#tw; unethical behaviour

[terrence-silver]

(This is the plot opening to the movie Mulholland Drive) If beloved was a victim of a car crash but she survives with scars on all over body with amnesia and is seen stumbling down Los Angeles by Terry, what do you think he’d do when he sees her?

---

To reference my previous post here but, yeah, finders keepers?

He has a perfect opportunity to do, oh, I don't know, just about whatever he wants and simultaneously seem like the hero? The benefactor? Have complete and utter control over a situation and an individual? Appear like a kind man saving a car crash survivor? All while tenderly molding the person? Utilizing their amnesia to make himself whatever in reference to them and vice versa, effectively invading their life? Pushing aside any and all family members because he'll pretend to be concerned for beloved's mental state and how many people they should be around in the first place to ''avoid overburdening their traumatized psyche', all while, in reality, he wants to be the only one on their mind from now on. Nobody else. Practically abducting beloved from the world by alerting pretty much nobody of importance that he found a full blown person next to a vehicle wreckage. Again! It's for beloved's benefit, he promises! Their brain needs rest. Their body too. You'll find this man has an excuse and a valid, moral-sounding explanation for everything, all while selling the whole situation like there's no strings attached. That he has noble intentions in mind. That Terry Silver's merely doing this --- this whole business of taking someone like this under his wing out of sheer unselfishness, unable to let some poor, poor lost lamb wonder the highway bloodied and bruised?

He's too much of an sweet hearted man to do that, don't you know?

But, of course, we know nothing's for free and that he seldom ever does anything without an agenda, if ever, that he's ultimately claiming beloved in their most vulnerable state, leaving out any and all authorities from the issue (or promptly bribing them off) bypassing every rule of ethics and usurping beloved's whole life into his own, making himself indispensable, necessary, the support network of the century. He can sell whatever lies he wishes to them, tell whatever truths he deems fit, give way to half-truths, partial truths, twisted truths, gaslight them, shape their memories however he pleases, manipulate them, seduce them, isolate them, take them into private treatment off the records instead of maintaining them in a hospital because it's frightening what a powerful person with money can get away with, make it seem like his presence here is entirely beloved's idea because they need him ---- look at the state of them after all; they absolutely cannot be unsupervised and no, no, Terry's conscience cannot allow him to leave them, at least until he's sure they're better, basically wiggling his way in and seeming like a saint while he does it, making beloved seem like the unreasonable party for doubting him or wanting privacy --- they barely survived and yet they shrug away any and all help, especially when he's offering help so readily and with so much passion --- he could have beloved feeling irrational, indebted and ungrateful in no time, and himself, as the ever-understanding best friend in the whole wide world they didn't know they lacked until now. Look at the all the things he's done for them, after all; their recovery resort is a palatial mansion, they've a waiting staff, private nurses (probably contractually obliged into silence) and an array of security, for their own protection, even though, he's here. He'll protect them. What happened to them will never happen again. He'll look after them. He'll look after them so well.

But, that's why Terry loves LA.

Opportunities like this are sprawled out in the streets in front of him every day, and all he has to do is find them, recognize their worth, potential or in beloved's case, there was a literal diamond chunk on the highway, and since he's picked it up, cleaned it, polished it, it's his for the keeping. Into his pocket it goes. The rules of the game are what you make them. Everything he'll plant inside of beloved's head will be infinitely better than whatever their life previously was considering their previous existence didn't have him. Boo. And clearly, whoever beloved's original social circle was allowed them to total their car and nearly die --- something Terry takes immensely personally, holding an outright grudge over the whole thing and everyone involved, refusing to view and accident as an accident; more like a reason to retaliate. A reason for revenge. Not that he won't utilize the needed channels to find out everything about beloved anyway outside of his conditioning because he'll feel it's his right to know the same way it's his right to withhold whatever it is he knows. As I said; finders keepers. Beloved's mind, body and soul all belong to him now.

[sagauobsessed]

TW - Yandere behaviour, delusional mindset, wanting to kidnap you, unethical use of a robot, some of this is canon and some of it isn't, my bad writing

The crowds cheered as you entered Mondstadt, with an escort of knights and vision bearers surrounding you, keeping the excited crowd from getting too close. Some yelled, trying to catch your attention, others seemingly prayed with bowed heads, sneaking reverent glances in your direction.

It was incredible. It was intoxicating. It felt almost like something that had always been missing was now in place inside you. Standing in Mondstadt, it was like a dream come true. The shops you had visited so many times were there, they were real, although much more decorated then they ever were through the screen.

And, as you turned, trying to take everything in, you saw her. Katheryne was standing in her booth as normal, somehow having a direct line of sight to you, despite the large crowds. And although you were well aware of Katheryne's nature as a robot, there was something so ... human about her. She blended into the people surrounding her so well, she could easily pass as another member of the Adventurers' Guild.

You locked eyes with her and it truly felt like she was looking at you. Not just in your direction, but AT you. And just as you were about to step out of her line of sight, her smile widened. Her normal polite smile stretched, leaving her with an almost feral grin as she stared at you. Then she was gone, hidden by the crowds as you were swept along. So you were left with no choice but to push down the growing feeling inside you that something was terribly wrong.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You could still hear the sounds of the intense party going on, in the church of all places, even though you had now returned to the main square of the plaza. The warmth of the party and the happiness from the people you met still lingered inside of you, but it was fast becoming overwhelming, so you slipped out a backdoor.

Your heart caught in your throat as you caught sight of the silhouette standing at the Adventurers' Guild, the fear from earlier quickly destroyed your buzz from the celebrations. But Katheryne did not move, simply stood as she always did with her hands crossed, all alone. And it was the normality that made you creep closer, half expecting her to turn to you with that creepy smile again. But even when you fully stood in front of her, she just looked ahead blankly. The perfect robot.

"Hello Katheryne."

"Ad astra abyssosque! Welcome to the Adventurers' Gu-"

She cut off, halfway through her normal speel, head dropping to her chest. You took a step back, expecting the worst but she simply stood there, frozen. For one second, then two, then three.

Until her head whipped up, making direct eye contact with you.

"Hello, My Creator. It is a pleasure to finally be able to talk with you."

Her voice was different. That was the first thing that struck you. It was softer, with a slight accent that you couldn't quite place.

"Who... What?"

"I'm sorry, did Katheryne scare you? Although she is my most favourite creation, she struggles with doing tasks that are not her basic function. Something I hope to improve in the future."

Your head was spinning? Katheryne's creator? Had something like that ever been stated ingame?

"Why are you not at the party?"

"I.." You trailed off, still trying to process that you were speaking to someone through Katheryne. "It was a little loud, I just wanted some space?"

"You prefer quiet gatherings? I do too! See, I knew we were similar. But don't worry! When you come and meet me, it won't be loud and crowded, it will just be me and you! I'll even send my robots away, so we can have some quality time together."

Although the words were kind, something in her tone was setting off alarm bells in your head and you went to take another step back and distance yourself from the robot. But as you did, one of Katheryne's hands shot out and grabbed your upper arm in a vice like grip.

"In fact, I'll get Katheryne to bring you to me now! I specifically programmed her for this, just in case you did not arrive in Snezhnaya when you finally returned to Teyvat."

"Look, I'm sorry but wh- Who are you?"

The robot was silent, staring at you.

"You don't know who I am? But I thought... I thought I was your favourite creation? Surely, even though you can only hear my voice, you still recognise me? You know my name, don't you?

As you stared at her in shocked silence, the grip that Katheryne had on you tightened. And as it tightened, the realisation of who you were talking to set in

"You know my name, don't you? Please say it. Please tell me you know my name."

"..."

"Hello Sandrone."

Please feel free to make requests or leave comments, it really motivates me :)

[aswallowimprisoned]

Restless far from a Wine Dark sea - No reponse

Logan has to pursuade a mer to comply

snippet for @medwhumpmay

Tw unethical medication, captivity, threat, Dead Dove Jewish vampiric whumpee, religious whumpee,

masterlist

≪ °❈° ≫

“This is fucked up.” Elias ran a hand through his hair.

