#she blamed it on the american education system

[the-sea-anemone]

woman on the bus while i was on my way to get my TB test (legally required for my job, i haven't been exposed to tuberculosis) was complaining that kids these days don't know what a kiosk is

[spotlightstory]

The Michigan Medicis of Donald Trump’s America

Left, clockwise from top left Blackwater founder Erik Prince; U.S. Sec of Education Betsy DeVos (Prince); philanthropist Elsa and Prince Corporation founder Edgar Prince. Right, philanthropist Hellen and Amway co-founder Richard DeVos; standing, businessman Dick DeVos.

If you ever wondered where the weird Republican ideas came from or how did we get here, well, here's a piece of the puzzle. Buckle up, it's a long read. Link to full article above. I pulled out quotes on topics below.

"In the solar system of elite Republican contributors, Richard DeVos Sr., who died Thursday at age 92—one of the two founders of Amway, the direct-sale colossus—occupied an exalted place, and his offspring did too. Since the 1970s, members of the DeVos family had given as much as $200 million to the G.O.P. and been tireless promoters of the modern conservative movement—its ideas, its policies, and its crusades combining free-market economics, a push for privatization of many government functions, and Christian social values. While other far-right mega-donors may have become better known over the years (the Coorses and the Kochs, Sheldon Adelson and the Mercers), Michigan’s DeVos dynasty stands apart—for the duration, range, and depth of its influence."

Conservative think tanks, advocacy organizations, and colleges

Grand Valley State University; Calvin College, attended by several generations of DeVoses, including Rich’s daughter-in-law Betsy DeVos, Northwood University, her husband Dick’s alma mater. Hillsdale, the libertarian-plus-Christian liberal-arts college in southern Michigan.

Other recipients of DeVos largesse: the Heritage Foundation, the Institute for Justice, and the American Enterprise Institute

"The DeVoses’ preference for “values-oriented” candidates reflect the teachings of the Christian Reformed Church. A small breakaway denomination of its Dutch forerunner, it has some 300,000 adherents in North America, many living in the same western-Michigan towns where their immigrant ancestors settled in the 1840s to pursue a faith.."

SCHOOL REFORM: Who can forget Betsy DeVos’s campaign to undo the state’s public-education system and replace it with for-profit and charter schools that, as she had put it two decades earlier, shared her mission of “defending the Judeo-Christian values"?

“[Among] her big ‘accomplishments,’” says Diane Ravitch, the N.Y.U. professor and respected education historian, “have been reversing civil-rights enforcement for kids with disabilities, putting administrators from for-profit colleges in charge of monitoring for-profit colleges . . . stabbing in the back young people with heavy debt for their college education, and being a constant critic of public schools.” One saving grace, Ravitch contends, is that DeVos has gotten very few of her budget proposals through Congress. 

LABOR UNIONS: Another target was labor unions. Amway and the Prince Corporation had no use for them. Now the family waged a public fight. After Dick DeVos was routed when he ran for governor of Michigan in 2006, he blamed his defeat, in part, on Michigan’s unions and began to push for a right-to-work law (weakening the unions’ economic power and political clout, a pillar of the state’s Democratic Party). In 2012, the bill got through, and Michigan—headquarters to the United Automobile Workers, no less—became yet another of the country’s right-to-work states.

FAMILY: "Betsy and Erik’s father, Edgar Prince, was a Chrysler-Plymouth salesman and then machine engineer who started a die-cast business and also had a tinkerer’s gift for inventions. One, the lighted vanity mirror on the flip-up sun visor (introduced in 1972), helped Prince become one of the wealthiest men in Michigan." (wow) "As he got richer, the elder Prince rewarded his hometown handsomely; Prince money has done much to preserve downtown Holland, which remains a 1950s time capsule of Candy Land façades."

The C.R.C.’s greatest figure, Abraham Kuyper, a Dutch theologian and prime minister who died almost a century ago, had declared, in words the faithful know by heart: “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine!”  

The Princes and DeVoses—with neighboring homes in Holland—had effected a merger thanks to the 1979 marriage of their firstborn, Betsy Prince and Dick DeVos, then in their 20s. “Bible-reading jet-setter” was the description in a Detroit Free Press profile of Betsy.

Betsy and Dick own a 22,000-square-foot mansion on Lake Macatawa.

ERIK PRINCE was devoted to his father, who doted on him. He played four sports at Holland Christian and was the proudly straitlaced kid who, without being asked, put away the soccer balls after practice. Prince enrolled in the U.S. Naval Academy in 1987 but was shocked by the frat-house atmosphere—too much for a junior culture warrior who’d been an intern at the Family Research Council. After three semesters, he transferred to Michigan’s Hillsdale College.

Today Hillsdale, under its president, Larry P. Arnn (former head of the Claremont Institute, a citadel of far-right ideology), is known as a feeder school for the Trump administration, including Betsy DeVos’s chief of staff, Josh Venable. In May, the week Vice President Pence gave the commencement address there, Politico called it “the college that wants to take over Washington”—citing many alums who are now D.C. power players. 

In 1989, Erik had been invited to a “youth” inaugural ball for Bush—and there had met Joan Keating, the woman who would become his first wife. Prince even worked as a Bush White House intern. “I saw a lot of things I didn’t agree with,” he later said. “Homosexual groups being invited in, the budget agreement, the Clean Air Act, those kind of bills. I think the administration has been indifferent to a lot of conservative concerns.” He left that job for another, in the office of California congressman Dana Rohrabacher, who has often been called Vladimir Putin’s top Capitol Hill asset, so valued, the Times has reported, that he was given a Kremlin code name.

Prince spent four years with the SEALs in the early 90s but moved on after his wife was diagnosed with cancer and his father, aged 63, died of a heart attack. The elder Prince left behind a business with 4,500 employees. The family sold it for $1.3 billion, and Erik, at 25, now had a sizable inheritance.

One of Prince’s instructors in the SEALs, Al Clark, was also looking to set up a security-and-defense training company. Prince had money to invest. Out of this came Blackwater, which began as an instruction facility for law enforcement, the military, and special-ops squads in Moyock, North Carolina. 

The article goes into detail about Blackwater and it is mind-blowing. Their involvement post 9/11, Russian arms dealings, US government contracts,

"The source says he resigned after he discovered that Prince had approved plans to illegally weaponize aircraft and “actively train former Chinese Red Army personnel that are now being deployed into Pakistan, Thailand, Myanmar, and the Uighur region in China”—actions he perceived as supporting foreign interests above America’s. (Other Prince associates reportedly resigned for similar reasons.) Prince firmly denied the allegations."

[jamisonwritestf2trash]

“I really just need to make an entire breakdown on Medic one of these days 😭” Well, do it. Umm, you coward —I'm so sorry for calling you a coward, Jamison :'(—.

Medic's Past Headcanons (Also Some Archimedes Content!)

