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i-cant-sing · 3 days

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I loved the new chapter! Thank you for publishing it! I’m just wondering how a modern Baldwin and Saladin would act

hmmmmm interestingly, i think modern day Salauddin would be a self made billionaire, probably has his own business he started from the ground. He's still a practising muslim, he still keeps his gaze lowered with the opposite gender, hits the gym so he has good built but not like buff. Rejects proposals left and right (until you came along lol). Still plays chess with you, buys you a whole WARDROBE full of khimars, abayas, niqaabs (if u wear them) but they're made of the finest materials and from luxury brands only. spends a lot of his wealth on charity and especially on gaza and palestine. I also think that he besides horses, he has a black kitten at home that he adores because she's so brooding and he spoils her to no end. he has a cool collection of cars, goes to monaco often for the f1 races (he has his own team too), and he also goes to deserts with his Arabian horses for races and takes part in polo games often (and he's also very good at archery). Chess is something he's reserved to playing with you only.

Moodboard for Salauddin:

Modern day Baldwin would probably inherit his dad's business- he's basically a trust fund baby but he still is very smart and his IQ is off the charts. But he's not like a genius gone crazy. No, no- he's still low key himbo, high key golden retriever bf who has managed to expand the family business 1000000X times. His work rival is Salauddin's company but he's also Salauddin's self proclaimed bestie. I like to think that he goes to church on sundays with the fam and all the ladies are just fawning over him there- and he KNOWS, he's got this charming smile on his face as he passes by them and hears these girls sigh dreamily. Idk why but he also gives off the vibes that he's crazy good at calisthenics or parkour (has given sibylla and his dad multiple heart attacks when they caught him hanging off the edge of the roof), so he's got a good built too. He has a car collection too but he prefers bikes. Oh and his bikes are 👌✨ pookie bear just loves to cruise around the city on his bike with a speed that could possibly lead him to God. also donates a ton, to gaza and palestine too. i also think that since his family is like old money, they more than likely have contacts everywhere including the government. and since they're soooo rich and resourceful, government agencies tend to ask them for help often. so i think that Baldwin with his high ass IQ has done a lot of undercover operations for cia and i also think that he had developed an interest in computers from a young age so he's really good at hacking and stuff, he's got dirt on everyone and everybody and has solved so many cases from the comfort of his home, all while remaining anonymous.

moodboard for baldwin:

#yandere salauddin #salauddin #yandere baldwin #king baldwin iv #the leper king #baldwin iv #time traveller au

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reigningqueenofwords · 1 day

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Tall girls

Pairing: Dean x Reader Word count: 2,575 Warnings: Oral, smut Request: my request was for a story where the reader is short ( like 5'1") and she has a crush on Dean. She overhears him at a bar one night flirting with the waitress and he says that “he likes tall girls”. Of course the reader is heartbroken. With some fluff and a little smut please. Thank you and so glad you are back.

Read on AO3

Pulling your hair up, you laughed. “I’m serious.” Sam smiled. “He screamed this high pitched scream, looking completely terrified. It was a damn cat.” You were cracking up at the expense of your long time crush- Dean. “You know what he says right after?” You shook your head, trying to breath. “He looks at me, this weird smile, and goes ‘that was scary!’” He did his best to mimic Dean’s voice. That made you laugh even harder. He was telling you funny stories, trying to distract you from his brother. Sam knew about your crush, and didn’t want you getting hurt when you saw him off being well…Dean.

“Wow.” You breathed when you could finally talk again. “I wish I had been there.” Hearing Dean’s voice, you furrowed your brows. Glancing around, you spotted him not far off with a waitress.

He was leaning on the table she was clearing, that smirk on his face. “Oh, I like tall girls, sweetheart.” His green eyes looking up and down her long, sleek body. He licked his lips unconsciously, something that you knew he really did when he saw someone he wanted to sleep with.

Turning away, you downed your beer. “Another?” You asked Sam.

“I’ll get them.” He gave you a sad smile, slipping off his stool and heading towards the bar.

Leaning on the heel of your left palm, you played with a napkin, simply staring at it. There was no joy in your face, and you were trying not to tear up. Afterall, it was just a silly crush, and now you knew that he’d never be attracted to you, right? You were far from tall. Hell, you barely were past five feet tall! Letting out a breath of air, your chest ached as if being crushed.

You heard feet, and the slight scraping of the stool near you, but didn’t look up. “Hot damn.” You heard Dean’s voice, and knew he had a cocky grin on his face. “That is a fine lady, and I got her number.” He gloated.

Without a word, you got up and walked out, wiping your cheek. Pulling out your phone once you were outside, you texted Sam.

Going to my room. See you in the morning. I’m sorry, I couldn’t listen to him brag about scoring her number…

Hitting send, you shoved your phone in your back pocket.

Sam furrowed his brows when he returned with the two beers to see you missing. Setting them down, he felt his phone vibrate and pulled it out. He groaned before replying.

