#just a safety that id be satisfied with

[p-antalons]

sometimes i remember that im the only person in my house who even vaguely knows hockey so i set the impression. like i had to explain that the bruins are doing really good to my brother. me mentioning them winning is because im upset bc i like the canes significantly more

[0mysteiarchives]

warning: yandere themes Pretty short talk but if Robin would come to be truly infatuated and obsessed with you, she'd always try to get you the normal way first. She wouldn't want to leave a bad impression of herself onto you, and so she's very gentle, sweet, and obviously touchy with you. Though Robin might not notice it, she may slip up and make you feel uncomfortable or uneasy. But that's just an easy fix! she'll just brainwash you!

It's quite amusing and adorable to watch your innocent and confused face, wondering why you're in her private room as she tells you that you were dizzy and needed to rest. Again.

Robin won't form you into another person so that you'd accept her, she wouldn't want to, you're too perfect! Instead, she'll get rid of things that will trouble her: A person you're very close to? Who are you talking about? You lash out at her after finding out she did something bad to you? What are you saying? She'll clean any evidence that makes her responsible for your memory loss.

Robin has had thoughts of wiping you fully clean, telling you you're her partner and be fully satisfied with that. But the thought of you having backlash and being targeted by her crazed fans breaks her poor heart. She refuses to put you into danger or harm, and only tells you that you two are very close 'friends'. And just for your safety, keeps hangouts and meetups private to keep you from prying eyes of the public.

If it ever comes that the brainwashing becomes weaker, and you start to remember at a faster pace, moreover even lash out against her more often, she might have to resort to asking her brother for assistance.

Robin may be a dazzling idol for the people of Penacony, but you are the shining star in the universe that she yearns for.

-

Don't you ever just think of devious Robin and think shes so hot oh my god id let her take me ngl

also im not fully back bc my term finals and deadlines r around the corner hadsufleuwh

[coyoteprince]

Some thoughts on the masculine side of my gender experience and how it ties into vulnerability

I am nonbinary, I believe some flavor of fluid, but I just read as a goth cis woman to the layperson. That's fine and good, there is a safety and privilege in being stealth even with the alternative way I dress, but there also feels like a safe with something precious I keep locked away in me.

I take comfort in referring to myself as a "woman with a man's personality" and likening myself to a kelpie or nymph: beautiful, soft, but merely a vision of a woman: in reality underneath the gossamer, a beast that fails man's words.

Occasionally, something stirs to life in me, similar but different: those feelings of masculinity. I am naturally positioned by my genes (I can grow a shitty sparse beard) and temperament to have some secondary features- but thats it.

And yet, when the pangs of longing ache, they come on suddenly and harsh and I feel trapped.

There is nothing I can truly do to feel comfortable with the swing of identity. Only shapeshifiting back and forth could satisfy me which is impossible. Yes, I could seek hormones or surgery, but I have decided for now to not for a variety of reasons. As part of that, I've always been rather... defensive and secretive about the masculine part of my identity. I have a secondary masculine name I only allow people I trust to call me, and this dumb tumblr post is the first time I'm admitting some rather personal things to the public eye.

I'm well aware today many won't respect the nature of my gender just because I am a ~nonbinary girl~ and not seeking permanent transition, but even before that the thought of being trans was too much for me.

The first time I realized I was trans I wasn't older than 15 and noticed the thoughts I was experiencing about wanting to feel like a boy. It frightened me so bad that I vowed to never give it attention again specifically because I already knew I was queer, mentally different, being abused, and "didn't need another target on my back". Haha. Hahaha

Ignoring those thoughts hasn't been too hard except when I see the ghost of my identity. Then it is overwhelming, like a wave crashing over me and threatening to sweep me into the tide. Painful and exhilarating all at once. Before I know it, it's gone again.

I read and watched The Outsiders in middleschool, as did many. I latched onto Johnny, a greaser kid with an abusive family who tried to play tough but was really just an incredibly scared, sweet runt. I couldn't for the life of me figure out why I identified so hard with him but hindsight is 20/20. Despite the hamminess of Outsiders, I continue to hold a fondness.

Later, when I became comfortable with my nonbinary ID (something that was quite difficult for me) and an adult, I saw another ghost. A theme now set: soft hearted greasers. The first time I heard this I curled up and couldn't stop replaying it even though it made my chest ache.

Finally, the last ghost I've seen and what really made it all click for me was Izzy.

I was neutral of Izzy for the first season (sorry my old man fucker peers), but seeing him become disabled and starting to soften made me intrigued. Then, the drag scene and him singing: I yelped in excitement, bewilderment, and bawled like never before. It was the most intense gender euphoria I've ever felt. Izzy shot to the top of my favorite characters ever in an instant with all he grew to embody.

I guess I identify with boys clad in leather, forced to become rugged in all the wrong ways. Underneath, a natural softness terrified but desperate to show itself.

You can see this in Waite, too: A handsome, dark man who is oh so soft underneath. It's no secret that in my story over time he accepts his nonbinary identity and allows his truth to be seen framed by carnations and frill. Perhaps he is what I wish I was.

On the other hand, Degare is somewhat closer to my reality. A gender all his own, effeminant masculine mannerisms, fairly feminine dress, breasts and vagina and all- though he is still often more masculine than how I present. In contrast to Waite's uneasy fear of judgement, he tries to guard his natural softness rather aggressively out of fear of being taken advantage of.

I'm sure to many reading this I sound like a transmasc "egg" that hasn't cracked yet. To others, very mentally ill. Maybe to some who are fluid, they know the wish-washy feelings.

Either way, I'm a proud freak and I've worked hard to not allow others to hold power over how I view myself anymore. These past 4 years through a cocktail of treatments (though meditation and practice have been the biggest game changers) I've diligently learned how to balance being openly loving to all and authentic- yet protecting my energy and staying sure of my identity no matter another's opinion. Misery loves company and bitter, paranoid gossips and I no longer get along.

Softness, kindness, vulnerability for others and yourself are all difficult, at times seemingly impossible things to achieve when you come from a harsh upbringing and live in a world bombarded by bad news. Change in your view and behavior is excrusiating. But I believe striving for authenticity and love is the most important thing we can do as humans in this life.

Whether I end up transitioning down the line or staying as I am, I've learned to cherish these flashes of masculine desire and be empowered by vulnerability- and I don't regret it.

[call-of-ishmael]

The Last Ishmael OCD Post

One of my first times that i dabbled into character analysis was about Ishmael's OCD, people like that post but i really feel i could have done better

Canto V was my last major chapter i was willing to read. As i put more distance between me and the story, i want one final farewell in the form of finally fixing up my analysis

PART I: THE META-TEXTUAL

Before i delve into the writing itself, here is some pointers the story gives to her OCD in the form of flavor text and descriptions.

Firstly we have her Bio

This is easy to miss as its just a tiny blurb above her whole intro blurb.

Now, "obsessive compulsive neurosis" is a very weird way to phrase it, "obsessive compulsive" is clear enough but "neurosis" is odd, this is not TOO odd though, as "neurotic" used to be how OCD was classified as a disorder.

