#if you have the means consider making a donation

[pkmnprofaspen]

Aqua's probably my second or third pick for teams I'd join if I had to pick one.

The good half of Team Plasma would be my first choice since they're the best from a moral standpoint. Sure, they were misguided before the Neo split but the ones that sided with N are genuinely good people and have learned from their mistakes. But, they aren't really considered a "team" anymore and are more of just a charity, so they might not count.

My second pick is Team Skull. They do their thing not out of a desire to cause harm to others or drastically change how the world works, they're just upset the trials were too hard and are being rebellious. I hear their leader, Guzma, was in a bad situation growing up and that might be a reason they're more aggressive than the usual rebellious teens, but they're generally good people overall and they got a lot nicer after the Alolan Champion spoke with them. They weren't causing much trouble, just putting graffiti on an abandoned town and dancing at people. Plus, they have the best uniforms of any team IMO.

Aqua's third because they're generally chill people. They had much more justification for not realizing awakening Kyogre might be a bad idea than Magma did with Groudon, (Come on, you're a team of SCIENTISTS and you can't figure out that awakening the ancient deity known to cause major droughts might not be the best idea? Also, why did they assume the Blue Orb with the Alpha symbol on it would be the one that controls the red Pokémon associated with the Omega symbol when there was also a Red Orb with the Omega symbol right next to it? I get why the people who just really like fish might be confused there, but actual scientists with actual degrees should understand these things.) they support gay rights and gay wrongs as stated above, and their uniforms are cool and actually appropriate for the place, time, and situation.

Compare that to team uniforms like Magma, which were were DEFINITELY not designed with practicality in mind (What sane person wears a hoodie on top of a sweater while inside a volcano?), Flare's (absolute fashion disaster, also tf was that plan?) or god forbid whatever old tapestry Ghetsis stole from an antiques shop and decided would make a good outfit.

Finally, they're one of the few teams whose names actually make sense. Like, Team Rocket and Team Galactic aren't really doing anything in terms of space travel, (No, Palkia doesn't count. Cyrus wanted to make a new space, not explore the one we already have, and it didn't have anything to do with galaxies.) Team Plasma isn't doing anything plasma-related, (what would that even mean if it was accurate? Would they be doing, like, evil blood plasma donations?) Team Flare is only accurate because they like Fire-type Pokémon and has nothing to do with their actual plans whatsoever, Team Skull doesn't have anything to do with skulls, and Team Star doesn't have anything to do with stars. The only ones that make sense are Team Aqua, who wants more water AKA Aqua, Team Magma who want more volcano eruptions for more land which would make Magma, and Team Yell, who makes the most sense because they absolutely do yell. They yell a lot. Gotta respect those Galarians for putting up with that much noise, couldn't be me.

[sagging-saging]

Hi 👋, My name is Mohammad, and I’m reaching out in a moment of desperate need. I’m a father of three young children living in Gaza, and we are caught in the midst of a catastrophic war. Our home is no longer a safe haven, and the future here seems increasingly uncertain. 💔

I’ve launched a fundraising campaign with the goal of raising $40,000 to relocate my family to a safer place where my children can grow up in peace and have a chance at a brighter future.

Unfortunately, my previous fundraising efforts were abruptly halted when my account was terminated without explanation. However, I remain determined to keep fighting for my family’s safety and well-being. 🫶

If you could take a moment to read our story, consider donating, or simply share our campaign with others, it would make an incredible difference. Every act of kindness, no matter how small, brings us one step closer to safety and a new beginning. 🙏

Thank you for your time, compassion, and support. ❤️‍🩹

https://gofund.me/fd1faea2 🔗

Hello! I'm sorry that I can't donate, but I will do what I can by spreading the word. Please, if you have the means to do so, kindly donate to them!!! They are so close to their goal!!

https://gofund.me/fd1faea2

[sturionic]

hey, you said your inbox is open and I was curious if you have any ideas for someone who can't get involved irl in things like protests and local antifa groups (physically disabled and incapacitatingly severe anxiety), and who can't get involved in online activism beyond reblogging stuff (personal reasons, difficult to explain)?

