#vaccinate your goddamn kids

[sweaterkittensahoy]

Robert Kennedy, Jr. claiming "the man" is keeping the truth about vaccine dangers locked away.

Bobby. Come here.

Come. Here.

YOU'RE A FUCKING KENNEDY. YOU ARE THE MAN.

And like every anti-vaxxer, he's got fucking blood on his hands. The 2019 American Samoa measles outbreak was directly caused by his anti-vaxx work.

[sweaterkittensahoy]

My parents have smallpox vaccine scars. Smallpox is still a vaccine you get, but it doesn't require the puncture method anymore.

It's a two-prong needle now, but my folks got to stare down this bastard:

And I'm glad they did. Anti-vaxxers are some of the most hateful people in the fucking world. Why would you put your kid or yourself in danger of dying when you don't even have to face more than a double-prong needle to protect yourself?

For the anti-vaxxers Fuck you

[solarbird]

For years now, I have been railing against the Republican Party as a literal – literal – Party of Plague. In these closing days of the campaign, they have quadrupled back down on this in ways that will kill millions of Americans.

Not “might.” Will.

Appointing RFK, Jr. as czar of public health and letting him “go wild” will kill millions. Again, not might: will. Not immediately, no, but over time. Trump himself is utterly refusing to promise he and his party won’t ban vaccines and said on Sunday that RFK Jr.’s pledge to eliminate fluoridation of water on day one “sounds OK to me.”

If they do this and make it stick, millions will die. And an outsized number of them will be children.

Courtesy McNadoMD on Mastodon, here are a few of the diseases mass vaccination eliminated from American life, and which banning vaccination will bring back, along with some of their symptoms and progression paths.Howdy folks! Friendly neighborhood ER doc here. Did you know that Trump’s folks want to take vaccines off of the market? That means you can’t get a shot even if you want one. Did you know that the tetanus shot is a vaccine? If you want your kids to be safe from lockjaw (caused by tetanus), you want vaccines to be available. You know what else is a vaccine? Rabies shots. If a rabid dog or bat bites your kid, do you want your kid to be able to be treated before they die of rabies?

Lockjaw and rabies:

Diphtheria:

Whooping cough:

Polio:

You get the idea, right?

These aren’t the only ones. These are just a few of those less often mentioned in these modern times, because people have forgot they exist.

When I say the Republican Party is a Party of Plague, when I say it is a goddamn death cult, I mean every single one of those words in every way you might think.

They are promising economic ruin and they are promising ethnic purges and now they are promising mass death of children.

All while killing pregnant people for their vile sense of domination, of course. Let us never forget that, since their families certainly won’t.

One of the things their apologists keep saying is that “Trump doesn’t mean it” and “Trump won’t do it,” and “That’s just Trump being Trump,” and they talk about “Trump derangement syndrome,” and say that we’re stupid for believing what their candidate fucking says he’ll do, and meanwhile, they get enraged about shit they completely make up about us and the candidates who are with us.

We react to things their candidates promise. They react to shit they make up wholesale about us. We are not the fucking same.

If only the political press would catch on to that fact.

The very last day of a campaign is a pretty lousy time to bring up another topic, even if it’s not really new. But this is, again, so murderously psychotic that I can’t not bring it back up.

Maybe you can bring it up, too, on this final day of this hellish and evil campaign, this Monday, November 4th, 2024.

Zero days remain.

It is Lastday.

[mandiemegatron]

𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐞 || 𝟑𝟎 || 𝐓𝐚𝐮𝐫𝐮𝐬 || ♡

♡ 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐠 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟-𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧! 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐚𝐲, 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐧! ♡

🚫 MINORS, DO NOT INTERACT. 18+ ONLY.

♡ 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐥𝐬𝐨 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐀𝐨𝟑 𝐚𝐬 𝐌𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐞! ♡

° ᴍ ᴀ ꜱ ᴛ ᴇ ʀ ʟ ɪ ꜱ ᴛ °

𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐏𝐢𝐞𝐜𝐞

𝐅𝐢𝐜𝐬 ;

Fuck Up My Makeup : Eustass x cis!fem Reader, nsfw/nsft.

The World in my Hands : Eustass x cis!fem Reader, light nsfw/nsft.

Losing The War : Eustass x cis!fem reader. SADNESS AHOY! Pure angst.

Just Come Home (Losing The War pt.2) : Eustass x cis!fem reader. Angst.

Cold Breeze : Eustass x g/n reader. Small blurb!

The In-between : Part two of Too Much Labour. Kid/Killer x cisfem!reader. Some angst, mild nsfw-nsft themes.

Four Times We Missed : Law x cis!fem Reader. super sweet and feelsy.

Breathless : Law x cis!fem Reader, hella sweet and soft.

Another Year With You : Law x cis!fem Reader. Laws Birthday fic. Soft, slice of life, a little angsty.

Taste Of The Divine : Law x cis!fem Reader minific. 2/2, completed. nsfw/nsfw, heavy sexual content.

The Way You Look At Law : Law x GN reader. Small blurb.

(You Make Me Do) Too Much Labour : Law x cis!fem Reader. Some sexual themes present, mostly angst.

Here, With You : Law x cis!fem reader. Some sexual themes present. Winnings for @icy-spicy 💖

Worship Me : Doflamingo x cis!fem Reader. Mentions of sex, song fic.

Tangled Inside : Doflamingo x cis!fem Reader. nsfw/nsft

A Moments Peace : Doflamingo x cis!fem Reader. mentions of sex.

Die For Me (Live For Me) : Doflamingo x cis!fem Reader. Mentions of blood, beheading, heavy sexual content.

To Be Loved : Rosinante x cis!fem Reader. nsfw/nsft, heavy sexual content.

Con Corazon : Rosinante x afab!reader. Nsfw/nsft, heavy sexual content. Winnings for @laidenbreecatchall 💖

Added To The List : Sanji x cis!fem Reader. Fluff, slice of life, light sexual content.