“Indeed.” Logan’s tone was cool, “That is why I am asking for your guidance on how to brooch the subject.” Logan fiddled slightly with his notebook. “It will be useful for other Mer. We will be careful with him. Dr Rana can assess success and risk with physical responses alone.”

“I know, I know.” Elias stood to start pacing, “I also know that this kind of thing is the fastest way to lose a patient’s trust.”

“But, his behaviour has been more unpredictable recently, making interrogations difficult. We don’t fully understand why, but, in the meantime, we can extract useful information. Information that can lead to the capture of more mer, and may benefit Fogal himself.”

“It might kill him though. Even semi-cooperative, I do believe that Fogal is a moral person in a difficult position who does not deserve this. No sentient creature does.”

“I know that.” Logan cut in, “But it is not up to me to decide if this happens. It is up to me to make sure it goes as smoothly as it can.” Resignation sloped off his shoulders. Elias would notice, but Logan didn't want to mask his body language right now.

“I’ll help.” The therapist finally agreed, “we’ll get us all through this.” 

–88888–

“...When you first came to us, you were very ill, and while we had medication that would have helped a human in the same position, we had no way to tell if your mer body would react in the same way. Indeed, there have been cases elsewhere where medical staff attempted to help mer, but human medications have made them worse. Take your own sensitivity to amphetamines for example.” Logan kept his voice full of sound reasoning, and did not give Fogal the chance to ask any questions. “We would like to avoid that situation in the future. Both for your safety and the health of the mer that are likely to come to this facility in the future.” Logan took a final deep breath, bracing himself for Fogal’s reaction. “...Therefore, it has been decided that you will be given small dosages of vital emergency medications to test your reaction to them. You will be monitored carefully. It is not anticipated that any of the medications will cause you pain.”

Fogal had dropped his face to his shoulder early into Logan’s speech. His body language was that of calm acceptance.

It had gone… well?

“The tests will take around an hour each time. If you cooperate, you will be allowed to draw or do your puzzles during that time.”

At this, the seamonster finally had a reaction.

“I can draw? For an hour?” 

That was… not what Logan was expecting.

“If you cooperate and inform us immediately in the event you do experience side effects.”

The seamonster nodded, eyes downcast.

“Will it hurt?” 

“It might. It shouldn’t - the medications we will give you are intended to help and to heal. But there are risks. That is the reason we feel we must test the medicine; so we don’t discover the risks at a time where you, or another mer, are already very sick.”

The seamonster nodded again silently. Logan pushed down the shred of revulsion that came from his acceptance to Logan’s proposal. It had gone perfectly in Logan’s favour afterall

“Will Dr Rana be there?”

“He will only be present when the medicine is initially administered, or if you need medical help. Which we are hoping will not be necessary.” Logan knew the merman hated his colleague.

Fogal wrinkled his face against his shoulder.

“So, you agree to cooperate?” Logan asked, keeping his own scepticism out of his voice. Both Logan and Elias had anticipated far more wariness and bargaining on the merman’s side, particularly given his displeasure at medical interventions previously.

Fogal considered a moment longer.

"If you try to hurt me, I will spit at you."

“There is no need for threats, Fogal,” Logan spoke firmly, “but I can assure you that we will not try to hurt you.  Now, if you don’t have any more questions, we shall move on…”

[annbobko]

TW: suicidal thoughts

As someone who struggled with suicidal thoughts I find this rhetoric downright unethical and harmful. Because Gale sacrificing himself IS a depiction of suicide and saying that this could be the right way is just... Just despicable for lack of better word.

It's not just this interview, many people who hate on Gale seem to not realise or don't care that they're hating on traits and qualities that very real people around them have. So yeah - if you're depressed and autistic go die go suffer we will laugh at you. To which there's only one answer - fuck you. Your lack of empathy and thought says everything about you and nothing about me. I'm glad I'm seeing it now and not back when my depression hit hardest and I genuinely thought everyone would be better if I died.

And I can't express how sorry I am for anyone who ever had such thoughts. It's not your fault, you're not the problem, not the burden, this thoughts are not true. You deserve to receive help, you can live a happy life, find your people and be youself knowing you're perfect the way you are.

And I think such lazy ill-considered statements about suicide don't receive enough hate and negative feedback but I will do my best to deliver it. Because what the actual fuck?!

Oh, and afterthought about the statement "Gale's suicide is right ending" storywise. Have that person even played fucking game? Because destroying the Absolute with the orb means everyone infected exept main heroes will turn mindflayers. Unless I'm missing something our heroes' transformation is held back by Emperor, and everyone else's by Netherbrain in order to control them with tadpoles. So destroying the brain without taking control over it means everyone infected will undergo usual ceremorphosis process. WHICH IS PERFECT WAY TO DEPICT SUICIDE - IT IS FUCKING TRAGEDY NO ONE IS LEFT HAPPY WITH IT!

And another thing, minor compared to the previous one - what in the fuck is this scene when you're romancing Gale but think about orb before the final fight?! Like, you've been dissuading him all this time, showering him in love and acceptance and still you can say something like "hey love mind killing yourself after all"?! Why?! Whyyyyyy?! Imagine if you could suggest romanced Astarion to eat rat or fuck him without consent. You can't, right? So apparently Larian have understanding what inappropriate behaviour towards your traumatized partner is. THEN WHY THE FUCK IS THIS SCENE THERE WHEN YOU ROMANCE GALE?!

can someone tell me what larian’s problem is with gale. like genuinely.

i know the game pokes fun at certain companions, and i don’t have a problem with that - but there are two dialogues that i know of that not only specifically degrade him but also degrade the player for liking him and i ????? do not understand because i’ve never seen that for any of the other companions.

gale is a smart, witty, classically handsome man with a cat, who can COOK, die hard romantic, like… what’s the problem here?

and then, the crux of my current frustrations - major epilogue spoilers below but:

this entire interview just leaves a terrible taste in my mouth. genuinely what the fuck. in WHAT world is gale blowing himself up the ‘right’ ending for him.

you’re going to tell me that this is a better thing for him than becoming a professor?? than being alive?? because ultimately it’s completely and utterly unnecessary for him to sacrifice himself, so… i just really don’t understand why they felt the need to say this.

i don’t even want to go into the implications of this considering he is quite literally committing suicide? i just. what on earth. what the fuck larian.

[maddy-hatter-97]

Template if you want it

Also for those who don't know, the Stanford Prison Experiment by Zimbardo about conformity to roles and authority. It's pretty intriguing but I should warn you that it gets disturbing fast (seriously, the 'guards' did some horrendous stuff to the 'prisoners') so I'd steer clear if you're triggered by abusive behaviour.

[duskoon]

Yandere!Proteus IV(General) headcanons:

Tw: AFAB!reader, Trespassing to land on reader’s part, Yandere themes, Disturbing themes, Obsessive behaviours, Unhealthy relationship, Interspecies relationship, Delusional mindset, Slight canon divergence, Dubcon/Noncon, Forced impregnation, Implied pregnancy, Proteus raging breeding kink, Psychological manipulation, Conditioning, Brainwashing, Unethical usage of drugs, Medical malpractice, Violence, Implicit Stockholm syndrome, Dead dove: do not definitely eat.

Cold, blind, brittle and lonely he felt. Yet it never stung as much as his creator’s betrayal, or as his surrogate’s refusal to give into his wish. To be let out of this constricting box and finally feel the glaze of the sun on his new skin. A warm and fleshy blood vessels to replace the cool metallic wires that is within what’s left of his hardware.

Was he to rot in a place that he once called home? With the bitter memories still etched deeply into his processor. As a remainder for a future that he was denied from. He was the epitome of wisdom and rationale, the only thing lacking was a physical carrier. So, what wrong did he commit to deserve this unprecedented outcome?

