#like man i love my country but fuck that government

[ganondoodle]

seeing the video of palestinians tearing down the apartheid wall and i cant help but feel a similar kind of joy as when seeing the pictures from when the wall seperating germany fell, with masses of people storming it and helping each other climb qwq

#ganondoodles talks #meanwhile i was making breakfast and heard on the radio our shitty ass Bundeskanzler calling the iranian attack on iof military bases #'horrible and not justifyable by anything' #like you FUCKER dont get to say that while funding the exact same genocidal regime that attacked iran first WHILE carrying out a genocide- #-for months WHILE its been attackign SEVERAL other countries at the SAME TIME AND been violently occupying a country #i feel like i get americans so much more now #like man i love my country but fuck that government #“not justifyable by anything” *actively funds a genocidal regime thats attacking what 3+ other countries as well* #you are not making us beat the 'still nazis lolol' allegations with that #hate it here #free palestine

[speakercrab666]

furries i hope u know i am fighting for u out here. i am putting my life on the line and i am dying for u out here. i love u. all u motherfuckers got a friend in me. i’m a passionate and deeply autistic man, furries, and u are my cause. DON’T LET NO ONE GET U DOWN, FURRIES.

#fighting the good fight out here #the good fight is i commented “i fucking love furries on something and the allistic cishet menfolk do not like that #just doing what i gotta do for my country 🤘 #the one where the autistics and the genderqueers are from #i see u and ur bigass cute fuzzy paws #i fucking GOT U girl #does it count as being a furry if ur hyperfixated as FUCK on them #is it like osmosis #furry by proxy #furry by association #accessory to furry #innocent until proven furry #fuck jury duty i’m on furry duty #government mandated #update the good fight has descended into outright violence #a man responded with a gif that said “you make me SICK” and i responded “good! puke for me bitchboy <3” #i’m so tired could u tell #fucking #sleebgy #goognight #el has a life

[vamptastic]

whoever scheduled european history (favorite subject, only history class offered beyond the basic required curriculum) and the fourth (and final, and very important!) year of my drafting class for only one class period each at the same time needs to die. my heart is divided in two and every time my drafting teacher lectures me about the quality of my air conditioning plans i daydream of charts of monarchies.

#at least i have perhaps the most propaganized classes known to man: economics and compartive government #i love both of them dgmr but economics is maddening #so much abject suffering positioned as acceptable and necessary loss to keep the almighty System running #and compartive kind of looks at it from the perspective of american democracy is great let's hold everything 2 that standard #and mostly that just means evaulating economic wellbeing based on gdp/capita & gini coeff #or looking at fucking. IMF and world bank statistics lmfao. and freedom index my beloathed #but a lot of it is just how much democracy does this country have #and if answer is little then country is bad #which i feel is sort of overly simplified n the china chapter especially i thought we kind of overlooked the mass line stuff #wouldn't that be the key to all of it? but whatever #iran too i wish we had dug into history more there #felt like we spent most of it just figuring out where the power is n how each branch works #i'm personally more interested in how the govt ended up as it is today vs maybe what people wanted idk #but i digress. #euro history isnt my favorite btw history in general is but they only added African and Asian history classes to ap curriculum like #last year. and ap euro year b4 that #so my options r limited. doubt we'll find teacher 4 african and asian history either #we don't even teach french 😭

[mockerycrow]

Talk About Sensitivity In The COD Fandom **Important.**

THIS IS NOT A DEBATE POST. DO NOT BOTHER.

Hey, everyone. After the reveal of Makarov in the trailer (as well as general concern), I think a chat about sensitivity is important. Since the trailer’s release, I have seen a major increase in simping for Makarov posts as well as genuine romanticization of Russia and/or Russian Soldiers. First, I want to talk about the romanticization of Russia and/or Russian soldiers because it’s seriously getting out of hand. I need you guys to realize that Russia is an ultranationalist country and yes, maybe not everyone who lives there believes what their government does, but it’s important to know a big portion of their population does. I have seen multiple posts and edits of this man right here (pictures below).

THIS GUY IS NOT SOMEONE YOU SHOULD LIKE, AND PEOPLE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT HE DOES NOT LIKE YOU. This is one of the most popular Russian Soldiers amongst the internet due to the way he wears a mask, gear, has an accent, and is buff. He makes videos teaching soldiers how to kill people—innocent people in Ukraine who are just trying to survive. I have seen people straight up ignore when someone tells them what this man has done, so let me put it this way—he does not like you. He wants you dead. He is racist, a homophobe, transphobe, antisemitic, etc. He absolutely hates The West, and he does not like you unless you are a cis, straight, white 100% Russian. Even if you’re a woman, he DOES NOT LIKE YOU. If you American, HE DOES NOT WANT YOU ALIVE.

[This part is not targeted; just a general statement.] Second; there is a serious problem with how you guys address Makarov as a character. There is absolutely no problem enjoying him as a villain because I do too, but you guys have to realize that Makarov is an ultranationalist—which is exactly what Russia is right now, an ultranationalist terrorist state. “But he’s fictional, it doesn’t matter! it’s not that deep!” It actually is that deep. I keep seeing content for Makarov and I can’t force anyone to stop making “fluffy fics”, but I need y’all to have some fucking decency towards victims and people affected by the war. I know people who are affected by the war who feel ill seeing posts painting Makarov in a good light. If you are going to write Makarov, do NOT romanticize him as a character—do NOT paint him a decent or good light, because you can’t. Write him like the bastard he is. And no, this isn’t a “let people write what they wanna write” situation. You can do that, but please be expected to be judged and blocked by me and many others. Makarov is quite literally the characterization of everything that is wrong with Russia, and what HAS been wrong with Russia. Makarov is not a bad boy, a rebel, etc, he’s a fucking terrorist. Please be for real. “But the military in general is bad, so why does it matter specifically around Makarov?” Please see above my previous reasons. Thanks.

The overall message of this point is to be fucking respectful. There are actual people dying and slaughtered for no reason other than ruined pride and a lot of Ukrainian folk seek comfort and distractions in the internet and their fandoms. This ruins it for them and quite frankly, sometimes how Makarov is being written? It’s completely insensitive. Anyway, below are a few links where you can directly support the efforts and the people of Ukraine. Peace and love, and please write with critical thinking.

#call of duty #call of duty mwii #cod mw2 #cod #mw2022 #mw2 2022 #modern warfare ii #ghost x reader #soap x reader #gaz x reader #price x reader #makarov x reader #vladimir makarov #modern warfare #cod mwii #support ukraine #call of duty modern warfare #call of duty x reader #ukraine 4 life #love y’all #mwii #important #do not skip #read this #please read this #compassion is good #use your critical thinking skills #use your fucking brain #american here. forever love ukraine. sending my regards #just. use your brain please.