Sorry. I’ll slap him upside the head. Wait up and we’ll watch something. Be there soon.

Of course, she would know soon could be up to an hour with them. Dean grabbed one of the beers and took a swig. “What the hell’s up with Y/N/N?” He asked, curious. “Almost as soon as I sat down, she got up, and walked out. Not a word. Hell, didn’t even look at me.” He scoffed, shaking his head.

“You’re an ass, you know that, right?” Sam glared at him.

Dean looked confused. “What the hell did I do?!” His tone let Sam know he was a bit offended.

Sighing, Sam sat on his stool. “You know we could hear you with that waitress, right?” Dean shrugged like it was no big deal. “Y/N/N has feelings for you. Can’t see why, though. She heard you tell the waitress you like tall women, Dean.” He took a swig of his own, clearly unamused.

“Wait, what?” He wasn’t sure he was hearing things right. “Did you just say she has feelings for me?” Sam gave him a bitch face, not wanting to answer such a stupid question. “Fuck.” He groaned, putting his forehead on his arm that was on the table. “That was her texting- wasn’t it?”

“Yeah. Said she’d see me in the morning that she couldn’t stand to hear you ‘brag’ about getting her number.” He told him. “I told her I’d slap you upside the head and to wait up, that we’d watch something.”

Dean licked his lips, sitting up. “Keep texting her, keep her awake.” He said, sliding off his stool.

Sam furrowed his brows. “What’re you gonna do?”

He smiled. “Chick flick moment.” He shrugged, and Sam looked at him like he was insane. “Flowers, showing up at her door…that stuff.”

“So, what, you’re gonna show up with flowers, apologize for being a man-whore, and then go call miss tall waitress?” He scoffed. “That’s…low.”

“No, you dick.” He shot back. “I’m going to show up with flowers, apologize for being an ass, and…” Dean let out a breath. “Tell her I feel the same. Let’s just hope she doesn’t slam the door in my face.”

Sam was actually shocked at that. “Wow. The Tin Man does have a heart.” He looked impressed. Dean shot him a look as he walked away, leaving Sam alone in the crowded bar.

Once in your room, you kicked off your shoes and sighed. Another night alone, and another ride home in the morning with Dean grinning like an idiot. Shaking your head, you swallowed, trying not to cry. However, as you started to undress to change for the night, you broke.

You had just pulled on a shirt that you’d swiped from Dean ages ago when your phone went off. At first, you wanted to ignore it, but couldn’t. It was from Sam, so you plopped on the bed to text him. You were glad that you had someone to talk to about all this, and he never teased you about it.

Soon, he had you laughing through the tears, time passing like nothing. Before you knew it, there was a knock at your door, which confused you. Sam was still talking about things at the bar, so you had no idea who it was. Looking at the time, it had been about an hour.

Setting your phone down, you picked your gun up off the nightstand and quietly made your way to the door and looked through the peephole. Dean with flowers was the last thing you would have thought you’d see.

You opened the door and raised an eyebrow. “Dean?” Your eyes were still a bit red and puffy, as was your nose from wiping it, but you didn’t care.

Dean’s heart fell further at the sight of you. “Fuck…” He sighed. “Oh, uh, these are for you.” You were surprised when he blushed lightly, handing you a small bouquet of your favorite flowers. Honestly, you didn’t know that he had known what they were. “C-can we talk?” Seeing Dean like this wasn’t something that happened much.

Nodding, you stepped aside and let him in. “I thought you’d be with the waitress. They are beautiful, though. Thank you.” You said, looking down at the flowers. Chewing your lip, you set them gently on the stand by the tv, having nothing to put them in.

He handed you a bag. “Here. For you, too.” Once you took it, he sat on the end of the bed, his leg moving like there was no tomorrow. “I hope you like it.”

Confused, you opened the bag and couldn’t help but smile sadly, the tears coming again. It was a Y/F/C stuffed Y/F/A with a little heart that said ‘I love you’. You looked over at him. “Did Sammy tell you about me being upset and you felt bad…so you came over?” You asked. “Don’t feel guilty, Dean. It’s okay, I get it.” Sniffing, your eyes went back to the stuffed animal in your hand. Your thumb rubbed the soft fur.

It took Dean a moment to process what you’d said before he got up. He cupped your cheek and made you look at him. “I feel guilty because I hurt the woman I love.” He told you, his eyes on yours. Sighing, his thumb gently wiped a tear from your cheek. “Sam was sitting at the bar while I ran around finding you that stuff.” Dean chuckled.

“That’s why he was so adamant about texting me?” You mused. “I thought he was just really bored or something.”

Dean chuckled lightly and shook his head. “Nope. I told him to keep texting you to keep you awake.” He grinned.

You licked your lips, thinking. “But what about you saying you like tall women? I’m pretty far from that.”

“I never said I disliked short women, did I?” He smirked, looking proud of himself. “Just because I like one type of woman doesn’t mean I don’t like another.” You nodded slightly, knowing he had a point. “Now, I’m going to kick off my boots, toss my jacket over there, and get into bed. Then we can watch a movie, or get some rest.”

