#to not do so is to support our own deaths

[khorneschosen]

I wonder how you make that cognitive dissonance work for you.

Here you have a group of people who are proposing to genocide and ethnically cleanse an entire group of people. The group you are supporting, hates you and your values. They would if they could murder you as a western whore.

Meanwhile you are condemning us for what? Actually following our laws because despite your efforts you couldn't repeal. That we don't want to allow our laws to be broken, and leave us vulnerable to all the problems with a complete failure to actually enforce our laws causes?

You know why that started that war? That war they started with a war crime they had no chance at winning? They were counting on people like you to feel so bad for the murderous little cowards that you would betray every value you had, and support their efforts to ethnically cleanse an entire region. They stole citizens to extend the war, to maintain it, so they could create a humanitarian crisis in order to internationally and irrationally isolate Israel, so they could get another attempt to genocide them.

That's actual xenophobia with an attempt at genocide no less, but you are right it's not white supremacy its supporting arab supremacy or Muslim supremacy declaring its right to deny the indigenous nature an entire group of people. It's the worship of weakness for the sake of weakness. It's every sin the nazis have and you, love it, you fight for it, you'd even kill for it if anyone gave you a chance which in justice no one should.

So why did you fail? They allowed so many of their own people to be made martyrs and started that war expecting you to do your job. Why did you fail? You know they wont be able to attempt another genocide for decades now. So why did you let them down? Why did you let them down. So many dead because they counted on you. They raped murdered and killed thinking it would lead to more if only you did your job. So why did you fail?

Why didn't you throw your life away for their genocide? Why didn't you set yourself on fire like that idol of yours? Why didn't do more? Why didn't you burn yourself out literally and figuratively for their and your worship of death and evil?

[drdemonprince]

(i'm not great at wrapping words around my thoughts, so i hope this makes sense!) i like the phrase 'sex exceptionalism,' it really makes me think. this morning i also had the thought: 'youth exceptionalism' -- i have a feeling you've already thought about this, about how we sort of treat children/youth as both sacred and subhuman.

i get this hard-to-describe unease whenever i see signs saying 'protect trans youth.' like changing words doesn't actually change actions, but i wish it said something more like 'defend trans folks.' without trans elders, trans youth don't have a future modeled for them. and we lose the wisdom and insight of people who transitioned in politically tumultuous times, when doing so was at least as stigmatized and difficult and dangerous as it is now. people with the benefit of seeing changes come and go, who have the lived experience of survival-pending-liberation and trans folks helping trans folks through direct immediate action and support.

youth exceptionalism -- it gets in the way of thinking clearly and critically whenever it pops up. it seems more emotional and ingrained than conscious. i feel it around programs aimed at giving youth opportunities, with cutoff ages. which to some extent makes sense, but not to the degree of fetishization of youth & kids our culture hangs on to. one too eager to discard humans as soon as they age (or rage) out of this impressionable, doll-like imposed role.

i think it also puts unconscious stress on youth, a sense of adults/power-havers heaping dreams & expectations on the next generation. and claiming all the sacrifices they chose to make were for the children/next generation. but at the same time expecting a specific outcome, a specific return on that transactional investment.

anyway, that's my jumble o' thoughts.

I think you're getting at something real. I have never liked the "Protect Trans Youth" shirts and banners, the way that certain supportive and well-intentioned parents cling to an identity for themselves as parent to a trans kid (often putting their kid's trans status out into the open and denying them the chance at ever being stealth, should they want to be), the advocacy that gets too perversely focused on the threat of a trans kid killing themselves (as if that were the only reason to give young people rights), the fixation on protection and innocence rather than on liberation... the heart is genuine that is driving a lot of this stuff, but it still sees children as the helpless precious object of their parents, a proto-human that has to be shielded from the world rather than a human of their own, with their own right to make decisions. it still treats transness as a rare fringe case; we might as well be talking about child cancer patients, for how focused the language is on protection and death. everybody's debating about what is best for the kid, and how to best prevent harm, and nobody is letting the kids speak for themselves. there's something so cloying and inert about it. even if the Protect Trans Kids group wins every political battle they get involved in, all they've done is provide children with one exception from the usual denial of body autonomy they live with. and they only get that exception because supposedly death is the alternative and they're that rare and sick. it's not good when you really drill into it.

[43501]

Opened my copy of Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Murder Cases for the first time in a decade and man, I forgot this is a goldmine of info and Mello characterization. It lets us know what kind of person Mello is almost more than the source material. Every time he's on panel/screen he's always so intense, it's fascinating to see him write and kind of get this feeling of "oh, he is also a normal guy outside of those situations".

He says he had one extensive in-person meeting with L, which is backed up by this other post of mine where I point out that, in the anime at least, Mello references having spoken to L personally. If we take it as canon it means L and Mello met at some point between Kira emerging and L leaving England for Japan.

He expresses a strong sense he might die. I've seen people say that he's "narrating from beyond (heh) the grave" and it's nonsensical, but that's not what's happening here. He's just writing while anticipating his death and writing as if these notes may be discovered posthumously.

