#you can't blame people for not being taught everything. just teach them

[astroreoreoreoreoreoreoreo]

maybe i have lame opinions but I just wanna say- people who say "just don't interact with the community" don't get it. I wanna be able to interact with people who love [insert media here] as much as I do without getting crazy hate from the outside world because some people don't know how to act. i wanna say "people in fandoms should hold each other accountable for their behavior" but that's also not a good solution because at some point it just turns into policing for the sake of appearing normal and there's no fun in that. so I guess instead I'll point to this meme.

there is no "perfect community", there will always be odd people, and being odd isn't a death sentence. Fandom is fandom just "le sigh. we cringe on" and keep moving

i guess my girlfriend would want me to say "kill the part of you that cringes, not the part that is cringe"

"I hate (insert media here) because of the fando-"

[fortheloveofexy]

I can't stop thinking about vampire hunter Neil.

Neil, who is both Wesninski and Hatford, two of the oldest vampire hunting clans to still exist. Neil, who was taught the art of the hunt by his mother, but the only thing he learned from his father was brutality and fear.

Neil, whose father turned traitor and gave himself to the Moriyama coven, becoming a vampire in pursuit of power. Neil, who was going to be turned too, whose mother took him and ran before that could happen

Neil, who's never stopped moving. never stayed in one place too long, never settled anywhere. Who's killed more vampires and thralls than he can count, most of whom were acting on his father's orders. Neil, who sleeps with a stake under his pillow and keeps silver bullets in the chamber.

Neil, whose bullets are blessed and who carries holy water, who believes in God and hates Him, blames Him, but will use whatever tools are at his disposal to take down a vampire, faith and belief be damned.

Neil, whose mother kept him alive until she was bitten, whose mother ordered him to kill her before she turned. Neil, who was taught to trust no one, vampire or human. Neil, who couldn't bring himself to keep running after Mary was gone, who wanted nothing more than to stand still for once, just to see what it was like.

Neil, who met a vampire that offered him protection, whose old friend convinced him to stay. Neil, who fits right in with this coven of misfits, this family. Neil, who realizes that not all vampires are monsters, who knows that humans can be monsters too.

Neil, who sees how Andrew takes people in, how he keeps them safe and shields them, and wonders who is shielding you? Neil, who sees what no one else does, who understands how terrified Andrew is of being left behind.

Neil, who shares his knowledge of hunting vampires, bit by bit, teaching his new family how to defend themselves. Neil, who finally has a place, a home. Who is, for the first time in his life, happy.

Neil, who risks everything to protect his family. Neil, who hands himself over to Riko, knowing he'll be turned and enslaved for eternity, that he won't be able to escape like Kevin did. Neil, who by some miracle, escapes anyway, with Riko dead and his humanity still intact.

Neil, who gives Andrew his heart and his blood and everything he has, and Andrew giving his in return. Neil, who will never become a vampire but will stay with Andrew forever, or for however long forever lasts.

[notmorbid]

playground.

dialogue prompts from playground: a novel by richard powers.

how can people live in this?

i'm trying to remember why i'm alive.

i am alive for the sole purpose of enjoying you.

you are a sordid piece of shit.

i love you. you'll believe anything.

i cannot wait to be free of you.

i've never told anyone but you.

it's okay. you're awake.

the gods are bothering me, for some reason.

i could learn something from you.

whose kid are you?

everyone needs to eat, but few people are aware of who sets the table.

you can't forget what you never knew.

people and their emotions puzzle me.

ready or not, here comes everything.

it's a fine morning, all things considered.

you're going to save us.

was there something you wanted to talk about?

they make electric cars now, you know.

i failed you.

i made a promise that i can't keep.

your perfection embarrasses me.

it's only emergency adultery.

what i really want is to talk.

power is an isolating thing.

power is a thing more given than taken.

i'm done with denial. i'm working my way through resentment.

i've rolled enough dice in my life to know how chance works.

i've always been a coward about the unknown.

all you need to do is breathe.

the water belongs to nobody. it's no man's land.

you're the only one of us who has a chance of making it in this world.

the smart ones want to be anywhere but here.

everyone talks a lot of trash about you, you know.

nobody really knows you. only i know the real you.

what is the most important quality a person can possess?

don't worry. i love you no matter what.

a person who never felt sad would be a monster.

i've had enough paternal stupidity for one lifetime.

i knew of you before i knew your name.

you deserve the best that ______ has to offer.

any excuse to go home as late as possible.

this is america. it's hardly a fair fight.

see you next week, asshole.

_____ is the closest thing to my religion.

you can ask. doesn't mean i have to answer.

who taught you to be so sneaky?

i can't even bluff at cards.

disguise yourself and do what you need to.

do you have a life philosophy? words you live by?

you couldn't have called ahead?

you seem like you can handle other people's opinions.

i won't be gone for long.

this isn't going to work, is it?

i'm not going to be able to leave you, am i?

life is never good at obeying human logic.

i wouldn't mind laying down a while. maybe just a month or two.

we make things that we hope will be bigger than us, then we're desolate when that's what they become.

you're truly crazy, but crazy memorable.

i could complain, but i won't.

i tend to think that the world is my fault. maybe that's ego or something.

you don't even know how free you are. it's just like breathing to you.

hold on. small steps.

i always thought a person had to choose between safety and freedom.

you could teach me a thing or two.

new game. i'm making the rules.

every human heart imagines god a different way.

stop being such a self-protecting little coward.

if it makes you feel good to think so, then think so.

i'm so simple. you only need to know a few things about me.

i don't believe in your world, and you'll never understand mine.

being safety will always get you killed.

they got what they wanted, but now they want the old me back.

this place isn't fit for human habitation.

find the moves the rules forgot to outlaw.

you know what the flight attendants say: put your own mask on before assisting others.

i was there. i know that song.

no vote is a vote, too.

what we two had was very beautiful for a while.

do not blame your fear of life on me.

i'll be fine. back in ten minutes.

don't let them make you as crazy as they are.

there has to be a way to spin this mountain of shit into gold.

i never did like poker. too much psychology.

when have i ever not helped you?

hope and truth cannot be reconciled.

don't i get a hug before the interrogation? a 'nice to see you'?

have you been sleeping alright? your eyes look baggy.

i've gotten what i needed from this life.

why are you still so tall?

you only ever loved me for my car.

call me. same old number.

what are you? who are you? why are you here?

what did you do to ____?

careful. remember your training.

consciousness is not all it's cracked up to be.

[thunder-opossum]

Hey so I kinda went on a rant abt religion (how I was taught it in not good ways/religious trama) so um be warned.