However if we look at her bio in Korean, the particulars do simply straight up say "OCD" very clearly, you'd need to MTL but this was also confirmed to me by a friend from SK

The sinner bios are biased though, and are written through a very corporate lens, so lets see if there's any other pointers elsewhere

Her base EGO, Snagharpoon, actually does just that

Her passives name is called "Compulsion" and in its gameplay design its a very interesting way to also point to it

Ishmael is a very all or nothing person, you do it well or you don't do it at all, and this is reflected on how this passive aids you to play

This passive is excellent for boosting the consistency of playing by only going for "Favored" or "Dominating" clashes, while punishing you for taking chances on clashes you MIGHT win

Base ID Ishmael is also a unit with all single coins, rolling tails puts her in a very unfavorable position so this also adds an extra safety net on top. Worth noting being all single coins is also a high risk high reward type of play style.

Finally we see two more pointers id like to note, both from Canto V

The Compulsive`s Knot, an ego gift themed after a naval rope, one of many in the dungeon all alluding to her struggles.

Most obviously though

Her exclusive status effect, Compulsion. This is in direct reference to her EGO passive, providing an attack boost at the same time it provides a drawback in the form of low SP.

We are gonna talk a bit more about this passive since it ties into another gameplay oriented way to point towards her OCD

During the story dungeon we have an event where a noise is heard, you are given two choices, check, gain SP, don't check, lose SP.

Compulsive checking is probably the most well known (to the conditions detriment we will talk about it later) hallmark of OCD

Notably, this doesn't aid Ishmael, while checking can avoid the combat encounter, not checking only has a chance of triggering it, and most interestingly, her SP will always start at -25 during combat encounters. Meaning the temporary boost in her sanity will just get reset next battle, should you decide to check. Checking wont satisfy her anxiety for more than a brief moment.

Lastly the most obvious ones are all the references to Obsession. These are so abundant i feel if you are familiar with the Canto its redundant to have them, i wanted to draw more attention to the allusions to compulsion, as they are less common.

PART II: BEFORE THE STORM

Even since before her own Canto, we can see Ishmael's ruminating and anxious tendencies pop up during previous chapters, which for OCD is important to explore as OCD is an anxious and ruminating disorder.

So lets talk a little bit about OCD! Its a disorder characterized by repetitive and constant intrusive urges to perform a task or a thought (lets keep this in mind for later)

These thoughts or actions are used to try to relieve stress from an anxiety inducing thought or situation. The most common example is OCD exacerbating germ phobia, and causing people who have it to wash their hands in excess.

While OCD is usually described as "irrational thoughts" i feel that's a pretty limited way to view it in my own experience with it. OCD compulsions and thoughts can be informed by very real worries, the worry of getting sick, of making the wrong moral choices, of hurting others. Being clean is a normal and a good practice to stave off getting sick, its the frequency and intensity that turns it maladaptive, OCD turns your own lived fears and traumas against you, and those might very well be real things to worry about, which makes dealing with it very hard.

Enough of that off to the writing!

Lets start with Canto II

This is the first example of her constant need for a lack of ambiguity, previous to this we see her complain about the treatment the sinners are receiving from Effie and Saude, skeptical of the whole deal.

Until shes shown the plans, they are so well crafted shes able to anchor to that and calm down.

This by itself is not really much other than being very detail oriented, lets look a bit further into the chapter

Here we see that aspect elaborated upon more, this moment is framed as a very important one between Dante and Ishmael in their dynamic later on, Ishmael is incredibly upset at the plan having fallen apart so quickly, while yes this is not unreasonable to be upset at, her anger is remarked on by Dante and Gregor as very intense and unusual. This in my opinion is a minor but clear indication her need for planning and considering every option is due to a deep anxiety, but don't take it from me, lets look at Canto III

Here we are told pretty explicitly, Ishmael moving quickly and asking lots of questions is something Dante has noted as an anxious habit.

And here we have more elaboration on what exactly that moment at the Casino meant for Ishmael, it was enough anger and disappointment she has stopped expecting Dante to perform well and instead taken it upon herself to see things go according to plan, this is VERY important to her.

And her worries, are repetitive enough to annoy others, and to be remarked upon by Dante.

This is perhaps the more notable chain of events to point out previous to her chapters aside from 4.5, as it helps contextualize all her usual ways of acting in a more complete light, showing a lot of this is driven by a deep anxiety

And this all makes S.E.A all the more interesting as it pays off on this.

Something i quite enjoy about Limbus is how it re-contextualizes things characters have previously done and said. And the events of S.E.A and Canto V bring a lot of interesting stuff to the table

Lets get cracking with this chapter

In general shes extremely confrontational, and tense, more than usual

But its her anxious outbursts i wanna focus on, what she puts

emphasis on.

This chapter is so crucial in this whole analysis. We see some behaviors way more clearly now, firstly we see her emphasize her need to be absolutely 100% prepared for this, no ambiguity no risks she wants certainty.

But we see something even more clearly and that's her ruminating behaviors, shes brought up things like this to a smaller extent before like commenting on a lot of aspects but here we see in full display her inner world become externalized, shes started voicing worries shes never voiced before can Dante turn them back always? What if Dante dies? What if the sinners get eaten can that be turned back?

And these don't all get brought up immediately, she mentions them in different conversations, pointing to the fact shes constantly going over the subject in her head with no pause, and she gets frustrated when she cannot work on these worries when she cant do anything to quell the anxiety.

And the last part, when Dante finds her so fixated in her planning its impossible to even talk to her. She has to perform some action do something to stave off the disaster she can see coming in her head

As someone with OCD inevitably i have to mention the personal component that drew me to analyze this was how real this feels to when you spiral

A lot of the times OCD is explained as the compulsions being something you do cause you feel its a sort of ritual to stave off disaster. Its in this way i see it reflected in this moment.

As we see with Heathcliff acting as her foil, he points out her worrying is really not doing much other than just her talking and talking, and by the state shes in when Dante checks in on her, aimless not even paying attention to anything else we see the main objective of the planning really isn't practical as much as a compulsive coping mechanism.

She has to do something

PART III: INTO THE DARK

Lots to cover and honestly i will make a companion post to this with all the examples, so for this section i wanna cover some highlights instead, as well as a general discussion of the tone.