————————————————————

No apology needed my friend, I am but a coward 😭

I lied a little bit, I changed my mind on doing a full breakdown, just changed it to some headcanons about his past and meeting Archimedes </3

But no, I've mainly not posted this because I've had other requests and also this one will probably get heavy. I wasn't sure if I wanted to post content with actual angst and upsetting themes.

But I'm here now because looking past all the jokes and my own personal love for doctors. I should also mention, written by an American and a person with know knowledge of the German education system, and medical practices in general!

ALSO, finally writing Medic with his accent and some actual German, please forgive me if you are a native speaker for using a mix of google translate and my very poor German skills 💖

————————————————————

ALSO ALSO mutual appreciation comment! Another thank you for letting me talk about Medic <3

————————————————————

TW: CHILD NEGELECT, SU!C1D@L IDIATIONS, FLUFF AT THE END!

————————————————————

He's been asked about his mother before, his answer has always been,

"Meine mutter? She vas good woman, she... she did her best." Said with a softer tone than anyone has ever heard him speak in.

He's lying. She severely neglected him as child. After his mother fell pregnant, his father left. His mother resented Medic for this, blaming him for his father leaving, refusing to realize how volatile their relationship had been before he was conceived. When Medic was born his mother refused to bond with him, holding him only when others gave her expecting looks. For the first years of his life his mother only tended to his basic needs to keep him from crying, his crying always annoyed her. It never got better with time, she never learned to love him like people had claimed when she started expressing her contempt for him. She would sometimes give him small bits of attention, then she would get a wicked smile on her face as he cried when she stopped paying attention to him for seemingly no reason. Always making him feel like he was responsible for the sudden lack of attention.

————————————————————

His younger years in school is also something he will lie about if asked. (I'm ignoring college because uh, I have no idea what to write for that 😭)

"I vas great, top of my classes, Natürlich. Ich war sehr beliebt."

(Of course. I was very popular)

When he was younger, he was top of his classes. He always excelled at whatever class he was put in, his favorites being science, he obviously loved medical textbooks, along with zoology textbooks, always had one of the other, he'd spend lunches just reading from his books, or hiding in the library, trying to learn everything he could about both. In a way you could say he was popular, but not in the good way. He always had his books on hand, always had the best grades, was always the teachers favorite student, and the other kids hated that. He took his fair share of beatings while he was in school.

————————————————————Medic had never thought about dying, sure he watched patients die, and he knew deep down his mother had died at some point, (He never heard from her after he left his home town, despite his attempts to contact her) but he never thought about the concept of him dying. It hit him like a ton of bricks when he had his first panic attack, and it clicked in his head that he just didn't want to be alive. He couldn't tell you why the switch flipped in his head that made him reach that low, but it did, and it was awful. He almost went insane, he couldn't breathe, he couldn't do anything besides sit in his room and feel years of emotions just hit him out of nowhere. He thought he would die, he wanted to die, dying would be preferable to whatever this was. In the midst of his panic attack, something hit his window with a loud thump. (Aren't I so clever for this transition? lmao 😭)

————————————————————

The day Medic and Archimedes met continues to be one of the best days of his life. A bird had hit his window, pulling him out of whatever spiral he was currently having. Medic just looked at the window for a minute, content to just assume the bird flew off after being dazed a bit. When he heard tiny coos and chirps outside. He pushed it open and saw a little dove huddled in a corner, cooing sadly, shaking as it tried to move its wing but chirping painfully when he moved his wing. Medic put his hand out and tried to scoop up the bird, and the bird ended up attacking his hand. Medic pulled his hand back, a tad shocked, but then tried again. The bird slowly eased up to him once he understood Medic wasn't going to hurt him. Medic took him inside and checked him out. His wing was broken, and it was nothing Medic couldn't fix. He fixed up the birds wing, then decided to get some things to keep the bird comfortable while he recovered. He ended up spoiling him without realizing it. He went to go buy a bird cage and ended up buying the nicest one, the best bird food, and even toys 😭 He came back and set it up all nice for the bird. They bonded pretty quickly after that. However, time passed, and Medic found himself growing attached to the little bird, even naming him, which he knew was a mistake the moment he did so. He knew it was a bad idea, and he did it anyway. After about a month of them living together, Archimedes wing was functional again, Medic enjoyed watching him fly from his cage to the door to great him when he came home from wherever he had gone. But after the third or fourth time, Archimedes greeted him at the door. He knew he was well enough to go back out into the world. That evening, before sunset, Medic opened his window and put Archimedes on the ledge, prompting him to fly off, totally not on the verge of tears, about to experience the worst pain of his life or anything. Archimedes just tilted his head, confused, turned around, and nestled up to Medics arm that he had been propping himself on. Audible sobbing could be heard from his house that night. Medic would later find a way to keep Archimedes to live forever with him, making sure that Archimedes was spoiled to death, and was told each day the value Medic put on their friendship.

"Wir werden für immer zusammen sein, mein Freund, das verspreche ich!"

"Coo"

(It'll be us forever my friend, I promise.)

(I'm counting on it)

————————————————————

Ough, im a sucker for a happy ending 😭or for some reason, I feel like this is super embarrassing, but I' going to ignore that feeling. Sorry for the angst dump, but it had to be done, and I'm sorry it's not very long! I hope you guys like this! Uh, a mini headcanons, then another Medic post, and then some new headcanons are in the works! There is so much Medic content, but I'm not complaining 💖

[thisisyourprincipalspeaking]

Not people in here about to have me defend this pale man. 😅

To the anon who mentioned his white privilege. One must assume Chris got Captain America due to his race, or that he became a celeb through privilege. Yes as a white man he’s afforded privilege. I do acknowledge that.

But one must also acknowledge that Chris was a basic ……still is a basic white man from Massachusetts. He graduated high school early and went to NYC and got a damn job to try to put himself out there. He sent in letters like millions to talent agencies to try to be seen. But his ass was working in an office and saw the reality of the entertainment industry. He’s struggled to get roles and put in the time and auditioned for things. He’s now had a fair share of success and that’s led to more opportunities. Chris is also human and has his own internal problems and insecurities which I believe have hindered him professionally a bit. I don’t know the man like that, but to boldly state that he’s some rich privilege white male as though that’s the end all be all for his success is crazy to me.

Dude knew what he wanted and went after it, THAT is how he started. We are not going to sit here and try to lump all of his accomplishments and work ethic to…..well he’s white so it’s very easy for him. Has he had it easier than others in other ways simply due to his race, absolutely.

Im African American and I be damned if I sit my ass online mad at white people for being white instead of doing something productive with my life.

I deal with racism, sexism, etc but I be damned if I allow any of that to stop me from accomplishing anything. Do you think Octavia or Viola would be where they are with your mindset anon?

White people open doors for their individual needs, we open doors for each other.

Chris made sure Octavia didn’t have to be in a scene that had her petrified of being hit. He used his privilege to get her out of a scary situation. Had she complained on her own she may have been fired, idk. But if that’s not using your privilege for good then what is?

I think you miss the point of people stating just because things look like they were a “choice”, doesn’t mean that’s the end all be all, feel me?