Birthday Crumble : Sanji x cis!fem named Reader. nsfw/nsft, heavy sexual content. Birthday gift for @therion-woods

Tasting The Wonders : Sanji x oc! , Winnings for @leftsidebonfire ! Fluffy and soft.

Under You : Zoro x cis!fem Reader. nsfw/nsft.

Just A Taste : Zoro x cis!fem Reader. nsfw/nsft.

Almost Too Warm : Shachi x cis!fem Reader, nsfw/nsft.

Simplicity : Penguin x cis!fem Reader. soft, slice of life. Milestone Giveaway prize for @guilty-sugar

Vaccination Day (Penguins version) : G/N reader, silly mini scenario.

Surprise, Surprise : Kaku x cis!fem Reader. nsfw/nsft. Secret Santa gift for @wolfegoddess

In His Hands : Killer x g/n reader. Slight mentions of sexual themes.

The Danger Of Being Yours : Sir Crocodile x cis!fem reader. Sexual themes present.

𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐏𝐢𝐞𝐜𝐞 ;

𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐛𝐥𝐮𝐫𝐛𝐬, 𝐞𝐜𝐭...

First Time : Marco x Reader hc ; nsfw/nsft

First Time : Shachi x Reader hc ; nsfw/nsft

Abt. Doffy : Doflamingo x Reader hc ; nsfw/nsft

Fishman Shachi/Penguin : Shachi x Penguin x Reader hc/minific ; nsfw/nsft

Shachi with a Shy Reader : some nsfw/nsft themes.

Heart Pirate Boys sharing their hats with you! : Law, Shachi and Penguin x G/N Reader : suitable for all ages.

𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐏𝐚𝐠𝐞 //

All of my One Piece commissions done by various artists, all in one place! ♡ Will be updated occasionally 💖

𝐌𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐌𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 ;

𝐅𝐢𝐜𝐬 //

Sweeter Taste : Saeyoung x Reader. a lil Valentines treat.

Purple & Green : Yoosung x OC (can be viewed as reader as well)! Super sweet and silly. [Ao3 only, guess I didn't post it here!]

For The First Time, In A Long Time : Jumin x OC (can be viewed as reader as well) Jumin deserves to have a break, goddamn it!

♡ Created 08/11/23 ♡

UPDATED 06/27/24

[other-peoples-coats]

I read your sithspawn Obi-Wan au and I can't stop laughing it's so good 10/10. All I can think of is Qui-Gon walking in to find Obi-Wan staring at a wall being like "I can't tell if I got drugged or if I can see in UV now." and Qui-Gon not being sure if he should laugh or rush him to the healing halls. Or Anakin looking at old pictures of Obi-Wan and seeing more and more features show up as he gets older and Anakin being just so confused. Or what Cody's reaction to that would be.

I hope you're having a great day (your fics are great)

<3 cheers anon, I'm glad you like it! (and my other fics) but also l m a o yes 100%, obi-wan is always very casual with the 'so I might be dying or this is a fun new trick I can do now, 50/50 odds' and qui-gon always reacts with hahaFUCK. They get very familiar with the healers. There is talk of putting in a special code for the door, given how often master jinn has come bursting in, carrying his padawan over one shoulder, then flung him at the nearest bio-bed for scanning for some new exotic poison/allergy/weird reaction. (on the other hand, padawan kenobi is possibly the best vaccinated being in the temple, under the assumption that his genetics are so goddamn weird he might as well get the shots for mon cala mumps, montral pox, correlian bantha flu, and furred dropsy.)

There is at least several missions where they both get to play 'which of these cups/meals is poisoned' where the answer is either: a)neither (qui-gon is just Allergic to Random Local Ingredient); b)both (obi-wan is immune to Random Local Poison); c)One But Not The Other (which realistically is 'qui-gon's is poisoned; obi-wan's isn't', because if obi-wan's is poisoned it's basically the same as if neither is poisoned and qui-gon's not allergic to random local ingredient)

Anakin 100% sees holos of baby-wan and is like who tf is this random human kid?????? he does Not believe it's obi-wan until someone puts together a slideshow of like, here's babywan with teeny tiny claws. here's babywan with slightly bigger claws. here's babywan when he started growing his first set of horns! here's babywan--

(even then he is a bit doubt.jpg until the day obi-wan picks him up from baby jedi class and his pupils have changed shape or something.)

Cody is fine and cool about this. he is absolutely not stressed out that his jedi is of a species he doesn't recognise (even after delegating some slicers to traul the holonet about it) and is also best described as having a diet of 'yeah whatever'. he's totally fine that his jedi will run up a wall and skitter across a roof hanging by his claws. it's fine. this is fine. the man is a walking talking force powered radar dish that can see infra red and ultra violet and tracks things by scent as well as the undrana beasts the retreival corps use, it's fine, this is fine, he's can fit another antenna or radar or sensor on somewhere, there's space on his left bracer maybe.

[lesbianwyllravengard]

