#they believe themselves to be and etc etc etc

[sxorpiomooon]

your first ever own home - a pac reading

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pile 1-

You'll play alot of songs while cooking, cooking will actually become sort of your religion. Something stupid is playing in my head while a girl tries to pick up a very hot container and slightly burns her finger. You are very poetic if you are not yet you will be. I see you writing alot I think alot of you will want an open home. Open doesn't mean big it just means that you would want it to have big windows and you'll keep them open so that the wind can flow. This pile will love living alone they'll love to make food for themselves while dancing. Living by themselves in their own apartment will be like a religion to them. I see you guys rushing back home whenever you are out because your home truly will feel like home. You won't style it that much but it will be very comfortable i see light colour sheets and curtains flowing wind chimes? I'm also seeing frames haha you might have a wall dedicated to that only ooooo I'm also seeing a good scenary it'll be at a good place sort of like the house that ask 101 boy lived in. There might be alot of birds chirping around I'm getting turkey and Italy etc. Some of you are going to be writers or this might be during your 20s for sure.

Pile 2-

This is going to be at an old house the type of house that others might have not really wanted to buy because it's old or something? I also think for some of you this is going to be your old family home or related to that I see alot of memories. This house might have alot of memories of its own which is precisely why you'll choose it. Vienna started playing in my head. Do you guys like how much love old things hold? Do you like dedications piano and finding old love letters? I see you actually not making much changes to this house I heard "this house has a spirit of it's own". This pile very much believes in a house having a spirit or personality of their own. I see some sort of photo frame that's going to be there. There will be stuff of the previous owners that you'll keep and I also see you going on alot of first online dates? Lmao this pile might also like to play those vinyl records and drink white wine. I see this pile being more in their 30s? Or more mature than the other one. There's a sense of being very authentic so much that it almost scares others to this pile which I absolutely love. I also see a new beginning

Pile 3-

LMAOO this pile will be at their all time high some of you very few are going to gain alot of popularity as soon as you step into your career or might be given this house by some other people. I just see you receiving money instantly and then you quickly investing it in a house. The only issue is that instead of trying find a home you'll buy a house. I dont see this pile staying here alot as well? This will mainly be because of your work schedule and also because this won't feel like home and won't call out to you. I'm getting the age of 24 but def will buy it young without much thinking, will have no time because of career and then will buy another one after ages of thinking. Strange but I keep getting aries perhaps venus in Aries or something and a very loud and busy city.

[michanvalentine]

I was asked if I had any thoughts on Astarion's character development in terms of taking responsibility and making choices. And him coming to terms with that part of his past he's ashamed of. In the past I didn't dwell on it in detail, normally I write down on the keyboard what spontaneously passes through my brain. But I think they are excellent food for thought, so I will try to express what I think about it.

Here’s a little ramble, just because I love psychology and think it’s something to always keep in mind when discussing Astarion. If you’re not interested, feel free to skip ahead!

(Let’s talk a bit about the self.

The self is quite a complex concept with many facets. Briefly put, it’s shaped by various internal and external factors and reflects a conscious image of "me." In psychology, it’s key to building the Ego of an individual—the capacity to act, understand, organize, and interpret experiences. The Ego provides a sense of uniqueness, coherence, and personal continuity since the self encompasses many "faces." All this forms the personality of an individual, which naturally develops (and changes) throughout life.

Particular attention in the formation of the self is given to sensitive periods, such as early childhood. The self determines the level of self-esteem based on an individual’s assessment of their worth and competence in the characteristics they attribute to themselves (Real Self), their future aspirations (Ideal Self), and what they want to avoid (Feared Selves). The greater the discrepancy between these aspects, the lower the level of self-esteem. Social support and approval, as well as competence in domains deemed important to the self, obviously contribute to perceiving oneself as a person of value.

I’ll stop here, or this will turn into a full-blown psychology lecture, diving into every possible personality disorder! xD)

Astarion, as we know, has had his sense of self fundamentally undermined. For him, the world is divided between those who have power and those who don’t, with the former always being the "winners" in his eyes. The magistrate he once was is long dead, along with his moral compass and the life he used to live—especially after 200 years of servitude to Cazador.

As vampire spawn, akin to a newborn in some respects, Astarion learned to exist solely within Cazador’s world, revolving around Cazador, for Cazador. He was the domineering father figure, and vampire society functions under strict rules handed down by vampire lords. In this hostile context, without any room for self-expression or choice, Astarion developed a fragmented and damaged self-image. Constantly belittled by Cazador as an individual (small, weak, useless, incapable, all words he uses in the game), always pitted against his brothers and sisters, and degraded from a magistrate to a prostitute (this is important because it’s the only skill—or "talent," as he calls it himself—that Astarion believes gives him any value or power, forming the basis for his self-image). It’s easy to imagine just how high his self-esteem must be, right? Most importantly, he never developed the skills to navigate life as a free individual—at least not in a healthy way.