If one believes he truly is everything implied based on how his current circumstances appear, then why waste time arguing over this white man and his privileged ass?

We have to stop this “blame the white man for all of our problems” mentality. Yes they did a lot of shit to us and its left and continues to leave scars, it’s led to systemic racism, colorism, police brutality, etc but we still made these beautiful lives, we define the culture, we are IT!

I also advise you to educate yourself on white privilege. Please google the white panther party. You have to understand that in order for us to have moved to better and get the civil right movement moving forward, we had allies in places that we weren’t allowed to be and because of these allies they assisted is making things better for us. We have rights, we have more opportunities than our ancestors and we didn’t get here alone.

My worth and value is not dependent on what evil racist choose to do. When they go low, we go high, now mind you I’ll gladly step down a few pegs to put people in their place and then rise back up to my level. 💅🏾

i think i love you, anon

[painted-bees]

Hey, about the video, I really hope it didn't come across that way in the way I phrased it, but in case you do think that, let me be clear that I wasn't trying to lay blame on the children or the ever rapidly-growing technology (<-not to a full extent anyway).

I fully agree with the girl in the vid that the parents are not doing their job well enough (if at all) and a lot of them are introducing their kids to devices with internet access WAY too early. (I mean- at just one year??? And they wanted to give it to her earlier than that!?? When she just came out the womb???) Not to mention laying the blame and setting ridiculous expectations on the teachers for things they should've been doing. But the thing is, a lot of those parents do happen to be Millenials, so.. it is kinda saying something...? Maybe? Even the youtuber added in the description "Millenial parents need to do better."

(I really hope you actually watched the full video to understand where I'm trying to get at here..)

Idk- I... I just hope you're not mad at me (based on how you wrote Margie's response....)

oh, no haha I'm not mad at you in the least, no worries about that! My personal opinion is that the issue at hand is a very complex one. The school system is bad, and parents are not provided enough time or resources--especially in America--to raise their kids properly. Not only are american families culturally encouraged to raise their children in isolation, without any significant help/involvement from their local communities/extended family, but often, both parents are forced to hold down very emotionally, physically, energetically demanding jobs to pay for the cost of child birth, care, education, and day-to-day family expenses. In this way, I think it's very hard to even blame the parents--most of whom I truly do believe are doing their best and are running on less than fumes. I do not have children, nor intend to ever have children myself because--the simple fact of the matter is--raising children is hard, even under the best circumstances. Raising children without a community to help with a lot of the heavy lifting, without an economic support structure, without financial stability...is insane, it's absolute madness. To me, it's no wonder the current generation is coming up the way they are. Parents are not fully to blame for it, nor are the schools. The whole damn pot is boiling; it's the whole thing, all of it. In the end, I am confident the kids are gonna be Alright*, in the way that they always are. Every generation has a great deal of concern for the generations that succeed them--because the world is always changing, and that change can look a lot like regression. We backslide in some ways, but the march has always been forward. All anyone can do is the best they know how to.

[tirkdi]

Even on his days off, Dr. Morozova had been a presence at the hospital; there were only a few days he was completely absent once his mother was discharged. By the time he returned to work, Alina was no longer his intern — her year with him had finished while he was taking care of his mother. She was now officially interning with Dr. Bergen.

Alina was learning a lot from Dr. Bergen, but it wasn't the same. She missed working with Dr. Morozova for fourteen hours a day. She missed the way he looked at her when she'd done something particularly well. She missed him.

He would often observe her surgeries, and she watched him work whenever she had the chance. Occasionally he'd glance up to the observation room while she was there. It was hard to tell with the mask on, but she could have sworn that, once or twice, she saw him smile.

(truly just his pov during any of his scenes with alina, what he thinks of her etc)

Ooo I did not expect Mastering the Cut to make an appearance in this meme! Ok, exciting.

Broadly speaking, this fic explores three themes from canon but twists them a little bit. The first is, most obviously, Alina's confidence. When she struggles in the Little Palace, Aleksander is completely hands off (it's to his advantage) – in Mastering the Cut, he is actively engaging her. This «is because of theme number two – this fic is also looking at what it would be like if he actually did want an equal: if he met someone who he felt had the same potential he did and he wanted to see that potential pushed as far as it could go. And there is, of course, the third difference – in canon he blames Alina for Baghra's death; here, he credits her with saving her life. Remember how in canon her death pushed him off the deep end? Here, Alina saving his mom's life pushes him over the edge in the other direction: realizing he doesn't just ardently admire and respect Alina, but that there's something more there, too.

Ok, so with that, let's go --

Even on his days off, Dr. Morozova had been a presence at the hospital; there were only a few days he was completely absent once his mother was discharged. In any iteration of Aleksander, he is a workaholic. I will not be accepting disagreements at this time. By the time he returned to work, Alina was no longer his intern — her year with him had finished while he was taking care of his mother. She was now officially interning with Dr. Bergen. My deepest apologies to anyone who knows anything about how the American medical education system works. This is not that, this is a system that is narratively convenient.

Alina was learning a lot from Dr. Bergen, but it wasn't the same. She missed working with Dr. Morozova for fourteen hours a day. She missed the way he looked at her when she'd done something particularly well. She missed him. She sure did.

He would often observe her surgeries, and she watched him work whenever she had the chance. It's a normal thing for both of them to do! Definitely totally normal behavior to be obsessive about observing one person in particular. Occasionally he'd glance up to the observation room while she was there. It was hard to tell with the mask on, but she could have sworn that, once or twice, she saw him smile. Alina thinks she has been playing it cool this whole time, but Alina's version of playing it cool is not a normal person's version of playing it cool by any stretch.

[anadrenalineslut]

something ive been thinking about a lot is how performative the progressivism is on gilmore girls. rory spends the first 3 seasons needling her small town, rural, poorly educated white boyfriends into "wanting more" for themselves and then once she gets herself in a relationship with an old money man, she uses the connections he gives her to make fun of and belittle the rich as if she doesnt hold the same belief system herself.

it's very interesting to me how rory wholeheartedly believes in the rags to richs american dream propaganda despite putting on this hipster ass attitude of "i read and so im better than the rest of yall"

i blame loralei for it tbh

[christmasintheloonybin]

anyways I was going to say it is unbelievable how unintelligent so many people are. if you don't see it you won't believe it, if you're a middle class suburban college educated person you cannot understand. one person I used to work with thought Kim Jong Un was the leader of Japan. and she can vote. people are quick to blame the education system, and there are some issues with funding, but there is no excuse for people to come out of it functionally illiterate. maybe it's just a peeve of mine but when people make excessive spelling and punctuation errors, people who speak English as their first language, foreigners get a pass, it fills me with rage. equality has been the most destructive and evil idea in the history of humanity. no two people are equal to each other. I know the stereotype about Americans being dumb, and in a way it's true but I'm not sure why. maybe it's just a culture which doesn't really prioritize intelligence, I mean America for the most part is extremely proletarian culturally. there's an obsession with illiterate moron laborers. like how these millionaire guys will larp as cowboys on Instagram. even older than this. there's a tradition of ranch owners dressing in the same way as the people they employ. this is all wrong. and intellectuals are always treated as gay or European or something. there is an anti-european attitude in America. maybe this has something to do with it, most Americans hate intelligence in a way, maybe because this is a country which has (in theory) been in favor of equality. there is not a culture of intelligence because intelligence disproves equality, but the burden is only minimally on schools. I mean you can learn anything you want if you really want to learn it. there's really no excuse. it's not like we don't have electricity here you can go to the library as a homeless person and learn anything you want to learn. I think most people here are just useless and lazy.

