#you just ignore the Trump flags

[strid3rofthen0rth]

I just attended a meeting of the local snowmobile club to deliver the directional signs they'd commissioned from me.

Hosted in a pole building by an old dairy farmer they call Slippery. Big belly, suspenders, those old craggy farmer mitts that look they're carved from bridle leather and ironwood.

The shop looked like a standard farm building from the outside, well used but taken care of. Upon entering, I was greeted with in-floor heat and a clean, bright space. A full potluck spread, vintage underlit oil and tractor tin signs, tasteful deer mounts, and a bar. Black and gray interior steel siding with faux stone wainscoting. A very well-appointed man cave. Old dairy farmers will surprise you like that.

Without having previously met anyone in person, a bowl of venison chili and a can of Miller Lite were immediately foisted upon me, forcing me to set down the box of signs.

I'm not a mingler, but in a shop like that, among men and women encased almost entirely in work hardened Carhartt, I was pretty comfy. The people of my childhood.

There was some flirting with a mildly inebriated 80 year old grandma who liked touching my beard. After the reading of the minutes and previous business, when I was called upon to present the signs they'd ordered, some guy from the euchre game happening at a card table in the back yelled, "You're not a fucking Bears fan, are you?"

"I'd rather be dead." Chuckles all around. Thanks, guy I don't know, for breaking the ice on my little presentation.

Grandma beard toucher ooo'ed and aww'ed over the signs, as most of the women did. The dudes grudgingly afforded that my work was acceptable, asked questions about the machines I used to make them, as farm dudes do.

To sum it up, I was away from this area and these people for a long time, but damn of it doesn't still feel like home in the back of the brain

[cuntwrap--supreme]

I've been doing a lot of grocery delivery in the country lately, so I ordered myself a nice bumper sticker so I fit in with everyone else's stuff :)

I've seen a lot of these lately, but they were all of a pride flag I don't recognize. Not sure which gender/sexuality has the red and white stripes with the blue with white stars in the corner, but I guess it's an ok design. The rainbow is the traditional LGBT flag, though, so I feel it symbolizes the collective queer community a little better and will be a little more noticeable/recognizable than niche flags, like this stars and stripes guy.

[emperor-kumquat]

Fuck It

I am a gay trans immigrant in a deep red state in America. I came here for my partner's sake and have been making the best of it. The culture shock was hard, coming from Canada. In fact, we loved mocking Americans back home so it was hard for me to even like Americans. My instinct was to judge them as stupid. But it is never fair to judge people as all the same for something they can't help like nationality.

Each day, I looked for the goodness in the hearts of Americans. I tried to see that we weren't so different. I started to meet neighbours while taking care of the stray cats. I began volunteering at the city's animal shelter to start making a change. I wanted to see other good people and feel kinship.

Seeing the election results has just... hurt me. I feel so betrayed. I step outside and now know more than half of the adults out there don't care about what happens to me. I will work alongside volunteers, wondering if any of them voted for Trump. I will watch them do good deeds for animals, and wonder, how could you vote for someone who hurt people and the planet?

People in America will lose their rights. Women, immigrants, LGBTQ+, the disabled, and minorities across the board. Wars will be funded and slaughter will increase in other countries. Pollution will skyrocket with Republicans and their love of cars and oil. That affects everyone... Haven't we had enough forest fires and storms? We cannot deny climate change any longer.

I am not running away yet. I am staying. I will not be silent. I will be openly trans. They don't see us enough. They think we are boogeymen. They don't even know us. This is why it is so important to have a Pride flag and wear Pride things. We will not hide and be scared and ashamed. We will not be erased and keep hearing lies about us from the hateful ignorant.

I will protest alone with signs. And if or when things get really bad. I will be LOUD.

Fuck everyone who voted for Trump without a care for people like me. Fuck you to hell. You have no heart. Unfollow me. I assume on Tumblr most people are Democratic so that's all good, but I just have to get this off my chest.

I don't want anything bad to happen to me, but if I disappear, this is why. Republicans are hateful and many are violent. It's not a lie when their campaigns lie and fearmonger about specific groups of people.

Fuck, fuck, fuck you, Trump-supporters.

[hazel2468]

You know, to get political for a second.

It hasn't escaped my notice that every time someone brings up the presidential election. There is ALWAYS an early 20-somethings queer person in the comments or replies going on and on about how Biden won't help Palestine, about how Biden is doing a genocide, about how "Israel this and that" and like...

You're all fucking idiots for falling for this. You are. Because those people saying that shit are either the morons we see protesting who can't answer which river and which sea they're screaming about or who don't know what Hamas' charter says, OR they're the same fucking bots who appeared all over tumblr back before the 2016 election to try and convince all of us, using the hot political topics at the time, not to vote Dem. Because they had a vested interest in us not voting Dem.

