#we can see what you say about us on the internet

[battybiologist]

My friend, there is no "donor money" involved here. This article is simply obfuscating the truth in an effort to smear China's reputation.

The money US zoos "gave" was not a donation for conservation efforts, it was simply the fee they must pay to the Chinese government in order for the latter to lend their pandas to them and other non-Chinese zoos.

The implication this article uses for why we should be offended by this money going into other projects is that zoos are a conservation measure. They are not: they are cultural entertainment at best. Even the best zoos in the world are not actually affecting the rate at which species go instinct, and they are rarely concerned with anything other than charismatic megafauna or otherwise well-known animals (I, for one, have never seen a pseudoscorpion exhibit).

With that in mind, the Chinese government capitalizing on the symbolic power of pandas for profit is not in any way whatsoever different from zoos making you pay to see said pandas. In fact, it's more justified, since the program is also a clear-cut example of cultural patrimony protection, and considering that the UK engages in such methods, it is wildly hypocritical of the Telegraph, an English newspaper, to criticize this, doubly so considering the British Empire has stolen the cultural patrimony of so many countries, including China.

In addition, despite what some dumbasses on the Internet may say, pandas can thrive just fine in Chinese forests. The real reason why they're endangered is habitat loss incurred by human activity. This habitat loss can be mitigated by sourcing construction materials from sustainable sources and developing a sustainable agriculture. Considering the PRC has been extremely diligent and efficient in its ecological projects without neglecting its economical development, the money from the panda rental program going into government projects will be beneficial to pandas and a whole host of other species Western zoos don't care about because they can't use them to sell tickets in a gross commodification of an idealized and reductive conception of nature.

[brightlyburningstar]

people on the internet piss me the fuck off

i understand the frustration about the jrwi oneshot being paywalled. i'm 100% for pirating it if you cant afford the 5$ tier (assuming its not the what if tier, in which case i too will be pirating it), and I absolutely get being frustrated that they haven't made public riptide content in just over a year.

however

JUST BECAUSE THEY HAVEN'T MADE RIPTIDE CONTENT IN OVER A YEAR DOESN'T MEAN THEY HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING ELSE IN THAT PERIOD OF TIME OR THAT THEY HAVEN'T MADE A SINGULAR UPDATE ABOUT IT!!

I UNDERSTAND WANTING MORE FROM GRIZZ AND WANTING IT BACK ASAP, BUT RUNNING A CAMPAIGN IS A LOT OF WORK!! EVEN A ONESHOT TAKES AN EXTREME AMOUNT OF PREPARATION, SO JUST IMAGINE THE AMOUNT OF TIME AND EFFORT THAT GOES INTO RUNNING THE WHOLE CAMPAIGN!! AND ITS NOT LIKE THEY HAVEN'T MADE AN UPDATE ABOUT THE STATE OF THE SHOW THIS ENTIRE TIME!! SURE THEY HAVEN'T BEEN THE MOST FREQUENT BUT AT LEAST WE HAVE A GENERAL IDEA OF WHATS HAPPENING BEHIND THE SCENES.

ON TOP OF THAT THEIR'S ALSO WONDERLUST!! THE CURRENT PUBLIC CAMPAIGN BEING RAN BY BIZZLY!! THE SAME PEOPLE WHO ARE COMPLAINING THAT ALL THE NEW STUFF IS PAYWALLED AND THAT ITS UNFAIR ARE ALSO LITERALLY ACTIVELY TALKING ABOUT PIRATING THE ONE SHOT!! THE LOGIC OF "WELL THEY ARENT MAKING NEW STUFF PUBLICLY AND I CANT WATCH ANY OF IT" IS LITERALLY OUT THE WINDOW BECAUSE THERE ARE PLENTY OF LINKS CIRCULATING AROUND TO WATCH THE PATREON/MEMBERS CONTENT FOR FREE AND THEIR WILL BE SOME FOR WHEN THE CHRISTMAS ONE DROPS!! FUCK IM GONNA USE SOME TO WATCH THE "WHAT IFS" BC I CAN'T AFFORD THE 10$ TIER!!

