#its insanely unfair that i have this privilege but while i have it i will fucking use it. mark my words.

[boimgfrog]

only good thing abt my terrible dad's side of the family being extremely well-known and held in positive regard by my community is that it makes me virtually untouchable by the law enforcement of the area. as soon as a cop sees my name in their system they're like oh? you're a [insert surname here]? which one of the [surname] boys is your dad? oh, [dad's name]? yeah, I know him. tell him I said hi for me, would you? and then I get off scott free. this is AWFUL from a social justice standpoint, but EXCELLENT for me because I love speeding.

[virtuallaundry]

honestly i would just say to wait for an update from enikara cuz theres no way this situation would ever go down quietly but i really do think its important for ppl to remember that these are corpos

people are saying shit like "being a corpo is so risky, this yug0 situation is so scary cuz he didnt get to say anything or keep any of his content" or whatever but that is quite literally part of the job. the person behind him may be real but yug0 is a character owned by en1kara and they are technically allowed to do what they want with him. the model isnt owned by the employee. the stuff they put out while under the corp is technically not theirs to own. the corp has these vmodels premade and hires people that they feel might fit the job. they have control BECAUSE they are the corp, they are the employers, they are BRAND, and if they consider someone to be acting out of line of the brand (or worse) it is their privilege to step in.

and to repeat what i said en1kara is a fairly lenient company. they only care so much about their livers profits. they give them a HUGE amount of creative control over their character, what they do, what type of content they make, etc. as a company they have largely been ok at dealing with problems without being too unfair so i do think that in this situation there is something that isnt being seen by fans that resulted in this messy situation

ok actually this sounds insane so as an addendum theres no way en1kara is a completely good company (there is no such thing) and the legalities of their system are probably different from what ive said but thats my general understaning of what being a corpo is

oh shit yug0 got fired thats wild

ik that everyone is being all sad or whatever and its super sudden, but from a logical standpoint, companies (ESPECIALLY en1kara) dont just fire an employee for no reason. certainly at the very least not for being unsuccessful in terms of money made, and even then that probably wouldnt apply here since he was a member of en which is arguably one of their most lucrative branches

for them to fire him like this out of the blue without even his coworkers or even GENMATES it would probably take a massive issue and from my understanding he has never been in en1karas good graces in the first place, especially during his beginning where the way he acted was unsavory to some viewers

from the wording in their statement it seems that yug0 and management REALLY butted heads with each other so whatever the verdict ill be honest theres a good chance i might side with managemenr and not yug0

[bloodbenderz]

humaniterations (dot) net/2014/10/13/an-anarchist-perspective-on-the-red-lotus/ this article from oct 2014 is very dense — truly, a lot to unpack here, but I feel like you would find this piece interesting. I would love it if you shared your thoughts on the points that stood out to you, whether you agree or disagree. you obv don’t have to respond to it tho, but I’m sending it as an ask jic you feel like penning (and sharing) a magnificent essay, as is your wont 💕

article

i know this took me forever 2 answer SORRY but i just checked off all the things on my to do list for the first time in days today so. Essay incoming ladies!

ok im SO glad u sent me this bc it’s so so good. it’s a genuinely thoughtful criticism of the politics in legend of korra (altho i think its sometimes a little mean to korra unnecessarily like there’s no reason to call her a “petulant brat” or say that she throws tantrums but i do understand their point about her being an immature and reactionary hero, which i’ll get back to) and i think the author has a good balance between acknowledging like Yeah the lok writers were american liberals and wrote their show accordingly and Also writing a thorough analysis of lok’s politics that felt relevant and interesting without throwing their hands up and saying this is all useless liberal bullshit (which i will admit that i tend to do).

this article essentially argues that the red lotus antagonists of s3 were right. And that’s not an uncommon opinion i think but this gives it serious weight. Like, everything that zaheer’s gang did was, in context, fully understandable. of course the red lotus would be invested in making sure that the physically and spiritually and politically most powerful person in the world ISNT raised by world leaders and a secret society of elites that’s completely unaccountable to the people! of course the red lotus wants to bring down tyrannical governments and allow communities to form and self govern organically! and the writers dismiss all of that out of hand by 1. consistently framing the red lotus as insane and murderous (korra never actually gives zaheer’s ideas a chance or truly considers integrating them into her own approach) 2. representing the death of the earth queen as not just something that’s not necessarily popular (what was with mako’s bootlicker grandma, i’d love to know) but as something that causes unbelievable violence and chaos in ba sing se (which, like, a lot of history and research will tell you that people in disasters tend towards prosocial behaviors). so the way the story frames each of these characters and ideologies is fascinating because like. if you wanted to write season 3 of legend of korra with zaheer as the protagonist and korra as the antagonist, you wouldn’t actually have to change the sequence of events at all, really. these writers in particular and liberal writers in general LOVE writing morally-gray-but-ultimately-sympathetic characters (like, almost EVERY SINGLE fire nation character in the first series, who were full on violent colonizers but all to a degree were rehabilitated in the eyes of the viewer) but instead of framing the red lotus as good people who are devoted to justice and freedom and sometimes behave cruelly to get where theyre trying to go, they frame them as psychopaths and murderers who have good intentions don’t really understand how to make the world a better place.

and the interesting thing about all this, about the fact that the red lotus acted in most cases exactly as it should have in context and the only reason its relegated to villain status is bc the show is written by liberals, is that the red lotus actually points out really glaring sociopolitical issues in universe! like, watching the show, u think well why the fuck HASN’T korra done anything about the earth queen oppressing her subjects? why DOESN’T korra do anything about the worse than useless republic president? why the hell are so many people living in poverty while our mains live cushy well fed lives? how come earth kingdom land only seems to belong to various monarchs and settler colonists, instead of the people who are actually indigenous to it? the show does not want to answer these questions, because american liberal capitalism literally survives on the reality of oppressive governments and worse than useless presidents and people living in poverty while the middle/upper class eats and indigenous land being stolen. if the show were to answer these questions honestly, the answer would be that the status quo in real life (and the one on the show that mirrors real life) Has To Change.

So they avoid answering these questions honestly in order for the thesis statement to be that the status quo is good. and the only way for the show to escape answering these questions is for them to individualize all these broad social problems down into Good people and Bad people. so while we have obvious bad ones like the earth queen we also have all these capitalists and monarchs and politicians who are actually very nice and lovely people who would never hurt anyone! which is just such an absurd take and it’s liberal propaganda at its best. holding a position of incredible political/economic power in an unjust society is inherently unethical and maintaining that position of power requires violence against the people you have power over. which is literally social justice 101. but there’s literally no normal, average, not-politically-powerful person on the show. so when leftist anarchism is presented and says that destroying systems that enforce extreme power differentials is the only way to bring peace and freedom to all, the show has already set us up to think, hey, fuck you, top cop lin beifong and ford motor ceo asami sato are good people and good people like them exist! and all we have to do to move forward and progress as a society is to make sure we have enough good individuals in enough powerful positions (like zuko as the fire lord ending the war, or wu as the earth king ending the monarchy)! which is of course complete fiction. liberal reform doesn’t work. but by pretending that it could work by saying that the SYSTEM isnt rotten it’s just that the people running it suck and we just need to replace those people, it automatically delegitimizes any radical movements that actually seek to change things.

and that’s the most interesting thing about this article to me is that it posits that the avatar...might actually be a negative presence in the world. the avatar is the exact same thing: it’s a position of immense political and physical power bestowed completely randomly, and depending on the moral character and various actions of who fills that position at any given time, millions of people will or won’t suffer. like kyoshi, who created the fascist dai li, like roku, who refused to remove a genocidal dictator from power, like aang, who facilitated the establishment of a settler colonial state on earth kingdom land. like korra! she’s an incredibly immature avatar and a generally reactionary lead. i’ve talked about this at length before but she never actually gets in touch with the needs of the people. she’s constantly running in elite circles, exposed only to the needs and squabbles of the upper class! how the hell is she supposed to understand the complexities of oppression and privilege when she was raised by a chess club with inordinate amounts of power and associates almost exclusively with politicians and billionaires?? from day 1 we see that she tends to see things in very black and white ways which is FINE if you’re a privileged 17 yr old girl seeing the world for the first time but NOT FINE if you’re the single most powerful person in the world! Yeah, korra thinks the world is probably mostly fine and just needs a little whipping into shape every couple years, because all she has ever known is a mostly fine world! in s1 when mako mentions that he as a homeless impoverished teenager worked for a gang (which is. Not weird. Impoverished people of every background are ALWAYS more likely to resort to socially unacceptable ways of making money) korra is like “you guys are criminals?????!!!!!” she was raised in perfect luxury by a conservative institution and just never developed beyond that. So sure, if the red lotus raised her anarchist, probably a lot would’ve been different/better, but....they didn’t. and korra ended up being a reactionary and conservative avatar who protected monarchs and colonialist politicians. The avatar as a position is completely subject to the whims of whoever is currently the avatar. and not only does that suck for everyone who is not the avatar, not only is it totally unfair to whatever kid who grows up knowing the fate of the world is squarely on their shoulders, but it as a concept is a highly individualist product of the authors’ own western liberal ideas of progress! the idea that one good leader can fix the world (or should even try) based on their own inherent superiority to everyone else is unbelievably flawed and ignores the fact that all real progress is brought about as a result of COMMUNITY work, as a result of normal people working for themselves and their neighbors!

the broader analysis of bending was really interesting to me too, but im honestly not sure i Totally agree with it. the article pretty much accepts the show’s assertion that bending is a privilege (and frankly backs it up much better than the original show did, but whatever), and i don’t think that’s NECESSARILY untrue since it is, like, a physical advantage (the author compares it to, for example, the fact that some people are born athletically gifted and others are born with extreme physical limitations), but i DO think that it discounts the in universe racialization of bending. in any sequel to atla that made sense, bending as a race making fact would have been explored ALONGSIDE the physical advantages it bestows on people. colonialism and its aftermath is generally ignored in this article which is its major weakness i think, especially in conjunction with bending. you can bring up the ideas the author did about individual vs community oriented progress in the avatar universe while safely ignoring the colonialism, but you can’t not bring up race and colonialism when you discuss bending. especially once you get to thinking about how water/earth/airbenders were imprisoned and killed specifically because bending was a physical advantage, and that physical advantage was something that would have given colonized populations a means of resistance and that the fire nation wanted to keep to itself.

i think that’s the best lens thru which to analyze bending tbh! like in the avatar universe bending is a tool that different ethnic groups tend to use in different ways. at its best, bending actually doesn’t represent social power differences (despite representing a physical power difference) because it’s used to represent/maintain community solidarity. like, take the water tribe. katara being the last waterbender, in some way, makes her the last of a part of swt CULTURE. the implication is that when there were a lot of waterbenders in the south, they dedicated their talents to building community and helping their neighbors, because this was something incredibly culturally important and important to the water tribe as a community. the swt as a COLLECTIVE values bending for what it can do for the entire tribe, which counts for basically every other talent a person can have (strength, creativity, etc). the fire nation, by contrast, distorts the community value of bending by racializing it: anyone who bends an element that isn’t fire is inherently NOT fire nation (and therefore inherently inferior) and, because of the physical power that bending confers, anyone who bends an element that isn’t fire is a threat to fire nation hegemony. and in THAT framework of bending, it’s something that intrinsically assigns worth and reifies race in a way that’s conveniently beneficial to the oppressor.

it IS worth talking about how using Element as a way to categorize people reifies nations, borders, and race in a way that is VERY characteristic of white american liberals. i tried to be conscious of that (and the way that elements/bending can act in DIFFERENT ways, depending on cultural context) but i think it’s pretty clear that the writers did intend for element to unequivocally signify nation (and, by extension, race), which is part of why they screwed up mixed families so bad in lok. when they’ve locked themselves into this idea that element=nation=race, they end up with sets of siblings like mako and bolin or kya tenzin and bumi, who all “take” after only one parent based on the element that they bend. which is just completely stupid but very indicative of how the writers actually INTENDED element/bending to be a race making process. and its both fucked up and interesting that the writers display the same framework of race analysis that the canonical antagonists of atla do.

anyway that’s a few thoughts! thank u again for sending the article i really loved it and i had a lot of fun writing this <3

[hahanoiwont]

@bluerose2017 replied to this post: I feel that Frisk would get along so well with the more murder type sanses. Like Dust Sans from Dusttale, Nightmare, Killer, and Error. Frisk would understand their motives for being the bad guys.

Yes!!! oh boy, yes. ok ok let's go down a really self-indulgent path with this, alright? we're about to have good fun. which i will put under a cut bc it may get long. (EDIT: haha yeah it got long. multiverse shenanigans ahoy)

so let's say Frisk follows the path from Fall Into Grace. They go straight to Horrortale, and they stay there for a bit--sure, Ht!Sans starts out hostile, but the both of them slowly learn to trust each other. By inches, they try to come to understand each other. They both have in common that they were lurched from a deeply violent society into Regular Undertale (but spooky); they both clearly broadcast their trust issues, and therefore can work on them together. At the end of Horrortale, they're planning on sticking it out together on the Surface.

Then Frisk disappears. In Horrortale, their disappearance is while Sans is looking elsewhere--it's just like HT!Frisk's disappearance originally, except this time, they got everyone to the Surface first.

So now, Horror is having his triggers stomped on. Not a fan. He wonders at first if this is just what happens--maybe Frisk is meant to disappear, and HT!Frisk didn't mean to abandon the Underground to its fate. Maybe Frisk isn't a human at all, but some sort of apparition that appears periodically and vanishes just as quick. Maybe he's still starving and it's all a delusion his mind made for him as he's dying.

Or maybe Red crashes through, absolutely ready to shoot first and ask questions later. And suddenly Horror has his answers. Alternate universes. Obviously. Very stabby alternate universes.

Frisk, meanwhile, lands in Dusttale.

Dusttale, to my knowledge, is the AU where the human (whether it's Frisk, Chara, or the player is unclear to me) does genocide after genocide, resetting dozens or hundreds of times until not only does Sans remember, he also goes insane. Given the inevitability of all his friends dying, and how his low stats prevent him from fighting the human until they've killed enough people that his karma effect becomes useful, he decides he's going to kill everyone, gain the LV for it, and then kill the human as soon as they come around.

This is not a great situation for Frisk to be wandering into. Given that they're nearly identical (clothing aside) to their Dusttale counterpart, and Sans is insane anyway, they're not likely to see mercy in this world. Frisk walks in, sees that Sans is crazy, dies, walks in, sees that Sans is crazy, dies, walks in...

Eventually, a la WT!Swapfell, Frisk figures out the right ways to dodge as much as possible of the initial ambush; but they can survive for minutes at a time, if that. This Sans's stats are hopelessly inflated, and he doesn't play fair. It comes down to their DETERMINATION versus his, in a mirror of the same struggle that drove him crazy in the first place. This time, Sans is inevitably killing every monster, and Frisk is the one who can't save them. But, in a conflict of interests like this, Frisk is always going to win--they have an unfair advantage, straight out. They're simply more DETERMINED.

Eventually, Sans is stumbling bleakly through his genocide, disassociated to the point of hardly understanding what he's doing and why. He kills people because he kills people. He has a vague certainty that he's keeping them safe, but he doesn't understand how. He knows that he used to be different. He knows this is somehow Frisk's fault. But his ability to remember across RESETs is being buried under his inability to think straight under the massive trauma. He doesn't understand why he's killing his brother. He knows he doesn't want to. He knows that Frisk can probably tell him, but he also needs to kill Frisk very quickly, before they can gain EXP from...the piles of dust?...because there are no surviving monsters to kill.

He finally stops before killing Frisk and asks them why. Why are they making him do this over and over again? Why are they looking at him like that? Why is everyone dead? Why, when he's felt so numb for so long, does it still feel like it hurts?

Frisk has no idea why this Sans has killed everyone. Months have passed in increments of a day or less, as Sans swiftly and efficiently executes all of his neighbors. He's learned every place that people will go, and he shows up where the most people are congregated at a given point in time, leaving nothing but dust by the time Frisk gets through the Ruins. They've never gotten out in time to save a single monster. They're pretty sure Sans is possessed, or something, because this isn't something he would ever do (insert irony with Red's desire to kill literally everyone in Underfell).

When Sans doesn't kill them right out the gate, as it were, they begin to hope that whatever has been forcing him to do this has let go, or at least worn out enough that he's beginning to fight through it. They're not totally wrong--whatever is left of Sans is waking up, a little bit, as he leaves behind his scripted execution.