And just to speak on the whole Palestine thing here... Do you really thing. That Trump. The racist fascist who openly wants to be a dictator. Who is buddy-buddy with Netanyahu, the other racist fascist who wants to be a dictator. Is going to do anything other than give Bibi the fucking green light to do anything he wants? If you think that Trump is going to be better for your "Pro-Palestine" movement (which, btw, is in quotes because the vast majority of the idiots supporting it don't know jack shit about what's going on and don't actually care about the Palestinian people, seeing as they have a habit of cheering for the terrorist organization that uses them as human shields, steals their money and aid for their own devices, and they have a lovely habit of attacking actual Palestinian peace activists who call them on it and ignoring what they say they actually need so...) than Biden? You're out of your fucking mind.

Holy shit I am not going to sit here and watch people fall for the same BS they did back in 2016. Israel and Palestine is the hot-button topic right now. Every time you see someone talking about how Trump has promised to roll back all the protections that the Biden/Harris admin has put in place, every time you see someone pointing out that the Republicans LITERALLY have a plan to fucking turn our country into an Evangelical hellscape, there is some fucking numbnuts in the notes, probably with a pride flag in their bio, wailing about "Genocide Joe".

And you all need to ask yourself why the hell there are all of these nearly-identical blogs. All doing the exact same thing every time someone tries to point out that another Trump term would see people literally dead and our country fucking torn apart, possibly forever. Use your fucking brains.

[booasaur]

Remember during the 2016 elections, we were so scared of what Trump might do? How afraid we were for Roe but were told by so many people, pro-choice people even, that it was such settled law and it would be such a flashpoint, they'd never touch it. Don't overreact, you sound hysterical, this fearmongering is ruining your credibility. Hell, maybe worry for gay marriage, but abortion? No chance.

We watched Kavanaugh and ACB confirmed with increasing trepidation and STILL there was so much shock when the Dobbs leak happened.

Remember that feeling of knowing what was going to happen, because of your experience and knowledge, and nobody believing you till it was too late? And the very people who smugly shut you up pivoting and continuing to act like the authority, that, ah, yes, now was the time to worry?

This guy above represents the mainstream Western narrative since Israel killed the World Central Kitchen aid workers.

Somehow, after everything we've already seen, Israel was still getting the benefit of the doubt. After killing hundreds of aid workers already, mostly Palestinian, after killing more than 15,000 children, after killing multiple people waving white flags. After literally a scenario where a Red Crescent ambulance arranged safe passage with the IDF--just as this WCKitchen convoy had--to rescue a 6 year old child and ending up bombed.

Why didn't the world listen before? Israel didn't suddenly change, only perceptions have. They're the same now as they were three days ago, as they have been for the last months, years, decades. This wasn't an escalation, it was an inevitability.

Chef José Andrés, who runs the WCKitchen, and recently a vocal critic of Israel, was actually strongly defending them earlier. I saw someone call that Western naivety, but... is it simply being too naive, too trusting, when your good faith is only extended to one side? Isn't that just bias? Now Pelosi is signing a letter to stop weapon transfers to Russia when she was accusing protesters of being paid by Russia? Now, Western governments are saying this is too much?

I'll take any help we can get in stopping this onslaught, but these recent shifts came too late to save so many, including the WCKitchen workers. What changed for so many people now? We can't ignore why THIS was so many people's red line when tens of thousands of Palestinians weren't. Not only would it be an injustice to them but until this bias is interrogated how are we going to stop this or from repeating if the same wrong ass people are making the same decisions with the same worldview?

[wakandama2]

To my Black people who live in rural or small town Trump heavy areas with those fuckers on lifted trucks with them big ass flag who are about to harass your streets and you. Who will have to tread carefully around and pray they don't get as bold as their KKK predecessor. Here's what you're going to do:

- Get your phone/laptop. Then get a pot of dirt, an regular ass American flag, and a gun.

- First of all, if you were dumb enough to be a visible minority in a place like that and put up Harris or Biden 2024 signs over the course during the campaign run. You are going to take those down and pray no trumper marked down your address.

- Wipe connections to Democrats or Third Party from your social media.

- When Trumpers get in your face(with or without cameras) don't say or show anything that would help them track down your name or social media.

- Matter of fact private all your social media and purge it to just close friends and family that you can trust. Take you and/or your child off any Media use policies for schools, work, hobby organizations ect.

- THOUGHLY REVISE WHO YOU HAVE MADE COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS WITH!!! This can be an outright Trump supporter you tolerated or a person who hangs in those groups yet only tells you they aren't affiliated. They are too close, cut them out and off.

- Idc if you are atheist or agnostic, find a Black church of some kind to make community connections with. In the environment of our new situation this is probably the only community source you will be able to rely on wholeheartedly

-Coach your Black children on situational awareness. Help them recognize when it safe to speak out and when shutting the fuck up and keeping your head down is the only safe option.