I've never fainted b4. I've been knocked out for surgery and stuff

But like years ago I was forced to go to church for my youngest sisters first communion. My plan to avoid it was to sleep in, which didn't work and just meant i didn't have time to eat anything for breakfast.

So when I was in the church, the hellish combo of terrible period cramps, low blood sugar, anxiety, and kneeling made me start to feel faint. Like my vision actually started swirling and darkening. I would have passed out seconds later if my dad didn't realize I was breathing real funky (i was too shy to say that i literally couldn't brethe). He made me stop kneeling and took me outside, driving me home and then went back to church. Anyways love religious trama.

Going to church (we didn't go often) and like weekend religion classes was not good for me. So much anxiety and stress and I couldn't sit still. I would be nearly breaking down. It was just such a terrible environment for me. We literally did tests and you bet your ass i guessed all the answers bc I never payed attention or did the homework like wtf. What elementary schooler/middle schooler wants to do that.

We got to do fun crafts sometimes, religious themed ofc but I just did whatever I want, purposefully excluding religion. It was so old school that there were green chalboa4ds and old tvs that were rolled in to play vhs.

I hated it so bad. Being forced to pay attention under such scrutiny. Foreced to interact with people. Forced to learn something I didn't want to.

I remember crying a few times from being overwhelmed both at church and in the classes. It sucked and I know people had it worse but it just clashed with my mindset and behavior. It messed with my hime life. I hatted all of it, not to mention having to wear dresses. Did I forget i

To mention i have terrible sensory issues that were another big part of why it was terrible??? Loud noise, crowded space, literally the feeling of my own skin. Guhh i wanna cry.

You can teach your kids religion! But for the love of everything don't make them sit through things kids can't handle. Read them stories, put on educational shows (i was a veggie tales kid) put them in fun groups focused on activities rather than sitting and listening.

Woah 3 rants in a day. ..

To be clear, I am not hating on the Christian religion. I'm expressing my feelings about how it was presented to me. I don't blame my parents, I kinda do, but not fully, they were just trying to get us involved in religion, yes, there were many fun and interesting programs that involved themes of religion that I mostly enjoyed and still think of fondly, but those were so much different from the ones I'm talking about here.

[sophieinwonderland]

In the beginning, I think I was more empathetic towards sysmeds because I thought I understood where their skepticism came from.

Because when I learned about tulpas, I was skeptical too.

That first day, looking at the tulpa community, I knew there was no way I could possibly be sentient. That there was no way imaginary friends could be sentient. It seemed crazy to me. In fact, I called the tulpa community crazy to my host.

It went against everything society ever taught us about how the brain worked.

But I kept reading. I listened more. I experimented with things for myself.

What I realized quickly was that my initial belief was based on ignorance. I was so certain things were one way, but I was able to look more with an open mind.

And I initially thought that these anti-endos were the same as me. They're not bad people. They're just ignorant like I was. They didn't know any better.

If I compile enough evidence, enough proof, I can enlighten them the way I was enlightened. I can teach them, inform them. That's what I thought for so long.

The problem is that I was projecting onto them. Maybe there are a few who were like I was back then, who just don't know better. And those, maybe you can reach by just sharing the right sources. But for so many, their bigotry isn't based on ignorance. Their ignorance is based on bigotry.

They actively refuse to learn no matter what sources you provide or how strong the evidence is because it was never actually a matter of ignorance to them.

In theory, the better you understand somebody, the more you should sympathize or empathize with them. But I find the opposite happens with me where the more I understand sysmeds and how they think, the more I despise them.

Back when I thought sysmeds were acting out of ignorance, I didn't blame them because you can't really be held responsible for spreading misinformation if you just... don't know any better. It's not their fault for being misinformed.

Now I know better...

[lunar-inkclipse]

Alright Lunar, let's talk Murdle: Become Human because what do you mean I haven't appeared in your ask box to talk about this AU yet??? I can’t believe myself rn tsk tsk tsk. Anyway,

If the dynamic in this AU is meant to reflect the Connor and Hank dynamic in DBH, where Irratino is Hank (being human), and Logico is Connor (being an android). Then I don’t see why we can’t tweak Irratino’s tragic backstory in murdle to match the same vein as Hank’s. 

Hank holds a grudge against Androids because he personally blames one of them for his son's death. After all, it was an android who had to step up and give Cole emergency surgery since the only human surgeon available was high on red ice. 

So maybe in this AU, Irratino had something similar happen to him. Instead of his moms getting murdered, maybe they died in an accident where an android had to steer their boat because the captain was hooked on red ice. Maybe the android didn’t specialize in sailing boats, or maybe they failed because the android was an older model who couldn’t do everything a human captain could do yet. Despite the tragedy, Irratino doesn’t go down the same hatred route as Hank does because, I mean, their personalities are insanely different. So, instead of blaming the android, I can see Irratino redirecting his blame to the captain or red ice. In this scenario, the captain and the android could’ve also been the only ones rescued, which is how it came to be known that the captain was high. 

And because I can't help but reference Markus, I can see Irratino’s parents teaching him to treat androids like people, much like Carl does. Maybe from a young age, he learns not to call androids an “it” and treats them with fairness. His respect for androids developing before his parents pass away would also be an added buffer keeping him from ultimately ending up like Hank. It’ll also make it easier for him to see that the fault didn’t fall on the android steering the boat. And if, at this point, Irratino sees androids as being alive, he could’ve also walked away from this incident believing that three people died that day: his parents and the deactivated/destroyed android. 

Also, if his parents are the ones who taught Irratino that androids were alive, it’ll parallel nicely to Irratino in canon, who took after his parents and their beliefs. This would also explain his heightened curiosity when deviancy cases start popping up since androids experiencing human emotions is clear proof that they are alive.

Plus, this is fun since Logico’s software instability would go crazy once he learns about Irratino’s forgiving nature toward androids. Because on the surface, Logico would expect Irratino to hold resentment, so when he discovers that he doesn’t, he’d just be ultra confused.

Yippee, let's indeed talk Murdle Become Human!!! Ngl your ask inspired the hell out of me and I'm very excited to unleash my thoughts and ideas and responses here hehehe, especially since you are 100% cooking so hard with these ideas!!

First off, Irratino would absolutely have been raised to treat androids with respect- Even before deviancy is even something on people's radars, his moms would have brought him up to acknowledge the humanity in everything, and androids are no exception. There's a little spark of life and potential in their intelligence, even if it's not been fanned into a flame yet. And regardless, they're still helpful, of course he should be polite to them. Sure, Irratino gets some weird looks when he's saying please and thank you and forgives an android's mistakes- why would he do that, they're just things meant to follow orders- but he can’t imagine just being mean, you know? So what if it made him weird to be so fond of and kind to what most people view as just things? He's always been a bit odd anyways. I imagine that Irratino was also just naturally inclined to humanize them and wonder about robot sentience and sapience- Plus, he likes to joke that hey, if there ever is a robot uprising, they'll be nice to him because he was nice! (if only he realized how prophetic that was).