This is why, even if reluctantly (and despite his fear), he ends up leaning on Tav/Durge. Astarion is a follower, not a leader—not yet, at least. He needs a guiding figure to help him figure out what to do because making decisions and acting independently don’t come naturally to him; they terrify him. Especially outside of his talents, sex and survival. He needs to be rehabilitated, re-educated, and to achieve this, he requires a safe and healthy environment where he can experiment and grow, perhaps developing other faces of the self on which to base a new evaluation. Like, I'm not just a slave or a whore: but I'm also a companion, a friend, a lover, a hero and I'm able to listen, to help, to learn, to collaborate, etc. For instance, I think his lack of attention to detail reflects this to some extent—not just his tendency to be dismissive or distracted. In fact, Astarion isn’t stupid at all; his intelligence and wisdom stats in D&D terms are above average. He knows how to move in the shadows, remain unnoticed, and is highly skilled with his hands. Additionally, we shouldn’t forget that Astarion is an excellent observer of bodies, particularly body language. This is especially common when someone has lived in a stressful environment with abusive parents or partners. Recognizing the early signs of what they fear most—abuse—is crucial for trying to avoid getting hurt. The inflection of a tone, the light in someone’s eyes, the posture of their shoulders, arms, torso, etc. Body language is the most direct and primal form of communication and reveals intentions.

This is a skill Astarion has naturally refined, not only through survival but also by interacting with countless partners. It inevitably helps him sense certain things before others do, often saving him from trouble. So, he’s far from just some clueless fool, no matter how frivolous he might seem at times.

Sure, stress kills neurons, but the issue is deeper than intellect. To execute a plan, one needs to make decisions and lead a group—something he simply isn’t equipped to do yet. This also ties to accountability, an inherent part of decision-making—especially when others are involved.

Throughout the game, Astarion grows and begins to reclaim his rights as an individual. He realizes he’s more than an object to be used (he is no longer small, weak, useless, incapable), and he starts to establish boundaries and discover what he truly wants or doesn’t want to do, always alongside Tav/Durge. By the good ending, he even states that with Cazador gone, he can finally find out who he really is and what he wants from the life he’s regained. He’s still afraid—the road to healing is long, and the trauma is deep—but he’s willing to work on himself, which he couldn’t or wouldn’t do before.

A significant part of Astarion’s defense mechanism is dissociation, the ability to separate himself from the terrible things that have happened to him—or that he has done.

This, in my opinion, is how he managed to survive without completely losing his mind. In the game, there’s even a dialogue choice that highlights how Astarion simply repressed everything inside and kept going—a deeply unhealthy way of coping. And rightly so, the vampiric spawn retorts that it’s easy to judge when you haven’t lived through such a situation.

However, when Astarion comes face to face with his victims, that mechanism begins to falter. This time, he’s forced to confront what he has done directly, with all the consequences it entails. He has to look them in the eye, listen to their harsh words, and endure both their pain and his own—without filters, without excuses. The sequence is heart-wrenching, as we all know, but what I particularly love is Astarion’s comment about the Gur children and how, when he delivered them to Cazador, he felt nothing. I love it because it’s followed by an “oh” that speaks volumes more than all the discussions about ascension up until that moment. That “oh” seems to say, “How the hell is that even possible?!”

Astarion is surprised, first and foremost, because what he felt then isn’t what he’s feeling now. Before, he was numb, alienated—a ghost wandering the streets. But now, he’s not. He’s more awake and lucid than he’s been in the last 200 years. This concept is crystal clear when, upon setting foot inside Cazador’s palace, the vampiric spawn states that everything feels different, even though the place hasn’t changed. It’s not the palace that’s different; it’s Astarion!

And at this point, after speaking with Sebastian and Chessa, Astarion is torn.

On one side, there’s ascension, with all the rational explanations—or justifications for Tav/Durge and himself—about why it must be done. The vampire spawn are too many and too hungry; they’ll cause a massacre, etc., etc. On another side, there’s the need to erase the evidence of what he was, of what Astarion endured, and what he inflicted upon others—what these wretches represent as a mirror reflecting his own helplessness and pathetic state. A victim, essentially. And that, for him, is humiliating because he was, in fact, humiliated for 200 years. He’s deeply ashamed of it.

But yet another part of him holds the desire to do the right thing.