ALSO FOR THE PEOPLE COMPLAINING THAT THE CHRISTMAS BREAK IS STUPID LET ME REMIND YOU THAT THERE ARE ALSO EDITORS, THUMBNAIL ARTISTS, AND OTHER PEOPLE WORKING ON THE SHOW!! SO JUST MAYBE?? THE BREAK ISN'T JUST FOR THE BOYS?? BUT ALSO FOR THE OTHER PEOPLE BEHIND THE FUCKING SCENES!! AND LET ME REMIND YOU ONCE MORE THAT THE PEOPLE ON SCREEN HAVE LIVES OUTSIDE OF THE SHOW!! THEY HAVE CAREERS!! THEY HAVE RELATIONSHIPS!! THEY HAVE BEHIND THE SCENES WORK FOR THE SHOW LIKE MERCH AND THE WEBSITE!! AND JUST BECAUSE YOU CAN'T PUBLICLY SEE THE WORK THAT THEY ARE PUTTING INTO THE SHOW DOESN'T MEAN THAT THEIR SITTING ON THEIR ASSES DOING NOTHING!!

tdlr: you can be upset about the lack of riptide content over the past year but that doesn't mean you can say shit about the jrwi crew and that they've done nothing over the past year

[creatingblackcharacters]

Say, if someone were to take a long time (more than months) before speaking up about racism, are they wrong for not immediately addressing it and instead letting the hurt fester? The first time it happened I was questioning my own perception, and by the time I became sure, it feels like it's too late (and it's also been very long after the last time I saw it happen too), and I feel like I also played a part in not immediately speaking up because of fear of the consequences. None of the racism were big enough, but if I were to list every instance then wouldn't it look like I'm being petty and trying to smear campaign someone? Or immature for being avoidant and not communicating my hurt immediately?

I'm going to approach this from an antiblackness perspective, since that's what I talk about here.

I think it depends on a couple of factors. Are you Black? If so, then no, it's not wrong to feel hurt about it no matter how long ago it happened. What you experienced was wrong, and it'll always be wrong. Plus, not wanting to speak up because you know it'll just be a threat to you is a common reason why Black people usually don't speak up about racism. Because yeah, you'll get dogpiled and gaslit and abused when you dare suggest someone was *gasp* bigoted toward you and needs to apologize! There's no statute of limitations on racism, and we shouldn't have to create an entire case to prove ourselves the way we do. That said, if this is a stranger, you will probably not be able to approach on the offensive because you let the time pass. So unless you have receipts, really all you can do is block them and move on with your life, or tell them privately "hey, this thing you said/did wasn't okay. I didn't say anything before because I wasn't sure how you'd take it, but I have not felt as safe around you since then, and I felt you needed to know" (and then probably block them). And you can't expect them to take it well- all you can do is say something, if you choose to at all. And if they take it that poorly, now you have the ability to tell others "yeah, this person did not take hearing about their bigotry well, and is not safe for Black people to be around". Because I would want to know if who I'm sharing from hates me.

If you are not Black, then I want you to consider (using your words) why the racism wasn't "big" enough, especially given that it wasn't dangerous towards you. What do you need to see in order to speak up? And by allowing it to get that large, recognize that you helped create a space where that behavior was safe and acceptable by saying nothing when all the "small" racism was occurring! That said, people are going to take it as petty regardless of your intent, because that's how racism is treated both here and outside the internet. It may be demeaned, treated as a smear campaign, because people think calling out racism is worse than being racist. So it really depends on how much you're willing to stand on it. You saw all these things happen, you have the receipts, you know you're in the right- are you willing to speak up? Are you willing to accept what may happen, or are you more worried about your own comfort? Maybe you'll allow Black people who saw all that racism feel heard and valid, so they can speak up too. Maybe you'll start a conversation that needs to be had. Maybe you'll be a step towards cracking that environment where this racism was acceptable, or worse case scenario, you'll recognize that this isn't a place you want to be if racism is treated so lightly. Those are hard decisions!

Sorry that this probably didn't make you feel better, but it's not a light topic.

[brunette-gremlin]

I think i found the reason why i like channels like OSP and SFTH so much. The dynamics feel more authentic and trustworthy.

There's this cute wlw couple on insta who reel i occasionally watch, but i dont want to follow them, put comments or participate in their polls because them like other family and couple bloggers on the internet have a sheen of displaying their dynamics for views. I feel love and affection should be more subtle that it influence the way we, the audience view the performers. These bloggers may be genuine but I don't trust entirely what goes bts because they eventually are basically saying, 'this is us. look how cool we are and how in love we are. what dress should i wear for my date?'

It's fine if blogging is a fun thing you like to do that's integral to your life but at some point, if its solely about your life, it gets weird.

Overly Sarcastic Productions and Shoot from the Hip both started in the early 2010s when a couple of highschoolers and drunk collegemates respectively decided to produce something they loved.

OSP started off as a Shakespearean highschool project meant to spite their english teacher. But Red got so good at narrating and animating her production that it became a significant channel now. It wouldn't be the same hadn't her bestie Blue try to freebie on channel to infodump his special interests. You can feel the affection and love between the two as you watch a single video of theirs together.

