#lobbying efforts

[alwaysbewoke]

[kaleidoscope1967eyes]

never getting over how 50s/60s/70s American food was so gross bc of the Big Ration lobby

[firestorm09890]

forget about seeing The Character in every song I listen to, I'm seeing The Character in entirely unrelated characters

[the-yellow-wall]

Ok so gang after the new channel do we think the Hivemind setup is like this???

or like this????

[showyoumyfavoriteobsession]

Favorite maps from Strawberry Jam Collab 🍓 ↪ Beginner Lobby

[cultivating-wildflowers]

💭

[aeide-thea]

[cw for (non-)discussion of abortion in (fan)fiction]

stories are so interesting bc like. truly there's so much going on there wrt like. what it actually occurs to us to Examine vs what it doesn't

anyway that could be a preface to a million different sorts of posts but i'm just thinking about how the other day an author i'm subscribed to dropped a fic in a Hashtag Problematic fandom with an extensive disclaimer at the beginning abt the terms of their continued engagement with said fandom

and then there was a scene in the fic where like. a married couple find out unexpectedly that the wife is pregnant, and they've already got a few kids and seem quite taken aback at the thought of another, and the medical professional who's revealed this to them is like, 'we can get you hooked up with more reliable birth control after the baby gets here, haha,' and i was like. literally why are you jumping to 'after the baby gets here' before they've actually given you any clear cues abt whether they want it to get there at all! because frankly 'we've got the number of kids we wanted and i'm not up for having any more' is a really excellent reason to get an abortion! that comment put pressure on one side of the scale in a way that frankly i thought was totally inappropriate!

and it's just like. i feel pretty confident the author did not intend this as anti-choice messaging—it seems much likelier to me that in their head it was just like 'these characters are Married and Popping Out Sprogs and of course they'd just tack on another one no problem, let's get back to the real function of this scene, namely character/relationship development for our main pairing!' but. the impact of it is in fact anti-choice, in that it doesn't make explicit or even any room for the idea that there's even a choice to be made here; and in fact, while i get the sense that the scene is intended to establish, among other things, the medical professional's Skill at Diagnosis, it actually made them look less skillful in my eyes, because to me a really critical piece of competence in this context is 'not leaning on the scale when you present options'?

and anyway it just got me thinking like—the author had this whole disclaimer at the beginning abt Engaging With This Fandom in 2023 but like. where's their disclaimer abt having produced what's effectively, if subtly, an anti-choice narrative, at a time in which abortion access in the US is becoming increasingly, horribly restricted? because frankly at least with the fandom i knew what i was getting going in!

[chipjrwibignaturals]

whenever im playing an online multiplayer game and im worried im like. bad at it and gonna disappoint ppl i pretend im Some Kid instead bc like. who the fuck is gonna get mad at a kid playing a kid-friendly game and not playing optimally or whatever.

[vertejay]

Would it be socially acceptable to say I’m going to hex everyone who came into my works lobby tonight. Drive thru was fine. Just the mfs in the lobby.

[autism-corner]

this cookie is TOP 100 BABYY

[passerinesoncaffeine]

finally beating writer’s block and all it took was a desperate attempt to distract myself from the consequences of exhaustion

[deancasforcutie]

#updating my ancient meta #if you ever see an old meta from me with a stupid wishy washy caveat in it i can promise you #it was only there as a decoy to reduce the number of dickheads in my inbox #i no longer care how many dickheads want to crawl into my inbox though #they just get deleted #because it's far funnier to me to watch them piss into the wind (via @thevioletcaptain)

#love that you went back and spoke your truth op #dean's siren being a man is absolutely textual evidence of dean's queerness #and the only reason i can believe anyone wouldn't interpret it that way in 2014 was that…it was 2014 #in my (very limited) observation fandom queer analysis is usually a bit behind literary queer theory #and admittedly i think we focus too much on Textual Evidence as being synonymous with Gay Kissing etc #to dig deep enough to find the actual textual queerness #which is why they're still so many viewers who say stuff like #''can't believe they wrote all this gay stuff on accident? and then they have the nerve to tell me all this gay stuff isn't there'' #newsflash (not that it matters but) it wasn't on accident #or if it was it sure was consistently and accidentally very queer #dozens of writers and actors and etc etc all got together and they all accidentally slipped and all accidentally made it gay #🤷‍♀️ it's all there. dean doesn't need to kiss a man for it all to be Right There (via @deangirlism101)

#the writers were 100% writing textually queer Dean #that's called queer coding babes #ppl back in the day would call it 'baiting' cuz many didn't believe the writers were being genuine #people who still call it 'baiting' are just intentionally dense about what the show was trying to do (via @rogue-translator)

I'm really confused about something and was hoping you would explain it to me. I see people loving that Dean's siren was a man and people say that's proof Dean wants to be with a man. Now I am Team Bisexual!Dean all day but the siren himself said that what Dean wanted "wasn't some bitch in a g-string, it was you. A little brother who looks up to him. Someone he can trust." These are the actual words he uses. I don't understand why people say that means Dean wants a man. Pray explain?

