#political figures - intl

[neyatimes]

Wagner's Prigozhin apparently seen in public for first time since failed mutiny

CNN  —  A video emerged on Wednesday that appears to show Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin greeting his fighters in Belarus, in what would be his first public appearance since he led an armed rebellion in Russia last month. “Welcome guys! I am happy to greet you all. Welcome to the Belarusian land! We fought with dignity! We have done a lot for Russia,” a man resembling and sounding like…

[worldspotlightnews]

Husband of former Scottish First Minister arrested over party finances investigation | CNN

London CNN  —  The husband of former Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, Peter Murrell, was arrested on Wednesday in connection with an investigation into the funding and finances of the Scottish National Party. Murrell, 58, stepped down as the SNP’s chief executive last month after more than two decades in the role following Sturgeon’s shock resignation as first minister in February. A…

[reportwire]

China appoints Li Qiang, a trusted ally of Xi Jinping, as premier | CNN

Hong Kong CNN  —  China’s rubber-stamp legislature has appointed Li Qiang, a long-time aide of leader Xi Jinping, as premier, the man tasked with reviving the world’s second-largest economy after three years of zero-Covid restrictions. The National People’s Congress endorsed Li in a largely ceremonial vote at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Saturday morning. Li got 2,936 votes, with…

[suchananewsblog]

Dua Lipa has been granted Albanian citizenship | CNN

Dua Lipa has been granted Albanian citizenship | CNN

CNN  —  Dua Lipa has been granted Albanian citizenship for spreading international awareness of Albania. Albanian President Bajram Begaj said Lipa, the daughter of Albanian immigrants, has made the country proud. “Happy to give the one and only Dua Lipa the decree of Albanian citizenship,” he said. “She has made us proud with her global career and engagement in important social causes.” Happy…

[markiafc]

boy's love / yaoi / danmei & dangai are not queer representation and queer art. or to be exact, it's more complicated than that; asian queer movements in real life express themselves and make their statements through other channels unrelated to fandom. the rise and increasing acceptance of danmei & dangai media isn't a brave push against censorship, it's the age-old story of pink economy exploitation; you just don't know how censorship states function. supporting actual queer asian peoples is not the same as loving and supporting yaoi.

not to be completely disillusioned and cynical. but the c-media circle on tumblr and every single eng-speaking site is so dreadfully racist. (us/uk) chinese diaspora are most guilty of this behaviour while also being the most vocal about racism against chineseness. how many times do i have to witness a racist post made under the guise of "fandom is just for fun!!!!"

[gacha-incels]

Been boycotting limbus but it's a bit disheartening seeing everyone continue around me with this passing intl women's day. I don't know how to convince my friends to stop without getting into an argument because they're all knee deep into these games. But my real question was.. why? These people are boycotting other products for other things, why are they so adamant with sticking on this when it's proven to have harmed so many people in the small team that made it?

Had a discussion with one who is boycotting and I feel like that "political correctness" seeps into the themes of the game, actually, despite how people tout it as the ultimate anti capitalist game; The City is suffering, workers gruel and die at the whims of corporate overlords, people struggle to find housing, and whatever the fuck Carmen's doing in the light, while it could help people survive longer, is just giving everyone guns ignoring the power structures underneath. It's very strange to me now there's.. no suggestion of uprooting the system at all in the games. No true strikes or protests or even any mentions of unions as far as I know. There's no effort to change what is given

[outside of the seed of light project, which 1. famously Didn't Work and 2. having everyone manifest ego is still just giving everyone guns and going "now don't shoot each other!"],

which is very strange and kind of sad? Like sure maybe an arbiter or something would come and tear it down but surely people would come up with countermeasures? People are really good at adapting around things out of desperation, and surely at least an effort would be mentioned

And then my friend, she suggested something; without project moon's suffering, there would be no project moon. Without the city, project moon can't make games. To end the hell that the characters are in and truly resolve the city's hypercapitalist dystopia, they must stop making money off of them. But they don't want to. They definitely DO want to make more games, noted by the interviews which mention future game concepts such as the distortion detective visual novel. But in order to do so, they must keep the current games "clean" and consistent in their suffering to perpetuate conflict. There is some commentary about capitalism to be had; but it feels more like a "oh, look, people are dying, this is so sad" layer of paint on it at this point rather than something more in depth and meaningful. And I think in enforcing this sort of "we can't fix the system in any meaningful way, let's just live our lives instead and hope something better happens" mindset, it reflects into the players. Kind of ironic how the anti capitalism game must sustain its own horrible systems internally so the owners of the series can: make more money through a very predatory money making system, no less!