SFTH is probably the healthiest masculine media I've ever come across in my life. It's so amazing to see a small improv group to grow to this size within a span of 2 yres after struggling for another 10. The craft wouldn't have the same magic hadn't they all been comfortable with each other and been friends for over a decade.

THeir genuine affection and love spills over into the content they are actually supposed to be making that it makes their craft sweeter and even more special than any friend or couple blogs on the internet ever could

[deathdetermineslife]

No one cares about how you think being ficto isn't harmful because you're an anti. Your opinion doesn't matter anyways. Antis have done a good job of invading this historically proshipping space. You sure did do a good job at ruining this community. You've only been in this community since July and you've done nothing but indoctrinate children into your fucking cult. There is no safe space for real selfshippers anymore because you've made this community harmful. You can act like you do good by making templates and inbox games and "spreading positivity" (Which, you can't do by wishing death to an entire harmless community, by the way. But you're too stupid to understand the gravity of you hurt.) but you do nothing but spread harm through your posts by gatekeeping. There's no safety in gatekeeping. You've spread more indirect hatred through this community than anyone else ever has. I hope you sleep well at night knowing these victims of abuse you pretend to care about are being hurt because of you. Continue lying about being a victim yourself for internet brownie points. We all just feel so bad for you, an anti with no common sense. We built this community by hand and you've destroyed it. I hope you feel good about yourself knowing you've made all of us feel unsafe.

Go ahead and block me, I don't care. Just know we all want you gone. And whine and cry about how this is harassment, I really don't care at this point. Someone needs to say it to you.

there's so much I could say about this, but since it's Christmas eve, I'm quite tired, and I don't feel like trying to refute all of this gobbledygook, instead I'll just say this;

I just got out of church with my family, and while I am pagan, I had a lovely time at Christmas Eve service. at the end we held candles and sang silent night (which has been my favorite Christmas song since I was a kid, fun fact about me :]), and had a nice time seeing people I havent seen since last year. whether or not you folks out there celebrate Christmas, I hope tomorrow is a good day for you! and if you do, I hope you get all the presents you could ever ask for !!!

do something kind for someone this holiday if you can :) go say something nice in someone's inbox, draw them their selfship, whatever. kindness gets you a long way in life, no matter what other people may think.

have a holly jolly Christmas teeehhehehehe >:D

(also I know I said yesterday I would get out more pride stamps but I didn't have time today to finish the rest of them so instead I'll probably get them out tomorrow as a Christmas treat! :3)

[superkooku]

Have you listened/watched epic? And if you have what’s your thoughts?

Personally I think it’s a good thing to show to a friend new to Greek mythology. I just finished watching the last saga and I have to say I loved it, beautiful. Sad it ended tho :(

It might not be very accurate but I love the hardwork the cast put into it and so I love it very much

My thoughts on Epic the musical

So yes, I know about Epic. I even participated in the secret santa thing and am what we may call 'a winion'.

I just finished watching the livestream too ! I especially loved seeing the cast members were reacting to the sagas (Luke Holt was so funny in this 🤣. Also, Jorge carrying Mico like a baby in 'Just a man' and Mason being extra the whole time... so many gems in that livestream)

Since Epic is finished AND I have animatics of the Ithaca saga, I'll use this opportunity to make a more in-depth review of the musical. Instead of separating it in "good" or "bad", I'm reviewing it criteria per criteria.

The cast

Like I previously said, I LOVE the cast chemistry. They're all so fun and lively. I follow some of them separately, like Janani or Troy Doherty, and they're just delightful. Especially Troy as Hermes, he always manages to make me laugh. Every single time 😂.

Also, he gives me a bit of Mettaton vibes since he's extravagant, always over the top and a bit self-absorbed (the Hermes persona, I mean, not Troy Doherty himself). Maybe that's why I like him so much :3

And of course, there's Jorge, mr. Jalapeño, the man with the plan. I love how both passionate and humble he is, how he takes the time to thank everyone and just how much of a bundle of positive energy he is. I know it's an internet persona, but what I can see from him is some hopefully really nice guy in real life too.

Anyways, awesome cast chemistry, everyone made me laugh and they're all having a good time.

The music

This music is so beautiful 🥰. All the motifs, the emotions, the instruments, the voices ! If I had to rate Epic from the music alone, it would be 5 stars. I'm not saying this in a professional angle or anything, it's my personal feeling.

Seriously, I don't really have that much to say about the music because, to me, it's just that good. I love the variety, how different instruments synch themselves and, yeah.