In fact, if asked about the prisoners and what he intends to do, Astarion will say he’s weighing his options. Not only that, but Astarion also gives his approval when Tav/Durge tells Sebastian that their freedom depends on whether or not they know how to control hunger. Adding immediately after that they can succeed. Anyway, at this moment, for the first time, the choice and the responsibility are entirely on Astarion's shoulders—and on his conscience. There are no orders from Cazador to carry out, no Tav/Durge acting on his behalf. The most Tav/Durge can do is help him think clearly in a moment when, between fear, the scent of blood in the air, and power within reach, Astarion might not be the most clear-headed being on the planet. But ultimately, the decision is his to make. The first of many more to come.

However, I believe Astarion truly takes responsibility for his actions when, after freeing the vampire spawn, he becomes the leader of the coven in the Underdark in the ending. In this particular case, the transformation is complete—Astarion is a leader who plans, makes tough decisions every day, manages resources, takes care of his people (his old victims, let's not forget), and continually grows in his independence.

Naturally, returning to the concept of the self, each of the endings—whether he travels across Faerûn with Tav/Durge, becomes a nocturnal vigilante in Baldur’s Gate, or even ascends—offers a perspective on how Astarion has changed and how new experiences have added positive aspects to his self-concept. These enable him to increasingly perceive himself as competent and valuable. At this point, I’m afraid I might have gotten lost in the flood of words, and I’m not sure if I’ve managed to address the proposed topics thoroughly. My apologies—I tend to lose myself in my thoughts and ramble on freely! If needed, feel free to let me know, and I’ll add a follow-up! xD Anyone who made it this far is a true hero, just so you know!

[akookminsupporter]

Hi Rosie! You know what I've realized now that Chapter 2 is coming to an end? How fucking obsessed certain people are with Jikook, as individuals and most especially, as a duo.

I've seen the same groups of people, same accounts, tkkrs and jm/jk solos alike; it almost seems like they come from the same breed. I know we have a lot of hidden tkkrs all over, but man, can't keep Jikook out of their mouths.

I mean, if I was not interested in someone or something, you couldn't force me to talk about it or even watch or read related content. Why the hell would I waste my time??

But for some reason, these people kept yapping about Jikook and how they weren't close, spreading harmful rumours, etc, and for what? These two have served together. It doesn't change reality. I wonder if they'll realize that we know they're just trying to convince themselves and would rather continue living in delusion and lies.

24/7 365 days/yr. Their accounts are full of Jimin, Jimin, Jimin, Jungkook, Jungkook, Jungkook, and Jikook instead of their supposed stans or duos. I guess they don't have anything going on in real life. Imagine being this obsessed and affected by people who don't even know who they are and pathetically think they can alter reality, or even Jikook's bond in real life.

PS I do believe that the majority of tkkrs who "ship" them all rely on lies and manipulations, but even more so on tkk fanfiction, which they let bleed into real life, and now they can't distinguish it. I feel so icky and creeped out when I saw humanlouvre's, or wtv, drawings. Tkkrs/jjk solos and even jm solos are hardcore y/ns.

The vecinas and solos are like the K-poppies of the fandom. You know how K-poppies are obsessed with BTS? They can’t go five minutes without mentioning them, trying to discredit their achievements, downplaying their talent, and acting like the power BTS holds is just a fluke? They desperately wish their faves could be everything BTS is, yet deep down they know it’s impossible. It eats them alive that BTS is not just the best group the industry has ever seen but also one of the greatest musical acts in the world, full stop. They’ve got this weird, imaginary competition in their heads where it’s always BTS vs their faves, even though BTS is in a completely different league. K-poppies just can’t stand it—they’re living in constant frustration, knowing their faves will never measure up.

Well, that’s exactly how Tkkrs and solo stans act when it comes to Jimin and Jungkook. They’re obsessed in the same way—constantly trying to undermine their bond, their individual achievements, and the unique connection they share. It’s like they can’t handle the fact that Jimin and Jungkook are not only thriving but doing so unapologetically and on their own terms. They twist narratives, push ridiculous agendas, and project their insecurities onto them, desperately trying to create drama where there’s none. Just like K-poppies, they’ve built this imaginary rivalry—sometimes between Jimin and Jungkook themselves, or with other members. And for what? Because they can’t accept the reality that Jimin and Jungkook are just… happy together? Smashing records every day?

Honestly, it’s exhausting to see the same pattern repeat itself. Instead of respecting Jimin and Jungkook’s choices and achievements, they’d rather tear them down and live in denial. But, at the end of the day, just like BTS, Jimin and Jungkook keep winning—and that’s what really drives them mad.