Limbus fans don't give a fuck about feminism in kr, they think its a system they cant help fixing so they just play the game as they please and any attempt to disuade them is met with a "stop ruining my fun!!" And "who cares?" The worst ones are the ones who KNOW their money is being funneled into stupid misogynistic shit but don't care! It's insane! I've never seen this level of apathy towards a serious issue before!

Sigh. I hope this ramble is coherent. If I missed talking about something or if you want me to talk more I'm game. Project moon's characters are some of my favorites but you have to admit the themes are surface level shit at some point, especially in later installments of their games. So tired but I'd figure I'd share my thoughts somehow. Take care account admin, youre doing gods work

yeah regarding your first point about fans that keep playing, back in August there was a discussion on this blog here regarding contemporary fandom “culture”- how it makes dropping a piece of media hard for some people and why they feel so quick to defend it. the nature of gacha is also that it gets you into the habit of doing “dailies” which makes them harder to drop, this is not even mentioning sunk cost fallacy. I’ve seen a recent post on the FGO subreddit asking why people still play the game and the top posts by a longshot were ones saying only because they spent so much time and money on it. For a lot of people (even people who think themselves progressives) misogyny is a non-issue as well so they will not take the situation in South Korea that seriously to begin with. This is in addition to it happening to “other” or “foreign” women in the eyes of the western fan. There is also an aggressive “fuck you, I’ve got mine” attitude some of the fans who want to keep playing have in regards to these women. It’s disturbing to watch happen but unfortunately not uncommon. I find some of the worst of it, in this situation specifically, is when westerners try to tell Korean women (who are boycotting and spreading information) that they are the ones spreading misinfo, or there’s no reason for them to boycott, how it’s not that bad for them, how PM actually didn’t do anything wrong, “both sides” are crazy and wrong, “let people enjoy things”, shit like that. like doesn’t it raise any flags for you that the people most affected by PM’s actions, Korean women, deleted entire accounts of fanart, took back fanmade items from PM’s cafe, started a boycott of LC and made posts in english to try and get the word out to international fans? you must think they’re idiots if you believe this is all some misunderstanding and vellmori quit of her own free will. Come on. imo it’s impossible to make any meaningful statement critiquing capitalism when you’re writing it in a game that uses one of the most exploitive types of gambling mechanics. I hope I don’t have to explain to anyone why this is absurd. You don’t need to expose young people to gambling addictions in order to fund new games. At the same time, things an author writes (or things that the reader infers from the writing) do not always reflect their ideologies or actions in real life and they can sometimes seemingly be at odds with one another. This is something fans have to reckon with, and not just by saying “actually hatsune miku made limbus company” or whatever. Personally, I can’t take PM’s “anti capitalist” or “feminist” or “revolutionary” work seriously when in reality they have mistreated employees, sued labor unions, acquiesced to incel demands and then later added a meme into the game from that incel community. On the other hand people struggle to believe Project Moon could do anything wrong like this because of the stories in their games so they vehemently defend PM, which at some point just feels naïve. well hopefully this is the type of answer/discussion you were looking for lol thanks for writing 👍

[buriedyou]

𝐂𝐇𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐏𝐇𝐄 𝐀𝐑𝐆𝐄𝐍𝐓.

previously found at: codednew.

