#my two cents worth

[laughable-lion-king-art]

I just wanna say, that with the spread of AI, I'm noticing a couple fan comics are using Gen AI to make their backgrounds. I won't name names, but the Gen AI backgrounds are a huge putoff and conflict with the art as well as inconsistent. That's just an opinion though, and I needed to get it off my chest.

[arizonaconservativegal]

I am tired of hearing candidates dodge questions by saying they will follow the law when they are running for an office where they would (in part) be able to change the law to be whatever they want to follow.

Say what you mean. Will you push to change the law or will you accept it as it currently stands? And if you're not going to push to change the law, if someone else proposes a change and asks you to vote for or sign their change, what direction are you coming at that decision from?

Honestly I would respect the hell out of it if someone would just say "I don't like this particular law but it's not one of my priorities to change because of x, y, and/or z and if it becomes an issue on its own later, here's where I would be on it."

And leaving all that aside, "I will follow the law" is not something I find reassuring to hear from politicians. That is the bare minimum I expect of you. Why are you acting like it's some great feat or acquiescence?

[oceanwithouthermoon]

it bothers me a little when people are like "ugh toritsuka deserved to be written better, he was done wrong" like no, not really, you just didnt get the point... hes literally there to be a foil to saiki, who uses his powers relatively selflessly despite claiming over and over that he only uses them for self gain, and then toritsuka is there to show us what an actual selfish character looks like...

same thing when people are like "i feel so bad for him, saikis so mean to him! he needs better friends.. he doesnt deserve how they treat him!" bro. yes he does. the entire point of his existence is to show the audience that saiki isnt the selfish powerhouse he claims to be, and that there are people out there actually using esp for bad things and there are much worse people that saikis powers couldve been given to...

toritsuka also has some good qualities obviously, the cat tank arc is SO important for him cuz it shows both the worst and best parts of his character but a lot of people like to focus solely on one and erase the other and its ajajkskqksms frustrating for me

[crepesuzette2023]

What's a moment in mclennon history where you are sure something happened between John and Paul??

Well, define "sure."

I'm not sure at all—I wasn't there and don't have special juicy knowledge—but I will say this: They were both sexual humans, they were in an intense, marriage-like relationship the rest of their world accepted as such and made room for, they thought of themselves as special (b/c they were), meaning: exempt from rules that apply to others. They moved amidst queerness from an early age (Hamburg, Beat poetry, etc.). That's why I think that, if there was sexual tension between them, they recognized it as such, and probably acted on it. What place it would have had in their relationship (a big thing or a small, the winner takes it all), I don't know.

I also think it's more likely they never did anything than for them to have had sex only once or twice, and it being a big, charged thing between them. I just don't think sex, even with each other, was in itself that shocking to them.

Now, *feelings* and the names we give them...that's another topic entirely. But that wasn't your question, was it? ;-)

All right. If I had to choose, I'd say: early days/wanking circle of two, Paris, and '67. And possibly India (in your room). But, every time, as part of an on-going situation, not as a sudden revelation.

So much for my boring quote unquote earnest take. Now, can we go back to talking about Woodland Sprite Paul and Hunter John, and leg combing?! ;-)

[ugly-anarchist]

I've seen a lot of debate on what is/isn't considered "alloaro" and I just wanted to give my opinion on that.

The meaning of allosexual has been debated but I think the best way to define it is "feels sexual attraction in a non-ace way". I like this definition because there's some gray area between "ace" and "not-ace" that's important to acknowledge and it leaves more room for discussion and inclusivity than just "not ace" or "feels sexual attraction"

I for one think that labels are optional and that it doesn't matter where you "technically" fit but instead what matters is how you feel about a label. If you're technically somewhere on the ace-spec but you don't want to identify as ace then... You can be allosexual instead. Also, non-sam aros exist and they shouldn't be forced to pick between the two.

However, while I do believe that labels can be loose and fluid and I want to prioritize inclusion, labels do still have meaning and I don't think you should use both allosexual and an acespec label at once. I don't think you can be both. I know that aceflux people exist but I don't think they should be using the label alloaro.

I don't want alloaro to be this exclusive thing where you have to be only one specific thing in order to be one but at the same time, the distinction is important.

The entire point of the label alloaro was to say, loudly and opening, "I'm not asexual!" Because it's important. It became important because people constantly assume we're ace and the distinction needed to be made. I don't like people who say "you can't be __ if you're already __ >:(" and I've already said that I accept people with "contradictory" labels but there was a reason alloaro became a thing. I think that there's just some things you can't be because it completely butchers the original intent and the importance that it has to the community.

So, if you don't want to use the ace/asexual/acespec label then you can absolutely be allosexual because that's the whole point of the word, but you can't be both. (In my opinion)

[legendary-defender-of-fandoms]

Is Adam Ugly?