Also the parallels with Irratino and Hank are so so so good omg- His moms could have been on their research trip or on their way back, the captain decided to take a hit of red ice and order his android to drive the boat, which was alright until a storm hit. Chances are, the android in question was just an assistant, helping with meals and keeping things tidy and the like. Not at all built for driving a boat, not equipped with the skills or reaction time or any nautical know-how. Which results in a crash that kills Irratino's mothers and likely the android, or if the android does manage to make it through, they are promptly reset.

At first, I think Irratino would be furious in the throes of his grief, and the android seems the easy target. Aren't they supposed to be perfect? Good at everything?! Shouldn't the android have saved his moms?! But then he learns the captain was high and that was what killed his moms and killed the android, and his fury takes a whole new direction. He comes to realize that it's not the androids fault- He imagines himself in their shoes, suddenly asked to pilot a boat because the captain was incapacitated with lives at stake and no idea what he's doing, and that makes him even more angry. Even if he's nowhere near as grumpy and bitter as Hank, he still holds a deep resentment for red ice and all its users. And he probably comes out of the ordeal sympathizing with androids a bit more- Forced to do something they had no idea how to do because their owner was selfish and got high, only to be destroyed for not being able to fill unreasonable demands.

Also, the idea of Irratino's forgiveness causing software instabilities in Logico is so so good for two big reasons: A) because forgiveness is a concept that android Logico is only aware of in abstraction, not something he has ever received, and B) He doesn't understand why Irratino wouldn't be resentful, hateful, and bitter. It was a tragic loss, and preventable, how was Irratino able to forgive? With regards to reason A: Logico's orders are to complete his mission and succeed in it, so if he does make a mistake, it's failure and disobedience all at once- two things he should be utterly incapable of doing. And for Irratino to just extend forgiveness so easily- Not just forgiveness, but compassion- Logico doesn’t know what to do with that. He’s expecting diagnostics ordered, maintenance to be scheduled, MORIARTY’s disappointment and scolding, poked and prodded to find out why he failed so it doesn’t happen again. But Irratino just shrugs and says "Logico, even you can't do everything perfectly. No one can."

With regards to B: He's researched Irratino enough to know the articles and know what happened to his moms, and brings that up. Shouldn't Irratino be angry at the android who didn't save his parents? Wouldn't the most logical target of his anger and blame be the thing that already put so many out of jobs, was given control and supposed to be perfect and failed catastrophically? But Irratino just sighs and asks who is more deserving of his ire- The one who tried their best to save his moms, who tried to complete a task it had never been trained to do, or the one who abandoned his post for drugs and left them all to die? He misses his moms, of course he does, but he's forgiven the android because it tried and refuses to forgive the captain who didn't.

Logico's thinking about that forgiveness for failure the entire day. And how a simple forgiveness felt so much lighter and easier than being subject to review and scrutiny. Especially because they should feel exactly the same; that is, like nothing at all.

And if Irratino and Logico have to investigate a murder where the person was using red ice? It's the first time Logico has seen Irratino be so furious, and it's nothing like he expected. Irratino's fury burns through freezing, with icy glares and his tone going from bright and warm to a cold, disgusted hiss. One of Logico's orders is to always remain by Irratino's side at a crime scene, to have a human monitoring him just in case, and he usually adheres to that strictly and insists Irratino accompany him. But seeing his anger in this moment, he quietly tells Irratino that he can take care of it and Irratino can go somewhere else, if it's easier. Logico tells himself it's for efficiency's sake, and politeness, it'd be rude to keep Irratino under so much stress. But it's more than that. For reasons he can't name, seeing Irratino's distress makes him think about what it must be like for Irratino in this moment, and Logico starts to understand empathy on more than a cold, detached, analytical level.

Thank you so so much for the ask!! This AU is just so much fun for me, Logico's development is just so interesting and I love trying to get in his head. Hopefully this is all coherent, I went back and edited this since I had to work on it on and off throughout the day, exam grindset never stops but neither do I.

[crazylittlejester]

DAILY BRAINROT

I greatly appreciate our brainrot time because otherwise I think I would go bonkers and I don't think my IRL friends can handle this level of brainrot. If any of them find my Ao3 or Tumblr by some miracle, I would perish on the spot. They don't need to know.

Anyway, I am obsessed with Legend's little brother vibes. He's like the older middle child. Can be responsible when he needs/wants to, but otherwise prefers being a thorn in the oldest's side. He's a stupid little goofball and I love that for him. I need him to team up with Time for a dumb prank because who would expect The Hero of Legend and The Hero of Time to do something like that??

Slightly related to that, I love it when he's a twin in modern AUs. LOVE IT. But what I want is for him to be Warriors' twin and Hyrule to be Wind's twin (or something close to that). I think it would be a good combination, especially if it's something like a mixed family dynamic where Legend and Warriors end up being brothers with Hyrule and Wind for some random reason so it goes from your regular older brother and younger brother dynamic to the younger brother suddenly dealing with his own younger brothers pestering him. Less accidental baby acquisition, more accidental younger brother acquisition.

(I will end up writing this because I'm crazy, we all know it, there's no point in denying it at this point.)

I also keep thinking about the War of Eras stuff and like... it's always a time paradox. It's always a time paradox. I can't get the idea of the guys teaching each other things, it's too sweet. Like, don't you have to wonder if Warriors teaches Wind how to do first aid because Tune taught him first? It's probably more likely he learned from someone else, but it's a thought. I'm slowly dying on the inside thinking about how much Tune would do for the captain because he wants to return the favor and ldjkgdfgjdirjgdlgrijgdlirjfdrijtelkjfd--

I genuinely appreciate the daily brainrots so much too 😭 like i come home at the end of a long day and i get excited to see it come in my inbox aslkgkjhg. i got a few people irl who know im bat shit on tumblr and on ao3, my fuckin fiancee literally follows this blog and i know they don’t check it often but i do live in the fear of the day i get a text or call about some super specific odd ass shit post i made🧍‍♂️and then one of my best friends reads Fierce Hero 9, which is honestly fucking hilarious to me because she knew NOTHING about LU when she started reading it (i only recently convinced her to join the dark side /j), she just heavily fucks with big hero 6, and yknow what i respect that. but if my COLLEGE friends ever found this blog?? killing myself immediately. killing myself, deleting the blog, and moving to the other side of the planet actually. and my family knows I write fanfiction but if they ever read or found it?? theres not a group of people on this earth who would be able to find me, my ass would be GONE.