This interpretation of Chris Argent is generally in line with what is familiar to those who have seen TW. However, it should be made clear that this blog recognizes Victoria Argent, Chris' dead wife, as a turbulent and nigh-abusive figure within the family. Had Victoria lived, she would not have accepted Allison's influence on the Argent family's new legacy in support of the supernatural community. Chris, however, is loyal to Allison first and foremost, and follows her lead in all things; this was made first apparent prior to her death as a teenager and moreso when he signed the family business over to her entirely. Chris is doing the hard work of reconciling the harm he has committed to his only child, as well as the harm done against him as both a husband and a son. His own father, Gerard Argent, had been a powerful and influential figurehead within the supernatural and hunter community, laying much of the modern groundwork for the war between humans and shifters in particular. With Allison stepping between the two sides and demanding peace, this generations-long worldview has begun to crumble. Chris is dutifully helping her to spread this change, and rebuild his relationship with his daughter.

FULL NAME: Christopher Argent NICKNAME: Chris GENDER: Cis-male SPECIES: Human AGE: 57 years old SPOKEN LANGUAGES: French, English, Russian, Italian, Arabic, conversational Spanish, elementary Urdu OCCUPATION: Previously enlisted in the Army. Previously CEO of Argent Arms Intl. Current COO of Argent Intl.

ACCENT: Slight southern French. VOICE: Rumbling, low. Rough in texture, like years of disuse or deferring to someone else in command. Not typically one to yell. DOMINANT HAND: Ambidextrou POSTURE: So blatantly military. Chris can appear relaxed if he feels the occasion calls for it, but rarely because he genuinely feels it. Sitting, standing, moving; everything about him is measured in uniform precision and has a very large measure of control. SCARS: Dozens of scars in various places along his body; notable lesions include a raised bed of scar tissue in his right shoulder blade where shrapnel is embedded, as well as claw marks spanning his left bicep.

CURRENTLY.

the rumblings of gerard argent’s reappearance. PRESENT DAY. TBD...

QUICK FACTS

chris is based in nice, france, the original headquarters of argent international. he is the company's COO, though he spends much of his time working as a consulting hunter for international communities negatively impacted by supernatural species.

he travels often for work, making time to see his daughter for both work and personal matters. this also makes plotting really easy!

those outside of the supernatural community may very well be familiar with chris, as he is a public figure. besides previously running an international company, his family is somewhat considered very highly respected individuals in french and european society. the argents are known to be philanthropists and socialites.

within the supernatural community, he is received in mixed light. hunters and shifters alike are either wary of him, furious with him, or hopeful that the change his heir, allison, is forging will last. he has a very large target on her back.

chris’ full name is actually christophe, but he has taken to resorting to the anglicized, christopher, since his time spent in the army where they misspelled it on his dog tags. also, he has no preference for what you call him, be it christopher or chris, but he always introduces himself as simply chris.

IMPORTANT: interactions runs under the assumption that the supernatural world is not known to the general public. governments across the globe are privy to this knowledge, including the u.nited s.tates, and all have a hand in the politics associated with the community, mostly in very negative ways. essentially, the supernatural world is treated much the same way as area 51, cryptids, missing 411 phenomena, etc etc etc. just silly myths and stories made up by locals and fanatics. with that being said, argent international masquerades as a security employer, in that private and not-so-private individuals and conglomerate entities hire personnel through a.i. for security and protective services. it, of course, is actually a consulting agency with similar services for both human and supernatural beings.  the goal of a.i. is to protect both the human world and spn.

ALT VERSES TBD...

[indiejones]

OF 1940'S BOLLYWOOD'S CHILDHOOD FRIENDS -TURNED- (DIRECTIONLESS & LITERALLY NAMELESS) NEW PESHAWARI KIDS ON THE BLOCK! - OF VASUDEV & RANBIR ! ... OOPS ... YUSUF KHAN & SHRISHTI NATH ! ... OOPS ... DILIP KUMAR & RAJ KAPOOR!

Did you know that the Dilip Kumar- Raj Kapoor friendship goes back not just to their childhoods growing up close by in Peshawar, but to literally several generations back, with Dilip's Dad being best friends with Raj's Grand-Dad ie Prithviraj Kapoor's father, their ancestors in fact having grown up in the same locality all life.

Infact 'tis via this friendship with Raj's grandfather, Lala Basheshwarnath, that Yusuf's father came to crystallize his dislike for the acting profession as a whole, letting no opportunity pass by in unabashedly criticizing his friend's son Prithviraj's wayward ways, in front all & sundry incl Yusuf, in a profession that he regarded of loose moral values & low prestige, this outlook also borne of his staunchly orthodox Muslim views on life, also simultaneously being heavily politically involved in Muslim politics, alongside the Ali brothers, & a big supporter of the Caliphate Raj idea itself.

