#strauss-howe

[curioushabitforarivergod]

the strauss-howe theory dictates history moves in a rough 80 year cycles — high, awakening, unraveling, crisis.

80 years ago was the crisis and wwii killed 75-85 million. roughly 3% of the worlds population at the time.

90 years ago the nazis won polls in germany with 43.9% of votes, putting an end to the weimar republic and initiating the crisis.

i am afraid. i live halfway across the world and i am afraid, not because australia is nothing more than a proxy state of the us, but because fascism doesn't keep itself in the neat little borders we've drawn up to divide country.

it is a disease and it spreads.

germany, italy, japan, brazil, china, portugal, romania, spain, slovakia, south africa, and other puppet states during the mid-20th century.

usa, russia, israel, afghanistan, china, türkiye, saudi arabia, iran, north korea, italy, finland, slovakia, hungary, croatia, and more now.

just last month, the liberal party (right wing) turned queensland from labour (centre-leftish) through imitation of trump and election promises to ban abortion. monkey see monkey do.

so thank you so much the trump voters, the 3rd party voters, the non-voters, the spoiled ballot voters. i hope you look on this world with pride knowing youve lit another cord to the ticking bomb.

[k16is]

[wistfulwatcher]

emily prentiss + leaving and coming back for her family

[happilychee]

how good I think fairy tail characters are at traveling pt. 1

♡ gray fullbuster -> he's calm and reliable; he'll check the route before the trip and always have a map on hand to make sure you're going the right way. overall a 9/10 experience. -1 point because he doesn't make time to stop and look at trinkets >:(

*this is if you're traveling just with him though. if you add basically anyone else, including natsu, cana, loke, or lucy, gray will become completely distracted and you might never get to your destination.

♡ erza scarlet -> she'll get you to your destination. you might obtain life-altering trauma, bury a body, and become a local eldtritch legend, but you will get to your destination. 8/10 if you don't mind coming out of the experience Changed.

♡ mirajane strauss -> this can go one of two ways. if you're with other people, mira goes into Big Sister Mode, and you will get to your destination with minimal shenanigans. she does factor in Trinket Time, so overall a 10/10 experience. if it's just mira, though, prepare to go on a spiritual rollercoaster. no plans, no tickets, no maps, just vibes. mira likes to explore new towns and cities without worrying about a schedule or keeping track of other people. she has disappeared for a week straight to just wander around fiore. it's about the journey, not the destination, y'know?

♡ lucy heartfilia -> this poor girl isn't directionally challenged but she is financially challenged. will accidentally spend your train money on a cute necklace in whatever town you're stopping in. she's a good travel companion, willing to socialize with the locals and find out the best sight-seeing and restaurant spots. allocates a bit too much time for Trinkets. you'll probably arrive at your destination with empty pockets but full hearts (and shopping bags.) a 7.5/10, could be higher or lower depending on how much you value your wallet.

♡ natsu dragneel -> just give up. if he doesn't scoop you up in his arms as happy flies the two of you in the completely wrong direction, natsu's probably wandering off without you. gets distracted by everything: food, shiny objects, bickering people. you're working double time to get to your destination in one piece AND not lose natsu in the process. a 4/10 that can be upgraded to a 6 or 7 if you buy him a fire-resistant leash backpack.

♡ sting eucliffe -> surprisingly, he's the one coordinating your trip. all cheery smiles and lighthearted jokes, he makes it look easy. you don't even know what train you're getting on or how long the ride is, you just trust sting. he's charming everyone: the train conductor, the old ladies at the market stalls, the young ticket seller at the station. all of that completely disappears once you get on the train and sting is reduced to a nauseous puddle of dragon slayer. 10/10 experience as long as he doesn't throw up on you <2

♡ gajeel levy and pantherlily -> where's gajeel? you don't know. he was supposed to be at the station half an hour ago, he won't answer his lacrima, he's gone off the map. don't worry, though, levy and pantherlily will keep you company. 2/10 for gajeel. the worst part is, he shows up at your destination before you! he didn't even take the train or fly with lily! he's just... there somehow.

[floertoer]

[werewolfcave]

Lucy Heartfilia bears a stunning resemblance to her mother. This fact has colored much of her identity and life.

At first she was just a mirror of a woman still living... Free to be herself.

I think Lucy was a tomboy before her mother died. I think she scraped her knees all the time, I think she wore shorts or breeches and t-shirts all the time and climbed trees. I think she mouthed off and couldn't help doing 5 different cannon balls into the pool until she got it right. I think she wouldn't be caught dead in a skirt because it snagged on the bark too much and she couldn't ride her horse if she wasn't wearing pants.

And then... One day... that little tomboy kid was crushed, the seed of butchness stomped out, she was made to be a replacement for her mother.

She lived in dresses and skirts, taught how to sit like a lady, taught the proper posture, taught that proper girls don't get dusty in the stables, don't play in the mud, don't throw tantrums when their father doesn't play with them.

She lived the life of a noble girl turned woman, and then she ran. She tried to become her own self.

But the remnants of being Layla remained, even as she fully resolved to never return home she couldn't stop... Not when she felt like the only way to be a good celestial wizard was to be a reflection of her mother. She never stopped feeling guilty that she wasn't her mother when it came to Aquarius.

Out in the world she uses that feminity she has learned like a tool. It's not something she is comfortable in it's something she is using to survive, to haggle men out of high prices, something that makes her that much more like her idols. It's an ill-fitting hand me down dress.

And one of her idols is Mirajane Strauss, model for Sorcerer Weekly, barmaid, softest smile in all of Fiore. A feminine icon. Maybe if she can be like Mira... Maybe she'll be good enough.

But here's the grand secret: Mira's feminity is a mask

So where does that leave Lucy?