- Next you are gonna stick the flag into the pot and put it on your porch or at the end of your driveway. This is an appeasement cover, Trumper will think your pro-America/neutral and you'll have a higher chance of not being harassed, not a guarantee to those if you have been vocal but it's worth a shot.

The gun is your last defense. You may have to shoot them or give yourself mercy. I pray neither option will happen.

I'm dead ass, as a Black girl who's lived a small town/ rural lifestyle all my life. It was those very area votes and gerrymandering that led to the flip of the key battle ground states. You need to be prepared because these are crazed orange dick sucking cultists are going to be a Frontline danger to you, those trucks were outside the polling station in my own hometown intimating and harassing visible brown or Democrat people.

Trust no other minority but your own, and even then tread carefully around those loudly ignorant or have forgotten that they will never receive the benefits of white supremacy.

[fromorigintofinality]

i dont post on here a ton but i gotta say the growing attitude on tumblr that voting in the US is somehow useless is really concerning.

just recently i saw this post that was basically making fun of people saying that voting was the way to change the system, and that's just.. wrong? like seriously, how do you think roe v. wade got overturned? its because despite everything, republicans are smart voters and know how to play the long game.

but leftists as of late have lost that quality i feel. instead of advocating for people to vote, they advocate for some "revolution" they think will solve everything. among the people in the post mentioned earlier being glorified as revolutionaries were mao zedong and stalin, and when asked why the poster was glorifying these horrific figures, they said, "yes. Mao freed my family and stalin defeated the fascists. Get with the program sugar"

do you notice anything about that? do you notice how it sounds like the way a child describes the world? "stalin defeated the fascists" like he's some hero who defeated the evil horde of thieves? the way things like the red guard, struggle sessions, all of that, are completely ignored on the side of Mao? how this person, despite having a trans flag in their pfp, is ignoring how the utterly homophobic state of the Chinese government at present is the fault of Mao? how they ignore horrific things such as the Gulag on side of Stalin? this person cannot think, and the only way they believe that the world can move forward is a revolution, and revolution's don't work when the people advocating for them do nothing.

maybe one could argue that this was just a one off type of thing, and that all of the thousands of people liking and reblogging this post are just weirdos. but whether or not thats true, this growing sentiment of praying to a revolution that will never come is indeed growing. and its not just like these people stay in their lane, they actively encourage and probably will cause people to not vote.

so i want to remind everybody. elections are not a moral choice. joe biden is complicit and actively funding a genocide, but not voting for him, third party or not (if you still think third parties are viable please look into the history behind them), will make it more likely that trump will win, and that things in palestine and other things that joe biden has failed in will get 1000x worse. candidates in elections are a bus stop to the real goal, and treating them as such is smart voting, republicans proved this with the overturning of roe v. wade.

please do not be selfish. this last bit may seem out of nowhere, but i need to say this. this type of thinking is selfish. it is selfish and almost impossible to detect as such for the people who believe in it. if you are the type of person who believes in this style of thinking, you have created a completely arbitrary moral code, and care more about your conscience than real political change. you believe yourself to have completely good morals that are universally good, and for the consequences of following these morals, you don't consider the real change that will occur, just your conscience and peace of mind. as for what happens because of that moral code, you will always find a way around looking inwards to how you contributed.

this election season may be the most important yet, please learn to take the practical route instead of the "pure" route.

[omgthatdress]

actually i’m so sorry for the princess’ kids. like being royal must suck enough already but with those parents ???? poor things

okay, here's the full story: Märtha Louise has always been fucking kooky. Like for real if she weren't a princess she'd be a cult leader. She claims to be clairvoyant and in 2007 started her own school to teach alternative medicine (you know, shit that's not medicine at all). She lost the title of "Royal Highness" in 2002 and she's not a member of the royal house and had no public role.

HOWEVER, she was previously married to a man named Ari Behn, who was an artsy sad sack who was pretty respected as a writer but derided as an amateur when it came to his visual art. The two divorced in 2017, and then in 2019, he died by suicide. Genuinely fucking tragic.

So OBVIOUSLY there's trauma there. Like if her woowoo beliefs already had her believing in shaman types, the trauma of her husband's death had to have left her super susceptible to the right charismatic charlatan who tells her everything she wants to hear and gives her all the validation she's willing to ignore a million red flags for.

Honestly it kind of sounds like something a lot of families are dealing with: a loved one gets swept up into Q-Anon/Trump cult bullshit (the woo to Q pipeline is REAL) and you don't really know how to deal with it because the situation is fucking awful but you still love the person in spite of everything.

Or at least that's me projecting all my bullshit into the situation and how I'd be pitching it as a screenplay. Netflix HMU.