Frisk goes to Dust and tries to hold him, rocking back and forth like Red would do for them when they woke up out of a nightmare. He almost kills them for it, but what's the point? They'd just come back, and Dust would have to kill everyone one more time. He's tired. He lets them do what they want. It mostly makes him feel worse, but he doesn't stop them.

There's a strong parallel here to Going Big; Going Home. In that story, Red went into a deep depression spiral for months following his realization that he couldn't bring himself to kill every monster in existence even if it would save his brother; in this story, Dust has killed everyone already and no longer sees any point in much of anything, struggling to understand what has happened to him and why he did what he did. He wants to Fall Down quietly, but his newfound stats and his desire to survive until he's sure Frisk is dead won't let him. Also, Frisk is standing in his way.

Seeing as Dust is apparently going to be docile and passive for the time being, Frisk takes his hand and walks him through Snowdin.

They see a vision of a massacre.

Piles of dust, items lying around as if people just dropped dead in the middle of whatever they were doing. Doors are hanging open from where people went to greet their friendly neighborhood skeleton and ask what he was knocking for, only to die in seconds. The Underground was only somewhat prepared for a human to go through and get violent, and they weren't prepared at all for one of their own to kill them. Frisk sees every evidence of a very efficient, merciless slaughter. Dust is looking blankly at it all, like he can't quite put together what it means.

Frisk gets a strong feeling that they shouldn't visit their brothers' home.

Instead, they bring him to a cabin far removed from town, visible only from Glyde's ledge, and push him to sit in a wooden armchair. They pat his hand to tell him to stay there while they look through the cabin for dust. They don't find any. Dust could have told them they wouldn't, except that he's having trouble finding his voice right now. He waits where they put him until they give him the all clear.

He's supposed to watch the human. They're supposed to be doing something for him to watch them for. But the kid in front of him seems mostly interested in holding his hand and trying to smile for him. He sits in stasis, with his drive all run out but without anything else to turn to.

The first week is mostly silent. Frisk doesn't speak, and doesn't really communicate anything that Dust would need a response for. Dust chats with his hallucination of Papyrus sometimes, but since Frisk can't see him, the conversations end there.

On a given day, Frisk will set Dust up in the chair with a book that they've decided he'd like, sometimes with a blanket or a glass of milk to go with it, and they'll venture out to the Underground. Dust will shadow them from a distance as they investigate for survivors. There aren't any. They'll come home with some supplies and fill up the cupboards. Dust will already be there, right where they left him, with the book opened up to a random different page than before. If it's towards the end of the book, Frisk will decide that he liked it and try to find more books of that kind.

They'll go to the kitchen and try to put something together for dinner, and Dust will take all the cooking implements from them and actually make the thing they're trying at. He silently revokes their cooking privileges when they try to shatter a bottle of vinegar into a salad. Papyrus says he should have just eaten it. He also says that Dust is infecting Frisk with his horrible tastes in food, just like he's probably infecting them with the dust on his hands. How long until they're a killer like him? Dust tries to argue that they were the killer in the first place, but the words ironically die in his mouth. The truth is bitter, and he's not even sure what it is anymore.

After that, Frisk is allowed to taste test and get ingredients, and otherwise they're watching with their eyes and not their hands.

Once the food is eaten and cleaned up, Frisk will bring out something for the two of them to do together. Board games, card games, hangman, puzzles. Frisk always deals for two. Dust doesn't see a point in fighting them on it, which Frisk decides is a very hopeful sign. Sometimes he breaks the rules and just sort of moves one thing to another spot blindly, but he is moving!

Frisk usually wins these games on account of being the only one paying attention, but since they let him keep his illegal moves, he wins Sorry by sorta pushing his pawns into his safety zone on the fourth turn. After the game, Frisk always decides it's bedtime, gives Dust another book, and leads him to a bedroom, where they leave him to take it from there. Rinse and repeat the next morning.

The second week, Dust starts glancing at the titles of the books he's given, and maybe the summary if it seems interesting. He tells them not to bring him encyclopedias anymore. They bring him a dictionary instead. It takes him four minutes to decide whether killing them is an appropriate response.

(Verdict: no. It wouldn't make a difference, anyway.)

The third week, he walks with them on an outing. Frisk steers away from population centers and takes a back way through Waterfall to look at the lights. They sit there in silence--even Papyrus is quiet. The echo flowers have each had their messages replaced with a single, loud clap. Nobody says, "Why are you doing this? What--Sans, wait, wait--!"

The fourth week, Dust starts reading the books he's supposedly been reading all day during the night. It's weird to feel bored in the ashes of civilization. He tells Frisk short, single-sentence descriptions of the more interesting ones. They seem happy. Dust is pretty sure there's some sort of Stockholm syndrome going on here, but he's not sure which way it goes.

One universe over, Red and Horror are searching through a universe that seems like it's had some extradimensional interference, but it can't possibly be the one Frisk is in, because it's a dead Underground. As far as they can tell, there are no survivors. Still, they keep coming back to it--it's the only potential positive they've found. And even though the universe seems to be a dead end, things keep moving in it--a book vanished here, a cupboard rearranged there. It's like someone is very stealthily looting the place.

After seven weeks of quiet, routine days with quiet, routine ups and downs, Dust is taking charge of a few things. He tells Frisk what groceries to get, and decides what to make for meals. He's attempting his first joke in a long time when he dryly bans Monopoly forever, but somewhat to his surprise, Frisk listens. The Monopoly board doesn't come out again. He's not sure what to make of this--that the person who drove him crazy is the person who's trying to make him sane. Most of the time, he chooses to forget that there's anything but this. Two people exist in the world, and one of them is an unstoppable killer and the other is a patient, even-tempered pacifist. He can't even tell which one is which anymore. It's whatever.

Left to his own devices, Dust may have spent years or longer like that. The Underground may not have the resources to sustain all of its inhabitants without things like farmers or energy, but it's got plenty for two people. But Frisk writes a very short letter for him, saying, can we try again? Can you not kill Papyrus? I miss him and I want him to be alive.

Well, with an argument like that.

Dust doesn't really want to see a RESET. It feels like it isn't worth it, having everyone alive again just to watch them die. Even if Frisk doesn't kill them, who's to say Dust won't? Even if he doesn't kill them, who's to say that Frisk won't, either? Maybe the Underground will just cave in. Dust is sure he can't have that life again, surrounded by living people when even Frisk and his hallucinations seem like a crowd sometimes. He's pretty sure his LV stopped going down a few RESETs ago. He doesn't think he can be Sans again.

Eventually, he decides it doesn't really matter what he wants. Frisk will do whatever they want and there's nothing he can do to stop them.

After the RESET, Dust wakes up to his brother's voice, telling him it's time to start the day, and also his brother's ghost, already with him as always. He goes to the square just to see if he's gonna lose it and kill everyone, and now that he's looking, he notices the split-second flinches when people recognize him. Most of them don't even notice it in themselves, but they know he's something dangerous. He heads to the Ruins door and waits.

It's easier once Frisk comes out. No one in the Ruins is dead. Dust and Frisk both didn't kill them, this time around. If he sticks really close to Frisk, he can pretend everyone's apprehension is just for the human in their midst. After all, Frisk is just as much a killer as he is. It's not his fault his LV's stuck at 20.

Frisk has a tough time making friends. The people of the Underground seem to expect them to be some terrifying killer, and everyone seems to want to protect each other by killing Frisk. It doesn't help that Dust doesn't like people in his space much, and flashes his spooky-eye look at anyone who gets within about three feet of the two of them. They're not quite sure who he thinks he's protecting, but they trust him to have good reasons to do what he does.

The only time Dust leaves their side for any significant period is when they're with the real, alive Papyrus, who frets about his brother. Sans has gone missing, he explains, but no one will believe him because they've all seen him around. But he hasn't come home. People who don't come home are missing. So Sans is missing. He's certainly missing dinner, and Papyrus needs to get him to come home before he eats nothing but ketchup and grease for his meals. Frisk knows their own Papyrus well enough to see what he isn't saying--that Papyrus needs to get him to come home before anything bad can happen to him. That Sans disappearing when he seems so listless and blank can't be a good thing. That Papyrus is scared for his brother.

Dust can't stand to see his living brother. The idea puts him in a cold sweat. If Papyrus is living, then Papyrus can die. He prefers the phantom--cruel as he is, at least he'll never leave Dust alone. Dust can never hurt him and never kill him. Frisk can't even see him. As long as Dust is alive to see him, Papyrus's ghost is safe.

When Frisk breaks the Barrier, Dust disappears quickly afterwards. They find him standing alone a little farther down the cliffside, isolating himself; and they grab his hand again like they always do, to bring him back home. They're surprised when they fall out of the world--they almost forgot. They'd almost hoped it wouldn't happen.

Dust doesn't try to stop them. Just like always, he follows them through. He kind of hopes for oblivion, for an end to choices that he always makes into mistakes, but he's not so lucky. He wakes up to Frisk's frantic shaking in a patch of flowers far Underground. This is Underswap, and Dust is about to have a horrible day.

I think in this AU, I'm going to leave Killer's story--mostly because I don't know his backstory very well, just that he's Nightmare's right hand man and assorted other factoids. And since Nightmare isn't technically a Sans, just the embodiment of negative emotions, his universe wouldn't even be in the running for Frisk to land in--similarly, I am too charmed by Error's story to change it. So here's where I think this goes from here.

Nightmare arrives in Horrortale, intending to recruit Horror. The guy's life is miserable, there's no reason for him not to hop out of his universe to cause mayhem as long as it's better than starving. But the universe isn't the same anymore. Nightmare considers wrecking stuff in order to snack off of negative emotions, but Horror and Red are scanning the hell out of the universe, so Horror is able to pick up on a hole being punched in it and appear in a matter of minutes. He asks why Nightmare is here, and Nightmare says honestly that he was here to recruit him as part of a small team to complete certain missions, embodiment of negativity, eternal struggle in the multiverse between Nightmare and Dream, food and five-star lodging provided, etc. But it seems like he's got something going here, so...?

Nightmare is honestly fairly impressed that someone noticed him entering the universe so quickly, and he's hoping Horror may still be interested. It's too bad that Nightmare can't get Horror's lifelong trust and allegiance by rescuing him from a bad situation, but he's certain he can make it work. He only has one minion as of right now, that being Killer, and he'd like to have at least one more (if only so Killer will stop bothering him when he's trying to Plot Evilly. Also, Dream has two friends to Nightmare's one minion, and Nightmare can't be lagging behind, that's just unacceptable).

Horror may not need immediate rescue himself, but he sure knows someone who does. He asks a few careful questions about the multiverse--would i be able to visit other universes on my own? Yes. am i allowed to interfere with other universes? Encouraged, even. Especially where spreading misery is concerned. can i take someone out of a universe if they don't belong in it? What an oddly specific question. Nightmare is beginning to think he'll have a way to endear himself to Horror, after all.

Horror dismisses his questions as mostly being about the job he'll be doing--after all, if he's fighting people who travel between universes, of course he'd want to know if there are ways to track people across universes, or to tell if there's someone in a universe that doesn't belong there. Nightmare lets it pass without comment for the time being, but decides to keep an eye on the situation, to try to figure out what exactly Horror is looking for. If he's willing to leave his whole life behind and set himself up for a lifetime of fighting just for a chance to find it, then Nightmare has an easy way to earn his eternal loyalty. Muahaha.

Now of course, this is all for Evil reasons and not because Nightmare isn't sure how to make people like him if he doesn't provide some service or do some great favor for them. He certainly hasn't seen people love his brother for the happiness he provides, and said "I could do that >:( I could do Good Things for people and then they would Like Me and not hate me >:( and in fact I would do it while being Very Evil so I know they'll like me for me and not just because I'm, for example, a paragon of light and hope in the multiverse >>:( and then I would have better friends than Dream. and he will be super jealous. because i will have friends who like me. so there >>>:( this is what WINNING looks like, brother >:("

Now this would leave Red in the awkward position of being in the wrong universe and also missing in his own universe. I am not sure what I want to do with him here--he could come with Horror, and just sorta hang out as a Bad Sans. I know he's not normally one, but he comes from Edgy Universe so I could see it? But also, I know canonically Error steals from Red's chocolate supply, so I think it would be kind of hilarious if Error's been pissed bc his stock isn't being replenished, being as Red isn't around to buy more. And Nightmare could just. dump Red back in Underfell. Both as a favor to Error, to try to secure his loyalties at least a little, and as a show of how Powerful and Evil he is for his brand new recruit. Both options are tempting...I am undecided. But uh, something happens with Red. He is somewhere. Horror probably wouldn't just ditch him in Horrortale on his lonesome.

Now, Horror and Killer get along alright. Killer's got the sarcastic fast-talker charm, and Horror is getting used to being able to hold conversations at a normal speed again. And both of them get along with Nightmare. Killer is witty and challenging, and Horror is loyal and hardworking and (VERY important) knows how to cook great meals. No more mediocre fried rice. Scrambled eggs are no longer mysteriously watery. It is shocking how much home life improves with good food, and Horror is a big fan of having a seemingly endless pantry. His stipulation that a portion of everything gets sent home to Papyrus is a pain at first, but it's not so bad once it gets ingrained as a normal part of mealtimes. Sometimes his Papyrus visits, and that goes about as well as meeting family members of a dear friend for the first time can go. A bit awkward, but it settles into something positive.

The only weird thing is, with every new universe, Horror insists on making sure there's no one there who isn't native to that universe before havoc can begin. It's not a huge pain or anything, and it is a good move strategically, but it's a very specific request. Once it happens enough for Killer to get curious, it isn't long until the cat's out of the bag--a story of a sibling accidentally cast aside, a world that was cruel and unfair to them, a misunderstanding that made their brother think they were horrible and abandoned him to an awful fate when actually they'd done nothing wrong, and an endless journey that never seems to point home. And Horror was willing to put aside everything to try to bring them back--if not home, then at least to somewhere safe. To build new common ground together, after the old grounds went up in flames. To understand their side of it and see that they weren't wrong even if things looked kinda bad on their end, actually everything they did was completely justified, Dream--

Suffice to say that Nightmare is sympathetic. That is, he can see the strategic advantage to helping Horror find this sibling of his, and reunite them. Because then he'll have an endlessly loyal minion, and probably also an endlessly loyal minion-in-training. Obviously. He doesn't even believe in brotherly love, so obviously it's not out of some imagined desire to see his friend family underling scrape a happy ending out of what seems like an unrecoverable falling-out (complete with literal falling, in this case) with his sibling. It's just a matter of spending a tiny amount of effort searching for a months-old trace of a magical trail that's interrupted by not existing in some parts on account of time travel.

Killer iirc can't feel much of anything but hate, but he doesn't hate Horror, and it's not like he's forgotten what emotions are entirely. He does want the guy to be happy. They're kinda buds and Horror watches obscure competition shows at 3am with him when they both can't sleep. It'd be a little awkward to have a Frisk around, but at least it's not Chara. Most people he meets on a day-to-day basis are technically versions of him, anyway, and it's not like he can't differentiate them. He'd put up with it for Horror's sake. He'll only stab them if they're possessed, probably.

Thing is, when they do find Frisk (eventually Nightmare thinks to call in a favor from Error), Frisk is traveling universe to universe with some apathetic LV 20 Sans who is still trying to figure out when murder is and isn't the way he wants to solve his problems. Namely with other Sanses, since he has enough self-hatred that he can't imagine it's much of a loss. Thing is, he fcking hates it when Frisk time-travels, and it makes Frisk miserable, too, so he can't just murder every Sans who annoys him even slightly...but most Sanses don't take kindly to some LV 20 stranger wandering through...which means everything would just be easier if they were to go missing...not like more dust on his hands is gonna make a difference, right?

But no, Frisk always insists on going back to when the local Sans was alive, and it's just a waste of time and energy. So Dust mostly doesn't kill anyone who isn't a real jerk first. Mostly.

This is the scene that Nightmare & Co come upon when they finally catch up. They have to take a moment to regroup, because who even is this guy? He never leaves Frisk's side for long (local Sanses have a tendency to ambush and kill him for being a violent lunatic if they can get him alone, and then at least one party dies, and then time travel, etc.), he talks to thin air, he's generally Kinda Creepy.

Their initial thought is to try to get Frisk alone, but Dust in this time has noticed that they're being followed by a group of very suspicious characters, and tells Frisk to go on ahead while he lurks. It comes to a pretty devastating battle, between Dust's combat prowess and the gang's equally impressive abilities (Killer having done his own geno run, Nightmare having an impressive body count and also massive raw power on account of being kind of a demigod, and Horror himself being no slouch in combat). Frisk sits over in the next room like they're in the waiting room for a dentist's office, poking at echo flowers and waiting for their brother to be done with Mysterious Errands while ignoring three separate variations of Megalovania in the background.

