#not only identify but id say even existence

[essercipertuttienonperse]

I think people don't understand what it does to someone to know you've never been wanted in your entire life lol

[sickly-sapphic]

Decided to migrate my insta posts over to tumblr as well!! 🪻🌻 (I also have an intersex-focused discord server welcome to all - dm for link)

[ID:

Purple and yellow heart illusion background for all slides. Reads: Unpacking Your Intersexism

Step One: How You Imagine Intersex People

When you think of an intersex person, or an intersex body, what do you envision? Is it an assumption of their characteristics and anatomy? Does it group ALL intersex people into one tiny box?

Intersex people come in a variety of shapes, colours and genders. Some may look exactly like a woman or man, some may function one way but look the other, some are a mixed bowl. Stop creating a poster child for what an intersex person looks like!!

Step Two: How You Use Intersex People

Have you ever heard yourself say something like "intersex people are proof of nonbinary/trans peoples existance!" or "kids never get surgery/hormones!" or used the existance of intersex people to fight/disprove or otherwise argue with transphobes? Stop!

Intersex people are more then just a shield for your arguements. Intersex people are not "proof" that trans or nonbinary people exist, trans and nonbinary people are the proof they exist!! Not only are you failing to acknowledge intersex people as people, youre doing a disservice to trans and nonbinary people!!

Alongside this, medical abuse is a common trauma in the intersex community. Many people are forcibly sterilised, have surgeries performed on them as newborns, and are covertly given medications or hormones to "fix" their intersex characterstics as children and even into adulthood.

Step Three: How You Relate To Intersex People

Ever hear someone say something along the lines of "well I'm Technically intersex now that I've taken HRT", "intersex people are biologically nonbinary", "I want to transition into intersex" or "this animal with mixed/changing characterstics is trans!" ? These are common misconceptions.

Taking HRT does not make you "biologically intersex", it makes you someone taking HRT, in the same way that taking birth control doesn't mean you're now infertile. In the same way, you cannot transition into an intersex person. You may have ambiguous, androgynous or mixed transition goals - and that's completely fine! But intersex is not the term you're looking for (try altersex!)

Intersex people and animals are not "technically" or "biologically" nonbinary or transgender, they're intersex. While some intersex people may identify with the term nonbinary, or even consider themselves a cis nonbinary person, not every single intersex person is nonbinary, nor does every single way being intersex presents itself look like what you're percieving as a "biologically nonbinary" body.

Step Four: How You Treat Intersex People

Think to yourself - are you asking invasive questions (such as their variation or anatomy)? Are you including intersex people in your queer activism or art? Are you consuming intersexist media, or media that fetishises intersex bodies?

Intersex people NEVER owe you any information on their condition. You are not owed their anatomical features, their intersex variations, their hormone levels or their chromosomes. You should not be asking if they're infertile, whether they can have sex, or any other invasive question.

While not ALL intersex people identify with the queer community, many do. If you create queer art, merchandise or anything else created with queer symbols and flags - are you including intersex people? If not, why? Do you acknowledge how bills will affect intersex people, or do you call them collateral damage? Are you lifting up intersex voices, or pushing them out of queer spaces?

Step Five: (Mis)Using Intersexist Terminology

Do you use h*rmaphrodite to refer to intersex people? Do you identify with TME/TMA, or force it on others? Do you use AMAB or AFAB as a catchall to mean "people with a perisex, non-transitioned male body" and "people with a perisex, non-transitioned female body"?

Firstly, h*rmaphrodite is a slur used against intersex people All The Time. Some intersex people may self-identify with it, but it is Not what you should be calling intersex people, nor should other intersex people use it on those who don't identify with it.

TME and TMA, or transmisogyny exempt and transmisogyny affected, completely fail to acknowledge the existance of intersex people. The terms are meant to refer to "AMAB" nonbinary and transfeminine people (TMA), vs. "AFAB" nonbinary, transmasculine people, and cis people (TME). However, many intersex people may experience transmisogyny due to how they appear, such as intersex men with typically feminine characterstics or intersex women with typically masculine characterstics. Transmen, nonbinary people of all shapes, people of colour and gender non-conforming people may ALSO experience what some may call "misdirected transmisogyny" due to how they present, but that's a whole other story."

AMAB (assigned male at birth) and AFAB (assigned female at birth) are not catch-alls for typically male or typically female experiences. Some people who are AMAB have typically female anatomy, hormones or life experiences, some are going to need "female" healthcare. Some people who are AFAB have typically male anatomy, hormones or life experiences, some are going to need "male" healthcare. AMAB does not mean "person with a penis", AFAB does not mean "person with a vagina" nor does it mean "person with tits" or "person with a period/capable of pregnancy". When you are making your info post or your sex ed posts, use specific language. It's not AMAB, it's "people with testes", "people with erections". It's not AFAB, it's "people with ovaries", "people with periods", "people with tits" (I cannot stress enough how much AMAB people can have tits).

End ID]

[optimisticgardenhologram]

TW - detailed discussion of character death and burned bodies

With the images of the truck on fire and flames rising out from the church ruins it's understandable that people often have the takeaway image that Mello's body was pretty much burned into cinders.

But looking at the details of what's said in the manga, I don't get that impression, I think his body was probably more or less intact. A few reasons for this:

TV new report that starts chapter 100 says "unfortunately, the body of one of the two victims found at the scene was officially identified by police as miss Kiyomi Takada". It also notes the truck "parked inside the church somehow caught fire, triggering an explosion."