[needtomakebetterusernames]

Headcanon of FNAF: (I got bored and decided to write something)

• Henry Emily served in the Vietnam war as a combat engineer. After his tour of duty, he vowed to build something that would bring joy and not destruction and death. Hence why he got into robotics and animatronics to create a kids restaurant. It would be in college that he met his wife and his future partner turned eventual enemy, William Afton.

• Michael Afton doesn’t speak with an English/British accent. He was raised in Utah and while I understand that his father was British, Michael was raised in American society and education system as well as the fact his mother was an American too. He does tend to use a British accent to mess with people or directly speak with his father. After being scooped and leaving his message, Michael Afton never uses the British accent again. Elizabeth speaks in a British accent because of her idolization of her own father. Evan Afton took after his brother until his demise in the hospital.

• Elizabeth Afton is actually a psychopathic and a manipulative child. She takes after William more than ever due to favoritism by her father and possible preexisting mental conditions (still debating on it). Even before becoming Circus Baby, she had tendencies to manipulate and lie to get what she want or to pin the blame on her brothers.

• Evan Afton possess the Golden Fredbear plushie rather than Fredbear due to the fact he ended up dying with the plushie in his arms rather than in Fredbears jaw. Michael found out after witnessing the plushie moving around and even calling him a jerk in the middle of the night for killing him. Needless to say, Evan did forgive Michael after realizing that Mike truly regretted what happened and the fact he was trying to do his best to atone with what happened and investigate the deaths around Freddy’s.

• Michael Afton was sixteen or seventeen when he was scooped by his own sister and the animatronics that formed Ennard. This happened in 1987 before the events of FNAF 2. He was either twelve or thirteen when the bite of 83 happened. As a result, Michael Afton never got a chance to graduate from high school, go to college or have a future family due to being scooped and turned into a tall teenaged purple zombie. (This part could change later on the more I flesh out stuff).

• Mike and Charlie were best friends and Mike often considered that they could have been more than friends in the future. However that was ruined when Charlie was murdered by William. After being scooped and trying to investigate his own home once he got back control of his own body, he discovered that William was the one responsible for her death. Mike was beyond pissed and when he encountered William in Fazbear Frights, he made it clear by using a crowbar on Springtraps kneecaps.

• Springtrap’s weakness is its knees. William Afton had sensitive knees before being springlocked into Spring Bonnie and that transferred over due to mixture of flesh and metal blending together. He learned this the hard way when Mike found him at Fazbear Frights and took a crowbar to his dad’s kneecaps on the day he first committed arson. William had managed to drag himself out of the fire but not without more damage to the suit. Even when he became ScrapTrap, his knees are always a weakness.

• Jeremy Fitzgerald is a veteran of Urgent Fury, having served in the 82nd Airborne. He’s not the same age as Michael nor knows him (sorry JereMike fans). He is the bite Victim of 87 and later on the same Jeremy in the VR department of Help Wanted.

• Mike Schmidt is actually a real person along with a fake name Michael Afton used in 1993. Mike Schmidt was the brother of Clara Schmidt who is Michael’s mom. He actually is the only member alive connected to the Afton family along with Michael (despite being a zombie). He is the one who encounters Michael and learned what the hell happened to him when they actually tried to apply around the same time at Freddy’s in 1993. In exchange for letting Michael use his name and getting this job, Mike began investigating Fazbear Entertainment and other places more easily than Michael while Michael was investigating on the inside at night due to his undead nature. Mike continued to help Michael even after the events of the Pizzeria simulator when Micheal Afton finally passed away in the flames. Mike was the one to make sure Michael was buried properly and given a place to rest.

• Gregory is not a robot or the crying child reincarnated. Rather he is the reincarnation Michael Afton given another chance at life (without realizing it) as well as in a position to stop William Afton again along with his followers. Hence why he’s a gremlin and has prior experience with certain tasks or knows stuff others don’t know.

[hellyeahheroes]

Miles Morales: Spider-Man (2022) review 1-5

Okay, Cody Ziglar, now you have my attention.

Alright, Cody Ziglar, the first Black main writer of Miles Morales’ comic(not to disrespect Bryan Edward Hill but he only wrote one annual and it was bad), had a dubious honor of following Saladin Ahmed in writing Miles Morales. Just to sum it up, Ahmed’s strengths were that he greatly expanded on the supporting cast and rogues of Miles while giving Miles’ characterization that is more in line with Spider-verse. He modeled his writing after Romita’s run of Amazing Spider-Man that followed Ditko. His flaws were that he failed to actually commit to things in the end as he quickly dumped all of his work in expanding said supporting cast the moment his Creator’s Pet Starling comes around and it becomes all about Clones and Multiverse. After a strong start, Ahmed’s run came to a weak and disappointing end.

Now it’s Ziglar’s turn and I heard ramblings that he wanted Miles to be more around street level black heroes like Misty Knight because they operate differently than the white heroes and don’t have the same privileges. Compare Blue Marvel to Tony Stark and you see what he’s talking about. Anyways, Cody starts his run making parallels to Miles’ Irresponsible Destructive Savior tendencies and his lack of appreciation for his opportunity at Brooklyn Visions Academy.

Miles is being criticized, perhaps unfairly, on both aspects. On one hand, Agent Gao can point out all of the destruction Miles “caused” but if you reread the issue, you will find that most of the damage was caused by Scorpion prior to Miles arriving to the scene and saving that girl, which said girl ends up being wildly important later on. His teacher scolds Miles for being unappreciative of his opportunity that he feels Miles is squandering overlooking the fact that Miles won a lottery to a charter school that is taking funding from underfunded public schools.

So Miles is being attacked by an overly funded police force that loves persecuting vigilantes, especially people of color, and a school system that takes kids from their communities and places them in boarding schools. Both take funding from public schools that, if properly funded at the same level as Brooklyn Visions, could have avoided the future problem that happens in this arc.

Miles’ won that lottery because his lucky number 42 was called. But what happened to the others balls? What happened to 41?

This is Raneem Rashad. Number 41. And she really needed that spot at Brooklyn Visions Academy. And the girl Miles saved in the beginning of the first issue.

Raneem lost her parents who were immigrants from Jordan. She was poor yet gifted and had to enter a school system that didn’t challenge nor uphold her. Her mother died because of inadequate healthcare that failed to catch an ailment on time. And her father’s last lament was for his daughter, his greatest gift, would be saved from the struggle of poverty.