[weareoutofmaplesyrupdave]

THOSE IMPERIALISTIC NAZI FASCIST ASS DICTATOR ASS TYRANNICAL MICRO MANAGING CONTROL FREAK BITCHES WHO ARE OLD ENOUGH TO HAVE SEEN MY GREATx40 GRANDMOTHER BE BORN, WHO LICK THE FEET OF THE RICH AND SPIT IT BACK ON EVERYONE ELSE, ARE SITTING THERE PRUNE LOOKING ASSES ON SOME RICKETY ASS CHAIRS IN A BUILDING MADE OF SHITTY ASS MARBLE THEY BUILT ON THE STOLEN LAND THEY OCCUPIED WHILE THEY MURDERED AND ENSLAVED MILLIONS ARE STEALING EVERYONES HUMAN FUCKING RIGHTS AGAIN WITH THEIR SYSTEMIC OPPRESSION RELIGIOUS BRAINWASHING AND OVER BUDGETED MILITARY/ POLICE AND THEIR CENSORSHIP JUST SO THEY CAN KEEP THE SHITTY AND BROKEN SYSTEM THEY MADE AND FUCKED UP ON RUNNING SO THEY CAN CONTINUE TO HAVE THEIR WEALTH AND POWER AND HAVE A FULL SUMMERS RECESS AND GO GOLFING AND NEVER KNOW WHAT ITS LIKE TO TRULY SUFFER OR BE DISCRIMINATED AGAINST WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK

#*throws potted plant at the White House doors* #not Star Wars #I hope we hoodwink them soon and get the revolution we need and deserve #man FUCK the government #i’m just in a silly goofy mood #I say as I prep like it’s the god damn end times while I watch the prunes on the news strip the rights I have over my own body and life #and I’m on the less shitty part of the stick here because I’m white unfortunately #I can’t imagine what’s it’s going to be like for the poc in my country #all of the shady shit the government has done under the table like forcibly sterilize poc and indigenous woman over the years #that’s gonna be the shit that’s legal and normal #like????? #man does heinously unspeakable crimes and gets a few months with parole #women exist with body’s that create but they don’t want to risk life and limb to do it and suddenly get imprisoned for life #the gays just exist and want to marry the people they love and they get put on watch lists and harassed in the streets or are murdered #the poc would like to be treated equally and seen and heard and get wrongfully accused killed discriminated against you name it #but if they speak out again their unjust treatment their the bad guys somehow???? #the governments foundation is built on the bones of the Native Americans and its walls made of the corpses of its people #the only morals they follow are ones of evil hypocrisy gaslighting and chaos #the only language they speak is one of a corporate like selfishness and lack of understanding #man fuck this life

[jewish-vents]

I am about ready to scream at goyim going "imagine if a country that was mostly one religion committed genocide other than Israel! imagine any other country being that awful!" I AM JEWISH AND CHOCTAW. My people have been massacred, forced off our land, raped, beaten, killed, death marched down to Oklahoma, forced into residential schools, been denied tribal membership and access to the reservation (and our own fucking culture) for being too light-skinned, Christians came in and beat and killed and raped everyone trying to practice our ancestral religion, Christian charity was contingent on you being willing to go along with Christianity, the government that has its' boot on our neck to this day is Christian, and goyim really want to act like NO ONE religious has ever done anything bad other than (((some people)))?! Choctaw women are STILL raped and beaten by police at four times the rate of white people and you know what the dominant religion in the state it's being done is? Hint, it's not Judaism!

Do you know why my ancestors converted, goyim? It's because the only people who ever offered them any kindness or support who weren't asking them to give up their language, culture and way of life were Jewish. The only people who agreed being forced off of your land and death marched to Oklahoma was fucked up were Jewish people. The only one who would let my great-great-great-great grandfather work for an honest day's pay and pay him the same amount they would a white person was a Jewish man. When white people wanted to take my great-great-great grandfather and his sister and put them in an Evangelical school to indoctrinate and mistreat them, it was a Jewish woman who straight up lied to them and went, "oh they're not Native, they're my kids, actually! no need to take them anywhere, they're not Native, they're white, the father of my bastards is just tan from working outside a lot!" and thus kept them out of there. They converted because they saw the love of G-d and it sure as shit wasn't from Christians!

And people see me and they think, "oh, he's not white, so he must not be Jewish. I can say antisemitic shit in front of him" and it makes me want to go fucking feral. Do they think I just forgot why my ass is in Oklahoma and why I can speak English and Yiddish and not fluent Choctaw? Do they think I forgot who gave my family a plot of land to live on when my ancestors were declared too light skinned to be allowed to live on the reservation while also not being able to return home because white Christians had built a town atop the ruins of my people's land? Because it wasn't you, Karen. You would have been saying Native kids were better off at a residential school and we both know it! We know it because you're fine hating a minority if you just have something you can spin into an excuse and you're fine dehumanizing people if the opportunity presents itself. "Imagine if any other religion-" I don't have to imagine. I'm in Okla-fucking-homa, Karen!

I've been observant all my life but this has switched it from 'lazily observant' to 'digging my heels in and being as Jewish as humanly possible' for the same reason I work my ass off learning Choctaw despite the obstacles: white goyim do not own me and I do not owe it to them to conform to their culture and expectations.

Am Yisrael Chai Akostininchi li Yisrael

(yes I know how to say it in Choctaw, my parents embedded that in my psyche, even if the rest of our knowledge of the language is spotty)

.

#jewish vents #antisemitism #genocide tw #american his #anti-native racism #Choctaw

[bimoonphases]

@wolfstarmicrofic May 4 - prompt 4: Marriage of Convenience [word count 759]

“Mais merde à la fin!” Sirius cursed, failing for the third time to properly knot his tie.

“Here, let me help you.”

James got up from the bed and reached for Sirius, his fingers deftly working on the tie, his own already perfect and a white rose in his lapel.

“There you go,” James forced a smile before he sighed. “I really hate this. I’m supposed to help you fix your tie the day of your wedding to the love of your life, not as you get ready to marry a complete stranger.”

“Yeah, well, blame your fellow countrymen for taking this place out of the EU,” Sirius grumbled. “It’s either this or me having to move back to France and I haven’t lived there since I was three.”

Sirius gritted his teeth. After the exit polls things had gone barreling towards the worst for him quite quickly, ending him up in the position he was in that very day, with only those two options, the second of which he refused to consider. His whole life was in London, he wasn’t about to move. So he had to marry someone with a citizenship as soon as possible before the new laws ended up with him being deported. Thankfully, he hadn’t been alone in that. The London queer community had so many people in his same situation that Lily and her girlfriend Pandora had immediately sprung into action, changing the goal of their charity into something that these days resembled a matchmaking scheme. At first they had had the time to set up meetings between people, but as time ran out and laws were made and protests ignored it had all turned into a text with a picture, a name and date, time and location of the wedding. Since he knew her well, Sirius had been privileged enough to get a call from Lily after she had sent him a picture of a guy in a brown velvet jacket, a book in his hands.

“He’s a good friend of mine, Sirius, and he’s truly a wonderful person. He’s very active in the community and teaches at UCL, I’m sure you two will get along.”