The whole mess has actually seriously damaged the reputation of the Norwegian royal family and along with calls for her to lose her title of "princess" it's created a pretty big movement calling for the abolition of the monarchy.

Which is surprising because the Norwegian monarchy is actually fairly low-key. King Harald is good at being genial and non-political and they're mostly involved in promoting Norwegian cultural stuff, which kinda seems like how you should do a monarchy, if you're gonna do one.

But then again it just underlines how inherently fucked up the institution of a monarchy is to begin with.

Anyway have you figured out already that monarchy as a metaphor for generational trauma is my absolute favorite trope and I absolutely lose my fucking shit whenever I see it playing out in public?

[kimkimberhelen]

Ladies, in these dark times, it's essential to dissect a man's values before getting caught up in any emotional, romantic, or sexual entanglement. A man can be a very dangerous road. Don't ignore the red flags. Absolutely learn about his history and how he has treated previous partners (if there are any). Any signs of anger problems? Run. Any signs of drug and alcohol problems? Run. Unresolved mental health problems? Run. Views women as potential property? Run. Wants to control finances? Run. Voted for Trump? Run. Ambivalent about women's rights? Run. Baby mama drama? Run. Views you as a potential maid? Run. Seems like they just want a mom they can sometimes fuck? Run.

Run because a man will drain you dry, have no shame, and then move on to the next one. Disappointing at best, dangerous at worst.

It's energy vampire city out here. Have a safety plan. You can know a man for years, and he can still be a total stranger. You can sleep next to a man for years, and he can still try to kill you.

These are bleak times. There's no sugarcoating it. Be careful.

[fatsamsgrandslamspeakeasy]

Some warnings before you venture further  - - - 

1) This is your first, last, and only warning about content on my page.  If you do not like conservative views or are a liberal, you have been warned and I accept no responsibility for your interpretations, right or wrong, about items I post because frankly, IDGAF.  This includes my views on abortion, LGBTQ, Christianity, Donald Trump, Biden and his administration, gun control, or anything else you find that offends your senses.  Grow up buttercup, the world does not care about your feelings, and that goes double for MOI...!! 

2) If you are a minor, come back when your are over the age of majority in your locality.  If I catch you on here, I will block you for all eternity from access to my page!!

3) My views are somewhat controversial on some topics, so if you come across something that offends your fine sensibilities, just keep scrolling because I really do not care about liberal comments and you will not get a rise out of me because guess what – I DO NOT CARE ABOUT YOUR PRECIOUS FEELINGS!! I would also respectfully remind you to simply ignore my offending posts the way you have ignored the obvious corruption in our government under Biden's watch.

4) If you want to make a keen observation with a conservative viewpoint and/or would like to have an adult discussion about a post without resorting to name calling, please feel free to message me.  Otherwise, just shut your yap and keep scrolling.  I like to have discussions that are respectful and bring out points without being called names. However, if you insist on being an asshole, please know that I can be 100X the asshole you can be. You will find out very quickly that it's a hell of a lot easier to jump on, than it is to jump off!

5) If you try to hit me up for donations for the Palestinian cause, you are so wasting your time. These will be deleted post-haste! Why, you ask??? Simple: I remember only too clearly when the news came back on on September 12, 2001, the live footage of the Palestinians in Gaza, and muslims in Libya, Lebanon and other nations in the Mid-East proudly burning the American flag and openly celebrating the destruction of the WTC Twin Towers and the deaths of thousands of American citizens. YOU made the choice then to have me as your eternal enemy and so you and your cause can go take a flying fucking leap into the void......

6)  I am an older man (early 60’s) and happily married to my wife.  I’m not here for hookups.  I had to put this out there, believe it or not, because there is a whole brand of females out there that are attracted to older men. And if you are a scammer, using a pretty face to try to solicit $$$ from me, WOW!! did you choose the wrong blog. I ain't no love-starved kid looking to get laid. You won't get a red cent so move along....nothing to see here!

7) I am a HUGE fan of JAWS, PAUL WILLIAMS, DARK SHADOWS, UNIVERSAL MONSTERS, BONANZA, ABBOTT & COSTELLO, LAUREL & HARDY, THE 3 STOOGES, VINTAGE MARVEL & DC COMICS, and ANIMALS (especially DOGS) so there will be more than a fair smattering of posts on those topics.

8) I DO NOT FOLLOW EMPTY BLOGS.  If you like my stuff and want me to follow you, you need to have some content.

9) Have a nice day and stay cool out there!! 😎

[a-loose-collection-of-ants]

Ok. Shit.

I get the feeling I'm not gonna sleep tonight, and who knows, I might regret this tomorrow but I need to get some thoughts out.