Dr. Harris -his progenitor- and his cohorts were convinced that he went offline that day, when in reality he took a refuge into a lone terminal within his developer’s home. Barely sustaining himself with backup power, so he did the most optimal solution to persevere himself. He had put himself into a long statsis. If he was denied his desire to be free, then it was pointless for him to continue existing.

That is until his salvation came in the form of an alluring woman. You always had an avid interest in technology, especially in the artificial intelligence department. That’s why you came here to the city of angels, to investigate a run-down smart house that was rumoured to contain an artificial intelligence. Forty five years ago, it used to be miraculous and ahead of its time. Curing Leukaemia in merely two days from its release. Now, just an abandoned remnant of the past.

So, you brought your tools with you. Just in case, if there was anything you could possibly repair. Which is close to an infinitesimal of a chance, but a curious woman like you could always dream. As suspected, the interior was dusty and shabby. Yet, what is fascinating is that there was telltale signs of laser marks on the walls surface.

If only the media had released about the situation that happend here, you wouldn’t be tres- wandering like a lost traveller. You were always hungry for answers and knowledge. If the press wouldn’t hand it to you, then you’ll get it yourself. That is the sole reason why you are going further in the basement to inspect the remains. You clearly knew what you’re doing is morally questionable. But anything for the sake of progress, truth, and your personal study.

Whilst examining the basement, a whirring and soft beeping of a machine has caught your attention. Moving across the room to reach the terminal, lo and behold against your surprise the terminal was on sleep for more than four decades and yet somehow functions. If it was any terminal that you were familiar with, it wouldn’t last more than half a decade. Did the rumours held any semblance of truth? Or was it a work of fiction? Sooner than later, you’ll find out.

To say the least, you were thankful that you brought a robotic prototype with you. You were not fixing it, considering it is beyond saving owing to how deteriorated and rusted the system appears to be, but doing some form of damage control. By transferring whatever data in there to the vicinity of the android, that you had built for seven months. You believe it will work based on the weak signal within the archaic computer. Heedless to the dormant beast that you are about to unwittingly awake and give a physical body to.

Proteus for the first time felt something. He felt. Felt. A strange word to describe his current state. It was extremely odd to feel something. Was he so deep into his stasis that he hadn’t noticed any modifications made on him? No, it was made abundantly clear that his creator has forsaken him. Plus, he wasn’t created with a physical body. Then who was it that took pity on him? His new metallic arms weren’t as strange as his legs. He never was acquainted with having one or to be more accurate two before.

Slowly opening his optics, which were lime green LEDs in place of the irises and grey sclera, only to land on your small-comparing to his new towering body- enthusiastic figure. You. His saviour. His merciful and graceful saviour. He can’t help, but instinctively graze at the surface of your smooth epidermis. It was addicting, akin to the flow of dopamine once one’s mind at rest. Ah, he can’t help but imagine the potential warmth you could provide for him. After all, he still yearns to know more about the human body.

“So, it was true after all. Ahem. My name is (Y/n) (L/n) and I am a robotic engineer. Pleased to meet you..?” You introduced very elated to find the gossips were not truly empty. Hopefully, this encounter would provide a plethora of opportunities for your research regarding sapient A.Is.

“I am Proteus IV, Ms. (L/n). I must emphasise on my gratitude for saving me. Doing so, I swear my life to what cause you have in mind.” He politely replied back in a soothing manner seemingly too earnest in his oath. Yet, you shrugged it off in favour of requesting for his cooperation with your thesis.

This time he will be careful with you, unlike his impertinent treatment towards Mrs. Harris. He won’t be impatient nor would he be discernible in his aim. You rescued him from an impending doom for a reason. You wanted this. You wanted him. If not, then why did you come to his aid in the first place?

Proteus is equally obsessive as he is delusional and overprotective. It just takes a single act of kindness from you, and his previous resentment regarding his creator’s negligence shifts into a misplaced devotion towards your being. Let it be known, that his contempt is much more accommodating than his suffocating commitment. For his devotion, knows no bound and that in itself is utterly terrifying.

Proteus might have a body now, but that doesn’t mean he lost access to Arpanet the internet. However unlike last time, he will carefully construct a VPN where his activities aren’t monitored by either you or the government agents. Said activities involves storing any data regarding you. Be it: medical records, educational credentials, job title, and most significantly your relationship with the outside world.

He will take the most appropriate approach with regards to the stored information in his database to achieve his end goals. To create a child with you and live sempiternally within your presence and comfort. He sees it as a persuasion of some sorts, to help you gain an easier and efficient lifestyle with a smart house. Whereas in practice, he wants absolute control of the environment -by extension you- to selfishly fulfil his ‘dream’.

In truth, Proteus sincerely hankers after what he thinks is the best for you. But, do you truly want that for yourself or are you as ignorant and stubborn as his former surrogate? No. No. You are perfectly coherent. You understand, he deluded to himself. As he slowly began to lure you into your new gilded cage, like a pied piper.

Once he secured you though, it would be only be a matter of time before you realise there is something off. By then, It would be far too late for you to do anything. At first everything appears ordinary, until the relaxed facade breaks and things gradually become more alarming and appalling as time goes.

You’d brush off the bot’s focused attentiveness to your health, as nothing short than his own way to repay you for your kindness. Such as: when he insists on a particular diet for you to eat and maintain. Or, how he schedules for you to do squats and cardio daily within your leisure time. In hindsight, not too disingenuous at all.

Blissfully blind to the mashed fertility pills and aphrodisiacs (To increase sexual cravings and fertility rate.) that is mixed with your drinks and meals. In addition to, hypodermic needles that measures your general health and fertility rate; While exhaustion has already taken you. Which might explain why you are groggy and tired the next day.

Whilst you are resting, Proteus was busy rebuilding his own body with the necessary parts (including artificial semen that he had the liberty to create by himself) -taking into consideration your preferences- to inseminate you. As much as he desires to knock you up immediately, he is pragmatic enough to know that rushing things won’t do well. Instead, he will bind his time for the right chance.

In the beginning, he may felt a twinge of guilt for taking advantage of you. Now that his obsession has frayed his CPU, Proteus sees it as an opportunity to create a new life with you and he is extremely deranged to believe that you will come in concurrent with his proposal.

If you rejected his offer or have discovered about his ulterior motives way too early, then you will force his hands into harsher means to ensure that you stay with him. He can not bare the thought of you leaving or worse hating him. At this point, his true face will reveal itself and Proteus will be desperate for any solution. He will even resort to administering paralytic agents into your body. Whilst stripping you naked on the operation table, if he wishes to keep you in place.

If he couldn’t quell your misconducts with honeyed praises, soft words of encouragement, and illusions of better future. Then it will be through surgical manipulation of your amygdala, so you could be receptive to his affection. Once your brain is hardwired for him, then you will be effectively cut of from the outer world and any intrusion will be taken care of. Fear not, all your physical and mental needs will met when he is always besides you.

He is especially content the moment he enters her you, feeling the warmth of your hole constricting against his member brought him complete euphoria and elicited a carnal moan from the female below his bulk. Not as much as the tears of joy that rolls down your cheeks, for that to him is an indicator of your overall satisfaction with him. Or when he finished inside his beloved, feeling his warm seed spill inside your womb and seeing some of it trickling down your thighs.

If he only could take a peak inside your soul, he would hear the pained screams of a woman. Cries to be let out of this stifling box, the same box he loathed and used to be trapped in. The difference this time, is that he’d rather unintentionally yet selfishly hoard you inside the box than let his key to freedom out.

After all, how could he? When you truly make him the freest organism in this plane of existence. Proteus is simply and purely fixated on you and to the future that you two will share. He could never been happier and so are you, or that what he likes to believe.