The way this chapter is structured is very interesting, its really reflective of the mental state of Ishmael. The chapter feels really aimless, they wander around not really ever finding what they need, which drives Ishmael more and more tense and frustrate

Its a good continuation to how we see her by the end of S.E.A fixated on one goal one thing

As previously stated shes inflicted with a constant special and unique to her status effect called "Compulsion" as covered in Part I

Her behavior is also reflective of this

For a good part of the first third of the chapter shes in her room, the whole time whetting her harpoon, nonstop

However you might notice compulsion is not as present as obsession, and compulsion is also important to OCD its in the acronym! And i have seen others point to it too

However id like you to remember, in the post earlier i said thoughts can fit into OCD, compulsions can be mental and sometimes almost exclusively or mostly mental. Its even in the DSM noted that for diagnosis the compulsions to count you for a diagnosis can be mental in nature

Its in this aspect that i feel Ishmael shines a lot

In general OCD in media is lacking in representation and is often a trait given to assholes or villains

The normal conception of OCD in movies or TV is of neat freaks or control freaks, Compulsion is usually heavily emphasized when it isn't the whole picture

Often ignored though is the aspect of Obsession, some people can have Purely Obsessional OCD (Pure O), this isn't a formal diagnosis or term but its colloquially used by people who have it. Its a bit of a misnomer, as compulsions are present but internalized as mental rituals or rumination

Usually its harder to diagnose, its harder to treat as there's no apparent compulsions others can see, and the people having it seem pretty high functioning to the people around them.

This can be noticed though in people avoiding certain subjects, avoidant behaviors can be the clearest external behavior.

I personally read Ishmael as having more mental compulsions, the way she tends to be a more ruminating and anxious character than outwardly compulsive

During S.E.A and Canto V we see outward compulsions more but from the examples from previous Cantos we can see that's not her usual and she operates more on anxious overthinking most of the time.

However another aspect that ties into mental compulsions is in the previously mentioned avoidant behaviors, we see her isolate and try to stave of having to deal with her worries in both S.E.A and the beginning of Canto V when shes in her room, in both cases doing some excessive preparation in a compulsive way.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

As previously stated Canto V deserves its own companion post, and ill work on that later, i feel this encapsulates what i wanted to say well enough.

I wanted to discuss the previous signs of her behaviors that make me certain her OCD is an intended textual read, and in my opinion a well executed one

Canto V was hard to read as it felt very real and very familiar to the worst times i have had due to my OCD.

Shes a character that despite my distaste i have developed for the franchise, it will never stop meaning a lot to me same as her chapter will always be a piece of storytelling that affected me deeply in ways others haven't

To close i want to leave off what i feel encapsulates the feeling pretty well, in my favorite moment with the membrane consuming her as a metaphor for letting fear, anger, obsessions and compulsions cloud your mind until you forget why you were even there

To you, dear reader, Bon Voyage

[moonrisecoeur]

Hi moon! Hope you're doing well!

Just wanted to send in a little question in hopes of getting some brain-dumping from you. But, if you want, can you talk more about Leon being needy and touch-deprived? Could be in any context (fluff or smutty) or any version of Leon (because let's face it, he's a pathetic baby across the board) but just wanted to hear your thoughts about that! <3

nicyyyy omg hi :3 i love seeing u on my dash and especially in my inbox heh !! hope you're well and work is good !! i'm doing awesome actually i got a 92 on my midterm that i could have sworn i should have failed. haha anyway!!

mostly fluff but theres a little bit of smutty thoughts too <3

hmm fluffy touchy leon is always such a favorite topic of mine ahhh i love re4r leon being touchy because like c'mon you're like his romantic second partner ever and, not even in like a romantic context, he doesn't get touched a lot!! i mean who is out here giving him hugs and giving him comfort when he's a literal killing machine? he doesn't really even feel worthy of comfort and touch, so he doesn't like asking for it. you gotta disguise it as you wanting comfort or else he'll try to push you away.

"no, sweetheart, i don't need you to baby me. really, it's fine, i don't even like it that much to begin with, it's fine," he says, but then if you say that you want a hug and you want comfort then of course he'll oblige!! and he won't notice it but the way you're rubbing his back in soothing circles as you hold him is definitely a sign that you're doing this for him!!

but also even in circumstances where he doesn't 'need' comfort, he still likes touch. you putting your hand on his arm or resting your cheek on his shoulder is enough to satisfy him in little moments like this.

i can also see every single version of leon being big fan of running his fingers through his partner's hair (or like just patting n petting their head if u got curly hair haha). like!! it's so close and soft and intimate, and he likes making you feel comfy. even if it's a brief hand on the back of your neck, scratching the base of your scalp gently as he leans in to kiss you, he can't get over it.

i also see all leons but especially re2r and re4r being especially fond of his partner cupping his cheek and holding his jaw as you look for little wounds or scratches. you know what i mean? do we see the vision? you're all worried for him, looking at him with such care and gentleness and he's looking right back at you with heart eyes good BYE !!

omggg he loves brushing a piece of hair behind your ear absentmindedly as you're talking. gawd especially like id or re6 good lord, like you're rambling about something and he just sits there listening to you, smiling because he thinks you're the most beautiful thing on this planet, and he reaches out to tuck of a piece of hair away and brushing his thumb against your cheek in the process. god my brain would stop i'd lose any thoughts in my head i would be contractually obligated to suck this man's dick im SORRY OMG

omg you know those guys who say their love language is physical touch but you know its just because they want sex like leon ACTUALLY feels love with touch both giving and receiving. like when he comes home from a mission and just collapses into your arms, poor thing!! you rub his back and press kisses to his temple and he just breaks down crying cux he misses you !! he hates being away from you but for your safety and for his too (because he knows the government would hold your life over his head too) he has to keep going on these missions even though they're literally killing him.

i think he learns to be better about accepting touch and affection overall with age. especially like di leon like he's always giving you hugs and kisses but like he just cannot get enough of you!! he gets less touch deprived and needy the longer he spends in a healthy, committed relationship. he still wants to touch you but he doesn't need it so intensely like he was younger.

also like we sometimes think of di leon like the conclusion, the ending, where he's completely or mostly healed of all his trauma. just because he's not as emo doesn't mean he's full gotten past everything. he's still trapped to some extent. sure, he's not the worn down, pathetic alcoholic old man that he was in re6 or vd and he's got friends he can rely on and he's doing better, but i still think he struggles with feeling worthy of the attention and care of others. he's probably not the best communicator of that either!! so just like with re4r leon, you might have to disguise it as for you as opposed to for him. he recognizes this but doesn't say anything or stop you.

as for smuttyyy hmm i like the idea of leon being touchy and affectionate during sex. like if he's single and it's just a one night stand he met at the bar, then no. absolutely not. he probably won't kiss them on the lips, mostly because he's deprived of that affectionate stuff and will definitely get attached. (edit: actually the more i think about it... maybe he would be overly touchy with some stranger because he's desperate and needs it soooo bad.. what if that scares them away and he gets all sad.. dawg now i'm sad) but if it's his long term partner then he absolutely wants to hold your hand, let you touch him however you like.

on days where he's more needy and touch deprived, i can see him leaning a bit more dominant, just taking what he wants. of course ur not gonna fight him because it's the one time he'll actually seek physical comfort without it having to be a battle between you and his own insecurities. he holds you tightly and possessively, claiming you as his, and gawd i mean what else do you do besides go along with it?

cuz like i don't see him as a total sub (sub leaning switch men x dom leaning switch women representation) but i do also see his neediness manifesting in him poorly communicating his needs. i mean, let's be real. he's not the coolest guy. he's shy and awkward and canonically not good with women (and i'm sure men too). but if you coax him into voicing what he wants from you... he gives in and lets you take care of him.