The characters

Annnnd that's where the blind positive praise stops, unfortunately 😂.

Don't get me wrong, it's not awful either and there are good points. My favorite Epic characters are Hermes and Athena.

The rest ? It's mixed. In order not to make this too long, I'll focus on only some of them.

The story is very character-driven so I won't really delve into it in detail.

Odysseus : he's a good protagonist, especially in the first act. His dilemma is interesting, he has a strong personality and I like that he is just a broken man and not some mighty overlord... except in the Thunder and Vengeance sagas. I feel Jorge exaggerated the monster message a bit too much, imo. Odysseus is supposed to be a witty liar, a warrior of the mind. Not someone like Achilles who solves problems by fighting or fights gods like Heracles, much less freaking Poseidon.

Poseidon : okay ! I liked him in the first act, because FINALLY Poseidon isn't a surfer dude. He's a terrifying force of nature that was angered by mortal hubris (though the hubris thing isn't explained by Epic). In Get in the water, he kept his intimidating side. Because he's, yk, the king of the oceans, one of the most powerful Olympian gods. But his defeat partially ruined him for me 😂. It just doesn't make sense. Why is Odysseus afraid of Scylla and even tip-toes around Hermes, who is friendly, when he can stabby-stab Poseidon ? Why didn't Poseidon counterattack? So many questions.

Zeus : my problem with Zeus is easier to explain. Again, he was awesome in the first act, less so in the second. What I loved initially is how regal he was. Powerful, intimidating, kingly, but not evil either. He warns Odysseus of the gods' will and of fate, which always realizes itself in mythology. In Thunder Bringer, he's fine. His lustful and flighty side is shown, but we could interpret his intervention as avenging Helios and punishing the ones who ate the cows, instead of "Zeus is evil". But in God Games ? He's so pettyyyyy and childish. Where is the kingly attitude ? This "Beast Zeus" should come against Kronos or Typhon, or maybe when Athena and the others threatened his position. Not after a freaking game ! He just strikes Athena with thunder because she won fair and square. At LEAST Luke Holt absolutely killed it, so it's cool to listen to.

Penelope : she's underdeveloped :( . Okay, her bond with Odysseus was respected, they're adorable together. On her own ? Eh, she's fine. Which is a shame because she simply didn't have enough room to exist outside of Odysseus. Also, the fact that she doesn't interact once with her son is criminal imo.

I do have some other issues with characters like Circe and Calypso (basically they're declawed compared to the Odyssey), whereas I'm completely fine with others like Eurylochus, Telemachus or every god except Zeus and Poseidon. Though they're not perfectly accurate either but I don't have problems with them.

The crew in general is also underdeveloped, so I didn't feel much for them (until discovering the scrapped Elpenor and Perimedes songs/lh). They played their roles correctly.

I hated the suitors (that's a positive in Epic) and laughed when Antinous died. Though I wished they were more pathetic and less threatening. Musically it'd be worse but story-wise more fitting.

The story

Overall, it's fine. Most of the best points come from the Odyssey itself, the one change I liked the most was having Odysseus and Poseidon meet (not the way it ended though).

Also, story-wise, I prefer act 1 over act 2, because it's less over the place and more grounded.

But emotion-wise and music-wise, forgetting about the Odyssey, act 2 wins the cake.

Those were my thoughts on Epic :3

I tried not to judge it too much according to the Odyssey and some of my friends are more demanding on that plan (for perfectly legitimate reasons btw). But it's hard to separate Epic from the wonderful work of Homer and it's lacking in some areas.

Still, this journey was very fun, I love all the passion Jorge, the singers and the animatic artists put in, there are a lot of good things about it (I can't mention everything). I don't want to rate it because it's too rigid of a system. I listen to the songs on loop and, ultimately, I'm thankful Epic exists :)

I may come back to this post and reblog stuff if I have new relevant thoughts to add. I'll probably rank the sagas in another post.

[moregraceful]

made it one (1) cookie into christmas day cookie baking without a standmixer before i went this cannot stand, and now i have had my finger on the launch button of my shopping cart on the kitchenaid website for 45 minutes. an interesting thing about me is i will buy a customized jersey for $250+ without thinking twice, but then i look at a kitchenaid stand mixer and i'm like no i couldn't POSSIBLY...it is EXTRAVAGANT... even though a stand mixer will easily get more use on a consistent basis than um. z.ach h.yman leafs jersey. &tc

livejournal posting on the microblogging website

having a very nice christmas so far. i am spending it alone and earlier this week i spent about 10 minutes feeling sorry for myself about it, and then said WHAT the fuck am i doing. to wake up on christmas morning and not want to kill myself is going to be the greatest gift. and made a plan to make cookies and a sheet pan dinner that my family hates but that i love. and you know what, i did not wake up and feel like ending it all, and even though i am having immense cookie struggles, i feel better than i have in years. i like building traditions. it's fun.

