#year change from 2016 to 2025

[blondebrainpowered]

Ghostbusters II, 1989

With a date change from 2016 to 2025.

[vaor]

every now and then i'll think of the raw ass quote "does the memory of power haunt you?" and have to resist the urge to incorporate it in everything i write. then i remember it's from the DreamWorks space cartoon Voltron: Legendary Defender and that i still have lotor brainrot almost a whole decade later

[ao3org]

On Your Left! — Changes to Captain America Fandom Tags

Hello! In the near future, Marvel tag wranglers will be updating fandom tags on AO3 to separate the upcoming Captain America movies featuring Sam Wilson as Captain America from the trilogy of films with Steve Rogers as Captain America.

To do this, we will be renaming the fandom Captain America (Movies) to Captain America (Chris Evans Movies) and creating a new fandom named Captain America (Anthony Mackie Movies). Both will be made subtags of Marvel Cinematic Universe and Captain America - All Media Types.

In summary:

Captain America (Chris Evans Movies) will refer to the 2011, 2014, and 2016 movies featuring Steve Rogers, Peggy Carter, and Bucky Barnes. 

Captain America (Anthony Mackie Movies) will refer to the 2025 movie Brave New World featuring Sam Wilson and Joaquín Torres. This fandom tag will also refer to any sequel Captain America movies starring Sam Wilson in the title role.

Fans interested in reading about both movie series can include both Marvel Cinematic Universe and Captain America - All Media Types in tag filtering. The current fandom tag for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (TV), which is a subtag of Marvel Cinematic Universe but not Captain America - All Media Types, will also be unaffected by these changes. We’ve included more details of our reasoning below, which better explains why we’re making this change.

Why are you making two separate fandom tags? Can’t everyone just keep using “Captain America (Movies)”?

Despite both having the superhero name “Captain America” and the same continuity, fundamentally the main character has changed between the original trilogy and the new 2025 movie. We also wanted to hopefully make it easier for fans to differentiate between which movies and continuities they’re discussing. Many Sam Wilson fans will likely want to filter for the movie where he’s the central focus; conversely, many Steve Rogers fans will likely want to filter out movies where he doesn’t appear. 

We’re specifically using “Chris Evans” and “Anthony Mackie” in the fandom tags as they’re the most recognizable and consistent aspect of the movies. There’s no consistent set of directors between all Chris Evans Captain America movies, and actor names are much more recognizable than including multiple years in the fandom tags. This style of making fandom tags named after actors is similar to other fandoms on AO3. For example, there are many James Bond movie fandom tags which differentiate via the actors’ names. 

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is also not the only time Captain America has been adapted to the big screen: there’s a 1944 movie starring Dick Purnell, a 1979 movie starring Reb Brown, and a 1990 movie starring Mat Salinger. The current fandom tag Captain America (Movies) is worded in a way that technically encompasses these unrelated movies as well. It doesn’t make sense for these unrelated continuities to share one fandom tag, so we would have changed the existing Captain America (Movies) tag to be more specific regardless of the release of Brave New World. 

Like we mentioned above, fans interested in reading about both MCU movie series at once can filter for both Marvel Cinematic Universe and Captain America - All Media Types.

Why Mackie Movies instead of Brave New World?

The movie title has already changed several times in between promotion and release. It’s also highly likely Marvel will make sequel movies. Formatting the tag as Captain America (Anthony Mackie Movies) prevents the disruption of renaming the fandom tag in the future. 

We will be creating an Additional Tag for Captain America: Brave New World, similar to how there are Additional Tags for Movie: Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) and Movie: Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021). We hope the Additional Tag will help fans filter for specific movies within the broader series of movies.

Why does Brave New World get a separate fandom tag while First Avenger, Winter Soldier, and Civil War would still share? 

Captain America: The First Avenger, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and Captain America: Civil War all encompass the trilogy centering around Steve Rogers. While Captain America: Brave New World is also set in the same continuity, the main character and actor has changed, and the role of Sam Wilson has changed from being a supporting character to the main focus.

It’s likely that Marvel will release sequel movies to Brave New World, which will not receive separate fandom tags and would instead also be covered by the new Captain America (Anthony Mackie Movies) tag. We hope that separating the fandom tags now will prevent the messiness of renaming tags again in the future, and also allow fans to filter for works that focus on the specific Captain America they are looking for. 

(From time to time, ao3org posts announcements of recent or upcoming wrangling changes on behalf of the Tag Wrangling Committee.)

[afeelgoodblog]

The Best News of Last Week

1. ‘We are just getting started’: the plastic-eating bacteria that could change the world

In 2016, Japanese scientists Oda and Hiraga published their discovery of Ideonella sakaiensis, a bacterium capable of breaking down PET plastic into basic nutrients. This finding marked a shift in microbiology's perception, recognizing the potential of microbes to solve pressing environmental issues.

France's Carbios has successfully applied bacterial enzyme technology to recycle PET plastic waste into new plastic products, aligning with the French government's goal of fully recycling plastic packaging by 2025.

2. HIV cases in Amsterdam drop to almost zero after PrEP scheme

According to Dutch AIDS Fund, there were only nine new cases of the virus in Amsterdam in 2022, down from 66 people diagnosed in 2021. The organisation claimed that 128 people were diagnosed with HIV in Amsterdam in 2019, and since 2010, the number of new infections in the Dutch capital has fallen by 95 per cent.

3. Cheap and drinkable water from desalination is finally a reality

In a groundbreaking endeavor, engineers from MIT and China have designed a passive solar desalination system aimed at converting seawater into drinkable water.

The concept, articulated in a study published in the journal Joule, harnesses the dual powers of the sun and the inherent properties of seawater, emulating the ocean’s “thermohaline” circulation on a smaller scale, to evaporate water and leave salt behind.

4. World’s 1st drug to regrow teeth enters clinical trials

The ability to regrow your own teeth could be just around the corner. A team of scientists, led by a Japanese pharmaceutical startup, are getting set to start human trials on a new drug that has successfully grown new teeth in animal test subjects.

Toregem Biopharma is slated to begin clinical trials in July of next year after it succeeded growing new teeth in mice five years ago, the Japan Times reports.