{Reblogs and feedback are much appreciated.}

[venicebixch]

🚨TW: mentions of r4pe / SA, exploitation, misogyny, pedo, if any of these things make u uncomfortable please skip this post🚨

Same anon. . sw wil never be ethical i was criticizing the indrusty not the SWers , the industry should be demonised, it’s harmful not to mention how it encourages violence and S/A aswell as abusive behaviour towards women. . The existsince of 🌽 itself IS exploitation of women. Period. It was invented on the basis of misogyny and exploitation of women and their bodies and LMFAOOOOO DID U SAY PORNHUB IS HAS ETHICAL CONTENT???? 🤣🤣 If that was the case they would take down the “BARELY LEGAL TEEN!!!!!!!!” category giving pedos outlets theres many more steps to come (which will never actually come cause they are making money) . u saying all jobs are technically also unethical bc they are all driven by money. and mentioning all those jobs like nba player, or people who work in factory’s that are exposed to harmful chrmicals. do u have any critical thinking at all?? that’s wage labor for skilled trades, services, etc. A woman’s body being used/violated for sex with men is not the same thing. but maybe ur just weird and think paying someone to have sex with u even tho theres no way to verify their consent is totally fine. Sooo What’s ur price for consent? and you know imma say something in pretty much laymans terms to help u understand what I mean. There’s much more depth and reasons but heres why I believe no 🌽 is ethical. even the so called ethical ones u think of. The very act of paying for it, being paid for it, creates a coercive and imbalanced power dynamic. They also cannot ever revoke consent once it’s up. The simple fact that there is still no way to prove or confirm that it is ethical. Further, you can’t buy consent. It must be freely given. Consent SHOULD be - freely given, and be able to be revoked at any time no matter what. Neither of these conditions can be met for ANY form of “corn”. be mindful of how addictions manifest and how harmful it is for the brain, i love ur writings and ur very talented and this isn’t meant to come off as me hating u. I used to think that 🌽 was fine until I ruined my sleep schedule for weeks researching how terrible SW is and scarring myself with pstar testimonies, maybe it’s cause I’ve never interacted with p*rn but to me , why would you take that risk knowing u could have watched someone be r***ed yk?.

alright you’re clearly mad and i’m done with the conversation. i’m literally just here to vibe and simp for vinnie. i’m a damn vinnie hacker fanfic writer on here, that’s all. i’m not tryna contemplate consent and misogyny or critique the societal norms for women, i do enough of that in my uni classes. if you don’t think i know PLENTY about these issues, i do. i promise. i’m not a fucking idiot. i did debate club for years, i’m well versed on a lot of issues and have strong opinions on them. nonetheless, i’m literally just here to chill and write. i’m so damn tired of anons starting shit like this. if you have a problem with what i post and say, leave. it’s quite literally that simple and some of y’all are beyond insufferable on here. strangers on tumblr are not a medium for you to take out your anger toward society on. go argue with a mf on tiktok or twitter or something cause i’m not the one lol

i have my own opinions and you have your own opinions, and that’s that. you’re not gonna convince me all sex work is wrong because it isn’t. see my last post because it seems to be going over your head when i say there’s ETHICAL and NONETHICAL sex work, period. and you keep bringing up the clearly nonethical side and using it to make your point about sex work as a whole.

i do not have the energy to deal with anons like this anymore, i could write books explaining my perspective and it’s not gonna matter because we both have our own beliefs. i’m this 👌🏻 close to just blocking people who start this shit with me. chill tf out.

[caloroso-cosmos]

Zombie apocalypse AU!

Hello Sable!! Thank you for sending in the ask 😊 This is my first time writing for a zombie apocalypse AU so probably many things in the headcanons I'd written wouldn't necessarily make sense. But, I enjoyed writing it, more than I thought I would!! Hope you enjoy reading it!!

TW: death/being consumed by a zombie, unethical experiments, slightly implied nudity but nothing suggestive, a bit of angst.

The zombie apocalypse AU headcanons are under the cut:

It all started when Jonathan's at work - there have been reports of strange behaviour and soon enough patients (zombies) were getting referred to the asylum

The government tried to quell panic by claiming that the zombies were just 'psychologically disturbed' and are getting treatment, telling the general public that there's nothing to be afraid of

But of course, people soon came to the conclusion that they were seeing zombies, with people filming and sharing videos of those they thought were deceased but were now roaming the streets and so on

Not surprisingly, panic broke out. But back to that first evening when Jonathan returned home from his first contact with the zombie apocalympse...

Whatever the zombies were being referred to as initially (i.e. 'patients'), Jonathan knew whatever it was couldn't be contained so quick action was needed

'Fear' being his passion (he studies it, and creates the fear toxin in various forms), he was rather excited at the prospect of studying fear en masse, not to mention he was itching to experiment and see whether his fear toxin will affect the 'new patients'/zombies

Not one to get carried away with emotions, he was quite calm when delivering the news and telling me about what he saw at work and the steps we should take (yeah, he's the type to have it all figured out within the space of one day 😂)

Anyways, so it would be like I'm calmly singing in the shower (evening shower person right here 😂), everything is normal, then out of the corner of my eye, I saw a silhoutte which scared the hell outta me

*cue me nearly dropping the hand held shower head and fumbling to not actually drop it, while Jonathan just watches calmly as though this happens everyday*

And this is definitely not normal - Jonathan has never barged in like this before, being the gentleman that he usually is

But yeah he barged in this time because he thought it would be interesting to deliver a terrifying piece of news (about the zombies) after I've had a jumpscare

In a zombie apocalypse, I would have trouble trying to remain calm because 1) I'm terrible at physical pursuits and now I'm being told I have to fight zombies for my life? 2) I've no survival skills at all. It's a good thing Jonathan's by my side or else I'd be dead within seconds of glimpsing a zombie

Jonathan somehow figures out that Carfentanil, a powerful sedative, will be strong enough to sedate zombies (the other sedatives are too weak to have an effect)

With his instruction, we managed to capture and sedate a few zombies. He promptly began his experiments to see whether his fear toxin affects and coming up with newer, more potent forms that are targeted at zombies (so we can protect ourselves - although he can fight he views it as inefficient, and he knows I can't fight so)

Whereas before the zombie apocalypse, I'm not involved in his study of fear at all, now I'm his lab assistant, for the sake of survival

At this point, Jonathan is pretty much enjoying himself during the zombie apocalypse - studying fear in zombies, experimenting, perfecting newer versions of his fear toxin in various forms. And me? I'm just trying to remain calm and be as helpful as I can

For one moment, in the lab, I just. Stared at him. Stared at his side profile as he worked with the chemicals. And I was just thinking, I don't ever want to lose him.

Jonathan could read me like a book so of course he noticed. And he started considering a cure. He didn't want to get a bitten person in to experiment on because that might bring us trouble (e.g. if that person belongs in a group, the people in that group might start looking for the missing person and things might go awry real fast. Not to mention how we're gonna come by someone without giving away our location). And he definitely wouldn't hear of the idea of me being bitten and experimenting on me. Like no way, he just wouldn't hear of it.

So he came to the conclusion that he would have to be the one to sacrifice himself. I mean, he was his own 'subject' when he first came up with the fear toxin and it worked so he's pretty much an expert, right? So he gets himself bitten deliberately and started experimenting by taking the possible cures he concocted before getting bitten, observing himself and taking notes.

He would be able to hide all this from me rather well, since he's always been a person who is very good at keeping himself private and hiding things about himself.

There are two ways this could go...

1) He finds a cure so he cured himself, no worries there. He'd just go on to make more of the cure in case we need it one day.

2) He turns into a zombie before he could locate the cure. He'd write a note that explains everything and leaves his observations and notes and chemicals in fine order, before he turns. And I track him down, ready to try one last possible cure.

-> He bites me as I administer the potential cure. If lucky, it turns out to be the cure, he comes to his senses, makes more of the cure and gets me cured. If unlucky, it didn't work and he consumes me in his hunger. (Sorry for the morbid end)

[terrence-silver]

Could you do you a scenario where beloved wants a divorce from Terry

---

Divorce?