talked to my sister and her husband this morning and while i always feel better about everything after talking to them, today was especially nice because her husband got on the phone whipped the fuck about their neighbor's kid or kids hiding musical instruments on their property. he was like you've worked extensively with teenagers, PLEASE explain why a teenager would do something this bizarre. and it's nice when i can be of help to them these days bc they spent so much of winter and spring trying to convince me not to gaslight myself into thinking any of it was normal or survivable. it's nice to be like, ok now i am in a safe space so i can offer my infinite wisdom. also very funny to be the teenager whisperer of the family. the three of us worked through the issue and landed on a solution that didn't involve my sister's husband narcing on the kid to their very strict and religious parents about instrument-playing lol. and that made me feel good bc we are several thousand miles away from each other but we're still very present in each other's lives.

i don't know it's being christian or if it's just spending a lot of years way too drunk on new year's eve to hashtag cope and waking up on jan 1 hungover as hell like goddammit not this shit (being alive) again. but this year christmas day feels like more of the start of a new year. i think about goal-setting and trying new things to inhabit my life more vividly and today feels like more of a place to start. like the light is here and i am too etc. this is a long-winded way saying that my 2025 goal is to take more pictures bc while i do love to live in the moment, i DON'T love that i have next to no pictures of the people i love or the things that i have enjoyed seeing or the creations i have made. not to be a Instagram Poster, but it's like i would love to remember what my internet friends' faces look like. or that cool rock i saw in someone's yard... i don't have to always live in the moment about rocks and friends it's ok to be like, i am enjoying this moment and i want simple proof that it existed beyond my memory.

and i have just tried both cookies i made and they are both very strange experiences that did not really spark joy so i am going to stare intently at the kitchenaid site for another hour

[kuchenkekse]

So I just glanced at the Christian Linke Situation, so I barely know what's going on BUT as a person on the internet I'm going to say what I want in any giving situation (with my personal morale concept of not having bad intentions with the stuff I say)

First as a person that's on the asexual spectrum, that is bi, has a loving relationship and *gaps* intercourse from time to time, I have to say please for the love of our favorite cult leader, please understand asexual before you say a character is asexual. You know what, try to understand every sexuality (at least a bit) before you assign a character with it.

Second if you have to tell in an interview after the show ended, that this character is asexual you did a not quite good (probably bad) job at representing asexuality.

Third, just don't use Twitter/X to have discussion with random Fans, that's just a bad idea get a better PR team.

But in the spirit of holidays, I'm gonna throw Christian Linke a bone here, okay obviously Jayce and Viktor love each other and obviously we can acknowledge that we should definitely see more of them.

So I'm going to say Christian Linke also knows this but to keep us in the dark, he is just saying and writing a lot of weird stuff. All for the sake of distraction is from the Spin Off they are obviously going to make about what ever the fuck happened with Viktor and Jayce. Because he just wants everyone to be surprised and excited by it! That's why he's kinda weird right now!

(this was going to be just a silly post but I had to acknowledge the main thing I read that didn't sit right with me)

Happy Holidays!

[stars-and-sugarcubes]

Pluto, the Internet, a Night in the Woods.

I was going to repost thoughts I shared from watching a Night In the Woods video essay, but I have decided to expand on it and re-write it completely.

" During one of Rosa's sleepy reminiscences about her youth, she says, 'Back then there were places that brought us all together, the church and the union.' Both the union and the church were hubs for community building and shared values. You could trust that your fellows in these places would think about the world similarly to you, and if you think about how unions suffered near extinction when manufacturing moved out and the industries that these unions had formed in died, that on top of how with each generation we become more and more agnostic, thereby losing that common gathering place in the church. it kind of explains why young people are so atomized and miserable these days. The only common place that we can gather and delude ourselves in is the internet. "

- Flundering Chipper (minutes 30:44 to 31:27)

1971, Intel released the first microprocessor, and home computers entered the market in 1977, raising in popularity and accessibility through the 80s and 90s. Today, technology is known to have developed exponentially since then.

The video essayist, Flunderingchipper, spoke about the younger generation's lack of religious faith and physical spaces to commune, and it made the cogs turn in my head. GenZ, the Sagittarius Pluto generation (1995-2008), is considered both digitally fluent and dependent due to being the first generation to fully grow up with computers and abundant internet access. GenZ also marks a significant difference between the generations after and before them.