I LOVE LEGEND AND HIS STUPID LITTLE BROTHER ENERGY IT’S SO EVERYTHING TO ME. he’s a little shit and we need to all talk about that more 😔 LEGEND AND TIME WORKING TOGETHER ON A PRANK?? OH MY GOD. IT’D BE FUCKING OVER FOR EVERYONE ELSE. THEY’D GET AWAY WITH IT AND POOR HYRULE, WILD, OR WIND WOULD END UP GETTING BLAMED 😭

oh my god i never not once even thought of Legend and Wars being twins. I guess part of it is cos i headcanon they got like a literal decade between em, and i never thought about making them that close in age, let alone the SAME age. Even in my modern au’s, Wars is 2-3 years older. Them as twins would be SO fucking funny though oh my GOD. ACCIDENTAL BROTHER ACQUISITION, IM GONNA BE FUCKIN USING THAT OH MY GOD AKNSKJSNKJSN

(write it and my life is yours /ref)

oh my god i love war of eras trio time paradoxes so fucking much. SOOOO fucking much. Just the idea of Wars teaching Wind some little thing and then Tune having that knowledge to help Captain Link?? EATING IT UP. Or Wind being the world’s biggest shit to Time and him absolutely RUTHLESSLY clapping back, just for Tune to pull the EXACT same soul destroying comeback seemingly out of his ass to hit Mask with when Mask decides to be a snarky little shit. Who started it? We’ll never know

[creature-wizard]

I’ve had an interest in the law of assumption for a couple of years now, but I really enjoy your posts on them because you put my doubts about it into comprehensible sentences 😭! I’ve been looking through your blog for a little bit now, and I love your stuff. 10/10 blog 💪💪💪

Also, the anons are surprising. I thought they would have a little bit more decorum since being proper and nice is what most LOA blogs preach 😬

Personally I think it's kinda to be expected; the Law of Assumption was (intentionally or unintentionally) designed to appeal to the extremely selfish, vain, and lazy. It shows in the way the community tends to aspire to a lot of toxic ideals pushed by capitalism and patriarchy. (A bunch of these "it girl" affirmation lists might as well just say "I am a Stepford wife" or "I'm the trophy wife of a rich Republican" over and over.)

People are taught that all they have to do to get everything they want is just have faith in Neville Goddard's teachings that all you have to do to get everything you want is believe you already have it. It does nothing to help people cultivate compassion or kindness, nor does it teach any healthy skills for dealing with frustration and disappointment. Instead it just tells you to convince yourself that bothersome events never happened, which is just a form of emotional avoidance/repression. Did your shitty boyfriend yell at you? Just tell yourself that he was a perfect gentlemen and took you out to your favorite restaurant before you go to sleep tonight. He'll have to conform to your beliefs, because Neville Goddard said so. If you can't fix him, why, it's really all your fault.

These people are basically stuck in a profoundly unhealthy worldview that encourages their worst selves while emotionally alienating them from themselves and from other people, teaching them to aspire to toxic standards and superficial lifestyles, giving them skills it claims can fix everything but are simply inadequate for dealing with most of life's problems, and then putting the blame on them when shit doesn't work out. It's not really surprising that they'd be this way.

[pretentious-art-love]

Book Reviews #30 - The Book of Merlyn by T.H. White

The Book of Merlyn is the weird, final, unfinished conclusion of the Arthur saga by White. He never published it on his life, and I say it is unfinished because it repeats the chapters of the Ant and the Geese from the Sword in the Stone. Like, really, these chapters are 95% identical, aside from references that go from "the Wart" to "the King," so it is a rather odd read. Spoilers ahead.

The edition I have says these were written for The Book of Merlyn but then added to The Sword in the Stone instead. Truly, they fit there a lot more, since transforming Arthur for his education when he is still a kid, learning, makes much more sense than one night before he is about to die. If you were to remove these episodes from this book you would be left only with a monologue from Merlyn and the animals. I do like that, though, it is a bit like a DLC. But there is an additional chapter in the Geese episode, about Arthur's wish to escape his duties as a king and live as a Goose, that is too precious to skip. You could probably keep this chapter and remove the rest to avoid the deja vu, but you would need to make some editing, add some parts, so what gives? You can just read it as it is, and experience some of that repetition of time Merlyn lives in, albeit not in the most fulfilling or creative way. The episode of the Geese also still remains White's absolute masterpiece. A short but vivid telling of freedom in a world without frontiers.

What about the rest of the book, though? Well, it is in all honesty a bunch of nonsense. A bunch of animals discussing about war and mankind from their table, without ever trying to live it themselves, Arthur, funnily enough, realizes this once, saying that the animals are discussing as if nothing what is painful reality for him. He also says once that everything Merlyn taught him were lies. The sentence "an elephant flying would be immoral since he has no wings" is said once. Is this a reference to Dumbo? Is White implying that this council or animals and Merlyn is dumb? Is he making fun of Dumbo? He spends way too much time adding monologuing to them to the point everything sounds like white noise, nonsense, it sounds like that kind of draft where you continue writing and writing what comes to your mind so you can organise the thoughts later. This was unpublished for a reason, it is not finished either on structure or in idea. However, this book has the best quote in the entire saga: "Why shouldn't God have come to the world as an earth worm?"

Seriously, I say it without sarcasm, it is pure genius, White was cooking something, the mantle of Merlyn fits him more than Arthur or Lancelot, and Arthur works more as a passive learner, than a full fledged king.

This book also fixes the biggest problem I had with the last one, and that is Arthur going to be killed by his son with piece of mind. He instead decides to make a truce with him and give him half of England. Yes, thank you, if it's only for this bit, this book is completely worth it. Merlyn also says that even he fails, his failure will teach future people to do better, nothing more true could have been said of his story, or the book on its own.

Arthur is still killed on battle because of a confusion caused by a snake? It's a bit weird, because it feels that, while he had learned the true meaning of being, he couldn't avoid the death Merlyn and the animals had planned for him. I mean we aren't told that it was Merlyn and the animal council who caused it but hey, if animals in this world are sentient, and the misunderstanding was caused by a snake, you can't blame if my imagination runs wild, right? Remember how Merlyn's father is a demon? The whole idea that he and the animals he met were actually the villains this whole story came to me, and I found it hysterical. Imagine a king being transformed by magic animals so he can learn about war as they try to understand mankind is ripe for episodic potential. Into the idea pile it goes, I guess.