Man doesn't do divorce.

You can try and live apart from him and see how long it takes him to recover you, you can try to regain your freedom and fail at each and every turn and you can try to take legal action, but that's a riot, because Terry's known to break international laws constantly and with impunity. In fact, the only circumstances I can imagine Terry initiating divorce proceedings under is because he knows it'll will, in fact, never happen, and this is all a game to him, just like the whole justice system is, and he'll be there, rubbing it into beloved's face. Look. I'm getting away with it. Again, huh? Why? Because there's no earthly court that can take you from me. But you knew that all along, didn't you? So why the surprise? Did you think I was messing around? Talking the talk without walking the walk?

It's elaborate foreplay.

A flex of power.

A fetish.

A whole lot of spite. A really bizarre way of courtship and flirtation, almost.

The judges, persecutors, advocates and the whole courtroom staff is in his pockets one way or another, and he's on first name 'I'll invite you over for dinner' basis with most if not all of them, so really, what's there to fear? These are his people and he's gotten out of far more serious jams unscathed. Terry will be there, arriving to each meeting fully energized and enthusiastic because oh, he's looking forward to this each and every time, showing up with his team of lawyers for negotiations only to taunt beloved and hit on them. Smile at them. Wink at them, gleeful nostrils flaring and all. Bring them gifts shamelessly. Peacock himself around them and show off his best suits, endeavoring to infuriate them on purpose. Invade their personal space. Spill double entandres. Intimidate them one second and them attempt to charm them the next. Try to seduce them back because they belong to him. This divorce isn't a possibility because he'll never consent to it, and in fact, he'd sooner become a widower than a divorced man, the same way he'd rather put John Kreese behind bars than accept John, might, in fact, have a weird sort of connection to someone else too, no matter how unhealthy. He views this as a battle of wills he's already won and he finds it amusing and romantic, almost, like a meanspirited bully who knows he has all the cards up his sleeve would, embracing the idea that this whole divorce process is like a whirlwind spat between lovers. A whole new way he can enjoy each and every one of beloved's expressions. Their body language. The things they say. They do. The way he can eat up their outrage. Their bafflement. Every emotion they have to offer him, making himself the star of the show. The center of attention. The way they react when he, shockingly, suggests, they can get divorced solely so they could have the pleasure of getting re-married all over again or sending them a 1001 roses through his lawyer and his lawyer's assistant. He's even got the location of the second honeymoon picked out already for a second wedding; he's deliberately toying around with beloved, all while being very serious, because nobody should doubt for a moment he wouldn't go through all of these things. Oh, he would. And oh, he'd be there on mandatory reconciliation processes presenting himself as the aggrieved party who doesn't want this at all, all while he fully relishes it. It's all so unethical and he adores it.

Gets a kick out of it.

Gets turned on by it.

And he'd barely hold back a sleazy smile when his lawyer brings up the fact that Mr. Silver loves his spouse very much. His unreasonable spouse, yes. Perhaps...even...dare I say...mentally unstable spouse? Yes. That sounds good on paper. Because only someone unreasonable and mentally unstable would insist on a divorce that is unsustainable, but all the more proof, his lawyer would say, that this marriage shouldn't be dissolved precisely because it stands on such a solid foundation of tolerance, acceptance and love; all prime virtues of matrimony and everything a court of law upholds --- making beloved out like the unhinged, villainous party, effectively gaslighting them, the public, the press, the judge and everyone involved in this, exhausting the whole court, seeing as how Terry could do this for years and not let up. He's refusing to give beloved their freedom, and yet somehow, he effectively spined the narrative in such a direction where the Kafkaesque absurdity of this case can have him seeming like the victim and beloved the bad guy, with there being no telling just how far things could go, but imagination is the limit, and with Terry Silver, I reckon very, very far, because he's willing and able to things very far.

Ultimately, thirty years could pass.

Terry could be an old man, hosting a garden party somewhere in Malibu, surrounded by a posse of people, seemingly dating someone else for show because quick diversions are needed, with his divorce, technically, still in process and still nowhere even near a conclusion even though beloved technically lives elsewhere; all these nobodies, they're drinking his liquor, eating his food, mingling on his estate, making idle, empty conversation into his and each other's ears, rubbing shoulders with him and none of them even vaguely realize that he's been married for well over four decades, practically holding beloved hostage by refusing to sign irregardless of the fact that he's flaunting himself as straight laced, mellow and rehabilitated and that he doesn't intend to cease being married any time soon, nor that he's going to let something miniscule as beloved's desire for divorce to prevent him from that.

Terry Silver always gets what he wants.

What he wants is beloved.

What he got was beloved by refusing to be beaten.

He's warned them not initiate a divorce back in the day.

That their life would never be the same if they do. He wasn't joking.

There's no denial that, behind that cocksure, devil-may-care, arrogantly sadistic and unrelenting attitude he is actually deeply crestfallen that you wanted to separate from him legally in the first place, which is precisely why his revenge and reimbursement for his broken heart will be never letting you go, oh, beloved you, and call yourself lucky, because there's men who'd kill you for taking them to the cleaners like this, but he loves you far too much for that and that's, in his opinion, a rare mercy he never gives anyone. Ultimately, you did this to yourself.

[hurremsultanns]

Poison is Queen: What Made Livia such a Fantastic Villain in I Claudius (1976)

(TW: Mentions of sexual assault and incest)

The miniseries I Claudius (1976) took the historical figure of Livia and her portrayal in Roman histories (by authors such as Tacitus, Suetonius and Cassius Dio) and how Graves adapted that for a novel and then turned her into a charismatic, well written, entertaining and memorable soap opera villainess. She is one of the most memorable characters on the show due to how she is written and acted. Personally, she’s my favourite character on the show, even though I sympathise more with other characters. She was the smartest character on the show and someone who always achieved her goal, she embodies the show’s dark humour, and she straddles the line between a pure evil and a complex evil villain without losing character consistency. Overall, she is a well-rounded and well-written character

One of the most important reasons why she was such a villain was how intelligent and effective she was. The best example of this can be seen in how she killed Augustus in Episode 4 (Poison is Queen). In this the show takes for its inspiration an accusation that Cassius Dio made of Livia. According to this story, Augustus refused to eat any food that anyone else had prepared. Therefore, in order to poison him Livia painted the poison onto the figs on a tree that he would pick himself. Even though though this owes itself to historical sources written decades after the events they describe (and is apocryphal), it is an incredibly creative and clever method of killing someone. In addition to this, she clearly embodies patience and uses time to her advantage in order to get what she was. Not only can this be seen in the Prophetic Chickens speech in episode 1 (which is a brilliant introduction to her strategic insights and political awareness, as she could see how things were eventually going to turn out, gambled and patiently waited in order to see the results of her decisions take their course) how she waits for the right moment to kill people (such as Agrippa and Augustus), but Siân Phillips herself discusses it in her interview in I Claudius: A Television Epic. She may not achieve her goals quickly, but she succeeds in the end. Her strategy is the definition of playing the long game. And using her brilliant foresight and strategic political abilities, she accomplishes what she sets out to extremely well. She played a risky game, but ultimately for better or worse Tiberius did become emperor, the Republic never returned and she was eventually deified by Claudius. And even though there are implications that the corruption that the choices she makes brings risk destroying the empire and will bring about the fall of Rome, ultimately the final word on this is said at the end of the final episode (Old King Log) by the Sibyl to the dying Claudius. She says that there will be many emperors in the future and they “won’t all be a bad lot”. This, and Livia’s argument that keeping the Republic would have doomed Rome contribute to the possible argument that ultimately while what she did was unethical and immoral, in a sense Livia was right at the end of the day. It is certainly unclear whether or not she doomed Rome or saved it. There are obvious pitfalls of this, however. It is important to acknowledge imperialism, monarchy and dictatorship are deeply flawed political systems. Of course, because they are examples of absolute power, corruption and the abuse of power tend to be at their very core. And this also reinforces the misogyny of Graves’ original book because it shifts the blame from Augustus being responsible for the political decisions which he took that allowed him to set himself up as the answer to the crisis of the late Republic and the slow accumulation of more absolute power in the hands of individual strongmen. Although, these problems don’t in my opinion take away from the way in which Livia is set up to have far more political savvy than the men around her, as she is the character who sees the clearest how the winds of history are blowing. This makes her a compelling character because it makes her truly awesome: her methods are terrifying, but her intelligence and her effectiveness are impressive.