Ahh, nonny! Thanks for asking :)

When it comes to evidence of Dean’s bisexuality, his siren being a man is not—in my opinion—the most convincing of arguments. This is mainly because the true nature of sirens in the Supernatural universe a little muddy.If they do shift between wanting different kinds of love, as the dialogue implies, then it doesn’t serve to prove anything about Dean’s sexuality. If, on the other hand, they are only interested in eros, as the action implies, then it’s another story altogether.

Regardless of which is accurate, I do still think it counts for something when added to the overwhelming number of hints throughout the seasons, but used as a sole piece of evidence I don’t think it’s enough.

That said, there are three main reasons that I can see why someone would consider the siren’s male form as “proof” that Dean is interested in men.

Narrative structure In the context of season four, Dean and Nick were a clear mirror for Sam and Ruby. The episode in question (Sex and Violence, 4.14) comes at a point in the overall narrative where Sam is being manipulated by Ruby.Throughout season four, Sam ingests Ruby’s blood, and the connection he forms with her through this act results in a sexual relationship which she uses to manipulate him further. In Sex and Violence, Dean ingests Nick’s venom, and the connection he forms with him through this act results in a relationship which Nick uses to manipulate him further. The only thing that appears different on the surface level is that Sam and Ruby’s relationship was explicitly sexual/romantic, while Dean and Nick’s was implicitly sexual/romantic.

In-show mythology / Dean’s horrible upbringingAccording to the mythology we learn at the beginning of the episode, sirens are beings who crave love—specifically, eros.We are told that the siren learned what it’s victims desired most in a lover, and then embodied those traits in order to manipulate and control them, using it’s venom as the catalyst.The information Sam and Dean got from Bobby about Sirens resulted in this conversation:

DEANSo whatever floats the guy’s boat, that’s what they look like?SAMYeah. You see, sirens can read minds. They see what you want most and then they can kinda, like, cloak themselves. You know, like an illusion.

We learn that the siren seduced it’s first three victims by appearing to them in the form of their perfect romantic partner, and after they had fallen in love with the illusion, it convinced them to murder their wives. The fourth victim was different only in that he was unmarried and instead murdered his mother.In each case, the siren appealed to it’s victims by appearing in the form of someone who they not only lusted after, but fell in love with. This was it’s MO. It wanted, as it said later in the episode, to “fall in love again and again and again.” So, going by all the information up until the last few moments of the episode, the kind of love it craved was eros—not philia, not storge, not agape, but eros. Romantic love.All the in-show mythology researched by Bobby and the brothers, and what we saw in the Siren’s seduction of it’s other victims tells us this. The only time it switches to a familial, platonic form of love is in dialogue with Dean. Despite this, the siren’s actions, as actor Jim Parrack mentioned in this interview about playing the character, still created “some kind of sexual tension” with Dean. Why did the siren’s dialogue differ from it’s actions? Because Dean is damaged. Horribly so. From a young age Dean was taught that the only attachments he should have are to those he can trust, and the only people he can trust are his family. Their life on the road forced this to an extreme, and for at least the first 24 years of his life Dean only knew familial love.The only time he allowed himself to entertain the notion of another kind of love ended horribly—at around age 24 when he told Cassie Robinson about the true nature of the things that go bump in the night. This only reinforced the idea that he could not trust anyone who wasn’t family. So, at this point in the show, the only person Dean had ever trusted and who had also respected him was his brother. The siren told Dean he would replace his brother because it knew that it was the only way to gain Dean’s trust, and without trust and mutual respect you cannot have love.

Dean’s interaction with NickThe final reason is all to do with body language. Their interaction at the strip club is more than a little flirtatious.Complete with the heart eyes—more commonly seen when Dean is staring at Cas or Lisa or Dr. Sexy—that are very much aimed at the dude-shaped siren.Then there’s the fact that this scene happened before Dean came into contact with the siren’s venom. Those were legit heart eyes. That was legit flirting. The siren saw Dean. The siren knew that what Dean desired was a clean-cut, blue-eyed man in a position of power with an interest in cars, who would show him respect and share a few drinks with him, and it became that guy so that Dean would let it get it’s gross venomy saliva all up in his mouth. No but seriously, if Dean hadn’t conveniently offered the siren his flask (which was pretty damn intimate considering he barely knew the guy) I can’t help but wonder what else the siren had been planning to do to get him good and poisoned. Call me crazy but I’m guessing it involved a touch of the ol’ tonsil hockey.