So anyway, once in Bombay to try his luck (for as he narrates, "any job available whatsoever in Bombay Talkies" (the story leading to which we've already narrated in our Dilip Kumar-Ashok Kumar blog), he landed up bagging not just any, but the main lead's role, for which was also offered a certain pretty handsome salary price. But what really set his interest going, was that this sum, was much much higher than the salary being received by his good friend & only person he really knew even remotely from the movies then, Prithviraj Kapoor's son, Raj Kapoor, who he was in regular touch with, & who'd been working as an Asst Director in the same studios for some time too! Which is why, as he humorously recalls, unaware of the (perennial) hierarchy btwn Assts & Heroes, he had to get it re-confirmed from studio bosses, whether this offered sum was a monthly or yearly figure!

Next problem though, remained in informing his father of this new job placement, which he knew, would be totally & utterly against his express & strongly held beliefs! And so, afraid of his father's wrath, decided to not tell his family of his new job placement, as long as he could avoid, a very important turn of events in the story, to what was to follow next - the naming of the new hero, a routine affair in Bollywood back then!

Studio bosses came up with 2 alternative names, Dilip Kumar and Vasudev!

Dilip recalls his immediate reaction being, "Anything but Yusuf Khan pls!"

He amusingly recalls, how he too, just like the whole world, would learn of his new, & forever re-christened name, from the morning papers of a month later. And Dilip Kumar was born!

Also re-birthing his old childhood bond with Ranbir (birth name Shrishti) now re-christened Raj from their kiddy Peshawar days, a time he would fondly recall in interviews many decades later, of those nascent times of 1945-46, when both these to-be pillars were yet wannabes-

Dilip says: "Both us friends lived in constant fear of what'd happen at the studio each next day. And he (that's Raj, being an Asst Director, & incharge of more petty matters) would keep harping on small things & what all could go wrong, & I'd keep scolding him for always bringing it up & spoiling my mood."

Dilip continues- "I also had a fondness for watching good films, many many times...upto 3 theater shows a day, & that repeated for many days, if a film fascinated me enough. While Raj was not of the same view. He found the repetition confusing, moreover and thought it a waste of time. I always defended myself, by pointing to the quality of films (intl & natl) being watched by us here, & the value of our purpose. Anyway, what I imbibed from my observation, as one starting out, was the minimal amount of acting being done. I recall him saying once, "Listen,what we'll do is change it. Do it differently, this & that..", & I immediately reacted, "NO. I WILL NOT DO IT. I JUST WON'T!" "

How was History to know, while one became the grand "Showman"of Indian Cinema, the other would go on to be called the loveliest & among the Greatest Method Actors the world's ever seen!

[strahdapologist]

i hope u don't mind a reblog buuuuut when i was running cos more regularly (before grad school lol) i thought abt this a lot and for me in my mind he first had to do three things to seek redemption bc the way i see it, he's wronged three entities the first and most obvious being his brother who he murdered, the second being tatyana for being coveted and damned to an eternal cycle, and the third the people of barovia for being de-prioritized and damned with strahd. i think the last one is the most important bc to tatyana in ye olde i, strahd lore, she really cared about the people and her land. strahd was a heroic figure (sowwy other replies but even in 5e he says he was good and fair at some point so it's just incorrect 2 say he's always been a monster*) for freeing the valley of barovia from a tyrannical king. by killing sergei, condemning himself and tatyana for love, he has violated the social contract and sentenced his people, who he promised to protect, to darkness.

that in mind, to remain redeemed strahd would have to stay in barovia and do the thing he set out to do years and years ago, the charge given to him by his father, by his kingdom, by his title. his ambitions would transform into responsibilities and he would ensure the valley's protection and prosperity after having neglected those things for so long. this would in turn be a way to let go of tatyana but also honor what she longed for before dying (peace for her people)

i see strahd as calm, pragmatic, and fair post-redemption. perhaps a bit sullen, grieving what he had to give up to be here but choosing it every time because that's what the woman he loves would want. i don't think tatyana as written in i, strahd wants him to choose her, and this is why to redeem himself he would have to actively not choose her but instead choose to live how she would want him to. this also bypasses the idea that some people have of death = redemption because it doesn't. the end is a cop-out. there's no work done, there's no real changes made. to actually sit down and take care of his people is putting in the work, it is achieving actual redemption.