“What if I want something else?” You asked quietly, somewhat nervous.

He furrowed his brows. “Like what?”

Pulling him to you, your lips crashed to his. The surprise quickly wore off, his arms wrapping around your waist, kissing you back. “You.” You pulled away just enough to breath that one word.

“I don’t want to rush you into anything.” He kissed your forehead.

You shook your head. “You’re not.” You smiled up at him, love in your eyes. “I trust you.” The three words seemed to ease any worries that he had, the sides of his mouth pulling up into a smile. You pushed his jacket off his shoulders, your lips moving desperately against his.

His fingertips brushed up your thighs, to the hem of the shirt you were wearing. “I love how you look in my shirt, sweetheart.” He grinned, causing you to blush. Pulling it over your head, he groaned when you were standing almost completely bare before him. All you were wearing was a small pair of underwear.

“You’re overdressed.” You teased, pulling his shirt off of him. Kissing over his chest, your fingers worked on undoing his belt and then his jeans. Dean let out a low hiss of pleasure when your teeth scraped his nipple lightly. “I’ll need to remember that.” You chuckled.

As soon as you had his jeans unzipped, he surprised you by pulling you up and moving you towards the bed. His hands were on your hips, his eyes on yours. “You’re beautiful.” He smiled softly.

Your knees hit the bed and you dropped, crawling backwards towards the pillows. As he pulled off his boots and rid himself of his clothes, you hooked your thumbs in the band of your underwear and shimmied them off. Biting your lip, you tossed them at him, laughing when he landed on the tip of his erection. Even Dean couldn’t help but laugh, either. He brushed them off before crawling towards you, kissing up your legs.

He parted your legs, moving to lay between them. His hot breath sent a shiver down your spine, earning a smile from the green eyed hunter. Your train of thought was cut short when he began licking and sucking at your most sensitive areas. Fists gripping the sheets, you tried to squirm, only for his hands to hold you in place. One of your hands went from the motel sheets to his short, dirty blonde hair.

Dean moaned when you gave it a tug, the vibrations going right through you. “Dean…” You breathed, right on the edge. “Please.” You half whined. He didn’t disappoint, curling two fingers into your wet heat. They hit that sweet spot as Dean’s mouth continued as it had been. “Oh, fuck, Dean!” You moaned, arching your back, your legs shaking.

He slowly worked you down before placing a kiss above your slit. “Way better than I imagined.” Dean told you, kissing up your body.

Pulling him into a kiss, you moaned at the taste of yourself on his lips. Your hand gripped him, slowly pumping as you moved him to his back. Your lips moved to his jaw, your hand still moving. As you moved down, you inhaled the scent that was all Dean. Leather, that cologne that he would never tell you the name of, a hint of the bars that he’d been to, and just a touch of his natural musk.

Nipping his hip, you finally released his erection, trading your hand for your mouth. Your tongue flattened, never leaving his skin as you moved. Hearing your name moaned from his lips, your eyes fluttered closed, earning your own moan in return.

You could have stayed there until he finished, but he didn’t want that. “Come here, baby.” He breathed, lust dripping from his words.

With one final suck, you moved so that you were laying next to him. Kissing him, you had your chest pressed close to his. “Condom?” You brushed his nose with yours.

“Of course.” Dean nodded, getting up and moving to his pants. Once he had it, he dropped his pants and ripped open the package. You watched as he rolled it down his shaft, rubbing your thighs together.

When he was back over you, you were in awe at how much love radiated from his eyes for you. “Don’t keep a girl waiting.” You teased. Chuckling, he kissed you as he lined himself and rocked his hips forward.

Once his hips were flush against your body, he broke the kiss, burying his face in your neck. “Fuck, you feel so good.” He groaned, moving his hips perfectly.

Your nails ran lightly down his back until your hands gripped his ass, enjoying how it felt having him on top of you. “Oh, Dean.” You panted.

At the sound of your voice, he gripped your shoulders, thrusting into you. His mouth was all over your neck, and you knew that you’d have marks after. The thought pushed you over the edge. He felt you start to clench around him and gave it everything he had. “Cum for me, sweetheart.” He groaned through gritted teeth, knowing that the second you came, he’d be right behind you.

Pushing your head back into the pillow, you breathed his name over and over as you clenched around him. “Oh, God.” You whimpered, knowing he was about to finish as well.

Dean thrust a few more times before holding himself against you, breathing heavily as he filled the condom. Kissing up your neck, he slowly pulled out. “I’ll be right back.” He pecked your lips before getting up. Walking to the bathroom, he pulled off the condom and tossed it in the trash.

You heard him wash his hands, and then he was walking back to the bed. Nothing was said as he crawled in next to you, pulling you so that your head was on his chest, his arms around you. You put your arm over his stomach, listening to his heartbeat. “Dean?” You asked softly.

“Hm?” His eyes were closed as he laid there, content.