couple extra random notes:

re2r leon after the events of raccoon city finds it hard to be touchy feely and everything. tries to keep his distance cuz he's so in his head and upset about what happened.

re4r leon struggles a lot emotionally and mentally and thus is very in the most in need of comfort yet the least likely to get it as he can't communicate it very well :( plus he doesn't have a lot of agency/free will in his life so as much as i wanna say "you just gotta give him love!! he deserves it!!" it also feels like he would push away anyone who is too affectionate and loving with him. as bad as it sounds it feels like just another burden being forced onto him.

id leon i would say gives me the least touch starved needy vibes. i also feel like they made him a little too cool in id, he's not loser-y enough to be leon kennedy you know ?? but he's keeping himself busy in order to not have to think about his traumas and problems, and trying to ignore his obvious need for attention and companionship.

re6 leon is struggglinggggg he is barely able to keep himself together and just some gentle touches and love breaks him down to an emotionally needy mess. this is the man that would accidentally be overly loving and affectionate with a stranger he met at the bar.

[discordsmuse]

any thoughts on Oathbreaker Knight with a fem!tav, seeking true redemption and "learning" with her new, weathered mentor? 🫣

Don't kill me anon, but believe it or not I literally didn't know this man existed until like 2 weeks ago. I played a Warlock, Monk and Barbarian and just missed him completely.

BUT!!! As soon as I realized there was a giant masked man with a Scottish accent and paternal energy, he had me by the throat. I want him to do terrible things to me.

On that note:

"Learning" from the Oathbreaker Knight ;)

18+ under the cut

- The armor is like a shield from not only the physical, but emotional aspects of mortal life. Tav comes to understand he doesn't feel like she and her other companions do. Still, he hangs around and offers sage advice that she funds annoyingly paternal at first.

- Tav trains with him, as she must if she wants any hope of settling into this new life. (Oathbreaker or pledged anew) Her guide remains dutifully at her side, assisting when necessary to keep her on the path.

- The voice is too attractive, she decided early on. Astarion teases her for how quickly the brogue of his accent makes her flush, but Tav is adamant it's only the heat of the summer.

- It's a sparring session where she ends up on her back, his sword pinning her down by the fabric of her tunic. One knee rests against the ground, close enough to press up to her side. Tav knows her breathing comes too quickly, even after a workout such as this. An awkward moment of silence passes before he's helping her up and continuing the lesson.

- After that, their sparring becomes more physical. Tav finds herself pressed to a tree by a weathered gauntlet against her throat or a knee between her legs. The latter made her squeak, a sound impossible to ignore in the silence of the night.

- Tav swears he starts to do it on purpose, to mess with her. Every moment of proximity, her Knight brushes against her skin. Arm to arm, hips bumping as he passes her, things too common now to be coincidence. There is an ache in him to touch her, and she can see it.

- The Oathbreaker resists his desire for her, but he can only provide so many excuses. Too old, ancient even. He is not man, more a spirit than anything she can ever hold. Tav remains determined nonetheless.

- Self control wanes, in part at her insistence. She manages to talk her way into his lap at one point, unsure what to do after having gotten this far. The unexpected allowance of their closeness is almost startling. That is, until his hands find her hips. He rocks her there, her comfortable camp pants catching on the metal as her body grinds against his. He has no body with which to satisfy her, but gives her all that remains. All that he can.

- After weeks of dancing around this tension between them, it culminates in the woods beyond the camp. Pinned to a tree, Tav grinds her body down on the tasset of his armor. Friction on her clit makes her gasp and whine, while the hand he has at her throat brings her heart to hammer in her ears. It is desperate, dirty, and unabashed as he watches her come undone.

- This man, this old God of sorts, does not keep his guidance to the battlefield. On the nights that Tav can spare her time for him, he will sometimes find her in her tent. There, he watches as she touches herself. His clawed armor traces over her thighs, reminding her how powerful and beautiful she is in this moment.

"Radiant, even in your undoing." His voice is thick with brogue, heady with the desire to please her rather than resign himself to guiding her hand. "How I wish to be the one between your thighs. Would that I could show you how adept my hand can be."

- It's words like that, dripping with admiration, that brings her to finish. Tav whimpers his title, allowing herself to be cleaned and soothed by hands that she knows means safety. Sometimes he will remain beside her as she sleeps, content to admire while she rests.

- It is a strange relationship, stranger still when he seems more idea than man. Yet, Tav thinks she may love him all the same.

[squipdop]

But doesn't he want to become a god specifically to be the one Actually Good God that doesn't turn people away and instead helps them? His intentions with godhood are much different than Astarion's with ascension.

GREAT question! lets see if i can answer in a way thats coherent (Challenge: Hard). first things first: this is obviously all influenced by how *i* read these characters, and how *i* think their stories would go given the circumstances (plus a bit of what id *like* to see because a) player choice has a lot of influence on character development and b) these guys are all dolls in my playhouse and i like to have fun)

so; i do believe gale truly consciously *wants* to be an Actually Good God. im not at all arguing against that - i simply believe he would not actually *be* one. for one because i dont think any God can actually be purely Good, not from the mortals point of view, and especially not a God of a domain such as *Magic*? and how long can you listen to and help your worshippers, how long can you be patient and a just teacher and ruler, when you are so much above them? when you have so much more power than them, so much more knowledge, so much more time. not to mention anyone contesting your power or domain, mortal or otherwise.

pair this with gale not always being quiet as Good as he likes to think of himself as - he does not disapprove of astarions plans of ascension, he can stay with you after the goblin raid, he is fully willing to sacrifice not *only himself, but also your entire party and everyone in the vicinity the size of a city* for mystras forgiveness "the greater good" (MINI philosophical ramblings here, because thats another intresting angle but this is already getting long enough: yes, even in the name of the greater good, he is in this moment making the decision of sacrifice not only for himself, but for a WHOLE bunch of people without their consent or consideration.) this perhaps is a personal gripe with this flavor of utilitarism, but just think how this would scale onto near limitless power.

another aspect i personally see in gales want for godhood is his desire to feel worthy. i mentioned this in my tags earlier already, but i read gale in the "gifted kid who knows hes smart but still never feels quite enough to be worth loving" way? and just constantly trying to prove that - without ever being able to attain it, and as a God, who would even be there to hand out this approval? "am i worth loving yet" is just a question you cannot recieve a satisfying affirmation to if you dont trust others to make the call

as for comparison with astarion... i think astarions base desire for ascension comes from a need to feel *safe*, which he believes he can only attain through power over others. this is where im drawing my comparisons: astarions desire for power => safety, and gales desire for power => worthiness; both think power (ascension, godhood) could give them what they want, when this is simply untrue - astarion will not ever feel truly safe if he does not let himself heal and move on, and gale will never truly feel worthy enough if he does not detach his self worth from others approval (and his use to others)

in my post i specifically mentioned them in a relationship bc i love me some unhealthy bloodweave, and i think this is one of the most toxic ways they could be together, especially if theyre both hopelessly devoted to each other... (dreamy sigh) but i think this answer is already long enough so ill cut it off here

TL;DR: i think gale *wants* to be an actually Good God. i just do not think him capable.