5. After Decades of Pressure, US Drugmaker J&J Gives Up Patent on Life-Saving TB Drug

In what can be termed a huge development for drug-resistant TB (DR-TB) patients across large parts of the world, bedaquiline maker Johnson and Johnson said on September 30 (Saturday) that it would drop its patent over the drug in 134 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

6. Stranded dolphins rescued from shallow river in Massachusetts

7. ‘Staggering’ green growth gives hope for 1.5C, says global energy chief

The prospects of the world staying within the 1.5C limit on global heating have brightened owing to the “staggering” growth of renewable energy and green investment in the past two years, the chief of the world’s energy watchdog has said.

Fatih Birol, the executive director of the International Energy Agency, and the world’s foremost energy economist, said much more needed to be done but that the rapid uptake of solar power and electric vehicles were encouraging.

---

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[batboyblog]

Things the Biden-Harris Administration Did This Week #31

August 9-16 2024

President Biden and Vice-President Harris announced together the successful conclusion of the first negotiations between Medicare and pharmaceutical companies over drug prices. For years Medicare was not allow to directly negotiate princes with drug companies leaving seniors to pay high prices. It has been a Democratic goal for many years to change this. President Biden noted he first introduced a bill to allow these negotiations as a Senator back in 1973. Thanks to Inflation Reduction Act, passed with no Republican support using Vice-President Harris' tie breaking vote, this long time Democratic goal is now a reality. Savings on these first ten drugs are between 38% and 79% and will collectively save seniors $1.8 billion dollars in out of pocket costs. This comes on top of the Biden-Harris Administration already having capped the price of insulin for Medicare's 3.5 million diabetics at $35 a month, as well as the Administration's plan to cap Medicare out of pocket drug costs at $2,000 a year starting January 2025.

President Biden and Vice President Harris have launched a wide ranging all of government effort to crack down on companies wasting customers time with excessive paperwork, hold times, and robots rather than real people. Some of the actions from the "Time is Money" effort include: The FTC and FCC putting forward rules that require companies to make canceling a subscription or service as easy as signing up for it. The Department of Transportation has required automatic refunds for canceled flights. The CFPB is working on rules to require companies to have to allow customers to speak to a real person with just one button click ending endless "doom loops" of recored messages. The CFPB is also working on rules around chatbots, particularly their use from banks. The FTC is working on rules to ban companies from posting fake reviews, suppressing honest negative reviews, or paying for  positive reviews. HHS and the Department of Labor are taking steps to require insurance companies to allow health claims to be submitted online. All these actions come on top of the Biden Administration's efforts to get rid of junk fees.

President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden announced further funding as part of the President's Cancer Moonshot. The Cancer Moonshot was launched by then Vice-President Biden in 2016 in the aftermath of his son Beau Biden's death from brain cancer in late 2015. It was scrapped by Trump as political retaliation against the Obama-Biden Administration. Revived by President Biden in 2022 it has the goal of cutting the number of cancer deaths in half over the next 25 years, saving 4 million lives. Part of the Moonshot is Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), grants to help develop cutting edge technology to prevent, detect, and treat cancer. The President and First Lady announced $150 million in ARPA-H grants this week focused on more successful cancer surgeries. With grants to Tulane, Rice, Johns Hopkins, and Dartmouth, among others, they'll help fund imaging and microscope technology that will allow surgeons to more successfully determine if all cancer has been remove, as well as medical imaging focused on preventing damage to healthy tissues during surgeries.

Vice-President Harris announced a 4-year plan to lower housing costs. The Vice-President plans on offering $25,000 to first time home buyers in down-payment support. It's believed this will help support 1 million first time buyers a year. She also called for the building of 3 million more housing units, and a $40 billion innovation fund to spur innovative housing construction. This adds to President Biden's call for a $10,000 tax credit for first time buyers and calls by the President to punish landlords who raise the rent by over 5%.

President Biden Designates the site of the 1908 Springfield Race Riot a National Monument. The two day riot in Illinois capital took place just blocks away from Abraham Lincoln's Springfield home. In August 1908, 17 people die, including a black infant, and 2,000 black refugees were forced to flee the city. As a direct result of the riot, black community leaders and white allies met a few months later in New York and founded the NAACP. The new National Monument will seek to preserve the history and educate the public both on the horrible race riot as well as the foundation of the NAACP. This is the second time President Biden has used his authority to set up a National Monument protecting black history, after setting up the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument on Emmett Till's 82nd birthday July 25th 2023.

The Department of The Interior announced $775 million to help cap and clean up orphaned oil and gas wells. The money will help cap wells in 21 states. The Biden-Harris Administration has allocated $4.7 billion to plug orphaned wells, a billion of which has already been distributed. More than 8,200 such wells have been capped since the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed in 2022. Orphaned wells leak toxins into communities and are leaking the super greenhouse gas methane. Plugging them will not only improve the health of nearby communities but help fight climate change on a global level.

Vice-President Harris announced plans to ban price-gouging in the food and grocery industries. This would be a first ever federal ban on price gouging and Harris called for clear "rules of the road" on price rises in food, and strong penalties from the FTC for those who break them. This is in line with President Biden's launching of a federal Strike Force on Unfair and Illegal Pricing in March, and Democratic Senator Bob Casey's bill to ban "shrinkflation". In response to this pressure from Democrats on price gouging and after aggressive questions by Senator Casey and Senator Elizabeth Warren, the supermarket giant Kroger proposed dropping prices by a billion dollars

[robertreich]

How We Take Back the Supreme Court

Where do you see yourself in 2060? What about your kids or grandkids? Will Donald Trump be affecting your life even then?

Here’s why he might be.

This November, the future of the Supreme Court is on the ballot.

Trump appointed three justices in his first term — more than any president since Ronald Reagan. And thanks to them, Trump was able to get rid of Roe v. Wade, affirmative action, and gun safety laws — even after he left office.

If Trump is reelected, 76-year-old Justice Clarence Thomas and 74-year-old Justice Samuel Alito could retire, giving Trump a chance to appoint a fourth and fifth justice. That’s five out of nine justices. Trump would be the first president in more than a half century to appoint a majority of the Supreme Court.