He thinks that, in the event he dies, Near is the one who will discover his writings. This is interesting to me because it suggests Mello either knows Near knows his whereabouts, or would figure it out and recover his belongings. I actually think this is outright supported by canon - we see Near eating Mello's chocolate in the manga's epilogue. I don't think he instructed his staff to go out and buy that same chocolate, I think that's straight up Mello's stash.

At some point he started identifying less with the "Mello" alias and calling himself Mihael.

He's so sentimental... ending the prologue simply with "Good memories and nightmares". Bro.

"Imagine you were going to kill someone. What do you think would be the most difficult part? .... The correct answer: killing someone." Damn, I love you Mello lol. Also fascinating when you remember that he achieved his status in the mafia by beheading someone. Yes, he would know how hard it is to kill a person.

Mello states that he and Near belong to the "fourth generation" of Wammy's House kids.

He expresses open sympathy for Beyond and his state, twice... based on his own narration and how he portrays B in the course of the story, he definitely relates to B's emotions.

"Perhaps these gods actually wanted a blood soaked world of betrayal and false accusation. Perhaps the entire episode exists as a lesson to teach us the difference between the Almighty and the shinigami." I can't entirely make sense of this, and I don't want to get ahead of myself, but is "Almighty" capitalized here to definitely refer to the divine? Like, the Christian God but in a bit of a sidestepped, roundabout way? Wish I could see the original Japanese text for this line. If anyone has essays/posts about it, please show me.

And on a meta-textual level, the ambiguity of our role/perspective as the reader of these notes is also interesting. We're probably just an omniscient, unmoored observer being told about this set of notes Mello wrote and his line to the effect of "if it happens to turn into [a book]" is tongue-in-cheek. I know there's a slight, hanging implication that Near did in fact publish his notes, but I think that's unlikely since they contain so much sensitive/classified information.

[ask-obt]

Uxie, do you have any ideas on why it became common practice among Hands to pick human champions instead of pokemon?

Erudite: There are no certain answers, but plenty of speculation. Some Hands are under the impression that humans are their only option for a champion... though this clearly is not the case with the Shinx. Others have speculated that there's a certain something humans have that makes them a superior choice to pokemon- but as you've seen, that really only leads to an inflated impression of self-importance. Others yet suspect humans are rescued from near-death experiences to be given a second chance.

It might be an unpopular opinion, but I think it's an inherently cruel process. If you take someone from the comforts and familiarities of their world, force them into your own, and then tell them of a "grand destiny" that rests on their shoulders, then what choice do they have? With no friends, no family, no support net... the isolation they must face as a result is a bit sickening.

I don't think it's any secret that I have a distaste for the whole "champion" process. Why the Hand of Time could not trust Uxie and their siblings to gather the Time Gears themselves I'll never know. My siblings are quite fond of the system in place, so maybe I'm just an outlier. I am the youngest of our iterations, after all, so maybe they hold experiences I simply can't relate with.

[oldandcrusty]

Trump has cut aid to South Africa because we stood with Palestine and have signed an Act which is being grossly misrepresented

Hi, I'm a white, Afrikaans South African with a family of farmers, and I will not allow the false conservative rhetoric to go unchecked. I also am a researcher in sustainable economic development who engages in real life with this discourse.

I am only taking it to Tumblr now because I believe it is important for Americans and people from other nations to understand what is really happening, and what Trump's cutting of aid really means, because the administration is already using this in its own propaganda. This propaganda also has an impact on foreign investment, as it makes people in other nations wary of investing in us.

First, the cutting of Aid

I'm going to use an analogy to help you understand what's happening. A surgeon tells you that they are going to save your daughter, no charge. You're elated by this act of compassion, and you agree. The surgeon is midway through the surgery, and then calls you and says that you must cut down the trees outside your house, the surgeon doesn't like them. You say, but it's my house? The surgeon then says that they will kill your daughter if you don't comply.

The cutting of US aid is currently happening to all nations. The only difference is that Trump's America had made a point to say that South Africa is essentially on their permanent ban list. This sudden disappearance of aid (which includes American healthcare providers) is going have a massive impact on all countries. In South Africa, it is going to lead to the death of many people with HIV/Aids through the cutting of Pepfar (which Bush, fucking Bush, started to help combat HIV/Aids globally).

Trump's America is holding the lives of thousands of the most vulnerable people in South Africa (who America was supposed to save) hostage in order to influence our nation's policies, therefore challenging our sovereignty. That is what is happening.

What is The Expropriation Act?

The Expropriation Act would allow government to seize land which is currently not used and does not have much market value. Technically, all governments can do this in order to build infrastructure like public transport, roads, and airports. Land which is being used for any activities (including farming, housing, and business) is not affected by this at all.

Furthermore, the only reason why conservatives are accusing the government of being racist towards white people is because the white population (which is around 8% of the entire population) owns 75% of land. So, they perceive this as a threat to white majority ownership.

Whether the Act is constitutional is being challenged in our courts. No land has been taken from anyone through this Act.