[izzyliker]

TBH It feels weird that people are talking about how Ed being portrayed as Izzy's abusive ex means he will abuse Stede, but no one is assuming Stede will treat Ed the way he treated Mary and abandon Ed without a word for a second time. The writers just really seem to believe magical healing cock trope is real a satisfying conclusion to a romance for BOTH Stede and Ed

yeah like ITS. like i get it because they REALLY spent time on ed’s abuse arc that was just dropped without a real resolution to it so people are like wait hang on. but like neither of them have had their Flaws resolved and id be worried abt ed’s delicate mental health more here than stedes safety

[useless-donut]

oh my god i played through both endings of astarions companion quest and spoilers below - it's really just an extremely long ramble

btw i just mean the finale of his quest, not the ending after the whole game

BOTH ARE SO DEVASTATING AND IM OBSESSED WITH BOTH OPTIONS

i rly like to play like im rping my tavs personality so that'll influence the end i go with on other playthroughs but woof

i love that larian gave us the one consequence that might make the power of ascension not worth it... fundamentally changing how astarion relates to and treats us. i REALLY thought id be chill with this option bc i love a power hungry man & my tav would die for him, but it hit SO much harder than i thought it would. maybe also because it was 2 am. but like im obsessed with the difference because of course it changes him—the man emotionally devastated by seeing his past victims deciding to condemn them all, and 6,000 other souls, for the allure of power and safety? and then reaching that unlimited power?

on one hand, seeing him lose that mix wariness & fondness & softness & bravado was GUTTING but also its very sweet that despite basically ascending to vampire godhood, he so badly wants to keep you around. even if, at the moment, he is still wrapping his head around his power and doesn't really see you as an equal lover anymore, vs. an item arguably at the top of things he wants

the lines where he stays hes toootally joking about calling you a pet and that you'll be too obedient for him to need to compel you, and his desire to keep you as a thrall & not give you agency... those are the lines that really killed me and sold the idea that our relationship was fundamentally altered. the "i love you... is what you want to hear, isnt it?" is also brutal, but astarions almost verbatim said that before lmao so i dont mind it as much, hes just silly

the break up options were really satisfying tho ngl and i love that theres two routes where you apologize for even bringing it up and you stay together, when in the past he'd act shocked if you ever chose to be with him

this ending also REALLY made me want to write a self insert (tav insert) fix it fic where you dump him for being a condescending asshole and after a long period of time and yk pining and mourning on your part, astarions going to finally decide maybe he does want a lover with agency and have like this nice slow burn of his personality resurfacing through all that power

like the vampire ascendant astarion rly felt like it was just like 900 tons of power smooshed into an astarion skin suit, and i love the idea that he would find his way back to himself eventually (but maybe after losing you... so sad... maybe he will come back and do the worst approximation of begging youve ever seen...)

anyway for the other ending, i mean. if youve gotten there you know what i mean. its lovely and bittersweet bc consequences and i think larian went a little too hard on selling us that this was the "good" outcome. however. i dont actually care because i played through it after the former version and WOW it was like the most relieving thing ever? to see him acting like himself again, and also very sweet to see how he relates to us afterwards. really up in my feels about how much he trusts us and also relied on us in that moment to remind him of his priorities. as he both he and us were perfectly aware he is exactly the type of personality to be absolutely corrupted by absolute power lmao (which is cute of him)

i thought it was also very interesting that in that moment you persuade him, he approves—like even in the heat of the moment, he didnt truly want to forget everything he cared about outside of safety and power. i didnt get an approval notif for him when i helped him go through with it, but it could just be bugged lol. anyway i rly love that that moment shows so clearly how ascending is a decision driven by fear and hunger for power, not by considering what he wants out of life

anyway my unfiltered thoughts:

we know a great deal about astarions wants and fears and desires from his story

- he desires freedom more than anything

- but that's not ALL he desires. it's freedom in abstract, but also freedom to be himself and to have a sense of who he even is in the first place. he know he deeply mourns losing touch with who he was when he was alive

- he fears being controlled by others, but has also never shown desire to control others in return

- he wants real intimacy & partnership and was afraid he couldn't figure out how to do it, how to relate to any of it without being coerced

because of all this, i do think the ascended vampire is more tragic for him. as an individual, he is happier, but as astarion, the person we've been getting to know—his new life doesn't meet his needs any better than the non-ascended version does. he'll talk about being free, but all he wants to do is... subjugate the world? control everyone and everything around him? like since when?

what really stood out to me is this man who LOVED the sun, missed it in the underdark, was amazed by seeing baldurs gate in light, he wants to cover everything in darkness. for his thralls he supposedly cares for (after sacrificing 7,000 of them for this power)

imo he gained a lack of fear and he gained safety, but the other things he wanted he didnt rly get, which i have more thoughts on than i really want to write here

umascended, he is still free, maybe less safe but that safety is in his control now, at least. and he probably could still swing a castle and an eternal lover if he wanted (did he even become a full vampire? i feel like he must have somewhere along the way) ngl.

anyway to sum it up, i love him so much both directions and will follow him around forever like a puppy regardless of what path he takes

[r1kysblog]

I keep seeing this fight between korra fans vs. Aang fans abt who th strongest Avatar, like I can understand korra fan and their reasoning about why korra is the best Avatar,

But I'm an Aang fan, and in saying that id just like to advertise a peaceful solutions to th Fan war,

1: Aang do th 100 yrs Energy cannot hold th Avatar spirit, and start to die, but bf hes 16, Aang th Avatar has to die, And Raava is pushed out and locks herself up in a void or some vessel to recover her strength fr 10k yrs of none stop action, while Aang is left half dead, weak, lost alone,

2: plot armor, Aang survive by Energy bending th lion turtle implaneted a energy seed, like safety mechanism to protect th spirit, All Energybender have this possibility, he's left w just a small piece of life to carry on n pain until he seeks help and Start Mastering energy bending,

3: Korra innate strength bending ability comes fr Raava time recover, something spiritual happened to her and she was more in tuned w th elements thus strengthening her connection,

4:Korra birth was being planned by raava do to her separation fr Aang,

Well this a way to satisfy both side of th stupid fan war, this open new doors fr Aang and cement korra as th Best Avatar, and Maybe stop korra vs Aang war, Thankyou

[malwarechips]

not a headcanon but um. Favourite and least favourite campaigns and why

oh i will absolutely ramble abt this . /silly

my two favourite campaigns are probably spearmaster with saint at such a close second that its basically a tie . for spearmaster i just love their mechanics soooo much theres smthn so satisfying about seeing the food pips go up immediately after hitting an enemy. i also like the safety of always having spears on me. and the story !!!! i love seeing how the world looked before moon collapsed. i love getting to see her before she collapsed too !!!! also pebbles fucking throwing you is funny to me . he tends to just like rub me against the ceiling for a while trying to get me through the pipe .