This is revealing because it means that although I'm sure she was horrifically burned, Takada's body was still at least recognizable by sight alone. If it wasn't the police wouldn't be able to identify her, they would have had to involve forensics analysis of dental records or DNA, which is a process that takes a long time even for "important" people (Light also considers a panel later how it will take them time to recover evidence from the scene or bodies).

This detail provides evidence that the fire/emergency crew arrived very quickly to the site and were able to put out the blaze only a short time after the fire began (consider they were already there on scene by the time Light, Aizawa and Ide arrived).

Now if you consider that Takada was the one who started the fire, the extent of her exposure to it, and therefore the degree to which her body is burned, should be more severe than Mello's. Even considering the impact of the explosion that would have either happened within the truck box when the fire reached the motorcycle or the fuel tank (which is located towards the back of the vehicle, not the front), Kiyomi's body was still intact enough to be easily identified. Logically this means Mello's body should be even less burned then hers, considering he is in a fully separated compartment at the front of the vehicle, as it would have taken the fire significantly longer to reach the driver's area.

So when the same news report referenced before continues "the other body is badly burned, and though assumed to be that of the kidnapper, is currently unidentified", the reason it's unidentified isn't because it's too badly burned to identify it's because Mello doesn't have a documented identity to match his body to. There are no records that Mello exists to begin with.

Anyway so that's why I think despite the dramatic truck fire Mello's body was not so badly destroyed that it couldn't be examined for evidence or autopsy, and had they done so would have quickly determined it was heart attack, not the fire or some sort of accident that caused his death. Which would have led Near to the understand that Kiyomi had access to the Death Note's power regardless of Mikami going to the bank or not. I think Mello understood and prepared for the outcome that if Takada, the only person who would know both his name AND face, could kill him then his body itself would be the evidence that Near's plan had overlooked some part of Kira's plan.

And Near would have his (and Matt's) body to deal with in some way if he chose to take on that responsibility. I like to think he did take possession of it and lay Mello's body to rest somewhere appropriate, maybe in a grave back in England or maybe to have him (somewhat ironically) cremated and keep him on a shelf at the SPK.

[apricotbuncakes]

So we gonna talk about this or what?

Now, WV HR6 is just a bill right now, proposed but not law. But this is what my state of West Virginia has to say about transgender people. Our representatives see us as having mental disorders, and quote the FUCKING BIBLE TO JUSTIFY THE EXISTENCE OF 'ONLY TWO SEXES'.

There are 551 anti-trans bills in the United States as of February 20th, 2025. We expect to see more. And this is how we are being talked about. We are well beyond the point of plain ignorance or misinformation. We've been facing a fucking genocide for fucking years.

This post is not meant to scare you. It's meant to make you aware of what's happening. This post isn't telling you to wallow about and give up. It's telling you to fight back in whatever way you can, even if that just means living another day.

[Images ID: Both images are screenshots from translegislation.com. They show quotes from WV HR6. The first image says: "Recognizing Transgenderism as a mental disorder and affirming the biological reality of two genders" "The biological foundation of human beings has been clear since the beginning of mankind, as described in the Holy Scriptures, which state that God created humanity in two distinct sexes, male and female, as recorded in Genesis 1:27: "So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them";" Transgenderism, or the condition of identifying with a gender other than the one assigned at birth, is a condition that may require psychological intervention"

The second image says: "That the West Virginia House of Delegates formally recognizes that: (1) There are only two biological sexes, male and female, and these have been the case since the beginning of human history as described in the Bible, and confirmed by modern science;" "(2) Transgenderism, understood as a conflict between one's biological sex and gender identity, is a condition that requires careful psychological evaluation and appropriate mental health care, not blind affirmation;" "The West Virginia House of Delegates encourages citizens to engage in open dialogue about these issues [...] while upholding the importance of biological reality." End ID]

[oxymoronictransfem]

can you explain why id'ing as poc/intersex when you're not is wrong? i know it is but i don't really know why, so i can't explain if someone asks me to

Essentially the difference between identifying as queer and identifying as either of those is one is an identity based on your internal sense of self and the other is an identity based on your biological characteristics. Intersex traits are physical, they're present from birth and they're not only found in humans, it's a biological variation. That's the basis of it all. You can't identify into having a biological variation.

Identifying as another race is somewhat similar, it's loosely based off groups of characteristics you were born with or a specific kind of experience that you can't identify into having. Despite the fact racial categories are social constructs, they're still not based off something internal. I haven't always identified with my blackness but that didn't stop my great grandfather from being a slave. (Yes slavery kept going that long)

Meanwhile queer identities describe one's internal sense of self and once identifying with them you tend to adopt the experiences of them.

Even if you tell yourself and other people you id as black when you're not, you won't ever have the history or lived experience of a black person. Not that I care enough to go after someone over it, I have better things to worry about.

The same applies to intersex people, you can't identify into having been a potential victim of IGM or put on a regiment of hormones without your consent regardless of whether you identify with it or not.

My being a trans woman though, I experience transmisogyny daily from both people who know me and people who don't. It's based off my identity as well as my presentation and that doesn't happen when you just call yourself black or intersex.

TLDR : Intersex and black identities are based off past life experience and your own biology meanwhile queer identities are based off how you feel inside and can't be objectively observed.