Then Frisk figures, wait, there are a maximum of two Sanses...but three Megalovanias...that ain't right. Also, Dust said he wasn't gonna kill the local Sans this time. He didn't promise, but he said he would try, so he really shouldn't be sneaking off to pick fights. This is the conclusion Frisk comes to about six seconds before the wall is destroyed by stray blaster fire.

What they see through the wall is Dust, teleporting right out of combat to make sure they didn't get hurt or vaporized, and out of the rubble they can make out a goopy octopus Sans, a Target Sans (which makes other Sanses...walmart brand? food for thought), and a Sans that takes a second to place, because they really weren't expecting to see Horror here. And fighting Dust. Frisk is disappointed in him.

When the dust (magical and otherwise) settles, everyone ends up having a civilized conversation by the combined forces of Frisk and Nightmare. Killer and Dust were having fun, but not much was getting accomplished with massive property damage. It comes out that Nightmare's crew was coming by to get Frisk and rescue them from their endless tumble through the multiverse (which Error claims is giving him a headache anyway), and Frisk is very happy to agree to that part, and also to go live in a cool castle "for the time being." Allegedly, they will find somewhere else to stay soon, because Nightmare is not running a daycare for wayward interdimensional youth.

Frisk's condition is that Dust has to come with them, since he's been hopping through dimensions following them for so long now that they don't know what they'd do without him. Literally, every time the Barrier comes down, he waits for the hole in the world to open, takes a couple warm-up steps, and dives through after Frisk--he hasn't found a universe he could stand to stay in, yet. He hates the idea of living among people he remembers killing over and over again. At least if he follows Frisk around, he's with someone who seems to care about him for mystery reasons, and he might some day find an AU he'd be okay with. Maybe whichever one they settle with, if they find a way to stop falling. Which, it seems like they've got an opportunity here.

Nightmare is a-okay with gathering another unhinged duckling to take under his wing and occasionally let loose on unsuspecting universes (it's enrichment!!). He's seen that Dust is a great fighter, not too broken up about collateral, and having him around will make Frisk happy and therefore Horror will also be happy, therefore eternal loyalty, profit, etc.

(It has been a long time since Nightmare has been able to make someone he loves happy. It's been even longer since it's been so easy--what's one more mouth to feed? What's one more person who thinks Nightmare is capable of good without changing who he is?)

So Dust and Frisk end up moving in and Dust takes his place with the Bad Sanses.

Now there are a million things that could happen from here--well-meaning intervention from someone who discovers these psychopaths have kidnapped an innocent person for Clearly Nefarious Reasons, an intro scene between Frisk and Error (Error mentions that he's stolen their SOUL in uncountable universes and Frisk has no notable reaction to this, which really sucks the fun out of it for Error, so they end up watching trash TV together until Horror comes in to get Frisk for supper), Red's reunion with Frisk is gonna be great in any WT spinoff and especially in this, and general family sitcom shenanigans would be fantastic (can. can Dream babysit Frisk while everyone else is out. Nightmare absolutely forbids it bc Dream is a bad influence he doesn't like his people meeting Dream bc what if they like Dream more than they like Nightmare but what if it happens anyway. Ink wanders through while Error is babysitting and decides to Help, leading to an awkward day out with the Star Sanses, most of whom do not know Frisk at all. Ink forgets exactly who he's babysitting for and assumes they'll just come by and pick Frisk up eventually, which does happen, but there are a lot more accusations of kidnapping going around than is really necessary. Frisk and Blue are happy to see each other again at least).

Anyway this is,, a fantastic idea. rife with opportunity. I love it so much thank you for proposing it. wow,,

[lucidpantone]

Druck is objectively better than all remakes at making a pointed effort to do better with their pic reps. They actually take in the feedback of their audience and try to execute a better product. There are problems with druck and 80% of it is the fandom. Ofc all remakes have issues tho, so ppl should chill. Druck fans unapologetically shit on other remakes while, wtfock fans and skam fr fans have the courtesy of slyly getting their digs in there. It's quite amusing to watch from the sidelines

this is super long but for you anon.

So I think we need to look at these three remakes as what I call the og period and the original period because they do change alot once they get more freedom some for the absolute worse. Ok so lets talk first about the OG periods. To be perfectly honest s1 in all these remakes are just ok. Jana & Jens are a bit unbearable but Jana as a whole is fine and am happy she doesnt end up with Jens. Same with Hanna and Jonas they aren’t unbearable per-say but I am also not gushing over them but I do like Jonas being a heart throb music man sometimes but once again they dont burn into my core but am happy they reunite. Love Emma and love Yann just not together its that simple. S2 is where we really start to see the difference. Charles is the devil so I hate skamfr s2 and like really Manon stays with him??? ughh why?? Daphne is right at almost bursting into laughter when he talks about doing philanthropy. Ok bruh....sure. Winterberg is fine I dont hate them and I dont love them they are just okay to me. S2 happens to be wtfock best season so its kinda hard to stack them up because this is the best they ever looked. All of the s3 for all these remakes are good. To say they aren’t would just be nonsense some are better then others but all are above average. Now S4....... well well well. What can we say the elusive goldstar Sana season is yet to be made (I will say the script for Italia s4 is fantastic, THE SCRIPT).

Skamfr s4 was a mess and ridiculous and Druck’s s4 was lazy and harbored accents of prejudice all over it.Both seasons undercut their woc and both miss the opportunity to write deep meaningful stories that explored the societal struggles of muslim women. Skamfr s4 just happened to really just shows us their colors but honestly am not shocked this is skam the micro racist decisions are all over the verse. TBD on yasmina season.

 NOW......this all changes when we talk about the original seasons because this is when we see the shows on their own and also we get to see if they have been listening and absorbing the fan commentary or not. So let’s get the obvious out of the way wtFOCK was an absolute mess and maybe the worse season ever created in the skamverse the only thing that made that season even slightly bearable was the Moyo arc which I hear it actually continues in s5 so in a weird way s4 is actually about Moyo since his story continues but we already know thats only because if the fans saw Kato on the screen for a matters of seconds the volcano of hate would explode. I despise how Noa has become the pseudo main of s4 but didnt get the credit. It kills me they did this to him. Maining Romi is the worse mistake ever made by any remake and thats just fact. Now do I want to see a newgen out of wtfock? hmmmm ask me after s5 but am leaning towards probably not but am on the fence. Now skamfr .....let me say this one thing skam fr is nothing without their cast. Talk about fucking talent. Those kids can act their ass off but their writing is atrocious. s5 could have been good they had all the ingredients but the writers bomb it. S6 once again flavie amazing the writing a shit show. S7 lucie was amazing the writing was better but still needs work I think it pretty obvious skam fr is going to step into the thunderdome and finally do what no skam has done before and main bilal but should I really applaud it taking 8 seasons and 35 plus skamverse seasons to get here??? Probably not, but since no one else is gonna pull the trigger I wish them well and at least skamfr listen and lamifex is super rich in diversity and they are honestly a fabulous newgen. They are such a ridiculous squad but god I love them and Jo is an angel. Please please skamfr please write a good story for a brown boy I beg of you!!! Now druck s5 all I can say is Bravo!! If skamfr is their cast then Druck is their writers. That s5 season is a fucking beast. Thats how you write an original skam season. They also listen the cast is super diverse. The girl squad feels natural and their age I actually like that the insta squad are problematic as fuck and happen to be queer. Like just cause your a gay baby doesnt mean you arent an ass. s6 for me personally was ok maybe its unfair of me but I expect amazing writing out of druck and s6 to me was not their best. It could have been amazing they touched so many topics but never deeply explored them and I wanted more for fatou. Also def got the vibes at the end they were panicking on who to main next season so everyone got a little plot thread but that also distracted me from fatou but I love the Mailin plot it was really smart and done well. I didnt hate her but boy did she bug the shit out me.That how you write modern day racism and white privilege. I just wish Ava’s plot was spread more onto fatou they were moments but i wanted more. So I guess I do think out of the original seasons druck s5 is the best. Nora being white didnt matter because she was written well but i do think Tiff being the main out of skamfr wasnt the best choice but then seeing Lucie act am like ok i get it but honestly I expect that from that cast they can all kill it so why not let someone else be the main and not tiff. BTW druck’s cast is good too I just dont think they are as good as the skamfr cast on the acting front but they are some members that are very very good. Like you said because Druck does listen I hope they listen to the honest criticism of s6. I know some people are like its the best ever but like its not....am sorry s5 was way better then s6 and that makes me sad because i want my black girl magic.... I do expect s7 to be good because when the writers for druck have the room to take their time they always kill it but I also feel like they are about to pull a Tiff on us and main Ismail(plus constantine as the side plot) but if I trust anyone with not fucking it up its them. Concerning the fandoms I live off tag and I do that for a reason. The fandom tags are alot but the druck one is almost hostile and honestly you would love the show more if you didnt interact with it. The skamfr tag is hilarious because they are no anti’s its just a bunch of arm chair critics making memes at how ridiculous the frenchies are but in away it makes the remake super fun because no one cares anymore. The wtfock tag has really high highs and really insane lows. When its low its really low so I have decided to live off tag. For those who haven’t..... god speed. Your brave souls!!

[readyforarebellion-blog]

Dying is scary isn’t it?

Hi, there. I don’t really know how to start this off. Um, well I don’t really want to say my real name, but I guess you have to call me something right? Uh, let’s go with...Alec. Sure I’ve always liked that name. So, Alec here. This is going to sound odd and completely insane to some of you, but I’m an immortal that has been here for hundreds of thousands of years. I’ve been watching you humans as well with other immortals. We’re not all the same and don’t look human, like so much supernatural has presented us as. They are right in the sense that we can look human, but the thing they got wrong was even if we look human there is something, uh, unsettling about our presence. Anyways, we’ve seen how you all have progressed from throwing stones at one another to being able to go to space. I have to admit, you’ve come pretty far, but there is still a way for you to go before you can reach your full potential. I was just wanting to address one problem that’s a little personal for me if I’m being honest. It’s about… well I guess I should warn some people this might be triggering to you so if you don’t want to continue that’s fine. But anyways for those of you, if you stayed, it’s about death and...dying I guess. Now I am NOT saying killing yourself is a good thing, but as an immortal I’ve always thought about what it would be like to know you could die, even at your own hand. I mean that’s what gives life meaning, no? You only have so much time to be able to live and do what you want. To be able to make your mark on the world, but also to be able to in a way resign forever. If you believe in reincarnation, maybe even start over and make or do something even better than you did in your previous life. You have to live life to its fullest, so that when it is time to go, you know you didn’t waste your time. I know it can be scary because you don’t know what’s on the other side, but not knowing is part of the journey. You can make up all the theory’s you want, but I don’t think anyone will truly know what it's like to be dead and not be able to come back. To be gone. Forever. Although maybe not forever. If you lived your life right, then there will always be someone who holds the memory of you close to their heart. Even if it’s just one person. Maybe that’s all you need. Just one person to have been there. Sure maybe you could have made thousands of other friends, but you shouldn’t regret all the friendships you never had, be thankful that you have the ones you do. And if you don’t, well then (and this is just my opinion) you should go out there into the world and try to meet at least one person. I know it can be scary, make you uncomfortable, induce a panic attack maybe, I know that can happen for me. I’ve found that there are moments that only last for a couple minutes or less. While I have confidence in myself I do try to talk to other people. You might be afraid to be hurt, so you guard yourself from everyone. Or maybe you have been hurt again and again and think you don’t need anyone. Maybe you think needing people makes you weak. I don’t think it does. It means you’re brave enough to be able to trust or rely on people. You’re brave enough to know you might get hurt but you try to connect with people anyways. Now I don’t think you need to make yourself completely vulnerable to others. You just need to open up a little bit of yourself to just one person. One person to care about you. If you do have a lot of friends, ones that you can actually count on, that aren’t toxic or hurt you in any, well congratulations. You are already farther than most people can get in their life. You should probably treasure them because one day they won’t be here. You see, the thing about being immortal is that, yes I basically have an infinite amount of time to make friends, although most of the time I choose not to because I know they won’t be there forever. I make the most of the time I have with them. It’s never enough though. I can’t grow old with any of them. They either die too soon or they end up living a long happy life. I remember one of my old friends. I remember them playing games with the other kids, having parties, their sweet sixteen, getting their driver's license, prom, graduating, meeting someone they love, getting married, buying their own house, having kids, taking said kids to school, seeing them grow up. Then the kids eventually graduate and move out. And then it’s just them and their significant other. They  were able to retire and move to a place that they both grew old in. The years go on and then their lover dies. When it was just them sitting alone in the house and I knew their time was short, I decided to stop by and say goodbye to them. They were sitting on a rocking chair on a porch, looking out at the sunset. I walked up, looking the same I had when I first met them all those years ago. They smile and look at me, surprisingly unfazed. I sit down beside them on the porch and we watch as the sun disappears behind the horizon, not saying anything. Just enjoying the silence. Hearing the crickets come out and start their chirping. They turn to look at me one last time, their hair gray, skin wrinkled, body tired. They smile at me. “One more adventure to go on.” Then they turn back and lean their head back and close their eyes. And I see them stop breathing. I know their death will sadden the family. But...I know that they were happy with their life. That they were able to die in peace. And I know I could never experience that calm right before death. It hurts, sometimes. Knowing I won’t ever know the bliss of those fleeting moments when everything feels okay. Death can be painful for some. I’ve lost countless of my friends to horrible ends. I couldn’t save them. I know their memory lives on in me though. I keep their spirit alive and in return they help me feel whole. That I’ve actually accomplished something in all the time I’ve been here. Death can be scary. I’ve seen it in the eyes of those who knew they were too young to die. They had so much to offer the world. It was unfair. They couldn’t find peace and as their life left their eyes, laying in my arms. I knew the only thing I could do was to make sure they didn’t die in vain. Life can be cruel just as much as it can be beautiful. I’ve seen it happen a thousand times over and then some. I’ve lost plenty of people. I don’t want to lose anyone else. But I know that’s what must be done if I want to experience what it’s like to love. To be loved. You know, it’s scary. To even think to have to open myself up like that to someone else. To someone I know will grow old without me. To someone who I would do anything for. To someone who...I know I would die for. You humans, you get to die and you get to join them. Maybe you’ve been waiting to join them for some time. When everyone you know is dead, don’t you think it’s time to join them? To see them all again in another lifetime, maybe? I know nobody actually knows what will happen, but that’s what I like to think. To not live forever, but to be able to start over in a way. I’ve always liked to imagine that there’s something calming about feeling the endless void wash over you because once you’ve gone on every adventure and done everything there is to do, the only adventure left to take is seeing what lies on the other side of death. Even if you leave the world before you should have, I also like to imagine that there’s a place where those who died unhappy are able to fulfil their soul in some way. Or maybe they will be reborn and accomplish great things. I guess what I’m trying to say is you should just live your life and not worry about dying because it will happen, but if you let the fear of it consume your every thought you will never be able to truly live. And yeah, you will die unhappy. I’m about 90% sure nobody wants that though. So go live your life. I’m not going to tell you dying isn’t scary. It is. But that shouldn’t stop you from living. In my eyes dying is a privilege of being human. Uh, slight trigger warning. I have tried to purposefully die because I’m tired of living. I’m ready to die. I’m ready to explore what’s on the other side. I’m ready to (maybe) see all my friends again or just start over. I want to finally be at peace just like everyone else gets to be. I can’t because I’m immortal. Some of you are probably thinking, “Well even immortals can die. It’s just hard.” Well if you’ve found a way I would love to hear it.

-Alec

[quakerjoe]

Look Up the word SOCIALISM. Please. It has fuck-all nothing to do with guns.

I ran across this comment:

“I am for gun rights.. does that make me less socialist?”

Are you fucking kidding me? There are really people THIS stupid. This is why America is about to collapse like the Soviet Union did. It’s not because we were outspent like they were, it’s because we’re suffering under TWO pandemics right now- Covid-19 AND TOTAL FUCKERY because far, FAR too many people are just that ignorant.

As a veteran, I was trained to use firearms. They’re tools for hunting and killing. End of story. Want one? I’m all for it! Everyone who’s willing to put in the effort to train and get a license for one should have one if they really want to. I’m all in, hoss.

However, when you’re equating having a killing tool that makes it way too easy to put someone to death with alongside a political style of governance, you’re a fucking idiot. Only in #Murica do people have this issue. By my account, the 2nd Amendment should be shit-canned. It’s outdated and nobody takes it seriously anymore. How so?