The Expropriation Act is not the same as Land Reform. South Africa has been conducting Land Reform through a willing-buyer and willing-seller model, wherein those selling land can have it bought by the government to be given to beneficiaries from disadvantaged population groups. This has been considered largely unsuccessful, due to factors such as slow implementation, the land often not being of high quality, and there being no training or further support for beneficiaries. That being said, the Expropriation Act could allow the government to accelerate Land Reform.

There are many concerns around Land Reform and Expropriation, though I personally do not think any of the political parties care about the issue of land rights and protecting farmers. Smallholder farmers, who are typically people of colour and women, are particularly at risk of losing land they farm on (and feed communities with). But this risk does not directly come from the government. It comes from local government rezoning land they farm on and selling it to private developers. Smallholder farmers have less resources to counter these developers legally, and may also not formally own the land (which is not to say that they have stolen or are squatting on it, many of them have lived on it for many generations).

Are white South Africans being persecuted?

Western conservatives like to use us white South Africans as an example of how white people can be oppressed. This is not just something America has done, nations like Australia are also guilty. Along with cutting aid, America has also declared that "the United States shall promote the resettlement of Afrikaner refugees escaping government-sponsored race-based discrimination, including racially discriminatory property confiscation."

So, are white South Africans refugees?

For fuck's sake. No.

I know very well that poverty and unemployment is at an all-time high for white South Africans. I know many white South Africans who are struggling to get food and healthcare. However, this is not because we are oppressed. This is because we are less shielded from the reality of the socioeconomic crises South Africa faces. I must emphasise, we are LESS shielded, but still much MORE shielded than the vast majority of South Africans.

Decades of Apartheid rule gave our families opportunities, education, occupations, and land which has given us a very strong net in the forms of private asset ownership, as well as professional networks. White South Africans usually have family they can lean on. Heck, I am one of them - I cannot afford my extremely high healthcare costs (I have an autoimmune condition which would leave me disabled without expensive medication), but my immediate family are able to financially support me.

It is through this accumulated wealth and professional networks that leads to all of the socioeconomic ills our nation faces being disproportionately levied on people of colour. In fact, white South Africans of all educational backgrounds have an unemployment rate of 7.9%, compared to an unemployment rate of 37.6% for black South Africans.

Affirmative action tries to balance this. I know, for a fact, that I did not get a job because of affirmative action. But I also knew that I had family that could sign my new lease for me when I had no contract. The person who got the job was statistically much more likely to have not had that luxury. And, regardless, I got a (better paying) job two weeks later. Yes, I worked hard for it. But I also have had so many educational and professional opportunities granted to me because of my privilege. (I should also note here - my family is not extremely privileged compared to other white South Africans, my parents are blue collar workers, not vineyard or mine company owners.)

There is a lot more I could cover here, like farm murders, but I will add an article in the resources for those who are curious.

Palestine.

In December of 2023, South Africa brought a case to the International Court of Justice that accused Israel of genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza. The ICJ ruled that, yes, what is happening in Gaza is genocide.

Now, Trump wants to turn Gaza into a "Riviera". He wants to move all the people living there to neighbouring nations (who are in opposition to this), and if they don't want to leave then he is willing to use the US military to 'remove' them.

So, I ask you this. Which is the country that wants to take land from an oppressed group? Which is the country that is creating international refugees?

Trump's America clearly stated that South Africa is working against its geopolitical interests and threatening the States, and that this was one of the reasons why aid was cut. I believe that this is actually the primary reason for the aid cut. The whole 'saving Afrikaners' angle is just to make Trump's America look like heroes. In truth, Trump's America is punishing us for standing for human rights.

Do you smell that?

Musk. You have played a major role in all of this. For years, you have been working on trying to make South Africa the oppressive state your Canadian grandparents moved to.

Since you're only two generations South African, and you are a Canadian and American citizen, maybe you can't understand what I'm about to say. But I'm fucking saying it.

Hou op om Trump se poephol te lek en luister. Jy is 'n rassistiese en seksistiese fokker. Voetsek Mars toe en los ons uit.

Sources and further information

A breakdown of US aid to South Africa.

An article on the impact of losing Pepfar.

A ten minute video explaining the Act.

An article summarising Trump's cutting of aid.

A more in-depth article looking into the context of him cutting aid.

An example of how smallholder farmers of colour are the people getting their land stolen through private developers.

A Facebook group with the most recent updates on the activists in the previous bulletpoint - they are facing more legal battles.

Unemployment rates in South Africa.

An article discussing farm murders.

[cxncordia]

"You don't know half of it, Mike. If you did, you wouldn't be so open and brash about your status in the FBI." Addison admitted, taking off his glass and setting them aside. Okay, if he needed to be truthful then, so be it. He pulled out a box of cigarettes and lifted it up, getting permission from Mike to light one with a gesture.

"Let's start by the basics: your organization works for a bigger and more suspicious organization called The Technocratic Union. We just call them the Technocracy." A pause to take a breath, letting each word fall on it's own weight. "A group of individuals who believe that submission and control are the key to keeping Reality in check... and they will use whatever force, —political, propaganda or even military force—, to achieve their goal and whatever gets in their way. As long as the masses remain asleep, they will continue reigning." Addison then turned up to meet Mike's gaze, gouging how far he was going with. One thing was to reveal that his grandpa was not whom he said he was, another one to reveal that he had been working to support the bad guys.