I've been considering trying to put together care packages for local unhoused people, but I'm poor and I'd have to convince someone to help me put everything together so idk how well that will go.

I don't want to sit around doing nothing.

Hey anon! I am very glad you reached out, and this is a question I get asked a lot by people IRL, so you are very much not alone here.

I think the first order of business is expanding your definition of activism. We have been done a great disservice by having activism framed for us as protests, charity, & singular heroes making speeches and changing hearts through celebrity. In reality, the smaller actions in your community have a much greater impact; and most of all, the things you personally have to offer make the greatest impact.

This diagram is specifically geared towards climate action, but really applies to all activism:

For you to be an effective activist/volunteer/community member, it's crucial to find the centre of that diagram, or else you're on a one-way ticket to burnout. Don't get caught up in trying to judge which is the most "important" activism, because that answer will be different for everyone. The most important thing you can do for the world is the thing you can do.

I've done lots of volunteering and volunteer management in multiple fields, and there really is lots of choice out there for things that suit you; anything from sorting files quietly in a back room to using computer knowledge (often VERY absent in community groups lol) to help with maintaining websites & promoting community events. One of my personal favourite volunteer shifts was acting as a helper to the organizers of a queer electronic music festival, running a "build your own synthesizer" workshop. Literally I was just ticking off names on a registration sheet and doing setup and fetching things, but it was one of the coolest things I've had the joy to be involved in.

The other plus here is that activists in a given city all usually have some social overlap. If you email, say, your local community centre, explain your interests & circumstances & skills, and ask what you could do - they might not have anything right that moment, but likely someone there will know a different group that needs something similar, or they'll have ideas for who you could try next. Even if you're not finding a lot online right away, have faith in the (slightly haphazard) offline community org social scene. Same deal if you get involved with something and realize it's not your thing after all - just be honest, and ask for help in finding something more suited to you. It's so, so common, and no one's going to get angry with you for wanting to help in ways you're better suited for.

Don't mistake me when I nudge you towards volunteering - there's a certain way that well-meaning (usually) liberals treat volunteering, like they're 'donating' their time as charity, and I am not advocating for that. I'm just saying that you really don't have to reinvent the wheel. There are structures in place run by people who know well how to do it. Part of the importance is the work itself; the file-sorting, the computer help, whatever. But another part is building connections with the people around you, and also letting those people benefit from the privilege of knowing you. And that will happen naturally over time. The muscle will grow as you use it more, even if you need to start with something that feels to you like it might not be enormously significant in the grand scheme of things. Maybe you move on to 'bigger' things, or maybe you gain new perspective and realize just how significant your contributions are after all.

[littlegoblininyourshoe]

Please support me

, I'm Karam Al Nabih from Gaza. My home, dreams, and university have been destroyed by the war. I'm a software engineer in my final semester, and I'm urgently seeking your support to rebuild my life and help my sick mother.

Please consider donating, even a small amount like 10 or 15 £, as every contribution makes a difference. If you can't donate, please share my story to help me reach my goal. Your support means the world to me.

Reblog pin post

Donate here: https://gofund.me/a9d0f2d7

Thank you so much! 🙏❤️

Vatted by @nabulsi @90-ghost

!!!

[sottountrenopersherl]

Please support me

, I'm Karam Al Nabih from Gaza. My home, dreams, and university have been destroyed by the war. I'm a software engineer in my final semester, and I'm urgently seeking your support to rebuild my life and help my sick mother.

Please consider donating, even a small amount like 10 or 15 £, as every contribution makes a difference. If you can't donate, please share my story to help me reach my goal. Your support means the world to me.

Reblog pin post

Donate here: https://gofund.me/a9d0f2d7

Thank you so much! 🙏❤️

Vatted by @nabulsi @90-ghost

Please, reblog and donate if you can!