I’ve seen some folks saying that there’s a subset of the Hazbin Hotel fanbase that is fairly vocal about how they don’t like what Adam looks like under his helmet. As an idiot who didn’t know THIS:

Wasn’t his real face, I think this is a repeat of the Adam situation in Beauty & the Beast 1991.

It’s not that Adam’s real face is ugly (the design is fine - I still don’t see much of Alex Brightman in him, but he looks good considering he’s throwing a temper tantrum & just got his ass kicked by Lucifer) - we spent 8 episodes getting attached to Exorcist Adam, not Human Adam. They could’ve put ANY face under that mask, and the reaction would probably be the same.

For what it’s worth, Adam looks good with or without the mask, and I love how he’s still got exaggerated expressions no matter which side of him we see.

[juniperhillpatient]

Anyway overall I really enjoyed Maxxxine.

Criticisms first: It’s without a doubt the weakest of the trilogy. The direction the story was taking just wasn’t as strong as with X or Pearl & it occasionally left me wondering where this was all going or what it was trying to say while with the other two movies I was way too engaged in the suspense of the moment & engaged in the story to pause & worry about that while watching. Also, something about the end was just lacking. I don’t know, it just felt anticlimactic compared to its predecessors. It was a strong ending sequence for just any movie. But unfortunately it was up against the endings for X & Pearl, two of the strongest ending sequences I’ve seen.

Now for the praise: Obviously Mia Goth is one of the most talented stars of this generation & every second she’s on screen is iconic, that almost goes without saying. When I said it’s the weakest of the trilogy, bear in mind it really is up against some genuinely genius predecessors because this was still one of the strongest new horror movies I’ve seen lately. I really loved the way this movie played with the setting of 80s Hollywood. These movies all 3 use the setting & time they’re set in very strong & unique ways. The nods & homages to classic movies were done beautifully.

Also the gore & kills were absolutely on par with this trilogy & managed to up the ante to some of my absolute favorite individual scenes of the series at least in terms of gratuitous violence. I also already loved Maxine Minx but this film solidified her complexity as an anti hero & delved into how she’s dealing with the trauma of the events of X & just….. really made me love her even more if that’s even possible.

Anyway great film overall. While I’d truly struggle to find any criticisms of either X or Pearl I did have a few small nitpicks with this one & it felt like it should’ve been the strongest as the finale but it clearly wasn’t. Still, I really enjoyed it & again: I fucking love Maxine Minx. She’s a perfect example of my favorite brand of final girl - as ruthless as the villain & complex & dangerous in her own right.

[steelthroat]

*looking at my history notes*

"Okay so this is 4.7k words long, I usually can read at least 40/50k words of fanfiction a day so I should be able to..."

[huffle-dork]

So this week I got to officially meet my partner @crystalninjaphoenix and we’ve had the most amazing time together!! Last night we went to see Set it Off and it was SO FUN!! My throat still hurts and I was jumping around like crazy lol

knowing me I’ll probably draw more of our fun moments together just cuz I love them and we’re cute <3 (and so I don’t share our actual faces online jghbn)

[symphonyofsilence]

I have this totally random headcanon that the way Nerdanel got the news about Fëanor's death was that the messenger came to her doors and said that he had a letter for "the Queen Dowager".

If she ever sees Fëanor again she will tell him this is how she got the news to further shame him and he will try and fail to conceal his laugh. Nerdanel will notice that he's near another spontaneous combustion under the pressure of holding in his laughter and she unimpressed, bitter, sarcastic, and derogatory will say "Yeah, you should laugh. It is funny." And he will say "Sorry. Sorry. No. It's not. I'm sorry. It must have been really hard on you." And try to hold it in with difficulty. And struggle so much that eventually, Nerdanel will break into a smile, too. (they always had the same sense of humor. This at least hasn't changed.) And then he will laugh while Nerdanel watches with an amused, reluctant, disapproving, "You hopeless little shit, I missed that laugh" kind of smile.

[directactionforhope]

A weird reason I'm optimistic about the future/humanity

I keep thinking about making a post about this on reasonsforhope, and then not making a post about it, for what will become obvious reasons, but anyway here's a thought:

I get asked fairly often (relatively often? I don't get a lot of asks these days because I'm terrible at answering them) how I maintain hope and optimism in the face of everything.

Good question! I wonder that sometimes too, honestly, because I try to stay very aware of the world and very self-aware about my optimism and how realistic it is. (Three cheers for evidence-based optimism.)

And honestly, a really, really significant part of the answer is that I think the past - in general and especially during specific eras - was Significantly worse than the vast majority of people realize.

Like, the past kind of sucked, imho! People died all the time of all sorts of things! And then we had a solid 500 years of Big Time Atrocities. (aka 1492 to like. roughly the 1980s.)

In comparison, the 2000s have mostly been a really big improvement in a lot of ways, imho!

Weird argument for optimism, I know, but it is the basis of a lot of my optimism.