[screencaps taken from homeofthenutty]

[sayruq]

AHEAD OF THE United Nations Security Council action to consider the Palestinian Authority’s application to become a full member of the international body, the United States is lobbying nations to reject such membership, hoping to avoid an overt “veto” by Washington. The lobbying effort, revealed in copies of unclassified State Department cables obtained by The Intercept, is at odds with the Biden administration’s pledge to fully support a two-state solution. In 2012, the U.N. General Assembly passed a resolution granting Palestine the status of a non-member observer state. The diplomatic cables detail pressure being applied to members of the Security Council, including Malta, the rotating president of the council this month. Ecuador in particular is being asked to lobby Malta and other nations, including France, to oppose U.N. recognition. The State Department’s justification is that normalizing relations between Israel and Arab states is the fastest and most effective way to achieve an enduring and productive statehood. While clarifying that President Joe Biden has worked vigorously to support “Palestinian aspirations for statehood” within the context “of a comprehensive peace that would resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” a diplomatic cable dated April 12 details U.S. talking points against a U.N. vote for Palestinian statehood. The cable says that Security Council members must be persuaded to reject any proposal for Palestinian statehood — and thereby its recognition as a sovereign nation — before the council’s open debate on the Middle East, scheduled for April 18. “It remains the U.S. view that the most expeditious path toward a political horizon for the Palestinian people is in the context of a normalization agreement between Israel and its neighbors,” the cable reads. “We believe this approach can tangibly advance Palestinian goals in a meaningful and enduring way.” “We therefore urge you not to support any potential Security Council resolution recommending the admission of ‘Palestine’ as a U.N. member state, should such a resolution be presented to the Security Council for a decision in the coming days and weeks.”

[batboyblog]

Things the Biden-Harris Administration Did This Week #37

Oct 4-11 2024

President Biden announced a new EPA rule that will require all lead pipes in America's drinking water systems to be replace with-in 10 years. This builds on the $15 billion the Biden-Harris Administration has already invested in replacing lead pipes nation wide. The administration's focus on this issue has allowed local governments to greatly execrate their lead pipe replacement plans, before Biden took office the city of Milwaukee's timeline for replacing its lead pipes was 60 years, they're now on track to do it in 10. The EPA says there's no safe level of lead in the human body.

Vice President Harris announced she plans to expand Medicare to cover home health care. Currently those who need long term care, are covered by Medicaid, the health program for the poor so have to spend all their savings before they can qualify. This change would allow more seniors to stay in their homes and offer support to caregiving family members. Medicare also covers the disabled thus proving a game changer for the disabled Americans and their families. The Vice President also endorsed expanding Medicare to cover the costs of hearing and vision care.

Medicare released a preliminary list of 101 generic drugs which it would cover that would cost no more than $2 for a month for enrollees. People have long lobbied to allow Medicare to pay for generic drugs which has been resisted by drug companies. Thanks to President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act, and in line with a Biden Executive Order Medicare is now working on bring low cost generic drugs to seniors. The list targets some of the most common prescriptions thus will bring savings to the most people.

Domestic Policy Advisor Neera Tanden announced that the Biden-Harris Administration had blown past its goal of hiring 250,000 student support staff for 2024. The joint effort by the Department of Education, AmeriCorps and Everyone Graduates Center managed to hire 320,000 tutors, mentors, student success coaches, postsecondary transition coaches, and student support coordinators nationwide, its goal for the end of 2025.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced $420 million to help get rid of lead paint and other lead hazards from homes. HUD estimates that over 3 million households that have children under the age of 6 live with lead hazards. HUDs grants will go to all 50 states, DC, and Puerto Rico with particular focus on low income housing.

[heritageposts]

Harris has been a staunch supporter of Israel for years. In 2017 she addressed the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s (AIPAC) annual conference and reminded attendees that the first resolution she co-sponsored as a senator was aimed at combating “anti-Israel bias” at the United Nations. “Let me be clear about what I believe. I stand with Israel because of our shared values, which are so fundamental to the founding of both our nations,” she told the crowd. In 2018 she gave an off-the-record speech to the organization, but eventually released her comments. In that speech she claimed that she raised money for the Jewish National Fund as a Girl Scout. “Having grown up in the Bay area, I fondly remember those Jewish National Fund boxes that we would use to collect donations to plant trees for Israel,” she told the audience. “Years later, when I visited Israel for the first time, I saw the fruits of that effort and the Israeli ingenuity that has truly made a desert bloom.”