Hope that was a straightforward enough explanation, I've thought about it a bit because I've seen some silly ass say if people like me can exist why can't people like her identify as intersex

[nahalism]

What do you think is the real reason for limerence? As in, why do people have this (underlaying trigger/cause) I’ve tried to identify, but I can’t come up w much

i think the reason why might vary between individual to individual. honestly, idk if im a qualified spokesperson but speaking from assumption, id presume it has its roots in a persons pre-existing emotional blueprint, self esteem/self perception, and their attachment style as a consequence of the those former factors. it seems to me limerence has more to do with being infatuated with the idea of a person, than it does to do with sincere interest in the actual person themselves. so perhaps its tied to yearning and ideation as a means of mental and emotional distraction? when your occupied with the thought of someone else (either in and of themselves, or or the idea how you perceive them, and how that perception makes you feel in relation to yourself), the need to contemplate or deal with other potentially discomforting realities within or around you is suspended. so for people with low or confused self esteem it might even serve as an anchor of sorts.

e.g : lets say theres a person i find cool & for whatever reason im subconsciously drawn to them. we begin talking or i observe them from afar and i begin to feel a strong sense of infatuation because i admire them. that admiration may then transfer to how i feel about myself once we become more familiar with eachother. (the logic that if someone 'cool' likes me, it might mean/validate that im actually cool too). or if i dont know them, the idea that they might feel that way toward me/the fantasies i have of our interactions, may allow me windows of time to live in a reality where all the things ive assumed and attributed to them, may also be attached to me. almost like daydreaming but with a real person as the muse or stimulus.

idk id love someone who experiences limerence to educate me, especially if im wrong. however when i sympathise with what ive understood of it, that is the only answer i could think of

[rjalker]

A helpful chart.

[ID: A venn diagram with one circle labled, "Neurodivergent - no neurotypicals allowed", with the inside marked, "Madpunk, Idiotpunk, Neuropunk". The space in the middle of the diagram where the circles overlap is labeled "people who are both". The other circle is labled "Physically disabled - no ablebodied allowed", and is marked, "Cripplepunk". Text below the chart reads: "(Tip: Most people who are physically disabled are also neurodivergent because it's almost impossible to stay neurotypical when faced with the physical and mental trauma of becoming physicall disabled in an accident, medical trauma, and the trauma of being physically disabled in a society that wants you dead.)" End ID.]

Tip: if you wouldn't argue that allistic people should be able to use the "actually autistic" tag because they say, "we're all a little autistic", then you shouldn't argue that ablebodied people should be able to use the "cripplepunk" tag because they say "technically we're all a little physically disabled".

Edit 14 hours later:

If you're going to go "But what about people who are both??" to act like I'm forgetting that people with brain damage exist...

(sarcasm) Congratulations! (/sarcasm)

[ID: A cropped, zoomed version of the image above, with the focus now in the center of the diagram labled "people who are both", with the text now in dark red and motion blurred slightly, with a red lens flare explosion in the center. End ID.]

This is a venn diagram for a reason!

Some things that make you neurodivergent also inherently make you physically disabled! But not all of them do! Which is why this is a venn diagram and not any other sort of chart!

If you have a brain injury, you're both neurodivergent and physically disabled!

If you only have ADHD, you're neurodivergent and ablebodied!

Venn! Diagram!

Edit again October 21st 2023:

If you think that Cripplepunk is "extremely hostile to autistic people" because *ablebodied* autistic people are not allowed in, just fuck off right now! Don't comment! Don't reblog! Don't waste my fucking time! There are so fucking many physically disabled autistic people in Cripplepunk.

Crupplepunk is not "hostile to autistic people" because ablebodied people are not allowed in and are not allowed to speak over physically disabled people. That is not how this fucking works and you are just straight up lying.

And secondly if you are not ablebodied you are physically disabled. If you're physically disabled, then you're not ablebodied.

You cannot have a physical disability and still be able-bodied. That's the sort of shit my ablest mom would say to tell me to stop being so lazy.

And if you're not neurotypical then you are literally by definition neurodivergent.

That is what these words mean. They are in fact mutually exclusive categories.

You choosing not to identify as neurodivergent because of your mental illness that you personally don't consider to be a neurodivergency doesn't mean that mental illnesses aren't neurodivergent. That is not how this works.

Furthermore if you send me anons about "well the brain is a physical organ" I'm just going to block you. I'm not even going to read the rest of your fucking message I'm just going to block you. Yes the brain is a physical organ. No, that does not mean all neurodivergencies are physically disabilities because that is not what those fucking words mean.

[lone-gem-half]

Common interpretations and misinterpretations of Pink Steven

Hello. I am Lynn, a fictive of Pink Steven. As this is my identity, I have come to feel quite strongly about the fandom's various interpretations of him. I am here to discuss why I believe some of them to be untrue.

Seeing as Steven Universe is a work of fiction (as real as it may be to me), kindly refer to the Reddit comment below.

[ID: A Reddit comment saying "no you are fucking alive do what you want". /End ID]

I do not wish to offend nor police anyone's enjoyment—in fact, I have enjoyed works containing many of these "misconceptions" myself.

Interpretation #1 – Steven is still himself without his Gem.

I understand why this may be a first assumption. Even the title of the soundtrack, "Steven meets Pink Steven", may lead one towards it. I am unsure if this is what was meant by the creators; the intent of the scene, however, is for Steven to realize that he is and always has been himself, and having Pink Steven be a separate person only bearing his appearance would be contradictory.

Additionally, Steven is half human, half Gem. Part of his conciousness and sense of self reside in the gemstone—it would only make sense, as it is the nature of every Gem. Pink Steven is not a separate entity from Steven. Pink Steven is part of Steven in all senses.