I'm actually so sick and fucking tired of people who think covid is comparable to the flu. Just bc you or a family member got it and didn't die doesn't mean it's not super fucking serious and life threatening, ESPECIALLY for disabled people/people with health issues/autoimmune disorders. Every time my father sees me wearing a mask he rants about how covid is just like the flu and that everyone is over reacting and [insert shitty conspiracy theory here] and it makes me so upset every goddamn time. I got covid half a year ago, despite doing everything right, thanks to my parents' stupidity. I was sick for 13 days, entirely bedridden and feverish for 9 of those days. I physically couldn't get out of bed, not even to piss, the entire first day my mother had to half carry me everywhere. Same thing the second day, when she dragged me to the doctor where I tested positive. The first five days, I couldn't even look at an electronic device and had to keep the lights off all the time bc I'd actually vomit. I had a migraine that didn't go away no matter what medicine I took, for the entire the first week. My nose was constantly stuffy and my sinuses were so backed up I couldn't breathe through my nose, which made breathing in general so difficult and painful bc my asthma was also exacerbated. So my chest hurt too. All my normal chronic pain was magnified tenfold. I had a 103 fever for three days in a row, then it fluctuated between 98-100 the rest of the time. Thinking about it right now I still remember the pain and how it felt. I've had strep throat, a lot as a kid. I've had chicken pox, and the flu several times, because my parents never fucking vaccinated us. I have never been more sick in my goddamn life than I was with covid. And this is just me. Yes I'm disabled and yes I'm still being tested for possible autoimmune disorders (my mom and her whole side of the family have them) but even still I'm not nearly as at risk as a lot of people, and I was still more affected than anyone in my entire family, who have all also gotten covid because of their own stupidity. My taste and smell were never affected, but I'm still losing hair from it, which is apparently also a symptom I never knew about.

Wear. Your fucking. Masks. Covid is still around, it's still super fucking serious, it is NOT just like the flu, and you had fucking better take it seriously. Even if you don't care about getting it yourself, at least show some goddamn consideration for others whose health and lives are at risk.

[bluetraverser]

Elliott headcanons - sick edition 2nd

When single

- super careful about never transmitting disease to anyone. Will avoid anything no matter how important when he thinks he might be contagious with something

- very pro-vaccine. Will get every fucking vaccine he can get for free. Anything he needs to pay for is a problem...

When married:

- WHINY. AS. HELL. Needs cuddles. Will tug at your arm when you walk by him to just get you to touch him for a moment longer. Will hesitate to let you go. Will make the biggest puppy eyes at you to get you to keep him company -> but only as long as he thinks he’s not too contagious or he’s too loopy to comprehend.

When married and contagious:

- “Stay away from me! I cannot bear the risk of pulling you into the abyss with me! Leave me! I shall endure my suffering in lonesome...”

“Eli, you  have a mild cold-”

“I SUFFER ALONE.”

When married and kids are sick:

- Dotes on them so, so much. Tea every hour with the most gentle and patient encouragement to drink it. The healthiest snacks for speedy recovery. If its a cold, they get a half dozen different kind of throat candies, honeyd tea, the best possible combination of great effect cough syrup with the least offensive taste. He will taste test the fucking cough syrups to find the one least offensive. Will make them soup, will read to them. Anything. Anything he could possible do to make them get through it better.

They throw him out more than once.

- FRETS. SO. MUCH.

When spouse is sick:

- Takes care of every goddamn thing in the world. The farm, the kids, makes every effort to make them feel better. All the things he does for the kids plus any comfort dishes he knows they like but also-> STERN. Will force himself to force his spouse to take the medicine and eat and drink AAAAALL the tea, no matter how much they hate it. As soon as he thinks his spouse is no longer contagious he will also cuddle them and kiss their hand and forehead all the freaking time trying to make them feel better and convinced, CONVINCED I DARE SAY - that his physical love will make them get healthy faster

- goes outside to fret so his spouse doesn’t feel guilty about making him fret

[noihavenosanitythanksforasking]

people who look down on people with irrational fears piss me off sm.

like yes sharron, we know it's irrational. its in the goddamn name. yet somehow its in my medical paperwork?? having an irrational fear doesnt mean like oh i get queasy when i see blood.

if i get a shot my life is over for the next 4 days. and funnily enough it all started when i went in for my yearly checkup when i was 12. i had to get some vaccines and i didnt want to get them bc ik every kid hates shots. so to avoid this i asked to go to the bathroom before they did it and pretty much holed up in there for about half an hour.

now my doctor was a bitch and was not very happy about this situation so she got a yard stick and shoved it through the lil pee door where you put your pee samples for the lab she glared at me and said that if i didnt come out they were going to unlock the door and drag me out of the bathroom.

so yeah i got outta the bathroom and right before they gave me the shots the doctor looked at me and said "its an irrational fear. get over it. its not a big deal" very deadpan very harsh.

anyway i left that pediatrician traumatized and ever since then my fear of medical needles has gotten so bad that i have to take almost the next week off if school and work whenever i get blood drawn. which ofc the doctors always want to do bc they think that will solve all my problems or something.

the last time i got my blood drawn i went non verbal for multiple hours and started twitching and hitting myself in the the face and making squeaking and clicking noises.

recently i went to a psychologist and got diagnosed with autism and when i told her about my thing with needles she diagnosed me with specific phobia as well.

anyways dont fukin tell my fear is irrational i already know if i could get over it i would

[sweaterkittensahoy]

Of note in the CNN article: RFK Jr. is making the worm in his brain claim but not providing any medical records to prove it when asked. A doctor speaking on the subject of brain worms explains that it should be possible to see the dead worm in the scans that RFK Jr. claim he had done to find the problem. So, why he's not sharing the scans is very odd.

I'm not saying he's making it up, but this is a man who is anti-vax and directly connected to American Samoa canceling their measles vaccination program for several months. Which led to a public health crisis that killed 83 people. He's also claimed vaccines caused a "holocaust" because what's wild, left-wing anti-science fuckery without some antisemitism sprinkled in for flavor.

And unlike RFK Jr., I source my shit (that'll get you to an in-depth AP news article about all of his fuckery).

Fucking hate this guy.

“Ate part of his brain”

[kevinwikse]

Vaccinated Cybernetic Jizz Pig for the Elite: YOU ARE A ROBOT.

Look, let’s get one thing straight—you're not living in blissful ignorance anymore. For the past 30 years, you’ve been a walking cocktail of microplastics. The "Apeel" chemical Bill Gates has his hands on, the one they spray on fruit at Costco and Whole Foods? It’s turning your food into lifeless, mannequin fruit. Welcome to North-fucking-Korea.