[greenerteacups]

I can't help but giggle how Ron and Harry in LH both doubt Draco's feelings for Hermione when it's, like, the complete OPPOSITE of what they think. Harry's being all big brother-y like about Hermione and how Draco should treat her right and respectfully or ELSE whilst Ron in the latest chapter assumes he's playing around with the poor girl.

And in reality I'm pretty sure Draco is envisioning his and Hermione's wizardesque wedding for the past 2 books.

Can't help but love the boys' obliviousness in regards to feelings here.

Also goes to show how Draco truly opens up only to Hermione in the most profound-est way. I love them.

Oh, yeah. I think I wrote this in a reply to a comment on AO3, but Ron and Harry are very good people afflicted with Teenage BoyBrain, and in Harry's case, Brother Instinct wherever Hermione is concerned. So they assumed that if Draco and Hermione like each other but aren't together, it's because Draco's not being an upstanding young gentleman, not because (as is the case) Hermione's indulging in a bit of age-appropriate emotional terrorism.

There are also broad gaps between (1) what Draco reveals via narration, (2) what he reveals to Hermione, and (3) what he reveals to Harry and Ron. They know each other very well, but Draco plays his cards so close to the chest — especially when it comes to the whole "if you're important to me it means I'd firebomb a hospital for you" thing. He has this unspoken idea that the moment he admits he cares for someone, they're immediately going to get snatched away by the long hand of the universe, which in fairness to him is informed by certain events that make him not totally wrong. (You might also attribute this to his taste in people, however, which trends towards the reckless and the driven; cue moth/flame metaphor, etc., etc., you all know.) So that's why there's about a half-year lag between whatever Draco recognizes in his own emotions and what everyone else in the story seems to believe: that's about how long it takes Draco to get comfortable broadcasting his feelings.

By the middle of fifth year, both Harry and Ron are full aware (as the chapters reveal!) that Draco cares for Hermione, but I think both boys project themselves onto him, to the detriment of their understanding (as most teenagers do). Ron reads a little more into Draco's possessiveness and jealousy, which are the traits they have most in common (cf. Ch.73). Part of that judgment is Ron's emotional straightforwardness: he sincerely can't imagine any reason that Draco wouldn't be dating her properly if the feeling was reciprocated, so he assumes that there must be some obstacle somewhere, and because he's a bit in love with Hermione in his own right, he obviously assumes the obstacle is Draco. What's Draco's number one problem? He's got a bucket of daddy issues and hangups over his family legacy, especially vis-a-vis public displays of affiliation. And Ron doesn't maybe think Draco's being actually prejudiced here (otherwise, he would have been much, much harsher with him in their argument) but he does think there's a degree of shame or uncertainty on Draco's part that's in the way of them getting together.

Harry, meanwhile, reads the whole situation as a communication failure: he thinks Draco doesn't realize what he's doing, because if it were Harry, messing someone around sincerely would be a cognition failure. It's not outside Harry's frame of possibility that Draco could end up in a romantically charged situationship by accident. And he probably rates higher the possibility that Draco would deliberately maintain a relationship like that to avoid losing Hermione's attention. Notably, Harry doesn't assume that Hermione's particularly hard-done-by in this situation; in fact, his default assumption is that she's where she wants to be, and if she didn't like it, she wouldn't be there. His trust in her is helped by the fact that he regards her as a pseudo-sister, and doesn't have any stake in the love triangle except that everyone treats each other well. For that reason, his final comment on the matter is a plea for Draco to consider how Ron might feel: he wants to remind them that they're friends, because he watched the group fall apart last year over an argument similar to this one (jealousy, possessiveness, and a torturous litigation of in-group favoritism). Harry is provoked to intercede because he thinks there's a danger of the situation blowing up due to miscommunication and leaving all of them isolated when they need support the most — which is naturally something that the increasingly isolated and angst-ridden Harry thinks should be top priority.

Anyway, I love them, too.

[i-shift-your-pants]

tips for shifters or manifestors who have loved ones who are "villainous"

Note: these are simply my own beliefs and just me sharing experience with having two crazy killers between my loved ones in my DR i channel with, if you believe otherwise you don't have to agree

Okay so y'all know people in your DRs are REAL people with their own will and their own decisions? I'm gonna share some of my experience with...

