#this solves nothing! but still it is a thing that will be done

[alasse-irena]

I'll start by saying that I have similar problems to you with this legislation, however it's managed, but I do want to push back a little bit, because a lot of the information you've given here isn't true.

TLDR: This is a representative democracy working as normal. Contact your MP. Tell them what you think about this legislation. Tell them how social media has helped you. Ask all your friends to do the same thing. Talk to people outside your usual social circle about it if you can. I think one of the big reasons it's not getting the pushback you want is that a lot of people aren't seeing the data safety risk, they're seeing "a better childhood for my kids".

A few things:

With regard to "there was no vote on this, no nothing, they just went ahead and fucking passed this": that's not what's happened. This legislation hasn't been passed yet. It has to pass the upper and lower houses before it becomes law, which means the MPs and senators that we elected to represent us will vote on it. This is the same way that all new legislation is treated. (Maybe you want all Australian citizens to vote on each new piece of legislation. That's fair - but it would be an overhaul of our entire system of government and a move away from representative democracy to direct democracy. There were 170 pieces of legislation introduced in Australian Federal Parliament in 2023. Imagine if we'd had to hold nationwide votes to decide what to do about all of them. I'm not saying this form of democracy is impossible, but it's a huge logistical challenge.)

The government still hasn't figured out who will be responsible for age verification, or how it should be done. They're assessing the options, and will continue to do so into next year. (Social media companies are trying to encourage them to put age verification responsibilities on the app store instead of on each individual service. Given that you can access most social media in your default browser rather than through the app, I don't think anyone involved has really thought through how to do this effectively.)

The legislation actually doesn't have much benefit to the government in terms of your privacy: every way of doing this that's been put out there has your info either going to the social media company, or to a third party company. (Yes, putting all this data in the hands of for-profit companies is also bad; they're incentivised to illegally sell it to advertisers, something which major social media companies have been known to do.) The cybersecurity risks here are large, but the real motive is to appeal to parents and educators as voters. Social media is creating situations that worry a lot of people. It has wide-reaching and well-researched effects on youth: the big ones here are mental health and body image issues, along with right-wing radicalisation. Across Australia, many people believe that handling this problem is both important and urgent, which means that for the government, looking like they're willing to do something drastic about it is a big vote-winner. This is one reason you should be concerned: it's such an uncontroversial move that it has bipartisan support (i.e. both parties believe failing to support it will lose them votes).

In conclusion, yeah this is a bad piece of legislation. I don't like it, I don't think it's going to help, I think it's going to just drive a lot of the problems its trying to solve underground and create cybersecurity risks on the way.

But it hasn't happened yet. The democratic process is still going on and you still get a part in it. Go talk to some people about it.

fucking australia’s trying to get everyone to link their government id to their social media accounts else you cant use them anymore, the actual fuck is wrong with this country

[yamisnuffles]

DATV Spoiler Free Review

I beat Veilguard a couple days ago and have had some time to let it settle in my brain. So, without getting into the nitty gritty and more spoilery things, here are my overall feelings on the game.

The Great:

The world itself. The scenery. It was really gorgeous and felt fully alive in a way that none of the previous games have quite managed. Since it wasn't as open world as DAI nor as narrow in scope as DA2 (nor as old as DAO lol), it felt more vital. Definitely a place where the advances in graphics helped, I'm sure.

The Good:

The companions. I wouldn't say any of them blew me away but they all at least ranged from enjoyable to very good. I definitely had my quibbles here and there but I think they were all pretty solid. As such, though I've only done one romance, I'll suppose they're all good. A bit... sparse in my experience and from what I've been hearing, but nice enough.

Overall, I also think the story was pretty good. Like much in this game, nothing that blew me away, but solidly compelling.

Also, mechanically, the gameplay and the glamour system. It still doesn't feel like DA to me but it was enjoyable once I got used to it. It works well with how I play games. And it was nice to just set looks for myself and my companions and not worry about stats vs appearance.

Rook. I have some definite Complaints, and so this point is probably closer to the good to mid range, but they did a pretty good job with letting you pull in your faction stuff. I'm prevented from saying great because it feels like, even with what are supposed to be rougher dialogue choices, you're limited to being mildly pleasant.

The Mid:

The music. This is tragic to me because every previous game had some really standout songs and DAI especially was such a solid soundtrack. I love soundtrack music. Also because Hans Zimmer! I love Hans Zimmer. But the entire thing felt very generic epic fantasy to me. It wasn't bad but it didn't feel good. The only times I ended up moved by the music was when they lifted DAI songs.