The v you took, unwittingly or not, is rewriting your DNA and slipping self-replicating nanotech into your system. This tech is creating new systems inside you, forged from your own body but not for it. You’re on the path to becoming a goddamn robot. A fucking replicant. For some of you, it’s an improvement—finally, a personality. Sure, it’s downloaded from the cloud, but at least you’d be bearable.

Westworld all day long, but let’s be clear: the future for you and your kids is bleak. Beyond being a sewer labor bot or the semen receptacle in some grotesque sex-stravaganza featuring Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and Harvey Weinstein, your prospects are limited. Luckily, your new programming will convince you to relish your role as a jizz pig for the elite.

Well done.

[vergess]

Can't say I'm shocked that we're starting off Letters from Watson by finding out which BNFs are antisemites, but I am horrified to see people whose memes and meta I personally enjoyed unmasking themselves.

At least the damned fucking substack operator isn't a raging shithead. Small mercies in difficult goddamn times.

Here's a pro tip: if you see a Jewish person publicly push back against an antisemitic stereotype, putting themself at risk? Your options are

1) Be quiet because you don't know enough about the situation.

2) Act as an ally to the Jewish person.

That. is. it.

There is no option 3.

Do I make myself clear?

You do not blame the victims of racism for being victimized! What is wrong with you?

You should be ashamed of yourselves. God knows I'm ashamed to be associated with you merely readers of the same bloody emails!

The antisemitism in fandom is not "limited" to the victorian era. It is not dead and gone. It is not "period typical". It is a constant daily barrage that we never, ever get a break from.

Just yesterday, minding my own ass business, I got the delightful treat of 6 distinct exposures (that I can remember today, looking back, so it's safe to say there were more) to antisemitic garbage.

On tumblr it was "jewish people use fandom to molest kids somehow."

At the doctor's office waiting room, it was "vaccines are a jewish microchip conspiracy".

We don't get a break, and it didn't fucking end in 1920.

Stop being a pathetic little gentile pissant! Make an effort to be an actual ally for once in your godforsaken little lives, would you?

Because that post was so painstakingly gentle and kind! And you wretched little bastards couldn't be nice about it.

So here we are Once Again.

With me.

The angry little Bitch Cockroach Jew here to cause problems on purpose.

Eat shit, you useless fucks.

[somedayonbroadway]

Criminal Minds AU? Just wanted to know if you'll ever actually do it

Criminal Minds AU

Welcome back to another Criminal Minds episode called “Amplification”

TW: deadly desease

Race hissed as he brushed past a rose bush and cut his hand. He shook it a bit as Jack walked on past him. This was no easy case and the young agent refused to slow it down with a minor cut. People were dying. A new strain of Anthrax was being passed around by someone deliberately trying to terrorize the public. And they might just be standing outside that person’s house.

When Jack’s phone rang, he stopped to answer it, not realizing his partner continued walking. “Spottie, we’re here now,” he assured, listening intently to the man on the other end of the phone. The sprinkler turning on behind him made him jump a bit and grab for his gun. He sighed as he made himself continue to listen. “What d’you mean the lab is clean?” he asked. “You’re sure?” He turned back to the house. “Hey, Race, Spot says— Race?” he squinted. “Racer?” Now he was beginning to get concerned. So he rushed inside only to have a sliding door to his left slammed shut. “What the hell are you doing, kid?! Open the damn door!”

But Race was shaking his head. “No! You have to get out of here! Don’t break the glass! Get out!” the genius boy yelled at him.

That’s when Jack saw it. A broken vile of white powder on the ground. “Shit, boy…” he breathed. “Race—“

“Get out of here, Jack,” Race insisted. “I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…”

All Jack could do was leave him there and rush out of the house, calling for the rest of his team.

—

“How’s Tony doing?” Denton asked, walking hastily up to Jack.

“He won’t tell me. The air is blasting and there’s white powder all over the floor,” Jack responded, walking back to the house with his boss. “I shoulda been right there with him—“

“I won’t waste time second guessing,” Denton ordered. “What do we know?”

Clenching his jaw a bit, Jack nodded. “Nicols is dead. Blunt first trauma to the head. Race thinks he’s been dead for two or three days. He can’t be our perp. But he took the vaccine. So he’s gonna be okay, right?”

Denton sighed. “We have an ambulance on the way, Kelly. I know you’re worried for Tony, but don’t let that cloud your judgment or ability to solve this case,” he insisted.

“That’s not an answer,” Jack insisted. “Will he be okay?”

Denton looked over at the young man. “I don’t know.”

Jack swallowed hard. He pulled out his phone and called his best friend, putting his phone on sound. “Jack… I really messed up this time,” Race answered.

Looking through the window and spotting the boy, Jack shook his head. “No. We’re gonna get you out and to the hospital, okay? I just need you to listen to me and trust me.”

“I’m staying right here, Jackie,” Race said without any hesitation. “I’m already exposed. The best thing I can do is try to figure out if there’s a cure. All the evidence is in here.”

“No, no, you’re going to the hospital, kid, because that’s what we do when we’re exposed to a major illness that can kill us overnight—“ Jack began as though he was speaking to a child.

Denton cut him off before he could finish. “Kelly, he’s right,” he argued. “If he’s already exposed, there isn’t much we can do for him. His best bet is to stay there and try to figure out who killed our doctor.”

Jack’s eyebrows raised in shock. “Are you actually serious right now?” he demanded. “That kid is small and he hasn’t eaten in a day, he’ll get sick too fast—“

“I can hear you, Jack…” Race sighed into the phone. “I messed up. But I’ll find a cure, okay?”

Jack held the phone close to his lips. “You better find a goddamn cure.”

Race smiled sadly before hanging up the phone and waving at Jack, trying to tell him in silence that he’d be alright. Jack did not appreciate that at all. But he bit his lip and waved back, not about to leave his partner behind.