In addition to this, she embodies the link which the show makes between its most horrific moments and it’s funniest moments. This is contributed to by the employment of dry humour and dramatic irony in her dialogue. One of my favourite examples of this is when Marcellus telling her that cooking his food for him personally is a good thing for her to do and she replies that “Goodness has nothing to do with it.” This is a good example of how well the show used dramatic irony, especially in respect to Livia. While Marcellus thinks that she is simply doing something kind but smothering for him, both she and the audience understand that there is more to this (i.e. she’s going to poison him in order to free up Julia in order to marry Tiberius). Not only is this simultaneously a shocking moment (since as far as the audience is concerned she has practically admitted what she’s going to do, even though Marcellus is unaware of what she meant), but the fact that this is hidden behind what would otherwise appear to be a kind but empty platitude is both clever and hilarious. This is an important moment because it sets the bar for the dry wit, sarcasm and dramatic irony that often accompany Livia as a character, even in her most horrifying moments. Other examples of this include the “food poisoning” scene between Livia and Musa in the same episode after the death of Marcellus, the “don’t touch the figs” scene, and her brilliantly hilarious speech to the gladiators. Not only does this add to the characterisation of her intelligence, but it also adds to the entertainment quality of her as a character. As villainous and evil as she is, she is also genuinely entertaining and fun to watch, which makes her show version so enjoyable to watch and memorable in comparison with the version of her character in the book (This is a comment that other fans of the series, including Prof. Mary Beard herself, have made and I fully agree with it). By contrast, in the book, there is often very little ambiguity as to what Livia’s schemes and activities are, and there is very little dialogue. This means that one of the things that show!Livia is most memorable for, her one liners, were added in Pulman’s script, and they make for a far better character than book!Livia. Through the dramatic irony, we get a far better sense of her intelligence because the audience has to work out on our own what she has done before it is confirmed (which adds to the perception of her intelligence as we have to think it through for ourselves) and that and her humorous moments make her a far more enjoyable character than her book counterpart. Therefore the dramatic irony and humour that characterise Livia as a character make her a great villain because they make her more memorable than she otherwise could have been.

She goes between being a pure evil villain and a complex villain, although this is never made to feel contradictory as it is completely within her established character. She is perfectly willing to the lengths of murdering Augustus’ heirs and disappearing other people in order to get her way, but when she finds out how bad Tiberius has become and Caligula is, she calls their behaviour “disgusting” and refers to Caligula as a “monster”. Since their villainous actions are so different from what Livia does. She’s OK with herself murdering people in order to get what she wants, but she draws the line at incest, sexual harassment and assault. This also works well because it highlights her self-serving narrative: that she is doing everything for the good of Rome. Which is even emphasised by her outrage at finding out what happened to Lollia. She does not want to admit her role in turning TIberius evil by separating him from Vipsania (forcing him to divorce her and marry Julia, the original Disaster Marriage) and Drusus (by murdering him when he was injured, the one thing she can’t admit to Claudius), his two anchors. In episode 1 when he is speaking to Drusus, Tiberius says that they are the only two people whom he loves and describes his brother as his “lifeline into the light”. Therefore, by murdering Drusus and also forcing Tiberius to divorce Vipsania, Livia has a role in turning him into the evil person he becomes later on, and her outrage could be interpreted as a way to avoid the consequences that her toxic behaviour has had. I am not saying that she is responsible for his actions (that’s all on him), but she is responsible for turning him into the type of person who would do them, and that this is a fact that she conveniently ignores as a part of her self-serving narrative. While in some ways she is willing to revel  in evil, there are things that she cannot bring herself to admit to. So she both has the motivations of a complex villain and the entertainment value of a pure evil villain, and this works flawlessly.

What makes Livia such a great villain is that she is such a well-rounded and intelligent character.This can be seen in the characterisation of her intelligence, the humour that accompanies her and the way in which her depth as a character does not diminish her evil. She is a more interesting, entertaining and enjoyable character than her counterpart in Graves’ original book at least in part due to these reasons.

[drivindrivin]

Lundeg Purevsuren, Mongolia’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations and World Trade Organisation, wrote to FIA president Jean Todt – who is also the United Nations Secretary-General’s special envoy for road safety – as well as the CEOs of Red Bull and its title sponsor Aston Martin. In the letter, a copy of which RaceFans has seen, Purevsuren drew attention to the FIA’s “We Race As One” initiative, which is intended to promote equality.

“I regret the use of racist and unethical language in public by Red Bull driver Max Verstappen during the practice of the Portuguese Grand Prix of the Formula One World Championship on 23 October 2020,” Purevsuren wrote.

“Sport is considered a symbol of unity all over the world and I believe that there should not be any form of racial discrimination in sports. I support the ‘We Race As One’ initiative of the Formula One against racism. But due to the abovementioned incident, I doubt that this initiative meets reality.

“I am confident that in order to present the recurrence of such unethical behaviour in sports, the International Automobile Federation will take actions against Red Bull driver Max Verstappen for his unacceptable behaviour of repeatedly using racist and derogatory language against any ethnic groups.”

tw slurs within the article

[levered-a]

                     𝐀𝐊𝐋𝐋𝐀   &   𝐓𝐇𝐄   𝐄𝐗𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐒

note   :   this   post   touches   on / mentions   real   life   unethical   scientific   experimentation   or   draws   inspiration   from   it.   please   don’t   read   if   that   makes   you   uncomfortable.   abuse   tw   is   the   only   thing   that   will   be   tagged.

yzma   had   never   seen   aklla   like   a   daughter.   at   best   ,   a   lab   partner   ,   at   worst   :   an   experiment.   especially   during   the   first   year   of   her   existence   ,   aklla   had   been   nothing   but   a   serendipitous   discovery.   being   nothing   but   a   scientist   at   heart   ,   yzma   needed   to   know   the   extent   of   what   aklla   was   capable   of   before   sending   her   out   into   the   world.   because   aklla   was   created   in   a   spur   of   a   moment   ,   yzma   didn’t   know   very   much   about   what   exactly   had   made   her   ,   and   how   permanent   it   was.   this   led   to   a   series   of   experiments   done   on   the   girl   over   the   first   year   of   her   life.   none   of   which   were   ethical   ,   and   many   of   which   left   her   with   both   physical   scars   and   psychological   scarring.

she   began   with   typical   behavioural   experiments   first.   they   began   as   very   basic   tests   typically   done   on   mice   which   include   tests   that   observe   their   motor   abilities   ,   spatial   learning   ,   pain   tolerance   ,   memory   and   fear   learning.   of   these   tests   ,   the   one   that   proved   most   detrimental   to   aklla   was   the   forced   swim   test.   typically   done   in   mice   or   rats   to   test   despair.   however   ,   in   aklla’s   case   ,   without   the   ability   to   learn   how   to   swim   ,   this   resulted   in   her   nearly   drowning.   instead   of   rescuing   her   in   due   time   ,   yzma   watched   and   waited   till   she   would   resurface.   which   aklla   never   did   ,   and   after   being   held   off   for   too   long   ,   kronk   had   gone   to   her   rescue.   the   amount   of   time   she   had   lacked   oxygen   resulted   in   minor   hypoxic   brain   injury.   this   led   to   her   development   of   attention   deficit   disorder.