The lack of imports. It wasn't the end of the world but did make some cameos feel really off. And for all the talk of making what few things were imported matter, that really didn't feel like the case at all (unless you were in a specific subset of players). I didn't care too much, but it was just enough to make things feel weird, especially with characters like Harding who are so attached to previous stuff.

The Bad:

The world felt so sanitized. I have no issue getting rid of real life bigotry that makes so sense in the context of the world. For example, the sexism in DAO especially made no sense. That said, there was a lot of in world nastiness that is just... gone. The game does a lot of telling us the elves have it bad but doesn't show it. No one bats an eye at a Tevinter mage running about outside of Tevinter. No one cares about a Qunari in occupied Treviso. I suppose it's not the worst thing in the world but it feels weird, especially when it's so central to Solas' motivations.

This sanitization carried on through pretty much everything. All of the factions are presented as good and heroic, even the ones that are historically pretty shady. Your companions are all pleasant and palatable. They have the occasional minor squabble but even when they almost have actual beef, it's solved super easily. You might get some disapproval for decisions but companions never seem to much care or hold it against you, even on really big things. I don't need DA2 levels of interparty drama but, boy did I want a bit more tooth sometimes.

The Awful:

I can't get into it without spoilers but it did a Thing that Bioware sometimes likes to do that I absolutely loathe. This is definitely personal but it ruined some of my desire to replay.

Overall:

I'd give the game a 7/10 or maybe 6/10, depending on how I'm feeling. It was enjoyable for the most part but it had so many things that felt like splinters. Lots of little things that stuck under my skin and bothered me. Would I recommend it? Genuinely depends on the person.

[moinstar]

Lesson 54 spoilers

"...So, tell me. What is it you're plotting, exactly?" Raphael eyed Diavolo with mild irritation in his tone.

He smiles apologetically, caught in an act and felt the need to explain now. "So, you can tell something's up, huh? I was afraid of this."

"It's odd enough that we're the only ones here. And then after we were attacked, your response seemed unusually tepid. There are so many red flags..," the gray-haired angel sighs. "Of course I can tell that something's going on."

Moin speaks up. "I'm guessing that has something to do with me?"

"Yes, it does. Though it's nothing you should feel bad about." Diavolo reassures, though it's not bringing relief to the burgundy-haired human girl.

"This is about your magic power, Moin. And what has been happening to it." Mephisto stresses it strongly.

"Yes, your power has been growing greater by the day. And then there was the incident with the hostile demon in Meowcao. That's when we realized that you weren't in full control of it." Lucifer added.

Simeon nods mildly, carefully regarding Mephisto, Lucifer, and Diavolo's statements. "And when Raphael was attacked earlier, it looked like Moin cast a barrier spell of some sort, but without an incantation. I'm guessing that in the heat of the moment, the spell must have gone off subconsciously."

"What exactly is happening to Moin's powers, we need a definitive answer to that question. Then we can take action if necessary. However, we thought we needed to spend a bit more time observing things from afar." -Diavolo

"Right, our theory was built on too many assumptions. They needed to be verified." -Lucifer

"...So you used the SF as a chance to do that." -Raphael

"That's right." -Diavolo

"Ah, that must be why there was a second preliminary test. You presented everyone with a problem that no ordinary student could solve." -Simeon

"In any case, Lord Diavolo, Lucifer, and I were the only ones to pass the second test." -Mephisto

"So, it worked out exactly as you'd hoped, then." Raphael gapes his mouth a little, coming to a realization. "...Unbelievable. You mean to tell me that the fiery rock that nearly hit Simeon and the beast that attacked us were both YOUR doing?"

"No, that was the work of demons who oppose the royal family. We'd never resort to such cheap tricks." -Mephisto

"However, we knew that if we were to hold the SF finals here, those demons would see it as a good opportunity to strike... That I cannot deny." -Diavolo

"Yes. We did know they were here, and we didn't try to stop them." Lucifer sighs defeatedly. "So in that sense, you might be able to argue that it was "our doing"."

Moin's eyebrows furrowed at this. If Diavolo knew about the opposition, why didn't he do something about it? Why did it have to go as far as almost risking their lives since that incident in Meowcao?

"There are still many lower tier demons who think that harming an exchange student would be a good way to damage Lord Diavolo's reputation. They had no idea they were being lured here, the fools," Mephisto scoffs with a smirk.

"Even so, if you'd only told us this in advance-" Raphael notices Simeon who hasn't been talking for a while now. "...Um, Simeon?"