Whoops!

Now Raneem blames Miles taking what she feels was her opportunity. Now you can say that her angry is misdirected, but the narrative is very much aware of that. Both Starling and Miles point out the flaw in her justification. Why be mad at Miles when she could be mad at the fucked up system? That’s not the point of Raneem Rashad aka Rabble. When Bendis watched Waiting For Superman, he was inspired to make that part of Miles’ origin. Miles origin is not propaganda for Charter Schools, Private Schools, or Advance Placement Schools *cough* Spider-Man MCU *cough*. It’s a deconstruction of and a social commentary on it. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse isn’t saying Charter schools are awesome. It’s pointing out the alienation Miles feels attending such institutions. And Raneem is now asking the audience the important question that do these kids who did not win deserve to be left off? They are gifted too. Just as if not more so than Miles. And should Miles be forced to carry the burden of the American Education System inadequacy just because he won a lottery?

While Saladin explored how a school system targets students of color like Miles with characters like Assistant Principal Dutcher and Sean, Cody is looking at the systemic impact of schools like Brooklyn Visions through Raneem. And it’s fantastic. It’s all fantastic.

As for the character herself, Raneem Rashad is Miles Morales’ narrative foil. That is his forever enemy. A true Spider-Man Classic villain throwback. While Bruce Wayne’s rogues spiraled into mental health caricatures, Spider-Man’s rogues has always been about unchecked corruption from the top filtering to the masses. There are levels to Spider-Man villains. You have guys like Sandman and Rhino who are down on their luck or you have folks that have been spurned or sleighted by higher institutions like Doc Ock and Vulture. Then you have Norman Osborn or Wilson Fisk. Raneem is a little column A and Column B. What makes her special that she is specifically a Miles Morales Spider-Man villain. Slott can’t just pluck her out and have a character that he’s writing embarrass her like he did the Assessor.

Rabble is a Miles Morales classic that is so specific to Miles that it would be highway robbery to pair her with someone else(not that it would stop Tom Holland’s Spider-Man from trying).

You can’t replicate this animosity.

And yeah. I mess with it.

Cody, just like Ahmed was, is the right choice to helm this comic because Cody is,not meant as a pejorative, woke. The art is fantastic which is expected from Federico Vincentini and colors Bryan Valenza. This isn’t Federico’s first time drawing in a Miles Morales comic as he was also behind the Absolute Carnage: Miles Morales mini so it’s nice that his chaotic and frantic style was given some room to explode on the page.

My only critique is that this arc should have at least highlighted Miles other supporting cast that goes beyond Ganke Lee and Miles’ immediate family. Barbara Rodriguez, Judge, Sean, and etc. but otherwise, BRAVO, Cody Ziglar. I look forward to your future additions to this run.

@ubernegro

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Jazmin Evans had been waiting for a new kidney for four years when her hospital revealed shocking news: She should have been put on the transplant list in 2015 instead of 2019 — and a racially biased organ test was to blame.

As upsetting as that notification was, it also was part of an unprecedented move to mitigate the racial inequity. Evans is among more than 14,000 Black kidney transplant candidates so far given credit for lost waiting time, moving them up the priority list for their transplant.

“I remember just reading that letter over and over again,” said Evans, 29, of Philadelphia, who shared the notice in a TikTok video to educate other patients. “How could this happen?”

At issue is a once widely used test that overestimated how well Black people’s kidneys were functioning, making them look healthier than they really were — all because of an automated formula that calculated results for Black and non-Black patients differently. That race-based equation could delay diagnosis of organ failure and evaluation for a transplant, exacerbating other disparities that already make Black patients more at risk of needing a new kidney but less likely to get one.

A few years ago, the National Kidney Foundation and American Society of Nephrology prodded laboratories to switch to race-free equations in calculating kidney function. Then the U.S. organ transplant network ordered hospitals to use only race-neutral test results in adding new patients to the kidney waiting list.

“The immediate question came up: What about the people on the list right now? You can’t just leave them behind,” said Dr. Martha Pavlakis of Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and former chair of the network’s kidney committee.

Pavlakis calls what happened next an attempt at restorative justice: The transplant network gave hospitals a year to uncover which Black kidney candidates could have qualified for a new kidney sooner if not for the race-based test — and adjust their waiting time to make up for it. That lookback continues for each newly listed Black patient to see if they, too, should have been referred sooner.

Between January 2023 and mid-March, more than 14,300 Black kidney transplant candidates have had their wait times modified, by an average of two years, according to the United Network for Organ Sharing, which runs the transplant system. So far more than 2,800 of them, including Evans, have received a transplant.

But it’s just one example of a larger problem permeating health care. Numerous formulas or “algorithms” used in medical decisions — treatment guidelines, diagnostic tests, risk calculators — adjust the answers according to race or ethnicity in a way that puts people of color at disadvantage.

Given how embedded these equations are in medical software and electronic records, even doctors may not realize how widely they impact care decisions.

“Health equity scholars have been raising alarm bells about the way race has been misused in clinical algorithms for decades,” said Dr. Michelle Morse, New York City’s chief medical officer.

Change is beginning, slowly. No longer are obstetricians supposed to include race in determining the risk of a pregnant woman attempting vaginal birth after a prior C-section. The American Heart Association just removed race from a commonly used calculator of people’s heart disease risk. The American Thoracic Society has urged replacing race-based lung function evaluation.

The kidney saga is unique because of the effort to remedy a past wrong.

“Lots of time when we see health inequities, we just assume there’s nothing we can do about it,” Morse said. “We can make changes to restore faith in the health system and to actually address the unfair and avoidable outcomes that Black people and other people of color face.”

Black Americans are over three times more likely than white people to experience kidney failure. Of the roughly 89,000 people currently on the waiting list for a new kidney, about 30% are Black.

Race isn’t a biological factor like age, sex or weight — it’s a social construct. So how did it make its way into calculations of kidney function?

The eGFR, or estimated glomerular filtration rate, evaluates kidney health based on how quickly a waste compound called creatinine gets filtered from blood. In 1999, an equation used to calculate eGFR was modified to adjust Black people’s results compared to everyone else’s, based on some studies with small numbers of Black patients and a long-ago false theory about differences in creatinine levels. Until recently that meant many lab reports would list two results — one calculated for non-Black patients and another for Black patients that could overestimate kidney function by as much as 16%.

Not every Black kidney candidate was affected. Some may have had kidney failure diagnosed without that test. For others to have a chance at benefitting from UNOS’ mandated lookback, transplant center staff-turned-detectives often worked after hours and weekends, hunting years-old records for a test that, recalculated without the race adjustment, might make the difference.

“You’re reaching out to the nephrologist, their primary care doctors, the dialysis units to get those records,” said Dr. Pooja Singh of Jefferson Health’s transplant institute in Philadelphia, where Evans received her new kidney. “That first patient getting transplanted for us was such a great moment for our program that the work didn’t feel like work after that.”