And not just a "conservative" majority — but a MAGA majority that would work in lockstep with an authoritarian president.

Several other justices are also getting up there. Chief Justice John Roberts will turn 70 in 2025, and Justice Sonia Sotomayor will be 71. So it’s possible that Trump could even appoint a sixth (or even a seventh) justice.

If Trump sticks with appointing justices in their 40s, as he did with Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett, his justices could dominate the court past the year 2060 — or longer if he appoints even younger justices.

In the court’s latest term, the extremists now dominating the bench made it harder to combat racial gerrymandering. They limited the power of federal agencies to implement health, safety, and environmental regulations. They ruled that homeless people can be punished for being homeless. They gave the greenlight for state and local politicians to accept bribes for past actions. And I didn’t even mention how the court granted presidents the power of kings by giving them broad immunity from prosecution.

All of this because one man, Donald Trump, was elected in 2016. If he’s reelected in 2024, just imagine the damage a MAGA supermajority Supreme Court could unleash.

Your remaining reproductive freedoms, marriage equality, gun reform, climate change policy, and what’s left of the Voting Rights Act…

Wherever you imagine yourself and your family forty years from now, you will still be feeling the effects of this year’s election.

[uyuforu]

Success & Fame Indicators in Solar Return Chart

All pictures were found on Pinterest

Other posts you could like:

જ⁀➴ Romance Indicators in Solar Return

જ⁀➴ Traveling Indicators in Solar Return

જ⁀➴ Pregnancies & Having Children in Solar Return

જ⁀➴ Solar Return Predictions for Celebrities (2024-2025)

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╰┈➤ Get your own Solar Return Chart from 30€ to 60€ ⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪

✮⋆˙ Leo Rising/ Leo degree on Rising (5°, 17°, 29°)

✮⋆˙ Libra Rising (more if you are into entering beauty industry)

✮⋆˙ Scorpio Rising can often tell us you'll change this year, your reputation, appearance will have a drastic change. So it can work too if you have other indicators.

✮⋆˙ Jupiter conjunct MC or in 10H

✮⋆˙ Jupiter 11H can often tell us you'll get popular online.

✮⋆˙ Leo Stellium often indicate big popularity this year.

✮⋆˙ Leo degrees (5°, 17°, 29°) on the angles, or on big 6 planets. Can also work on fame asteroids.

✮���˙ Stellium in 10H/ 11H/ 9H/ 1H/ 8H.

✮⋆˙ Stellium with fame asteroids in additions to planets.

✮⋆˙ Fame asteroids conjunct Sun.

✮⋆˙ Part of Fortune conjunct Varuna and Sun too.

✮⋆˙ 10H Ruler in 10H/ 11H/ 9H/ 8H/ 1H.

✮⋆˙ 11H Ruler in 11H/ 10H/ 9H/ 8H/ 1H.

✮⋆˙ Pluto ruling 10H or in 10H/ or conjunct MC.

✮⋆˙ 1H Ruler in 8H can often indicate people being obsessed with you this year.

✮⋆˙ Personal planets (except Sun) or Angles in 0° can often indicate new beginnings or big success too.

✮⋆˙ Mars conjunct Jupiter

✮⋆˙ Libra degrees (7°, 19°) on angles or in personal planets + 7H connections to fame/ or Venus being connected to fame in your SRC can mean you'll get success or fame in beauty this year. Can also mean you'll be popular because you can be considered as very pretty, handsome, or just stunning.

✮⋆˙ Fame asteroids in Leo or in Leo degrees (5°, 17°, 29°)

✮⋆˙ Sun/ Jupiter/ POF conjunct Varuna in Leo.

✮⋆˙ Big 6 Stellium in 10H or 11H.

╰┈➤ Get your own Solar Return Chart from 30€ to 60€ ⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪

‧₊˚✩彡 Examples:

✮⋆˙ Naomi Campbell had a stellium in her 11H in her SRC of 1988-1989, with Sun, Jupiter, Mercury in it. She also had her Rising at 29°. Varuna Asteroid conjunct her Mercury in 11H as well. This year, Naomi Campbell was the first black model to appear on the cover of Vogue Paris.

✮⋆˙ Anytime Naomi Campbell had a success in her career, she had 10H or 11H Ruler in 9H.

✮⋆˙ Selena Gomez had Jupiter conjunct MC, and it's also her MC's ruler, the year she started bigger roles in Disney Channel, in 2007. Pluto was also in her 10H. She also had a few fame asteroid in her 5H as well in her 9H.

✮⋆˙ Justin Bieber was discovered in 2007 online, he had Jupiter 11H and a big stellium in his 1H that year with some fame asteroids. His 3H Ruler conjunct a lot of fame asteroids as well.

✮⋆˙ The year Justin Bieber had his first single and first album out that was the start of a huge success, he also had his 10H Ruler in 9H. The ruler also conjunct some fame asteroids. He was also Leo Rising at 17°. 1H Ruler was in the 8H, and indeed girls were obsessed with him. In general people were often obsessed with him and either loved him or hated him.

✮⋆˙ In between, in 2008, Justin Bieber had a 10H stellium, with 10H ruler in 11H. Asteroids Lumiere & Varuna were both in his 3H. Rising was at 29°. He was very popular that year still.

✮⋆˙ Hailey Baldwin Bieber started to gain popularity around 2015-2016. This Solar Return, she had Leo Rising, Varuna 29°, 10H Ruler in 3H, North Node 29°, Populus conjunct Sun.

✮⋆˙ Hailey Baldwin Bieber was more popular the Solar Return she got engaged to Justin Bieber. If we look closely on the SRC, 10H had 3 different fame asteroids, and 10H Ruler was Uranus, which was at 29°. Yet she had Neptune and Chiron 11H, she was hated on a lot.

✮⋆˙ The year Hailey Baldwin Bieber launched her Make up and Skincare brand Rhode, she had Libra MC, Ruler being Venus was in 1H. She also had Sun, Mercury in 11H.

✮⋆˙ Still on Hailey Baldwin Bieber, her most popular product for Rhode was her lipsticks, and it was very popular in 2023. She had Jupiter 10H this year, MC was at 19°, Rising at 29°.