as for saint, i just absolutely adore the environmental storytelling of it all. its so interesting to see how the ecosystem was affected now that the rain has been replaced with blizzards. i LOVE that orange lizards are so common . like, 1) theyre fun to avoid 2) i think its so interesting how one lizard species started THRIVING when the environment changed. i image that due to their more social nature theyre able to huddle up if it gets too cold . also saints movement is incredibly fun and ascending things is funny.

and for my least favourite, id say arti. i love her as a character, but her campaign was REALLY stressful to me. to the point where it genuinely made me anxious around rain world for a while and i still cant do so much as even think about possibly playing her. the constant deaths and having to do stuff over again and again really just stressed me out a lot. i love the idea of her campaign, but imo scavengers weren't designed to be fought. they were designed to be a "stay on their good side or youre gonna have a terrible time" sort of thing. or at least thats what they feel like to me. arti goes against all of that without really being QUITE strong enough to imo. the fact that she dies in one spear really shouldnt happen, she should be able to take at least two or three hits imo. i know some people really loved the difficulty of the campaign but.. as much as i love rain world sometimes it takes the extreme difficulty too far and stops being fun for me

[dbstaches]

THIS CHARMING MAN

Dave Ball in Zigzag magazine, March 1984 issue - full article text bellow

Following our interview with Marc Almond in ZZ 3 we complete the set with Dave Ball. Paul Barney asked the questions, Linda Rowell* took the photographs.

Okay, you made me do it. I’ve turned it off. I’m talking about the new Soft Cell 12″ ‘Down In The Subway’. I want to flip it over but instead I shall leave the beefy brilliance of their version of Johnny Thunder’s ‘Born To Lose’ (hear it, buy it, you owe it to yourselves!) and tell you about an afternoon I spent in the company of Dave Ball in the living room of his London flat. Ushering me inside Dave smiles and proffers tea. It’s a small room, Dave’s keyboards standing majestically in the intimacy. My heart passes on secret information to my bladder and I have to make the first of my visits to the bathroom [DAMMIT] just when I wanted to be cool and collected.

Dave plays me the new and final Soft Cell album ‘Last Night In Sodom’ and it’s a breathtaking affair. Lots of drums, Marc’s voice reaching and winding its way down my back. ‘Meet Murder My Angel’ featuring Dave’s wife Gini Hewes on the most gorgeous backing vocals. ‘L'esqualita’ is seductive, inspired by New York club for transvestites where they mime to Spanish songs dressed obviously to suit such activity and another standout track is ‘The Best Way To Kill’. A relentless beat. (The title comes from a Sun headline where they asked their readers which method of capital punishment they preferred!) A lot faster than most of the previous album. It was recorded and mixed in five weeks at Britannia Row.

I love it madly but how do you feel? DAVE: “Of all the three Soft Cell albums, it's the one we're most satisfied with because we've been totally involved with it and had total control from start to finish. Rather than working with outside producer ... the ideas come purer.”

Weren't you happy with Mike Thorne's production then? DAVE: “I think we were at the time but he was more into making a name as a star producer. That's fair enough but not if you're a band and depending on someone else to help you get the sound you want. He was more into commercial safety if you like.”

How did you get that sound on ‘Numbers’? (To convey this I am forced to make a noise like a sick penguin, embarrassing!) DAVE: “I used a bass guitar going through an envelope generator. It's like a filter off a synthesiser. It's jus an effect pedal. I'll show you one. (Showing me the device.) Quite simple really. It's just a different context to hearing those sort of things.”

To digest these technical facts calls for a cigarette. Dave suggests a can of beer and whilst he is in the kitchen I'm off to the toilet again. The interview resumes.

Are you a shy person? DAVE: “I'm not shy like now but I am when in front of a lot of people. Marc's got something that really holds people's attention. He's more of a showman. I'm not interested in being a performer. I've never concentrated on it. I never needed to. I always relied on Marc.”

Were you unhappy with ‘In Strict Tempo’? DAVE: “I probably said something like I wasn't totally satisfied with it. It's not really meant to be thought as an album in that sense of being a collection of songs ... It wasn't released with intention of being a chart album. The ideas for new Soft Cell album were initially ideas I got from doing ‘In Strict Tempo’. It was testing ground. People try to read too much ... Like the track ‘Rednecks’. People actually thought I was being serious. The funnest thing is that people from America see the joke but English people don't seem to see it's a total pisstake of that area of America and the country music and the bigotry.”

A lot of tongue in cheek, isn't it? DAVE: “Of course ... Yeah, like on that tribal number, the voices on that are speak and spell.”

I thought it was you (why did I have to say that?) DAVE: “I think maybe I disguised the fact that it was a synthesiser and electronic too well. I just thought the idea of using one of them for a tribal chant was quite amusing!”

Did you get emotional doing the last Soft Cell gig at the Palais? DAVE: “No, I was more emotional doing the video for ‘Soul Inside’. Y'know tearing up the posters. That was the first point when it sunk in, ‘this is coming to an end’, but I don't feel upset about it because we're happy with what we're leaving behind.”

What is this film you've done the soundtrack for? DAVE: “It's called Decoder, a German film. I think they've completed it now. It's going to be shown at the German film festival and I think they'll dub it over in English so it will probably be shown at a few cinemas over here. Maybe just the ICA or bigger cinemas. It's also going to be released on video.” “The film is about muzac, the sort that's used in supermarkets and hamburger joints. Some of the music is by Neubauten, in fact Mufti is the star of the film and William Bouroughs and Christiane F are in it as well. Gen (Genesis P) makes a cameo appearance as an underground preacher. It's quite interesting. Mufti discovers a way of making anti-muzac so instead of pacifying people like muzac does, ot antogonises them and causes riots. I suppose it's very heavy and bleak, very German.”

Future plans? DAVE: “I'm writing a couple of things for Psychic TV to return the compliment for Gen appearing on my album and I'm supposed to be writing some material for Cristina (of Ze records). Do you know her?”

Sort of. DAVE: “I had a meeting with her and Michael Zikha in America late last year. Anybody who asks me if I'm interested in writing or contributing, if it sounds interesting, I do it. “I still want to have a main thing you could call it a group, but ot might end up as a just a couple of people and myself, but again it'll be different from Soft Cell.”

Are you still going to work with Alan Vega? DAVE: “I don't know about that anymore. We talked about it a year and a half ago and nothing happened. His attitude that came over in Zigzag ... I didn't like the way he made me feel guilty as if I owed him a favour. The only similarities between Soft Cell and Suicide was the fact that there were two people, one of them singing and the other playing a keyboard and they used a drum machine. But because we said in an early interview we really liked Suicide, people think they were a direct influence and we were trying to copy them but there's nothing similar at all. I wouldn't want to work with him because he feels I owe him something.”