—

Walking around the room wasn’t all that exciting, but it kept Race distracted. That’s what he needed. A distraction. He saw a dead body, some bleeding out of its head, two desks, one tidy and one a bit messier. Notebooks that had two sets of handwriting in them were scattered around the room. The dead animals locked in cages nearly broke Race’s heart.

Maybe if he ever got out of this room, he’d go vegan. Those animals didn’t deserve to die like that. But he looked over at the glass dividing him from the outside world and sniffled; it might just be how he leaves this world too.

He shook his head, trying to focus. Two sets of handwriting. A partner. A protege. The murderer and the victim had worked closely together. Race dug around, trying to find any trace of a name, something that would give this person away. He paused when he saw the books stacked beside the desk. He sniffled and shook his head. “Don’t be stupid, Higgins,” he whispered to himself. “She’ll be okay…” He shakily took out his phone and dialed a familiar number.

“Race?” David answered quickly.

Race sniffled, rubbing at his nose. “Hey, Davey,” he smiled sadly.

“Hey…” David looked down. “How you holdin’ up?”

Race opened his mouth like he was about to reassure the other man. In reality, he’d already begun to sweat. His curls were sticking down to his head and his eyes were growing a bit weary. He was sure they'd be red if he could look into a mirror. “Uhm…”

“You don’t have to lie to me, Anthony,” David assured. “Just tell me what you need, okay?”

The young agent sucked in a breath. “I need ta leave a message for my mom,” Race whimpered. “I… I can’t call her hospital because the staff will be alerted but— but if something happens to me, I wanna say goodbye ta her—“

“Tony, everything’s gonna be okay—“

“Can you please just let me do this?” Race whispered, hugging an arm around his middle.

It was too hard to answer for a long moment. David wished he could hang up and have the day start over again, but he couldn’t. So he nodded. “Okay… go ahead, kiddo.”

Race sniffled. “H-hey, mama…” he said, trying to plaster on a smile. She was always good at knowing when he was smiling or not, just by how he spoke. “It’s me… Tonio…” He steadied himself and nodded. “I just wanna tell you that I love you so much, yeah? And… how… how proud I am ta be raised by such a strong person,” he whimpered, trying to clear his throat to be okay. If he sounded okay. Maybe he would be. “I think about you everyday and I want you to know that… nothing that happened was ever your fault. I love you,” he whispered. “Bye…”

David sniffled. “Race—“

“I gotta go,” Race rushed out before quickly hanging up the phone.

The door opened and Race jumped, standing up straighter and wiping at the sweat on his forehead. “Jack,” he breathed. “Lookin’ like a million bucks,” he tried to joke.

Jack was dressed in a hazmat suit and helmet. “Yeah, I'm thinkin’ a’ changin’ careers. I’d be a badass astronaut,” he smiled, allowing another person to come in with him as Race laughed weakly. “Kid, this is Dr. Kim.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Dr. Higgins,” the doctor smiled. “How are you feeling?”

“Fine,” Race insisted.

“I can give you something for any pain you might be feeling,” Dr. Kim offered.

Race backed away. “I feel fine, thank you.”

“Well, they can also help get you more comfortable—“

“I don’t want any narcotics, okay?” Race insisted brashly.

Jack stepped closer to him so Race backed into one of the desks. “Get back, Jack, you shouldn’t be in here!”

“Kid…” Jack breathed. “You’re fine. You’re gonna be fine.”

“Just ask me about the case, okay?” Race pleaded.

So Jack nodded. “They don’t think the partner was something Nicols worked with. Any ideas of who he might be?” he asked. Race almost answered, but was cut off by a severe coughing fit that made Jack flinch. He wanted to rush to the younger man, but the doctor put her arm out to stop him. “Race?” he called.

Race sunk down to the floor. “I don’t know,” he rasped. “I didn’t find nothin’… m-my head hurts.”

“I know, but I need you to think okay?”

Race wheezed a bit to catch his breath as he lazily looked up at Jack before crawling over to the other side of the room. “I s-saw something before… syllabi… and what looked like a thesis paper. No author on it, thought it was his. A study of Anthrax.”

Jack nodded. “Okay?”

“A student… this thesis ain’t his, he was helping a student,” Race decided, coughing again. “Jackie—“ his voice broke, so he cut himself off.

Jack pushed away from the doctor and kneeled at the boy’s side. The kid was shaking. “It’s alright. It’s okay, just breathe, you’re doin’ real good, buddy.”

Race shook his head. “He ain’t a science major,” he insisted. “Check social studies, s-somethin’ like that. He wants to save the world, not destroy it—“ He hunched over, coughing even harder. Blood dropped onto the floor.

Jack’s eyes widened. “Okay, come on, I’m getting you out of here,” he insisted.

“We’ll hose him down and get him to a hospital,” Kim insisted.

Jack rushed him into a small tent and began undressing him. Race shoved his hands away. “Go help Denton—“

“No, I’m staying with you,” Jack insisted.

“You really wanna see me get hosed down, completely naked?” Race grumbled.

Jack rolled his eyes. “Stop… I’m staying with you, okay?”

Race nodded and let himself be undressed. “Davey better take good care of you,” he whimpered. Jack scoffed.

“Stop talkin’ like that. Stand up, come on, you can do it…” Race did. But when the water hit his body, he gasped and felt his face head up when he realized how many people were there. “You’re fine, kid,” Jack insisted.

For a moment, Race believed him. Until he began convulsing again, coughing and spitting B up blood. Jack shook his head, catching the kid before he could fall. “I’m fine, Jack. I fleel fim…” Race blinked harshly. “I flin fn…” he shook his head, tightening a hand in Jack’s suit. “I flul… J…” His breathing picked up. He couldn’t make the words come out of his mouth.