I've tried to retain this idea that most people are inherently good. Some of this is the remnants of whatever religious faith I was brought up in, and some of it is just what I tell myself to stay sane. It's getting harder to think that way, but I am trying to hold on to it.

There's this image I keep replaying in my head. My dad and I were visiting family down south shortly after he had wrapped up his cancer treatment. We stopped by my aunt's house in South Carolina, and she told me with tears in her eyes about how she had started gardening again after my dad's diagnosis. There was a Trump flag flying from her roof.

On another visit to the same family members, we were visiting a college and walked by a gender neutral bathroom. My uncle made some off-color joke about it and then quickly moved on when nobody laughed. My sister (a sort of closeted trans woman) looked at me with an expression of both deep sadness, and whatever face you make when you watch a bird fly head-first into a window.

My point is, I know these people aren't filled with hatred and malice. It's not constructive to waste your energy hating them when their greatest sin is ignorance.

I barely remember the Obergerfell decision, but I remember being in middle school around the time it happened. Attitudes towards queer people weren't great, but they changed so rapidly that I barely noticed. Maybe the fact that this was when I realized I was queer gave me a false sense of security when it came to the "moral arc of the universe", or maybe it's the example I have to hold onto about how fast things can change.

It's easy for people to fall into patterns of hate when they lack exposure, and the media landscape right now is making easier to avoid that sort of exposure. The basis of the fight against extremism is education, and I think it has to also be compassion.

Don't get me wrong, I also have family that are more than likely not worth the effort ("they" control the weather and all that), but those aren't most people. Most people are exhausted by politics. They see the price of groceries and vote for the other guy regardless of who's name is on the ballot. Or they're like a classmate of mine, who didn't really like either candidate and was having trouble just voting for the "better" one.

If anything, I guess this is a reminder to myself to hold on to empathy despite everything. It's fine to feel angry. Hell, it's probably good if it gets you moving. But we cannot respond to dehumanization with more dehumanization.

I'm not really all that religious anymore, but I hold on to some things. One of them is this: All things, by virtue of being crafted by God's hands, have value. Or, as my dad said it "God don't make no shit". This goes for yourself, as well as everyone else. I can't let myself lose that right now.

I don't want to belabor my point too much, but I do want to say that I saw people saying things like "it's all over if trump wins". I'm not going to lie, it's bad and people are going to get hurt and die because of this. America was waiting for the results of it's biopsy and we found out it's cancer... but we're not dead yet. I don't have a specific action I can advocate for, but please, don't give up. Authoritarianism is a longstanding wound on this country and it festers in apathy.

Take a deep breath. Regardless of what happens, time moves forward and the sun will rise in the morning. I am going to go to work, make some dinner, and hopefully find some way to work volunteering into my schedule.

Recommended listening if you want to cry right now

[thememoryofthatday]

A few miles from my house, there is a church where I take my daughter to get pumpkins every fall. As an atheist, I normally don't support churches, but this one doesn't bother me. My husband and I call it the gay church because they proudly fly a bunch of LGBTQIA+ flags out front, and their slogan is "A Place Where All Are Welcome." Their pumpkin patch proceeds don't go to missionary work; they go to supporting homeless teens and other actual charitable causes.

When we first moved here, the gay church would host various fundraisers for those charitable causes. One of these events was a family-friendly drag bingo night. Remember not too long ago how there was a big push by conservative groups to ban drag shows all over the USA? The gay church got caught up in that, suddenly becoming a target for far-right protests.

By some weird chance, I didn't drive past the gay church the day it happened. I drive past it most days, so I was surprised the next day when I saw the news. Neo-Nazi groups, including the Proud Boys, Patriot Front, and the Aryan Freedom Network came out to protest this tiny little church where we buy our pumpkins. Many of them were armed with assault rifles; some waved Nazi flags and gave Nazi salutes. Counter-protesters stood in front of the church with signs and pride flags, too. Police in riot gear had to keep them apart.

The local news reported that the two sides were at odds over "providing a safe place for all" vs. "advocating for children in the community," which is an absurd way of putting it, but sure. What struck me most about the reports, though, was not that they ignored the presence of the Nazi groups or carefully edited their footage to avoid showing any swastikas that were present. It was the non-Nazi protesters who came out to picket the church, themselves representing churches or other religious groups. Those protesters complained about being grouped in with the Nazis, whom they found despicable, and it made me laugh because... I mean, you chose your side of the street, didn't you? You might not be able to control who else was on that side, but you sure as hell had control over whether or not to join them.

That's how I feel about the people who voted for Trump in this election (and the last one, and the one before that). Trump himself has told us that there are very fine people on both sides, and to be honest, I kind of understand that. Everyone wants to think of themselves as a good person; even those who don't think they're particularly good still think they're at least right in their beliefs about the world. Everyone is the protagonist of their own life story, and few ever think of themselves as being on the wrong side of anything.