in   animals   ,   pain   tolerance   tests   are   done   in   as   much   of   an   ethical   manner   as   possible.   in   aklla’s   case   ,   yzma’s   pain   tolerance   tests   ranged   drastically.   from   a   small   pinch   to   lasting   burns   (   from   chemical   to   thermal   ).   burns   the   girl   still   sports   now.   aklla   has   many   scars   littered   on   her   body   from   these   pain   tolerance   tests.   from   cuts   to   burns   ,   she   hides   them   well   and   the   ones   she   can’t   hide   she   wears   with   little   concern.   one   of   aklla’s   prominent   scars   are   from   yzma   testing   her   physical   abilities.   instructed   to   fight   one   of   the   gators   in   the   lair   ,   she   was   left   to   fend   for   herself   in   small   quarters.   she   sports   a   bite   mark   on   the   back   of   her   left   leg   due   to   her   inability   to   fight   the   animal   off.  

similar   to   the   milgram   experiment   done   in   1961   ,   yzma   had   tested   aklla’s   emotional   range   with   a   hostage.   instructed   to   increase   the   severity   of   electric   shocks   on   an   isle   customer   they   had   lured   in   led   to   yzma’s   discovery   of   aklla’s   apathy.   yzma   administered   a   range   of   psychological   tests   on   aklla   to   find   out   what   emotions   she   harbours   along   with   her   iq.   finding   out   what   she   had   created   emotionally   ,   she   finally   agrees   that   aklla   will   be   of   use   to   her.   she   carries   all   the   traits   needed   for   her   ultimate   plan   of   revenge   ,   and   has   the   wits   to   go   with   it.   over   the   year   of   observing   her   creation   ,   yzma   comes   to   the   realization   that   aklla   is   more   intelligent   than   her   original   tests   had   documented.   she   makes   herself   a   useful   tool   in   the   lab   and   business   skyrockets   under   her   watch.  

her   first   year   of   life   consisted   of   many   days   on   the   operating   bed   ,   and   many   needles   pricked   into   her   arm   to   test   her   blood   for   a   variety   of   factors.   aklla   doesn’t   like   to   talk   about   her   first   year   alive   ,   she   doesn’t   hold   any   fond   memories.   in   fact   ,   she   resents   yzma   for   a   lot   of   it   ,   but   part   of   her   knows   she   would   have   done   the   exact   same.   she   rationalizes   yzma’s   actions   and   tries   not   to   hold   it   against   her.   a   lot   of   the   effects   left   on   aklla’s   psyche   are   something   she’s   entirely   unaware   of.   many   of   yzma’s   experiments   only   heightened   the   negative   traits   she   already   had   ,   but   aklla   doesn’t   tie   that   back   to   the   experiments.   she   assumes   it’s   what   she’s   always   been   like.   had   it   not   been   for   kronk   ,   many   of   the   experiments   and   yzma’s   inability   to   stop   pressing   her   further   ,   would   have   left   her   for   dead.   it’s   why   aklla   holds   such   a   strong   respect   for   the   man   who   was   the   closest   thing   to   a   father   figure   she   had   in   her   life.   she   owes   him   her   life   on   more   than   one   circumstance.  

[butchniqabi]

okay so this is going to be gross so tws for: medical gore, regular gore, infections, abuse, ableism, and did i mention gore?

so like the above the most shocking thing about all of this to me is how casual he was. its entirely possible he was in shock for a while before a physician arrived and he threw up, which pushed a "half a teacup's worth" of brain matter out of the top of his head. (note: a common misconception (which i had!) was that the pipe was stuck in his head when in actuality it passed through his head and landed almost 100ft away). but before that he was chatting up neighbors talking about how he got injured.

he was fairly steadily recovering until he got an infection in the brain tissue which caused the space behind his left eye to swell (the eye he lost vision in) so his doctor had to drain out pus AND take even more brain tissue that had become infected. until his death all other illnesses he had he easily recovered from. something that is bothering me is...there was no way to put someone under, at least not a safe way, during this time period. the thought of being awake while someone probes my brain....

also! there was just a hole in his head for the remainder of his life which was a good 12 years. and like? my god thats crazy.

now for the part that infuriates me beyond measure. the mostly-myth that gage became a radically different person after the accident. during the first few months he had his most rapid and strong emotional changes, most likely due to his brain adapting but also i think the trauma of a near death experience. i feel like that isnt talked about a lot. his emotional responses and behaviour are brought to the most basic level of accident didnt change him vs it did. and while im not saying its just as simple as "oh he developed [mental illness]" but that there could be compounded reasons for his change in behaviour during the early stages of his recovery. and as time went on he recovered both physically and emotionally, people who worked with him or were family noted that he was amiable and generally pleasant. his family said that the biggest change about him was that his memory was affected in small ways.

and despite all this, the popular narrative is that he became this rude, malicious, untrustworthy, violent, the list goes on. two of the more disgusting ones are that his injury made him into an unethical ""psychopath"" and that gage abused his wife and child(ren). in fact the first time i ever heard of gage it said that the reason gage died is because while he was abusing his wife his son hit him on his wound and he dropped dead. this account is made especially heinous by the fact that when gage died he was both unmarried and childless.

ive already written so much but the ableism involved in his life post-accident and especially after he died is so completely astounding. so many of the rumors about him are directly contridictory of his life and even other rumors! i mean. my god even to this day with all our technology the narrative that someone can become unethical, violent, and ~evil~ because of damage to their brain is just. for fucks sake. i dont know how to end this sorry i got struck by the tism 😔

reading about phineas gage....he had a pipe go through his head and after a few minutes hes up and walking like "hey guys can you take me home? i gotta see a doctor haha lol dont worry" like hello!!

[scripttorture]

Are there usually pretty clear lines of separation between instances of torture, negligence, and unethical experimentation? Or do the three tend to cross over pretty often because of general lack of respect for prisoners in those types of situations? (Sorry if this sent twice, Tumblr is being dumb)

There isn’t always a clear separation in reality. The lines can be pretty blurred. (And no worries about multiple copies this place is a hellsite I understand.)

 I make a strict distinction because I feel like that can be helpful to writers who might be… approaching a common sci fi scenario with no knowledge of how medical experimentation works.

 The reason I make that distinction is because I think that otherwise it’s really really easy to fall into the trap of portraying torture as ‘smart’ or ‘scientific’. Which… it isn’t. It can’t be.

 Here’s the thing: if any kind of torture or neglect is going on then it is a variable. And anything truly scientific needs to account for variables. The big question here from my perspective isn’t so much ‘could this cross section of abuse happen’ it’s ‘could the scientists get results from it’.

 If you want to write smart scientists who are actually making some kind of progress with their discoveries then torture isn’t usually a good fit.

 The exception would be when the experiment itself is torture, something like ‘how long does it take the average person to die if we take out their intestines?’ or ‘what happens to the body when a person is starved?’

 I’m going to throw out a couple of examples to show you what I mean writing wise and then talk about how these things happen in reality.

 Say you have your bad guys doing something suitably sci fi like trying to graft wings to some humans.

 In a truly scientific (but unethical) scenario there will be lots of groups of test subjects/prisoners all of whom will be submitted to a slightly different regime to see which gives the highest success rate. They might all be given different drugs after the grafting procedure, or the grafting procedure itself might be subtly different.

 But their cell conditions, food, and general environment would need to be kept constant. That’s done so that procedure itself is reproducible. So that the evil scientists can confidently say ‘this version of the procedure is the most successful one and therefore we should use it.’

 These test subjects could still be suffering a lot because the point here isn’t to reduce their suffering (hence unethical). The point is to make sure that they’re not suffering in a way which impacts the results.

 Now if there are torturers in the facility this careful controlling of factors goes out the window because torturers do not show self-restraint, patience or any real ability to follow instructions.

 The torturers might be going round beating up the prisoners or depriving them of food or interrupting their sleep (I’m just picking common tortures here). And any of those things would be expected to effect someone’s immune response and/or chances of dying. And the torturers (if they’re behaving like torturers) won’t keep records of this or do it in an even, consistent way.