The timeline for micro computer and personal computer usage begins at the bookend of the late Summer sign of Virgo (1959-1971) and the beginning of the Autumn signs with Libra (1971-1983), planting the seeds for the transformation of social and worldly connectedness we see today with Pluto now in Aquarius (2023-2044). Computers and further advancements like smartphones cemented themselves in the US and the world through Pluto's transits in Scorpio (1983-1995) and Sagittarius, the generation of Sag. Pluto is gaining the reputation of being extremely different from older generations and being connected online and less so in person. That is, not to mention the Capricorn (2008-2023) and Aquarius generations. On the internet, the general impression American GenZ seems to be that they are absurd, politically minded, and socially aware, gregarious, zealous, and unwilling to participate in corporate and political struggles of older generations. At least, from what I understand.

Computers came in the autumn of Pluto's treck through the zodiac. A time when previous generations harvested their gifts and their young have less material gains in turn. It started with the Libra Pluto generation, but the Scorpio Pluto generation was likely the first to notice it. Millennials.

All this to say, Pluto, the planet of ordeals, transformations, and death, showed us a time when the internet grew in influence, taking the place of community with friends and colleagues. Less people go outside to have fun. More people turn to gaming, social media, art, and sharing their interests with each other. There are fewer free spaces to commune. The Church loses its grip as people grapple with religious dogma and share in their struggles with it. People learn more about the world and connect with others from further distances. The average person can share themselves with the world and create communities and gain influence on a wider scale, changing the culture around public figures. Mall walkways are emptier, and stores shut down and become desolate. Small shops and average people are threatened by growing corporate power. But that begins to bleed into Capricorn Pluto.

As an older GenZ person reflecting on life as we move forward, I just find this morbidly fascinating. We must endure Pluto's travel through winter.

[libraford]

A combination of people on the internet and people in real life. Mostly I'm being told that I'm not allowed to bellydance because I'm white and it's not part of my culture. But it's kind of hard for me to say what... is appropriate dance styles for me to learn. Because I'm white, but I learned dance styles from a lot of people in various cultures because the town I grew up in has a huge immigrant population and I got to see a lot of culture that way- learning a lot of dances. But it seems I'm not supposed to do that because that's what colonizers do.

And I'm also not sure what culture, specifically, is bellydance- because it's an umbrella term for a lot of different styles from a lot of different cultures. And people do use the acronym MENHAT to describe those cultures, but if you're doing raqs sharki or gawazee styles you just call them by those terms. But when you're doing a style of fusion that uses belly isolation in combination with other dance styles (like a lot of stage styles use ballet movements and terms, American jazz and Broadway can inspire some movements) it's not accurate to call it those culturally specific terms. So for lack of a better term, we call it bellydance.

But that word is very weighted! Because people associate it with the middle east, because it was coined by Victorian men who found the style vulgar, because it's associated with orientalism. Which are valid criticisms, but it's what the style of dance is known as. And we try to bring the discussion back to it's cultures, but we call it what it is known as in hopes that someone might learn more about it's origins and history.

Which puts it in a PLACE.

I am calling it by it's most widely known term, which allows for the most generous interpretation, which allows for a wider variety of people to learn and teach. But I'm still being told that I should not bellydance because it is not my culture.

Often, when someone tells me that I'm not allowed to bellydance because I'm white, it leads me to look at the dances of white people- specifically the kinds of folk dances that are part of my heritage.

...have yall seen Hallingdans? Shit gets wild!

[ashleywool]

face, diamonds, excitement, (magnetic resonance) image

I'm so excited to report that this Friday afternoon, I'm finally getting some new headshots taken...of the INSIDE of my head.

That's right, folks. After showing the lab work and pleading my case to the fine folks at the Friedman Center (and they really are terrific), ya girl finally got her brain/pituitary MRI approved.

Miraculously, I recovered from COVID ridiculously quickly. The symptoms resolved over a couple days, and I was already testing negative by Wednesday. Two more antigens and a PCR test later, I determined I'd be in the clear to be in my friend's wedding, although I still wore a mask--and the patron saints of Amazon search results blessed me with this set of KN95s, which included a bright blue one in the EXACT COLOR of my bridesmaid dress.

I never thought I'd be sitting here actively hoping to have a literal brain tumor, but between the fatigue, the listlessness, the lack of appetite, the stubborn and aggressive weight gain in spite of a lack of appetite, the fatigue, the significantly compromised immune system (this bout with COVID was my third weird viral infection in two months), the obnoxiously slow wound healing (there's a staple-scratch on my hand that's been there since March), the skin-thinning and skin-drying, and did I mention the fatigue...it sure would be great to have a straightforward answer and a clear path forward.