Why do I think things will change in the future, given that?

Well, mostly, it turns out that photography/film/the internet/phone cameras/social media/the general democratization of communication/the modern concept of international law all it way harder to get away with doing atrocities! And also, we now have scientifically validated proof that yes, people really can change, and no, no one is innately or hereditarily evil, and no, not even members of that one group you really hate, which personally I think is very reassuring! And a useful thing for society to have proof of!

[sarah-yyy]

two lawyering moods

me: why am i always right

me: why is everyone else always wrong

[a-dragons-journal]

What is your opinion on clinical lycanthropes being in/interacting with otherkin spaces?

(Sorry for the delay on this.)

I mean... honestly, I don't have much of an opinion beyond the "if someone isn't hurting anyone, leave them alone" principle and the fact that I don't restrict the definition of "otherkin" based on the reason for someone's nonhuman identity.

(...I said that, and then I wrote several paragraphs expanding on that opinion, but it does boil down to that, I promise. :P)

I see very few potential problems that can be caused by delusion-based and non-delusion-based nonhuman identities interacting with each other, and most of them - confusion between "delusion" and "belief," risk of encouraging harmful delusions, etc. - are already kept in mind and addressed by basically all the endels and clinical lycanthropes I've met. Generally speaking, no one knows how to handle delusions better than the people who experience delusions.

The concerns I've seen people raise are largely problems with individual people, not problems to warrant trying to shun an entire group of people for the crime of having a disorder or anything. (And, frankly, a lot of them are concerns that apply just as easily to nonhumans who aren't clinical lycanthropes but go "off the deep end," as it were, with spirituality and magical/astral explanations for everything.)

Is a nonhuman identity that's affected by or even based in clinical lycanthropy the same as your average otherkin experience? No. But then, what is the "average" otherkin experience exactly? There's already an enormously broad range of experience under the term "otherkin" - people with one kintype or two or twelve or thirty, people who shift on a near-daily basis or never shift or are always shifted, people who are animals down to the bone with all the unpleasant and gross instincts to accompany and people who are part of a civilization more civilized and enlightened than humanity has ever been, people whose nonhumanity stems from past lives or psychological quirks or misplaced souls or unconscious imprinting or coping mechanisms, etc. etc.

The common thread among us all is nonhuman identity - and if that's present enough in someone who experiences clinical lycanthropy to make them feel comfortable in and connected to the otherkin community, then who am I to tell them they're not permitted because their reason for that identity and the precise experiences tied to it for them are different from mine, when that's already the case for so many people in our community?

[lesbianjudasiscariot]

possible controversial opinion i don't really care too much about the geographical accuracy of 'regional gothic' tags. i think it makes sense when people base it on vibes. when i see people tag my photos/videos as 'midwest gothic' i'm not like 'well actually that photo was taken in the southern/western region!' it's whatever unless there is a texas flag in the post then it's kinda funny. but yeah not that deep not really worth discourse or whatever.

[beedreamscape]

I already wholeheartedly asked for AWNP to be back. I would also love Pub Draw to be back AND Narrative Telephone

Pub Draw does take effort and space to set up and they have to sit down and draw along with an artist, but they don't make that sort of relaxing and 'interactive' content anymore and it'd be so lovely.

But Narrative Telephone has a more spread out level of commitment, space for guests, and effortless comedy, they could still do it from home like before. And like above, I miss this silly comedic side content.

[jthepearlord]

On a lukewarm take.

I'll tell you right now, most adult mainstream media is not more "subtle" in is subtext than children's mainstream media.

Why is that? Children's entertainment can't get away with a lot of literal imagery.

Like queer rep, ND rep, and or most political issues.

So it requires the use of symbolism and subtext to get through it to it's audience with enough deniability to not upset the status quo.

Symbolism I've found to be much more powerful in a lot of all ages media than in adult and YA entertainment.

That is to say, all media should be consumed with our own biases in mind.

Instead of saying, X was bad and irredimible, people should be asking themselves, "why does this character make me FEEL this way about them, how much of that is intentional and how much of it is my own interpretation, why Y character forgave them so easily, what reasons do they have".

I consume all sorts of media, and most adult media I enjoy is adult media produced by artists mostly known for children's entertainment, they more often understand nuance and earnestness that a lot of newer adult guested media does not.

Do you think kid shows are black and white? Boy, I have bad news about cop thrillers.

I jest tho it's easier to extrapolate character from simplicity and earnestness than from media that is constantly embarrassed of being "too weird and unserious".

Some people consume only adult media, (not cartoon adult media like, just in general mainstream media) and have the media literacy of a fish.

I do think is important to watch everything you find mildly interesting, wether or not it's withing your preferred générés, demographics, and styles.

But I find it iffy to imply that all ages media is mostly not nuanced, because "they have to appeal to children black and white mentality" when that's just a big misconception.

Any weird vibes check my tags