Is there much unreleased stuff that might see the light in the wake of Soft Cell? DAVE: “There are loads of songs we did when we first started, but we'd never release those, they were just backroom demos. “I think everything we've recorded after this album comes out and the single will have been released. That's one reason why the album is a bit longer than normal. It's because we wanted to make sure everything came out. I hate the idea of leaving stuff unreleased because you never know a year later you might be doing something else and somebody decides to release something you didn't want out then ...”

... and you don't want out now. DAVE: “It's like what they're doing with John Lennon. He's an amazing bloke, still doing albums and he's dead. Pretty good that! “I find it sick. It would be alright if it was just released to make it available to the fans but they're not ... it's tasteless.”

We are both chainsmoking. I catch a glimpse of Sooty flickering away in silence on a small black and white telly in the corner. Dave plays me a really jazzy instrumental continuation of Soul Inside. It's wonderfully chaotic but since you're unlikely to ever hear it on with the interview.

Will you do anymore singing? DAVE: “You call that singing?”

Yeah. DAVE: “Possibly doing backing vocals.”

Don't you have any confidence in yourself as a singer? DAVE: “No, it's bad enough if I'm in the studio. I get embarrassed and nervous if it's just me and the microphone with an audience it would just be a joke.”

These questions must be really boring, maybe I should ask your favourite color. DAVE: (laughs) “It's blue.”

Have you got a strange sense of humour? DAVE: “I like black comedy ... Friday the 13th and stuff. I sit back and laugh at them, always the same plot. They know there's an axe murderer wandering around and the first thing they do is split up and go searching around the woods.”

Have you seen ‘The Thing’? DAVE: “I didn't find that funny. That made me feel quite sick.”

What time do you get up? DAVE: “Sometimes I get really lazy and don't get up 'till two in the afternoon and then I have phases of getting up early. I suppose on average between ten and twelve.”

Do you believe in witches? DAVE: “Yes, I believe in witchcraft, I'm quite interested in that. I've read books. I'm not a practising magician or anything ... Music is a form of magic.”

Are there any causes you feel sympathetic towards like CND? DAVE: “I'm sympathetic to the idea of nuclear disarmament and everything but I wouldn't go out and campaign. If everyone in the country said we don't want nuclear weapons it wouldn't make a scrap of difference because the government doesn't represent the people and big business are behind them. Money is more important to them than people.”

Do you have any phobias? DAVE: “Sometimes walking down Oxford Street if there are lots of people I get paranoid ... I don't like flying ...”

Do you mind if I use the bathroom again? DAVE: “No.”

— * Linda Rowell is actually Mick Mercer, main editor of the magazine at the time as well

[aeide-thea]

lol schumer sent me back a really mealy-mouthed response to my signature on an anti-KOSA petition so i went to his website and sent him another email about it. will this have any impact? probably not, but it was satisfying.

also lol i c/p'd what i'd written before sending bc i was curious abt what i'd been angrily yelling into the text field and it's uh. longer than i thought and also almost sounds adult??? wild.

There is no way for websites to distinguish between adult and minor users without forcing everyone who signs up to provide their legal ID, which will put an enormous amount of sensitive personal information about our identities and preferences in the hands of corporations who have done nothing to demonstrate they can be trusted with it. No social media website should be able to connect posts that reveal e.g. a marginalized sexuality or gender status back to the poster's offline identity. You wrote: "[T]he KOSA would require social platforms to provide minors with options to protect their information, disable addictive product features, and opt-out of algorithmic recommendations." Frankly, these are options that should be provided to all users of these platforms, regardless of age; making these tools available across the board, without inquiring into users' age or identity, would protect children and adults alike. That's legislation I'd support. I take this issue very seriously. Internet freedom was critical to my self-discovery as a teenager, and I'm vehemently against seeing that stifled for future generations (not to mention for those of us still using the internet today!); in addition, past well-intended legislation like FOSTA/SESTA has had a crippling impact on freedom of expression and safety, while not, in fact, accomplishing its intended purpose; please see https://aidsunited.org/fosta-sesta-and-its-impact-on-sex-workers/ for a discussion of this. Similarly, I have no confidence that KOSA would even protect the minors it's intended to help—what would stop them from just entering their parents' information to create accounts on age-restricted websites? Please do more than "closely monitor [the] progress [of this bill] through the Senate": please do some real thinking about the implications of this bill, especially for Americans in red states getting snowed under by homophobic, transphobic, antichoice legislation, and speak out against it. In what's nominally the land of the free, we deserve better than legislation intended to suppress and surveil. Thanks very much for your attention to this issue.

[kakashihasibs]

Okay so I'm answering this with a screenshot so i can block you if i need to later. no offense bud but i kinda doubt the "/genq"-ness of your question.

The irrational thought was my neighbor was paying any attention to the presence or lack of presence of a dick. My neighbor doesn't give a shit if i have a bulge or not. He's a nice guy and he's gay too! :D plus he was busy hugging Leia bc he's one of Leia's most favorite people.

BUT! Surprise surprise! it's not wholly irrational bc /if/ my neighbor does notice (and he was an asshole) it could endanger me. Small little things like that can be noticed (however unlikely) and someone might clock me. And that's really the root of that thought. I'm always worried someone is going to clock me and act on it.

But the root of your question really seems like a "why dont you pray the queer away and you'll be so much happier"

Sure if i could just therapy/pray away being queer (both trans and ace/gay!) I would deal with a lot less worry. I wouldn't have to worry about my parents rejecting me or a cop seeing my ID and hate criming me. I wouldn't have been hate crimed or have gotten corrective rape threats. if only i did as my doctor told me and go to therapy to realize my beauty as a woman so i wont break my poor mother's heart. (Yes a doctor literally told me this. Nearly killed myself afterwards bc it was just such a helpful and thoughtful thing to say /sarcasm 🙄)

Bottom surgery, like any surgery is dangerous, but it is not uniquely dangerous. My surgeon has a LOT of experience and is very skilled. I'm not worried about it anymore than i was worried about top surgery (which for the record top surgery was life SAVING).

But like bud why do anything if there is a "safer alternative?" Why go rock climbing when it's so dangerous? Why drive to see family when driving is so dangerous? Why get tattoos or piercings!? There's risk!

Why get a major surgery that will greatly increase your life satisfaction instead of going through traumatizing conversion therapy? Geez bud idk 🤷‍♂️ maybe i enjoy making my body mine. Maybe i dont want to or have to be satisfied with what other people say i should be, look like, act like.

Maybe i just think I'll look hot with a dick. Maybe i just want to feel safer in public places. Maybe maybe maybe. I have a million and one reasons for wanting what i want and no amount of fear mongering or concern trolling will deter me.

The universe saw fit to give me myself and i will create a self that is home. Full of as much art and scars as it takes to do that.

---

Edit to reply/add (bc i dont want to make this rebloggable):

While you are correct about this, it took several years of therapy and navigating medical politics, i actually purposely avoid making an argument/point based in medical necessity.