A high school sports physical first spotted Evans’ kidney disease at age 17. While finishing her master’s degree and beginning to earn her Ph.D. at Temple University, she started dialysis — for nine hours a night while she slept — and was placed on the transplant list.

How long it takes to get a kidney transplant depends on patients’ blood type, medical urgency and a mix of other factors — including how long they’ve spent on the waiting list. Evans was first listed in April 2019. When the Jefferson transplant center unearthed her old lab tests, they found she should have qualified in September 2015.

“Just for context, when I was still an undergrad I should have been on the list,” she said, recalling the anger she felt as she read the letter. What she called “a mind-blowing” credit of 3½ more years waiting also provided “a glimmer of hope” that she’d be offered a matching kidney soon.

Evans got a new kidney on July 4 and is healthy again, and grateful the policy change came in time for her.

“You don’t know if people would be alive today” if it had been enacted earlier, she said. Still, that extra step of “making amends to fix the situation for those that we can — I feel like it’s very important and it’s very necessary if you’re truly wanting to bring more equity and equality into the medical field.”

[beardedmrbean]

Wait Omar have a daughter?

In her 20’s?

Is the college student her stepdaughter because I that Omar was in her late 20’s.

Also yes a daughter of a high profile politician is totally homeless. Omg heard that time Obama eldest try to hide the fact she was the daughter of a former president for her film career…even though she was 25 director who film got into a film festival?

Dear god anyone can smell the nepotism from that age alone. And oh lord how my community fanatical (well many still do) treated the Obamas when they were in office

Wait isn’t IIhan Omar a Somali immigrant? Don’t Somali have a Muslim terrorists issue too? Or am I being racist?

And you guys are supporting the hamas who would have thrown rocks or shoot you for being LBGT

The greatest trick 9/11 did was allow Muslim activists hide their brutal colonialism and act like relatation from other religion groups was because they were racist. Not saying I’m enjoying the dead kids form bombing.

But it weird how I learn about the Ottoman Empire and the janssisaes from 2011 historical fiction game rather than my own education system

She's 41, born in Somalia so can't be president, came in as a refugee in 95, daughter that's in the news is 21, you'd think given her history she'd appreciate life in America more, but instead she acts incredibly entitled.

Also yes a daughter of a high profile politician is totally homeless. Omg heard that time Obama eldest try to hide the fact she was the daughter of a former president for her film career…even though she was 25 director who film got into a film festival?

She lost her campus housing for a few days, she was suspended and that means everything, not that she'll accept responsibility.

Did not know that about Malia, hmmmm

Malia Obama has been labeled a ‘nepo baby’ after presenting her directorial debut

And I imagine people are calling the folks saying that racist,

"Though the 25-year-old filmmaker released the movie under the stage name Malia Ann"

Ya that'll cover it till someone sees a picture.

Emilio Estevez did that starting out, not sure if casting directors recognized him but he mad a run of it before saying ya ok I'm Martin Sheen's kid, Malia would have to do everything blind for that to work odds are her identity leaked very quickly.

Wait isn’t IIhan Omar a Somali immigrant? Don’t Somali have a Muslim terrorists issue too? Or am I being racist?

Went over all but the last bit there, and it's a geographical issue not a race issue so not racist at all, also

Also there's

This section is basically middle east came to Africa, Ethiopia has Eritrea blocking their access to the water ever since it broke away too.

And you guys are supporting the hamas who would have thrown rocks or shoot you for being LBGT

The term "Pinkwashing" was created to express why it's totally different when they support a country or region that would kill them for existing while complaining about the toy section at Target being gendered in the same breath.

More "white man's burden/noble savage" thinking, remember they've also got people in there defending the rape and murder that happened on 10/7, if you see someone saying 'by any means necessary', that means they're ok with gang raping Israeli women and children and any other atrocity you can think of, at least if you want to take them at their word that it really is ANY means.

I didn't say it, they did, and the people that do say it need to convince me they aren't ok with it now. Thankfully nobody I know has gone that route.

The greatest trick 9/11 did was allow Muslim activists hide their brutal colonialism and act like relatation from other religion groups was because they were racist. Not saying I’m enjoying the dead kids form bombing.

They voted as a solid red block for the most part till then, not that I blame them for switching parties then, problem is the portions of the community that are more fundamental than Omar's group is. Might be shocked how many American Muslims hate her because of various reasons most having to do with her not being their kind of Muslim.

But it weird how I learn about the Ottoman Empire and the janssisaes from 2011 historical fiction game rather than my own education system

Ya, I didn't even get that I just started reading one day and managed to plow through dozens and dozens of wiki pages, oddly it all started with the question

"Why did Constantinople get the works" because I knew it was more people's business than the Turks.

TMBG have a official video, but I like the tiny toons one better

[ausetkmt]

Florida approves Black history standards decried as ‘step backward’

The Florida State Board of Education approved new rules Wednesday for how Black history will be taught in public schools..

The Florida State Board of Education approved new rules Wednesday for how Black history will be taught in public schools that critics are decrying as a “step backward.”

The updated standards say students should learn that enslaved people “developed skills” that “could be applied for their personal benefit,” and that in teaching about mob violence against Black residents instructors should note “acts of violence perpetrated against and by African Americans.”

“These standards are a disservice to Florida’s students and are a big step backward for a state that has required teaching African American history since 1994,” the Florida Education Association (FEA), the state’s largest teachers union, said in a statement.

The standards are the latest development in an ongoing debate in Florida over how Black history should be taught in school. Earlier this year, the education board rejected a new Advanced Placement high school course on African American studies, arguing it lacked “educational value,” igniting protests and outrage.

Meanwhile, the state legislature has passed a raft of new laws backed by Republican presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who contends the measures remove “woke indoctrination” and empower parents. The laws ban the teaching of critical race theory, an intellectual movement that examines the way policies and laws perpetuate systemic racism, and forbid teachers from offering instruction that makes other students “feel guilt” because of actions committed by others in the past.

Education Commissioner Manny Diaz argued at Wednesday’s meeting in Orlando that the changes to the Black history curriculum make it more “robust.”

“I think this is something that is going to set the norm for standards in other states,” Diaz said, adding that Florida would continue to “teach the good, bad and the ugly of American history” in an age-appropriate manner.

But critics said the dozens of new “benchmark clarifications” to the existing Black history curriculum water down that history. The changes include teaching elementary school children to “recognize Rosa Parks and Thomas Jefferson as individuals who represent the United States.” The FEA criticized the approach, saying it excludes a deeper teaching of their “histories and struggles” in favor of easy identification and memorization.

Genesis Robinson, political director of Equal Ground, a voter education group, said the new standards omit important lessons regarding the history of civil rights in Florida and ultimately dehumanize people of color.

“Black history is more than being able to identify well-known Black people,” he said.

A spokesman for DeSantis did not respond to a request for comment. Alex Lanfranconi, communications director for the state Department of Education, echoed Diaz’s remarks on Twitter, saying the new standards “teach it all.”