Licking your lips, you held him a bit tighter. “What does this make us?” Your voice shook slightly. “I don’t want to push you into anything.”

Dean kissed the top of your head. “We’re us.” He replied. “We have each other. No more flirting with waitress or bartenders for me. No more getting your heart broken because I’m an idiot.”

You couldn’t help but grin, closing your eyes. “Night, Dean. I love you.”

“I love you, too, sweetheart.” He felt happier than he had in a long time.

#dean winchester x reader #dean winchester oneshot

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fandomfucker · 3 days

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Self-Conscious-Rhea Ripley X Gn!Reader

Summary: Reader gets uncomfortable in clothes while out on date with girlfriend Rhea Ripley, Rhea gives reader jacket

A/N: Happy pride month!🏳️‍🌈 Im actually on vaca rn (where I got the idea for this) so get ready for a couple more (long) fic drops this week.

Word Count: 1,192

2nd Person POV

With your girlfriend Rhea Ripley's wrestling career, she was constantly on the move. So, whenever she was home, you two always made the most of it.

And, to keep the relationship from getting boring or too repetitive, you tried to have as many date nights as you could.

You'd both dress up a little bit and then go out and have fun. Sometimes to a nearby theme park, the movies, coffee, bowling, zoos, or aquariums, you name it and it was at least on the list of date ideas if it hadn't already happened yet.

On this particular date night, the two of you had decided to go out and play minigolf before going to get ice cream. Since Rhea was currently out injured and you worked remotely, you had thought it was the perfect opportunity to take a cute little beach vacation for the week.

And while, yes, technically the whole week was one big date, having official little dates throughout the week intermitted between you just hanging out was really nice.

Finishing up getting dressed in the condo you'd rented, you did a quick turn in the mirror, looking at your new outfit from all angles. It was a pair of your favorite jean shorts and some plain black flip-flops paired with a new top you'd gotten from one of the beach stores.

It was a bit on the more revealing side, something you weren't quite as used to as your girlfriend who regularly went on live television in front of thousands wearing very little clothing.

Debating on whether or not to bring your trusty zip-up hoodie with you to wear should you get too cold or uncomfortable, you decided against it, feeling super hot and confident in your new outfit.

"Babe! Are you ready yet?" Rhea came bounding around the corner into your bedroom, swinging herself on the doorframe. "Ooh, babe you look good!"

She came up behind you and held your hips as she kissed your shoulder, looking at the way the two of you fit together in the mirror.

You smiled at her and pulled her arms around your hips to fully encircle you, holding on to them like a safety bar as you watched your movements in the mirror in front of you.

"Mmm." You hummed in agreement as you studied the two of you, "We look good, babe." You corrected.

"We do." She kissed your shoulder again before resting her chin on top of it. "You ready to go get your ass kicked?"

You feigned a large gasp as you turned around in her arms, gently pushing her away with one hand as the other went to your chest like you were clutching your pearls.

"My ass kicked? Oh, it is so on, Ripley." You taunted, inches from her face with a daring grin.

--------------

Once you had paid for your game and gotten your clubs and balls, you stood at the practice hole making small talk until the group in front of you had finished and you two were able to actually start playing.

Taking a look around at the other holes, you noticed an eye or two trained on you. You managed to look away without making any eye contact but the feeling of being watched was there.

Finally, the group in front had moved on and you and Rhea were able to start.

"Ladies first," She swung out her arm, showcasing you to the fake grass. You smiled at her and gave a mock bow as you walked up to the plate. You set the ball down, taking care as to where exactly you wanted it placed.

You made your calculations, pulled back, and swung hitting the ball just a tad too hard sending it flying down to the other side. You watched it bounce off the brick wall, rolling until it stopped about a foot away from the hole.

You groaned jokingly in annoyance as you stepped out of the way to make room for Rhea.

She made a show of walking up to what was essentially the pitcher, shaking out her legs and arms the same way she does before a match, getting ready for her first swing.

She pulled back, and she hit the ball. Unlike yours, hers wasn't hit hard enough and stopped about a foot away from the hole on the opposite side of where yours ended up.

Disappointedly, she shuffled her feet down to where her ball had landed as you laughed, making your way to where your own ball had landed.

"Shut up," She groaned, then motioned for you to go first.

You made it in two.

Rhea, however, made it in four.

Halfway through the game, you were almost tied, you were one point ahead. It was agreed that the overall loser would have to pay for the ice cream, and you did not want to pay.

You managed to not think about what you were wearing once so far, even though you had caught those same eyes from before on you once or twice more. That is until a large gust of wind came through and goosebumps danced along your skin. You could feel your nipples harden slightly but thought nothing of it until you caught another pair of wandering eyes on you, your shirt too tight to not see anything.

You lowered your eyes, embarrassment and anxiety clouding your mind and you went silent while Rhea excitedly told you about something or other. You wish you had brought your damn jacket. That way, you wouldn't be cold anymore or, super self-conscious.

It was while waiting for the next group to finish in front of you that Rhea noticed something was up.