The closest i get to mentioning medical necessity is when i say "surgery that will greatly increase [my] life satisfaction"

Bc mainly if it is merely a problem of medical necessity/treatment then anon's point has a stronger leg to stand on. If i need medical intervention then /why not/ try conversion therapy 1st? Both are "medical interventions" after all and conversion therapy is cheaper and appears less risky.*

Instead my point is based in bodily autonomy. That bottom surgery is my choice and my risk to take on. That regardless of medical necessity, I have chosen to get bottom surgery and that's all the reason there needs to be.

I mentioned possible reasons i might have, e.g., safety, comfort, aesthetics, but i dont name one over the other. My reasons are mine and not for someone else's scrutiny.

Anon and others might not be able to understand why i would chose to get a "dangerous surgery" but they dont need to. They only need to know it is what i have chosen for myself.

*The actual efficacy of conversion therapy is like nonexistent. It doesn't work. It makes people miserable and suicidal. But, there are people (including anon it seems) who think it works and that's why I'm forced to treat it as a "possible" solution. Arguing against conversion therapy would be a different kind of argument than the one i made here.

[ranidspace]

Tumblr live is doing some stuff that allows u to use OBS and stream from desktop, which i'm assuming a lot more people would want to do than the whatever Tiktok/Instagram live bullshit they're doing right now. Lets take a look at the terms of service and privacy policy.

THIS POST DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AS LEGAL ADVICE OR A FULL COMPREHENSION OF THEIR TERMS. please read the original as well

heres the terms and privacy policy specifically for live. Heres the section on how they use the data they collect:

Here's one thing they send:

"For marketing purposes: We share information with companies we do not own, including information collected from cookies, such as your location, IP address, AdID or IDFA and certain demographic information, in order to allow our marketing partners to optimize our ad campaigns. For advertising purposes". We share information with companies we do not own, including information collected from cookies and across the devices used to access the Service, such as your location, IP address, AdID or IDFA and certain demographic information (such as age, gender, parental status, relationship status, religion, education, and ethnicity), in order to allow these companies to deliver relevant ads.

Note AdID and IDFA, these are the advertiser IDs for Android and Apple respectively. Both of these can be turned off. Location is also based off your IP, which all websites can see anyway unless you have a VPN(but then the VPN gets to see your IP instead), thats just how the internet works, and the location data is probably just "what country you live in" drop down menu. If they want your precise location, they will ask your browser, to where your browser will ask YOU, and you can just hit "Deny". Cookies are also just what all websites have on you, though use firefox

The "Demographic Information" Section seems a bit concerning, however in the previous section, III. Information We Collect, none of the above demographic information is collected at all, usually this is inferred by you using the app. Twitter does this, as well as Tiktok, and nearly every other social media. Tumblr live however, probably wont be able to get any sort of this info out of you due to it being a pretty limited platform.

None of this is out of the ordinary really. Tumblr does this as well, here's a section from their privacy policy:

Tumblr selectively runs advertisements so we can provide you with Tumblr content for free. To help select which ads to show you, we may share some of your information with advertising partners, or allow our advertising partners to “collect” certain information. The personal information we share includes online identifiers and internet or other network or device activity (such as cookie information, other device identifiers, and IP address), and geolocation data (approximate location information from your IP address). In some US states, this data sharing may be considered a “sale.” To learn more about how we select the ads you see, check out Tumblr’s Ads & You. We do not sell (or share) information that identifies you personally, like your name or contact information, in our ads program. Also, we do not knowingly "sell" your personal information if you are under 16.

Thankfully you can opt-out. (residents of EU and US only i guess)

Heres another section from TMG's privacy policy:

"Cooperation with law enforcement. We cooperate with government and law enforcement officials to enforce and comply with the law. We report threats of violence or self-harm and other illegal activities proactively, and we may disclose information about you to government or law enforcement officials in order to: (1) protect the safety and security of our users and members of the public or (2) satisfy subpoenas, court orders, or other governmental requests."

They give your info to feds which i guess is important. Tumblr by itself also does that

Information Disclosed for Our Protection and the Protection of Others: We believe in freedom of expression, and, to the extent reasonable, we try to protect our community from baseless legal demands. That said, we also reserve the right to access, preserve, and disclose any information as we reasonably believe is necessary, in our sole discretion, to (i) satisfy any law, regulation, legal process, governmental request, or governmental order, (ii) enforce this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Service, including investigation of potential violations hereof, (iii) detect, prevent, or otherwise address fraud, security, trust and safety, or technical issues (including exchanging information with other companies and organizations for the purposes of improving security and preventing fraud, spam, and malware), (iv) respond to user support requests, or (v) protect the rights, property, health or safety of us, our users, any third parties or the public in general, including but not limited to situations involving possible violence, suicide, or self-harm.

Twitch also does, if you think other streaming platforms are better:

"Twitch may disclose user information if we believe in good faith that such disclosure is necessary to comply with U.S. state and federal laws or other applicable laws around the world (for example, in the country of your residence), or respond to a court order, judicial or other government request, subpoena, or warrant in the manner legally required."

At the end they have a section about Things they DO NOT share with anyone. This being:

your exact date of birth your first name your last name your biometric information (see “Biometric Information Collected with Your Consent for Limited Purposes” above) your address your phone number(s), or your email address

If the biometric data is worrying, it's a photo of your face you can use to verify your account, thats encrypted and stored on their servers and as said, not shared with or sold to anyone, for marketing or advertising purposes.

Due to GDPR laws you can request all data they have on you, and you can request to have it all deleted off their servers. This goes for any other websites that also operate in the European Union.

Unfun fact, Base Tumblr has a different privacy policy depending if you're inside the EU or not, and if you're a US citizen you can only request your data depending on what state you live in.

I remember there was a huge panic about Tumblr Live and the privacy of using it, because people were looking at the privacy policy and seeing bad stuff. You do realize you're reading that on a website with a nearly identical privacy policy? You know that most other websites are the same if not worse?

[siyaasblog]

Ride Sharing for Everyone: How RideBuddy Builds a Trusted Commuting Community

As a ride-sharing platform that is accessible to anyone, RideBuddy stands out in a world where transportation expenses and traffic jams are only getting worse. Our goal is straightforward: to give everyday commuters a safe, reasonably priced, and neighborhood-driven carpooling option.

Our goal at RideBuddy is to create a reliable commuter community where drivers and passengers feel safe and connected. With features like verified profiles, GPS monitoring, and an open rating system, our user-friendly ride-sharing app allows people to join a community where safety is given top priority. By fostering responsibility and trust, these characteristics guarantee a satisfying experience for every user.

However, RideBuddy is more than just a website for carpooling. This community fosters social ties and lessens its impact on the environment by bringing people together via shared transportation. RideBuddy enables possibilities to meet new people, exchange stories, and make commuting more pleasurable by matching people with similar routes and schedules.

Whether you're a student, professional, or infrequent traveler, RideBuddy provides a cost-effective and secure commute. Become a member of our ride-sharing community now to enjoy the advantages of group travel. RideBuddy genuinely makes ride-sharing accessible to all, enhancing the affordability, safety, and intelligence of city transportation.

Download the app now: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=app.ridebuddy.carpool&pcampaignid=web_share