Free Palestine🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸

[carc1nog3n3t1c1st]

Please support me

, I'm Karam Al Nabih from Gaza. My home, dreams, and university have been destroyed by the war. I'm a software engineer in my final semester, and I'm urgently seeking your support to rebuild my life and help my sick mother.

Please consider donating, even a small amount like 10 or 15 £, as every contribution makes a difference. If you can't donate, please share my story to help me reach my goal. Your support means the world to me.

Reblog pin post

Donate here: https://gofund.me/a9d0f2d7

Thank you so much! 🙏❤️

Vatted by @nabulsi @90-ghost

some Destiel for y'all

[k4ijynxx]

Please support me

, I'm Karam Al Nabih from Gaza. My home, dreams, and university have been destroyed by the war. I'm a software engineer in my final semester, and I'm urgently seeking your support to rebuild my life and help my sick mother.

Please consider donating, even a small amount like 10 or 15 £, as every contribution makes a difference. If you can't donate, please share my story to help me reach my goal. Your support means the world to me.

Reblog pin post

Donate here: https://gofund.me/a9d0f2d7

Thank you so much! 🙏❤️

Vatted by @nabulsi @90-ghost

Please go support them!

[celestial-jellyfishstar]

Please support me

, I'm Karam Al Nabih from Gaza. My home, dreams, and university have been destroyed by the war. I'm a software engineer in my final semester, and I'm urgently seeking your support to rebuild my life and help my sick mother.

Please consider donating, even a small amount like 10 or 15 £, as every contribution makes a difference. If you can't donate, please share my story to help me reach my goal. Your support means the world to me.

Reblog pin post

Donate here: https://gofund.me/a9d0f2d7

Thank you so much! 🙏❤️

Vatted by @nabulsi @90-ghost

^

[sparkly-nicole]

😮‍💨

Okay. So most of what I posted was sort of an affirmation. I was NOT OK on election night and I just started lashing out at anyone I talked to. Dad, Sister, Her Boyfriend Etc. I have (probably pretty) advanced anxiety, and BP so when I start spiraling I’ve learned to try and breathe and tell myself positive things and not the absolute worst scenario. That is was I wrote. Is it actually how the world is? No. But it helps calm me down. I actually do have some problems (somehow a person with a VERY large issue of dealing with others, and multiple hospitalizations, I have difficulty finding a job. S H O C K I N G, also no healthcare, because America. I’m fortunate enough to have a solid support system, otherwise, I would live on the streets or be dead. Thanks for the reminder. Sometimes I’ve been technically homeless (luckily I have a strong support system who helped me. I may sleep on a couch or floor, but at least I’m protected from the elements)(I have had to rely on food banks, or juggle different bills. Water or Electric? Who knows, just choose and you’re probably be fine. Honestly I do mean lucky, I have the best type of support system to make sure I have at least a roof to sleep under.) Reading through some of these posts on TUMBLR, I’ve come to realize that the government, comes in second. I’m going to volunteer with free childcare at a local church. That is what I can do, at least for now. You may not be able to rely on the government, but you can rely on your community, your lifeline. If you are fortunate enough, that will be enough to help you carry on, and help others. Please help food banks, any sort of community volunteer organizations, and just, day by day, live and help others live as best as they can. I try not to use social media often because somehow people take things very differently from what I actually mean (again shocking)(WHO?), but I have been reading other posts about people supporting each other. Not the government, the people. Just please do what you can, a few donations to a food bank, or a little bit of money towards a community charity can help. There is something you can do to help, so please, if you can, support those around you. The government may not be able (or willing) to help, but you probably can. (Also, calling my Dad a POS was a bit far, I was upset most of election night, and lashed out in anger, but there was one (proposition?) to vote for that mentioned same sex and interracial marriage (interracial? Really? Roe vs. Wade is not enough, but now Loving vs. Virginia, is in question?) And that made him think. Hopefully most people are open enough to consider others. (Seriously though, someone is not a monolith, talk with them, and they might start to consider different issues. Just scream down their throat, and they’ll just shut down and double down on their believes.) If you (author) actually read the whole rambling speech, then thank, you. I’m not great with people, so if you know a way that I can help then please tell me. Mean and negative sniping never helps anyone, so if you truly want to help the USA, then tell me how. Don’t make a passive aggressive comment on how I’m wrong, or too privileged too care or understand current events. If you care, and if you can actually help. Don’t just twist around some mostly benign post.