As for the entire saga, I guess I already said most of my shortcomings in what I said of the previous books, Arthur was naive and nice, that's all what I can say about him. Well, I like him a lot more now than when I finished the third book, since he tried his best with his son here, instead of running towards his death while trying to romanticise his failure. White was so close to understand it all in the end.

I hope this conclusion I have come to makes us both happy, and I hope that you can forgive me for my angry ramblings. Thank you for the recommendation again, Key. My friend.

6/10

[eta--piscium]

✨️This is an appreciation post for my one and only love @schattensaenger ✨️

The year is about to end and we're still together and going stronger than ever. Yes, we may fight as if we're Tom & Jerry, but at the end of the day, we still make up and love each other even more. We can't even stay mad at each other and ignore each other for more than 20mins. Lol. Even if we're both still kinda grumpy, we still stay on a call together and just casually look at the other and then a few mins later, we start sending kisses to each other and we're okay again. Hahaha. You, my love, is something else.

You are the person that I never knew I needed in my life. *yes I know, it sound cliche but it's true* I have made friends with lots of people but nobody can ever compare to you. The way you love me is so different from everyone else. You don't just love me because I'm your girlfriend, you don't just love me because I'm ur person, ur duo, ur potato, ur annoying potato, ur very sassy and loves to tease u so much gf, you love me for me. You told me and showed me that you love me for who I am. You made me comfortable with myself. You made me feel secure. You made me feel so loved. You love me unconditionally.

Honestly, I once thought to myself back then that the person for me would never come. That maybe I'll just be another person. Maybe I'll just serve as a chapter in someone else's story. But, you came. You proved me wrong. You have taught me many many things in life. You taught me all the ways that I could love and be loved. You taught me that it's okay to be vulnerable, that it's okay to cry, that it's perfectly fine and normal to let myself feel things and just let my emotions out. Not keep them in a jar and store it somewhere until they overflow and explode. You taught me how to be patient. To be more understanding. I thought I was open minded enough but you showed me things that I was keeping a blind eye to. You opened up my mind even more. You made me into a better person. You are the only person that came in my life that made me wanna better myself. You made me wanna be the best version of myself.

I'm sorry if I always push your buttons. It's fun to tease u all the time. heh 😏

Okay but seriously now. I'm sorry for all of the things I have done to you. I'm sorry for making you cry. I'm sorry for being so stupid at times that I just can't understand what I should do. I'm sorry for all of the times that I accidentally make u doubt my love for you. I'm sorry for being a huge pain in the ass for you. You still love me tho heh😏 u like me in ur butt. NOT IN A SEXUAL WAY! HAHAHA

I just want to say that you are loved by me and not just by me but by many other people including our friends too.

I also want to say that I am very very thankful that you exist and that you came into my life. Thank you for existing. Thank you for staying. I love you so so so much.

Thank you for all the help you've ever given me. Thank you for helping me learn many things. Thank you for always being very patient with me. Especially when it comes to coding and math. What can I do, the moment I see numbers and formulas my brain immediately goes to sleep. Hahahah I'm sowwy But seriously, thank you for always finding time to teach my bobo ass how to code and all. Thank you for helping with my homework and projects too!! Speaking of project, you have been the greatest help for this website project of mine. You have done waaaaay more than my groupmates. You basically did the whole entire thing on ur own and you're not even getting graded. I am. But you always want the best for me that's why I can't even stop you becaue you get poopy and be like "UR CLASSMATES WILL JUST RUIN EVERYTHING AND HALF-ASS EVERYTHING!!" Cutie u are. I can't blame you tho bec you really made it so pretty and the suggestions u hear from them are just potato. Lol. But really tho, thank you so much for everything. The fact that you are the one that wants to help me with my schoolwork and u get poopy whenever I don't tell u that I have an assignment or quizzes or whatever, I find that adorable. Because it's just you being you. You love to help people. You love to help me. I adore that. But also because I get to secretly stare at u while u do some of my coding stuff bec you look sooooo stunning and beautiful whenever you're too focused on smth. I love it whenever you're so serious and focused, with ur eyeglasses on and ur hair tied in a bun. Oooooofff my heartttttt.😭😭😭❤️❤️❤️

I hope our love never grows old, I hope that fifty years down the road you are still the face I see when I wake for the day on a cold monday morning. I hope you are the last person I see after one too many drinks and I hope your laugh is the soundtrack to all of my stories. I hope your body is always beside me and I hope my life is spent loving the only one that could ever find me. I hope that every day of the rest our lives are spent loving each other cause not a single thing in this world could ever convince me to love another, and I hope that the love growing between us two is nurtured by all of the days I will spend loving you.

Ps. I'm sorry this took so long for me to post. I really just have so many things I wanna say but felt like words are never enough. Writing this down on my notepad always makes me giddy and emotional. Lowkey crying rn but u can't see. Lol. Oh and I keep rewriting and adding stuff to it too. Hehehe

Pps. I LOVE YOU SO FREAKING MUCH!😘❤️

[thoughtfulfoxllama]

Normally, I let y'all choose my topics, but honestly, I'm a bit nervous that, if I keep posting things related to Fundies, I'll have people asking "Kay, are you alright," or "Kay, are you a spy for the Allred Group." Emphatic no to both /hj. But, today I'm going to combine my Hot Takes on Blood Atonement, Fundamentalism & Polygamy together

What Fundies get Wrong

Obviously, this is going to be a long list. The Fundamentalists are flawed on nearly every level, and prone to collapse like a house of cards. So, let's explore their flaws:

Blood Atonement- The idea that ones blood must be shed to repent denies the power of Christ's Atonement. There is an interesting thing to point out however. Everything Brigham said required it held a death sentence at the time. In teaching the Atonement today, we teach you must make restitution (including legal restitution, if you broke the law) to truly repent. The Grace of Christ helps you, but if you've truly repented, you'll want to make that restitution. So, Blood Atonement is actually the idea that you should be undaunted when it comes to making restitution, even if death is the punishment

Race- You can't really blame the Fundies for this, because our entire Branch has struggled with this until the late 70s (although McKay did try to fix it in the 50s). God doesn't treat races differently, full stop. I can mention 3 men of African Descent being given the Priesthood, or Orsen Pratt being threatened by the Curse of Cain, but do I need to. It's obvious that God doesn't discriminate