“A well regulated militia...”

Let’s stop right there. When this was written, children, there was no standing army in the new USA. At best, each state was, in theory, expected to raise their own militias and even then, they owned their own weapons that they had to buy themselves (and we’re talking the same rifles they also used for hunting with). A British Regular of the time, a professional, well-trained soldier, could fire 3 rounds per minute. A yokel from some Colonial/State militia? One. Maybe two at best. Training was nothing less than lax back then and it was insanely expensive. 

To the point- if you want to join a state militia, i.e. the National Guard, then fine; own a gun. In the more modern sense, if you want to join a branch of our fine armed forces, then you’ll train and you can have a gun. No problemo. Once you’re discharged and leave, you can transfer your training creds and easily get a civilian license to own and operate one. Easy-peasy. Right?

But no. Not in #Murica. Here, people no longer read and deteriorated cognitive skills only let too many yokels retain what they want to hear, like NRA talking points on FOX fuckin’ “News”. These selfish cunts are so wound, stupid and bent on being free-range ammosexuals. What the fuck are they afraid of? I’ll tell you.

Smart people.

The whingers on the far right... motherfuckers one and all... with their bibles in one hand and guns in the other... They fail to know what hypocrisy is here. Be that as it may, they’re scared of smart people. They know that more often than not, they’re ability to have an intelligent conversation is rather stilted and smart people can kick their asses when it comes to how politics work, what Jesus actually said in that bible they never read, and how viruses work for that matter. These wank-socks need their guns to make them right in an argument.

To compound things, these knuckle-dragging, inbred, mouth-breathers are mostly a bunch of “nigger haters” and they know that the “Justice” system will continue to jail the Black Community for the most minor infractions, essentially re -instituting slavery while they can literally go into Federal property, armed, take it over, vandalize it, and then leave scott-free. Precedence has been set. They can shoot Black people with little to no repercussions. Precedence has been set.

I could go on and on, but I’d like to bring this question to your attention: What the unholy fuck does that have to do with socialism? Eisenhower was not only a president but he was a general during WWII and his policies were very socialist. By today’s standards, the man would be what right-wing fuckwits would call a “radical leftist”. So would Abraham Lincoln.

Capitalism, as it stands today, un-regulated and un-tethered, has done what for the USA? Massive class warfare and overwhelmingly unfair practices by the top financial elites? Yep. All the rules of olde that were put in place after the Great Depression that were designed to keep that from happening again have been dismantled since Reagan’s time and mostly by the GOP while the Democrats say and do little to nothing about it and they’re only getting more complacent about it. I’m not saying that Capitalism is bad; far from it. However, if it is left to its own devices, it will work like a cancer, not like a working form of governance. No system is perfect, but Capitalism is the most vulnerable, especially in a nation with a base in democracy like the republic that the USA used to have and doesn’t anymore. Once disinterest and complacency set in, the rich and powerful will swipe democracy out from under you like a table cloth without a care as to how many dishes they break or how big the mess will be; you won’t see it coming and you’ll be the one left having to clean up after. The food and drink will be gone along with the silverware, but the mess is all yours to enjoy. You know- like NOW.

Switzerland has a government a lot like ours. It’s a Democratic Republic. “Everyone owns guns!” Um, true to a point. Men do. Women do. BUT. They’re all trained. Come legal age and graduation from high school, you’re in the army, Fred. You do your bit for country and then when you get out, you keep your gun. NO AMMO. Repeat- NO AMMO. That’s all under lock and key where you, as a reservist for life, would go to train periodically.

Chicken-shit fuckwits in #Murica are too fucking scared and/or lazy to join the armed forces or law enforcement. BUT they still want their guns without having to earn the right or privilege. THAT is what pisses me off. No “militia” skills, but boy they’re fast and happy to endanger everyone else just so they can sit out in the woods with their friends, shoot beer cans and have circle-jerks around the ol’ campfire while talking about race cars and titties and swapping jokes about how many “niggers” it takes to do something.

It’s not just a redneck stereotype; it’s the real deal. Those industrial-grade gun fuckers out in Michigan who thought it’d be just fine to “occupy” the capital while armed make the rest of us who earned the right and privilege to have firearms look bad. You also know damn well that there really aren’t BLACK people acting like these infantile taint-barnacles either. You don’t see hordes of women packin’ heat on the way to the clinic for a routine checkup, do you? They ought to, especially when there are anti-abortion fucks out there ranting about shit they know nothing about, spewing their lies by twisting biblical verse when in fact the bible is NOT anti-abortion. It is only mentioned ONCE, and the verse is FOR abortion. Imagine a woman coming in for a pap, palming a .357 on her way through a crowd of these ignorant cultists who think they’re doing “the lord’s work”...

All of this shit isn’t particular to any form of government except for American-style “democracy” where uninformed opinions are now given the same merit and weight as that of a well studied, well informed fact. Anyone who wants to “make America great again” would have noticed that the policies in place that made us a world power to begin with were all backed by SOCIALIST principles, providing a regulated and more fair framework on which the gears of capitalism were attached to run like a smooth, well tuned machine. Today, that framework is shot to pieces and the whole system works more like the junk drawer in your kitchen.

Today, #Murica has a framework made of PLUTOCRACY, welded together with FASCISM and let’s not forget that it is painted in Red Socialism for the Wealthy, White Supremacy, and Blue, sunny-skies of Nationalism that keeps the masses proud of this country because of what we were, not who we truly are. Those days are far gone; days when the NRA was FOR GUN REGULATIONS and were all for proper education, safety and training, in an era where SOCIALISM built our infrastructure, rich fucks were taxed heavily to keep them from gaining too much power over the masses, and we were on the rise in industry, sciences, and education.

Today, smart people are feared, intelligence is out of fashion, and pride in how stupid and ignorant one is has become the national pastime. As a nation, its people are arrogant and endlessly selfish and too stupid to know to punch up when punching down is easier because Americans, in general, are lazy. Even worse, they’re offended by everything while BEING one of the most offensive people to wander the Earth.

Don’t believe me? Keep an eye on the comments to this post...

[florrickandassociates]

TGF Thoughts: 4x07-- The Gang Discovers Who Killed Jeffrey Epstein

What a weird episode. 

This episode is something else. The writers REALLY overestimated how much the audience (or at least the fandom) liked the pee tape and Melania divorce episodes if they thought this was a good idea.

My recollection of those episodes is that because everything was fake-but-real, the stakes wound up feeling lower and I stopped caring, and when I’m not on board with the plot, the surreal shit and the whimsy feel more annoying than innovative. This episode might fare slightly better in my opinion than the other two because of its central device (more on that later) but it’s (somehow!!!) even more audacious and wild than the episodes that came before. Not my favorite look for the show. 

I DO like the tributes to musicians we’ve lost to COVID-19 that play over the credits.My one quibble is that they could’ve used a little card to inform viewers what’s going on and why. Last week I caught the artist in the captions but this week I missed it (or it wasn’t there), though I figured out pretty quickly it was John Prine.

Starting off an episode with Liz is always a good choice. 

Liz and Marissa are, for reasons we’ll discover later, in New York and investigating Jeffrey Epstein’s “suicide.” 

It drives me INSANE that Marissa consistently has the sound on her phone on. I think we’d know she was taking pictures without it. 

Liz’s old boss, Wilbur Dincon, has tasked Liz to independently investigate what happened. If this case goes well, RBL will get more business from the DOJ.

I’m sorry, did you just say “S-H-U” instead of pronouncing it like “shoe”? I mean, I’m an expert on prisons because I watched Orange is the New Black so I know it should be said like “shoe.” (tbh i have no idea if one is more correct than the other)

This case has lots of details but it’s really only the thematic points that matter, so I likely won’t discuss any plot points… just what they’re going for. 

Good to know Liz was ahead of the curve on knowing Epstein was a dangerous creep. 

Liz is promised she can investigate anyone she wants and think outside the box. Sure. I believe this as much as I believe Diane is in charge of pro-bono stuff because STR Laurie has great intentions.

“Synergy” is such a great bullshit word. Has everyone ever said it for a reason other than the following three: (1) To mock the word synergy (2) as a euphemism for cost-cutting measures that will fuck over employees (3) because they think it sounds professional and want to cover up the fact they don’t know what they’re talking about?

In this case, “synergy” means that RBL needs to cut their payroll by 20%. Fun times.

Diane and Adrian (Liz is downstairs) are not happy about this, even when Mr. Firth reminds them it’s more money for them. They’d rather have less money personally but happier employees since they’re not soulless.

Mr. Firth says they have to do the layoffs. But if it’s any consolation, they get to hand pick who to lay off!

The dogs are still being walked through RBL, in case it wasn’t clear enough that STRL sucks.

The whole firm gets to work on sorting through the Epstein evidence. Liz tries to keep things organized-- murder evidence on one side, suicide evidence on the other.

Associates, however, immediately begin interpreting the word “evidence” loosely. Is there a photo of Epstein with someone they’d like to suspect of murder? Then it’s “evidence of murder”. Ok, Leah. 

As expected, this immediately turns into bickering over politics. Sorry Liz-- it’s going to be tough to keep your staff on target with this one. 

“No! No conspiracy theories. No insane charges. Everything we do, we need evidence, so let’s start here.” Ah, if only everyone could think like Liz.

The room focuses on evidence for about two minutes. Then they find a way to make it about conspiracies again. Go team! 

Also everyone at RBL thinks they have better knowledge than professional medical examiners of the marks left on someone’s neck after they hang themselves. They also all believe that pretending to strangle themselves is the best way to prove their point. It’s a hilarious sight for Diane and Adrian to happen upon.

Adrian and Diane immediately start seeing their employees as numbers and imagining the cost savings of laying them off. Marissa is making $89,000 a year with three years of experience. Jay is making $89,000/year with eight years. Damn, that is so unfair to Jay. (I could see it if Marissa is more vocal about wanting higher pay or if they’re more concerned with losing her… but being vocal about money is probably closely related to Marissa’s privilege and there is zero evidence Marissa is any better, more efficient, or more hardworking than Jay!)  I can’t remember how this plot ended last year, but I thought Jay ended up making more than Marissa after he complained?

Adrian seems to see Jay as the more disposable of the investigators, which is quite sad, especially since from what we see, Marissa and Jay seem to be equally skilled. 

I wish we got to see the salaries, rather than just billable hours, of the other associates. But I’m glad they finally get last names! 

Kevin Walker has been at the firm 7 years and has 2643 billable hours.

Diane imagines the red X over Marissa. I can’t tell if the Xs are to demonstrate who they think they should cut or just to show deliberations. 

Lucca has been at the firm for 4 years and has 2788. Her title is “associate” but shouldn’t it be ��Head of Family Law”? 

Leah Davis has been at the firm for 3 years and has 2657 billable hours.

Jancie Muncy has been at the firm 11 years with 2456 hours; Micah Carroll has been there 5 with 2582 hours. John Danzette with 6 years and 2074 hours; Rosalyn Brock with 4 years and 1991 hours (we learn later she was on medical leave for part of the year). Josh Withers with 11 years and 2162. Linda Keller with 2 years and 2389; Mike Roberts with 3 years and 2147. So what I’m getting is that Lucca has the most billable hours of everyone? 

I wish it told us their salaries. How much do the billable hours matter if we don’t know how much $ each hour is worth?

I really like this device. It’s a good way of showing how tough this decision is and how dehumanizing the process becomes. 

Adrian jumps into the conversation and tries to convince everyone Epstein’s suicide isn’t a conspiracy-- it’s just incompetence. Apparently he has a sink that breaks every week and no plumber can fix it because they are all incompetent. I understand this analogy-- no one does their job perfectly 100% of the time-- but I am really concerned about Adrian’s sink. This sounds like a bigger issue than incompetence.

“People do just enough work to get by,” is a very true statement though. I have often thought that it’s kind of incredible the world is as functional as it is. 

If you have 4 or 5 conveniently incompetent breakdowns at once, though, I’m not sure I believe it’s purely incompetence. Feels a bit convenient. 

Diane jumps in and makes a case for why the conspiracy is also likely. This strikes me as counterproductive since what REALLY needs to happen here is for the associates to dig through the evidence. Why not go back to Liz’s original system where they look through the evidence and see where it leads them? 

Lots of news footage and photographs in this one.

Diane’s larger point seems to tie back into Memo 618: “We all have to obey the law. I mean, if we’re told we have to check into with the police every 90 days, we do it. But certain people don’t have to. They’re given special treatment.” Diane claims this is America-- “a special fucking off-ramp for the well-connected.” 

Isn’t it possible both are true? That there’s a lot of incompetence and also systems in place that protect the rich and powerful? Also none of this is evidence!!! 

(I do like this scene for showing Adrian’s POV (cynical about human nature) vs Diane’s (fed up with the government and the treatment of the ultra wealthy). And the show can’t really dig into evidence they don’t actually possess. But evidence-free speeches don’t seem productive!)

Liz is like, okay then… and splits the room into three groups to look at evidence. I am glad Diane and Adrian helped her so much.

Liz is NOT happy about the layoffs when Diane and Adrian loop her in. She’s opposed to cutting anyone. Diane says she could lose Kevin, but Liz sees Kevin as someone newer employees look up to. Adrian suggests Lucy (who?) and Liz says that Lucy actually should get a raise. Diane points out this will look bad to the clients. All good points. This seems like an impossible decision.

Case stuff happens. Lucca knows a “hairdresser to the stars” through Bianca.

And now for some scenes where Diane and Julius try to report Memo 618 to the government and do the right thing! The Kings have said these were intended for episode 8, and while they don’t really feel that out of place since there’s clearly a thematic link between 618 and Epstein’s connections, this bit of info explains two things: (1) Why this ep is 53 minutes long when it feels like it could make its point in less time and (2) why the Julius stuff that happens later in the episode feels a bit anticlimactic because so much else is also happening. My guess is in an episode where it’s more of the focal point it would feel like a much bigger deal.

Do you ever just see a shot of Diane and think, “Damn, Taylor Swift does really look like a young Diane?” Because I do. All the time.

Lucca visits the famous hairdresser and he makes time for her right away. And he gives her a letter from Epstein that he (a) has in his possession and (b) has in an unlocked drawer in his salon. Whatever. 

Lucca convinces him to let her have it, and RBL makes a video to establish chain of custody. I’m shocked we’ve never seen them do this before.

“It is Thursday, May 21st, 2020” Liz says. Nah. You’re in an office. It is not. 

The envelope contains a key, a secret code, and a letter that says “If I’m dead, watch out for BUD”. Welp, there goes any hope of this not turning into RBL chasing conspiracies! 

Rumors about layoffs (40%! Just paralegals! Everyone!) have spread, in case there wasn’t enough chaos. 

The partners are indeed discussing who to fire, and they can’t decide on anyone. So they decide it’s time to get out from under STRL and buy themselves out. It’ll take 20 million, but they can pull that together. 

This would play better if we knew why they decided to sell to STRL in the first place. Who WOULDN’T have seen this coming? 

Liz tells Adrian not to make any promises he can’t keep and he is like, this is like our marriage. Diane is still in the room which is awkward and funny.

Marissa finds “BUD” on a blueprint. A clue! Meanwhile, Lucca and Jay (really, Jay) figure out the code. 

This is the portion of the episode where I can leave the show playing on my phone and go check Twitter instead of writing any commentary. 

Julius gets arrested for speaking out about Memo 618! It feels less impactful than it should when it’s sandwiched between a bunch of scenes following the conspiracy. (Also I am a little surprised they didn’t have Julius and Diane go to the press before the government.)

The conference room squabbles again and Liz asks, again, to tone down the conspiracy theories. They instead begin fighting about even more conspiracy theories.

Unless there’s another conference room scene later, I think this was the moment I understood what the Kings were doing and started to like the episode more. As soon as I realized “BUD” was a Citizen Kane reference, I burst out laughing. This episode plays way better when you know the point they’re trying to make is that this is a lot of fuss that will ultimately be futile (though Marissa and Jay DO come close to finding BUD) than when you’re supposed to be riveted by watching people debate fake evidence. 

Why does Eli Gold have a cheerleader friend? Who knows! Who cares! 

Adrian suggests that he, Diane, and Liz involve their own homes in the scheme to getting 20 million dollars. Liz objects since she’s a single mom-- very fair. Adrian argues that they’ve done well in the past so they’ll get it back. Liz and Diane attack that idea before I can-- if that were really true, they never would have sold to STRL. 