🔷how to know if your villainous loved ones actually decided to change, improve themselves & grow or not🔷

I know most of your use the method to script "they are good people, and aren't mean anymore", "their personality isn't evil" & etc, this is a good one you can use!

but i know there are people (like me) who don't want to change the personality of their loved ones, here are some advice

🟦 You can use these tips whether you want to check them through channeling or when you shift and want to check their behavior in person 🟦🟦🟦🟦

•🔷 A BIG way to check is... do you still feel tense around them??? Do you have any signs of anxiety? If so... Trust your gut, and be very very careful (btw: anxiety can sometimes show itself as excitement too, be careful with that one as well)

•🔷 Check if their behavior changes towards EVERYONE ELSE too, if they want to change their coping mechanisms that are harmful towards people, that includes everyone

If you're the only soft spot or the only person they're nice to... Most likely it's so they make you trust them and so they don't lose your company.... This usually won't end well in long run because faking won't last forever

•🔷 favorite method of mine! FREQUENTLY CHECK HOW YOUR FRIENDS OR ANY OTHER LOVED ONES FEEL ABOUT THEM

•🔷 Another favorite one, check what they say when they're super sleepy, drunk, breaking down, lash out or not in the "right" state of mind, it's usually hard to hide your true intentions during those moments

•🔷 How do animals and children feel around their presence??

•🔷 Are they putting actual effort to improve themselves?? Or you have to keep drying your mouth to convince them into putting effort? Do they stop the effort behind your back?, guys! Remember, you can't change someone, it's THEIR OWN decision to change, if they want to do it, they will!

•🔷 (If your villainous loved one is a s/o) Check if you're infatuated, infatuation can be blinding, i would suggest frequently checking how your friends and family feel about this person while they're changing and improving their behavior, ask friends to call out any questionable behavior they see

•🔷 Last of all, don't ignore things that make you uncomfortable, Don't be like me🤣🤣🤣🤣

End of discussion _Blazer

Here's your cookie for reading everything 🍪 , eat it!

[jupiter--dream]

So tired of Cream being considered "the vanilla/super wholesome ship" when, yes, it ends like that at one point, but both Dream and Cross are characters who have a hard time seeing their own value past their usefulness, I wish there were more fics exploring the ways their tendency to self-sacrifice would hurt the relationship

[average-mako-enjoyer]

I really don't want to sound like I'm trying to correct you or impose my view of the canon on you, that's not my intention. It's just one of the things I love about writing in Mass Effect, and it's really important to me personally.

These games definitely suffer from the "The Protagonist Is A Unique, Special Snowflake Chosen One Destined To Save The World" syndrome, and sometimes it's pretty lame, and sometimes it's so lame that I physically need it to be retconned somehow. But there are some clever narrative choices, and the way Shepard's squadmate arcs are tied into this Chosen One theme is one of them.

So Shepard has all these different dynamics with different characters. For them Shepard is a mentor figure, or just an employer, or a friend, or a partner in crime, or a mentee, or an older sibling, etc.

Some of Shepard's relationships change and deepen over the course of the trilogy, some stay the same, but what's interesting about all of this is that for no one, for none of these characters, is Shepard the center of the universe. Everyone has their own life apart from Shepard, everyone has their own goals that don't revolve around their relationship with Shepard, and that's a good thing.

Both Liara and Garrus do not fall apart after Shepard's death; they continue to pursue the goals they set for themselves over the course of ME1.

After Shepard's death, Garrus returns to C-Sec for a brief moment, but he has already tasted the freedom of the Spectre authority, so he cannot go back to being a cop. He's after all the ends-justify-the-means squadmate, the bragging-about-how-good-I-am-at-torturing-suspects squadmate, the violence-is-the-ultimate-solution-to-the-world's-problems squadmate, so of course he goes to the most unlawful place in the galaxy. Not because he's falling apart or because he's suicidal, but because he desperately wants to be a hero and a leader, and to not be constrained by the law. That's what he always wanted, long before he met Shepard.

Yes, Shepard definitely affected him on a personal level, he even tries to form his own Shepard's Squad (and pushes them too far), but he moves on.

Liara's arc is more nuanced, that's for sure. So we know that she's very driven, she can be very focused on a problem and systematically look for the solution. She is, after all, a Dr. T'Soni. She's also Benezia's daughter.

In ME1, Liara is a wallflower, right? She has her niche research, she goes on digs, she tries not to get involved in the politics, and then everything changes. She almost gets kidnapped by Saren, who wants both an expert on Prothean culture and a bargaining chip against Benezia, she realizes that her mother is involved with that lunatic, and she tries to rectify that somehow.

The ending of ME1 for her is avenging her mother. When you take her to the final mission against Saren, she's the one who shoots him in the head. And yeah, I think that drastic change and trauma breaks her a little bit. Also, Shepard was her first mind meld, and it all happened at a time when she was extremely vulnerable, so she gets a little too attached to them (I won't comment on this creative choice).

The armor under the glass thing is not healthy, it's not okay, but she hasn't fallen apart and she's not stuck. She's still Dr. T'Soni, she's an incredibly driven individual, she does an insane amount of work without Shepard, not even believing they could be resurrected.