“Don’t believe the union lies,” he wrote.

More than a dozen speakers at Wednesday’s board meeting opposed the changes, including state Sen. Geraldine Thompson (D), who helped pass a law in 2020 that requires schools to teach lessons about the Ocoee Massacre. The incident in 1920 began when several Black residents attempted to vote, and ended with as many as 60 people dead, making it the deadliest instance of Election Day violence in U.S. history.

Thompson said the new curriculum “suggests that the massacre was sparked by violence from African Americans. That’s blaming the victims. ”

State Rep. Anna Eskamani (D) said she was concerned about inaccuracies in the new standards, including instructing that enslaved people “developed skills” that could be helpful.

“That is inaccurate and a scary standard for us to establish,” she said.

The board passed the new standards unanimously.

DeSantis and state lawmakers have reshaped how sensitive issues such as race and gender identity are addressed in the classroom in a way that has elicited both outcry and applause. Critics contend the governor has effectively silenced already vulnerable groups. Meanwhile, a turbocharged “parents’ rights” movement has praised his work, saying they want more involvement in things like what books their children have access to in the library.

The board on Wednesday simultaneously pushed forward with adopting rules that align with newly passedlaws restricting bathroom use for transgender students based on their sex assigned at birth and prohibiting the use of preferred pronouns in schools.

Kathleen Murray, executive director of Duval County Citizens Defending Freedom, a grass-roots organization heavily involved in education issues, spoke out in favor of the restrictions, saying schools have become “unrecognizable” since she graduated from a Broward County high school nearly a quarter-century ago.

“Our organization represents the vast majority of Duval County parents who believe in the science of biology and the First Amendment, which supports educators in speaking the truth by calling biological boys and girls by their correct pronouns,” Murray said. “We’re saddened that this amendment is necessary, but grateful to the Florida legislators who codified policy that supports true science and free speech.”

[snxwflxwers]

{ LEE HOJUNG, 19, CISGENDER FEMALE, SHE/HER } Is that JIWON MORRISON? A SOPHOMORE originally from MANHATTAN, NY, she decided to come to Ogden College to study STUDIO ART. She's THE ICE QUEEN on campus, but even she could get blamed for Greer’s disappearance.

BASICS

↳ Character inspiration: Khun Sam (GAP - The Series), Sister Lilith (Warrior Nun), Kang Soojin (True Beauty - K-Drama), Beth Harmon (Queen’s Gambit), Spencer Hastings (Pretty Little Liars), Camilla Macaulay (Secret History), Filippa Kosta (If We Were Villains), Jung Erae (The Love Doctor)

↳ Extracurricular activities: Tenis single player, Writing Club, Debate Club, Chess Club, Boxing Club, Feminists at Ogden, violinist in the Orchestra

↳ Three Positive Traits: Focused, detail-oriented, analytical

↳ Three Negative Traits: Conceited, emotionally unintelligent,  perfectionist

↳ Three Skills: Artistically talented, good at faking emotions, photographic memory

↳ Gender: Cisgender female

↳ Sexuality: Lesbian

↳ Date/Place of Birth: April 11th, 2003 (10PM), Busan (South Korean)

↳ Zodiac: Aries Sun, Leo Moon, Sagittarius Ascendant, Taurus Mercury, Pisces Venus, Capricorn Mars, Leo Jupiter, Gemini Saturn, Pisces Uranus, Aquarius Neptune, Sagittarius Pluto

↳ Nationality: American and South Korean dual citizenship 

↳ Ethnicity: Korean

HISTORY

↳ Childhood/Family Life: Born Kang Jiwon, the girl was adopted from Korea when she was only two years old and soon became Jiwon Morrison. She has been very quiet and reserved since the beginning, though it did get worse as time passed by. Thrown into a life of riches and coldness, Jiwon would soon get crushed under the weight before even getting to school. Her parents would go on to adopt another child a couple years later, who would then become Jiwon's little brother.

For the Morrisons, education and excellence had always been important, and that was a system in which Jiwon thrived. Having been a straight-A student and valedictorian at the prep school where she studied, all the girl ever cared about was her academic achievements. She was widely known as the artistic prodigy at her school (though she was also part of the Math club and occasionally competed in boxing).

Of course, the Morrison parents didn't only care about her education though, knowing all too well that being charismatic and well-connected was as important, if not more, than being a genius. And for that, Jiwon's parents never let her forget that her cousin, Greer, was a lot more in line with what she should be. She was basically forced into becoming a tennis player specifically so she would have something in common with her cousin. She was pushed into going to parties, making friends with people she hated, and playing nice with every single person who was important enough to warrant that treatment, though the girl's social unawareness would always end up causing her niceties to backfire. Jiwon was someone to be feared, not loved.

Because of that (and also her social status), Jiwon has had her fair share of betrayals in her life, or worse, has been treated as a prize to be conquered. There have been a good amount of bets made solely on the possibility that she might be nice for a change. Being ostracized and bullied by her family for not being the perfect princess she was supposed to be and having no one else she could trust solidified in her a stone-cold, distrusting personality, but one she's not afraid of.

↳ Life in Ogden: Throughout her entire first year of college, Jiwon's parents wouldn't leave her alone. She would get visits almost every week, though it was weird that they felt the need to keep checking on her, since she would never go to parties or socialize at all. Maybe that was the reason altogether. Once her parents started to ease up on her, Jiwon managed to start enjoying her time by herself a little more, though she was back to focusing every cent of her energy on studying, practicing, or creating her art pieces. Little is known of her throughout campus, as she would have made almost no mark anywhere if she wasn't Greer Morrison's less-than-friendly cousin.

Being an ice queen fits her nicely, at least externally. She deeply dislikes talking to other people. Internally, though, the girl is slowly breaking down from exhaustion, a battle she refuses to ever tell anyone. And it also fits perfectly that even in college, she still exists as a comparison to Greer, her own aloofness and distance being compared to that of the charismatic girl.

PERSONALITY

↳ General Personality: Known mainly for her icy appearance and distance from everyone around her, Jiwon is actually just aloof, though coupled with her egomaniac tendencies and sense of superiority ends up creating an image that is utterly unapproachable. She considers social abilities to be beneath her, and doesn't see the point of ever trying.

↳ Dreams and Ambitions: Jiwon's utmost dream is to make her mark on the artistic world. Everything else comes second. A talented sculptor and painter, she wants to, one day, be able to have huge exhibitions at the most prestigious museums.

RELATIONSHIP TO GREER: GREER'S COUSIN

Jiwon’s relationship with Greer had always felt... Forced. Greer disliked Jiwon’s cold demeanor and, in their familial competitions,  frequently reminded her that she would always be alone. Jiwon disliked being compared to the little social butterfly, which frequently overshadowed her own academic achievements in the eyes of their family. Most of the time this dynamic was merely passive-aggressive, as they had to keep up appearances, so it would be contained to words said in passing to one another, or small rumors being spread. Sometimes it went almost too far, but it was inconsequential enough.