✮⋆˙ Selena Gomez had the most success too for her make up brand Rare Beauty in 2022-2023 (still today too), and in this SRC of 2022-2023, she had a 10H Stellium in Leo with Sun, Mercury, Varuna, Part of Fortune. She was Libra Rising as well, with some Fame asteroids conjuncting the rising.

✮⋆˙ Sabrina Carpenter has a stellium in 1H this year, and I'm not shocked because she is very talked about. People give her a lot go attention in general. Moreover, this stellium also indicates her being seen as very beautiful, a beauty icon.

✮⋆˙ The year BTS made their debut, Jungkook was on his SRC of 2012-2013. He had Jupiter conjunct 10H, it was also in 10H. Despite good fame asteroids being present in this house, his 10H ruler was in 12H, it wasn't seen much.

✮⋆˙ BTS had a huge success with DNA era, and it was in 2017. On this SRC of Jungkook, we can see he had Leo MC, so also Scorpio Rising. He had a stellium in 10H, with Sun, Mercury & Mars, but also Jupiter 11H. Additional, but Jungkook also had Varuna 9H, and that's the year BTS got more attention (than before) in foreign lands.

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[qqueenofhades]

The 2025 project seems to reflect that the Republican Party is becoming more and more fascism, but it actually reflects the growing number of extreme nationalists, misogynists, and racists among ordinary Americans. US is a democracy, and politicians rely on votes to stay in power. The fact that the Republicans dare to draft such a project shows that they are confident it will gain significant public support. Politicians aren’t fools; they wouldn’t pursue something that only a small group agrees with while the majority opposes it. The global rightward shift is evident, and though I’m not American, my country is also deteriorating in many ways. Why is this happening? Because the economic base determines the superstructure?and in recent years, the global economy has been in decline?

Mmmm, I'm gonna have to challenge you here.

First of all, it's just flatly not true that there's a "growing number of extreme nationalists, misogynists, and racists among ordinary Americans." That movement has become more vocal and visible in post-2016 America, but there's absolutely no evidence -- and indeed, a lot of evidence to the contrary -- that their numbers are growing instead of shrinking. The Republicans got lucky with Trump's win in 2016 thanks to a combination of decades of anti-Hillary smears, extensive Russian interference/psyops, the anti-democratic Electoral College, and general misplaced complacence that he was never going to win and people didn't need to bother voting for two disliked candidates. They've flatly lost every competitive nationwide election since then -- 2018, 2020, 2022, and very probably 2024. In between, their hand-picked Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade (guaranteeing the right to an abortion in all 50 states) and set off a titanic tidal wave of voter support for abortion rights, even in very dark red states like Kansas and Kentucky (which are not liberal by any stretch of the word). In fact, the Republicans' (flatly false) excuse that they just wanted to "return [abortion rights to the states]" has been unveiled as another lie due to their desperate attempts in this election cycle to ratfuck voter-approved abortion questions off the ballot in Arkansas, Missouri, Florida, and elsewhere. This is a badly losing issue for them, even in deep red states, and they don't want people to vote on it, because they hate democracy. We'll get to that.

Likewise, polls of "culture war" issues like LGBTQ+ rights, abortion rights, immigrants' rights, etc., consistently get much more support among ordinary Americans than not. The ordinary public is becoming more liberal, not less, even in the face of constant aggressive and reactionary attempts to undo the sum total of social and civil rights movements from the 20th century. Republicans' views are getting less popular, not more, and this is also driven by the ongoing demographic change in America. Within a generation or two, whites may be in the statistical minority, and that deeply terrifies people whose entire political and social identity is built on ethnostate white supremacism. The reason Republicans are getting so extreme and antidemocratic now is because the electorate is getting younger and younger, more diverse, more accepting, and less tolerant of their age-old bullshit. As such, there is a very visible window of time outside which the Republicans will not be able to win competitive nationwide elections, even despite all the advantages they're building into the system and have always had. That terrifies them. It is also why they have decided to destroy democracy.

Which leads us into your next assertion that "US is a democracy, and politicians rely on votes to stay in power. The fact that the Republicans dare to draft such a project shows that they are confident it will gain significant public support. Politicians aren’t fools; they wouldn’t pursue something that only a small group agrees with while the majority opposes it." Yes, maybe, in some exceedingly generic logic that doesn't take any account of the actual situation in the US and the fact that the Republicans have made their hatred for democratic free and fair elections very, very clear. This is why Trump pushed the "election fraud" Big Lie in 2020 and sent a mob to attack the Capitol in an attempt to prevent the certification of Biden's win. This is why states controlled by Republicans have frantically enacted as many voter suppression and voter-removal laws as possible and conducted constant purges to get voters (especially the mysteriously missing 1 million Democrats in Florida) off the rolls. This is why they talk approvingly about Trump being "a dictator on day one." This is why they have pursued a decades-long strategy to capture the federal judiciary (by installing extreme right-wing hacks to the bench and then funneling extreme-right legislation into their courts to get a favorable ruling and/or send it to the extreme-right Supreme Court). And on, and on, and on. The Republicans are explicitly aware that their ideas cannot win in a free and fair election, because their ideas are terrible, and as such have been taking massive, ongoing, and coordinated efforts to disenfranchise American voters, expose them to lakes of sordid Russian propaganda/psyops in favor of Trump, double down on the xenophobia and white nationalism to stoke Fear Of The Other, and everything else they possibly can to prevent voters from voting for their opponents. They hate democracy and they are not counting on democratic methods to implement Project 2025. They intend to do it by secretive oligarch methods funded by right-wing billionaire dark money and their Russian friends. That's the whole point.