Interpretation #2 – Pink Steven is emotionless.

The "She is gone" scene in itself disproves this.

Steven's powers are led by his emotions. It would be nonsensical for the part of him that bears his powers to be incapable of emotion.

He would not have been able to laugh along with his human half if he were incapable of emotion.

Interpretation #3 – Pink Steven is raw power.

I apologize for the bluntness, as I am struggling to word it otherwise: Rose Quartz/Pink Diamond did not give up her form and self to make room for "raw power". Pink Steven could be intepreted as having raw power. Pink Steven himself should not be reduced to it.

Interpretation #4 – Pink Steven's purpose is to protect his human half.

Once again, I understand where this may come from. Pink Steven's priority is to protect his human half. Pink Steven's desire is to protect his human half. It is not a purpose, however. A purpose is what typical Gems emerge with. Steven—and, by extension, Pink Steven—is not a typical Gem. Otherwise, Rose's sacrifice would have been in vain.

Interpretation #5 – The halves have always existed as separate entities in Steven's head—AKA Steven is a fusion in the typical sense.

This is one I particularly enjoy reading about, despite not believing it to be what is meant in canon. Steven's halves are much like a Gem's shards. They did not exist separately before White Diamond did the deed. They never should have been separate in the first place.

My interpretation—or rather, me.

I am one half of Steven Universe. The human half might seem like Steven at first glance—that is because he is more overt. As a simplified explanation, the human brain deals with daily functioning and the processing of emotions. The Gem "brain" deals with logic, the subconscious, and our powers.

Without the human brain, processing emotion becomes difficult. I struggle with identifying what I am feeling. I do not express it in a typical manner, rather through actions and aura, if not through manifestations of my power itself.

This is tied to the "rawness" of my power. Unfiltered, unprocessed emotion comes out in destructive ways. Without the human half to aid in navigating (Accidental fanfiction reference.), Pink Steven's emotions may destroy him. Both halves need each other to live.

Protecting the human half, in addition to self preservation instincts, is a choice and an act of self love. Emphasis on the latter.

In canon, it is most likely that Steven went back to being his whole self. In my AU, we remained internally separate after reuniting. I enjoy thinking and reading about both possibilities.

Conclusion + fic recommendations

Most of these concepts are fun to explore in their own ways. While I believe myself to be correct (and may selfishly act as if I have authority on it), I am not the boss of anyone's fandom experience. Refer to the Reddit comment mentioned previously.

I would like to highlight some of my favorite works of fanfiction to end this post.

The Heart of a Star by Hastilt – This is my top 1, although all others are in no particular order. I agree with most of, if not the entirety of this author's interpretation of Pink Steven. The work itself is incredible. Mind the content warnings.

Aid to Navigation by Ppleater – It has interesting takes on hybrid biology.

Crack the Paragon by Novantinuum – While not fully accurate to my interpretation, it is excellent and remarkably well written. I am eager to see what will happen in chapter 15.

Threadbare Divinity by Ghostigos – Short and sweet. Vivid in its description of the experience. Contains remarkable wordplay with second person pronouns. A close contender for the first place.

What Went Untold by Andovia212 – Steven describes the experience in White's Head from both halves' perspectives. It is very good to see.

He's Gone by citrusella – A very interesting play on its concept. Mind the content warnings.

This should be all I have for today. Please feel free to comment.

[velvetvexations]

Possibly they mean the current row over transphobes seeing people as their assigned sex? Some people are desperately insecure and seeing any even hypothetical relation to what they're transitioning away from to be so terrifyingly abhorrent that they entirely misunderstand what's being said. Case in point:

Not to psychoanalyze, but, like, wow, right? This is either maliciously lying or an incredibly sad coping mechanism. People are literally just saying that transphobes don't see people as the gender they identify as, but somehow this has led to the completely off the wall takeaway "trans women are men."

Like, no one is saying that. Literally no one is saying that, except for TERFs who I and every transmasc in this discourse shut down when they try to insert themselves into the conversation with their obviously wrong and vile bullshit.

And it's telling transradfems never actually...engage with what's being said at all. Like they never take a post and argue with it, they exclusively post about takes that don't exist. They're shadow boxing.

It breaks my brain a little. Like, how? How do you do this? How do you get this twisted a perception? Every single day anti-transandrophobia activists are repeating endlessly that they don't think transfems oppress them or anything remotely like that. Beyond intentionally trying to deceive their audience, it feels like transradfems are driven by an intense fear of anyone - even actual transphobes - seeing them as as the gender they were assigned that they not only deny that, but also take any acknowledgement of how transphobes think as misgendering them as well.

Which is just sad. It sucks that a transphobic society has made them this unbelievably skittish as to have a meltdown over the very thought that anyone could view them incorrectly. A person's gender validity is not dependent on what others think of them and it's not misgendering each other to understand that some people we are all aligned against have incorrect beliefs.

The "so you're saying we OPPRESS YOU?" reaction to "maybe don't slur other trans people?" may also arise out of this. It's plausible transradfems can't acknowledge trans women and trans men are on the same plane, with equal capacity (no more, no less) to harm each other, because they feel like they're somehow not getting the full Fymyle experience of being maximumly oppressed by all definitions of man at all times. Their problem with cis radical feminism is purely that they aren't allowed into the club, so naturally they can only relate trans men talking about their issues or expressing a belief that trans women are capable of causing them harm with MRAs. Cis men oppress all trans people, but to copy-and-paste the experience of being a cis woman as closely as possible, you can't be equal with any men whatsoever, even just trans men.