Jack shook his head. ��You’re okay, we’re taking you to a hospital,” he insisted, trying not to panic. “Get him into an ambulance!” he cried, gathering Race up in his arms as the boy began to fade, getting more and more confused by the second, his breaths becoming heavier and heavier. “You’re alright, I got you, pretty boy, just breathe…”

Race whimpered in his arms and by the time he got into that ambulance, he was unable to understand a single thing that came next.

—

Jack sat idly by his friend, eating a Jell-O cup and kicking his legs up on the bed. He breathed as steadily as Race did. It had only been a few hours. Thanks to Race’s big brain and Davey’s skills, they had found the cure and Jack would be here until Race recovered.

“Are there any more Jell-O cups?” a voice spoke from the bed.

Jack looked down at the boy and smiled. “Welcome back, Racer,” he whispered, handing Race the Jell-O he’d been eating. “How’re you feeling?”

Race slowly sat up and took a deep breath, coughing a little which made Jack’s eyebrow furrow the tiniest bit. “I’m fine,” he smiled. “Really, this time. How are you?”

Jack leaned forward. “Don’t scare me like that again, okay?” he asked. Race sniffled, nodding as a tear poked at his eye. Jack just sat on the bed and hugged the boy tightly. “You’re good, okay? I got you. Promise.”

[demonfox38]

Completed - Super Mario Bros.

Yeah, I know. You know what "Super Mario Bros." is. If you want to know about my failings as a person and how beating this game was a way for me to address them, click below.

Video games have never not been a part of my life. At least, as far as I can remember. The first console I had any experience with was, as it was for a lot of Millennial U.S. kids, a Nintendo Entertainment System. It was a Christmas gift from my mother to my father, a little sliver of luxury in the post-80s agricultural bust that plagued the Midwest's economy. From 1990 to 1998, this was the only console we had in the house. If I'm overly sentimental and sweet on it, it's because it was not only a link between my parents, but my parents, my sister (younger than this system!) and me.

Except for "Super Mario Bros."

Here's a funny thing. Young children? Not always the most coordinated. Me, at age 4? I definitely didn't have the concept of gravity down. I was proud enough just to figure out how to cross the first pit in 1-1. I tried to show my dad this, but he wasn't in the room at the time. So, I waited for him. And the game's timer ran out. And Mario died. And I thought to myself, "Oh. I guess I'm not good at this game."

And then I didn't touch it for THIRTY FUCKING YEARS.

Here's another funny thing. Okay, funny in a mildly traumatic way. I was not given a lot of room to screw up as a kid. Certainly, not academically. When it's drilled in your head that "your schoolwork is your job", you take it seriously. When you are applying to universities and colleges and your advisors keep encouraging you to take the ACTs repeatedly to get better scores and more financial aid, you do that. When you get a scholarship to a college that obliterates your tuition debt if you keep your GPA up, you damn well keep that GPA up. When you graduate post one of the greatest recessions in U.S. economic history, you will take whatever job you have and knock out the rest of your debts. Again, and again, and again, I was not allowed room for failure.

The only reprieve from this perfectionist demand was in video games. Even then, I had to grow a thicker skin to accept my flaws and defeat. It was hard to do, particularly with shrieking Simon electronic games and rotting Apple IIs and whoever thought it was socially acceptable to pair reflex gaming with mental mathematics. (There's a reason "Oregon Trail" is brought up as nostalgia positive and not "Super Munchers.") Honestly, it wasn't until I played "Star Fox 64" that I had the feeling of "Man, I suck at this game, but I want to try again!" That wasn't quite a 1985 to 1997 jump. More like a 1992 to 2000 jump. But goddamn. It took me a long time not to loathe failure, particularly with noisy, mocking electronics.

So, I'm thirty-four, at the moment. Not for all that much longer. I've learned how to handle debt, my pets, my health, the demands of my job, housekeeping, family relations, and generally what most people would expect out of an average adult. I replace old appliances to keep my house up to code and date. I haven't missed a single vaccination in a decade, despite loathing needles. I've replaced two toilet floats, one of my brake lights, and exchanged various console parts to keep my video game collection up and going for as long as possible. Hell, I've even got my video game collection registered with my home insurance provider. Weird? Maybe. Childish? Biblically, I suppose. The point is, I do things that are painful, annoying, or even frightening to keep me and my loved ones in a happy, stable environment. God knows I couldn't make it in this world without facing my fears.

And as small and petty as this goal was, I damn well didn't want to live my life being afraid of sucking at "Super Mario Bros."

It's stupid, right? Who gets their back up about "Super Mario Bros."? This is one of the most recommended games for newbies and kids! You run, and you get the mushrooms and flowers, and you spit fire and jump on shit, and problems get solved. It's just 32 levels, and really, you only need to do 8 of them. But, hell. Phobias and fears aren't always a logical thing, especially when the machinations of a child's mind are involved.

I'd still recommend "Pokémon Red/Blue" or "Dragon Warrior" before this one. I mean, yeah, you have to know how to read. Maybe having a basic comprehension of logic and budgeting doesn't hurt, either. I was doing better at those things when I was 4 than running through gymnastic death traps.

Okay. So. "Super Mario Bros." might be about jumping and collecting junk and sniping enemies with fireballs. Maybe saving a princess and seven of her idiot court members. We all get that. Even with simple, easy-to-understand mechanics, "Super Mario Bros." is no walk in the park. It's basically everyone's video game grandpa, if that grandpa was also Charles Bronson or Jack Palance. And goddamn, will Grandpa kick your ass the first chance he gets.

While I feared this game for a long, long time, I certainly didn't hate it. It's vivid, colorful one moment and ominous the next. The story is simple, but the character and monster design is diverse, both in the game and the industry at large. (I mean, how many plumbers are out there fighting turtles and dragons, anyway?) The music is driven and upbeat. It's no wonder that the "Super Mario" universe remains so globally popular. It's unique and over-the-top. Hard for a kid to ignore, at the very least!