F*ing hell. Sometimes I hate people, myself, everyone else, everything. Because of the USA Presidental election tonight, I got into a screaming match with most of my family (mostly my Dad & Bless His Heart in the best and worst way right now), and realized life shouldn’t be like this. Politics shouldn’t be a battleground that can divide families and honestly the whole country. But right now it is, and honestly that makes me really sad. This country was founded upon the idea that one Person cannot and should not control the fate of an entire country. (If you disagree with the (wording?) that’s cool, but please just be polite about it because tonight has been a frickin’ trip for me.) But returning to the issue, just please be calm. Breathe everyone, because as a group of people, one person cannot bring us down. They WILL not. Exercise your rights, protest peacefully, start petitions, contact state representatives. This is a moment. It will pass. With will, the USA WILL try to live up to the reputation of a country of freedom. People united are one, and people united can cause change and defend themselves. Keep the faith everyone, we WILL survive. We WILL prevail. (Looking back this sounds pretentious and rambly, but I am drunk now. Only way to make it through the night)

[plein-air-on-gorkhon]

Aid for the Alanqar family

Help Mohammed, Enas, and children Layan, Sara, Adam, and two month old Amir - to leave Gaza. #174 on El-Shab-Hussein's Google doc

€49k / €58k !

So, my dear followers:

Message me with proof of a donation to the Alanqar's campaign and I'll make you a little color palette or a custom digital paintbrush:

Plus, your name will be put into a raffle for a digital painting commission; drawing to be held on 10/15/24!

🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉

[tangledinink]

clenches fist. finally sucked it up and ordered a new ipad...

[infiniteglitterfall]

Palestinians to platform, part 1

مؤمن الناطور / Moumen Al-Natour

@MoumALnatour

رئيس الشباب الفلسطيني للتنمية / President of Palestinian Youth for Development

Moumen Al-Natour is amazing. Not only does he run a Palestinian youth organization that is doing great work in Gaza, but he's also one of the organizers of the 2019 anti-Hamas protests.

Even to criticize Hamas, in Gaza, means to be interrogated, and potentially jailed, tortured, and/or killed. To actively protest Hamas is many times more dangerous.

To have survived that work and continued doing it? I cannot imagine the emotional strength this dude has.

Here's what Center for Peace Communications (another great organization) has said about him:

So many Palestinians, in or from Palestine, are out there talking about what everyday life in Gaza is like. About Hamas, about Israel, about what they want and what they need, about their struggles and their interests and their families.

My goal, in finding people for you to follow and platform, is to help more voices get out of Gaza after years of suppression, and to help more outsiders (like me) connect with them.

People care SO MUCH about Palestine. But frequently, all there is to share is outrage, semi-accurate news, and more outrage. Frequently, we're not calling for the same things they are. We call for a ceasefire; they demand Hamas return the hostages and surrender. We call for Israel to let aid in; they say Israel is letting the aid in, but it's being stolen, and call for air drops rather than trucks. We call for Israel to stop fighting; they say they hope Israel takes Hamas out first.

We aren't centering their voices and experiences. We aren't lending our reach and our strength to their demands.

I want to make that possible.

Ala Mushtaha, the son of this imam, evidently said, “On Saturday December 30, our front door was busted down and twenty masked men barged in and took my father, a widely respected and deeply learned imam here in Gaza."

“One dragged him by his head and another grabbed him by his beard. My younger brother tried to intervene and reason with the kidnappers, but they beat him. I have a medical condition that makes it hard for me to breathe, so all I could do was watch as the horror unfolded.