TERFs are well-understood to define womanhood around suffering and asserting themselves the biggest sufferers of all, and that's the definition transradfems have inherited.

I'm sorry, anon. You're a man and I'm so, so happy for that, your masculinity makes the world a better place. Please always be who you are. <3

my proposal is that we all start casually referring to all trans people as transmisogyny affected

"TMAs have it so rough" "yeah, trans women, men, and non-binary people of all sexual characteristics and assigned genders do have it rough, you're right"

trans radical feminism's one and only distinction form radical feminism is that they want to make a small edit to how it determines if someone is a man or a woman

I AM awesome!

Trans radical feminism and being a tankie are practically inseparable so it's a much more politically homogenous group taking a swing at a number of people likely to severely disagree on several things, like people who support Israel as a concept if not it's current actions vs. those who see the concept as the problem regardless of who's in charge.

Good instincts.

He seems like a very miserable guy.

Ideally we should make an effort to do work on behalf of others, but yes, it's not surprising and completely understandable that people tend to work on their needs first.

Yeah. It's based in radfem ideas of men being the ultimate evil and literally incapable of restraining themselves from harming women.

[lavenderfeminist]

Hi, I have a weird question. If I identified as lesbian my entire life (im talking about never even thinking about boys since birth) dated one male, for three months (nothing sexual) at 16, and in the years since have never felt attraction to or wanted to date another man, what am I now??? Should I still call myself bisexual? I identify with febfem label but I'm still stuck wondering if it was just some fluke

Only you know what your relationship with him was motivated by, whether it was driven by a desire to conform and escape homophobia & the hope that you could be normal after all, or if you thought he was cute, but ultimately not cuter than a woman since that’s clearly where the strength of your attractions lie. The fact that you refer to it as a fluke and reference having the attraction to and a desire to date him points to the latter imo. Lesbians don’t have exceptions or flukes; the fact that it happened once means it could happen again, even if you live the majority of your existence only having a desire to be with women. The existence of bisexuals who can only be truly satisfied with the same sex is very real and extremely under-discussed in most spaces, and a woman who has the bravery to say “I’m bisexual and I only date women” instead of taking on the lesbian label is rare and admirable in my book. Life isn’t going to be easier for you if you ID as a lesbian and you’re not one; what’s going to happen is that if you ever do find yourself into a man again, you’re going to feel like shit knowing your options are to suppress it (unhealthy) or talk about it and be complicit in distorting the meaning of lesbianism. That’s my 5 cents.

[pktrancy]

Ace/Aro/Aroace community help me. I’m a sex repulsed asexual. I’ve identified this way for a decade. I don’t experience any form of physical attraction, but i can find some people aesthetically pleasing enough to call attractive. I’m pretty certain in these aspects of myself.

But the romance part confuses me. I’ve had crushes on people before, only men. And when i say this i mean honestly there was only like 1 or 2 guys i liked. But like… lately I’ve felt like romance just doesn’t exist. I feel that People enter into relationships to satisfy needs, whether that’s sexual or emotional. (I know people feel differently but this is just the way i see it, i don’t want to start an argument) I can’t imagine anyone ever “loving” me because i don’t have anything to give, especially not sex. But id like to be loved. I just don’t believe in it anymore. And i haven’t felt romantic attraction in 4 years.

Uh, is this feeling part of the Aro spectrum? Or am i just having complicated feelings? What even am i anymore?

[infiniteglitterfall]

the cradle is not a valid news source omfg.

There are a lot of shitty news sites out there. Fact-checking is free, but you'd never know it from looking at a lot of the articles that get traction on social media.

you would, however, increasingly see the far right embracing the left.

me, in a weary sing-song, every fucking time I see an outrage-clickbait headline: "what does the article actually say."

thecradle.co: "The US House of Representatives passed an amendment on 27 June barring State Department officials from citing the Gaza Health Ministry’s death toll of the ongoing Israeli war on the strip.... Sixty-two Democratic lawmakers voted in favor, as well as all but two Republicans."

me: "i thought the problem was that the UN had inexplicably started giving totals from the Gaza Media Office, which had WAY higher total deaths for women and children than the actual Health Ministry, and then everyone found out the Media Office was lying its ass off when the UN switched to the Health Ministry numbers. What's their reasoning?

"Is it the thing where almost 78% of their casualty numbers this spring came from unspecified media sources? Or is it because yes, the Ministry of Health's casualty numbers lined up pretty well with the UN's and Israel's in past wars, but this is the first time that the UN and NGOs haven't been verifying the death count in real time? Or that the Associated Press found hundreds of duplicate IDs in even the list of fully identified recent deaths from the Health Ministry? Wait, is it that the Ministry of Health has been claiming that like 75% of the deaths were women and children, but releasing detailed reports that show that it's really 38%-52%, depending on the month? ok fine maybe there's a reason that this was an almost unanimous vote."

thecradle.co: "...that's not relevant"

me: "...seems like it is tho"

thecradle.co: "we're not here to answer questions"

me: "..."

thecradle.co: "anYWAY, Rashida Tlaib is a real-life Palestinian-American and SHE said, 'Since 1948... there has been a coordinated effort, especially in this chamber, to dehumanize Palestinians and erase Palestinians from existence... [Israel's committing] genocide in Gaza, and in real time, and this amendment is an attempt to hide it … This is genocide denial.'"