"I'm not saying you specifically, but some in your organization definitely are in cahoots with the Technocracy," Addison admitted. "And some of the people that your organization has captured were to support the fascist agenda of this shadow government." The lawyer then proceeded to pick out, from his own messenger bag, a folder that he extended to the young blonde man. A soft huff left Addison's lips and then continued. "Back in the day, your organization was not as well communicated, coast to coast information was not spread widely, which served well to a man known as The Doctor."

"A doctor by title, yes, but the reality is much worse." A sigh. "He was a doctor who performed a lot of human experiments. He was a mage like me, but a sick individual, a monster, if you will. He performed lobotomy on his patients, and once he did, his victims would become nothing more than a shell, a puppet to do whatever he willed them. He also experimented on the bodies of his victims, trying to see if there was a way to create a superhuman." A huff. Just thinking about it, he felt his stomach turn and twist. "The main problem was that the man belonged to the Technocracy. A well known and respected surgeon who used his position to cover-up his tracks." Addison closed his eyes, wishing to not remember all of the gruesome details as best as he could, but he didn't. They were there, haunting him forverer. "The Doctor was known for creating thralls, enslaved humans, out of his own lobotomized victims. At one point he had a young adult enslaved and then forced to kill his own family in a gruesome mimicking act."

All the evidence collected on such matter had been stored in multiple files and photographies, some of them taken by Joseph himself, which Addison had extended to Mike know in order to prove his point. The photos were violent and gruesome, depicting a group of individuals, all of them having the heart and brains taken out with precise skill. "The lobotomized victim's name was Richard Harrison. And the attack was not random: The Doctor planned every movement because he made sure to leave enough evidence to pin this crime on Robert Harrison, Richard's twin." Mike had the dossier of both brothers in file. One depicted all the chronic maladies that afflicted Richard: depression, anxiety, melancholy and even transvestism, back at a time where dressing up as a woman was a mental deviation. The other file however contained much different information.

"It wasn't a random attack: he made sure that the attack seemed similar to a ritual performed by Egyptian priests back in the day, because Robert Harrison was none other than a member of our council. He belonged to the Euthanatoi, a group of individuals who believe in Death and Reincarnation." A pause, again, Addison wanted to make sure that Mike was indeed following him. "The Doctor had every intention to have Robert take the fall and make us way weaker... and he even enforced it by having your agency aprehend him and jail him." Addison shook his head, the disdain that he had for the institutions back then was still ever present. "Until I took the case to support Robert and thanks to the clever insight of Joseph, I was able to create a defense and prove his innocence." A smile. "I was able to save his life and show the world, the real world, not the one ruled by the Technocracy, the truth. That the man who did it was not him but the Doctor."

There was so much more that could be said, so much more history to unveil, but Addison decided to leave it as it was, for the moment.

"I hope this can give you some clarity, at least," Addison added. "Because if you really want to help, then it's good to know what you are truly fighting against."

‘Yeah? Well, maybe you should.’ Mike cleared his throat, turning to pour himself another drink. 

‘Or maybe you can sit down and tell me the truth. Everything.’ He sipped the drink before facing Addison. ‘Everything you have about the original case. Filling in the gaps for your…’ He shook his head, unable to find the words for the supernatural element. ‘And then I’ll see how helpful I can be.’ 

He took another sip, licking the remnants from his lips before leaning back against the table that faced the couch. ‘So, you can either do that. Or you can leave without fucking with my head. Those are your two choices.’ 

He held up a finger with the hand that wielded the glass. ‘And before you even think about a third, less pleasant option, I’m a Federal Agent.’ Addison didn’t look like the type of guy to attack him out of nowhere, especially as weak and tearful as he seemed right now. But Mike had seen men like Addison try to take out whole families. People were capable of anything. 

‘And I’m not trying to stomp on you, yet. And maybe the FBI won’t, if they have someone in on this case.’ 

Sure, Mike had lied about how close to law enforcement he was. But if he was going to be any use, he needed Addison on the same page.

[short-wooloo]

I cannot overstate this enough, but with the threat of trump and project 2025, there is GENUINELY a chance that this year's pride month could be the last...

I want y'all to really think about that, think about it when you hear or think "I'm not voting" or "both sides are the same

[someobscurereference]

Insane over the awakening trio again. We fought a war together, saved each other multiple times, and I know for a fact I can trust you with my life. We have never learned to socialize normally so we can't interact in a normal environment for five seconds without dunking on each other. I would follow you through time and space and abandon everything with you. You are the living reminder of every awful thing that have ever happened to me. Our traumas make us hurt each other at every turn. We're the only ones who know what lead to each other becoming Like That. Our jobs are barely in the same area and we don't even hang out that much outside of necessities. You are all I have left. I cannot fucking understand you. I am the only one in this entire world who has the ability to even try to.

x

[stirdrawsandreblaws]

screaming crying coughing up blood every time i have to fucking defend genocide joe bc ppl wanna lie and say he isn't responsible for most of the best domestic policy we've seen in decades

his foreign policy is dogshit, yes, and he should rightly be called on it and primaried out, but we can criticize the shit he's actually done wrong instead of making shit up about him ~not doing anything good~

[sincetheducksleft]

"Proshai, Livushka": Arcs or the lack thereof as a major theme of The Sopranos

One thing that's straight up insane about The Sopranos is how a narrative show can expose the insufficiency of narrative to explain our lives. I think Christopher's story is probably the most obvious example, but you see it with every single character, including Tony.