Liz mentions losing ChumHum and the fallout from her dad’s scandal and then says “let us not forget why we joined STRL in the first place.” I feel like that line would work better if the “let us not forget…” came before the “we lost ChumHum”. Because we don’t actually KNOW why they joined STRL. And, as I said in a previous recap, I can roll with it for the sake of plot, but I can’t take lines like “let us not forget why we joined STRL” seriously when there was LITERALLY NO ON SCREEN DELIBERATION about it. 

Adrian says STRL doesn’t value them, their employees, their history, or their culture. To which I say, DUH. Why would you think they did?  

The only important thing about this cheerleader is that she’s played by the amazing Donna Lynne Champlin. Kind of sad she’s in this silly, non-recurring role. She’s so good. (Also she was totally on TGW playing a different role, shhhh). (Go watch Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, everyone!)

CONSPIRACY THEORIES! It’s another conference room scene. Maybe this is where I realized it was a Citizen Kane reference? But I think it was the earlier one.

Hey, it’s another Julius scene. Watching these and knowing they were meant for a different episode, I can’t help but notice that they do feel like pieces of the A plot of a different episode. The whole system is rigged, Julius and Diane realize.

Adrian, Liz, and Diane tell Mr. Firth they want out. Mr. Firth tells them they need to cobble together an impossible 80 million, not 20 million, because not all of the partners have been bringing in more revenue more than they used to. You see, Diane hasn’t been bringing in any money because she’s been in charge of the pro bono department. Ah.There’s the catch. 

I’m shocked they went up to Mr. Firth without reading every inch of that contract. Aren’t you guys partners at a law firm? I’m shocked Diane went ahead with taking charge of pro bono without looking for a catch. This sucks for the character and all, but how are these name partners at a liberal firm that’s seen more than its fair share of drama this naive about big corporations!? This plot twist is devastating… until I start to think about all the things they had to believe to get to this point. 

Still, it’s satisfying to hear Diane hiss “you fucker!” at Mr. Firth. 

Mr. Firth turns into a villain quite nicely. I wonder if we’ll see more of him next year. My guess is the remaining three episodes were going to tie together the corporate overlords plot and Memo 618 and wrap everything up more or less with a bow so they could do a new concept next year. I feel like they’ll either move on completely and tell us what happened, or do an episode like 2x02 (the one that wraps up all the Maia/Rindell Fund stuff in one go so it doesn’t hang over s2).

Dincon drops by unexpectedly and isn’t impressed with what Liz and the team have done, since all they’ve done is collect conspiracy theories (and possibly travel all over the country? Jay and Marissa go to the Virgin Islands; it is unclear if the architect and key maker and lawyer and everyone else were in Chicago…

In Dincon’s defense these conspiracy theories sound like complete nonsense. 

Dincon shuts the RBL team down, but Marissa and Jay are still off adventuring.

Diane asks Dincon what Memo 618 is because Epstein’s life was built on it. “Then you have your answer,” Dincon replies. This scene is another tell that those Julius scenes weren’t meant for 4x07. 

Aaaaand now we get the direct parallels to Citizen Kane, with some shot-for-shot remakes and even a sled (ha!).

There’s a secret door! Marissa and Jay are excited to investigate! Marissa references Parasite, which I haven’t seen yet because I’m awful at watching movies.

Marissa and Jay find nothing and leave. “I think we lost track of the real story: the underage girls,” Marissa realizes. Yup. That is the takeaway. Looking at all these conspiracies is fun but useless, and the most important truth has already been uncovered. 

After Marissa and Jay leave, we get to see what was in the secret room… BUD is Epstein’s penis. And… that’s a wrap on season 4? What a fucking weird way to end a season. 

[supervillanelle]

I WANT U TO ANSWER QUESTIONS 14 THROUGH 50 FOR THAT ASK THING, OR IF THATS TOO INSANE A NUMBER JUST PICK SOME RANDOM ONES, IDK BUT I LIKE READING YOUR ANSWERS SO IF U DID ALL OF THEM I'D THINK THAT WAS GREAT anyway idk why im yelling now get 2 work

ALLISON WTF?????????????????? THATS 37 QUESTIONS IM LAUGHING SO FICKING HARD FGKSHSDUDUFUDUFIFKGIGIFIFUCUAGSGDHFJFIFJDJSJSUSJIVJCIHXHOXHCHXIGXYSYYDJFLKFDKFAKFAKGZZG IM GONNA DO IT HANG ON

(It was supposed to be 37 questions but i skipped the ones i had already answered, okay?)

16. Do you do art? Using what (pencil, watercolor, etc)?

Not at all 😩 i have no talents, babe

18. What’s your zodiac sign? Do you believe in astrology?

im a leo, and i dont believe in astrology, but sometimes i can relate to my sign

19. Favorite old film?

Old films are really not my thing BUT i really like scary movie 1 and 2, and the exorcist (those were the only old movies i could think of im sorry shakshskshsj)

20. What’s your hairstyle?

ugh okay its curly and brown and very short and it needs to be stopped

21. What weather is the most beautiful, in your opinion?

I really like when its sunny with clear skies but like, its not awfully hot, its just, nice

22. What upsets you most about the world?

Lots of things upset me, but two things upset me the most: how much prejudice there is, and how unfair the world is!!!

Like, sexism, homophobia, racism, thats so fucked up and some people actually agree with it??? lik what the fuck? how can you hate someone just for being different than you? and sexism is just so bad bc we’re so used to it that we accept all kinds of stuff bc its just normalized to us, you know? We accept men acting like shit and we agree with them and support their behaviour bc we learn that way, that men can be shitty and they dont have to try to be better people, but we’re so quick to judge women for literally anything they do, and it just keeps being normal to us!! we need to fucking change the way we act!!!

And with how unfair the world is, like, some people have so much while some have so little! its so fucked up!!!! and believe me, i know its not my place to say this bc im fucking privileged but its just so fucked up!!!!!! people like me who were born in a family with money just go through life so easily, we dont know shit anything and we still have the nerve to think we’re bettee than others, its so fucked up!!! And there are people who were born with no money, with no decent family, and just bc of that its allowed for them to live like shit? to not have any kind of support in life? if they need food, housing, medical care, they just have to deal with it and be strong and get through it, or start working as a fucking child?????? its just so fucked up but its never gonna change bc the people who really have money just dont wanna give up a tiny bit of their huge privilege to make it fair for everyone else, and everyone just have to be ok with all that???

23. Are you in love right now?

God no

24. Do you have a crush? If so, talk about them!

I have a lot of crushes GSKSBSKSBSKSBSK i have online crushes, i have real life crushes, i have crushes that mean nothing to me and i just like them so im not bored shakshjs BUT theres this girl, shes kinda bi? (that what she says), shes my friends sister and fuck i just wanna make out with her for 3 days nonstop, shes just so fucking pretty, and funny and hot and nice and smart and fuckkkkkkk im lonely

26. Do you have a lucky number?

Not lucky numbers but like, just numbers that i like, 5, 7, 12 and 15

27. Have you ever wished on a star? What about on a fallen eyelash?

On a fallen eyelash yes but its not something i do all the time lol

28. Do you believe emoji spells to work?

What the fuck are emoji spells?

29. Do you believe in magic in general?

Dude shakshskssh no!!!!!

30. What’s the most beautiful thing in life, In your opinion?

I dont know dude, i think freedom is pretty beautiful to me, having the freedom to do what you want, loving who you want, being loved, being happy with yourself without any pressure idk if that makes sense

31. Opinion on the color pink? What about baby blue?

I love both!!!!!!! Literally my thing

32. What instrumental sound is your favorite?

I love saxophone and violin!!

33. Do you like the sound of wind? What about the sound of rain?

Wind not so much, its kinda scary tbh, but the sound of rain is just great!!!

36. Imagine your ideal life, the life you wish to make, what will that look like?

Ok so i have like, two different thoughts, i either live in a small apartment, in a big city, im not good with living with other people but i hope this changes, so eithwr alone or with a roomate is fine by me, with a cat and/or a dog, and im happy with my life! Or, if i end up being super rich, i live in a big house, again by muself ot with roomates is fine, and i have way more than just a dog and/or a cat, and a big pool, and im happy with my life (tbh just picture jenna marbles’ life and its that!!

37. Do you wear makeup? If so what’s your favorite type of makeup or specific makeup product? Favorite store to buy makeup?

only when i go to some party or bar and i wanna make out with someone, otherwise i never use it, and i dont even have make up, i use my sister’s or my mom’s

38. Do you wear dresses? If so what’s your favorite dress you own?

I do!!! I cant really explain but like, its above the knee, no sleeves but like a thin strap? and its dark blue with little green zebras all over it

39. Ever been heartbroken? How do you deal with it?

Romantically or in a friendship? Yes for both. I just stay sad forever, but it just gets less shitty with time

40. Who’s your closest friend? What do you love about them?

In real life its this girl from college but rn shes actually mad at me so idk if shes still close to me lol but shes so nice and funny

41. Introvert or extrovert?

Introvert that becomes too much and bery annoying after you get to know

42. Do you like MBTI? What’s your MBTI?

I have NO IDEA what mbti is

43. Would you be a fairy, a mermaid, a vampire, a siren, a or an angel?

I think id be a vampire

44. What’s the best song a friend has ever introduced to you?

ive been thinking about this for a while now and i cant remember the last time someone showed me a song

45. Parlez-vous français?

No (thats no in french btw)

46. Most beautiful place you’ve been to?

London and nyc are fucking amazing

47. Where/when do you truly feel at home?

When im home alone in silence ugh amazing

48. Does smiling put you in a better mood? Try it right now, you’re smile is goreous!

Not really? Im good but thanks?

49. Favorite shoe you own?

All my flipflops, my converse and thats it

50. Can you walk in stilettos? Do you like them?

I can and i actually love wearing heels i think my legs look great on them

[catch22inareddress]

Halloween Confessions

You have yearned to meet Sebastian from afar for years. When the stars aline and you are hired to do a contemporary dance routine at a Halloween Party that he will attend, will you have the courage to follow through and finally meet him? Tonight is all about Halloween and Confessions....now, where is the bar because your gonna need a stiff drink?

 Words:3600+

Your body throbbed and your nerves were tattered at every end. Weeks you had trained with your partner and friend, Travis, for tonight's event. Although it was a friendly and "casual" party of sorts, every detail was designed to the tiniest measure.

Robert spared no expense in his endeavor to entertain his guests and was always generous to everyone associated. You were a contemporary dancer and met Robert years ago through your boss and close friend Travis. Robert's wife was a fan of So You Think You Can Dance and followed Travis' career and was thrilled when a performance was orchestrated for this evening. Tonight he had arranged a number for you and while you were no stranger to dancing, doing so in front of your crush was going to push you over the metaphorical edge.

Travis came up next to you with a smile. "So a little birdie told me that Sebastian came alone tonight. He and Sadie broke up months ago." He wiggled his eyebrows at you while you resisted the urge to hide under Robert's ridiculously overpriced armoire. "Fuck me. Please, shut the hell up. I know he's dress to kill as a Priest and my libido can't handle images of him right now." Travis let out a chuckle while adjusting your dress and applying the sinfully Red lipstick.

"Please, after he sees you doing the number he will undoubtedly pull you in the closest closet and have you confess your transgressions." The blush that rose up your bosom was enough the tint the heavens themselves it was so extensive. "Leave me, Travis! I will cut you... and not with affection!" He laughed as he held his hands up in surrender and walked out of the room. "I am going mingle and do some groundwork. You'll see, darling." After that, you waved him off while you and Jeremy did stretches and final touches.

Sebs Point of view

He sat in the living room with legs spread in his typical fashion, welcoming. Even if that was the last emotion, he felt at that instant. If anything he wanted every person of the female persuasion to leave him the fuck alone. Save the one woman who walked in and then instantly disappeared. Messy hair, sweet face, casual clothes. She was with Robert's dancer friend Travis, and there was something so natural and alluring about her that he couldn't quite pin, and pin he wanted to do indeed. He had an instant hard on that he couldn’t suppress when his eyes laid on her.

He felt his phone vibrate again from his pocket and growled in acknowledgment. Chris smirked from the seat across him and welcomed Travis as he sat down next to Sebastian, a mixed drink in hand. "Sadie callin' again?" Seb nodded wordlessly. "Yea, she won't take no for an answer, and it's been driving me insane." Seb turned to see Travis sitting there and smiled kindly at him. "Hey man. Nice to see you again." Travis agreed and shook his hand.

"Flying solo, Sebastian?" He nodded and thought this was the perfect time to ask about the girl he saw the blonde man with earlier. "Yea. Actually, I noticed you with a stunning woman earlier, not to sound like a creep. Where did she go off to?" Travis smirked deviously, and Sebastian caught it, unsure of what it implied. "Oh, Y/N. She had to ...work." Seb's face instantly frowned at the thought of missing the elusive beauty but hoping that if he stayed close to Travis tonight, he might be able to talk the man in arranging a meet with her.  He was sure that he came off as an ass, talking about Sadie then his friend. He had to make it up and make sure Travis knew he wasn't a prick.

Robert came out into the cleared area and clanked a utensil on his glass. "So my better half has introduced me to the art of dance and her lovely and remarkably talented friend Travis has a treat for us tonight." He beamed as he waved Travis up in front of everyone. "So I have a special treat for everyone here. She is one of my best friends, and I've had the privilege to dance with her on several occasions. I choreographed this routine special for tonight, so I hope that you enjoy it!"

You came out and met Travis when the lights were low. "Easy, darling. Just pretend I'm him." You smirked at his jest, but you knew that having him in the room with this song was already sending adrenaline through your body at accelerated speeds.  "Shut up and dance with me, Trav." He kissed your cheek playfully as the music started and the lights came up.

Link to Dance

While there was plenty of room, you felt Travis throw you exceptionally close to Sebastian on one move and made eye contact with him. His blue eyes were leaving marks over your skin wherever his orbs kissed your flesh.

Sebastian took a sharp intake of air, and you wanted to smother the gremlins in your stomach. The dance was a narcotic, and when the line hit of “Give Me all your love”, and your body was slung over Travis' muscular one, Seb's hands fisted at his sides in sheer possessiveness.

You were hoisted in the air, and then you spun down and around his body. Travis was facing Sebastian with a cold yet theatrical face as he slammed his hands around your body. Seb's body took a step towards you of its own volition, but Chris grabbed his arm holding him back. Sebastian snapped out of the lust infused haze he was drugged under and looked to his feet as both you and Travis ended the routine on the floor, amidst cheers and applause.

Both of you bowed and smiled as you thanked everyone and while you were talking to the Downeys you felt your body pulling you towards Sebastian, like a gravitational pull. It was all-consuming, and as soon as you could politely excuse yourself, you did, finding the bar and ordering a whiskey sour to assemble your thoughts... hopefully.

When you turned around to start walking you ran into the very person that made your body shutter and squirm with delight and unrestrained anxiety. Your drink spilling down his sinfully snug suit. He gasped at the cold liquid running down his pant legs while you cringed at the entire exchange. 

"Oh fuckity fuck!" You recoiled at your first meeting going so very well. All of the shameful times you had rehearsed it going straight out the window and shattering on the sidewalk. You caught Chris and Travis laughing and giving you an obnoxious thumbs-up behind Sebastian's head, while he was laughing at your outburst unbeknownst to the audience.

"I am so sorry, S-seb. Sir?" His eyes shot up to you, losing his laugh and garnering a smirk instead. His shoulders straightened and you pulled at your dress and tried to compose yourself under his scrutiny. You cleared your throat.

"That's ok. These things happen. Although, I would've thought you were far more graceful by your performance earlier." The sex appeal this man exuded was positively unfair, how he was so put together was just plain wrong. You were damn near ready to pull him into the closest closet and beg for forgiveness in varying forms while he was in this priest costume. He, however, was unaffected by you. You needed to pull your shit together if you wanted to get this man and make him yours 

"I-um. I'm not used to all of this--" You waved around to all of the drunken actors and actresses and noticed a few women cutting eyes at you and paused a moment, trying to will the intimidation away. "What? Bullshit?" He laughed, and it brought you back to the moment and the fact that your arms were still soaked and so were his pants.

He nodded towards the other side of the house. "C'mon, let's go get cleaned up." You swallowed hard as you followed this magnificent specimen of a man through the crowds. You started to lose him, but he took your small hand in his and closed your eyes for a moment. He leaned into your ear, over the music, "After I get you clean up, tell me I can have a dance?" His voice was low and gritty, and you didn't trust your voice, so you only nodded.