“He wouldn’t preach what Hamas told him to. He refused to tell Gazans that violent resistance and obedience to Hamas, is the best way out of our current hell.”

ok this dude needs his own post honestly, he goes on to say so much intense stuff about their lives.

OMG his dad was actually released!

This is what I'm talking about. This is effective activism. Imagine what all these people could do if they had the entire global pro-Palestinian movement behind them.

Al-Natour posts a fair amount of political commentary.

The "we want to live" hashtag is a callback to the amazing "We Want To Live" protests he co-organized against Hamas, in Gaza in 2019, and again in the summer of 2023. Activist Hamida Howidzy (who will also be getting a separate post) wrote about them in Newsweek recently.

Some things he posts in Arabic and then in English. Some of his posts are in Arabic only. In the thread above, he actually posted a couple more that were just in Arabic, presumably aimed at Arabic-language comments.

What I like about Twitter is that you can whack the "translate post" button and get a pretty decent translation most of the time.

Translation:

"I saw all the responses... What is wrong and forbidden in reuniting the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem through elections in which the people choose who will represent them??!?? Why are all the responses offensive...a collaborator, a traitor, and contain insults that indicate that whoever wrote them needs restructuring?! What prevents us, after ending the war, from returning our choice and choice to the Palestinian people?!+

"Everyone wrote that I opened??!! how did you know???!! Stopping the war is the most important thing now... Whoever sees the condition of the people and feels all this is easy for him does not have humanity, and is not a human being... Whoever, after the destruction of more than 80% of Gaza and the North, and still writing in a way that wants the war to continue while he lives abroad, should reconsider. He accepted to live the same suffering!++"

Note: I copied the "I opened" bit and threw it into Google Translate separately, because that cannot be right. It still insisted that it meant "I opened".... but it gave me the transliterated words, "ani fatah."

Everyone wrote that he's Fatah -- the party that runs the West Bank, the one Hamas violently kicked out of Gaza in 2007-08.

"The end of my speech... I know... whoever is not with you is a traitor and an agent... shameful... by God, by God, by God... there will be an account[ing] for all of this talk... so that you understand the word agent... and the account will be through a government of law... It is clear that there are many who benefit from the poverty and destruction of Gaza, and they must be held accountable according to the law.

"Have mercy on people with your tongues"

The comment on that one is noteworthy:

"Yes, whoever is not with the resistance is indeed a traitor, and those who must be held accountable are the traitors, agents, hypocrites, liars, and racists who slander the resistance and who want to hold it accountable only because it fights the enemy of humanity and defends truth and the oppressed. If you want to apply the law, apply it to yourselves first."

It highlights how much of what we hear in the West is Hamas propaganda. That's a whole other post too. But Hamas claims to be "the resistance," to "defend truth and the oppressed," while arresting people who refuse to preach its propaganda. While jailing and torturing someone 20 times for organizing a protest.

Which are the exact tactics that make it so easy for their propaganda to reach us . And so hard for us to even know that there has been an entire protest movement against Hamas in Gaza, much less to support its activists.

I'll just cut and paste the translations from his most recent thread, above. All emphasis is mine:

"When demonstrations took place in Israel demanding that Netanyahu stop the war and free the hostages, Al Jazeera and Hamas considered it a victory and an achievement, and that the Israeli government was under pressure. But what is striking is that these demonstrations were not suppressed. They were secured. The hostage issue and public pressure were dealt with professionally.

"The demonstrations that took place in Gaza demanding an end to the war and the return of the displaced...they were classified as suspicious [by Al Jazeera etc] ...even though the displaced Israeli lives in a 5-star hotel and has the privileges of the displaced, and when the Palestinian displaced in Gaza receives help, he needs a mediator, and if he wants a tent, he needs leadership intervention, and if he does not have the mediator And the intervention wants to scratch his pocket..+++

"Why did Israel allow demonstrations and look pressured, always trying to contain everything... while we have a displaced person lost, homeless, and no one is trying to contain him, and when he talks, they call him a fifth column???"