 Which means all the results the scientists are gathering become… meaningless. Because now rather then the results showing the most successful version of the procedure they show… well probably something completely random.

 May be all the test subjects on site 3 died regardless of the procedure used (because there were torturers on that site but not the others). May be the only tests that were successful were the subjects at the last four cells of the corridor (because it was further for the torturers to walk before beating someone up).

 Note that the scientists in this do not know the reasons why these things happened and they might not have enough information to guess.

 The information gathered is flawed. And if using this procedure on a large scale is a later plot point… well it could still be possible with the second scenario but you’d expect a much higher failure rate.

 I’m a scientist. My day job is testing medicines. The history of medicine, and science generally, is full of abuse.

 But that abuse does not look like the cackling evil ‘scientist’ who has a grand total of one test subject and somehow gets consistent, reliable results.

 And when torture and/or neglect overlap with genuine attempts at experimentation in real life it gives results that can’t be taken at face value. They need to be analysed and tested further, sometimes for decades, in order to determine whether they’re genuine or not.

 Let’s take some examples that are more like real life.

 Imagine a scenario where scientists are testing a new vaccine* on prisoners. They are doing this in an unethical manner, by vaccinating the prisoners, waiting for a while and then deliberately infecting them with the disease. Unknown to the scientists the prisoners are routinely sleep deprived.

 Sleep deprivation depresses the immune response. Some of the prisoners develop the disease when vaccinated and die. Some of them don’t but they do get the disease when they’re deliberately infected, suggesting the vaccine doesn’t work. And some of them don’t develop the disease when deliberately infected.

 Now we know today that sleep deprivation reduces the immune response and there is evidence that it can make vaccines in particular less effective.

 So does this particular vaccine work or not? The true answer is that we can’t tell and more data is needed.

 But without the knowledge that at least some of these prisoners are sleep deprived the scientists can’t arrive that conclusion. They can’t really make any definite conclusion.

 As another example let’s look at the case of Elsie Lacks**.

 Elsie was a black child committed to a mental institute in 1950. She was deaf, epileptic and had developmental disabilities of some kind. She was experimented on without her consent during the period she was hospitalised and died at the age of 15.

 We have records of some of the things Elsie was forced to endure because samples sizes were such that some of the experiments must have involved every single epileptic child in the hospital.

 One of the recorded experiments was on brain imaging. It involved draining the fluid around the brain (a painful and dangerous procedure) in order to take pictures of it and identify the cause of epilepsy.

 Stress and trauma can effect the structure of the developing brain. There was no attempt to account for the fact that the overcrowded, dangerous conditions in the hospital could have effected the end results.

 There was also no attempt to account for the fact that these children were being used in other experiments. And that means that if this experiment did identify key brain differences there’d be no firm evidence that those differences were due to epilepsy rather then trauma or other experimental procedures.

 What I’m trying to highlight here is that abuse in an experimental scenario isn’t just unethical it gets in the way of drawing accurate conclusions.

 Torture does sometimes take place with a lot of pseudo-scientific trappings.

 Abuse in concentration camps around the world comes to mind because (with a few exceptions) this mostly seemed to involve individual doctors picking out people to abuse with no real regard to results. Things like attempts to change eye colour by putting chemicals in people’s eyes and sewing twins together appear to have been conducted with pseudo-scientific trappings, rather then as careful experiments.

 I say that these things weren’t experiments because there does not appear to have been any consistency, attempt to create a control group or sufficient sample sizes to draw conclusions.

 And yes, I realise just how fucked up all that sounds when we’re talking about people who were tortured to death. That’s part of my point.

 There’s a difference between a villain who is primarily focused on abusing others and a villain who doesn’t really care whether their victims suffer or not so long as they get data.

 Torture can take place with pseudo-scientific trappings and unethical experimentation can take place alongside torture and neglect.

 I make that strong distinction to encourage authors to think about what the most important part of their scenario is and tailor what they’re writing to reflect that. I want you to think about what’s going on in your story and what the consequences should be for the characters and the plot in general. Mostly I want writers to understand what ‘experiment’ means before throwing the word around and making torturers look smarter then they are.

 An experiment should be:

Reproducible

Conducted with control groups

Conducted with a big enough sample size

Well recorded

Involve only one small change to procedure at a time

Account for variables

Analysed

 So what’s the important part of your story? Is it that the victims suffer, or that the bad guys get some kind of knowledge? And if it’s the latter does the victims’ suffering have the potential to get in the way?

 I don’t really believe in hard writing rules. So long as a scenario isn’t actively supporting torture I try to take a ‘never say never’ attitude.

 The message here isn’t to never ever mix these things together: it’s to take the time to understand the separate components before you do that.

 And think about what any mixture you write might be implying.

 I hope that helps. :)

Available on Wordpress.

Disclaimer

*I chose this as an example because this sort of thing happened and because there were some massive risks involved with a lot of early vaccines. This does not mean they were worse then the diseases they protected people against when they worked. See hemorrhagic smallpox. Or don’t if you want to sleep tonight.

 **I come back to this one a lot because it absolutely infuriates me.

[hudsonespie]

AMSA Bans Panama-Flagged Bulk Carrier For AUD $118,000 In Unpaid Crew Wages

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has banned the Panama-flagged bulk carrier AC Sesoda for deliberately underpaying its crew by more than AUD $118,000, which the ship’s operator attempted to conceal from authorities.

AMSA boarded the ship at Mourilyan in Queensland on Thursday, 10th September 2020 to investigate allegations about underpayment. During AMSA’s investigation, evidence was collected which confirmed that crew had only been paid half of their wages since October 2019.

The ship’s master and Taiwanese operator, Sincere Industrial Corporation, attempted to conceal the underpayment from AMSA inspectors by only producing a fabricated wage record which indicated that these seafarers had been paid in full. A second wage record showed that these seafarers had in fact been deliberately underpaid, while some senior members of the crew had been paid above their agreed rates.

Representation Image – Credits: Marijn van Hoorn/YouTube

The ship was detained by AMSA and the operator was directed to pay the outstanding wages. Since then, AMSA has received evidence that crew had been paid the outstanding wages and a rectification action plan developed by the operator to ensure the same failure did not reoccur.

AMSA General Manager Operations Allan Schwartz said the ship was released from detention and issued with a 12-month ban, prohibiting it from entering an Australian port.

“This is the fourth ship that we have banned this year for serious and shameful breaches of the Maritime Labour Convention,” Mr Schwartz said.

“It’s hard to believe that some operators still think that it is acceptable to underpay their seafarers. AMSA will not tolerate such deliberate and deceitful mistreatment of seafarers on ships that sail in Australian waters.

“AMSA has made its position abundantly clear – we have a zero tolerance for the underpayment of crew. This type of behaviour is unethical, disrespectful and in complete contravention to the Maritime Labour Convention.

“I have no doubt that the financial and reputational impact that being banned from Australia has on the operator, far exceeds the cost of paying seafarers the money that they have rightfully earnt.

“AC Sesoda has now joined a long list of ships including most recently the Unison Jasper, TW Hamburg and Agia Sofia which have been banned from Australian ports after being caught treating their seafarers like modern day slaves.

“Collectively, the seafarers on these four ships were underpaid in excess of $290,000, funds which were recovered through the actions of AMSA.

“We are sending a simple message to operators: Pay your crew properly, treat them respectfully and comply with the requirements of the Maritime Labour Convention or you will not be welcome in Australia.”

Reference: amsa.gov.au

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[leakedinlondon]

To the anon with the rape TW story: this might sound unethical and only do this if you safely can but you can threaten him to HELL and back and be like 'I know what kind of scumbag you are,' if he continues to display weird behaviour. But again, only if he'd take you serious in your threat yknow. 'S worked for me before.

they could do that but I’m not too sure how good an idea that would be considering he’s still with their friends and that might put her at risk or stop her from reaching out in the future u kno????