Simeon smiles. It was that frightening smile back when he used to scold the brothers. "Ah. I see... Thank you for making things so very clear." Everyone except Moin pales at the sight. She knew that Simeon would never direct his anger towards her. "For the sake of argument, I'll overlook the fact that you chose to test Moin's powers. Because I can see how that might be the only way to draw out certain aspects of these powers. Tell me though, why was it necessary to lure the Demon King's enemies into attacking us? What if Moin or Raphael had been hurt? What would you have done then, hmm?"

"It's only thanks to Moin that we're okay. Because she protected us, even though it meant putting herself in harm's way," Raphael added in.

"What's more, I'm a human now: weak and frail. Should I assume none of you cared about what might happen to me?" -Simeon

"I wouldn't call you "weak and frail"..." Lucifer mutters.

"Sorry, did you just say something, Lucifer?" Simeon pointedly smiles at him, daring to continue what he has to say.

"No, nothing."

"I didn't know it was possible to project so much anger while maintaining a smile..." Mephisto whispered to Diavolo as he takes a step closer to him.

"I'm too scared to move a muscle. It's been a long time since anyone's made me feel this way..." -Diavolo

Moin turns to Diavolo with an expressionless gaze. "I'd like you to avoid such methods in the future..., Lord Diavolo." His face immediately shifts to the one who's worried and hurt genuinely, sensing that Moin is indeed mad and felt betrayed at this whole discussion they were having. It's spiraling down rapidly that Diavolo almost forgot to consider her feelings and wanted to comfort her. But as he was about to speak his reassurances once again and offers his hand, Mephisto butts in with a disdainful remark.

"Well, I'd like it if you could learn to control your powers. Then we wouldn't be in this situation."

Something snapped in unison. There was a moment of defeaning silence, as if another wrong answer would cause an explosion, figuratively. Simeon could tell that it was the last straw. The revelation hurt her than they thought it would. And there was another person who wasn't helping the situation get any better. He could feel the gears of emotion running around her head and that she's barely holding to what she might impulsively do: tears, anger, or running away. She really wanted to do those three options but before she could react, Simeon shields Moin from them, hiding her behind his cloak.

"...Lucifer, Diavolo, Mephisto. You need to think about what you've done today."

[effingunicorns]

back at it again with sentences that take up half the paragraph

[innalheid]

Feeling very Ascension by Gorillaz ft Vince Staples at 2:18

[bunnihearted]

i've also realized that there is no therapy that can fix what's broken inside of me

[crickwater]

I don't know if this is a hot take but halsin is hands down the worst companion and that could be easily solved by having him join you at the beginning of act 2 and giving him literally anything to do in act 3 except hit on you

[lem-argentum]

playing ff.xiv blind as a th.ancred fan from the beginning is so funny. “hmm i wonder where than is- WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE WAS POSSESSED BY ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL BEINGS IN THE UNIVERSE….....” “hmm i wonder what happened to than after he was teleported from the- HIS ABILITY TO INTERACT WITH THE NATURAL ENERGY OF THE WORLD WAS SEVERED AND HE HAD TO FEND FOR HIMSELF FOR MONTHS IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE????” “yaay than gets to help us with planning our defenses :D- DID HE JUST DIEoh he’s not dead his soul was just RIPPED AWAY TO ANOTJEJR WORLD????!?!?” “ohh he gets to fight r.yne’s awful guardian figure i wonder what he’s gonna- DID HE JUST DIEoh he’s fine nevermind he gets to have resolved character development now :)” “aww okay we get to go to the end of the universe together, and he’s already gone through so much so clearly nothing bad will happen to hDID HE J

[reflectionsofgalaxies]

I FIGURED IT OUT

[thedeviljudges]

how bad is it to say you hate your mother lmao

[algolstare]

20 minutes

[thebrownestbabe]

Feels like I’m sort of a henchman, do boy, errand helper rn and I just needed to say that.

[autisticlee]

"just be your self! it solves all your problems/makes everything better!"

except you're a person where being yourself gets you severely bullied, abused, and/or neglected. it makes everyone hate and abandon you and leaves you with no connections or support or anything. sometimes you're disabled and need to rely on others to live and they simply refuse because they don't like the real you. sometimes it leads people to purposely harm you because they don't like who you are. sometimes you can't simply avoid those people because they're your family you need to live with and cant simply move out, classmates you cant change, or coworkers at a job you can't afford to quit. it can even cause people to physically harm you because they are hateful. sometimes you can't escape them before they inflict their harm. sometimes people purposely sabotage your life because they decide they don't like you and sometimes you can't do anything about it. sometimes you can't get anywhere in life like in a career because you aren't liked enough and can't play social games to please others.

yeah maybe you have the benefit of not pretending, not wearing a mask, not trying to live to peoples expectations, but sometimes that majorly backfires, and some people don't seem to understand that.