Indeed, you can see that in the fact that as soon as Project 2025 became widely known and therefore widely hated, the Republicans were thrown into a panicked fluster of disavowing it and insisting that Trump didn't actually know about it (which is a lie, but that's all the day). Because it is electoral kryptonite, they are trying every single method they can to lie to voters long enough to get into power and do it anyway. Authoritarians can often come to power through democratic elections, but once there, they do their utmost to degrade, erode, or otherwise destroy the institutional safeguards that prevent them from keeping power forever. Trump is a literally textbook example of this and he has made his intentions very clear. He flat-out told a group of Republicans at an event earlier this year that "we'll fix it so you won't have to vote again." He already tried a coup and somehow the Republicans nominated him again, because of the deep corruption of the party on every level, but the Republicans are not doing Project 2025 because they think it will organically generate popular support (and they know it doesn't.) It's a blueprint for a tiny group of extreme right-wing theocrats and fascists to get their way regardless of what the broader public says about it, and represents the culmination of decades of far-right power-play strategies related to exploiting economic, racial, social, and cultural grievances. They're doing this now in order to lock in their power before long-term demographic changes make it impossible for them to win another democratic American election. So their solution is to get rid of democratic American elections, the end. This is explicitly a project for permanent minority rule. They know that and that's what's driving their strategic choices here.

As such, essentially saying that the Republicans aren't really fascist, and/or the real problem and/or are just giving an increasingly fascist American population what they want, removes any moral responsibility for their deliberate choices and legitimizes the populist claim to be acting "for the people" instead of a corrupt institutional system. Everyone knows the many, MANY problems with American politics and government; we don't need to go through them again. But even if they were "just giving the people what they want," which as noted above they're not, it still wouldn't make it okay or defensible. To use the obvious example, just because Hitler was popular and democratically elected in 1933 doesn't make what he did right, and the social forces that propelled him to power weren't just a passive "reflection" of The People's Will but were shaped by the larger fascist-curious interwar 1930s. In fact, America also had a burgeoning fascist movement in the 1930s, driven by WWI and Great Depression fallout, but Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal explicitly created extensive government mechanisms to support society, provide new jobs and welfare, and other integrative and restorative economic methods. This crucial difference in approaches -- the New Deal vs. the Nazis -- is why America remained democratic despite the challenges and Germany fell into autocratic genocidal fascism.

This is because populism and dissatisfaction with democracy rises when people feel that the government is not listening to them, is not responsive to their needs, is ignoring them, or otherwise not doing what they want. It is driven by multiple factors, primarily but not only economic, and it is stoked by powerful interest groups who have a vested interest in using the fissures to discredit democratic governments and movements. It is also by no means limited to America, as you note at the end. Think of the decades-long campaign by the British media against the EU, driven by British isolationism and exceptionalism and a sense that the petty bureaucrats in Brussels had no right to be telling the almighty British Empire what to do. This created and stoked existing social grievances which were often domestically caused (since as Margaret Thatcher destroying the British social-welfare state in the 1980s) and turned that grievance against an external opponent who was easier to blame. As such, as we know, it led to the country voting for Brexit in 2016 despite what a whopping, overwhelming, incredible own goal that was and continues to be for the UK, especially economically and socially. It was obviously dependent on many contextual factors from British history, politics, and culture, and there were certainly many people who actually thought it was the right thing to do (and not just about racism, which uh, hmmm), but it's very difficult to think that this organically or naturally came about without a direct and extensive popular-pressure campaign designed to do just that.

People often vote against their own interests because they have been convinced that democracy is corrupt or ineffective or "just as bad" as authoritarianism, which allows illiberal populists to rise to power. These populists often use racial, religious, or cultural grievances, especially against perceived "outsiders," to artificially stoke existing prejudice and justify crackdowns and/or consolidations of their own personal power and destruction of institutional systems and safeguards meant to stop them from doing that. That's how we got Erdogan in Turkey, Bolsonaro in Brazil, Orban in Hungary, and Trump in the US. Other authoritarian movements around the world are also driven implicitly or explicitly by the massive autocratic and antidemocratic global influence disinformation machine headed by Putin in Russia. As such, it's not accurate to insist that this just represents a simple passive "rightward shift" among the global population overall. It is happening because it has been designed and manipulated and pressed into happening. It can still be electorally resisted, which is also the most effective strategy for removing authoritarians, but if we fail to vote out Trump once and for all in 2024, it will be MUCH harder and much more deadly.

Overall, to simplistically claim that the Republican party is just giving the increasingly fascist Americans what they want and expect it to derive broad popular support is, as I have demonstrated above, a diametrically backward conception of the problem. The Republicans are deliberately and increasingly fascist because they realize that very soon, if allowed to continue operating in its accustomed fashion, the American democratic system and American public opinion is going to make them obsolete. They're racing the clock to cement permanent super-minority rule, and to change the rules overall, before America's shifting demographic composition and ideological mindset locks them out. That is why they are throwing so much misinformation, fearmongering, lies, Russian propaganda, and everything else that they can think of at this election, to get Trump and loyal Project 2025 footsoldier Vance into the door before the door slams shut for a long time. That is why this election is so fucking existentially important and why it is so crucial to accurately conceptualize and describe the problem, what it is, and how to respond to it. As such, while I otherwise don't do this much anymore because I no longer have the desire to argue with the people who are likewise brainwashed in the opposite direction and insist it's a Pure Leftist Moral Duty not to vote against fascist authoritarianism (as, uh, also happened with the fragmented and infighting German left-wing opposition in 1932 and good thing nothing bad happened next):

The end.

[catboybiologist]

Genuine question (from a trans person on HRT who is thinking) what do you think the most likely outcome of all the Project 2025 and Agenda 47 stuff is? Are they actually going to b able to go through with all of that? I have doubts but also I might just b too optimistic

I'm likely going to make a separate post about this, but here's my initial, spitball takes of realistic outcomes. Please add to this discussion and correct me if I'm getting anything wrong.

The tl;dr is no, they will likely not be able to implement a full project 2025 in one election cycle. However, they will get the ball rolling, and they will make life more difficult for various groups of people. The most likely overall outcome is simply that legal and political resources will be drained actively fighting new bullshit for the next 4 years instead of pushing for change. Here's what I realistically expect straight off the bat:

Day 1 executive orders related to immigration. The exact form and target of them is almost impossible to predict exactly, but it will likely be some mirror of the Day 1 executive orders in 2016 that banned all entry from 8 predominantly islamic countries.

Day 1 or very early executive orders on Transgender youth access to healthcare and Transgender people in bathrooms. These are bad, but genuinely lower impact issues for trans rights (vs things like violence and universal access), however, they will tie up legal resources.