"You've been quiet, babe. What's wrong?"

You tried to just brush it off, it wasn't serious, it was just you overthinking things again, like usual.

"Nothing, babe. I'm all good."

Rhea persisted, "No, I can tell when you're all good, and you're not. What's wrong, did something happen?"

Wanting the conversation to just be over at this point, you caved. "I'm just a little cold and uncomfortable in my new shirt, nothing to worry about."

Rhea frowned at this, taking obvious offense that this was "nothing to worry about" because you bet your ass she was going to worry about it.

Wordlessly, she shrugged off her own jacket and began swinging it around to lay it on your shoulders.

You stepped back, "No, no, no, Rhe. It's fine, keep your jacket. I'll get over it once the wind dies down."

At that very moment, the wind picked up even bigger than before, making Rhea's hair fly around your faces as your goosebumps increased tenfold.

She gave you that look like, "told you so" before continuing to put her jacket on you.

You blushed like it was the first date all over again as you slid your arms into the sleeves.

Rhea had a shit-eating grin on her face, looking super proud of herself as she looked you up and down wearing her jacket.

"You look good wearing my clothes. Should do that more often." She leaned forward and kissed your cheek before swaggering away to play the next hole, leaving you there a blushing mess.

Rhea wound up winning, but, being the best girlfriend ever she paid for your ice cream anyway. And, she let you keep the jacket. Just in case.

#rhea ripley #rhea ripley x reader #the judgement day #the judgment day #tjd x reader #the judgement day x reader #the judgment day wwe #wwe #wwe raw #the judgment day x reader #rhea ripley imagine #rhea ripley x gn!reader

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mostlysignssomeportents · 1 day

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Uplinkchump Linkdump

On June 20, I'm keynoting the LOCUS AWARDS in OAKLAND.

It's Linkdump Saturday! This is the day on which I clear the giant backlog of links from the previous week that I haven't managed to post in my newsletter's "Hey look at this" sections. This is my 19th linkdump; here's the previous 18 dumps:

https://pluralistic.net/tag/linkdump/

Let's start with some fun and games. Liam is a high-schooler who created "Bad Plumbing," a Jenga-style boardgame using a variety of 3D printed shapes; the game was a smash hit at his local game-jam, so now he's kickstarting it:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/liamclift/bad-plumbing

The shapes are delightful and Seussian, and there's a very ingenious game dynamic that's not just "make the pile bigger." You can pre-order for $30, and for $100, you'll get a version with a custom-designed shape of your specification. I backed!

It's lovely to see something that's both excellent and delightful, but to be honest, the majority of this week's links are excellent and enraging. Most of these links from The American Prospect, which has, under David Dayen's executive leadership, gone from "a magazine I really like" to "the first thing I read every day."

This week saw a the Prospect publish a stunning series of articles on prices, a sacred object for neoliberal economists, who see them as the carriers of the information that allows society to order itself for maximum efficiency and broadest benefit. Unfortunately for these economists, the love-affair with prices is one-sided: they may love prices, but prices hate neoliberalism.

The dogma that says that any government interference in pricing will destroy the economy by "distorting" prices does not survive contact with reality. The instant the government steps away from regulating monopoly, and its handmaiden, fraud, prices go batshit crazy.

This week's Pluralistic newsletters were dominated by this brilliant series in the Prospect. On Wednesday, I wrote about the Prospect's investigations into algorithmic and surveillance pricing:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/06/05/your-price-named/#privacy-first-again

And yesterday, it was the epidemic of junk fees:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/06/07/drip-drip-drip/#drip-off

There's more than I could fit into the newsletter, though, like Friday's excellent piece on the scourge of surge pricing by Sarah Jaffe:

https://prospect.org/economy/2024-06-07-urge-to-surge/

Jaffe's piece was especially interesting given economist Ramsi Woodcock's compelling case that surge pricing is a per se violation of antitrust law:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/07/26/aggregate-demand/#pure-transfer

The Prospect series was so timely. After decades of pricing orthodoxy, economists like Isabella Weber are making huge waves (and attracting a tsunami of abuse). Weber's interview with Vass Bednar on the Globe and Mail's Lately podcast this week is a must-listen:

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/podcasts/lately/article-the-millennial-economist-who-took-on-the-world/

(Though if you get your econ ideas from the New York Times, you'd miss this whole revolution, as the Grey Lady's views on prices remain mired in the Reagan era:)

https://twitter.com/HalSinger/status/1798849195664916648

Few prices are more important than the price of the roof over your head – after all, "shelter" is only second to "food" in the hierarchy of needs. Dayen's Friday story for the Prospect in NIMBYism gets to the crux of the cost-of-living crisis: people who own houses want houses to be expensive, and will go to enormous lengths to make sure that shelter costs as much as possible:

https://prospect.org/infrastructure/housing/2024-06-07-homeowners-want-housing-prices-to-go-up/

Dayen attributes this to "the wealth effect" – that is, most people would like to be richer, and the minority of Americans who have a positive net worth owe that status to rising house prices, and the plurality of Americans who have a negative net worth thanks to a mortgage are counting on rising house prices to flip them into the black.