In "Proshai, Livushka" we see Tony rewatching an old mobster movie again and again, and we know that he saw the whole story every time, but the piece of the story that we get to see and our corresponding understanding of Tony's character changes over the course of the episode.

Meaning that Tony's arc in this episode, or the overall arc of the episode, may be less a true transformation of Tony himself than a transformation of what the audience knows of him. In fact, we are the ones who are changed by this episode, and from Tony's perspective he has no arc at all.

Which is sort of perfect, because here if there ever was one is a story with no "arc."

An "arc" (in the context of screenwriting, which is the context in which it was introduced to this show) is what gives meaning to the whole story. It's the narrative satisfaction, the profound feeling, the purpose, the message, the thing that makes the movie feel like it amounted to something and it was worth your time.

In the wake of his grief, Tony isn't obsessed with just any mobster movie, he's obsessed with a movie full of broad stereotypes and simple messages that amounts to a cliched, simplistic mother figure losing her son. It's the tragedy of a mother's profound grief that gives tragedy to the death of the son and makes the movie worth your time.

It's a contrast to Livia's obsession with mothers who kill their children, and its an extension of his comment to Melfi that he deserves to die. And you realize when the son character dies that Tony is wishing it was him in the coffin. Not because he's suicidal, but because he's just that desperate for a sense of meaning. For a story that has an arc.

And then you realize in the final scene, when it's not the mother's grief but the mother's love that brings him to tears, that he knows it wouldn't work. His death would have no arc, no profundity, no purpose. Because Livia never loved him the way a mother figure should.

His story isn't written in broad caricatures and it has no divine mother's love at the center of it giving divinity and meaning to everything else. Losing himself in a movie is the closest he'll ever get to putting some kind of arc or meaning or sense to that relationship.

And if real life has no arc, then at what point does it become worth your time? Or, like Livia and Robert Frost said, is every moment of our lives surrounded and defined only by the big nothing?

[candied-cae]

"Izzy's appearances in 2x03 with Stede were some of the only times I could stand him." - Allow me to further explain

I want to preface this with "I know." I know I was not an Izzy Enjoyer during Season 1 and I know I wasn't really looking forward to a redemption arc for his character because I was worried it wouldn't be taken seriously enough, since this show is a comedy. And, so far, I feel like I was right. His forgiveness feels rushed to me, and Stede's adverse reactions to him are the only times where it felt like this was in fact Izzy Hands from season 1 and not a guy with the same name and face but with a clean record and softer disposition.

The instances where Stede is put in Izzy's proximity are the only ones that really make sense coming out of Season 1. As far as we see, a few months has passed and pretty much everyone on The Revenge has forgiven Izzy for the simple reason that they can tell Ed is taking a little extra of his anger out on him. We see no apologies made, we see no kind gestures, we see no really complex stuff about him realizing he fucked up.

They skip right to his breaking down and the rest of the crew picking up the pieces behind Ed's back, even though for most of them Izzy was their torturer at least twice before all on his own.

So it felt weird and jarring that he seemed completely washed free of his "sins" of the last season, especially since it happened right there in the first episode. I wish the production team put more time in making Izzy "earn" the kindness the crew affords him, but I digress. The interactions Stede has with Izzy feel the most right (to me) and I adore how much character work we can pull from them.

(In agonizing detail by going over every word of dialogue and expression exchanged between them, you've been warned.)

The first time they address each other, goes as follows:

"Bonnet. Good to see you." "Piss off, Izzy. I don't wanna hear from you."

With Izzy approaching Stede without reason and speaking first. He limps on over and opens up with something polite almost. But when it comes from Izzy Hands - the man who personally insulted Stede, insulted all his favorite activities, insulted his crew, challenge him to duel and skewered him through the side, went on to call on Calico Jack and the Royal English Navy to take down The Revenge, who stole his crew and ship after he'd been arrested, and Stede's clearly got suspicions that Ed's behavior was influenced by him - that greeting is a slap in the face.

It's that kind of fake sweet pretend-we're-friends-for-the-sake-of-social-graces thing that Stede left behind on the mainland.

So he just tells him to leave. That he doesn't care what he has to say if it isn't information, and even if it was, Stede doesn't trust what Izzy shares.

And Izzy's a little caught off guard by that reaction. We see him sort of sway and look to the side. He looks rejected, which he is. And it's the first time all season that someone hasn't really let him have a fresh start (except for Ed). It's the first time anyone's tried to hold him accountable for the litany of things he'd done to the crew in the last season. Events that seem to have taken place only weeks/months before.