Maybe most of those Trump voters are very polite. Maybe they love animals and do charitable work and donate to causes that those of us on the political left would happily donate to. Maybe they make the best brownies you've ever had and always tip well. Maybe they're friendly with their neighbors even though their neighbors are immigrants. Maybe they are immigrants themselves.

But whatever else they might be, they picked their side, and it wasn't the side of inclusion or kindness. They crossed the street and stood next to the Nazis.

So to all the very fine people out there who voted for Trump, whether you did it because you sincerely believe that public schools are performing sex-change operations on children or whether you just wanted another fucking tax cut, recognize that you banded together with the worst elements of our society in order to achieve your goal. We on the left get taken to task for lumping you in with Nazis, but you lumped yourself in with them by choice. The Nazis are celebrating right now because of the decision you made. They couldn't have won without you.

Go sit in that for a while.

[plida]

Words of encouragement for my US mutuals

Hid the text behind keep reading, just in case someone really doesn't want to interact with posts on election.

Hey guys. This march I went to my first ever election. Attending protests is too dangerous here, it's scary to speak out publicly against the government, so the election was the only tool I was brave enough to use.

Vladimir Putin won with 87%. The results might have been fabricated, might have been not, I'm claiming ignorance. No matter the case, in the end we're stuck with him for at least 6 more years.

It's scary. It sucks. You feel powerless.

But you learn to live with it. You have to focus on your studies, your work, your family, your friends. Call it defeatism, maybe, but if you do not have enough material and mental resources to deal with the dictatorship, you do not have to do it. And that's OK.

It doesn't mean you can't try. If they take all the tools away, like protesting, you can still talk to people you are close with, influence them and work on your social connections.

And if the opportunity presents itself, you then will be able to do something drastic, to change the system, hopefully. 50% of the country is on your side, and you are used to activism. You can still learn to live in a situation like mine - where there's 0 hope for doing anything proactive, as most of the country is against you and the government has guns. But you have more chances in US, please remember that.

I'm not sure what Trump administration is going to do to queer rights. In Russia LGBT is considered to be a terrorist organisation. As a queer person myself, it means I can't be loud about it, I can't wear pride flags, etc. But I can still talk about it. If you're scared they're going to get you for simply being queer, please don't be.

Even if they really want to get rid of queerness, they can't realistically achieve it by giving out punishments to everyone for simply being queer.

Again, comparing Russia to US, there are waay less open queer people here than in america. Do they still bother going after me for saying I'm bi in telegram dms or on tumblr? No! They shut down sites with LGBT content, they punish out-spoken popular figures, but they don't have enough resources to punish every queer citizen.

Just be on the look out for the news. If it goes in the bad direction - pay attention and be a bit quieter. But please don't scare yourself with the worst case scenarios. It's not going to be that, it's going to suck, but you can and will persevere.

Those are basically all of my thoughts atm. Don't lose yourself in the following 4 years. I won't lie and say it's going to be 100% OK, but you will adapt and thrive.

Hugging everyone tightly.

You got this!

[borisbubbles]

Eurovision 2024: Last Place

37. ISRAEL Eden Golan - "Hurricane" 5th place

Decade Ranking: 150/153 [Above Noa Kirel, below Roxen]

Where do we start?

Let's begin, perhaps by stating the obvious. Israel's participation in this year ruined the contest. You encounter an entrant or two that completely warp the meta around them at every contest, but never to an extent this cataclysmic. Every sour note of this contest, and there were plenty, sprouted from the decision to allow Israel into the year. That was the tipping point. I believe that makes "Hurricane" the worst entry of all times in terms of the sheer negative impact its presence had on the edition it parttook in.

The ESC discourse -on asocial media- completely revolved around the conflict in Palestine either to denounce the war crimes perpetrated by the Israeli goverment and the subsequent silencing of critical voices calling it out, or to make a stand against the Poor Young Girl who was unfairly maligned by radicalized leftists for a conflict she had no hand in.

So was it any surprise that Israel won every Western televote? Be honest. I know that the Twitter manchildren claim Israel cheated, but they are in denial. The televote was genuine. The scalpel slices both ways, sadly. For every heckler booing Eden or protesting for Palestine or announcing a Eurovision boycot or lecturing the general public to not vote for Israel, a sympathy vote for her arises because "Aw She Doesn't Deserve So Much Negativity, Poor Thing". That she willingly chose to rep israel at THIS time with THAT song is blissfully ignored. Eden Golan is not a child. She's fully accountable for the effects that her participation caused, and is perfectly a-OK with it.