What really happened with Shepard's squad after their death is just grief. They are all still living their lives, pursuing their goals, forming new relationships, but they are also grieving.

Grief for Shepard is not the driving force for any of them, and that's great.

Unromanced Kaidan/Ashley in ME2: I tried to move on after your death, Shepard, but I just couldn't. Your death broke me in more ways than you can imagine. Losing you was like losing a limb.

Fandom:

Just please exclude characters you never bothered to interact with or understand from your "analysis". You can just love the characters and not try to make those comparisons, really. You don't have to.

[tubbytarchia]

I think it's endlessly more intriguing to think that the Watchers don't do crap, even if some characters place importance on them, like Jimmy praying to them (lmao) as if fate is in their hands when really Jimmy's tended to do horrible because of the environment the other characters have created for him and not because of any intervention from beyond

I love it when the characters are horrible to themselves or others in death games. They are flawed and interesting like that. They put a name to the canary curse and they expect and enforce it. Every fault that any character has showcased is their own. The Watchers don't sway anything because they don't have to, these people are all already insane and suffering. They're just hanging out playing pocker or something, but the thought of a characters THEMSELVES blaming things on them etc is an interesting one

[summertimesadnessirl]

They can't even fire Clarence Thomas, counselors, I think yall need to read the news once in while instead of all those checks you get from rich people who are currently shitting themselves.

Getting rid of jury nullification would take like years. There's a decent chance it would require a constitutional amendment. It would literally change the whole way our legal system worked. The whole point of trial by jury is that a group of random citizens have to believe you violated the law and deserve punishment. It's not like... some kind of little obscure loophole in the system like it being illegal in some states to eat apple pie Ala mode without a slice of cheese.

Literally it's just "the jury decides if the defendant is guilty and the defendant can't be tried again for the same offense if they were found not guilty."

You would literally have to convince everyone on the Supreme Court "fuck trial by jury, actually." That would take years.

Even the far right guys who got rid of abortion have literally been working to get rid of abortion nonstop with all the might of their brainwashed hordes of miserable unfucked middle class Christian housewives with no proper outlet outside of letter writing campaigns and holding up slut shaming signs at planned parenthood. And it took over 30 years to get Rowe V Wade overturned.

They could potentially try to get Luigi on another crime, similar to how the family of Nicole Brown Simpson sued OJ Smith and he lost the civil trial and had to pay damages to the family but didn't do jail time for murder. Or if his rich parents didn't have money to buy him a plane ticket so he can leave the country and live in like Australia or someplace, they could try to stalk him and have the cops make his life super hard by constantly coming down on him for minor offenses or "reasonable suspicion" stuff like pulling him over while driving, demanding to search his belongings for weapons, etc. Someone could launder something like swatting or doxxing or online harassment using fake accounts on socials to encourage people to call the cops with anonymous tips about him planning more crimes, or to antagonize him in public wherever he went until he did something minor like shove someone off him or shout at people and get him for that. He's disabled and his family own a large house so he could avoid a lot of that by chilling at home but he could avoid a lot more if leftists abroad who support him are able to help him to move there when it becomes legal for him to do so.

But he will be an old man by the time they get rid of jury nullification.

Fucking sleazeball ass. They should take away your law degree for that one. I'm a fucking drop out dominatrix and I know that. I hope they gave you like, enough money to put your kid through like 3 years of college to put your name on that fucking misleading ass shit you fucking hack. I hope William Shakespeare curses you with having to write all your legal documents in iambic pentameter.

What about when the police murder people in broad daylight and get away with it? That happens countless times. If the police can be investigated by their own buddies, then Luigi Mangione should be investigated by his own buddies too.

[bumblingbabooshka]

Headcanon that Seven of Nine and Naomi actually find Neelix’s cooking to be fine because it’s the only food they’ve ever eaten/their first introduction to food and when they get to Earth everyone’s so excited to show them Alpha quadrant foods but neither of them likes anything they’re offered very much. Seven doesn’t really care either way except that she has to get used to a whole new palette and Naomi likes the obvious (Ex: candy, cake) but frequently complains that nothing tastes ‘right’. Naomi: -pushing away a slice of pizza- I don’t like it... Tom: You’re kidding me. You don’t like pizza? Naomi: It doesn’t taste right! Make it how Neelix used to. Tom: You want me to put gerhalorian beets and yuk mushrooms in the sauce so it congeals into a lumpy, slightly sour mess? Is that what you want, Naomi? Naomi: Yeah :(  I want Naomi and Icheb to work tirelessly together on a side project for years until finally doing it - being able to communicate clearly with those in the Delta quadrant! Icheb uses it to speak to the other borg children (now adults) and Naomi immediately uses it to call Neelix and ask him to find the nearest time portal and toss a big box of leola root into it. She’s been craving it for years! No one told her the Alpha quadrant didn’t have leola root, she wouldn’t have gone otherwise!