The second time Izzy speaks up, he does so to tease:

"What about my painting? Why was it all stabbed up?" "That was me." *sighs*

Izzy puts on a smile and leans his head back a bit. He's try to act proud and sort of snarky, since Stede isn't playing with him like they did previously. So, he tried to goad him into saying something. Into getting snippy or bitchy in return. He's trying to push Stede into giving him something to work with.

Because if people talk to him, and they play his games, and they soften up, that's how (it seems) he's been able to win them over and get into folk's good graces.

But Stede doesn't give. He doesn't want to play Izzy's mind games. He doesn't want to volley a few insults back in forth until it's fun. He doesn't want to give Izzy any of his time or attention or energy, because Izzy doesn't deserve any of it to him.

Stede walks away, and we see Izzy's expression freeze and fall. He's stuck and confused, because he thought that was a good move. He thought that one was going to get a reaction. And maybe that's how he's always gotten people to talk to him, by pushing them into a retaliation, but it doesn't work.

What's the quote? About how hate isn't the opposite of love, indifference is? Stede is being indifferent to Izzy's presence, and that's doing more to Izzy's feelings than if he outright hated him.

The third time they interact, Izzy's followed Stede into the captain's quarters and jokes:

"Don't cry, Bonnet. We just redecorated." "I don't mind, actually. I think the knives really help bring the place together."

Again, he's tried to push Stede's buttons. Playing on already used jokes that Stede's too posh and soft to, say, appreciate something like a dozen knives thrown/stabbed into the walls and ceiling of his cabin.

He's teasing, on the edge of calling Stede a cry baby, either just to see if it'll work him up, or if that's the only way he knew how to start their discussion. But again, Stede isn't playing with him. He brushes past the implied insult and moves to something more like "I don't care" in response.

Instead, turning his attention back to the subject of Edward Teach. Because he knows the crew were all dodging the question and he knows Izzy would have to know what happened to Ed.

During that same conversation they pivot to more serious matters:

"What'd you do with him? I know he wouldn't have left by choice." "I know you think you understand him-" "He was either going to watch the world burn or die trying. So which was it?" "Alright, Bonnet. Have it your own way. He went mad. He tortured the crew. He took my fuckin' leg 'cause I dared to mention your fuckin' name. He was a wild dog, and we dealt with him like one." "You sent him to doggy heaven." "No, I could never do that. We deserted him on a beach. Left nature to do the rest. More than he would've done for us. You and me did this to him. And we cannot let this crew suffer any more for our mistakes." "Why would they suffer?" "If your captain senses mutiny, she'll kill us all. That's pirate code."

The most notable expressions during this conversation are Stede's who almost seems to wince when Izzy says Ed retaliated against him over mentioning Stede's name, his defeat when he believes Ed was killed in mutiny, and his concern about making sure his crew will be spared.

These are feelings that are barely about Izzy, and mostly about the fact that Stede is taking on a lot more blame than he's saying. He feels a lot of the responsibility for what's happened (further exemplified by him cracking to tell Zheng Yi Sao that he should've told Ed how he felt and avoided all of it). And this is the first time Izzy really gets anything out of him from all his poking and prodding he does in the episode.

And though Stede is convinced that Ed was simply marooned and it's its own kind of tragedy and means there was somewhere to go to try and get him back, Stede worries about saving his crew first. He pleads with Zheng Yi Sao and even wins her over until Auntie finds Ed's "body."

After that revelation, Izzy's in The Red Flag's brig and only says:

"Go on, Bonnet. Give me your worst."

And Stede says nothing. He looks at him. He hears what he has to say. But he doesn't do anything. Nothing except having to physically push himself off the bars to walk away.

And again, we can tell there's blame he's assigned to himself for it.

It's a little bit his fault that Ed's "dead." It's a little bit his fault the rest of his crew is going to be executed. It's a little bit his fault, and it's a little bit Izzy's. He knows so, because Izzy said it to him himself. "You and Me did this to him." And Izzy huffs, gives him permission to fly off the handle. To pour his rage and grief all over Izzy, to retaliate with words or with blades.

Izzy would take it. Whatever Stede was going to give him, he was going to take it. Just like he was trying to make him mad earlier, Izzy was still grappling for something. For acknowledgment. For something in his last moments before an entire career of piracy ended at The Pirate Queen's behest.

But Stede gives him nothing.

And that hurts worse. That brings tears to his eyes. That settles in the quiet idea of "I'm not mad, I'm just disappointed" that cuts so much deeper.

And the last time Izzy tries for anything, he tries being grateful:

"I just wanted to thank you for-"

But Stede still doesn't listen. Doesn't even let him finish thanking him.

Even though he went as far as to save Izzy's life along with the rest of the crew (he could've struck him down or declared he was unwelcome to join them back on The Revenge if he really wanted to), he still hadn't earned acknowledgment. Hadn't deserved pity or anything else. He doesn't even deserve to stand next to Stede and fluff his ego, as far as Stede seems concerned.

Stede hasn't forgiven Izzy. And maybe it's because he feels there's nothing to forgive, it's mostly Stede's own fault- maybe it's because he blames him too much and will never let it go- maybe he's too hurt to feel anything but tired and sad once the immediate danger has passed... Izzy doesn't know.