The Garden Cosmology (Adam-God)- If someone can explain this in a way that makes sense, I'll be glad to hear it. How can Jehovah be the Father, and Adam also the Father. Why, immediately after saying God was Adam, did he say that Elohim was God, Jehovah was Christ, and Adam was the Holy Ghost. And in the JoD, an Apostle mentions that he believes in Lilith, in an attempt to justify Polygamy. But, if Adam & his wives were Exalted, how could one of them become a demoness. How can the Virgin Mary be a virgin after having sex (and did she marry God, and Joseph. I mean, I believe Polygamy goes both ways, but Brigham didn't). How is Adam God and also the Son of God. And anyway, Kimball said Adam-God was false (and reiterating that it was specifically the interpretations Fundies put on it, leading to the thought that Adam was Divine, but not Heavenly Father). Also, the Idea that Spirits are born through sex makes no sense either

(Sorry about my rant on the Garden Cosmology. And that's only the beginning. It's truly a web of confusion, with no answers, only more questions)

Child Marriage- You know why the split between the AUB & FLDS happened. Because the leader of the Priesthood Council (the Fundies Leaders before the split) said Child Marriage, Forced Marriage, and Incest were wrong. The Short Creekers didn't want to change, and when Rulon Allred was made leader over a guy from Short Creek, they became the FLDS (with Allred's Priesthood Council becoming the AUB). This eventually morphed into the most disgusting practices we see with the FLDS today

This is not to say everything is wrong, only most things. This leads us to

Polygamy

Polygamy is a true Doctrine, kind of. In D&C 132, it mentions that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were all Exalted. The thing is, I'd say only Abraham was a true polygamist. Isaac was a monogamist, and Jacob was tricked into Plural Marriage. The very inclusion of Isaac states that polygamy (regardless of what Pioneer-era Saints were taught) was not essential for Exaltation, and Jacob reinforces that.

Polygamy is right for some people, and wrong for others. My & my wife are perfectly happy, and I could never be a polygamist. But, people who are called to be Polygamists should be allowed. But there is a difference between being called to polygamy, and just wanting to sleep with multiple people

The 1886 Revelation was received by John Taylor, and it is in his handwriting. He never mentions Polygamy (in fact, it would sound right in a conference talk today), but at least three people say he told them to defend Plural Marriage after receiving it (although, one of them was Lorin Woolley, so grain of salt). One of them, John Woolley (who, unlike his son, was seen as trustworthy until the Second Manifesto) was set apart to plural marry people

In doing research for a Polygamy Essay, I became acquainted with Ogden Kraut. He states that Woolley and his successors had only one job: plural marriages. Anything beyond that is wrong, and I (unlike many things he said) agree with that. It makes sense that John Taylor would set apart a Sealer, but not that he'd fracture the Church he spent decades serving and building up

And another thing, Joseph thought Polygamy should go both ways. He offered to let Emma plural marry William Law

I also have a lot to say about Polygamy and Abuse, but it can be summed up with allowance of polygamy means abuse victims can step forward and get the help they need.

So, there you go. Fundamentalists are basing their entire theology on misinterpreted facts, and polygamy should be allowed for some people. How's that for Hot

(And I'm sorry for the issues. I didn't cite my sources, and I'm pretty sure I sound like a madman telling everyone the end is near, because Biden & Trump are reptilian lovers. Truth is, I'm on a trip to Colorado, and I do my best work at home. So, any clarification, questions, accusations, ECT can go into the comments, and I'll get to you as soon as I can. And next week, we'll have a cooler hot take)

[bonkersbon]

Random rants because I couldn't sleep all night

Insomnia is a bitch

But here it goes (and yes I'm sober just prob crazy🤔)

Teenagers are not TEENS 13 and Adults are not grown adults at 18

It is wild to me that this world expects so much from literal CHILDREN! children

They question why they are trialing kids are adults as early as 12 years old

Because they're making adult decisions and expected to as early as 13

Thirteen is not a damn teen

They're children and no one is treating them so

I used to get offended at the reference “it all starts at home” Or blaming the parents

It isn't 100 on the parents, let's face it! This world and social media now play a massive role in our children's minds and all the medications they're on for this or that

But the problem is the parenting and then society

We're an oxymoron

If you are raising your kids right then, at 13, they're still playing with Barbies and board games and monster trucks and making slime and playing hide and seek

That is what children do

And people are raising their kids so messed up that 12 year old ARE OUT COMMITTING crimes, having the deed and doing things they can't comprehend

They're combative and fight and get abusive with the officers and society as they do at home because of how they're being taught

They're skipping school and not knowing how to make decisions and then end up homeless

The statistics are all there, and history after history, people are repeating the same shit messing up their kids, and now the issue with kids is technology and being overstimulated

Take that technology away and see how long they can sit still

How many kids mimic everything they see

Idolization and profound misconception of what is socially acceptable or morally right. See it on TV. They mimic it

Even hurting others

There are so many hidden agendas everywhere you go

With what people sell wear and advertise

Ten year olds wearing makeup and not believing they are pretty how do they even know to talk like that or be like that

Their innocence is robbed, but parents can play a huge role

They slip away from you and grow up no matter how much you try to shelter or protect them

It'll happen

But a teen is not a teen, and an 18 isn't an adult

Protect your damn kids from this world

Raise them teach them and damn educate them

Protect them, shelter them, and do whatever you must as a parent to raise your kid to be a good kid! And a morally good one, too! Who helps others not be damn delulu babies and filled with weird jealousy and malice — always trying to compete — for what? Your spot quicker to the ultimate destination?

So many parents fail their kids, and they fail them so early on

But what I'm mad at right now is society as a whole expecting kids to grow up too fast and know too much too fast. And then, on top of it, not raising them with proper discipline so when they're “adults,” they're out there tearing up this world. And then you all question why?! I wonder why so many kids out there doing petty crimes then acting out like four-year-olds in the judicial system and getting slaps on the wrist and sent back out for the parents to take no responsibility and blame it on the system

It starts at home

And anyone who believes differently is delusional and can fight me over it

They need to bring back old school butt whoppings and for the love of god ladies and gentleman stop kicking your kids out at 18! They ain't grown

They can't afford to live on their let alone make grown decisions. Let them live at home and push for them to get an education and or an excellent job

Push for kids to help parents more. We don't help elderly and that is because we haven't taught our kids to

We in America kick our kids out at 18 and put our family into nursing homes

Live at home take care of each other and help each other and learn right do right and be right

Be kind

The selfishness and malice and generational dysfunction will always make me mad

And trust me I'm not speaking from a glass house

How I grew up and how I've chose to parent hasnt been a walk in the park

But I communicate

My kids are KIDS, and they have hearts and souls, and feelings beyond what society even gives them time for, and raising good kids in this fucked up world isn't easy. But seeing it all come to shit sucks! Navigating thru it sucks and having to teach my kids about ignoring certain people in life is so sad

To teach them all the dangers and reality is already sad

Why would I want to push them on their own to face that already at only 18

It starts at home, with parenting

Love your kids! And they are kids! Children! Tiny innocent beings with huge imaginations that want love and to discover

We'd have many better people if parenting styles and dysfunction weren't so THERE! Like just why does it even have to be a thing anymore

When will we do better

Abuse or drugs or addiction or mental illness will never be a reason to be a shitty person or a shitty parent, and I fear for my children ever to feel unloved or get hurt by this world, but it'll happen, but why would I actively treat them like an adult or teen way beyond the appropriate time

I just don't understand it anymore and I don't want to

I'm just going to keep mentally fighting to stay strong thru the Bullshit

Cuz parenting with other parents is hard

Adulting with other adults is even harder

[captain-kit-adventuress]

Hey.