[the-prima-vista]

I can't get over people going on about Solas' redemption ending as though it's the best outcome, like... he only agrees to "atone" because he's LOST. If he had won that fight, he would have gone ahead with exactly what he wanted. At no point has he ever considered what he could actually do to help all the people he's wronged, he just wants to fix his own mistake (the Veil).

And to say that his is the best redemption in Dragon Age? When Blackwall is right there? Blackwall gets less content and has a much better redemption arc than Solas could ever dream of. Blackwall makes the decision himself to accept the consequences of what he did, even if those consequences mean death, and he's angry with an Inquisitor who takes those consequences from him. But if he is allowed to live? He then spends the rest of his life making up for his actions. Solas doesn't even consider other options until Rook's holding a dagger to his throat.

[tankgotstuckinthecircusgate]

@demonzriti lmao thank u for asking bout these creatures.... ik that like i always post stuff w/o context (so it's a miracle when someone knows who i'm talking about at all). hopefully this will make things a little clearer 😭😭😭

all characters (except those marked with an asterisk) are taken from the 1) the story of frankie potts; 2) m2 family album; 3) joe's adventures dlc; 4) were mentioned/are in the main game

upd. ok i felt that i should add what the point of all this in general bc what if someone doesn't know 😭 there's a canon arc mentioned in the family album about carlo falcone killing his boss, tomaso moretti, back in 1933 and then creating his own family: «Carlo secretly conspired with Frank Vinci to assassinate Tomaso Moretti in 1933, bringing the Vinci-Moretti War to an end and taking control of the Moretti family himself» and all this is basically my delusional version of how this happened + story about moretti family in general

[scrumpledorph]

Two points of preface. One, I like to talk in absolutes; 'never do this' 'always let this happen' etc. That's just a shorthand so I don't need to append a bunch of caveats to every sentence I write; in truth, there will be times where breaking the established rules will elevate your work. You kind of just need to get a sense for it, and I'm afraid I can't help you with that because it's also largely a matter of personal taste. Two, I'm not a professional, just a hobbyist with a couple friends who I solicit feedback from.

Likely the single biggest piece of advice I can give is: don't cut the tension. Marvel and its derivatives (henceforth referred to as capeshit for brevity) establish tense scenes, but they don't use them for tension - they use them as a punchline by having a character say or do something wacky right as things are getting good. Don't do that.

If you're establishing tension between two characters; an argument, a fistfight, what have you; play it out. Or, if you want that tension to linger; have an interruption that doesn't cut it, but denies them the ability to resolve it. Something more important than whatever they were fighting over comes up, and now they have to work together. This dovetails well into another piece of advice.

Have consequences for scenes. Capeshit more or less alternates between SNL bits and action scenes to make sure the audience doesn't get bored. Not much really matters. When two people shout at each other, have it mean something. Have an argument rise to blistering invective; make them want to genuinely hurt each other's feelings, and leave them raw after - towards each other and onlookers who try to make them feel better. Have a fist fight establish a power dynamic between two characters, have people lose or gain respect for the people involved based on whether they feel the attacker was justified or the loser is weak, things like that. A single interpersonal confrontation can loom over the story for chapters (scenes, episodes, etc.) if you do it right.

Treat your characters with sincerity. This is addressing lamp shading, and it's very closely linked to the first point. When capeshit has a character take themselves seriously, often the villain, other characters mock them in drawn out comedic sequences. While this can be done with intent - to show a lack of respect, goad someone into making mistakes, etc. the problem is the writers don't use it with intent: they always do this, because they're working with borrowed properties made to appeal to thirteen year old boys between twenty and seventy years ago, and think these characters are beneath them.

You should love your characters. You don't need to like them, maybe you think they're a weaselly piece of shit or an irredeemable monster, but you should be excited to flesh them out. You have to want the audience to feel things about them to elevate them above cardboard cutouts. This is a specific subset of the next point, but I felt it was a significant enough occurrence to warrant giving it its own paragraph.

Play it straight. Don't have your characters constantly questioning things if the only reason they're doing it is to signal to the audience that something is absurd. When confronted with the impossible, it becomes the possible, and the mind bends to accommodate it. No 'they fly now', no 'well that just happened'. Things are self evidently possible by virtue of them happening, and that's just how it is. If presented with enough confidence and follow through, the audience will accept it.