Supply side restrictions on HRT and birth control, particularly testosterone and plan B.

Longer term, its nearly impossible to say what exactly they'll be able to implement. I think its highly dependent on how much organizations like the ACLU are able to fight them early on. The more time they spend fighting the early stuff, the less time they have to move on to bigger things.

The fight is not over, and it is winnable.

[rabidline]

Japanese Skaters' Favorite Shoma Uno Programs and Their Reasons

This was in the Figure Skating Team Japan Fan Book for the 2024-2025 season, which had Shoma on its cover along with both a pretty substantial Shoma interview and Stephane interview about Shoma.

For Shoma's retirement, the magazine made a special column to include the active Japanese skaters (and Satoko) messages to Shoma, as well as their favorite Shoma programs. A friend helped in sharing and translating just the favorite Shoma programs part:

Sota Yamamoto: I love so many programs. Loco is the best for me because it’s unique and cool. Turandot 2.0 (2017-2018), when I had a difficult season because of my injury, this program encouraged me. Stairway To Heaven... brushing his hair upward is so cool. Great Spirit and Dancing On My Own (2019 Nationals) He graduated from Grand Prix Tokai and struggled but he could be National champion. I was so moved and almost cried. I love Bolero. Gravity and Air On The G String, he could perform not only powerful but loss of strength and I could learn from him.

Yuma Kagiyama: I love so many programs. Loco is the best. I love Great Spirit so I chose Believer last season (2022-2024 SP). I watched and watched Great Spirit on YouTube and I can skate its step sequence.

Shun Sato: Of course I love Ladies in Lavender. And Great Spirit.

Kazuki Tomono: I love Legends (2015-2016) so much because it’s first SP as a senior skater. His image as a skater changed a lot and it was impressive.

Koshiro Shimada: I love Loco at Helsinki Worlds (2017) the best. And Everything Everywhere All At Once and Bolero. At first Shoma mentioned about Bolero, “It’s so difficult and I can’t.” Finally he could do great performance and win at Worlds (2022) and it was what Stephane wanted to see I think. I was so moved and I almost got goosebumps.

Kao Miura: I love Loco the best because the balance of powerful and sensitive movements is good. I love Bolero because he seems to reach his limits. Not only jumps but each movement were so great and the last he seems to collapse because he skates so hard. I love it so much.

Nozomu Yoshioka: I love 2019-2020 season Great Spirit and Dancing On My Own. Nobody skates for such a number like Great Spirit and it’s so exciting. I like a stop before step sequence and before 3A and it’s so cool program. He struggled first half of the season so I was so moved to see Dancing On My Own at (2019) Nationals.

Tatsuya Tsuboi: I love Turandot 1.0 the best. When I was novice skater I saw his senior debut GPF (2015) and he got a bronze medal. It was so impressive and I was so moved.

Kaori Sakamoto: I love Moonlight. This season he won 4CC title. Second year 4th place, third year 3rd place, fourth year 2nd place, and finally he got gold medal. He seemed very happy on the podium and both program and costume were great. Everything was perfect.

Mone Chiba: I love the last season’s SP, Everything Everywhere All At Once, because I love the atmosphere. His step sequence expresses powerfulness and gracefulness. It’s great program so I feel it too short.

Rinka Watanabe: I love Moonlight because I’d like to express like that. His skating is like a clear (not hazy) night and it’s great.

Rion Sumiyoshi: I love many programs. I love Air On The G String because I sometimes skate it for skating lessons. It’s a very simple music but he can tell a story and he can bring a joy to audience. His technique is great.

Mai Mihara: I love many programs and each has a charm. If I choose one program, I’ll choose Turandot 2.0. Especially cantilever is really great and I was so moved and I almost got goosebumps. Both skating and expression were great.

Hana Yoshida: I have two programs in my mind. If I choose one program, I’ll choose Bolero. I forget the name… small pattern…Great Spirit? I love the step sequence and I’d like to rewatch it.

Yuna Aoki: Turandot 2.0 is so impressive because I love princely costume and I feel his powerfulness from this program. I love it so much.

Wakaba Higuchi: I love Bolero and Turandot so much. I could see Bolero at ice shows many times and it’s impressive.

Satoko Miyahara: I love Bolero the best. Turandot 2.0 is impressive. I also love gala program Padam Padam and I always think it great.

Rino Matsuike: I love Bolero. I used to skate Moonlight, so It’s so special for me. When Mihoko-sensei choreographed this program, she said “When the music started, audience was so focused on his performance from the first moment. (He could bring audience to his world.) When I am training, I think “I’d like to perform like him.”

[nevermindirah]

Don't Segregate Sam

here's the full text of the feedback I just sent to AO3 about their terrible plan to segregate the Captain America (Movies) tag. truly a ridiculously bad and offensive idea. send your own feedback here!

I'm writing to strongly oppose y'all's announced upcoming change to the Captain America (Movies) tag to segregate the Chris Evans movies from the Anthony Mackie movies. I can see how this change might make sense to an archivist with a passing knowledge of the MCU and I respect the volunteer labor of the folks who worked on this but I can't emphasize enough how much this change will not only be unhelpful to those of us creating and reading works in the fandom but will actively exacerbate the serious ongoing problem of racist sidelining of Sam Wilson as the legitimate successor Captain America.

Sam Wilson fans have had to develop word-of-mouth systems to help each other find works genuinely focused on Sam because on both AO3 and Tumblr the Sam-related tags are overwhelmingly filled with works that either portray Sam with racist tropes or don't actually feature him at all. This isn't a problem that can be solved with better system-wide tagging. It's a problem of racist attitudes against Sam as a character, attitudes that were inflamed by the announcement of Sam as the new Captain America. Your announced tagging change only plays into this.

This situation is nothing like the James Bond movies tags segmenting by actor, because of the wide variations in continuity between all those movies and because there's never been a racist backlash against any one Bond actor. This is like if there were an upcoming new James Bond movie clearly set in the same continuity as the Daniel Craig movies but starring, say, Lashana Lynch as the latest 007, and AO3 updated the tags to James Bond (pre-2025 Movies) and James Bond (Lashana Lynch Movies). The upcoming 2025 Captain America movie is not the start of a new continuity within the MCU — instead, it's the long-awaited return of Sam Wilson to the big screen for the first time since 2019, finally getting his flowers as a film lead with his promotion to Captain America.