As they grew older, it only got worse. Relegated to second place, there was an anger brewing inside Jiwon, just below the surface. She started to realize there was no grade high enough, no amount of extracurricular activities, that could make her parents be as proud of her as they were of Greer. 

TROPE: THE ICE QUEEN

You should smile more. Your pretty face isn’t gonna take you anywhere if you’re not friendly. Being that smart is not going to be any good if you can’t make friends. She heard it all. Although both Greer and Jiwon had always commanded respect whenever they went, the former had always had the privilege of also being likable, while the latter spent her entire life being feared by her peers. Even if someone was inclined to give her the benefit of the doubt enough to call her shy, her academic prowess would make them hate her enough to call her arrogant.

So she embodied it. Maybe she wasn’t conceited before, but after middle school, she definitely was. If they were gonna exclude her anyway, might as well give them reason. Jiwon convinced herself that her brains and artistic talents were superior to emotional intelligence, and used that to justify freezing everybody else out, appearing unemotional to the world.

It’s all a front, of course. Her busy schedule frequently gives her panic attacks and her unrelenting perfectionist nature makes it difficult to even breathe. Her very few “friends” are kept at arm’s length, and no one knows about the turmoil inside of her. To everyone else, she is just... Stoic.

[hussyknee]

I have had to make peace with the fact that Red, White and Royal Blue is fundamentally American Brand Hopium and therefore white liberal shit (I think that's like a prerequisite for being one of my hyperfixations. They all live in the space between trashy glamour and an irritated moral consicence, never giving me a moment's peace). But one thing Casey Mcquiston did right (apart from letting the Jewish girl and MoC dunk on T-Swift*) was making Henry walk away from the Crown in the coda. The amount of fanfiction that centers on making him and Alex have a Westminster wedding and being granted dukedoms is fucking me up. Like, it's not just one or two, it's nearly every single fic written well enough to be readable.

In the USAmerican liberal mind, having a brown man of colonized origins ascend to Royal White Gay status is somehow progressive, rather than making him also complicit in an institution that is the literal symbol of white supremacy, colonial genocide, pillaged wealth and systemic inequality. Mcquiston, for all their faults, at least recognised that the wealth of empire is a blood-soaked thing, and to partake of it makes you complicit in its sins. Literally that's one of the first things that sets Henry apart from his family, and gets Alex's attention. The fandom otoh, hasn't gotten the memo. Or maybe not having to live the reality of colonial violence and trauma gives them the privilege of escaping the moral implications of British royalty. I know that the US's Overton window is fucked beyond all hope, but what passes for the leftist solidarity among white queers is a tragedy. No wonder every Black person or PoC over there is fucked up in some way.

As you can see with Meghan Markle, bringing BIPOC into violently oppressive, white supremacist institutions isn't a win for their communities, it's feeding them alive into maw of the beast for liberal tokenism. The virulent racism is a fucking foundational feature, not a bug. I'm not faulting her for marrying the man she loved, and they don't deserve any of the horrible shit the RF has been putting them through, but in a purely political context, her joining the RF was a betrayal of her fellow colonized. And the fact that they refuse to relinquish their titles, even after everything, tells us that they're still not in solidarity with everyone else this parasitic, anti-democratic relic institution has fucked over. But apparently that's peak fantasy for USAmerican and white queers.

This is why I don't fuck with fandom outside of AO3 anymore. It's always the same. Whites and the West just don't have any actual leftist values, or if they do, they're purely cosmetic. It's nothing to do with your generational cohort bullshit, y'all are just as fucking racist and white privileged as your parents.

*substracting every single point for having Alex crush on Justin Trudeau immediately beforehand though. Trudeau's blackface scandal and allegations of misogynistic and racist harrassment way predated 2019, when the book would have been in edits. Also minus fucking points for making Alex idolise Obama, and Scalia's BFF Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I wonder whether white libs know that this white woman refused to retire during the Obama administration, making the current Handmaiden's Tale state of affairs directly her fault. Also the fact that Thurgood Marshall and also the heroes of the Chicano Civil Rights movement were right the fuck there. And stop fucking blaming your education system because the rest of us learned about US history on our own, because y'all's global cultural hegemony penalizes us for not knowing this shit.

[newsource21]

The state of Mississippi is spending over $100 million on illegal immigration, according to a new report by the state -- with the governor blaming it on an "intentional failure" by the Biden-Harris administration to secure the border.

The report by the Mississippi state auditor found that there are at least 22,000 illegal immigrants in the state. Analysts estimate that it costs taxpayers over $100 million annually, with more than $25 million to educate illegal immigrants in public school alone.

Meanwhile, taxpayers spend $77 million to provide health care for illegal immigrants and their children, and another $1.7 million to incarcerate illegal immigrant criminals, it found.

Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves told Fox News Digital that states "are being forced to step up and pay for the Biden-Harris administration’s intentional failure to secure our border, and Mississippi is no exception."

"Their dangerous immigration policies are endangering Americans and putting enormous financial strain on states all across our country — and it’s long past time to put a stop to it. It’s clear Kamala Harris isn’t up to fixing the administration’s self-inflicted problems at the border," he said. "She’s been a disaster as border czar and is actually making the situation worse. Securing our border starts with electing Donald Trump in November."

"Mississippi’s illegal immigration problem is spiraling out of control and is costing taxpayers millions," said State Auditor Shad White. "Our public schools, hospitals, and prisons will continue to lose massive sums of money that we could have spent on our own citizens if this problem is not solved."

The number is only an estimate because specific data is not always available. The report noted that the Mississippi Dept. of Education is barred from collecting citizenship information. Instead, it used data from the University of Mississippi to project that there are approximately 2,500 illegal immigrants attending public schools. It also accounted for extra spending on English Language Learners  and Low Income Student Supplements. 

For health care, the report found that approximately 50% of illegal immigrants have no health care coverage and 38% use emergency medical services for primary care. It also notes the costs of births to illegal immigrants and the cost of Medicaid for children born to illegal immigrants -- who are citizens of the United States.

The report comes at a time when border security and the ongoing crisis at the southern border is a top priority for voters and a major issue ahead of the November election.

Republicans have blamed the three-year border crisis on the Biden administration’s policies, claiming that the administration rolled back Trump-era policies and encouraged migrants to flood into the country as a result.

The Biden administration has said it needs more funding and reform, including a recent bipartisan Senate bill, but that Republicans have failed to provide it. It has also pointed to a recent sharp drop in encounters and releases since President Biden signed an executive order limiting asylum in June. Vice President Kamala Harris told attendees at the Democratic National Convention last week that former President Trump has "ordered his allies in Congress to kill the deal."

"As president, I will bring back the bipartisan border security bill that he killed, and I will sign it into law. I know, I know, we can live up to our proud heritage as a nation of immigrants and reform our broken immigration system," she said. "We can create an earned pathway to citizenship and secure our border."