"BEING YOURSELF" ISN'T ALWAYS THE ONE AND ONLY PERFECT SOLUTION. SOMETIMES ITS NOT SAFE. SOMETIMES YOU CANT AFFORD TO "NOT GIVE A FUCK" AND SOMETIMES IT SIMPLY DOESNT BENEFIT YOU AND YOUR LIFE FOR MANY REASONS.

wheres the support for us people out here being ourselves but still struggling with life sucking?! where support for us people who are being ourselves and still have no support from other people or friends? why do you all only respond to us that we ~still aren't being ourselves correctly/still care too much what people think"??????

if we aren't being ourselves correctly, aren't you basically telling us to care what you think and be what you want? what if I don't want to listen to your nonsense? and we care too much what people think still?? would you not care if someone threatened your life or even tried to take it because they don't like you?! if you were stuck with disabilities and no support because the only people around you abuse you for being yourself?

maybe think about this next time you think this is perfect advice everyone should follow and want to argue with them if they say it doesn't help.

and just because someone might point out that "being yourself" hasn't helped them/is actibely harming them, doesn't mean they are currently *trying to be someone else/make people like them/care what others think/gave up being themsleves* so telling them they aren't doing it right is not going to help!!!!

me for example, I only like what I like, do what I want. I always ignore and turn people down because I don't like their things or they try to insult me and my things. im known to be blunt/straightforward and "make conversations all about my special interests (hobbies for you nonautistics)" and don't care if others hate it. I have no control over how I am or act because of autism and adhd and dissociating so I can't even "pretend" or mask anyway. what you see is what you get with me. and I don't care if people don't like me individually. i'm not actively *trying* to make people like me. maybe that's why it seems like no one ever does

what I do care about is people purposely harming me because they dont like who I am (because it hurts? how do you not care about that while it's happening lmao). I care about the fact that I scare everyone away with being myself and "the right people" haven't magically showed up yet, I care I have no support, no companionship in life, im forced to be alone and cant share things i enjoy or "myself" with others. I do everything alone. i'm disabled so that's VERY HARD and unsatisfying and even dangerous!!!! but I have no choice.

again I don't care of individually people don't like me or the things I like/do or whatever. their judgements don't hurt me. their physical harm and abusive mind games hurt me. and the fact that being myself pushes away everyone until i'm the only one left is what bothers me. because is it my fault or theirs? don't know! Who cares. but it's very hard due to my circumstances to be completely alone and only have people against me because they dont like the "self" I am and don't connect with me and things I enjoy and there's just no connections or ways to bond! and I dint have the privilege of meeting enough new people due to living in a small restricted area/life conditions and being disabled and not having the energy to talk to 100 people a month to try weeding out all the bad ones until I find the single good one! (I did that the last couple months and i'm now so burnt out that i'm having really bad physical disability symptoms and mental regression-like symptoms. so what do you want from me?! how is "being myself" solving my porblems if they're still here or getting worse?! I don't get it!!!!!

to be fair, when I was doing the little masking I was able to do growing up to try avoid being bullied,,,,,it didn't help. so I gave up and accepted the no friends/abuse/bullying/neglect, believing people "one day it will get better" but im tired of waiting for " one day. " nothing has changed by "becoming my true self" there's no difference. I still have no friends. my needs are still neglected. I still get bullied by strangers and abused by "friends" so it's not a solution. i get the idea. the stress and pressure of putting on a play and being a character can be too hard. thinking about everyone's opnions every time you dp anything can be too much to handle. but not doing that anymore doesn't automatically make everything better. it hasn't made it better for me. I can't make people like me. but I also can't make them stop treating me like shit or help me. liking myself and helping myself only gets me so far before I hit a wall I can't get over alone. but when I look beside me, I see some bullies pulling me down and no people that like me in sight. don't try to *make* people like you sure. but not having anyone that likes you makes life very difficult. admit it! being yourself does not make people automatically like you!!!!! 😭😭😭😭 maybe i'm just a horrible person that thinks too highly of myself to realize I don't know!

[beast-of-the-void]

.

[phagodyke]

still just so so disappointed though :-(

[kindacreepy-kindaugly]

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