For those unfamiliar with the Jewish National Fund (JNF), they're a Zionist organization that has been instrumental in the ethnic cleansing of Palestine.

See Stop the JNF for more information on their history, the way they operate, and their decades-long campaign of greenwashing (i.e. destroying native plants, crops, and agriculture under the banner of 'making the desert bloom').

Continuing, the Mondoweiss article goes:

“The vast majority of people understand the importance of the State of Israel,” she added later. “Both in terms of its history and its present in terms of being a source of inspiration on so many issues, which I hope we will talk about, and also what it means in terms of the values of the United States and those values that are shared values with Israel, and the importance of fighting to make sure that we protect and respect a friend, one of the best friends we could possibly have.” While running for President in 2019, Harris was praised by the lobbying group Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI) for running to the right of Obama on the Iran deal. On the campaign trail Harris told Kat Wellman, a voter affiliated with DMFI, that she would reenter the agreement but “strengthen it” by “extending the sunset provisions, including ballistic missile testing, and also increasing oversight.” “I was very impressed with her. I thought she gave an excellent speech, she gave a very detailed, responsive answer to my question,” Wellman told a local paper after the exchange. “I’m pro-Israel, so I was I was very concerned and all about making sure we limit nuclear missiles in any country that could possibly destroy us all. I thought her answer was very good.” Harris has condemned the BDS movement and claimed that is “based on the mistaken assumption that Israel is solely to blame for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.” However, she voted against an anti-BDS bill in 2019 citing First Amendment concerns.

For the full article, which includes Kamala's response to Israel post Al-Aqsa Flood, see Mondoweiss (July 22, 2024)

[thistlecrimes]

Things I've learned from getting covid for the first time in 2023

I wear an N95 in public spaces and I've managed to dodge it for a long time, but I finally got covid for the first time (to my knowledge) in mid-late November 2023. It was a weird experience especially because I feel like it used to be something everyone was talking about and sharing info on, so getting it for the first time now (when people generally seem averse to talking about covid) I found I needed to seek out a lot of info because I wasn't sure what to do. I put so much effort into prevention, I knew less about what to do when you have it. I'm experiencing a rebound right now so I'm currently isolating. So, I'm making a post in the hopes that if you get covid (it's pretty goddamn hard to avoid right now) this info will be helpful for you. It's a couple things I already knew and several things I learned. One part of it is based on my experience in Minnesota but some other states may have similar programs.

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The World Health Organization states you should isolate for 10 days from first having symptoms plus 3 days after the end of symptoms.

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At the time of my writing this post, in Minnesota, we have a test to treat program where you can call, report the result of your rapid test (no photo necessary) and be prescribed paxlovid over the phone to pick up from your pharmacy or have delivered to you. It is free and you do not need to have insurance. I found it by googling "Minnesota Test to Treat Covid"

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Paxlovid decreases the risk of hospitalization and death, but it's also been shown to decrease the risk of Long Covid. Long Covid can occur even from mild or asymptomatic infections.

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Covid rebound commonly occurs 2-8 days after apparent recovery. While many people associate Paxlovid with covid rebound, researchers say there is no strong evidence that Paxlovid causes covid rebound, and rebounds occur in infections that were not treated with Paxlovid as well. I knew rebounds could happen but did not know it could take 8 days. I had mine on day 7 and was completely surprised by it.

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If you start experiencing new symptoms or test positive again, the CDC states that you should start your isolation period again at day zero. Covid rebound is still contagious. Personally I'd suggest wearing a high quality respirator around folks for an additional 8-9 days after you start to test negative in case of a rebound.

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Positive results on a rapid test can be very faint, but even a very faint line is positive result. Make sure to look at your rapid test result under strong lighting. Also, false negatives are not uncommon. If you have symptoms but test negative taking multiple tests and trying different brands if you have them are not bad ideas. My ihealth tests picked up my covid, my binax now tests did not.

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EDIT: I'd highly suggest spending time with friends online if you can, I previously had a link to the NAMI warmline directory in this post but I've since been informed that NAMI is very much funded by pharmaceutical companies and lobbies for policies that take autonomy away from disabled folks, so I've taken that off of here! Sorry, I had no idea, the People's CDC listed them as a resource so I just assumed they were legit! Feel free to reply/reblog this with other warmlines/support resources if you know of them! And please reblog this version!

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I know that there is so much we can't control as individuals right now, and that's frightening. All we can do is try our best to reduce harm and to care for each other. I hope this info will be able to help folks.