Sebastian meanwhile, didn't know what came over him, but as he saw you in that little red number standing so small and timid, he knew this was his chance. As you stood in front of him, he almost lost his words but when you said "sir" in a fit of pure anxiety, a switch was flipped, and he loved seeing how you unraveled in front of him.

He put on his best act to get you to follow him to someplace quiet to get cleaned up, trying to get his nerves to calm down long enough to form a plan after that. When you agreed to a dance he was fucking thrilled, just a few more minutes longer with you would be enough...for now. Hell, he would take every damn second he could press out of this scenario, every thrilling moment you would give him. Because that what this was, you were an adrenaline rush for him since seeing you dance. You were a drug for him since he saw you walk into the party.

He found the secluded bathroom and entered it, locking it behind you two.

You washed your hands and arms under the sink as he watched from the side, such a mundane task seeming so intense under his blue eyes. "So I'm

Y/N." He finally threw you that gorgeous smile you had seen before in the movies. "I'm Sebastian, but you can call me Seb, or sir ..if you like." He was smirking like the devil in a midnight mass now, and you dried your arms hiding the crimson shade and biting your lips.

"Sir? Is that because you want me to confess my sins to you?" His breathing had picked up as you took a small step closer to him, taking the damp, clean towel and drying off his hands. "What confessions would you like to make, darlin’?"

You shrugged innocently thinking to yourself. While you wanted to have a relationship with this man earnestly, you knew that the chance of that was slim. However, there was a chance of having a naughty time with him that you would never forget, so what the hell. Let go and throw some caution to the wind.

"Wouldn't you like to know, sir?" Your towel-clad hand traveled down to his wet pants and attempted to dry them, but he ripped the piece of fabric out of your hands and lifted you onto the expansive counter. 

"I do. Tell me your confession." He held your hands as your chest heaved against his, blue eyes begging you to ask for something, anything.

"I've thought about you. I’ve cum saying your name before." Your eyes dropped at the statement, but when he moaned at your words, you looked up and saw his jaw twitching. "Fuck me. How long?" You smirked just now truly realizing how turned on he was becoming from this revelation and the fact that he was most certainly a word man.

"Years, please. Sir. Can I have you tonight?" The only description of the sound that he emitted was a whine as his lips crashed on to yours with a force that was almost painful. He bit your lower lip as your legs wrapped around his torso and pulled his flush with your body. You felt the rigid and impressive length of his cock against your thigh and moaned as he rutted against you. "Fuck, doll. You're so responsive to me. I knew as soon as you walked in tonight, I needed you to be mine."

The words edged you on as you ran your slender fingers into his long mussed hair, tugging on it. "I'm all your, Seba." He growled at the new name you picked for him as you suckled on his sweet spot earning a delightful moan and securing a love bite. If you only had one fuck with him, you were going to make it memorable.

You slid down the counter and started unbuttoning his shirt taking off the collar and tossing it across the room while he watched you with lust blow eyes. "You are so fucking breathtaking; I could cum right now. Watching you undress me. Got me so hard, woman." You smirked as you roughly tugged the shirt off the expansive and broad shoulders then nipping and kissing down his chest and abs to his belt.

You made swift and impressive work with his pants, and as he stood in front of you in all his naked wonder, you wished you had time to work out all of your favorite fantasies on this work of art. Those thighs had many filled dreams alone for you. You licked your lips and focused on the intimidating but luscious cock dripping with precum in front of your face, begging for attention. "You don't have to, doll." As soon as he said those words you were all in. You yearned for more sweet nothings to fall from your intended lovers' lips.

You licked up the underside of his shaft while he let out a deep moan that bellowed from deep within him, vibrating out and making your pussy wet without even touching you. "You mouth is fucking divine. I can only imagine how the rest of you feels against me, underneath me." You hummed in response as you took as much of his length and girth in your mouth, allowing your hand to encompass the rest of him, leaving no part unloved.

Your head bobbed back and forth as you hollowed your cheeks out and forced your gag reflex to back the fuck down. He braced himself against the counter, and you pulled back.

He looked down at you with a lip in protest. "Don't be gentle with me, Seba." You went to take him back in your mouth, but he had other intentions and pulled you up against the broad naked chest. So roughly that the air was taken from you. His eyes looked wildly betwixt your own.

"Tell me you want me, Y/N." His voice was ragged, and his breath was strained with desire. "I-I want you. I need you." He bit his lip so hard you thought it would bleed in objection. "And you want it rough? My girl wants my cock hard?" You shook your head. "I'll take whatever you'll give me, sir. I'm yours."

He claimed your lips then, savagely and took your leotard and dress off your frame roughly. He dropped to his knees before you and without warning dove into your wet folds causing you to weep out. He looked up at you with a smirk you could feel and the quirked brow that only aroused you further. Your hands went to his hair as his hands dug into your thighs, guaranteeing bruises. "Ah-Sebastian. Your mouth feels so good on my cunt. Your lips are so sinful." He moved his head from side to side and your legs closed around his head and right before you came, you grabbed his hair pulling him up. "What is it, doll?" He seemed concerned that he had injured you and gently caressed your thighs causing you to smile because that was not the case. 

"I want to cum around your thick cock, please." He smiled salaciously. "That can be aranged, princess. I'm gonna wreck you." He lined up his cock and thrust into without warning, and you surrendered your head back, one hand on the counter and one hand on his rippled shoulder.

When you finally had enough senses to look back at your lover his eyes were on you, taking every bead of sweet and bare flesh in for his memory. You bit your lip, and when his eyes found yours, he gave you a particularly hard thrust and called out his name with praise.

"Your pussy is so tight just like it was made for me, baby. So sweet and snug. I can't wait to taste it again." His massive hand wrapped around you and pulled you close to his sweat-slicked torso. The grunts and moans alone only brought you that much closer to release. As if he knew, his fingers found your clit and flicked it just right causing you to bite his shoulder and he growled at the pain mixed with pleasure.

"Ah-Fuck, doll. Where have you been all my life?" His thrusts were getting sloppy as he drilled into you. "Cum inside me, Seba. I want to feel you. Give it to me. Now."

He grabbed your face. "Look at me! I want to see your face when you cum, and I want to see you when I make you mine. Understand me?" You tried to nod, but he held your face so firm you were unable to. "Yes, sir." He smiled and kissed you, his lips are what sent you over the edge of reason into the stars.

He pulled back, and his eyes were deep enough to swim in and lose yourself for all eternity. He let out a moan and said your name as he came inside, painting your velvet walls with his seed. As he finished, he lent in for a soft kiss and then laid his head against yours.

"I-I've....you are lovely, and that was extraordinary." He was out of breath and absolutely exhausted but took the time to take a washcloth to clean you up.

"Are you blushing? Even after all of that." You snickered at his observation. "Yes, well. This was a first for me. I mean one night stand?" He stopped what he was doing with a frown on his face and then silently nodded. "I see." He threw the washcloth in the hamper and handed you your dress while he began putting his clothes on.

There was an awkward silence, and you felt as though you had done something wrong but didn't know what to say or do to make it right.  "So... " You stood before him all dressed and went to open the door, and he was silent. You would be lying if you said that you didn't want to cry, you assumed that he wanted to just get this over with, so you would only do it for him instead.

"I guess, I'll let you get back to your friends then?" You walked out of the bathroom, leaving him there.

Sebastian watched you walk out and cursed to himself. He wanted you to stay with him; he wanted to talk to you. Fuck! Why did he have to sleep with you? You were just so fucking lovely and sexy and...

At that moment he knew he would be damned if he let you slip through his fingers with a handful of what-ifs. He ran down the hall and found you talking to Travis who had a concerned look on his face but a smile when he saw him approaching you.

"Y/N?" You turned around, and he could've sworn that there were unshed tears. "I-I think you promised me a dance?" You stood there a moment with confusion on your face, but as you took in Sebastian's face, you only saw a timid man asking a woman to dance, hoping that she would say yes. Gone was the alpha male who just dominated you in the loo.

"...ok." He gave you a genuine smile with a fleeting look to his feet then back to you, taking you to the dance floor.

Link to Song (If you like contemporary dance I love the choreography for this song) 

While you didn't like John Mayer, you were always a fan of the acoustic version of Slow Dancing in a Burning Room and as he pulled you close you were silently praying that this wasn't your song. The way his body held you to him and swayed to the rhythm felt hypnotic, but the words brought the tears back up.

"Hey, hey. You ok?" You frowned. "Oh, yea. Just this song. I fuckin hate Mayer but this song and you and ...dancing like this..." The words just flowed out of your mouth, and you covered it for a moment. He pulled your hand gently from your face and kept dancing but somehow pulled you closer.

"Confession?" You just looked at him, then nodded. "At the risk of scaring you off, I have a desire to know you. I know we started off unconventionally and for that, I can't say that I'm sorry because the moments that I spent with you in there, out here, they are burned into my memory. I need to know you and I am at your mercy." Your brow furrowed as you took in his words.

"What-What if I'm not who you think I am. I mean you seem to have some idea of me?" He put his forehead against yours. "Damn straight, darlin', I want you, and I don't care. Hell, I'm scared shitless too. You have me on a pedestal, and I don't deserve to be in your arms. Will you take me though? Take me as I am?" You smiled as he laid it all out before you.

"And how is that, sir?"  He stopped dancing. "As a shitty actor who only wants to make this lovely beautiful woman smile as often as I can?" You wrapped your arms around him. "Shitty actor? Never. And yes but only if you stop stepping on my toes and let me teach you how to dance properly."

"Fuck...seriously? I am so sorry, doll." You smirked as he looked down at your feet before pulling you in for a delicate and chaste kiss. "Also, you do know you're comin' home with me tonight?" Your hands threaded through his hair at his admission. "Oh thank goodness. I have like a dozen fantasies that I want to play out with your thighs alone." His eyes widened before he grabbed your hand and started walking to the front door with you laughing behind him. 

“Fucking hell, woman. I love your confessions.”

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Sebastian Stan @guera31 @irishwaffle @hiddlestonstansworld @mcdesij @marvelsvalhalla

[ruthdu]

This is a post about Sports

I am my Mother’s daughter and my Father’s son. I grew up doing ballet, religiously practicing the piano, and appreciating a detailed skincare regiment while playing rec soccer, going to basketball camp and watching sports. Sure, you can argue that my Chinese immigrant parents were very ambitious and “forced” me to participate in these activities when I was younger, but because of their stern suggestions, I became a dancer, I fell in love with music, I will always look like I’m 25 and I have a mild obsession with Sports.

If you’ve worked with me during basketball season, you know that I will be streaming the game on my computer in the production office or suggest going to a nearby bar to catch tip-off. If you’ve had the privilege of being a friend of mine during the Olympics, we will have never ending text message chains about the crazy triple toe-loop or how blurry Usain Bolt on television. If I’ve dated you during football season, you probably know that my very first poster that I put up in my room was of Troy Aikman. I was 5, barely understood English but I thought he was such a hearthrob.

I’m not very outspoken about my social, political and world views. My first presidential election was Obama and I didn’t quite understand the 2008 Recession until much later in life (I was 20 years old). Race was always an issue and I supported the occasional Tiger Mom articles on HuffPo, or essays about a HAPA and every once in awhile engaged in some Twitter conversations about “Yellow Fever” but it wasn’t until recently that there was truly a platform to be Chinese Born - American. That didn’t mean that I didn’t support racial justices in general, but it meant that I hid behind those big trendy topics. Of course, it wasn’t until we were in a disaster of a political situation where I even considered watching a Senate hearing nor cared about our local Congressmen / woman. With that in mind, these kind of public posts are far-in-between and very delicate for me. But after what I watched + experienced this weekend, I was compelled to share because it all coincided with Sports.

This past weekend I watched 20-year-old Naomi Osaka conquer and overtake tennis Queen Serena Williams, who I believed acted poorly against the (yes unfair) Umpire at the US Open Finals. I was severely disappointed in Serena, especially after learning so much about her journey to motherhood. I had a new found respect for Serena not only as a phenomenal athlete but also a Superwoman that overcame the most difficult time of her life. I sat there, jaws on the floor when Serena consistently bashed Carlos Ramos. I was disappointed, watching her take the argument even further with officials when all I wanted for her is to take that energy and refocus on the game. True athleticism is mental and sure, we cannot help the way we feel, ESPECIALLY when we are losing. But those athletes who can outplay and outlast, the “GOAT”s, the champions, should be able to take a few breaths and make a comeback.

I’m not saying that what Serena was fighting for wasn’t valid. YES, the umpire was probably intimidated that a strong black woman was yelling at him YES, he should have given her a warning and YES, I’m sure he’s been told many terrible things on the court without giving a penalty point but felt that he needed to keep his masculine power by ruling an unprecedented action. Even with all of that potential wrongsay, there’s a time and place to object to rules and there’s a time to suck-it-up and play the game.

I sat there and cried during the awards ceremony because Naomi Osaka apologized for winning. My tears were for her family who was so proud of her but knew there would be this heavy cloud of doubt over her for the years to come. I cried because I saw a part of my little sister in her, awkwardly holding the trophy and not sure if she was representing her country as well as she would have wanted. All I wanted is for her to feel joy, pride and strength. I cried even more when Serena told the crowd to stop booing because I knew that at that point, perhaps she felt that THIS was the repercussions of her actions. I love sports because I also love sportsmanship. Much like Serena thought that Carlos owed her an apology, I think Serena should apologize to Naomi for the bittersweet outcome of the tournament.

Naomi Osaka IS a champion. She played the best game of her life. She trained hard and she has that tunnel vision that transforms a player from great to the Best. I ask that you all take some time to learn more about Naomi Osaka. She’ll be on the tennis radar for years to come and I cannot wait to watch her play next.

This past weekend, I also witnessed the epic return of the greatest QB of all time. I claim this with extreme bias but am not alone in this statement, especially after his tremendous game on Sunday night. When Aaron Rodgers was carted off in the second quarter of the opening game vs. the (new and much improved) Chicago Bears, a little part of me died. I’ve been a Rodgers fan for years. He was the QB Hearthrob: insanely attractive, hilariously respectful and probably the best ice-cream eating companion. My adoration escalated when I started a diehard, bleeding-green Packers fan who claims he looks like a slightly petite version of Aaron. Last year’s collar-bone injury led to a sour fall season but made our relationship much stronger. There was a lot on the line this football season with Aaron’s return. When Aaron was lying on that field, grasping his left leg, it became deeply personal.

The Packers came back with a limping Aaron Rodgers and won the game 24-23. We yelled and screamed with joy. We drank tequila and celebrated. The cats (Starks and Jordy, named after former Packer players) were annoyed but we didn’t care. THIS was sports. THIS was athleticism at its best and even with the controversial hoopla of the NFL, THIS was football.

I understand why there was a boycott against the NFL. I know that Roger Goodell is a Trump supporter and I know that behind many of these massive teams are corporate millionaires who voted Red. The League made a decision this year that if players kneel during the national anthem that they would subject to fines which arguably means they are charging players fees against their freedom of speech. Yes, I do believe that this is a harsh rule, but I do believe it was a rule to take politics out of the game.

Last year was the only time I remembered watching the National Anthem in any regular season football game. It truly didn’t matter to me but it became such an issue that of course I “fell’ into the trap of curiosity. This year, I am not boycotting because I am watching football for the players. I am watching to see the unexpected comebacks, to see that crazy 75-yard run to the end zone, to see that near interception that nearly gave me a heart attack. I am watching not because I am supporting our idiot-president Trump, but because I respect the bellies of the defense linemen and the sprint of the wide receiver. I am watching because I believe in will power and strength of mind, which is how Aaron Rodgers came back ferociously, playing football with one good leg.

Remember when Kerri Strug won an Olympic Gold ‘96 even though she was severely injured? Did we protest the Olympics because there was probably some weird underage and illegal shit going on? Do we still support team USA even after the corporate probably knew the actions of their disgusting coach? The answer is YES, because we support the players. We support what they want to accomplish and what they’ve tried out their entire lives to accomplish. Yes they are millionaires and this is their “job” but I guarantee that if they had the choose between a massive paycut to play, most everyone would 100% choose the paycut. An athlete doesn’t just train their bodies 365 days a year for a big paycheck (that’s just the bonus) but talk to those former players who didn’t make the cut their third year, or the former player turned coaches of their local highschool - if they had a shot to play on the green, they would do it no question.

I will watch the NFL until the players decide not to play anymore. The game is changing and I’m happy to hear of new strict hit rules to the QB and new technology for player protection. I will yell and scream and jump in disappointed and joy and I will eventually earn that Rodgers jersey that I desperately want from my new Packer partner.