And, most importantly, it's the perfect excuse to be dramatic.

Just imagine the not-as-anonymous-as-they-think-they-are message board posts: "Ashley Wool teases a possible brain tumor as a last-ditch attempt to stay relevant in the Broadway world." "I heard she grew it on purpose just like those ovarian tumors." "Gurl well I heard the bitch was actually kicked out of Broadway Bares 'cause her autistic ass couldn't handle the noise." "Well I heard the bitch got hit by three zebras and a monkey. I can't stand the bitch no way."

Oh by the way, you can still donate to my Broadway Bares page and you totally should. The Friedman Center is a collaboration between Mount Sinai and the Entertainment Community Fund and is supported by grants from BC/EFA. We gotta pay it forward.

[starwikia]

suicide cw

look i have been in this area before mentally. it sucks and i wouldn’t wish this on anyone. but, and this is going to sound callous, but i don’t feel any sympathy for james somerton. even if i hope he’s like. not dead. But thats all the amount of goodwill im willing to give him. The more i think about this really, the more angry i am. 

ngl this entire situation is another example of how white people weaponize their mental illness to avoid consequences. Im seeing it in real time.

this man has a continuous habit of using self-harm as a get-out-of-jail-for-free card. in both of his apologies, he has worded his supposed attempts in ways that were clearly meant to guilt people who displayed his plagiarism and overall horrendous history of racism and misogyny. i say supposed because, while i’m not saying those are lies and this would he such a fucked up thing to lie about that i don’t want to think he has, unfortunately, it’s been proven again and again that his word can’t be trusted, as he’s known to lie to try get out of consequences. Hes a proven liar. him lying about this is actually the best case scenario, because no one should go through this entire situation, wouldnt wish this on anyone, but you can only do this so often before people stop sympathizing with you. is this callous? Yeah, but like. I’m actually fucking angry he cant straight up take no as an answer. that this is how he reacts realizing he cant be one of the Cool Kidz™️ on youtube anymore. he acts like he DESERVES a career, like its not a privilege hes lost due to his own actions.

He lied about apologizing and forgiving people, he lied about giving the money to hbomberguy to give to ppl he ripped off (yknow, instead of doing it himself), he lied about the jessie gender situation and rewrote the narrative to make it so he isnt the bad guy, and hes the victim all along actually!

you can’t tell me that supposed last message of his isn’t meant to be a 13 reasons why esq attempt to deflect the blame “look i’m going to kill myself and it’s all YOUR PEOPLES FAULT for not letting me achieve my DREAM of being filmmaker IN PEACE!!! I just wanted Nick’s (the guy who I have thrown under the bus again and again) portfolio up!! Im just being a good friend dont you all FEEL BAD” he refuses to take ANY ACCOUNTABILITY of any of his actions and he IS STILL trying to shove the blame over to other people again.

it’s also pretty ironic people are like “uhhh well hbomber’s fans harassed him!!!” like hbomber outright told people NOT to HARASS JAMES!!! ALSO acting as if james doesn’t have a very real documented history of STRAIGHT UP sending his fans to harass and threaten smaller creators, more notably women, trans, and bipoc creators. especially after he’s stolen typically very personal anecdotes so he could profit from them. so why can he do it but the second people are like “hey this guys an actual piece of shit.” and he can’t handle it suddenly people are trying to white knight his shit? like no he doesn’t get that. he doesn’t get that at all just because he couldn’t handle the consequences of his actions. 

what? were supposed to stay quiet about a man profiting off of other minorities because he wanted to be the spokesman for all gay people? people tried to solve this on a smaller, more private scales for YEARS and he kept doing it. it was clear that the giant public video was the ONLY way to get people to notice. HE WOULDVE GOTTEN AWAY WITH STEALING 87 FUCKING THOUSANDS WORTH OF DOLLARS. HE CANT HANDLE THE FACT HE CANT GET AWAY WITH IT. 

am i supposed to feel bad for the guy who basically threatened a trans woman with the police? i don’t care what anyone says, it’s so fucking obvious that he threatened jessie by implying he was getting the police involved in their conflict. what am i supposed to act like that didn’t happen? are we supposed to pretend like he didn’t glorify nazi’s and outright said that gay people made up a good chunk of the nazis? That he didnt say america joined ww2 bc they were jealous of the NAZIS. WHAT WOULD POSSESS YOU TO FUCKING SAY THAT. but then? He gives women (not even women most of the time, he misgenders nonbinary ppl constantly) shit for writing mlm. are we supposed to act like he doesn’t straight-up sees himself superior and better than people of color and steals their works to put himself on a pedestal? Are we supposed to act like he didnt spit on our elders by saying “only the boring gays survived aids” like man! Fuck you! He BLANTANTLY MAKES UP HISTORY TO PUT HIMSELF ON A PEDESTAL!! HE ACTIVELY TRIED TO REWRITE LGBT HISTORY TO SUIT HIS FUCKED UP NARRATIVES!

yes this sucks ! no one deserves this but no one should be making him a martyr. Thats what he fucking WANTS! He wants to be immortalized as a victim!! (again, supposedly, it was reported hes alive but its not confirmed).