The game is a marvel in ways that modern audiences may not always understand. It comes from an era where something as simple as scrolling screens was borderline wizardly. Yes, the lava is water and the clouds are bushes and many things are things in different colors. The amount of data compression going on here is impressive. Having duplicate levels with minor gameplay tweaks helps, sure, but it's neat how much this game puts out for just having 32 kilobytes to work with. I've got a few YouTube videos for your perusal, should you be interested in seeing how these levels are coded and assembled:

"NES Scrolling Basics Featuring Super Mario Bros. – Behind the Code" from Displaced Gamers

"Super Mario Bros. Glitch Levels Explained" from Retro Game Mechanics Explained

Honestly, think about how many video games prior to "Super Mario Bros." are in the collective consciousness for good reasons. Like, games your parents could name. You'd probably get a list with titles like "Donkey Kong," "Pac-Man," "Frogger," "Breakout," "Space Invaders," "Pitfall," or maybe "Pong," if they were rich and old enough for that. (Okay, maybe "Dragon's Lair" or "Sinistar" if your parents were really cool.) The best versions of these games were available to Americans in arcades. It was up to the shop owners as to what people got to play. Some games might have had decent console conversions, if developing companies weren't beating their staff like mules or bickering over copyrights with feuding studios. Maybe, if people had enough money, they could have invested in something like a Commodore 64 or an Apple II and gotten something more complex, along with practical software. "Super Mario Bros." was an equalizer in terms of quality and affordability, particularly to people like my parents—people with full-time jobs, no arcade access, and a tight budget.  

Man. Do you ever think about how a significant chunk of the console wars can be explained by a family's income and geographic location?

Okay. You know the Mario. You may be able to "Do the Mario." But, how did I get even a semblance of competency in this game, if I sucked so much at it?

Practice! Obviously. The least fun answer in the world! However, I took specific steps to improve my memorization and understanding of the game. First, I limited myself to a World a night in terms of practice. That is, a -1, -2, -3, and -4, each played all the way through without save stating. My usual gaming time per night is around 2 hours, breaking when my dogs need my attention. So, that would be about 30 minutes per level, right? Well, not quite. If I got through a level without losing lives or power, I didn't dwell on it. But, if I got injured or killed? That was when the grind locked in.

I had to pass a level 5 times before I allowed myself to check it off. Not consecutively, but in the best case, it would be. See, when I was in high school, I had a band instructor that taught me this particular semi-consecutive method for learning bassoon drills. If I played a set of measures right once? +1 to my score. If I screwed it up? -1. So, the greatest success would be a string of five +1s. But, if I screwed up, it took away one of my successes, resetting finally at 0.

That wasn't enough, either. For each level, I wrote down a series of notes on how to progress through it. I also gave myself a confidence rating in each level, which broke down like this:

S: Confidence Achieved

A: Can Beat Consistently in Fire Mario Form

B: Can Beat Consistently in Small/Super Mario Form

C: Have Beaten at least Once

D: Have Not Beaten

And you might ask, "What's the difference between an S and an A?" Just my feeling, dude. Because, hell. I might have been regimented about this, but I still had intuition and doubt to evaluate alongside actual data.

This weird behavior started coming out as I was running "Super Mario Bros." drills. I wasn't so much interested in avoiding danger as I was trying to figure out what I could get away with. Yes, it's common knowledge about how Goombas and green Koopa Troopas have no self-preservation when it comes to edges. But, what determined when a Piranha plant was comfortable in emerging from its pipe? Why did Bullet Bill launchers stop shooting when I was face-to-face with them? Did projectiles come in one or two shots? Were gray Cheep-Cheeps slower than red ones? How big was a Blooper's hitbox, and how much was it really following me? I can't say I mastered all A.I. behavior—certainly, not when it came to hammer-throwing enemies—but I had some surprising events when it came to stage and enemy manipulation.

There was a real turning point when I managed to dodge three Bullet Bills—two coming from the right, one from the left—and I laughed at my own survival. Like one short, ugly, mocking laugh! I could have never imagined myself doing that before! Not when I was terrified of this game's pinpoint perfect demands!

Reaching and defeating 8-4—the final level—was a particularly strange experience. I mean, we all know how "Super Mario Bros." ends, right? Even if we're not capable of reaching that ending ourselves. Like, when I beat "The Legend of Zelda", there was this feeling of contentment and peace. "Ah, Zelda! Nice to see you." Reaching Princess Toadstool? There was happiness, but I barely even registered her being on screen. It felt like, "I didn't do this for you, honey. I did this for me." And man, that was a weird feeling. Particularly, since she's one of my Smash mains.

Also, it bothered me as a kid when she went from redheaded to blonde in the Mario games. Like, I get the palette limitations of the NES were a factor in why she was a redhead, but it still felt weird and off when she went SNES blonde.

Am I good at "Super Mario Bros." now? Can I cold-perform a complete playthrough like "Star Fox 64"? Well, I feel confident enough to say that I can at least make it to 8-2 using a series of warps. And honestly, I'd probably choke and do something stupid in 4-1 first. And man, I really only got that 1UP Koopa shell jump trick to work a couple of times. But, the feeling is no longer, "Oh, no! I suck at platformers, so I can't ever possibly beat this game!" It's more like, "If I'm not being sloppy and remember how to recover from a bad situation, I've got a decent chance of doing this." I think that's pretty good progress, especially for just a week of practice!

If it helps, I can give you a list of things I wish I knew about "Super Mario Bros." way sooner:

You can continue from the first level of the last world you died on by holding A, then hitting Start.

You'll only get close on time on level 8-1. And by that, I mean you'll probably have 80-90 tics left on the timer. Don't get anxious about time, and don't be impatient.

Bullet Bill launchers and Piranha Plants will stop coming out if you are standing directly by their respective pipes.

Blooper hitboxes are smaller than you'd think. Their head is more dangerous than their tentacles.