For those who actually read this post, thank you for time out of your busy day to do this. Why am I so passionate about Sports? “Ruth, you make movies! You sit in front of a computer all day long and you do budgets! And you write! Why do you care about sports?” I consider myself an athlete. I’ve been in competitive sports the majority of my life and I know what it feels like to lose. I used to rehearse 6-8 hours on weekends out in the hot sun, practically running close to 15-20 miles a day.

As a dancer, I trained like an athlete: slow push-ups, squats, abdominal conditioning, the whole damn thing. And in my now adult life, I go to challenging HIIT/ Boot Camp / Strength classes to make sure that I have the ability to survive a zombie apocalypse, or be fast enough to run to shelter during the Big One. I attribute my film career to my athletic training: play smart, play hard, follow the rules and always thank your teammates. These are skill sets that now engrained in me. So this is why I am passionate about sports: because its about survival, mind over matter and it’s about those you play the game with.

[harry-potter-beast-imagines]

Imagine...

…being a mute who is going to Hogwarts and Severus Snape being instructed to give you private lessons to teach you non-verbal spells, classes in which you two unwittingly grow unsuspectingly close.

Drabble  ↓ ↓

To most young wizards and witches, Hogwarts was their dream and strive in life – they wanted to attend the renowned school, live within its walls, and be taught magic by its great professors – and you were no different. However, there was one small fact about yourself that you thought would prevent you from excelling – you were a mute. That is, you thought it would hinder you at first, but then, only after a year of struggling with your classes and keeping up with others, Dumbledore called you into his office and instructed Professor Snape to change all that. As he gave those inductions, you could have sworn you caught a certain mischievous glint in his eye, but you merely shrugged it off and scraped your fear of the Potions Professor aside, knowing it would hinder the help you were so graciously given. Back then, you had no idea how enjoyable a class with the grumpy “dungeon bat,” as people called him, would be when he wasn’t being annoyed by the insignificant chatter of the other students. Apparently, he quite enjoyed the silence you brought to the picture.

“Remember to keep your mind focused on the spell.” Severus instructed in his usual, stoic tone before wrapping his own hand around yours to maneuver your wand higher, “Your spell is entirely reliant on your thoughts and concentration, so make sure to feel what you’re doing – don’t think about saying the spell and rather imagine the feeling of casting it.”

Giving an enthusiastic nod, your fingers clench around your wand beneath Severus’ grasp and your eyes narrow into the distance in front of you. And yet, nothing happened. You glared at the open air ahead, but still life went uneventful, and finally, this forced an annoyed, soundless sigh from your lips. You moved to nudge your professor besides you, trying to tell him that it wasn’t working, but just as your elbow grazed the wings of his cloak, you froze.

In an instant, your concentration was stolen by the Professor’s intense and determined scowl, directed into the distance where your spell would be casted – he was still waiting. Nevertheless, his intentions weren’t what grabbed your attention; it was that look. So many times you ‘ve wondered how insane your friends would be if you told them about the fantasies you create when Severus made that deep, thoughtful face, but every time, you’d react the same way you thought they would.

‘That’s wrong.’ You’d tell yourself.

And yet, while your eyes were boring into his, unbeknownst to the oblivious man, and the heat practically radiated from his chest against your side, just a simple gift from how close he stood, you reminded yourself that you two were way past the level of being able to say “that’s wrong” and walking away without hassle.

“Miss (l/n).” Your professor’s monotone voice suddenly ripped your attention back to reality, “I do believe if you’d pay attention, you’d be proud.”

Confused, you sent Severus a skeptical look, but without having to truly process his words, a flicker of blue light invaded your attention and forced you to look back towards your wand, but the sight you saw made you stiffen in shock, a dry lump growing in your throat. Right there, only a touchable distance away, a thick, blue cloud have begun to emanate from the tip of your wand, struggling to fly through and color the dark room in its glow. It was brief and unrecognizable, but at the bright streak’s end, you could see an odd figure prance and run freely, only slightly formed.

“The Patronus Charm.” Severus observed with an almost smug tone laced to his otherwise unreadable speech, “Seems you’ve done it.”

Nevertheless, you stared at the blurry shape in silence, your jaw slacked, your eyes wide, and your entire body drowning in disbelief.

“I know what you’re thinking, but no, you did concentrate.” Snape explained when he finally caught sight of your dismay, “You might not have been concentrating on the spell, but your mind seemed to have been incredibly focused on something else, which seems to have channeled your magic. That is, from what I could tell from your thoughts and stare, you were more focused than you were in my classes.”

You could feel blood instantly rush to your face, the heat like a scorching fire, and saw your charm poof out of existence the moment you understood his words. You tried to step away from him out of pure embarrassment, but alas, he still had your hand grasped in his own. Of course, you knew he already knew about your affections for him, as you did his, but his damned Legilimency always gave him so many mortifying thoughts that he now has free reign to use against you later. That was why you tried to pull your hand free from his with all your strength, but only felt yourself getting frustrated when he didn’t so much as budge – you were like small Belle trying to escape the giant beast, after all.

“You do realize you always do this, correct?” Severus asked, the corner of his lips tugging into the briefest of smiles. Even to you, him smiling was like an ogre taking a bath – it never happens – and so, the sight inevitably made you calm down slightly, but your pride didn’t allow you to stop struggling entirely. The only thing that finally made you stop, something that made your entire body slack and go still, was when warmth brushed over your fingers. It was only for a moment, and it was painstakingly brief, but the feeling of Severus’ lips leaving a warm peck on your hand, like the gentleman he was, made the skin tingle and your cheeks light up like a Christmas tree. What everyone else didn’t know was that you already knew how those lips felt and moved against your own, which unfortunately was a feeling you only had the privilege of feeling once every few weeks, Snape being the man he was.

“Better?”

Shakily, you nodded, not even bothered by the fact that your wand was slowly slipping from your numb hand, and hesitantly took a few steps forward to slump your head against Snape’s chest.

‘You are so unfair, you grumpy old git.’ You thought in a grumble, and of course, given his talent, your thoughts didn’t go unheard, but thanks to another one of his talents, he only found them humorous. He knew he was unfair, of course, because only the cruelest of teachers would wrap an arm around you like he was, and would pull you closer with the other when he finally catches your wand before it fell – luckily, however, neither of you cared how ‘cruel’ he could be, and neither did Dumbledore, which seemed to go unnoticed by you both.

(Requested by anon, and not my gifs. I do hope you enjoy this and that I didn’t butcher Snape’s character too much.) Requests: OPEN

[dudence-blog]

Dear Dudence for 18 September 2017

I’d previously not wanted to do comments on Dear Prudence’s chats; they’re disorganized, the letter writers get responses from other reader in the column, it might be a bit unfair because they’re quickly written.  However, as a wise philosopher reminded me, this wasn’t a rule so much as a guideline.  However I do have rules about alcohol so with a Shiner in hand here we go...

Midlife crisis?: For the past year or two-but especially over the last few months-I’ve been having what I can only describe as a midlife crisis. I’ve lost complete interest in my job (though I’m still productive), don’t want to deal with my kids anymore even though I love them like crazy (I’ve been a single mom for 10 years with no help from their father), and basically just want to travel the world with no responsibilities.

Dear Midlife Crisis, take a look around you at work, later, take a look around you during a school function, PTA meeting, whatever.  Every single adult you’re looking at has had, or will have, a time when they think the same things you are now.  Wanting something different, a life you think you’ll love, free of the responsibilities and worries of your day-to-day life is nothing new.  Heck, here are multiple entries for it on TV Tropes.  You give no indication in your letter that it is life itself which is overwhelming you, which is what Newdie’s advice would be good for.  If all you wanted was a break from the stress, or to reduce the stress, sure, hire a cleaning service or get a babysitter.  However, although she was wrong, she’s on the right trail.  While a year lounging on the beach sipping umbrella drinks might be unreasonable for several reasons, would a week-long vacation without the children be impossible?  That or find yourself a younger woman and buy a sports car.

Husband’s having an affair and I don’t care: I just discovered my husband of 15 years is hooking up with women he finds online. We’ve had issues that all couples who’ve been together for a long time have: full-time jobs, medical issues for us both, dealing with my aging and infirm parents, carting the kids to hell and back. I’m disappointed that he appears to have chosen the nuclear option rather than discuss his dissatisfaction. But other than that, I feel nothing. No anger, no sadness, just ... whatever.

Dear Don’t Care, oof.  This doesn’t strike me as merely a lack of romantic connection, but a lack of an emotional one as well.  I don’t lightly advise ending relationships, but that doesn’t mean I won’t, and it certainly doesn’t mean I wouldn’t suggest it as a topic of discussion with your spouse.  Because it is a subject you need to bring up when you talk with him about this.  At the very least, as NuPru suggested, if you’re going to make this a feature of your relationship you need to make sure you’re protected (emotionally, physically, reputationally, whatever).

Unwilling teetotaler: Recently, I had to give up alcohol for medical reasons-it may or may not be permanent. One side effect is I don’t have as much tolerance for family events or weddings that used to seem fine (or even great) with a few beers. My husband’s family is large and we are obligated to go to a lot of family gatherings. Unfortunately, I’ve found that without alcohol, these events range from boring to someone-please-shoot-me.

Dear Unwilling Teetotler, you’re not being unreasonable to not want to stay at frequent events which make you miserable.  You are being unreasonable to expect your husband to forgo partaking so he can experience your misery.  As in many things COMMUNICATE.  “Honey, I’m going to head out after an hour or so, you stay and have a great time.  If you need a ride because you had too much please call me.”  There, problem solved.  If logistics is an issue, Uber.  Please ignore Bad Pru’s comments about needing to have a conversation about your in-law’s relationship with alcohol.  She’s reading her biases into your letter.  Granted, I’m doing it too but its my place, my rules guidelines.

Bad dog: We have new neighbors that moved in a couple of months ago. They are nice people and have a toddler that my son loves to play with, but they also have a dog that is insanely aggressive toward kids. We have a dozen or so kids on the block and he’s lunged at about half of them. (He even hit my own son with his snout while his back was turned, leaving a bruise, not a bite.) Luckily, he’s been on a leash every time which has prevented a serious attack. Recently, the dog has been digging his way out of the backyard. The owners have fixed the holes when they happen, but now all the neighbors are even more scared of what could happen.

Dear Bad Dog, do you live in my neighborhood?  Nevermind.  They’re nice people and your son plays with theirs.  Share your concerns with them, but be prepared for them to dismiss your concerns.  People tend to be blind to issues close to them.  “Beloved Pet” is an issue close to people, so they’re probably going to be defensive, and you need to be prepared for that.  Afterall, you are about to tell them they don’t know how to train and raise their dog.  Be polite, share your concerns; it’s aggressive towards other children, a dog on the loose is at risk of all sorts of bad things happening to it, etc, etc.  I would caution you about making “call Animal Control” Step 2 in your course of action.  Animal Control is an escalation.  If you’re not prepared to see the dog taken away, don’t call Animal Control; they are there for the protection of animals and people, not Neighbor Conflict Remediation.

Outsider tortoise at a table full of hares: This may seem a nonproblem, but it’s important to me: I’m a slow eater. I don’t make people sit at the table for hours as I languidly pick at my plate, but I’m often finishing my first helping while others are on their seconds, thirds, or beyond. In fact, I rarely get a chance for additional helpings, even when I’m the hostess. (Which I frequently am, making tons of food.)

Dear Outsider Tortoise, I hate your friends and I’m not too fond of you either.  I hate your friends because they’re making you think “I eat slow because of my privilege and that’s ‘Not Okay’”.  I’m not fond of you because you’ve taken it to heart and view “my parents taught me table manners” and view that as some sort of undeserved boon in life for which you must atone.  Fuck that noise.  That being said, if this is an issue across several groups of friends the problem might actually be with you (whether because you do eat interminably slow or your friends are awful people I’ll leave as an exercise to the reader).  You could do what NuPru said and just get more on your plate, or you could go the opposite route and get less at first so you finish faster then get your seconds with the group, or you could store some extra in your fridge for yourself later, or you could find people who aren’t mooching off you and then blaming your middle-class upbringing for why you don’t eat like a ravenous warthog.

[lewepstein]

Just Plain Wrong

Picture an early morning scene in which a four year old boy is sitting alone in a large sandbox at a local playground.  His father is watching from a bench close by while his son surrounds himself with all of the many toys provided by the community to those who come there to play.  Since the child has arrived first, he has taken two tricycles and parked them in his imaginary “garage.”  He has also grabbed all of the sand toys- plastic trucks, shovels and pails - and placed them around himself in a large semi-circle.  Within the next half hour other adults and children arrive.  But the little boy doesn’t want to relinquish what he now sees as his possessions.  He refuses to share the tricycles, pails and shovels with the other children.  He believes that because he got there first he is entitled to keep everything for himself.  But even the five and six year olds who have just entered the playground are saying to their caregivers that what the boy is doing is “unfair.”

Most of us would agree that it would be just plain wrong for the father of the little boy to not insist that his son share with the other children.  It is obvious to all that the child  cannot use all of his accumulated playthings at once, and that his hoarding denies others the opportunity to enjoy their time at the playground.

The scene that I have just described is a pretty good description of economic life in America today and what we tolerate in our political culture.  You could say that we have been brainwashed to believe that society must be organized around the principle that whoever comes up with a scheme to grab all the toys for himself has the right to hold onto them forever.  But, isn’t the playground scene that I am describing also an apt metaphor for the three richest men in the United States having the combined wealth of the lower-earning hundred eighty million of our fellow citizens?  And is it really OK that a number of the corporations that these billionaires own and control pay no taxes, while some of their lower paid employees have to choose between spending their meager salaries on either prescribed medications or food?  This may sound a little like Charles Dickens’ nineteenth century novel, “ A Tale of Two Cities,” but it is also a portrait of America in the year 2019.  

Many of us have taught our children the virtues of sharing and even the four year old in the sandbox soon learns that it is just plain wrong to keep all of the toys for himself when there are others present who would enjoy using them.  In a similar vein, anyone who sees himself as an even modestly spiritual and moral human being or attends any church, synagogue or mosque is instructed to be generous and kind to others - nothing more than charity and compassion 101.  And yet, we as a nation tolerate fabulously wealthy drug companies getting away with a five fold mark-up of survival items, like epipens.  And as yet there has been no popular revolt against a health care system that allows insurance companies to use a business model designed to either deny or limit payments for treatments that they deem “too expensive,” “too experimental” or simply “unnecessary.”  In fact, it is the “fiduciary responsibility” to shareholders of those who work for these companies to maximize profits by offering less - not more - to those of us who are suffering from disease and are in desperate need of healing and support.  It doesn’t take a great ethicist or moralist to see that these practices are just plain wrong.

When and where did we lose our moral compass and come to justify this kind of greed?  Was it in the days of the American frontier when every male settler believed he could become a wealthy rancher, and to hell with everybody else?  Or is it in the still prevalent cowboy myth revived by Ronald Reagan in the 1980s that enshrines the notion that the only person I really need to look after is “number one” -  namely me - and that others must fend for themselves.  To me, this sounds like the type of “rugged individualism” that refuses to embrace an even bare-bones awareness that we are all in this together - each a part of a family, a community and a nation - every one of us a cog in a complex and interdependent multitude of connections, interests and needs.

Most of us get it that it would be wrong to start a bonfire on our front lawns even though it would be a quick and cheap way to dispose of garbage and old furniture and to avoid paying the fees of a pick up service.  And yet, we as a society tolerate one corporation or an entire industry’s decision to dump its sulphuric waste into the atmosphere which then dramatically affects the acidity of the rain needed to irrigate the crops that we all depend upon for our food supply.  We observe this same attitude with gun owners and the National Rifle Association when they demand and defend unlimited access to firearms even as our children are mowed down by deranged shooters who should never have been allowed to acquire that type of firepower in the first place.  It is this selfish, privileged and arrogant worldview that is so malignant when applied to our global village where everything and everyone is so profoundly connected - where global warming is threatening life on our planet and wealth inequality along with climate based crop failure is producing mass migrations of people of a magnitude that we have never seen before and leaving war, terrorism and political upheaval in its wake.

The American “four year olds” who are monopolizing the  toys in our collective playground have names.  They are  Jeff Bezos, Charles and David Koch, Warren Buffett, and Mark Zuckerberg, among others.  They hide behind their corporate identities named Amazon, Exxon Mobil, Eli Lily, Lockheed Martin and Monsanto.  They are part of a powerful and privileged class of individuals and cartels who, in the short run are reaping tremendous benefits from capitalism’s cruelty, inequality and environmental degradation.  They will argue that they are charitable and willing to share, and they will occasionally even throw a toy or two to others, when it suits them.  But woe to anyone who actually says that society’s wealth and resources belong to everyone and that their hoarding must come to an end.