He had thanked her but shrugged it all off. It wasn’t as if they needed to like each other to sign a piece of paper. This Remus Lupin had volunteered to help out, they would both walk into the marriage office knowing it was just for convenience.

“It should’ve been me,” James sighed as he slipped another white rose in Sirius’s lapel. “If you have to marry someone to stay in the country it’d be better if it was your best friend.”

“You’re already doing that for Regulus, James.”

“That’s different, Regulus is my boyfriend.”

“Exactly, and he would murder me if I tried to marry you before he could,” Sirius laughed, then he patted James’s arm. “Let’s go, it would be rude to keep my future husband waiting.”

The ride to the registry office was silent, and when they emerged on the steps of the building Sirius immediately scanned the crowd, looking for the man in the picture.

“That must be him,” James said behind him. “By the main door, talking with Lily.”

Sirius looked up and blinked a couple of times. Remus Lupin was very tall, dressed in a navy blue suit, a white rose in his lapel too and a cigarette in hand.

“God Prongs, he’s hot,” he whispered.

“He really is,” James chuckled. “Come on, let’s go to them.”

They walked up the steps and Sirius had the time to detail Remus’s soft-looking hair, his long fingers and the way his white shirt hugged his torso. He almost didn’t greet Lily when they stopped in front of them.

“Your picture really didn’t do you justice,” Remus smiled at him. “And it was one of the hottest pictures I’ve ever seen all the same.”

Sirius felt himself blush as he shook his hand.

“So you’re doing this only because you find me handsome?” he chose to say.

“Anything to send a big fuck you to this government,” Remus shrugged.

“A real Englishman in shining armour then.”

“Fuck that, I’m Welsh.”

Remus put his cigarette in the nearest ashtray and extended his hand.

“Shall we go pledge our love until death do us part then?”

As Sirius walked into the registry, his fingers intertwined with a stranger’s and his heart pounding he decided he would wait until they had both said yes and then he would ask his husband out on a first date.

#of course Sirius swears in French #also no I never got over the 2016 referendum #so this is my way to say fuck you #also Lily and Pandora matchmaking #I might need to write more about that #wolfstar #wolfstar microfic #sirius bl #remus lupin #sirius x remus #remus x sirius #james potter #lily evans #marauders #marauders era #modern marauders #the marauders #the marauders era #just writing (like i'm supposed to live)

[missingexaltation]

AU Fic Idea:

In 2022 famous frontman and guitarist Eddie is accused of inappropriate behaviour back in the 90's, at the beginning of his rise to fame (though the allegations are obviously false and easily proven to be false).

However...things get weird for his fans pretty quickly as other stuff about his (usually quite private) life is discovered.

He responds to the allegations on Twitter with just one word. 'Lol'. The internet goes insane, thinking Eddie is just being blasé about what he did, to the point where after a day or so he gives an actual official press release.

'I'm deeply sorry for my initial response to these allegations, however I can confirm said allegations are completely and grossly false. I have been happily married since 1991 and have at no time cheated or behaved in a way that could be seen as cheating, especially with someone underage. I was not in the same country (or continent!) at the time these events were supposed to have taken place (lots of proof available online). Apologies again for being so flippant, but I didn't think anyone actually believed I was capable of doing something so awful.'

His fans immediately are confused because...Eddie's...married? And has been for over 30 years? Social media runs wild because the only proof of marriage they can find is from 2016, and here's the kicker, it's to a guy called 'Steve' of all things.

The only thing they can find from 1991 is a request to change his name, but he's been Eddie Harrington for as long as anyone can remember, certainly as long as he's been famous. Then SOMEHOW the entire 1986 saga gets brought to light, and 'Eddie Munson' and his 'husband' are discovered to have been 'attempted victims of a serial killer', but survived. Hence the scars on his stomach and neck, the internet realises. What the fuck.

This all happens over the space of a week or so, and Eddie's social media is silent (not unusual for the old man, but still... people want answers). The internet is very confused and his music is suddenly being played everywhere, a complete resurgence in his early, very popular rock albums with his band (who have also remained silent).

Eddie eventually goes live on social media and answers a bunch of questions from the chat.

Yes he's married. Yes in 1991 but it wasn't legal, but he still counts it, because fuck the government, that's why.

Yes they got legally married in 2016, on their 25th wedding anniversary.

Yes it's to Steve, yes Steve was prom king at school and really popular, and a 'hot piece of ass' (and still is).

No Eddie wasn't popular, he was a nerdy piece of trailer trash like he's always claimed.

Yes he nearly died, but that was ages ago. Steve saved his life and they've been tragically in love since then.

Eddie (and Steve by proxy) somehow become the internet's favourite queer dads, despite neither of them really being active on their social media or doing anything to promote themselves. Eddie eventually gets a tiktok where he puts up dumb clips of his family and friends, and lots of random clips from the past when he was on tour/recording. Steve's in almost all of them, mostly in the background.

#WheresSteve becomes popular whenever Eddie posts something new, and if he's on live then he has to drag his long suffering hubby on camera so chat will be quiet (they just post lots of heart emojis, which confuses Steve so much because what has he done??).

#eddie munson #steddie #steve harrington #stranger things au #i just love the idea of Eddie continually confusing the fuck out of the internet and when he tries to explain it just gets worse #and Steve is just there...exasperated and fond...and clueless about why people want to know about him #Eddie the famous guitarist is a cliche but it's a good one

[jamneuromain]

Wild Child Chapter. 5

Series Summary:

As the granddaughter of the sole Duke in your country, you know that you were going to marry some douche prince, because it is the only way to solidify the grasp the future king has on the Upper House. On the flight home, you come up with a brilliant plan to defy your upcoming matrimony.

Bringing a random man to your grandfather's place, and say you have a boyfriend already.

"Is there anything else I should know about? Before I meet your family?" Ari cocks his head to the side, watching you adjusting your cerulean Valentino dress when you wave your hand dismissively.

"Just say we're in love and help me get out of marrying this D-bag."

Ari Levinson x You

#i didn't know he is my fiance-douchebag-prince

#when i did, it was too late

It was not the first time that he met you, while on the plane. Ari jogged his memory by going through the photobooks (back when printed photos and digital cameras were a thing, Christ, he sounded like someone from the 70s). He stared at a small photo which had you and him on it. It was the only photo of the two of you, at the start of the royal ball, where he was ordered by his family to act like a prince and agree to all photos taken for him.

Ari flipped to the next page, where people gathered at the end of the ball to take a picture together. He saw your father right next to his father, both smiling as fake as possible. But he couldn’t find you in this picture.

Where had you been?

That ball happened a decade ago, when you had just reached your teen years and he was ending them. Looking back at his early twenties, He wrote essays about the burden of the king, and why people should vote for a functioning government rather than rooting for the royal family. Ari knew that he despised the monarchy back then, even though he was a prince.