The shit he got isnt near the amount of fucking callous behavior hes done again and again. Again, to drill this point, EVEN IF HE DIDNT CALL THE POLICE HE THREATENED A TRANS WOMAN INTO THINKING HE DID!!! The fact he tried to use a head injury to justify years of the outright ghoulish shit fucking astounds me. Why the fuck did anyone in his life thought it was a good idea to let him TRY to come back. in the end, he had options. he didn’t need to try to make a comeback. HE DIDNT NEED TO FUCKING LIE OR IGNORE THE SHIT HE WAS CALLED OUT ON the reality is, he wanted to come back thinking he could shove it under the rug, was told that no dude, you’re not allowed to be a youtuber anymore. you’re done. you need to move on and went full nuclear. it’s not on anyone’s hands but his own. HES BEEN DOING THIS TO HIMSELF!! But nah man we cant call his shit out bc hell may or may not kill himself. Fuck the other minorities who have the same issues but worse and sometimes BECAUSE of him. This is going to SUCKKKK so bad when other ppl, specifically white gays, are going to weaponize this shit to get away with their stuff.

[sanicsmut]

people : its important to be inclusive, yes even of identities you don't understand ! support he/him lesbians !

these same people when its about using multiples contradictory labels because identity is complicated and fluid : if you support this you're actually evil

[rouge-fauna]

I think you’re talking about these posts [here & here], I don’t know if there have been others.

I'm not gonna say what I did was right, you are correct I should probably just not respond to asks getting me to talk about other people. I will say for these two posts those people had already blocked me I’m pretty sure, so it’s kinda hard to talk directly to them in that case. And I was not doing so anonymously and had not blocked them so I wasn’t hiding what I was saying. I did not follow them, I am not part of the innitor community, and not that that makes it right but I do think it is kinda different. Though you make a good point, perhaps we should stop this pattern of responding to asks about other blogs and such.

Still, the biggest thing to me I realized, back in elementary school when I first dealt with this, was that honestly all the time we talk about people behind their back. Talking about people when they aren’t always in the room is kinda just inevitable and part of socializing, however I think the important part is how you are talking about other people. It’s when you are insulting them, talking negatively about them to people they know, spreading false information and so on that it becomes not okay. Hopefully that makes sense.

In these cases I merely focused on the lore. I didn’t insult them or talk shit about them, as a person, as a blog or say their takes were stupid or they are stupid or speculate about their trauma or mental history. I just talked about reasons why I disagreed, or saw things differently and why we might see things differently. They were also not the only ones I saw to say similar things so I think in my mind I was making more of a general discussion, not trying to target them specifically. I didn’t post beyond that about them. But you are right, regardless it was probably not the right way to go about things.

But just to be clear, if I am a hypocrite it is not my intention. I haven’t vague blogged anyone or meant to vague reblog anyone. I think this week is pretty much the first time I’ve ever been not naming, passive aggressively talking about blogs, and even then I’m not trying to insult them, trying to cancel them. I’m just expressing that before you go off about how I’m stupid and unable to have a discussion about it, the very least you could’ve done was give me an opportunity to try.

[wildflowercryptid]

something that's been weighing on my mind ever since learning about the situation with ezra / toonimal is seeing how these predators will take the active hostility that is frequently directed towards minors in online spaces to their advantage and use it to prey on vulnerable children. i think that we as adults in online fandom should probably come together and maybe rethink the language / manner we go about interacting with kids bc clearly the way things are rn is causing active harm.

like obviously, if you're an adult and aren't comfortable with minors interacting with you or your content, you should be allowed to set that boundary and should be vocal about it, ( especially if the content you create isn't safe for them to consume. ) but i don't think talking to them like they're a blight on all that is good and holy is the way to go about it. maybe just saying you're an 18 plus account will suffice, you don't have to tell them to fuck off.

[random0lover]

I hate men and their need to act like any emotional reactions you have while you’re on your period is just you being “hormonal” and “not yourself”

(Rant in tags)