In terms of equity and sharing it would make sense that the privileged and the powerful would be reined in by true adults who had the interests of everyone in mind and saw fairness as their mission.  But, what we are getting today from those who are supposed to be representing us is  mostly complicity and compliance with what the wealthiest one percent want.  The most infamous of the complicit is named Mitch McConnell, a senator from Kentucky. But he is just one patriarch in two large families called the Republicans and the Democrats who both, insanely, take bribes from the privileged and powerful few they are supposed to be monitoring and are therefore completely beholden to them. Call them the billionaire class or the wealthiest one percent - they have come to hold tremendous authority over those who should be reining them in and leveling the playing field so that the rest of us can also have access to all that our wealthiest society in human history has to offer.    

Where once there was a counsel of wise adults who ruled judiciously on challenges to wealth and power, there are now a majority of  billionaire class collaborators whose names are Roberts, Alito, Thomas, Gorsuch and Kavanaugh. They give their stamps of approval to the status quo and cloak the power and privilege of the entitled one per cent  in the language of law.  Sadly, these biased arbiters of right and wrong get to occupy the same benches for the rest of their lives.  But the most pernicious and cruelest irony of all is that the current director of the playground is incapable of fairly monitoring those he is in charge of because he is a functional four year old himself.  The grasping and greedy Donald Trump lies constantly, operates without even the pretense of a moral code and is incapable of seeing the world beyond his own shallow self interest.   Like most children, he views any questioning of his ideas or actions as hostile acts and calls those who challenge him his “enemies.”  

If so much of what I have just described is just plain wrong, then how do we as a people make it right?  The answer begins with turning our moral outrage into energy and not being deterred by the predictable attacks that the playground bullies will level against anyone who insists that they share their wealth and privilege.  Bold, common sense programs like “The Green New Deal,” “Medicare for All,”  universal pre-kindergarten and childcare” an annual wealth tax and free tuition at public universities not only demand that wealth and resources be shared, but provide solutions for problems that our gilded age, laissez faire, market based system of economics has not been able to solve.  

The first major obstacle to introducing these types of programs into our current system is the tantrum that the one percenters have when asked to share their wealth - they will do anything and everything in their power to scare the hell out of us so that we reject any progressive programs along with the politicians who are trying to level the playing field:  This is what you can expect to hear:

“That program will be a job killer.”

“Don’t engage in ‘class warfare’”

“Beware of ‘too much government.’”

“You never want to lose your freedom of choice.”

“Just allow the ‘free market’ to do its thing.”

“Big government programs are too expensive.”

“Only the private sector ever gets things right.”

“Do you want to live in a ‘welfare state?’”

“Why tax the rich? We give millions to charity.”

“It will all ‘trickle down.’”

These arguments appeal to our fears and are not about facts.  Working class families are not free when they are struggling to pay for healthcare.  The so called “free market” is rigged and does not promote freedom when monopolies are driving the planet to extinction.  The much maligned “Welfare State” is now mostly about corporate welfare - the Medicaid, food stamps and other benefits  that we, the taxpayers pay to Walmart and McDonald workers who are not receiving a living wage.    

The bogeyman of  “too much government,” is really fear mongering about the government controls, oversight, regulations and taxation needed to rein in the excesses and dangerous practices of the  healthcare, pharmaceutical and energy cartels.  And to the argument that the Federal government never gets it right, I would argue: What about The W.P.A. in the 1930s that rebuilt our infrastructure and put the country back to work?  How about Social Security - called “creeping socialism” by the millionaire class of that era - and  Disability and Medicaid that even the conservative Tea Party members don’t want to give up?  And have you considered our Interstate Highway System and our National Park System, one built under Eisenhower and the other begun under Teddy Roosevelt? - both massive, big-government programs.  And what about our National Space Program that placed a man on the moon in the 1960s and Medicare, a government run health program for those over 65 that most people highly value?

When all else fails, the message from the  billionaires  and the politicians who are in their pockets is, “Watch out! Those who are pushing for Medicare for All and taxing our wealth  are socialists”.  Beware of the “red menace” and “don’t risk losing what you have.”  But, the reality is that only through massive, socialist, government sponsored programs like “The Green New Deal” and “Medicare for All” will the playground that we all live in become livable for all.    

Time is no longer on our side and a window is rapidly closing as the free market four year olds and their representatives continue trying to convince us that capitalism is freedom and that any and all attempts to redistribute and regulate their wealth and power is tyranny.  Unfortunately, the word “Socialism” may still be scary to many.  Perhaps, too revolutionary to view as a realistic solution.  But it is becoming increasingly clear to many of us with each climate disaster and mass migration that we may be facing a choice between Socialism and barbarism.

So let’s not allow the entitled and their hired hands to frighten us into believing that large common sense government programs cannot work in the United States.  And let’s not be scared off again by the words “Socialism” or “Revolution.”  It is Democratic Socialism that has provided a way of life that most European citizens swear by and are not willing to give up and it was a revolution against tyranny and unfair taxation that gave birth to our nation.  An unwillingness to uphold our country’s proud, revolutionary tradition in these critical times could turn out to be just plain wrong.

[go-redgirl]

Democrats Face Identity Crisis In Next Phase of 2020 Race Associated Press ^ | September 3, 2019 | Steve Peoples

Doug Ogden doesn’t know what to do.

The 75-year-old retired law enforcement officer is disgusted by President Donald Trump. But he can’t imagine voting for a Democrat in 2020, either. A self-described independent in South Carolina, Ogden doesn’t recognize the modern-day Democratic Party.

“The state of the Democratic Party is wild against wilder,” says Ogden, standing with his arms crossed at a recent town hall meeting for Democratic presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg. “It scares me.”

At the core of Ogden’s concern is a broader question about the direction of the Democratic Party and its values in the age of Trump. While Democrats are united in their fierce opposition to the Republican president, most party leaders agree that Democrats will not reclaim the White House simply by running against him; they must give people something to vote for.

But nine months into the first year of the 2020 campaign season, Democrats are no closer to resolving the big questions dividing their party by race, generation and ideology than they were on the day of Trump’s inauguration. And as the campaign enters a new heightened phase after Labor Day when far more voters begin paying closer attention, there is increasing pressure on Democrats to answer the questions behind their extended identity crisis. …

(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.com

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INDIVIDUALS/COMMENTS/POSTS:

To:

Olog-hai

The 75-year-old retired law enforcement officer is disgusted by President Donald Trump

The article seems to make little effort to explain the disgust. I guess the media expects people to nod like sheep and say "Of course. All decent people are disgusted by him."

(If White Privilege is real, why did Elizabeth Warren lie about being an Indian?)

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To: Olog-hai

there is increasing pressure on Democrats to answer the questions behind their extended identity crisis. … What Identity crisis? Democrats hate America, Americans, Freedom, Liberty,.. and anything that doesn't require their approval first. They have always been and still are all about Racism and gaining Power and Control over their fellow man. 5 posted on 9/3/2019, 10:24:19 AM by eyeamok

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To: Olog-hal

.."retired law enforcement officer is disgusted by President Donald Trump."

If only these news reports would ask "why are you disgusted with Trump".? I would like to know how these people think. Always good to know your enemy.

posted on by mosaic wolf /3/2019, 10:24:30 AM

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To:eyeamok

Antifa, the latest terror arm of the democrat party, likes to use this chant.

“No border, no wall! No USA at all!”

I think that cristalizes the democrat party platform perfectly.

8posted on9/3/2019, 10:26:53 AM by Westbrook(Children do not divide your love, they multiply it)

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To: Olog-hai

What exactly is he disgusted with regarding Trump?

He would do well to stop listening to the garbage media.

Here’s a guy who is retired LE toying with the idea of voting for the most anti-cop party in history. He should be disgusted with himself.

9posted on 9/3/2019, 10:27:46 AM by head stamp 2(There's a stairway to heaven, but there's a highway to hell.)

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To: Olog-hai

The democrat party is people who don’t so sex the right way, have chopped off some organs, hate this country, are plotting to destroy this country, want to take money from Whitey, want to eliminate Christianity, want to seize private property, want to suppress free speech, want to take guns from non-violent people, and want to eliminate the borders.

posted on9/3/2019, 10:29:46 AMbyI want the USA back(The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those who speak it. Orwell.)

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To:Olog-hai

As far as identity and issues, the Democrats have decided to take the most extreme positions on everything.

On immigration, or illegals, they favor open borders.

They favor socialized medicine.

They all favor extreme measures to fight the alleged crisis of global warming. The only nuance is how far any Democrat will go in the extreme actions they want to take.

They favor abortion up to the date of birth; they oppose any restrictions.

They want to ban all guns from law abiding people.

They want 70% tax rates, to be “fair”. Everything is “unfair” to them.

They want reparations for slavery. They say they are just wanting to have a study of the subject, but that is the camel’s nose in the tent. There’s no way some commission studying slave reparations will come back and recommend that NO actions be taken.

Pick some other issues, and I’m sure you will find Democrats at the most extreme left end of that issue.

11posted on9/3/2019, 10:29:47 AM by Dilbert San Diego

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To: eyeamok

The Democrat party is about hate.

This cycle its hate of Trump. No policy, solutions, nothing. Just hate of Trump in the final analysis.

12posted on9/3/2019, 10:30:09 AM byheadstamp 2(There's a stairway to heaven, but there's a highway to hell.)

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To: Olog-hai

If you want to live in a country that looks like San Francisco - with thousands pooping in the streets, living in tents on sidewalks, dropping needles everywhere... (Yes, San Francisco where white liberal elites step over the drug addicted bodies of lost souls...and encourage violent illegals) then vote democrat.

If you want to live in hellholes like Newark , Detroit, the South Side of Chicago, and most of Baltimore - - with leaded water, vast corruption, daily murders and shootouts - vote democrat...

If you want to live in a sane country without illegals working under the table pulling down wages, without PC insanity, without idiots thinking plastic drinking straws are the biggest danger to the 'earf' - then vote Republican.

25posted on9/3/2019, 10:56:39 AMbyGOPJ

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To: Amendment10

PDJT is successfully draining desperate Democrats out of the swamp.

And exposing them for their true agenda -- which was hidden in the past.

Biden, Warren, Harris, Spartacus. They would never tell you their true policies until Trump came along and teased it out of them.  Every one of them is now exposed to be as Communist and wacko as Crazy Bernie and the Squad.

Go President Trump!

30 posted on9/3/2019, 12:37:06 PM by pocono pundit (Will Kamel Harass pay reparations? Her ancestors were black Slave Owners in Jamaica.)

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To: AdmSmith; AnonymousConservative; Arthur Wildfire! March; Berosus; Bockscar; cardinal4; ColdOne; ...

The 75-year-old retired law enforcement officer is disgusted by President Donald Trump. But he can’t imagine voting for a Democrat in 2020, either.

IOW, the Associated Press' partisan media shill Steve Peoples is trying to push the idea that, if only the Pubbies would dump President Trump, a whole bunch of disaffected Demwits would immediately support the Republican Party.

Thanks Olog-hai.

31posted on9/3/2019, 12:49:15 PMbySunkenCiv(Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)

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[soyosauce]

Processing Trauma In Bone Dance

“Death, the Sun, the Lovers. Lots of major arcana. Your future's controlled by others. There's powerful people playing with it. You're gonna have to fight to get it back...this is the country of truth. There the Devil, the Star, the Tower. In this country of truth, where your spirit lives, your life still isn't your own. Other stronger spirits, or maybe gods--they've got the say in what happens to you.”

Content warning for talk about sexual and physical abuse and minor spoilers for Bone Dance.

In a city gripped by a single man with a monopoly on energy, Sparrow is what I’d call a Nostalgist. They find old curiosities and sell them to people who can afford to collect remnants of the past in a future that only serves the wealthy and privileged.

“Happiness, in the land of Deals, is measured on a sliding scale. What makes you happy? A long white silent car with smoked-glass windows, with a chauffeur and a stocked bar and two beautiful objects of desire in the back seat? An apartment in a nice part of town? A kinder lover? A place to stand that's out of the wind? A brief cessation of pain? It depends on what you have at the moment I ask that question, and what you don't have. Wait a little, just a little. The scale will slide again.”

After a big deal, Sparrow remembers nothing of the night before, waking up with a killer headache. Turns out it isn't booze. A horseman took her body for their own and now powerful forces are coming for Sparrow. It's harrowing and heavy material and not for the faint of heart.

“Suddenly I could imagine all the things my body might do when I wasn't there to stop it and I felt so vile they might as well have happened. Maybe they had; they just hadn't left marks. I thought about a future full of blank spaces, and I knew I couldn't bear it. If that was the future, I had to escape it.”

I say “them” because, in this young adult cyberpunk novel, fantasy elements are bolted on; often to great effect. The story goes that years back these horsemen created by the government were made to be perfect weapons. They can infiltrate anyone’s mind, pushing their consciousness down—sometimes long enough to kill them outright. They made political changes and shaped the future, engaged in social engineering, topples empires from the inside. But their lives also cultivated a kind of insanity within them. The Big Bang. A horseman turned a key and detonated a nuclear bomb, ushering in a dystopia.

This same government also created androgynous bodies supposedly devoid of thought that were to be used by these horsemen. One of the main points of tension is the origin of Sparrow however, because bodies such as theirs are meant to be empty and waiting. They pass for male or female depending, generally, on the people they’re around at the time. Sparrow leveraged this to fade into the background and make a life in the shadows. They don’t really have close friends and their life, ironically, is in their media collection, which is massive and references pop culture from before the book was made. This past is the only thing they care about. Not their own; the history of others.

“Her skin was translucent pale, the complexion of the rich. Money made an excellent sunblock.”

But that anonymity is no longer an option as they get embroiled in a plot that puts them at a crossroads with horsemen at the other ends.

As the story unfolds, we learn about Sparrow as they learn about themselves. Often painfully. Cyberpunk often puts marginalized on display but this time it’s embodied fully in Sparrow. Performing gender, unfair power dynamics, and forces and powers people really don’t understand but are none-the-less leveraged for their own selfish ends, are placed front and center in the fiction.

“The origin of my body and my mind didn't matter. I, the part of me that learned, that called on my memories, that knew I'd pulled a plant like this before, that had moved this hand to do it, was fifteen years old and innocent of evil or good. Neutral. From here forward, I was blank tape; what would be recorded there, and when, and why, was up to me.”

A major component to the fantasy elements in Bone Dance is Voodoo. The perception of nature parallels the discovery Sparrow goes through as they have to confront their past and rely on others for help in a way they’ve never allowed themselves to do before. Humanity’s view on supernatural forces, specifically in terms of Tarot and its subjectivity, is similarly paralleled. The major chapters are even introduced with tarot cards. But those answers rely on an interpretation which is flawed for the reader (at least, in my own experience) because of the power dynamics we’ve created with capitalism; so this information often acts as misinformation.

“From the lip of the Ravine I could see the Deeps on the other side, hard gray and brown brick on wood on the nearest structures, shading further in to rose, bronze, black pearl, and verdigris in spires of stone, metals, and brilliant glass. The empress of it all, rising from the center, was Ego, the tallest building in the City, whose reflective flanks had no color of their own, but worse the sky instead--relentless, cloudless blue today. The towers of the Deeps, rising in angles or curves, were made more poignant by the occasional shattered forms of their ruined kin.”

Bone Dance is also filled with some of the best prose I’ve read. A character that is unique and intersectional. One in which feels like the handling around gender identity is done well, though I can’t speak to that much. I’m not one for fantasy usually, but this, as with other genre mashups I’ve read lately, has some of the very best work in cyberpunk I’ve consumed. Published in 1991, it’s interesting that there is another example of intersectional cyberpunk that is more progressive than most of what was coming out in that space at that time (and discards some of the problems in the first wave) and was released 2 years before it was declared dead with Snow Crash, no less.

While Sparrow discovers themself, they also have to confront their place in the world via these themes around nature because their body doesn’t fit the societal norms. This is tethered to the notion around popular spirituality being polluted by the environment we’ve created. How can we really have a grip on a truth that might be held in spirituality and spiritualism when our reality is rooted in capitalistic notions that conflict with and destroy nature. It’s also about trauma and how Sparrow chooses to process theirs. And the marks it leaves under the skin, forever.

I don't trust memory, anyway. Why should I? Memories, however undependable, ought to be the stuff on the sand when the tides of experience recedes. As long as they're part of that process, there's something valid about them, something that ties them to real life.