For an enduring example, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure constantly follows absurd leaps of logic, but Hirohiko Araki does it with such gusto and panache the reader simply can't question it in the moment, and even when they can later - they usually agree that it worked anyway.

As a closing piece, and I really believe this is arguably the progenitor of the entire problem: assume your audience likes your work. All of the things above are compromises made for a hypothetical reader, watcher, etc. who doesn't like your work, to make it more palatable to them. Cut that person out of your mind. You are creating art for yourself, and if they're lucky - a few close friends. Make your characters hyper competent and don't worry about the person saying it's unrealistic. Give your characters designs you think are cool without thinking about the Reddit dipshit who'll call it a donut steel. Let your characters give uninterrupted monologues at dramatic moments without imagining cinemasins dinging it because the other characters don't attack them while they're doing it.

To paraphrase a piece of advice from Mark Rosewater, the head designer of Magic: The Gathering; if everybody likes your work but nobody loves it, you will fail. It is better to alienate ninety people and make ten lifelong fans than it is to get one hundred fair weather fans. Capeshit ran out of steam the second the original set of characters were retired, because they were working off goodwill established back when they gave half a goddamn.

As I said at the start; every one of these points has caveats and exceptions that are too numerous to list. If I held you by the hand and told you exactly how to make every decision in your work, I can't imagine it would be very fun for either of us. But I hope I've established enough of a scaffolding for you to start building off of.

Few things I respect less than an artist or writer who lacks creative conviction. If your work is visibly self-conscious, how can you expect the reader to possibly engage with it with earnest? If even you don't believe in the work, how can the reader? Likewise I think that having artistic convictions is a boon that can guide a weak premise into a strong execution.

[gladiatorcunt]

thinking about rafe & coryo & anakin & astarion and how imo their inherrent appeal (if you pick up on any) is supposed to be in the fact that something is extremely wrong with them (or they aren’t meant to have any appeal at all). bc i don’t understand the stans who are so selective with reading and hearing they try to argue otherwise like were you so blinded you ignored the glaringly & obviously bad things about them??????? rafe & coryo & anakin later especially?????????

[blueskittlesart]

how long after they find those submarine guys do we have to wait before we can start making movies about it because i sincerely think that with the right director this could be one of the best psych horror films of all time. the bottle episode to end all bottle episodes with a perfectly selected cast of the five absolute worst people in the world

[the-paris-of-people]

The past couple days online have been... interesting. I consider myself a leftist, think capitalism is corrupt, and think that it needs to be seriously reformed/overthrown. I admit that while I've thrown around phrases and terms like "burn it all down" and "the revolution needs to come" out of frustration without actually thinking about what a revolution entails: excellent organization, unity, and strategy to defeat the United States, the world's largest military superpower which has inflicted political and social destabilization across the majority of countries around the world. There also needs to be superb infrastructure and community to support the disabled, elderly, and poor populations who rely on government assistance and programs, healthcare, and accommodations while this so-called revolution rages on.

All I've received from the far leftist movement are lectures from condescending intellectuals who rattle off academic citations regarding ideological theory rather than practical, tangible steps to advocate for change in our local and regional communities. I have not seen one of them actually discuss conversations they've had with their friends, family, or Americans about what they want to see reflected for the future of the country. I have not seen one of them discussed how destructive, detrimental and traumatic a Trump presidency was for social prejudice and morale in the United States. I understand that for many marginalized groups they've been living in a facist state for centuries so the possibility Project 2025 doesn't galvanize them to see the two parties differently, but I don't think it is fair to white leftists falsely equivocate the election of both parties for the entire American population at all??? Or like at least specify the issues you're referring to in which you view both parties as the same????? Literally one TikTok creator who I used to follow talked about how true leftists are so much better than liberals because they aren't waiting for a presidential candidate to save the world NOW due to the accelerated apocalypse due to climate change but when asked how to change the world they suggest sharing ideas of your future utopia with other leftist groups. How the fuck is sitting around talking about living in a walkable community is great considered "saving the world now"? How are you going to dismantle and restructure American infrastructure to create these communities? How are you going to remove existing racial and social tensions to create a community where everyone lives happily side by side? Do people not consider reality at all?????

And is it not wrong for people to have a fucking sliver of optimism and hope at incremental change that's achieved within the corrupt bipartisan system of American politics, even if they know it's propaganda??? Is it wrong for people to have a singular fucking moment of relief in feeling like their values, beliefs, and lives will be better protected and THEY can advocate for change better??? Is it wrong when there's a couple months until the most pressing election in recent history for people to make the choice they feel will reduce the most amount of harm???