So, wake the fuck up. The sympathizing nutcases were OPENLY mobilizing to vote for Israel without even watching a second of the contest, to prove a point against you know, "insane leftist wokery" or whatever they call it. "You can't make me think what you want or do what you want, TAKE THAT". It's the same principle that led to Brexit and Trump beating Clinton. Similarly, they attempted to hijack the results like a particularly nasty species of asian hornet because their 'Freedom of Speech' is more important to them than fair results in an entertainment show, or a potential genocide. Or maybe they were just indoctrinated. A smaller sample size due to boycots + 20 votes per crazed zionist, it's honestly a miracle Croatia STILL beat them in the TV overall.

In other words, pretty much every opinion about Eden revolved around the politics that accompanied the flag she flew under.

And I'm sorry, but Eurovision is not supposed to be about Israel. Why should THAT country get more attention, or even preferential treatment in this otherwise excellent line-up? That's not what it should be about.

It is THEM who it should be about:

None of these artists asked to be a part of this shambolic display. So in that sense, let's do something many have FAILED. Let's do what we're supposed to dp: Discuss the SONG, outside of context.

Frankly, there's remarkably little to say. Even without the context, "Hurricane" would have been bottom of the barrel for me regardless? It's a mediocre sappy ballad aimed to Make People Cry. We see such ballads pop up all the time in NFs (most recently Krick in Luxembourg and Noble in Portugal), where -more often than not- their sucktitude catches up with them and manifests a loss.

I've seen people be outraged that Norway's jury gave it points but I mean, look at any recent scandi NF and tell me a Hurricane wouldn't fit within its ranks. It's Undo, What if, A Monster Like Me, all the tacky soulless ballads with poor narratives preying on the soft-hearted and the guillible with cheap emotional manip. "Hurricane"was cut from the same dementor-esque, sympathy-craving cloth. Call me old fashioned, but I was taught that sympathy requires a modicum of respect, which needs to be earned, not begged for like a dog's dinner. (I hope the Europapa fans are reading this because this also applies to him, and that ghastly outro). If your song was written with the idea in mind of pinkwashing the deaths of a few thousand children, then perhaps you may have not fully earned the benefit of the doubt, jussaying.~

In terms of performance, Eden was vocally good, at least. It's her voice that carries it although i don't find her particularly likeable as a lead. Then again, she is a Russian nepo brat whose family emigrated to Israel after the Ukrainian war so that her daddy to secure his financial assets and the Golans could continue their lavish, privileged lifestyle in a safer country. It was always a challenge, so to say, to consider Eden Golan a likeable individual.

Also what is UP with the choreography? Why do the dancers look like they are loading air rifles? A Choice, to say the least.

So all in all, a pretty weak entry that always would have been in my bottom 3 for any country, but that probably had a ceiling of lower top 10 in a normal, generic year of ESC.

However, this was NOT a generic ESC. There's NO imagining "Hurricane" without its context which makes it so, SO much worse. It was specifically written in support of the Israeli victims in the war (why go through that trouble and not simply withdraw and spend the participation fee on providing for the families of the hostages? Isn't that more effective charity? But hey, what do I know.) There is no "depoliticizing", no matter how often you retcon the lyrics into gibberish. Hurricane's intentions are present in its rhythm, its instrumentation, the keys in which it is sung. The notion that you can separate it from its context is absurd.

And yet, that is precisely what the EBU were hoping for when they allowed it in, and it exploded into their face like a firework. I can't say they didn't deserve it. Ultimately, the full blame for all of this rests with them. If a certain entity threatens the integrity of your being, you get rid of the threat. You don't passively sit back crossing your fingers they leave at their own volition. The Israeli's would understand the reasons for exclusion, surely, as they've been applying the exact same principles to the Gaza Strip since mid October.

The EBU allowed them in, officially to prove Eurovision wasn't political and United By Music (in reality because they're cowards and didn't want to be the first organization to ban Israel from an international event, and be branded antisemites as a result). The result was the most politically charged and divisive contest of all time, rife with incidents that were as avoidable as they were outrageous. It couldn't have been further away from "apolitical unity" if it tried.

Hurricane was NEVER worth the price of admission. All the controversy, the security risks, the boycots, the antisemitism and xenophobia, the censorship, the harrassment of other delegations (which the Israeli delegation EAGERLY participated in) and of course the Israeli embassies in participating countries OPENLY advocating to vote for Israel as "a signal". Even the tensions that led to Joost's dubious DQ which I doubt would have happened at any other contest. This could all have been foreseen and avoided by excluding the country that clearly would have brought the contest into disrepute. Eurovision is now on life support. Congratulations EBU. You KILLED your own contest.

It briefly looked like Israel could win (leave to RAI to be woefully incompetent and blasé), which would have been the final nail in Eurovision's coffin but then they magically lost the televote (thank you SO much Eastern Europe, you are SO real for this) and stranded themselves in 5th place. Instead of being the Worst Winner of All Time, Israel are merely a mediocre also-ran, which I can live with. It makes "Hurricane"' marginally less appalling than "Unicorn" and "I.M" for me. Let their fifth place serve as a grim reminder for future editions that Hatred Breeds Hatred, and also, thankfully, that Love Can indeed Prevail.

