the U.S. and are requesting to remain here. It would take an omniscience of which neither of us is capable to conclude that my voting for Trump is helping perpetrators of violence in foreign countries continue their violent activities without sufficient countermeasures from local government agencies. Therefore, the claim that my vote is helping to make these violent conditions continue for an unlimited amount of time is unsound. My vote is neither a proximate cause nor a guarantee of continuity for the violent conditions.

2.        If you wanna get your law degree to uphold the rights of people you feel called to, ok great. But don't run for a fucking leadership role claiming to care & pat yourselves on the back

          a.     You claim that someone who voted for Trump is not capable of caring. Also, you argue that I am merely pretending to care by getting a law degree to uphold the rights of others and by running for a leadership role to represent my fellow Latinx students.

          b.     In addressing these points, it is important to note the difference between intent and act. For this discussion, it is sufficient to think of intent as the purpose or the mindset of the actor, while the act is the process of doing something to achieve an aim (usually the intent). (https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/intent and  https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/act).

          c.     Here, my act was voting for Trump. In voting for Trump, my intent was to follow my Catholic faith to the best of my ability. (I can cover this in more detail upon request). However, neither my act nor my intent in any way compromise my ability to care deeply about other issues that are important to me. Rather, voting for Trump only means that I checked a box after carefully considering the options. It is not necessary to conclude that my vote was infallible or “correct” by your standards. However, it is unsound to conclude that my voting for Trump precludes me from caring about the issues affecting the Latinx community. I understand that Trump’s brand is loaded with meaning that is offensive, but alas the media plays a major role in manipulating our language. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yueij8jo9Q)

          d.     Next, you cannot possibly know what is going on in my mind with regards to what I care about. Instead, all you can do is use my actions as evidence of what I value and make inferences based upon those actions. You yourself admit that I am helping asylum seekers. I am also involved in helping adults study for the naturalization test in their efforts to secure citizenship and participate in our civic process. Also, you are aware of my participation in M.E.Ch.A. as an undergraduate and you know that I am currently running to represent the Latinx community as Co-VP of La Raza. Lastly, if you would like I can give you several character references from people that know more about me and my involvement within the community. These include members of La Raza that have seen me participating at Bridge to Justice, the free legal clinic offered to indigent members of our local community. Although I may be biased, the preponderance of the evidence points to the fact that I DO CARE. A LOT.

3.        How do you see yourself as a representative for the entire Latinx SCU Law student community when your past politics go directly against the rights of immigrants, against women's access to reproductive healthcare, against access to public education, against refugees and asylum seekers, against poor people...? 

          a.     You claim that my past politics go directly against several major issues facing our country today. Also, you insinuate that I should not be able to consider myself a representative of the Latinx because of my past politics.

          b.     Since I have never disclosed my voting history to you, I will assume that by “past politics” you mean the fact that I voted for Trump. Furthermore, it is not clear why you chose to group all these major issues together. Although a few are somewhat related, they are each unique, separate, and would require lengthy, individualized attention.

          c.     However, I will simply state that you credit my vote with too much. My vote may have helped put Trump into office (although even this point is debatable: http://www.npr.org/2016/11/06/500660424/how-the-electoral-college-works-and-why-you-don-t-want-to-think-about-it), but it does not follow that his actions in office are a direct and proximate result of my vote. Please reference my response to question one for further clarification on the effects of my vote.

          d.     Lastly, I would reject your argument that because I voted for Trump I should not be able to consider myself a representative of the Latinx community. This argument assumes that no member of the Latinx community would agree with my beliefs and benefit from my representation. However, whether you make this false assumption because you think the entire Latinx community voted for Hillary Clinton or for some other reason you have not described, your argument does not hold. There are several conflicting sources as to the exact amount of Latnix support Trump received this past election, but the fact remains not everyone voted for Hillary. (http://www.npr.org/2016/12/22/506347254/latinos-will-never-vote-for-a-republican-and-other-myths-about-hispanics-from-20).

4.        How will you use your privilege as a rep for La Raza and as a man to fervently fight for the rights of those who are marginalized?

          a.     If elected as Co-VP, I will do my best to uphold La Raza’s mission                         statement:

          i.     The primary focus of the La Raza Law Student Association is to recruit, support and graduate Latino students.  We strive to fulfill these ends by establishing a sense of community among Latino/a students through academic, professional, social, political, and cultural support. We strive to build enduring bridges with our local communities as well as foster lasting relationships with professional organizations. We believe this vision enriches the entire Santa Clara University community.

          b.     Although I may support other issues in my spare time, my main concern as a VP will be to use my experience and talents to build on the success La Raza has already had within our community. This includes the Bridge to Justice clinics as well as outreach to our SCU undergraduate community that may be considering a well-advised law school education. Also, I will work to help us reach a broader audience by connecting us with local communities. Since I was born and raised here, I hope to use my knowledge of the local community and my relationships with Latinx’s in the area (including you Denise) to help expand and improve our outreach and programming. Lastly, where only about 4% of lawyers in America identify as Latinx, if this Mexican-American graduates from law school it would in itself be part of the fight to help those that are marginalized. (https://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/market_research/lawyer-demographics-tables-2015.authcheckdam.pdf)

5.        Who *do* you stand for? 

          a.     I stand with the local Latinx community. However, I think you would prefer to know that I identify as a Mexican-American, Roman Catholic, human being on planet earth.

6.        Simply being Latino does not mean that you are for Latinx rights, or that your politics are inherently intersectional. I see it as very problematic that you are seeking a leadership role in the realm of social justice and law when you're not being transparent about whose rights you care about. 

          a.     I hope my answers to your inquiries above sufficiently address this point, but if you would like more information I will do my best to inform you despite your inability to vote in this campaign. Although I knew the majority of my friends on FB would not be able to vote, I extended the invitation for the sake of efficiency and to garner support for my cause.

Have faith my sister and hold fast to hope. It is perfectly understandable to be worried and scared in these troubling times, but we have made it through much worse. With people like you, me, and other people of goodwill, America will make it out of this stronger than ever.

 Sincerely,

 Orlando Gabriel Villa

J.D. Candidate – May 2019

Santa Clara University School of Law