When America threw off the Gilded Age, we charted two courses to prosperity for working people: labor unions and home ownership. The ruling class cannily convinced us to rely solely on the latter. The housing emergency raging across the country is the inevitable result of that decision:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/06/06/the-rents-too-damned-high/

The Prospect's consistent brilliance isn't merely an editorial matter, of course. The magazine features a recurring cast of some of the best muckraking writers in the field, and the absolute peak of that impressive pile is Maureen Tkacik. Tkacik's work on Boeing is stunning:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/01/boeing-boeing/#mrsa

Her labor coverage is second to none:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/09/14/prop-22-never-again/#norms-code-laws-markets

And no one writes better than her about private equity:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/06/02/plunderers/#farben

I am in pure awe of Tkacik's prolific and expert work. So when I read her piece on Long Covid in the Prospect this week, I was stunned to learn that she has been severely disabled by this heavily downplayed – but rampant – chronic illness:

https://prospect.org/health/2024-06-06-nih-perpetuating-long-covid-denial/

The fact that Tkacik is doing this career-defining, high-frequency work while being randomly smashed by a series of acute Long Covid incidents makes her achievements nothing sort of heroic. But Tkacik's Long Covid coverage isn't a lament for her personal situation – it's a characteristically brilliant investigative story about the systematic cover-up of Long Covid by the NIH, which has a long history of dismissing inconvenient illnesses as psychosomatic, from black lung to chronic fatigue.

Tkacik's Long Covid coverage adds yet another subject where I'm learning more from the Prospect than from other sources – part of a host of issues where the magazine leads the pack. An issue far more squarely in its wheelhouse is antitrust, especially the intersection of antitrust and labor rights.

This week, I eagerly devoured Luke Goldstein's story about the latest in a series of lies that Amazon executives were caught making to the US government:

https://prospect.org/labor/2024-06-06-senators-allege-amazon-lied-delivery-drivers/

You may recall when Jeff Bezos lied to Congress, claiming that the company didn't spy on its sellers and clone their best products:

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-58961836

Or when Amazon posted a lying rebuttal to a Congressman who objected to its drivers being forced to pee in bottles in order to meet its punishing schedules:

https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/policy-news-views/our-recent-response-to-representative-pocan

The latest lie: Jeff Bezos and CEO Andy Jassy lied to the Senate about the company's relationship to its drivers, whom it insists are "independent contractors" because they are hired through cutouts called "Delivery Service Providers":

https://pluralistic.net/2022/04/17/revenge-of-the-chickenized-reverse-centaurs/

These drivers work for Amazon. It dictates their working conditions. It installs cameras that watch their eyeballs while they drive. It enforces an illegal "no poach" system that fixes their wages. And it lies about all this. To the Senate.

You know what they say, it's not the crime, it's the cover-up. Tech barons go through life in a warm bath of their own bullshit, surrounded by lackeys who are contractually prohibited from calling them on it. They forget that there are people out there in the world who won't offer them this deference – including lawmakers and regulators.

That's why Facebook lied to the FCC when they bought Instagram, withholding key information in order to secure regulatory permission for the merger:

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/ftc-claims-facebook-withheld-information-152834983.html

After decades of inattention, the world's governments have discovered a newfound energy for busting trusts and smashing corporate power. Five years ago, it looked like maybe this was a fixup by Big Cable or Big Content to take Big Tech off the board so they could claim more dominion over our lives:

https://memex.craphound.com/2019/06/04/why-is-there-so-much-antitrust-energy-for-big-tech-but-not-for-big-telco/

Today, every sector is coming in for antitrust scrutiny, and the tempo is only increasing. Just this week, the FTC and DOJ opened investigations into Microsoft, Openai, and Nvidia:

https://www.theverge.com/2024/6/6/24172868/ftc-doj-antitrust-openai-microsoft-nvidia-investigations

Yeah, there's still a lot of policy focus on tech, but that's because tech has extended its tendrils into every area of policy. That's the end-point of a decades-long process of tech going from sitting alongside important policy questions to being inseparable from them. I've had a front-row seat for that transformation, through my work with EFF, whose brief just keeps expanding as tech infuses every aspect of our lives and rights.

The latest example; EFF's "Surveillance Defense for Campus Protests" by Rory Mir, Thorin Klosowski and Christian Romero:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/06/surveillance-defense-campus-protests

The military has gone all-in on electronic surveillance, and campuses have gone all-in on militarized policing, so campuses are now sites of electronic warfare, and protesters are vastly overmatched. This is an excellent and timely guide.