Hanging out at the bottom of a water level is usually pretty safe, barring the 8-4 fire bars and some random Cheep-Cheep spawns. Assuming you're not in a pit, anyway.

Fire bars start in a fixed position and can be manipulated via controlling your speed and the loading edge of a level.

You're probably better off ignoring Lakitu. Unless you want 8-2 revenge on him, I guess. He is right there, after all.

Mario starts with three lives. Mario dies at 0 lives. But, as long as you keep trying, Mario has infinite lives.

[asphaltvalkyrie]

Disclaimer: I fucking love vaccinations. I think anti-vaxxers are a literal plague upon this earth. Holy fuck just read about rabies and polio and smallpox and diptheria and tetanus and measles and a dozen other debilitating diseases and holy shit man get your goddamn vaccinations and vaccinate your kids and your pets too FFS.

Its also worth adding that I'm an essential worker (vet medicine) - I never got a single day of quarantine time and worked through the whole pandemic. I also wore a mask every day.

But... I just have to vent a bit. I had a reaction to the COVID vaccine - the initial one was fine, but each of the 2 boosters I got had me bedridden for days with a high fever, severe body aches and dizziness so bad I could barely stand.

Then I actually got COVID last March - it lasted longer than the vaccine reaction, but was only a fraction as painful. I'd gladly take the 7 days of mild discomfort that actual COVID gave me over the 2-3 days of agony the vaccine put me through.

But, state and federal programs paid for all of the time off from work I had to take during both of those periods, so I didn't have to worry too much either way - it was worth getting the vaccine.

But those programs are no longer in place.

Because I had such a bad reaction to the vaccine and didn't want to miss any more work (I only get two paid sick days PER YEAR,) I've really been dragging my heels on getting the new updated vaccine just in case I react to it like I did the old one. Can you blame me?

But now I have COVID again. And I have to miss a full week of work, which is more than the 2-3 days I'd have missed from getting the vaccine. Again, its just mild discomfort, but

I just think its a little fucked up that I have to suffer both physically and financially for whatever decision I make, wrong or right.

That said, the right decision is getting vaccinated and I'll be getting the new vaccine once I'm over this bout and can afford to miss 2 more days of work, that is.

[rocknrolloccultist93]

Warning: vent post, which will probably only make sense if you happen to mostly or only like music from before CD's and MP3 players were invented.

Just once. Just fucking ONCE CAN THE GODDAMN UNIVERSE STOP KILLING MUSICIANS I CAN'T AFFORD TO SEE. TAKE A BILLIONARE THAT IS CAUSING OUR PROBLEMS. TAKE A POLITICIAN. TAKE ERIC FUCKING CLAPTON BECAUSE HE'S A RACIST DICKHEAD JUST LEAVE THE OTHER DAD ROCK MUSICIANS ALONE GOD DAMNIT. I don't even have it in me to be sad anymore. I'm just fucking pissed. DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH IT COSTS TO GO TO ONE CONCERT? I COULD LIVE 6 MONTHS ON THE PRICE OF A CONCERT TICKET IF I HAD TO. I COULD BUY A YEAR'S WORTH OF WEED. I SHOULD NOT HAVE TO BE ABLE TO AFFORD COCAINE TO GO TO A GODDAMN ROCK CONCERT OF A MUSICIAN I HIGHLY RESPECT. AND NOW THEY'RE ALL DYING. THE RICH BOOMERS, AT LEAST HALF OF WHICH ARE MISINTERPRETING THE MUSIC FOR THEIR OWN POLITICAL AGENDA AND HAVE ALREADY SEEN THEM BEFORE ARE THE ONLY ONES WHO WILL GET THAT EXPERIENCE BECAUSE THEY'RE ALL FUCKING DYING. If they only did box office sales AT LEAST I'd be able to fistfight real people to get a somewhat decent seat, but no. I HAVE TO FIGHT GODDAMN ROBOTS ON THE INTERNET KNOWING I WILL LOSE. We who actually have a lot to gain from going to a concert, don't have a chance in HELL at seing any of our favorite bands/artists, we have to sit here and FIGHT INVINCIBLE ROBOTS FOR IT. We have to DROWN IN COMPLACENCY BECAUSE WE'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO AFFORD IT. AT LEAST LET ME FIGHT THE RICH MOTHERFUCKERS FOR TICKETS AND GOOD SEATS. YOU WANNA KNOW WHY KIDS NEVER LISTEN TO GOOD MUSIC ANYMORE KAREN? HUH? BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE A GODDAMN DOLLAR LET ALONE HUNDREDS OR THOUSANDS THAT WE CAN THROW INTO TICKETMASTER ANY TIME SOMEONE GOOD DECIDES TO TOUR NEAR US. BECAUSE ALL YOU RICH FUCKERS DON'T HAVE THE BALLS TO GIVE UP THE ENTITLEMENT YOU THINK YOU HAVE TO THESE ARTISTS WHOSE MESSAGES YOU PERVERT FOR YOUR OWN TWISTED NARRATIVE. Have the day you deserve, rich bastards, keep doing dumb shit like refusing to get vaccinated so we can take your place and make things less shitty already.

[alex51324]

In case anyone's wondering what the CIA was doing impersonating health workers, it was when they were going after Osama Bin Laden, and they were taking DNA samples from kids, because they figured that wherever he was, there'd be a bunch of his relatives nearby.

The kids got genuine polio vaccines and were not directly harmed, so it isn't quite as lurid and horrible as some of the scenarios that might come to mind. But as Griselda said, the effects were pretty bad in terms of damaging trust in international aid organizations, especially US-based ones. It's pretty goddamn creepy to think about a foreign government's secret police experimenting on your child without your knowledge or consent, no matter how noninvasive it is, & even if you agree with the goal of capturing Bin Laden.

“that character is a war criminal” that character is from a fictional fantasy world and did not attend the geneva convention