Hey, look at me.

Look at me full-on in the face when I say this:

It didn't start during COVID, at least, not in America. It started with the passage and enactment of the No Child Left Behind Act, which was implemented starting in 2001. It started by teaching multiple choice tests instead of critical thinking, which had been a pretty big staple up until that time. It taught dumbed-down versions of just about everything, because those test scores were everything, because it was how the Federal government determined funding allocations for schools across America, and guess who was most disproportionately affected? That's right, districts where taxpayers didn't have a lot of money to support schools, or time to fight for their districts.

This kind of shit has been going on for over two decades, and some of you, maybe the majority of you, are too young to remember what it was like before, or perhaps never had a world without No Child Left Behind. No one is being taught to think, and it shows. Because some superficial test score matters than actual learning, and actual learning is much harder to quantify, and it was a quick way to further disadvantage the already-disadvantaged. Because you're being taught that results matter more than engaging with material, except that engaging with material, thinking about it, being wrong about it, that's how you learn. You don't learn by being right all the time, or filling in a little circle on a test where you've got a 1 in 4 chance of simply guessing the answer correctly.

No Child Left Behind was supposed to be about students, but what it really affected was curricula, because the Federal government didn't want schools teaching people how to think. They wanted them to get that teaching crap out of the way in the name of compulsory education so people were just smart enough to work. That's how you take away the silver bullet without looking like you're taking it away.

Yeah, it's a lot easier to read something fun and you know what? I can't even blame people for that, because the world isn't a very fun place and the way we teach literature (and pretty much everything else) sucks so hard and everybody needs an escape from the daily ghastlies of existence. The world's gotten so much harder and cheaper and greyer since 2000, and that's not fair to any of you, but it doesn't make the responsibility of learning any less. It doesn't make learning how to evaluate information in a useful way (which is what critical thinking really is) any less important.

And the fun stuff is important, too, no doubt about it. We need the fun stuff. But we need the not-fun stuff, too, or Congress wouldn't have tried so hard to force teachers to quit teaching it properly. You should be asking them, "Why don't we know this stuff? Why aren't we being taught? What's in there that you're afraid of us seeing?"

And then, the most important bit of all, you've got to, got to, got to pay attention. Even when it's boring, especially when it's boring. Plenty of useful stuff lives there. You will use algebra in your lives, I promise. You will use literature. You will use that random bio class with the weird teacher or the history lecture with the professor who always turned up just before the end of the ten-minute grace and then you're allowed to leave. (And if you have a prof who does that, COMPLAIN on the evaluation. You're being shortchanged on your time and money and learning.)

But before that, make sure the first thing you do, if you're allowed, is to vote for candidates who have enough power to change this. Because that's how these districts got shortchanged in the first place, because every single election, no matter how small, matters. Down ballot races matter. The president is not the major political player when it comes to passing laws, it's Congress and state legislatures and local government, and too many Americans don't pay attention to Congress or state legislatures or local government. SCOTUS and other courts are not supposed to be taking cases like they're a new addition to the Legislative Branch, because enacting laws is not the purview of the courts, which you should be learning in government classes but you're not.

If you feel like your school has failed you, then your only choice is to vote for Kamala Harris. Vote for a Democratic governor, and vote for the Democrats in your state legislature, your local governments, and most of all, for your school boards. Vote for the people who believe in education, because I guarantee you, it's not the other guys. They're the ones who took it away in the first place.

"it's concerning if university students are genuinely struggling to read full adult-level books for class" and "don't overstate the reporting of a single news article" and "if this shift is genuinely real, it's reflective of broad curriculum changes in lower education levels, probably at least in part due to remote schooling during COVID, and doesn't mean the new generation is being willfully Stupid and Vapid" and "when reading for personal pleasure people should read whatever they like without shame" and "reading from a broad variety of genres, styles, and authorial backgrounds will improve your understanding of both literature and the real world" and "actively mocking people for their tastes in books does not encourage them to become more adventurous you're just being mean" and also "but seriously adult books are not just boringly pretentious nothingburgers padded with pointless sex scenes, and claiming they are just shows how little you've read" all can and should co-exist.

[the-firebird69]

2025 Arnold Strongman and Strongwoman Classic Results and Leaderboards - Generation Iron Fitness & Strength Sports Network

I just saw Ben Arnold completely blow these numbers away you're doing a deadlift and that's just from the ground to your knees and still a thousand pounds which you guys have been at for like what 10 years and then Arnold can put up a couple thousand at 6 ft and 10 in and I saw him bench pressing over 800 pounds I don't see that here they're calling this elephant something lift a thousand pounds just what you lifted 10 years ago and every year and you're supposed to be the greatest and you know everything you do everything you get everybody you win it all I'm really kind of getting tired of this s*** I don't I don't really need you to chastise a s*** out of me if you're not really in competition and a lot of people are saying you're kind of mucky mucking everything on top of being lousy and I agree this is some ridiculous b******* and it is harder to endure than what I'm saying now this is the world's strongest man competition and it it is reflecting poorly on you armies are out there and they can crush you guys and you're putting out there to your people that you can lift a thousand pounds I guess you know it's probably the right thing to do the problem is you're probably not doing it on purpose