Well, this is where this week's linkdump comes to an end. It only falls to me to send you off with one last week: Libro.fm's buy-one/get-one sale on DRM-free audiobooks, with a share of each sale going to an indie bookstore of your choosing! This is a heckin deal, and a great way to start weaning yourself off of the Audible monopoly (also, my latest novel The Bezzle, is in the sale):

https://libro.fm/bogo

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/06/08/medley/#the-prospect

Image: Cjp24 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Automobiles_in_a_french_junkyard.jpg

CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en

#pluralistic

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justanothersanjilover · 2 days

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Modern Gym AU (Part1)

Back again with Trans Zoro thoughts:

Sanji somehow (I don't know how) landed a job in a women-only Gym as a food/health counselor. One day, he’s behind the bar, seeing a very buff, very scary-looking guy enter the gym. Sure as hell, that man doesn't belong in there, so he takes it up on himself to send the creep out.

“What do you want to do about it?”

The guy grinned as Sanji walked over telling him (not very friendly) to get out and asked if he couldn't read - the sign obviously said women-only.

“Then what are you doing here?”

Sanji wanted to punch the smug smile off his face!

“Not that it's to any of your concern, but I work here! And I WILL protect the girls in here!” He barked and made himself ready to throw the creep out.

“Again, what ya gonna do, you stick figure? Kick me out?” The guy asked provocatively.

You can imagine the surprised face he made when Sanji actually kicked him through the front door! There was a split-second where the creep looked approving, slightly nodding, and then he got up again. Sanji braced himself for a punch, but it never hit.

Instead he heard Nami (the manager of the gym) behind him, calling out.

“Zoro? Is that you?!”

She rushed over, pushing past Sanji, and jumped into the creep's arms. Sanji can only stand there, mouth hanging open like a fish on land.

“Shit, I knew the T would hit, but like that?! Man, you got huge!” She continued, laughing and ruffling the guy's green hair (who dyes his hair green anyway?!)

Before answering her, Zoro smirked dirtily at Sanji flipping him off with both hands.

“I worked out, too. It’s not only the T, witch!”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. Hitting the gym whenever you can - but not my gym apparently! Why is that?”

He pointed over to Sanji, who is feeling very uncomfortable to be suddenly the center of attention after kicking the managers friend (? Boyfriend? No, definitely just a friend!) out.

“As this lovely Gentleman over here just told me, its a women's only Gym. So I’m not allowed.”

“You mean Sanji scared you? Really?”

“No, he didn't scare me. But he had some…hitting arguments.”

Nami raised an eyebrow and looked from Sanji to Zoro and back.

“I’m sure you guys get along well,” she smiled and punched Zoro’s shoulder lightly - he did her a favor and hissed in fake pain, pressing a hand to his shoulder. “Sanji’s the kind of guy you used to take out to your lovely dates.”

“Is he.”

Zoro, again, smirked at Sanji who could tell he was blushing like hell as hot as his cheeks felt.

“I…I’m not…I mean…” he stammered as Zoro broke out in a full belly laugh and Nami joined in.

“It’s fine, Curly. I’m not really looking for anyone right now. Kinda have to figure to much shit out before I gonna let someone into my life again. Don't get your panties in a twist.”

And then he was led away by Nami to “go see the girls; they are going to be sooooo excited to see you again!” Sanji just stood there, mouth open again, staring at the back (the fucking broad back) of Zoro as he got practically run over by all the ladies currently in the Gym.

#one piece #roronoa zoro #zosan #black leg sanji #one piece sanji #zosan fanfic idea #one piece fanfic idea #trans roronoa zoro #one piece modern au #one piece gym au #probably sanzo too #it grows on me more and more

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peculiarbeauty · 4 months

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i got the job !!!

#⊱✿⊰ ┊ ˢʰᵉ ʳᵉᵃˡˡʸ ⁱˢ ᵃ ᶠᵘⁿⁿʸ ᵍⁱʳˡ ( ooc )#[ wooo i'll start really soon subbing for the district !!!#YAY TY SO MUCH FOR THE NICE WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT #i was so so nervous that maybe something #bad would happen but #i really REALLY hit it off with the lady and #she was so sweet.#my face hurts from smiling kdfjfkfd

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robotpussy · 1 year

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POWER OF LOVE DEEE-LITE [x]

#deee-lite #music video #lady miss kier #90s #1990 #world clique #dance #mtv #ulala really was based off of lady miss kier because that blue sequined bodysuit is sooooo ulala like....#deee lite #towa tei #dj dmitry #the whole world clique album went platinum in my house! they will never be one hit wonders to me #this is one of those 'i wish i directed/worked on this' videos....#yea the quality isnt the best but the video is just that quality and i downloaded this at 720p.. the highest quality its in #byrobotpussy