Last month, he posted about pregnancy in wartime. Note the cost of the tent later in this thread! Numerous Palestinians have posted about humanitarian aid getting stolen -- by Hamas, by NGOs, by others -- and sold on the black market. Food and tents especially get mentioned a lot. Everyone mentions the tents are being sold for more than (the equivalent of) $700, even though they were supposed to be free.

I'll leave you with this one for now:

You can read all the posts in this series in my "platform palestine" tag.

[du-hjarta-skulblaka]

So yeah avoiding my phone didn't work and also meant I sat on the kitchen floor staring into space for about 3 hours before Alfie woke up but hey at least I didn't break anything

Them being around is helping a little but they're also struggling and it fuckin sucks bc I know we're both just. Rotating money stress in our minds

[ajarofpickledtears]

love ppl being like "if you blaze or have a checkmark you need to donate to my post" like I ordered food a few days ago or bought a video game last month do I need to donate to one of the thousands of donation posts now too because I dared spend money for something non-essential for myself

[ashraffamilynew]

Please help secure a future for an entire family - me, Ashraf, my wife Ghadeer, and our lovely innocent son Yamen 👶💙

Vetted by @el-shab-hussein and @nabulsi , fundraisers list Number (#328)

Vetted by @gazavetters, my number verified on their list ( #74 )

Vetted by /@90-ghost

Vetted on X platform on this spreadsheet (#391)

I'm Ashraf from the war-torn Gaza. I've lived an entire life under siege in Gaza, facing relentless military actions and life-threatening conditions daily. In October 2023, the conflict escalated drastically, devastating my newly built house, my neighborhood,my workplace, and jeopardizing the lives of my family.

I mourn the loss of our safe haven, but more urgently, I need to secure a future for my family away from the constant threat of bombings that have become our grim reality.

Meet Yamane, our precious seven-month-old. Who was born during this war, We aspire to provide him with opportunities that surpass our own experiences, fostering a future filled with joy and prosperity.

This campaign is a call to arms for all who believe in the transformative power of community support. By contributing, you're not just donating; you're actively shaping Yamane's world, ensuring his journey is filled with the promise and potential every child deserves. Join us in making a profound impact on his life

Yamen... he's only a baby. He doesn't understand the fear that grips us, the darkness that engulfs our lives. He just smiles, his eyes bright with innocent wonder, oblivious to the terror that surrounds him. He reaches for me with tiny hands, his laughter a fragile melody in this symphony of destruction. 💔

But how long can this innocence last? How long can we shield him from the reality of this war? How long can we keep him safe? 😥

Current Progress 🩷🕊€9,800/ €20,000

I’m overwhelmed with gratitude to share that we’ve raised €9,800 of our €20,000 goal. Your generosity is a beacon of hope for my family, especially for my little baby boy Yaman👶🩷, who deserves a future free from fear and filled with opportunity.

Thank you for standing with us during this incredibly challenging time. Your support means the world to us, 🌺🩷🌿🕊

But we still need your help to reach our goal. Please continue to share our campaign and consider contributing if you can. Together, we can create a brighter future for Yamane and all children affected by this conflict.

Vetted by @el-shab-hussein and @nabulsi , fundraisers list Number (#328)

Vetted by @gazavetters, my number verified on their list ( #74 )

Vetted by /@90-ghost

Vetted on X platform on this spreadsheet (#391)

[heritageposts]

I'm writing this post to bring attention to the GFM campaign of @nor-famaily, a mother of five in Gaza.

Last week, Nour came very close to dying. She was out getting food for her family when a building close to their tent was bombed. Because of the injuries Nour suffered, she now has to rely more on her children, the oldest being only 13, to secure water and food for the family's survival.

If you have the means, please consider donating. Even a small donation could make a big difference!

-> Donation link

Currently at: $9,145 / $90,000

For information on how this campaign has been vetted and organized, see this post by @/killy.