What he does know, is that he has tried everything to get reactions out of Stede. Everything except apologizing. So, I'm personally hoping for an apology in the upcoming episodes. For some vulnerability and truth and embarrassment. Because these are the beats of a redemption. These are the plot points of turning your life around, and people either don't believe it's genuine at first or don't care.

This is the "cost" of Izzy's actions in Season 1. And it's something they haven't given us from anyone else yet. I'd also really like Ed to make some kind of address of the fact ("You wanted Blackbeard as dark and demanding as he could possibly get, I gave that to you"). Because that's how a redemption arc works best. The guy who fucked up has to put in an effort expressly to be forgiven.

To me, it's not enough that his life sucked for a couple months and he didn't get exactly what he wanted (aka, he didn't realize he didn't actually want it like that) and he lost a leg. He's going to keep pirating on one foot, but to receive a position on The Revenge happily shared, there needs to be something more.

More OFMD

[after-the-end-times]

It's gonna be both exhilarating and devastating if Ed immediately goes back to being Stede's Ed upon waking

As a crew, they'll always know that he could have been that guy, but instead drove them all to kill him

And it's no ones fault that none of them were the one guy in all the world that can keep Ed's head above water and keep the kraken at bay

But to know you just killed him when he's just back up, walking around in flowing gowns, enjoying his tea and marmalade?

That's just a devastating thing to have to reconcile in your self

[todayisafridaynight]

SO! I've wanted to talk about The Clip all day but felt like I should wait until the tumblr "premiere" (even though I think you were literally one of the first people to see it on Twitter lol). Thank you for defending my honor btw even if I am just Someone <3

But. Yes. Yeah. Yokoyama's absolute certainty in saying that??? Without anything to even buffer it? No maybe. No "don't expect too much." Just point-blank in front of a huge fan (whom I believe he's now going to be working with), a staff member, and a massive audience. As if that part isn't the matter of contention. I WILL be injecting those words directly into my veins for some time.

I was on the verge of choking and/or spewing blood and/or crying before posting it though lol, so I really appreciate the vote of confidence regarding the translation and I love your redraw! The reception as a whole has been really nice, although I wish people would keep it to themselves if they'd rather have Nishiki or Ryuji back or whatever. Not like it's a race, but even if it was, Mine's been in last place for ages lol.

And while I enjoy Y3's writing more than most, Mine's death wasn't some Grand Meaningful Statement, it was the decision of a fledgling studio that never knew if it would be able to keep making these games trying to tell a self-contained story. It did have far-reaching consequences for the series, but those consequences are also... not really relevant anymore?

Like, I can and have argued that Mine's death caused the fall of the Tojo Clan, but the clan has already fallen. So I don't see why some people are acting like revisiting his character would be A Spit In The Face to the saga somehow, but I guess I've never really been against characters being brought back...? A quote from the staff that's always stuck with me from the staff is that RGG is always going for RGG-ism, not realism.

Ranting aside... I honestly don't know if I should be saying this, but there's this new guy working the counter at Survive in some LaD8 behind the scenes footage. Now, upfront, I'm 99.8% sure it's not Mine (I happen to have a 100% accuracy rate so far identifying major RGG characters from extremely blurry images and silhouettes lmao), and I have no idea who it is, whether it's a new character or an old one heavily redesigned or Just Some Guy.

But he's not Kashiwagi. And he happens to have slicked-back dark brown hair with what appears to be an ahoge in some angles. And, unless the materials are temporary, he also dresses A Lot Like the celebrity Mine's design was based on. And his features... line up closely enough to piss me off, even though they don't fully match in the end, which is why I don't think it's him.

I'm in argumentative essay mode 100% of the time which is why I'm saying this in a "convincing" tone despite literally not believing it myself, but like... wouldn't that be something? To just have Mine part-timing at Survive or whatever and no one makes a big deal of it because they don't know any better? If nothing else, I really do think he should get The Bartender Treatment.

I dunno, I might post about it with a comparison tomorrow because it's been on my mind lately, especially with The News, but I really don't want people to get the wrong idea either. Or embarrass myself if it was too tenuous of a link to look that deeply into from the start lol

I remember seeing it two minutes after you posted it, so I can imagine I was one of the first to the scene of the crime (so my friends put it LMAO). AND OF COURSE I- and a lot of us- can't be any more grateful for all the work you do than we already are. I'd go insane trying to document and manage everything you do! especially when you have insane people like me ready to pounce on the smallest thing like I know I'd cry FJLKAJ The least I can do is give a proper title/credit to you when I can o7

If Yokoyama had any remaining hesitance about Mine being alive, then he REALLY would have fumbled by sounding so certain. Like in his old tweet, he certainly sounded more ambiguous, but this time he really had no extra notes and sounded more sure of himself. I won't expect RGG to do anything with Mine, but the concept is still very much exciting and the idea that Yokoyama almost seems earnest about the idea of bringing Mine back for whatever reason is very nice to know :] And thank you about enjoying the art I did! I can't lie in the slightest, since the last ask where you alluded to posting the clip, I had that drawing saved in the back of my head ready to make once you had that posted LMAO

But oohh not to touch drama since I generally try to Not touch it, but yeah I can't act like I haven't seen some people be. ""Interesting"" about the idea of Mine being alive. I won't dive too deep into it, but I think my major issue with the few grievances I've seen is that RGG hasn't done anything with Mine's alive status. As of right now, it's just a thing Yokoyama said, so I don't understand the need to be so angry about it (it's especially weird to say Ryuji hasn't been back when he not only got to be a playable protagonist in Dead Souls, but he was also the protagonist of RGGO- though I suppose I can understand wanting him in the mainline series again. Still, it's weird to act as though Mine's back any more than he is and being upset about it just because Yokoyama said he was alive)...