Sam plays a pivotal role in the 2014 and 2016 Cap movies, a much bigger and more important role than Peggy Carter. The post announcing the tag change lists Peggy but not Sam as a key figure in those movies, perhaps unintentionally due to limited familiarity with the canon, but this error pressed on a raw wound in the fandom. Peggy has been highlighted as an alternate Captain America figure in several MCU properties of the past 5 years, including a much-publicized appearance right next to the first MCU appearance of Charles Xavier, while Sam, the first character to un-blip in Endgame and the rightful leader of future Avengers teamups, has only meaningfully appeared in a one-off episode of What If and his own contained TV show The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. Intentionally or not, your announcement post fed into this ongoing problem of fans and some MCU creatives seeking to replace Sam with Peggy.

Sidelining Sam has been a serious problem in the fandom since 2014 and now in the 2020s a problem in the canon as well. The announced tag change further legitimizes this racist sidelining of a main character in the franchise. It will do nothing to help people searching the archive for works about Sam and will only embolden those fans who wish to sideline him.

Please reverse your decision. Do not segregate the Captain America (Movies) tag.

[lady-raziel]

I'm angry. I'm really, really furious right now. I am absolutely livid that when the stakes are so high-- not just for Americans at risk from project 2025, not just for people in Europe being threatened by Russia, not just for people in Palestine, but for pretty much widespread global stability-- that the elites of the Democratic party would dare, would have the fucking gall to let Joe Biden run for a second term in the first place, and then when the magnitude of their own hubris is revealed, would not correct the mistake. And even worse, now, after what we've seen over the past two weeks-- that many of them, including some of the most progressive, would look out upon the people who they claim to be champions of, the diverse and varied America who will suffer at the hands of the conservatives' agenda--and they would EVER dare to say that YOU are wrong to point out the truth before your own eyes.

After the NATO press conference, where Biden absolutely had to prove he was not on the decline, and resoundingly failed to do so, I was appalled to go on Twitter (I'm still not calling it X, sorry) and see favored Democratic insiders claiming that the performance I had just seen was GOOD. That I should be PROUD of this. That I should WANT to vote for this.

How dare you. How dare you say that I should be proud, should wholeheartedly endorse the candidate at the head of a party who, time and time again over the past 30+ years, has only ever chosen to raise up its own aging elites, and occasionally younger people if they met the right demographics to portray the image of the "diverse party of the people."

No. It became evident a long time ago that you only ever cared about yourselves and consolidating your own power. Time and time again you have destroyed the chances of any candidate that strays beyond what you consider the bounds of acceptability for yourselves. There were good candidates in 2004-- and instead, the Democrats gave us John Kerry and handed the Republicans another four years of Bush. Hillary Clinton first ran for president in 2008-- had Barack Obama not been so compelling, had the idea of having the first African American president been so appealing, would you have allowed him to stand a chance? In 2016 you again and again ignored what the average person had to say, ignored concerns that had been brewing for decades that your commitment to "diversity" only mattered if it could be wielded against conservatives and used to prop yourselves up, and destroyed Bernie Sanders' campaign in service of an elite no one wanted.

The seeds of Donald Trump had been brewing for a long time, and instead of doing something about it then, you rested on your laurels and held on to your power instead of raising new people up to move the mission forward. And now, when the situation is MORE CRITICAL than it has EVER been-- still you refuse to listen. Still you refuse to change. Biden literally said in that press conference they aren't listening to polls anymore--is there ANYTHING that will get you to see that you are fucking this up???

So no, Biden campaign surrogates on my Twitter feed, DNC donation-prompt texts, endless barrage of emails one after another-- I see no reason to my proud of this. For many of us, this election as well as the last one was ALWAYS a strategic calculation to prevent worse things, empower local-level candidates, and allow a party structure to exist in some form in hopes of change. This was ALWAYS a dispassionate choice made with the full knowledge of complex situations in order to play the long game.

How dare you say I too should wholeheartedly believe the emperor is dressed in robes of splendor when he and the rest of you have lain bare for the longest time, while those of us trying to keep things from getting worse have to convince the rightfully angry people who still care to ignore the nakedness of who you are--to prevent people cloaked in blood from taking the reins. Shame on all of you, honestly. I wish I could say that this might be a learning moment for the Democratic elite, but I have little hope, and I expect to hear you pontificate on end regarding how "young people just don't understand the political process and that's why we lost" as we all go down together.

Fuck you.

[jimin-bangtan]

What are Jimin’s new dreams?

Before Jimin even clarified the (below) statement he made at Festa 2021 [set to mark], I had noticed that throughout the years many of the items Jimin had expressed that he wanted to accomplish did  eventually come to pass. He seems to be very good at setting goals and working toward making them become reality.

Click on image to enlarge.

Years later, at this point in their career, BTS has stunned the music industry by remaining productive and relevant while being absent due to mandatory military service.  So even while being in the military, yet another of Jimin’s known dreams came true.

In 2016 in his reflective Festa profile, Jimin declared that a desire on his bucket list was to “get the daesang”.

He may have been hoping for the prestigious daesang (grand prize) for the group at that time, but it wasn’t clearly stated who he had hoped would get a daesang eventually. It could have been a wish for both him and his group separately. Or he may not have been able to conceive of him ever getting a daesang as a soloist himself at that point. With Jimin’s goal setting habit and strength, it’s certainly possible either way.

Since then, it now turns out, the group and Jimin both have daesangs. Over the years, BTS did go on to earn a record-breaking number of daesangs, but in late 2024, Jimin was the first soloist to win this particular daesang (Worldwide Icon of the Year/Fan Choice of the Year), and he was the first soloist in a decade to win any daesang in any category. He is also the first soloist from BTS so far.

Soon after the win, Jimin used one of his rare communication moments with fans to thank them for such an honor.  He was very touched and “stunned”. (Stunned? Stunned stunned. Stunned.🤭)

After another customary break of silence for Jimin, he recently wrote a letter to reach out to fans again in January of 2025. 2025 is the year he is to be finally discharged from military service, BTS is to be reunited as a group, and the group begins the new phase of their careers and lives.