Naturally, he was just as obnoxious regarding the planned marriage. Attending his coronation and the celebration ball with reluctance, he tried his best to maintain a stoic expression when his parents – the King and Queen – nudged him to smile and wave.

“I need a breather.” He grumbled as soon as the guests started dancing, ducked from his mother’s hand and slipped out from behind the curtains, turning a blind eye to his mother’s warning glare, stepping into the royal garden.

He hated the fucking crown. He hated the photo shoot before the ball that made him look like a monkey up for display. He hated the first dance with his mother which made him feel like he was a 6-year-old boy. He hated his fiancé who was allegedly six years younger than him, which means when he was starting his sophomore year at the University of Ancetol, she had just finished her 8th grade.

How on earth could he marry a fucking child?

He mumbled these questions to himself, but they travelled in his head and returned with no answer as he ventured further into the royal garden, surrounded by bushes and trees, in the middle of a small track.

“I know. It’s unimaginable.” Spoke a voice from his left softly, “You’re Ari, right? I’ve heard about the plan to arrange a marriage between you and the Y/L/Ns.”

Ari turned his head in your direction. He vaguely remembered you had taken photos together, meaning you were either a daughter of the ministers and ambassadors, or one of the young kids from the noble family.

Ari hummed, neither confirming nor denying what you said.

You didn’t look rejected by his indifferent gesture, merely opening the little purse in your hand and extending it to him, “Want some mini-burgers? I snuck them from the tables just now.”

Ari led you to a stone bench in the corner, facing the roses and tulip bushes, where you shared the slightly squished mini-burgers in your purse in silence. Faint music of the ball could be heard, but people were too busy to mingle, he guessed, that no one bothered to enjoy the clear moonlight and the beauty of the Royal Garden.

You patted the crumbs from your sparkling dress and stretched your arms and legs, untangling the buckle from your high heels before landing on the pebbled ground with your bare feet.

A few simple movements made Ari close to smiling. Glad to know he was not the only one who found the royal rules a huge pain in the ass – or in your case, feet. You looked like a kid, really, no younger than ten but definitely not as mature as a 20-year-old. Maybe somewhere around 13?

“Your parents set you up with someone else too?” He asked.

“Yeah.” You sighed, “My father said it’s all for the best, but…”

“But?”

“He’s full of bullshit.” You swatted the invisible dust from the hem of your pink fluffy dress, “And I don’t believe him.”

Perhaps it was the food that you shared, having Ari feel like he was some kind of big brother, somewhat obligated to help, to resonate with your worry, “It’s probably wrong for me to say this, but have you thought about running away?”

You scoffed, eyeing him with a strange expression on your face, “I have no money, no skill to support me, and no connections that I can use and get away with. I’m 15, you can’t be serious about trying to persuade a teen to run away from her home.”

Damn, he sounded like a creepy kidnapper.

“Have you ever thought about running away?” You asked.

“All the time.” Ari let out a dry chuckle, “Can’t, though.”

“Let me guess, your skill set is too custom-made for being a Prince?” You cocked your head to your side, lifting the corner of your lips.

“Something like that, yeah.” Ari spared a glance in your direction. He didn’t notice that he was smiling too, which was … weird.

It felt odd, to have his spirits lifted so easily. Like you were meant to be close.

Ari felt like you were meant to be family. Brother and sister.

He’d love to have a sister like you.

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.” You flipped your carefully styled hair to the back, looking into his clear blue eyes under the moonlight, “Go ahead.”

“Do you know Y/N Y/L/N?”

His face burned for a moment. Deep down, he knew he should have met his fiancé and not probing answers from someone he had just met for fifteen minutes. But he’d rather have a fresh pair of eyes who could provide something more than the standard answer, “a proper lady”.

“Yes.” You lowered your head, so that he couldn’t see your widening eyes, filled with panic. If your thoughts could make noises, it’d be blasting sirens all over the Royal Palace by now.

“What’s she like?” His question grew more hastened. It was rumoured that his fiancé spent most of her childhood on the outskirts of Ancetol, and had recently moved back to the family house downtown. He missed the first few balls and banquets in which she took part, resulting in never meeting his future wife in the 20 living years of his life, and he was frightened over the possibility that his fiancé was indeed a “proper lady”, which scared him more than if his fiancé has eight legs like a spider (Don’t laugh, he once had a terrible nightmare about his spider-fiancé when he was 15).

“Do you want the truth or a lie?”

Your question caught him off guard. Noticing that you were not looking at him, Ari furrowed his eyebrows and answered, “Truth, please.”

Hope Mr. Prince will like the truth then, “She’s … stubborn. A thick-head, if you will.”

“Sounds like you don’t like her.” Joked Ari.

“I don’t. And she’s not a Princess material.” The first two words sounded heavy in your mouth, which was why you lowered your voice and continued the vile comments you plastered all over your image – your image as his future wife.

“What, you are?” Ari threw the question back to you.

“No.” You sighed softly, your nails fumbling with the diamond necklace around the base of your throat.

“Then what are you?”

Call Ari intrigued, but he did want to know you better. At least he wanted to know you better than his future wife. Hell, maybe he would ask you for your company at later events such as royal dinners and celebrations.

Considering that he still had zero clue as to who you were, you answered with sincerity, dropping a slice of sarcasm here and there, “A rebel, a black sheep, a wild child.”

“Wild?” Asked Ari in a tone of disbelief.

“My parents want me to study Art History – Hey, don’t get me wrong,” You raised your hands, a gesture of peace-making, when you heard him snorting out a laugh, “I love art and painting and stuff, but I love debating more. I want to be one of those sharp-minded broadcasters in the future, or reporters, taking down bad guys.”

The faint music of On the Beautiful Blue Danube reached Ari’s ears. As reluctant as he was, reacting to this music, knowing that it signalled the ball coming to an end after the next song, he must put this lovely conversation to a halt.

“I’m afraid that’s my cue.” He grimaced at the waltz piece, standing up from the stone bench. His legs were slightly numb from sitting still in the same position for too long, but he didn’t mind. The little fragment of time where he could let go of the prince’s duty was precious and worthwhile. Sadly, he had to pick the duty up again. “Would you like a dance?” His eyes lit up, and he extended a hand to you. It would be a brilliant defiance to his father and mother, dancing with someone who was not his fiancé.

“Maybe next time.” You shook his hand as if turning a blind eye to the gesture of starting a waltz, “Nice to meet you.” You lifted the hem of your dress and made a curtesy, “Your Royal Highness.”

After that, you turned your back towards him, put on your heels, and disappeared into the trees and bushes of the Royal Garden.

He hadn’t seen you since.

Ari knew now that while he was studying at the University of Ancetol, you had applied for your undergraduate programme abroad. After that, he was dispatched to the Army to serve the country and also learn about the skills to command soldiers during battle.

By then, you had started your graduate programme at UCLA.

He seemed to have missed every event you attended, and vice versa.

Until now.