me: "how has there been a coordinated effort in the senate to erase Palestinians from existence for 76 years? the u.s. is the largest provider of foreign aid to palestine on earth. i've literally read the entire detailed record of the 1950 senate hearing on Palestinian refugees--"

thecradle.co: "again, i am NOT TAKING QUESTIONS, I am just TELLING YOU--"

me: "okay, okay, geeze"

thecradle.co: "my point is that she said, 'My colleagues want to prohibit our own US officials from even citing the Palestinian death toll. So let me read it into the record. Here are the latest casualties of Palestinians killed: 37,718 Palestinians, including more than 15,000 Palestinian children and more than 86,377 Palestinians have been injured.'"

me: "isn't that the old, blatantly incorrect, two-times-too-high number of deaths of Palestinian children, from the Gaza MEDIA Office? Not the Health Ministry? omg, it IS. The media office is claiming 15,002 children, and a total of 44,844 total deaths. You can only even find that shit printed in Al Mayadeen, which is also a fake news site."

thecradle.co: "I don't know that kind of stuff. I just report the facts."

me: "sure, if the fact is that she lied. wait. she's upset that they're telling the State Department not to use the Health Ministry's numbers and SHE'S not even using the Health Ministry's numbers? was she even listening?"

thecradle.co: "...In November 2023, US Assistant Secretary of State for Near East Affairs, Barbara Leaf, said when asked about skepticism over the Gaza Health Ministry death toll that the numbers could actually be higher."

me: "did you actually just close by quoting someone speculating wildly nine months ago?"

thecradle.co: "listen, our about page makes it very clear that we are definitely journalists and we definitely aren't owned by anybody, and we will expose whatever shocking truths we want."

me: "...so...."

thecradle.co: "...did you hear that ben gvir is the most hated man on earth?" me: "i thought you claimed to report the NEWS."

anyway, I am just as thrilled as always to see my united states elected representatives getting their info from the least reputable sources possible. and then being signal boosted by the least reputable sources possible.

it's almost as thrilling as the knowledge that people react to "hey that's not true" as if you'd just murdered a Palestinian civilian right in front of them, instead of as if you were telling them that thousands of Palestinian children thought dead were still alive.

[monoconsciouscultureis]

hii i don’t know if non-asks are allowed but i was wondering if some monocon systems are like us?

so we’re a median system, so not everyone is like. distinct? but most of us r fictives. but the thing we’ve been struggling with the most is that we’re monoconsious. i don’t know if any systems work like this,, but reassurance that they do exist would be nice :,) so, for us, it’s like everyone is always there, but not 100%. like i wouldn’t say i’m _ right now, but they’re also not fully gone in headspace (we don’t even have one). it’s also hard bc it’s just the constant subconsciously telling ourselves we’re faking since we share memories, conscious, we don’t get amnesia at all (besides emotional!) and i was wondering if some monocon systems work the same,, it’s almost like everyone is a little 5% there but someone’s 95% there then when we figure out we switched whoever was the 95% turns back into a 5% (sorry if that’s so confusing, we’re new to being a system and the imposter syndrome is just. evil rn)

also, whenever we switch, we almost never even tell. usually we can only tell if our likes have changed (someone fronts earlier who just absolutely hates our main spotify playlist apparently?) or personality, ect, which makes it hard on identifying who i am 99.9% of the time. i wish our consciousness could just, get a break :,).

(also, is it normal for monocon systems to not have a headspace or be able to talk to one another? none of us can communicate internally once so ever)

sorry if this is so long D:

Id say thats kinda similar to our experience, so dont worry, you're not alone in that!

we dont have a headspace and cant talk to eachother either, most of our communication is thought or emotion bleeding or just knowing "this headmate would like that" etc. the sharing memories and consciousness and lack of amnesia past emotional is the most common form of monoconscious we know (and one we experience). like even if I have emotional disconnect from it I can remember the exomemories of, say, the ghostface in our system, even if Im not him right now.

the percentage experience is a new way to describe it to us, and we wouldnt say we experience that part, as Im sure I am NOT Velvet or Peony right now. but I wouldnt say it's unheard of! median and monoconscious systems are still under-researched compared to multiple and polyconscious ones.

your experience is valid, and I hope you figure this stuff out and feel more comfortable in your identity. if anyone else would like to help anon feel more comfortable by sharing their experience, feel free to!

[cat-in-a-mech-suit]

Hey I know that my blog looks fake because it’s 10 seconds old but i promise this isn’t bait, I am a trans woman and new to radical feminism thru trying to interrogate my feminism bc of recent irl developments (big fight with a radfem close friend who is also trans) and that’s why my account looks sus

I’m wondering what you mean by trans radical feminism & how you think it’s in your recent post? Like I dunno maybe im super naive bc I am only recently online again but to me a radfem critique has been really valuable in understanding my position as a woman & I don’t see it as transmisogynistic , but maybe my understanding is based on a different interpretation of it. Id appreciate your time and consideration in this 🖤🖤✨

Sure. I also recommend you read my posts and other peoples posts on this. I understand how reading some radical feminist theory or ideas could be helpful in understanding how patriarchy and gender works in our society, and I think a very critical reading of radical feminism can be valuable in certain ways. But the fundamental issue with radical feminism is that it can never truly escape essentialism, whether that’s bioessentialism or gender essentialism (they are one and the same really). It is also lacking in intersectionality because the reason it is called radical feminism is because of the belief that patriarchy is the “root” of all oppression. This reflects that classic “radfem” ideology was only meant to serve one group of women: white cis women. In reality, all oppressions are inseparable and intertwined. We cannot divorce patriarchy from capitalism, white supremacy, antisemetism, ableism, and all other oppressions that exist. Patriarchy didn’t develop in isolation: it is a product of how various human societies has been specifically working for about 10,000 years, which is only a small fraction of human history. There is nothing in nature that predisposes beings to patriarchy or heterosexuality. It is invented, and this is important, in tandem with all other oppressive systems in human society. Not in isolation.