In the letter, Jimin wished fans a happy new year and filled them in on how he was spending his time. He explained that one of the things he was doing was having important conversations with Jung Kook, who is serving alongside him by way of Korea’s companion program. The conversations center around planning for the future.

Jimin's current letter caused me to reflect back to the past and then wonder, “What are Jimin’s new dreams?” If you've read my Chameleon Park Jimin series (especially the more recent ones), I have already been considering some of these same questions: How will he choose to present himself on stage and in life? What will he decide to show that he hadn’t shown before? What will he no longer show that he had once shown? What kind of life will he choose to live as an adult artist in the idol world? How have he and his views changed since serving in the military?

But Jimin's current letter, along with my Festa 2021 reflection and all of his astounding and historic solo achievements, really sparked a curiosity about: What new dreams will Jimin now be aiming for?

In his song, Smeraldo Garden Marching Band, from his MUSE album, Jimin said, “Everything we couldn’t say before… I’ll tell you everything now.” In his MUSE fan song, Closer Than This, he said, “When we meet again on a spring day, I’ll tell you all the things I couldn’t before.”  Now, in his current letter directly to fans, he said he couldn’t wait to have fun conversations with fans about things that had happened. But the songs show he obviously already had things to tell that had happened before the military.  Will these new conversations shine a light on his new dreams and future plans? I’m sure all of his fans can’t wait to find out the answers to these questions and more. I know I can’t.

BTS, as a group, and now as soloists, have already achieved so much in their careers. They have reached heights and earned accomplishments that have far surpassed what others had done or in which they were the first to do so. After military service and the forced hiatus, Jimin and the rest of BTS will have so many more experiences, skills, and thoughts to share. June of 2025 cannot come fast enough. Whether Jimin shares all of his new (or existing) intentions with us, we know that he usually has interesting and exciting dreams and has the determination and ability - not to mention the support of his devoted fans - to make them come true too.

[sdv-confessions]

I feel like 90% of the discourse in Stardew Valley can be solved if we all stopped and remembered that the majority of the game's story was originally written between 2011-2016 and thus contains sentiments that have not aged to carry the exact same meanings and intentions 10 years later/in 2025 and any analysis for the game and characters should take that into account.

Because once you actually stop and look at a lot of the discourse that way, it all makes sense.

"Is Clint an incel?" By 2016 standards 100%. But by 2025 standards it isn't as cut and dry anymore because of the current climate regarding understanding gender norms, generational trauma, and mental health struggles. Now, Clint could be declared either just an incel or as just a man in arrested development with mental health struggles, depending on the viewpoints of people who played the game during which decade.

"Is Pierre as bad as Joja?" In 2016, absolutely not, and for a majority of the game in 2025, not really. He's a man struggling to stay afloat in a dying town and using any dirty tactic he can, because his competitors (Joja) are doing the same. But once Joja is truly fully gone and by the time the movie theater is there to replace the building, any grey area Pierre has is gone and he's becoming the very thing he sought to fight against.

"Is Lewis a bad mayor and bad person?" At first a lot of people didn't care much and would answer no, but then as the fanbase became more politically aware outside of the game, they came to realize that yes, he is. Even if he doesn't intend to be, Lewis is still a bad mayor and a pretty bad person when you stop and really analyze things. (though I think he has the chance to change).

"Is Demetrius a terrible father/husband?" When the game first came out, most people would have said no. Especially given the stereotypes of kids like Sebastian at the time, people assumed the issues going on were just overexaggerated. But like with Clint, the views and climate around what makes a good parent and partner in a relationship in 2025 affects how we view him. Add on top of that the clear signs of neurodivergence, and ablism discussions are now added to the mix. The answer now varies depending on a multitude of factors.

Overall, imo, I think the game is just in a state where a majority of it can't age along with its now ginormous player base. CA can make changes, sure, but he'd have to rebuild the entire game from the ground up to address every minor detail of discourse that's come up over the years. At that point, he might as well just make an entirely new game.

Which he is. In Haunted Chocolatier. Which will very likely be influenced by the world and views CA is involved in from 2020 to release.

.

[awesomearchives]

Every four years, before and after the U.S. presidential election, a team of libraries and research organizations, including the Internet Archive, work together to preserve material from U.S. government websites during the transition of administrations. These “End of Term” (EOT) Web Archive projects have been completed for term transitions in 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2020, with 2024 well underway. The effort preserves a record of the U.S. government as it changes over time for historical and research purposes. With two-thirds of the process complete, the 2024/2025 EOT crawl has collected more than 500 terabytes of material, including more than 100 million unique web pages. All this information, produced by the U.S. government—the largest publisher in the world—is preserved and available for public access at the Internet Archive.

[bi-bliotaph]

why’d u leave out the steep rise in antisemitism in america

Honestly I was just venting. I didn’t expect my post to get as big as it did. I only have like…100 followers so this attention is really unexpected. This is only the second week Trump has been in office for his second term and so much change has been circulating. It’s impossible for me to include everything as my head has been swimming with whiplash after whiplash. I needed a place to let out all my frustration and anxieties.

But this is a good moment to talk about it. The steep rise in antisemitism has been steadily increasing since 2016 during Trump’s first presidential semester. I’ve seen it clear as day, as if a switch was flipped. People have move from whispering about it inside their homes in fear for being shamed, to speaking out loud in public. All because an old white man decided to open his big fat mouth. This isn’t to say there wasn’t antisemitism before 2016, because there was, I have just seen it become more and more obvious as people began to grow more bold. It’s awful and disgusting and super frustrating to see this country move backwards. Especially after our ancestors worked so hard to get it to where it use to be. People have gotten too comfortable insulting others for things that do not do any harm.

Now in the year of 2025, more billionaires have become involved. Elon Musk is an entirely different story. To have blatantly use the Nazi salute as he did, not once, but twice, is a clear message to others that they can do this horrendous act without being properly punished. I’ve seen some people get fired from jobs, and others be bullied for doing this salute online, but it will never be enough because millions of people died because of Hilter and Nazis. And now, millions of people are likely to be killed because of this once again.