Putting the photobook back into place, Ari strode to the full-length mirror in the closet room, checking the two suits he had in mind to wear for today. Your text had sprung on Ari last night, informing him that your father has requested to see him, catching Ari completely off guard.

The business casual navy blue one, or the formal black one.

He did not want to intimidate your father, though that was what he preferred, knowing that your father treated you terribly because of this engagement. And the sudden “meeting” your father demanded was, without question, not your idea, or you would have warned him.

Or was that your purpose all along?

Maybe your father, after Ari called, thought you were joking about the new boyfriend? Maybe your father did not buy your carefully woven lie after all?

Ari threw these doubts to the back of his head, and finally decided upon the business casual one.

By the side of the large mirror stood a small table with a few things on it. His family ring - the golden crest with a lion, spear, and shield, a bottle of cologne he preferred, a folder with almost all of your information since birth (it might sound creepy, but you gave it to him), and last but not least, the to-be presents he had for you.

A small bouquet of roses, or a sapphire necklace.

The problem was, that he could not hold both gifts at the same time, while he was hoping that he would deliver his gift as a surprise.

A blonde emerged by the door to this closet space, clearing her throat, indicating her arrival.

"Do you think she'd appreciate the flowers more? Or this sapphire necklace?"

Ari consulted Rachel, his head security, who was standing by the door with her hand crossed. She could easily be mistaken as a statue if it weren't for her breathing.

"I think she would appreciate whatever you prepared for her, Your Highness."

"Less official answer, please." Ari shot her a pointed look.

Rachel sighed deeply.

Ballenia was going to be ruined by this hopelessly romantic and that cluster-fuck of a noble family.

"Based on the intel - the more sparkly one." Rachel pointed towards the velvet box on the table.

Despite the fact that you were raised away from your father and grandfather, you never lacked any material upbringing. You went to the best schools, the best universities, and had some of the best teachers the royal family could find for your education as a future Princess. Whenever you went out shopping for some gala, banquet, or ball, the jewellery store would be the first stop to visit – you liked sparkly gems and stones indeed.

And this necklace that he chose, with a dewdrop-shaped sapphire pendant and a ring of diamonds surrounding it, would look marvelous to go with your dress.

Still, he could not shake the feeling that you would appreciate the roses as well.

The roses seemed cheap and cliché, while the necklace seemed sparkly and expensive.

He should have gone with the necklace, right?

To guarantee his safety, Rachel had two other cars escorting His Royal Highness’s vehicle while she flew a helicopter over his head. Due to Ari’s protest, she did not come along as she was supposed to – in case you recognized this dutiful Royal guard, and as a result, him, Ari argued – but chose her dutiful second-in-command, a man named Ethan to be Ari’s temporal bodyguard slash driver.

Ethan was just as quiet as Rachel on the way to your home.

It was an ancestral building since the 1800s and took quite a few renovations to be as modern as it could. However, your family was on the verge of losing the house around the 1950s, until your grandfather made a deal with Ari’s grandfather, helping him to stabilize the Upper House, and in return, asked for a marriage for one of his children.

You were waiting by the fountain in front of the house when Ari stepped out of his car, wearing a blue dress tailored to your shape.

“Morning.” You welcomed him with a warm hug, whispering, “Have to keep up the pretences. My father is probably watching by the window right now.”

“Morning.” His hand landed on your back with a soft pat, chuckling, “What do we have today, Miss. Girlfriend?”

You took a step back, quickly shoving a velvet box into his pocket, “The usual. Family drama, that sort of thing.” You eyed his bulging pocket as subtly as possible, “A watch. Give it to me after we meet my father. Shall we?” You gestured towards the house.

“One second.” Ari returned to his car, fishing the rose bouquet and the necklace from the backseat, and presented you the necklace first, “A gift.”

Ari popped open the larger velvet box with care, dazzling you with the necklace.

You blinked, stunned at first but quickly shook your head, refusing the gift, “You really don’t have to. We agreed that-”

“But I want to.”

The answer slipped out way faster than his brain could process, Ari added hastily, “I know what we agreed upon, it’s just that…”

After spending years learning how a diplomat and a proper prince would talk, Ari, for the first time in his life, was speechless, in front of someone he barely knew.

He wanted to give her something that could belong to her, not that the watch she prepared couldn’t, yet there was a minor difference that he perceived. The necklace was something he could have a say, something that looked good on you, he was certain, but different, from the watch.

He wanted you to have it, no matter if the marriage works out or not, even though this piece of jewellery could be interpreted by you – supposedly his real identity was unmasked – as bribery.

… a faint proclamation that he cared. He cared about you.

Thousands of thoughts ran through his head, but Ari simply said, “Considering what you offered, I’ve been taking your advantage.”

You raised your eyebrows, dragging your tone lazily, “So this is your getting even?”

“This is my thank you.” He murmured, making up his mind to shove this stupid necklace into your bag if given the chance. Or throw it in the darkest corner of the Palace. Whichever comes first.

Not intending on dwelling for long, he pulled the bouquet of roses out of thin air, twitching the corner of his lips.

“And the other thank you.”

You gasped in surprise, the twinkle in your eyes was visible like the sun in the sky, shining brightly.

You hugged the roses into your arms, dipping your chin to feel the soft pedals caressing your skin, blooming a large smile on your face.

“I like it.” You watched as he reciprocated your smile, your voice faint as the teary glint in your eyes, “I like it a lot.”

A sharp inhale and the water in your eyes evaporated. You held the roses in your arm, and made sure every hair on top of your head stayed in place, trying to present the best in you before your father.

"Is there anything else I should know about? Before I meet your family?" Ari cocked his head to the side, watching you adjusting your cerulean Valentino dress when you waved your hand dismissively.

"Just say we're in love and help me get out of marrying this D-bag."

“Where have you been?” Queen Olivia, his mother, hissed in his ear, “You got me worried sick – Hello, thank you for coming. It is a great pleasure to have you here.” Forcing her face to form an impeccable smile as another guest approached and bid her and King Victor good night.

“A stroll in the garden. I came back, didn’t I?” Young Ari challenged her nerves when the Queen clenched her fists, “Anyway, I met -”

Fuck, he forgot your name. He forgot to ask. Well, he’d ask when you come up in front, to bid the King and Queen good night.

A servant whispered by the queen’s side. His mother glared daggers at him, announcing with a tone sharper than usual, “… Prince Ari’s suit has been stained; therefore, he went to another room in the palace to clean up just now.”

Behind one of the pillars of the ballroom, masked by the loud waltz, where the Royal family could neither see nor hear, your father slapped you hard across the face, “Filthy little liar. You heard that? The prince was changing his outfit just now. God knows what pig you have been flinging yourself to. Fucking imbecile, I gave you one simple task…”

He ordered one of the servants to bring you to his limo, for you had nearly disgraced and embarrassed him, while he straightened his tie and went greeting the Royal family.