this is a controversial take tho bc i know even people within my own cos party disagree on some of these points, which is smth that makes this module particularly challenging to run. ultimately redemption looks different to different people, the question of what makes a good man can inspire a lot of emotions and such a philosophically and ethically fraught module can potentially be a bit draining, but extremely intriguing and ripe for storytelling.

to me, largely due to my own views and interests in political science, intl. relations and governance, his redemption would be politically inclined. so i like to see his redemption as a transformation from hobbes' tyrant-leviathan to kant's fair statesman once more.

*on this note i think people forget what original ravenloft was abt which was gothic horror which is about the monsters in us all, how love is horror, how love is ugly, how love is tragedy and turns us monstrous and this corruption includes the players. strahd is a monster bc he was corrupted, not bc he was born a monster which imo is far more compelling bc to see a villain that was once like you is far more horrific than seeing one that could not ever be you because somehow evil was "born" and not created by cruel circumstance but anywayyyyy

strahd nation. i have a question

lets imagine. for a moment. that strahd goes through a successful redemption arc (lets go of tatyana, therefore breaking the curse and freeing barovia or something). how do you think he would act?

would his personality change significantly or would he just be the same sans the tatyana obsession? would he remain in barovia, or would he leave? what would his ambitions be?

i want to hear your thoughts 👁👁

[neyatimes]

Crimea bridge: Ukraine claims responsibility for new attack on key bridge

CNN  —  A Ukrainian security official has claimed Kyiv’s responsibility for an attack on the bridge linking the annexed Crimean peninsula to the Russian mainland – a vital supply line for Russia’s war effort in Ukraine and a personal project for President Vladimir Putin. The nearly 12-mile crossing, also known as the Kerch Bridge, is the longest in Europe and holds huge strategic and symbolic…

[worldspotlightnews]

Lebanon reverses decision on Daylight Saving, amid confusion on two different timezones | CNN

CNN  —  Lebanon’s government has walked back a controversial decision to delay winter clock changes by a month, after last week’s announcement by caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati sparked exasperation and confusion in a country already gripped by economic crisis. Mikati’s plan to postpone Daylight Saving until April 20 (following the Muslim holy month of Ramadan), rather than introducing it…

[reportwire]

Biden hopes to ease major dispute in Friday meeting with EU chief | CNN Politics

CNN  —  President Joe Biden hopes to ease a serious source of tension with Europe when he meets with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the White House on Friday, according to officials. The dispute is technical but highly contentious. It comes at a moment – a year into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – when unity between the US and its European allies is already being…

[theusarticles]

Opinion: Zelensky's powerful message to Putin | CNN

Opinion: Zelensky’s powerful message to Putin | CNN

Editor’s Note: Frida Ghitis, (@fridaghitis) a former CNN producer and correspondent, is a world affairs columnist. She is a weekly opinion contributor to CNN, a contributing columnist to The Washington Post and a columnist for World Politics Review. The views expressed in this commentary are her own. View more opinion on CNN. CNN  —  Members of the United States Congress, Republicans and…

[iamnmbr3]

for any people who are still out there defending the fascist imperialist Russian terrorist state while trying to present their pro fascist views as “progressive” or “anti imperialist” 

[creativitytoexplore]

A barrier of fear has been broken in Iran. The regime may be at a point of no return | CNN

A barrier of fear has been broken in Iran. The regime may be at a point of no return | CNN

CNN  —  A woman dressed in black raises a framed portrait of her son, Siavash Mahmoudi, in the air as she paces the sidewalk in Iran’s capital, Tehran. “I am not scared of anyone. They told me to be silent. I will not be,” the woman seen in a viral social media video yells, her voice fraught with emotion. “I will carry my son’s picture everywhere. They killed him.” Mahmoudi’s mother is among…