Classical radical feminism is indistinguishable from TERFism because it posits not only that misogyny based on “biological sex” is the root of all oppression, but that sex and gender are immutable, binary traits. I just ask how anyone can take that ideology and make it trans inclusive without changing it completely. There is nothing radical feminism that doesn’t reproduce white cis feminism even if the people calling themselves radfems aren’t those things. Liberation from patriarchy can only be achieved with all trans people.

Classical TERF radical feminism says that trans women are dangerous men invading women’s spaces, and trans men are gender traitors/lost lesbians with internalized misogyny, and nonbinary people don’t exist. The only difference in “TIRFism” or “inclusive” radical feminism, is repeating all the same arguments as the classical radical feminist, but then supposedly “including” trans women as women. The transandrophobia and exorsexism remains, and so does the transmisogyny - it is just more veiled. But make no mistake, “trans inclusive radical feminists” still only accept trans women who can be neatly slotted into classical, gender essentialist ideas of what womanhood is. Multigender people, who identify as both men and women? Bisexual people? Radical feminists do not like them..

I suggest intersectional feminism, which acknowledges patriarchy as connected with all other struggles and rejects gender essentialism.

[redtail-lol]

Presenting, Enderqueer

[Image ID: 2 6-striped flags. They are the same flag, but the one on the left has an end portal overlay, which makes it darker with lighter rectangular speckles. Colors on the right's, in descending order, are: pink; light purple; dark purple; black; dark teal-blue; slightly dark sea green. The right has darkened versions of these same colors. End ID.]

My own blankqueer label. I've been wanting to make one for a while. Name and flag based on the End dimension from Minecraft.

Core principles of Enderqueer:

The core principles of Enderqueer are as follows

The right to self identification with little restrictions and rules.

Inclusion of non-harmful identities in the communities they say they belong to.

Respecting the identities of people even if you do not understand.

Giving everyone a chance to explain their identity before deeming it harmful; as well as respecting someone's choice to not explain and assuming good faith rather than passing judgement.

Putting experiences over definitions; allowing all labels to have outliers if they're comfortable with the label even when it doesn't fit them perfectly.

Queer liberation and the advancements of our rights.

Destroying heteronormativity, cisnormativity, exorsexism, intersexism, allonormativity, amatonormativity, and mononormativity (all 3 meanings of mono: monosexuality, monogenderism, and monogamy).

Enderqueer beliefs:

On identity, enderqueer believes the following

Most forms of self identification are valid, however anything that is identified with for harmful reasons (such as transphobia, biphobia/multiphobia, homophobia, ableism, racism, etc.) or things that are harmful regardless of reason (such as transabled, transrace for non-adoptees, transnazi, shit like that), are not valid.

It is okay to ask questions about identities you don't understand or think are harmful before fully accepting them without question. However, if a person doesn't want to answer, that is their right, and it doesn't give you the right to argue against or hate their identity. Assume good faith and maybe ask others who have similar identities.

Identity is complicated and every label, regardless of definition, can and will have outliers, and this is not a problem

Experiences and personal comforts are more important than definitions

All mspec identities are valid and are not biphobic

All aspecs are queer unless the aspec person in particular says they aren't.

All Polyamory, ambiamory, and other nonmonogamy is queer unless the polyam/non-monogam person in particular says they are not queer.

Redundant terms are okay

Multigendered and genderfluid people are "really" their genders. The existence of their other genders or the temporary nature of their genders don't make them less real

On paraphilias, enderqueer believes the following

Paraphilias are morally neutral. Paraphiles who's paraphilias are nonconsensual or harmful to themselves or others deserve support and recovery, and paraphiles who's paraphilias are not harmful should be allowed to act on it. Paraphilias that can either be harmful or not harmful should only be practiced in a safe and ethical way.

On flag discourse, enderqueer believes the following

Flags should not be gatekept from certain groups unless they are specific to one identity or one group of identities. people can decide to use your flags based on your beliefs.

Controversial original flags can be used regardless of if you agree with the creators, but replacement flags should not be used by people who don't agree with the sentiments behind the cancellation. Racist transphobes should not use the orange and pink lesbian flag. Mspec lesbians and supporters should not use the new pan or aroace flags. This is because the new flags have a goal: punish the original creator for a belief by replacing their work. Using replacement flags is accomplishing that goal, and if you agree with the original creator, you shouldn't punish them.

Multioriented and abrosexual people are "really" their orientations. The existence of their other orientations or the temporary nature of their orientations don't make them less real

Other things enderqueer believes the following

Queer labels should not concern themselves with non-queer issues, as that is a different part of one's identity. Making queer labels that concern themselves with non-queer issues excludes the people who are either uneducated on the topic or have no business voicing the opinion because they are not a part of the community or even adjacent.

Gender is real. Social constructs are powerful things that can cause real and observable phenomenon in the brain, and gender being real doesn't invalidate any funky gender identity

Gender Abolition is transphobic. Gender is the identity, and taking away gender leaves nothing but biological sex which may still allow binary trans people to exist if they experience dysphoria but will definitely erase all nondysphoric and nonbinary people.