Taglist (also tagging those who might be interested: @irishhappiness @patzammit @identity2212 @lokislady82 @petalj @thezombieprostitute @jaqui-has-a-conspiracy-theory @magnificentsaladllama @xx-rennyxx @cringeycookies @autumnrose40 @hawkeyes-queen @vonalyn @theliheat @boo8008 @mrsevans90 @bradfordmyworld @delldenaro @molisighs @otpcutie

Find the Wild Child Masterlist here 👈

Questions? Comments? Requests? 👉Send them to my inbox 👂

#ari levinson x reader #ari levinson x you #ari levinson x female reader #ari levinson smut #ari levinson fluff #prince!ari levinson #royalty au #ari levinson fanfiction #ari levinson #wild child

[thatjewishzionistscout]

The fandomlize of this conflict on got me so pissed.

(Be aware rant incoming.)

I just saw a post that said aang would be pro-Palestine, and I’m like no the fuck he wouldn’t!

This is the man that spared the firelord, that saw the good in fire nation civilians, he would not want to destroy an entire country because of the government.

He would be pro-peace. He definitely wouldn’t cheer for Hamas, he wouldn’t cheer for a group that kills innocent civilians. He wouldn’t be a fan of Hamas or Israeli government.

He would mourn all innocent civilians, but he would want a two state solution, he would want people to make peace and love each other.

Also the air nomads unlike the Palestinians didn’t really bring upon themselves. In the show the air nomads were just living there life and were murdered for possibly housing the Avatar.

In history a lot of times the wars with Israel and the Palestinians, have been started by the Arabs. That is not to say innocent Palestinian deaths are sad, but to say it is all Israel fault is a fact.

Take the 1948 war for example. When the Jews first came to Israel after the Holocaust, and wanted the state of Israel to be created their fight was with the British. They had no fights with the Arabs, until 1948 when an Arab militia shot into a bus killing five innocent Jewish civilians.

While there were tragedies that happened to the Palestinians in the 1948 war, they wouldn’t have happened if the Arabs didn’t start the wars.

Back to my original point about people fandomsy this conflict.

It’s fine to make headcannons about characters being Jews, Zionists Jews, Muslims, arabs, but you make it a problem when you try to make characters about Israel or about Palestine.

#israel #jewblr #palestine #israel palestine conflict #jewish #free palestine #antisemitism #hamas #israel genocide #gaza genocide #war in gaza #avatar the last airbender #don’t you dare say aang would be pro-Palestine that man would want a two state solution #i stand with israel

[undreaming-fanfiction]

My lovely @henderdads Cass, I unfortunately didn't manage to write a full length fanfiction that you 100% deserve for your birthday, buuuut...I saw that your fav Disney movie is Mulan. What if I gave you a very adjusted Mulan Steddie AU idea with a partial apocalypse, joining the army in place of someone you love, and an incredibly annoying voice in your ear who tells you what to say and do...

Eddie Munson is very much anti-war, thank you. He hates the army, hates the cops, tolerates Chief Hopper because he's cool, but overall authority? Nah, not for him. Eddie would never, ever join something violent and wear camo.

The world doesn't care about his preferences. When interdimensional rifts start popping up left and right and the whole planet is currently battling creatures pouring out of what is called the Upside Down dimension, every family has to send a man to join the war.

Eddie should not be joining anything. After a horrific car crash that nearly cost him his life, half of his torso is nothing but scars, his body is weak from spending months in the hospital, plus his aim is atrocious. But the government said someone needs to go, and his beloved uncle Wayne, the 50-ish man who looks like a nihilist but is secretly all the goodness in the world personified, is gearing up to go and serve his country. That just won't do.

He steals the letter ordering someone from the Munson family to join the Hawkins battlefield and prays that no one will have a chance to check his records. They probably won't, most of the documents for his town got burned to a crisp when a rift opened under the office. And because he knows absolutely nothing about the special Upside Down units he's about to join, he's doing what he knows the best - practicing by roleplaying. He's simulating small talk with "the boys". He's trying cheeky comebacks. And he's incredibly, cringe-inducingly bad at it.

Fortunately for him, or maybe not, he has a guardian angel, except the angel is a 13 year old kid he used to DM for. His name is Dustin and he's ruthless. When he stumbles upon Eddie's "Oh yeah, I used to play the ball in high school. Which ball? Uh...all the ball!", he announces Eddie is useless and gives him a small comm he's developed with his nerdy friends. "Don't worry," he says, "I will guide you through everything."

And Eddie believes it might be a good thing, that it might counterbalance his uncontrollable mouth, at least until the moment that he sees his sergeant, Steve Harrington. The guy is friendly, capable, tough as nails and incredibly, mind-numbingly pretty.

"Say good to meet you, sir!" the voice in his ear whispers.

Eddie opens his mouth to say exactly that. "Wow, aren't you a sight to behold, big boy!" is what ends up leaving it.

Dustin finds out the hard way that the barely functioning gay disaster Eddie Munson is impossible to guide through anything. He picks the lock to the showers after midnight to avoid showing his scars - or if he wanted to be honest, showering very heterosexually next to Steve fucking Harrington, the man who pulled him out of harm's way when Eddie messed up, and then nonchalantly produced a spiked bat and beat the creature preparing to snack on Eddie to a pulp.

"Why did you freeze when Steve was discussing tomorrow's mission?" Dustin hisses at him.

"You're not here, you twerp, you'd freeze too if you saw all that chest hair!"

Many things end up happening during the war of the worlds (cliché, but it works in Eddie's head). Eddie somehow ends up saving Steve's life by backing into a cassette player, turning it on and blasting "Master of Puppets" all over the battlefield, luring the creatures away from Steve's position. He tries to explain that it was an accident, but no one believes him.

Eddie notices that the creatures are invading in certain patterns. When people ask him how come he noticed something no one else did, he just shrugs and says: "it's what I would have done if I was running this as a campaign." He ignores Dustin's excited rambling about how cool the campaign would be and that Eddie definitely has to survive now.

Steve starts respecting him, even enjoying his company. How the hell did that happen. And there's definitely some tension between them, not the angry kind, and Eddie is taking cold showers now. For health reasons, obviously.

And finally, Eddie finds out that even if his aim sucks, he's pretty great with a flamethrower. They become unbeatable as a close range fighter duo with Steve.

Eventually, Eddie's insight combined with some secret government experimentation (they experimented on a kid? If it didn't work out so well, Eddie would have punched them and then set them on fire) end the war. The portals are closed, the remaining creatures gradually eliminated. Steve and Eddie are decorated as heroes and sent home. It's all very quick, very "let's not talk about this whole rift thing possibly being a government fault, nope!", Steve finally finds out about Eddie not being fit to serve and spirals into an absolute meltdown about endangering someone who was never supposed to fight in the first place. Eddie finds himself sitting on a bus home with a medal and a broken heart.