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tsuchinokoroyale · 5 months

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#I was talking to some buddies about lies of p and sekiro and how LoP’s defense as offense mentality helped get into sekiro #but then how sekiro overwrote that mentality with its own “offense is the best defense” mentality #or “hesitate and you lose” as Grandpappy isshin would say #and how the switch for the change for me was genichiro who I think is one of the best designed bosses in gaming #you CAN’T play too defensively with him because he’s happy to pepper you with arrows from a distance #and then the moment comes when you realize your sword interrupts his bow attacks sekiro truly begins as a game #lady butterfly is also a good fight but all her moves bring her to you so there’s less incentive to be as aggressive #vs genny baby who will back off and fire off his bow if you let him #this isn’t even like a video of me playing perfectly but I LOVE getting my feudal edgelord corner stunned and just bursting him down #I kinda hate the owl shinobi fight bc he hits too hard and his attacks just aren’t interesting to react to #but it’s also possible to corner stun him and just go to town on his health bar #owl father and inner father are much better fights and I actually really enjoyed inner father a lot #but the Ashina family fights are absolutely stunning achievements in game design imo #perfectly balanced to be difficult but fair and visually stunning to boot #even if there is a layer of artificial difficulty in the final battle with the flowers obscuring their swords when they’re crouched #but the animations are solid enough that there are enough other more subtle differences like how hes shifting his weight #if he’s centered he’s going to lunge but if he’s angled he’s gonna sweep #I had so much fun with LoP and sekiro 🥰🥰🥰 I crave more…#I can’t say the combat in Elden ring gorilla gripped me like these two games have but I like HAVE to play dark souls I know this #sekiro #tsuchi plays games

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katyahina · 1 year

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me: I want to make Valentine’s Day cards, but I can’t make up flirty lines! I am not an eloquent person in the slightest!

me:

me: I have an idea,

#bloodborne #lady maria of the astral clocktower #old hunter henryk #provost willem #runesmith caryll #happy (not very eloquent) valentines' day everyone!!!!!#honorable mention: madaras twin and paleblood hunter #yeah i wanted to draw 8 cards initially but was hit with hardcore artistic crisis again so had to level it down to 4 #i am still glad i was able to draw something hahah;#for recent time i've been good at drawing holiday-related stuff!#halloween then christmas then this... i am on the roll as someone bad with deadlines and dates!#i really love how Maria looks though she is so beautiful #her being included based on how she 'just gave' Adeline key without explaining anything #and also that Adeline reacted at us first appearing as though for Maria entering without a word was a regular thing #so i always thought she has selective mutism #HAD to add my favorite quote by willem tho xD but honestly I need exact rip of his clothes patterns #i did the closest screen shot i could and still could not figure exact pattern!#so sorry details on him are kinda messy and lazy off #my art

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nazmazh · 1 month

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Tonight's Mission:

Time to give some dragons (And a wizard) a bath!

So, I've had these statuettes since like, high school [My brother also has a set of his own, which was likewise dug out of storage this past summer, when my folks and I moved out to the farm - Lest you think I was alone in my coolness], but when I moved out east after my first stint in university for my first post-university job, they got packed up and put into storage.

And they've been sitting there, in the shop, since, like 2009.

But now that I've got more room (and found some decent bookshelves on FB marketplace for a reasonable price, so I have enough storage space), it's time to bring them back out into the world, I think.

But, yeah... 15 years of sitting in a box in the workshop hasn't exactly been great dust-wise.

(Seriously, the old beat-up box they were in was a Sears box, because Amazon delivery just wasn't as big of thing by that point).

And their individual boxes weren't exactly great to begin with.

So, like, there's dust deeply embedded in some of the grooves and such:

(I probably wasn't super diligent about dusting them thoroughly when I was younger, either, if I'm being honest).

So, we'll see if a quick rinse in the sink with some dish soap can shine 'em back up!

Thankfully, my pewter ones (which were better quality overall anyway) came in nicer boxes and seem to have been largely spared the extra dust. Which is good, because they probably are a lot more touchy about cleaning methods, and it means I don't have to cross that bridge today.

The Results:

Looks like the rinse worked perfectly, no weird effects because dish soap is pretty safe for most materials, I'd imagine resin/acrylic/whatever these were made of included. Got into those hard-to-reach nooks and crannies and looks like the dust has been rinsed out.

The one downside - I apparently have precisely one statuette (even including the pewter ones) that has a felt-lined bottom.

I only realized that once it was already in the water.

Ah well, as long as it dries properly, I can't imagine it being a big issue in the long run.

Once these bad boys dry, they're going up on my bookshelves and returning to their duties of being rad as hell.

Might even have to look through my dice bins and find some sets to pair with them all for some photos or something.

#Yes I have in fact always been a total nerd #I assure you my choice of room decoration through university *definitely* was a hit with the ladies :P #Right up there along with my Civ IV Tech Tree Poster from the box #To be fair the only comments I ever received on the dragons were positive #Like in that 'Oh how cute/quaint' sort of tone though #But that's okay - It honestly would be weird to imagine me as a Lothario-type #Like could you imagine me changing/misrepresenting myself to try and seduce women or something like that? lol #I've always been pretty authentically me and I'd much rather my room reflect that y'know?#In retrospect - The autistic tendencies and the grey-asexuality mean this all makes total sense #Theoretically if someone came into my room and saw those dragons and was seriously put off #Then I probably wouldn't really want to get closer to them (in any sense)

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