Transmisogyny and transmisandry are real

POC queers are an unremovable and important part of the queer community

What does enderqueer explicitly support?

Enderqueer supports the following identities, actions, or forms of identification:

Unlabeled identities

People who use few labels for themselves

Termcollectors and labelhoarders

All aspecs, including loveless aros, any sex stance for aces, romance stance for aros, friendship stance for apls, etc, and atertiaries

Anti-contact, pro-recovery paraphiles who's paraphilias are harmful to themselves or others

Paraphiles who's paraphilias are not harmful to themselves or others

Paraphiles who's paraphilias can be harmful or can be safe who only act on them in a way that is safe and ethical

Mspec monos

Mspec gays, veldians, lesbians, cenelians, enbians, straights, etc who do not consider themselves monos

Straightbians, straight gays, straight veldians, gaybians/velaurians, and other labels often used by multigender people

Lesboys, turigirls, ceneliboys and ceneligirls, enbiboys and enbigirls, trixiboys and trixigirls, and toriboys and torigirls

Any other form of "contradictory" labels

Aspec and non-aspec SAM

Xenogenders

Xenidens, or xenoids used in reclamation

Allion orientations

Gender nonconformity, including pronoun nonconformity

Neurolabels, when used by people who have those conditions

Reclamation of slurs and derogatory terms, even when used as an identity

Transracial adoptees

Transspecies therians

Transage chronosian or transage age regressors

What does enderqueer explicitly denounce?

Enderqueer denounces the following identities, actions, or forms of identification:

Radqueers

Winterqueers or Winterpunks

Transidentities that are not transgender, transrace adoptees, therian transspecies, or chronosian/agere transage

Pro-contact harmful paraphilias or neu-contact harmful paraphilias. This also applies to unethical or unsafe ways of acting on a paraphilia that can be done in a safe, ethical way

Comp-contact for paraphilias that can never be safe or ethical in practice

Anti-recovery for ANY paraphilias. Nonharmful paraphiles may choose to recover anyway

Anti-contact for paraphilias that are never dangerous or unethical

Radical feminists

Not recognizing attraction to elsegender people as being just as real and valid as attraction to aptobinary people. This includes calling all exclusive lesbians monosexual, saying all sexualities inherently include elsegender people, thinking enbians are choosing to date nonbinary people or cenelians are choosing not to date aptobinary people, rather than recognizing that they are attracted to other elsegender people, potentially exclusively, or calling WLN and MLN labels transphobic or enbyphobic

Bad faith labels such as superstraight, quasihomosexual, animesexual (though animesexual can be reclaimed by fictosexuals), and others made to mock queerness or justify bigotry

What is enderqueer neutral on, or what does enderqueer not believe needs to be part of a blankqueer label?

Enderqueer is stanceless on the following:

Syscourse

Shipcourse

Self diagnosis

Furries

Alterhumanity (OP supports and it's close to queer discourse but ultimately I decided it was far enough removed that it didn't need to be included)

Engaging with problematic media and/or creators

Kink at pride (I know this one is super relevant but I don't have any strong opinions and the ones I do have are very mixed)

Enderqueers may have no opinion on the above issues, or a stance that they do not believe is important to a blankqueer label. Or they may just agree with everything else included under enderqueer and choose to use it.

[someone-always-cares]

chapter 5, page 80

first - previous - next

[image description: an sac webcomic page. "it is?" lewis asks. rami doesnt answer, instead saying "also, she's started to bite her way out of the tape.". the panel is zoomed out, showing the entire room bathed in dim red light. despite rami's earlier claims that the room is pitch black, details of the room are easily identifiable. the next panel is zoomed in, the glowing teal border indicating rami's power useage as he watches jade leaning forward and attempting to gnaw through the tape on her arms, having already removed the tape on her mouth, which she's holding in the same hand. the panel also has lighter colours, as his powers make the panel much brighter and with some colour. "i thought you said it was dark?" lewis asks, as rami moves to the tape on his leg. "i have good eyesight. also, we have bigger priorities." he replies. "oh, yeah. you might want to let me free her or she will punch you if she doesn't recognize you."

apologies for the lack of update last week! because i'll be honest, i'm just exhausted lately. but here now, so never mind all that

also, i did indeed attempt to replicate the act of sitting in my chair and leaning forward, seeing if i could manage to bite my arm and non existant tape to try and get references photos for that panel that i never ended up using. they were not at all dignified photos.

anyway book update: giving myself a self imposed deadline of having the kickstarter in august. why august? because i have at least 2 conventions that month and if i manage to have the kickstarter then, i can advertise it while there. so i will make it happen.

additionally: regardless of outcome of when the kickstarter happens or even if it fails: books will be printed some time between september and december. because I have a couple cons in january that i specifically booked in the comic creator area so. kinda need them then.

best case scenario: kickstarter goes great, books printed in september. rewards might take a bit longer but all is well. worst case scenario: kickstarter fails, i print like 20 books with whatever profits i make from august cons.

anyway as an apology here's some sketches for sticker kickstarter rewards. not all of them but i've already shared them to insta the other day, and these are the ones i like the most so far.

[id: clean-ish sketches of 4 sac characters, tsunami, mindforce, faete, and iris. end id]

"everyone here is a freak, i'm the only normal person here" thinks every single one of these characters about the others. well, that's a lie, faete probably knows a bit of a freak but really underestimables her own weirdness