It's only a few days later, after Wayne's crushing hugs, scolding, well hidden tears and Dustin's constant visits, that someone knocks on his and Wayne's trailer door. It's Eddie's former sergeant Steve Harrington, wearing a soft yellow sweater and the cutest shy smile Eddie's ever seen. "Hi. Uh...I know it's difficult to make up for putting you through all that and not verifying your records. But..." he says and shushes Eddie when he tries to accept all the blame and get into a spiral of his own, "...I think a dinner would be a good start to that apology. How does that sound?"

Eddie grins at him and reaches for his hand. "I'd say you've got yourself a date, big boy."

#steve harrington #eddie munson #stranger things #steddie #steddie drabble #steddie au #dustin henderson #mulan inspired #yeah Dustin serves in Mushu's role and he's about as useful as Mushu was #He actually instructed Eddie how to work the flamethrower so that was great #But other than that he'd spend decades bragging it was him who got Eddie and Steve together

[naazaif327]

It’s so strange to me seeing people bend over backwards to try claiming that there’s absolutely no connection between TLOU2’s setting and the Israel-Palestine conflict. Like, I absolutely love The Last Of Us from the bottom of my heart, those games and characters will stay with me for the rest of my life, but also it’s just like so clear from any angle that Seattle’s war between the Seraphites and the WLF is just Druckmann’s “progressive liberal” zionist view of the irl occupation.

Like, on the one hand you’ve got the WLF (IDF/Israel), who are clearly criticized as being overly militarized and doing a bit too much torture and dehumanization, but they’re also super diverse and queer-friendly, and they’re very accepting of various different faiths and religions while still being overall pretty secular (this isn’t just me speculating btw, as you pass by you’ll listen to various WLF npcs openly talking about their faith and sexuality). They’ve got a fucked up leadership/governance under their angry ruler Isaac, but they’re good people as individuals, they’re just caught up in a cycle of revenge/violence. They’re mostly made up of people who were oppressed (by FEDRA) before staging an uprising and revolting to take back their land, which they lovingly cultivate and make use of innovative modern technology to make their world better. It’s a perfect metaphor for Israel to a Zionist who truly thinks that he has a nuanced view of a country he loves.

And then you’ve got the Seraphites (Palestinians/Arabs/Muslims), an angry backwards religious cult that hates progress and queerness and religious freedom, it’s members all brainwashed and worshipping a powerful prophet who proved her worth by performing miracles to win military victories for the cause. All of their children either become child soldiers or child brides for the elders. They hate using technology or anything from the modern world, their backwards culture holds them back and makes them socially/militarily weak. They enact violent lynchings against any poor WLF soldier that crosses their path. Besides Lev and Yara, they are a monolith, a people who exist as violent enemies to slaughter or as brainwashed masses to be pitied as they are massacred. Again, a perfect metaphor for both Islam and Palestinians to a man who has only ever seen both groups through the eyes of Israeli propaganda.

Notably, there is of course no apartheid, no checkpoints, no forced migration by one group or another in the history of the conflict (which we slowly learn through notes and diaries and letters scattered throughout the game). The WLF did not slaughter Seraphites in order to steal their homes, did not take their land and murder their families, nor did they force the Seraphites into concentration camps. The WLF has not been policing the Seraphites’ crops, has not been seizing their funds or resources, or poisoning their wells. The Seraphites aren’t trying to reclaim their stolen land or get the boot of the WLF off their neck. There is no actual ongoing reason for the war, the only reason the Seraphites are still fighting is to “get vengeance” and “kill the degenerate Wolves” rather than to live freely, because Druckmann sees this as the root of the Palestinian cause. To him, Palestinians are not fighting because they’re oppressed by Israel but because they hate Israeli culture and Judaism, and because they can’t just let bygones be bygones (the “bygones” in this case being ethnic cleansing). To him, Israel isn’t oppressing Palestinians and profiting off their suffering, Israel is just fighting back against antisemitism and maybe going too far to protect itself.

In the game, both sides were hurt by FEDRA, and then after the WLF defeated FEDRA, the Seraphites randomly pushed into the suburbs to terrorize the citizens there, causing them to rush to join the WLF. From then on both sides in tandem kept attacking and thus escalating conflicts into more and more violence. There is no oppression, no power differential, one side is not living in the forcibly abandoned houses of the other. There is no reason for conflict, only the meaningless violence that would immediately end if we could all just get along and stop trading completely equal blows.

The conflict ends on an uncertain note that nauseatingly mirrors the current reality. After escalating conflicts, the WLF launches a violent all-out attack on the largest Seraphite base, their island, wiping out most of the Seraphites, razing their fields and crops, slaughtering their children, and burning down almost everything the Seraphites spent decades building. The WLF in turn have lost much of their military force, but their homes and their children seem blissfully unharmed at the end of this. The future is uncertain, but it seems that the WLF/IOF is the “winner”. And it’s all very tragic to Druckmann of course, the dead Scars/Arabs are a very sad thing that could have been avoided if everyone just listened and relaxed. Material oppression doesn’t matter, and this could all just be solved by having integrated schools or whatever.

#the last of us #tlou #neil druckmann

[batsarebetterthanpeople]

I tried so hard not to be parasocial about it but this letter thing is fucking me up, man. I've written a few overly flattering letters to evil government officials before myself. but how did someone convince all these reasonable-seeming people (strangers that I do not know) to publicly sign this centrist-ass letter? I understand they probably got Taika Waititi and Jack Black with the everyone can share, peace and love on the planet earth wording, but Jordan Peele? what. how did that happen. it makes no sense to me.

Ok I'm gonna front load my position on the Israel-Palestine conflict before I answer this ask so that no one can accuse me of shit I didn't say. If you want to see what I have to say on the letter itself, scroll to the big font. I'm as anti-zionist as they come I don't think that governments should even exist at all, I consider Israel to be an illegitimate state the same way I consider the country I live in (USA) to be an illegitimate state. I think that if we're going to have countries at all, which we shouldn't, that country should be Palestine and individual Jewish people certainly should be welcome to move there for whatever reason they want, including religious, but that the people who already lived there shouldn't be displaced because of it. And if they wanted me to support Israel on the basis of Jewish people needing somewhere to go after the Holocaust, they should have put Israel in Europe in 1945 instead of in the Arabian Peninsula in 1918. I tend to think the hard core zionists who aren't Jewish are trying to deport diaspora Jewish people somewhere based on the way I have heard other goyim speak about Israel. I am sympathetic to Jewish people who believe this has nuance but ultimately I cannot condone the displacement of Palestinians. That position might lose me followers but really I don't care.

Now that I have gotten that out of the way

(This first paragraph is for everyone who's out of the loop and has only seen the Tumblr posts about this issue, Anon does seem to know what I'm about to say) I do also think this whole thing with the letter is being blown out of proportion a little bit? That's not to say it's a good letter, it does contain language which blames Hamas for the conflict which is the western propaganda line so that countries like the United States and Britain don't have to admit that they caused and are funding this whole operation because they hate brown people. However celebrities are rubes who fall for government propaganda all the fucking time. What the letter itself actually calls for is Biden to facilitate the release of Israeli hostages. I consider this letter to be the vaguely Zionist equivalent of that time all those celebrities got on zoom and sang imagine because COVID was happening. I certainly doubt that the man who produced Get Out and Us supports the genocide and I also question whether the man who directed Reservation Dogs does either. Most likely they were asked "will you sign a letter calling for the release of Israeli hostages?" And they said "well releasing hostages sounds nice."