Moving on though, I'm really curious as to this 'mystery figure' you mean. I've been missing out on LaD8 production material, so I haven't seen this bit myself but I'd love to take a stab at it and analyze myself too. I agree though: if Mine does come back- whether he's working at Survive or anywhere else- I would greatly prefer if he had The Bartender status and was just never really called attention to and only existed in the background

[followerofmercy]

Networking/Knowing A Guy: A Guide

This is the autism website. Now, as an extension of the power of love and friendship, there are few things more useful than Knowing A Guy. Knowing A Guy means you have a support network. Knowing a plumber, or a tax accountant, or just that one dude that's really fucking good at finding the information you need when you're really overwhelmed, can be the difference between being able to pay rent and having a fun party with friends to fix your shit.

How does one end up Knowing A Guy? It's a skill you can develop called Networking and it is one of the foundations of society. Unfortunately making those connections with people is fucking hard and nobody makes a tutorial for it. So, here you go:

The golden rule is you scratch my back and I scratch yours

It is necessary for survival to seek out useful people

Great news! Everyone is useful in some form or fashion - including you! When given the opportunity to learn about someone, do it! Extroversion does not come naturally to some people and that's okay. Just take whatever falls in your lap.

Types of usefulness: trade skills, connections of their own, personality you jive with, pleasant to talk to, niche interest in shared hobby, security - the list is pretty much endless. I know a guy that lives in the metro area - no job, no major hobbies, inoffensively annoying to me personally, kinda ignorant, not attractive to me, but you know what? He knows how the fuck to get around the city by foot. My rural-raised ass APPRECIATES the guide.

Remember important information: general personality, background, skillset, likes and dislikes. You can find this information by making smalltalk about their life. There is no such thing as pointless conversation. (Yes, even the annoying smalltalk)

The more people you know, the higher the likelihood that one of them will be useful in a given situation - or will know someone who is.

It is overwhelming. In a given clique/community/workspace/whatever, there is A Guy Who Knows The Other Guys. This Guy is a shortcut. Find them. They're often elderly, extroverted, a little bit annoying, a secretary or in some otherwise forward-facing position. Look for people that are gossipy/talk about other people a lot but not in negative ways. If they constantly talk shit, they'll talk shit about you too. They're still useful but be careful with the information you share

You do not have to like someone for them to be useful.

You do not have to like someone for them to be useful.*

If you have low self esteem, you're going to feel like you're using people. You're not. That's the devil talking. People like feeling valued and the connections you are making are the threads holding community together. Recognize people for their talents. It's only a problem when you're taking advantage of people

So: don't feel scummy about it. You're an animal. You have to claw out your right to survive and people will respect you more for it.

Luckily mutualism is the name of the game in the animal kingdom. Offer something back. The foundation of a Know A Guy relationship is Mutual Benefit

Sometimes that Mutual Benefit is just spreading news of the The Guy far and wide. My plumber friend is my actual friend and I love her to death, but I'm maintaining our backscratch relationship by pimping out her plumbing business to anyone that'll listen

Food is a good Mutual Benefit. People across cultures for all of human history have bonded over food. I have good success asking people for a favor and then offering to buy them lunch in return **

General compensation is also good. Offer a service in return and always do your best to offer financial compensation as appropriate. Having your plumber friend take a look at your drain: doable with a case of beer. Having your plumber friend redo the pipes in your entire house? You need to pay for that.

Being transactional is not necessarily a bad thing. I would advise against keeping an itemized list of things owed, but fish don't seek out cleaner shrimp just because they enjoy their company. Everyone gets something

Unfortunately being extroverted and generally personable is a huge benefit here, but that's the value of the Guy That Knows A Guy. There's someone out there that has consolidated All The Guys so you don't have to be the local expert. Always remember nobody can do everything and you don't need to master every skill

* This is the foundation of a functioning community. I have many acquaintances that I find incredibly annoying. They include doctors, welders, artists, social workers, lawyers, construction crew and random fuckers at the grocery store. I do not hang out with them. I do not have to in order to maintain a civil Know A Guy relationship. I can drop them useful tidbits and fuck right off so I don't have to spend any more time than necessary with them

** People may assume romantic intent. Be prepared for that. I generally denote that it's a friendly/work lunch by calling them bro at some point if they're my age. Otherwise my general demeanor is sufficient to show that I do this with everyone

Source: personal experience, mother's teachings of crime, booth vending and poverty

[femwizard]