At times Lucy catches sight of this sort of dance that Erza and Mira do. They perform the roles of a butch and her femme. Mira prepares the food, shares gossip, and flashes a pretty smile. Erza pulls out the chair, carries whatever's heaviest, and gives Mira a kiss. It's a show of sorts.

And then, at another point in time, she catches sight of Mira, who is sitting on the steps behind Fairy Hills. In those quiet moments, without the makeup that hides her eye bags, without the cute dress, without the smile... smoking a cigarette and sharing a late night beer with Erza... And the two look so alike that for a moment she cannot recognize Mirajane Strauss. For this small moment she really catches sight of the She-Devil, not just the rage that triggers her monstrous transformation, but the person she was before that grief, and who she really is after that grief.

She realizes what lies underneath Mira's facade. She sees that little butch kid in Mira get some air, get to breathe for that slim fragment of time and she understands. Sees the way Mira's posture changes, her attitude changes, her dynamic with Erza changes. And most of all the way that she looks truly and genuinely unguarded.

And Lucy realizes... That maybe she's just like Mira... Her true self is buried under 6ft of dirt... And that maybe she's suffocating herself alive

[rachielynne728]

'Sup Guys 👋☺️ How are you all?

[tangible-fortitude]

woah

[heavenlymorals]

The Deeper Meaning of Loan-Sharking

Warning: spoilers for both Red Dead games

The complexity of RDR2's story blows me away every fucking day because oh my god- the characters, the themes, the symbolism, the call backs to other medias and so on and so forth.

But here is one thing that stuck with me when I realized it for the first time-

The deeper meaning of the loan sharking missions.

The main purpose of those missions were obviously to show a change of character in Arthur Morgan- from a heartless enforcer, a plague to the down-trodden, to a heartbroken man, ashamed of his actions, and trying to remedy what he can without the hope for forgiveness because he knows he doesn't deserve it.

The loan sharking missions are the most obvious and in your face representation of Arthur's redemption arc.

But at its core, it felt like a nod to criticisms that the 1800s romantics and naturalists had towards the concept of civilization, a direct call back to Dutch's philosophy all throughout both RDR and RDR2.

What do I mean by this?

All throughout the game, the gang tries to fight civilization in an almost Robinhood esque way- these American knights wrecking havoc for the dreams of their outlaw king. They rob the rich, who Dutch sees as the reason for America's moral failure, and those who protect these rich men because they add to those men's power. It all sounds very noble but it's a useless and bloody fight.

Mac and Davey get killed, Jenny gets killed, Sean gets killed, Kieren gets killed, Hosea and Lenny get Killed, Molly gets killed.

This gang life for a dream that'll never be realized kills people and consumes them until there is nothing left but husks of people who had dreams of their own.

The romantic dream will only be a dream and the only place it can be a reality is in books and philosophies. Civilization is the truth- it saves humanity from the hell that is anarchy or so it seems.

The gang fought against the encroaching civilization that threatened to devour the West and Arthur followed Dutch and showed the same sentiments regarding civilization- and by following Dutch, he followed that same ideal, even if his heart wasn't fully in it.

The gang life- coming to an end and no longer sustainable- showed the impossibility of this beautiful dream as it destroyed everything but that wasn't the thing that killed Arthur in the end.

Tuberculosis killed Arthur. Tuberculosis from loan sharking.

"It's legal work, Mr. Morgan." Strauss to Arthur.

The legal work killed Arthur in the end, not the shootouts or gang feuds. The civilized work killed Arthur in the end. The civilized world beat Mr.Downes, a poor, dying man trying to do his best for his family. The civilized world killed Arthur Londonderry.

The civilized world and this legal work sucked the life out of the poor so rich men can get richer and take everything they can around for their greed can not be satiated.

The civilized work, the legal work killed Arthur Morgan.

The hypocrisy of it all is so heartbreaking because despite all the bad things the gang did, the philosophy, the too idealistic and romantic philosophy they fought for, that could never be realized in the world they lived in, held truth.

And that small monocum of truth kept Dutch fighting and fighting until he no longer could by commiting suicide.

Good God I love this game.

[lesbianstrauss]

this trend (i think) that totally didn't pass 8934 years ago is totally NOT an excuse to draw them with cutesy matching pink bows... totally not!..

[strawberriesatan]

Made a little fic,, guys I’m really nervous about posting my writing cuz it’s much less developed than my art but I must share my love for Erzajane with the world

[k16is]

something stupid

[janetsnakehole02]

the way our theater “oooh’d” at this scene like they were gonna confirm an american history cinematic universe or something 😭

[thessiansunfish]

The best part about replaying RDRII is seeing through Dutch’s bullshit and purposely pissing him off.

[floertoer]

[theboyanachr0nism]

the glasgow idkhow show was amazing!! i was so spent, i set off with a friend to catch the train at around 4 pm and we didn't get home until midnight 💀💀

highlights include:

someone in the crowd before the concert holding up pictures of (including but not limited to) jerma, freddy fazbear and purple guy which everyone screamed and cheered at

someone passing around a huge bag of kazoos as we were lining up with instructions to join in at the end of razzmatazz

dallon attempting a scottish accent

the drummer having an injured foot but still performing for us (thank you ronnie <3)

dallon's bass malfunctioning

dallon telling everyone below 25 to stop listening before what love 💀

him mentioning a certain friend who stole money (and everyone booing!!)

dallon leading the crowd to harmonise during a letter

visitation of the ghost crowd walk during which he walked so close to me he accidentally bumped into my bag (!!)

i have some videos of these which i'll post later once i've recovered LMAO but that was an incredible, exhausting, beautiful first concert and i'll never forget it <33