Zues Hera

It probably is kind of the right thing to do but we are actually withering away already and it is not really that hot no it's very hot we are misjudging the heat of the radiation we're not falling procedure we are getting hurt we are wrong and our approach with a lot of people and I'm kind of upset about it I really want out of this obviously it's a bad situation I was sitting here making it worse we don't have a life our friend doesn't have a life and it's boring and nobody seems to care that it's really actually boring as hell it's doing okay making meals but it's kind of tough doesn't know what he's doing nobody is teaching him and nobody taught him too much and his mom was busy trying to fix us or something and it was ridiculous we were acting like kids like to a tea and it was a chore and she hated it she said now go off and we wouldn't could hear her getting mad at us everyday and it was deserving I feel bad about it now we're missing people that do stuff and was saying that we do and we need the tech for a long range plan of ours if you say it's not I'm going to have to fire you now now we're having problems with Trump he's not the sissy boy and he's dangerous is flipping he's arrogant and he is a massive loser on top of it he's a blaspheme he is roasting us with our own stuff and his own stuff offering us all up and for Christ's sake it looks terrible because it is who the hell knows what he's doing this for it is not really part of anybody's plan just being an animal coming down everyone it's pitiful the speaker of the House said it I cannot work in this atmosphere it's very evil I'm finding myself but tears in my eyes and the day is not even over and I can't get through it and I got mad and and I said it we're ruining everybody of hours too what's going on for too long and we need out of it his people were out friends for a long time a long long time they're trying to blame this guy and he's saying we're not watching things of course they want to blame him we have to get out of it we need to get out of it we need out of it today right now we need to get out of this stupid fight we're in with our friends we grew up with them too again but with him and he's saying that this is terrible what you're doing is wrong you can't seem to see it Trump is like left the building he's insane they don't do a damn thing for him and he says I'm trying to get food together why don't you go have a meeting

Bua

Olympus

[nowheretobebut]

Hours of Dating Coach Videos on YouTube Taught Me

You Can't Mess the Right One Up Once a man’s interested, there’s nothing you can do (especially in the early stages of dating) to make him uninterested, and vice versa. It’s ice-clear if he’s into you. If you’re confused, he’s uninterested—period. Stop blaming yourself for doing this, wearing that, texting this, or kissing him like that. It’s probably something bigger—something foundational—like incompatibility in lifestyle, interests, or values, or even looks. Maybe you’re looking for different things, or you simply see the world too differently. Think about it: A man of science and a woman who’s a paster will process life in fundamentally opposite ways. He might see a series of causes and effects, while she attributes everything to divine will. Or picture an immigrant and a conservative—if they enjoy debates, their conversations might start as fun and stimulating but soon veer into frustrating arguments. That’s not to say everyone needs deep intellectual connections. Some people just want someone to share experiences with, and that’s fine. But if you find yourself repeatedly hitting brick walls when you ask for advice or seek understanding, you might not be in the right pairing. In the early stages, let him go if he wants to. Under no circumstances should you waste your energy on a man who isn’t head over heels for you. Now, this doesn’t mean he should chase you so obsessively that you wonder how he filled his time before meeting you. But seriously, why settle for someone who disappears for days? Do you really need that level of uncertainty in your life when you could be with someone who respects your time, takes you on thoughtful dates, confirms plans in advance, cares about what you have to say, and doesn’t ghost you after a minor misunderstanding? I’m all for a man with his own life—someone who doesn’t cling to you or become codependent. A partner like that encourages you to step up your game and be your best self. But if he’s always eyeing the next best option, quick to drop you at the first sign of trouble, or too emotionally unavailable to invest in you, then let him go for good. You were never meant to be together anyway. Trust me, if your life is rich and full, you won’t even notice his absence. And if it’s not, it’s time to go find a hobby. By stepping back and letting him pursue you—not chase you because he has a life and other options and will stop coming after you if you show clear signs of disinterest—you can gauge his true interest. Don’t waste your time on someone who treats you like a placeholder instead of the woman of his dreams.

Think About Your Standards and Never Back Down You won’t die single, but you will lose yourself in the wrong relationship. Whether it’s about drugs, height, occupation, education, looks, personality, upbringing, political views, or music taste, stick to your standards. Stay single until you meet someone who aligns with what matters to you. But here’s the thing: don’t just wait around. Be the kind of person your ideal partner would want to be with. Don’t change yourself for a man, but also understand that you can’t expect someone with a PhD to settle for someone with a middle school education. Growth is part of the process. The journey of staying single—or looking for a partner—should be as fulfilling as being in a relationship. If you make the process too hard, you’ll rush into the wrong relationship out of fear and end up stuck. Use dating as a way to discover yourself, refine your values, and thrive in independence.

Set Boundaries and Trust Your Gut Never force yourself to stay with someone you don’t respect, who disgusts you, who doesn’t value your time, thoughts, or feelings, who's incapable of communication, etc. The moment you compromise your boundaries is when you teach them it’s okay to treat you worse. Be ready to walk away from anything that doesn’t serve you—they’d do the same, so why shouldn’t you? Trust your instincts when it comes to red flags. You don’t need to consult a dozen friends to validate something you already know deep down. And don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Dating is a learning process, and every misstep is an opportunity to grow.

[foldingpaperflowers]

it is definitely the generation, i'm 22 and the day i turned 18 several of my teenager friends told me i had to stop talking to them or i'd be a pedophile lol

Okaay I have so many feelings about this so apologies for the long ramble.

So I don't really blame younger people for being that way it's just kinda sad in my opinion. So for context, I've had like 15 sibs/step sibs, so I've seen a lot of what some kids "first social media" experience was like.

My one step sib is 21, they joined Instagram at age 10 or 11. When they joined their was a big push for acceptance in a lot of online spaces. Yeah the internet was still hella toxic, but the mainstream push was for more acceptance.

From what I saw, my younger sibs were never really allowed to say dumb shit on the internet, cringe culture was huuuge when they joined Instagram, and like every social media my step sib had was connected to their actual full legal name, their were pictures of their actual face at TEN YEARS OLD. Idk about you but at 10 I was still on webkinz and club penguin.

My younger sibs were immediately taught about me too, which is fantastic! But like from what I saw with my sibs, they took away the message "always believe whoever tells a story"

And obvs I'm not saying don't believe people about sexual assault, I support these movements, but I think that that mixed with cancle culture, mixed with your real name and face is plastered on the internet made it so kids HAD to take hard stances on everything without really learning nuance. They were taught that someone is a horrible person because they made a shitty comment when they were 13.

But at the same time like y'all didn't really have spaces that were properly moderated for kids. Rolblox has a lot of problems with pedophilia, so does fortnight. The types of stories my youngest sib has told me about rolblox and the creeps they've spoken to are infinitely worse than what I dealt with on club penguin.

And it's just one of those things that sucks. I try to teach my sibs nuances in situations, but I mean tiktok really didn't prime kids for actually checking facts.

Like I can't say I blame teens for thinking this. Their personal experiences have lead them to believe that anyone over 18 talking to teenagers are creeps. I can't even blame the parents, like social media was new and the parents of people that age had either grown up woth no internet, or had gotten so used to the Facebook way of "everything's connected to your name" that it didn't seem like a problem.

This whole thing is just sad. The only way we can fix it is by changing it for the next crop of kids :/