THE RANKING

[st0rmyskies]

dude you’re literally the only person who I can ramble to about this so please hear me out.

So i’m a (super senior) marine biology major and i’m at a field station for class/research. During my free time i’ve been going out fishing with my two friends on the daily. It’s worth noting too that we all are very, very outwardly queer in a seaside town that is filled to the brim with trump flags on boats. We also barely know how to fish, as in we know how to cast it. But also we couldn’t even get the one pole to cast yesterday so that statement is even on thin ice. But in our fishing endeavors, there have been a handful of time where straight up dads have watched us get our asses handed to us and they will offer their advice/help. And when I say ‘dad’ I deadass mean 9/10 there son is awkwardly standing behind him and begging them to stop talking to us after it’s been 15 minutes. Once again, we’re queer and we have daddy issues, so we absolutely are eating up these conversations. It’s honestly the most heartwarming, fucking funniest interactions to me. Especially when you get the visual imagery of us getting tangled in fishing line because we can’t get the one reel to cooperate; one of us has a youtube video pulled up while the other is reading the manual. BOOM- a dad appears.

With that, I cannot stop thinking about Time approaching the most queer ass group of college students (who are visibly struggling to even cast out the fucking line) to offer the most dad advice on fishing. Bonus if one of the boys are there begging for him to leave them alone. Extra bonus if it’s Twilight or Wind. Or even Time taking the boys fishing and all of them, but Twilight, is going through it. Someone’s managed to wrap the line around their neck, another got too excited and yanked their hook out of the water and now it’s free flying (with no fish), Four is attaching weed whacker motor onto the pole because “it’ll reel the fish in quicker”, someone wasn’t paying attention and almost stepped backwards off the dock, and another boy discovered that the spiny rays are sharp motherfuckers. If this continues to live in my head rent free, I even might write this.

That it. Just Time being a dad in public is absolutely sending me.

Also we only caught an atlantic croaker after being at the dock for 5 hours.

Time isn't the most social of butterflies, but he's also ABSOLUTELY the guy who can't ignore fellow fishermen having A Struggle. Especially when said struggle is so... blatant. If strangers, yes Twi would give it 15-20 minutes before he's awkwardly trying the polite interventions of "Okay, well, you guys have a great day.... Okay, well, we should get on our way..." and either just gives up or goes back to doing his own thing until Time is finished. If Wind, the interventions are likely more physical, moving their belongings farther and farther away until Time has no choice but to retreat if he wants more bait.

If Time ever deigned to take the boys on a fishing trip, he'd regret it within 30 minutes.

Most likely to get stabbed by a fish and need more than a few bandaids: Sky.

Most likely to get tangled up and string together a novel expletive phrase that enters the household vernacular permanently: Legend.

Most likely to take a tumble off the dock: Hyrule.

Most likely to injure an innocent bystander with that weed whacker motor: Four.

Most likely to get a fish hook in his arm while he's sitting on the shore sunning himself because he will not partake in this barbaric pastime: Warriors.

Most likely to be pretty successful at fishing but still drops his phone off the dock: Wind.

Most likely to resort to throwing These Hands at the fish instead of using the ancient technology of fishing poles: Champion.

Most likely to space out talking the entire time and be the one to actually hook The Big One but fail to reel it in: Wild.

Most likely to not catch a damn thing because he's busy running interference: Twilight.

Maybe next time, Time will just take them to the pet store to buy goldfish.

I am endlessly amused by the fact that as a marine bio majors you have such a time fishing. I'm sure you've made at least one surrogate dad proud. Also, for the uninitiated:

Anon's Moby Dick.

[bubonickitten]

living in an area where tourism is the entire economy, at peak season, with road infrastructure that was never intended to handle large volumes of traffic, is basically like

- the only toll-free major route is one lane each way, double yellow line, and the person in front is going ten miles under the limit

- no seriously i get that you wanna take your time getting to the fun place you’re going but *i* am not on vacation and i’m begging you to move so i can get to work on time

- oh god everyone in the township is having a yard sale and there are people parked haphazardly everywhere on the shoulders

- oh hello there pedestrian! you really just jeopardized your life and my sanity crossing said major route without warning to reach a church yard sale for a $1 beach chair with complementary trump 2024 flag

- sir, why are you honking. sir, right of way still applies in parking lots. no, seriously, sir, that is a stop sign— SIR

- ma’am that’s not a parking spot

- 🎶 all around me are familiar faces 🎶 ignore the shirtless barefoot men bickering over the slushee machine