(this paragraph is for anon) Despite the fact that I think "these 70 celebrities condone Palestinian genocide" is incredibly reductive I would encourage you to see these people as human beings, and more specifically idiot millionaires who are out of touch. I believe that Taika Waititi understands the Maori struggle and generally tries to be a nice liberal but ultimately he is a man who grew up in the 80s with a lot of money who has an interest in keeping that money. His gaff transphobia tweets (which I didn't think were that bad considering he made it in 2013 and wasn't even talking about trans women, but they were still transphobic) and his pearl clutching during the BLM riots made this abundantly clear (both of these incidents are Taika Twitter originals that people have sent me trying to get me to hate him and I saw both of them and was like "that's what I thought you'd say old man"), and the fact that he married Rita "blackfish" Ora. I'm way less plugged in to what Jordan Peele is doing because I've never had an anon send me his call out post but I'm going to assume that the same thing is true of him: he understands the struggle of black people in the United States, despite this moment of basedness I probably politically disagree with him on many many counts. As for Jack Black he donates to autism speaks so he's coming for me and the Palestinians. Although that said so does Gaga and I'm still very much a fan of her.

I've basically had to come to terms with the fact that no celeb that I like the work of agrees with me about politics because all of them are rich and I am a communist. That's not going to stop me from liking their work, it's not going to stop me from bothering some of them at cons when I get the chance. Because again they're just guys. And most guys are idiots. I am an idiot about a lot of things. We don't expect Taika Waititi or Jordan Peele to know about every conflict in the world we expect them to make entertaining and perhaps insightful movies. I am not here because I think Taika agrees with me on all things. I am here because I want to watch a rom com about gay men who murder people, one of whom is just like me for real.

Anyway do your research

[punisheddonjuan]

Another Chotiner interview, another official makes an idiot of himself and lets on far more than he should have. I honestly don't know how Chotiner manages to do this again and again, have these people just not read any of his previous interviews? It's not like his questions are particularly pointed. I suppose he simply gives people enough rope.

What I’ve been struck by in the last few months is the willingness of the Biden Administration to be humiliated by the Israelis. And I’m not talking about this in a moral or ethical sense. Antony Blinken, the Secretary of State, takes a trip to Tel Aviv and the Israelis embarrass him by announcing land seizures in the West Bank during the visit. Stuff like this has happened multiple times. Or Netanyahu, responding to Biden saying he “has a red line” around Rafah, defies him publicly and even says he has his own “red line.” I’m surprised the Administration doesn’t have a little bit more pride. I keep thinking, even if they don’t want to change the policy, they must be having some sort of human reaction to— Oh, I’m sure that’s right. When Bill Clinton emerges from his first meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu, in June of 1996, Clinton explodes: “Who’s the fucking superpower here?” James Baker banned Netanyahu from the State Department when he was deputy foreign minister. This is part of what I call the system, the structure of the U.S.-Israeli relationship. Someone might say, “Why is the most powerful country in human history essentially taking orders from a country that relies on it for aid? What exactly is going on here?” I’ve been looking at the U.S.-Israeli relationship for decades. I left the government in 2003, during the second Bush Administration. I’d been in government since Jimmy Carter. There was a time when someone could say with a straight face that the three ingredients that made the relationship were a high coincidence of values, a high coincidence of interest, and a strong base of domestic support. During the past fifteen to twenty years, many of which are under Benjamin Netanyahu’s purview as Prime Minister, the value affinity, the perception that Israel shares common values with us, is under more stress. No President I ever worked for sought a major conflict or confrontation with Israeli Prime Ministers. They sought to manage rather than to confront. The practical reality is that if you want to get anything done, even if it involves tensions and pressure, you have to find a way to work with, rather than against, the Israeli government. My analysis has now been tested six months into the worst Israeli-Palestinian crisis that we’ve ever experienced. I just worry about a situation where we throw up our hands and say, “Well, the United States, the most powerful country on earth, has no choice but to keep arming a country that’s starving people.” But, Isaac, look, just between you and me— It’s an interview, but sure. The question is: why? I’ve offered you the best explanation based on literally twenty-seven years of watching and participating in the U.S.-Israeli relationship. I can’t explain it. I think your question is a really good one.

[...]

You’re saying you have no investment in one analysis or another. I could be wrong, but when I was listening to you talk, and you discussed the horrors of October 7th, I sensed an emotion in your voice that I haven’t heard at any other time in this conversation. I don’t want to criticize that, but I do wonder if the people who make policy in America don’t have that same emotion when it comes to Palestinian lives. Do you think that’s fair? I think it’s fair to say, yes, that America and Americans have a pro-Israeli sensibility. I don’t think there’s any question about that. Clinton wrote in his memoir that he loved Yitzhak Rabin as he loved no man, rarely loved any other man, which is extraordinary. I watched Clinton grieve in the wake of Rabin’s murder. And when Biden gave the speech on October 10th, you watched the tears well up in his eyes. He talked about the black hole of loss. He’s conflated the tragedies in his own personal life with what Israelis felt on that day. Yes, that’s very moving, but there is another kind of loss going on now which he apparently can’t conflate with his own experience. Oh, if you’re asking me: Do I think that Joe Biden has the same depth of feeling and empathy for the Palestinians of Gaza as he does for the Israelis? No, he doesn’t, nor does he convey it. I don’t think there’s any doubt about that.

Christ.

#link #article #new yorker #palestine

[isa-belle1367]

Ferral desmond has my heart. So here are some feral desmond head canons

1. Extremely flexible and amazing at hiding even before the animus

2. blast the most aggressive music with a straight face. Like his headphones will be screaming about murdering people for drugs, and he'll just be chilling.

3. He definitely takes insane amounts of melatonin to fall asleep like 40+mg (please don't do that that is not safe).

4. Has started multiple bar fights on purpose.

5. Has connections to gangs.

6. Has never paid taxes, the IRS hates him.

7. He got really drunk and decided to have an energy drink with it. He ended up hacking into government intelligence and had to skip town because the fbi had tried to kill him

8. He is really good at throwing knives but can't shoot a bow to save his life. Like give him a set of throwing knives, and he can take down abstergo in an hour, give him a bow, and he'll be dead.

9. Once he learned how to fall safely, he started jumping off tall buildings for fun

10. A complete adrenaline junkie he spends most of his time at 6 flags

11. His feral-ness is not helped by the fact that he has the diet of a pre-med student reheated coffees with a side of hope and prayers

12. Prefers sleeping on the floor will 100% take the floor over a bed the only reason he has a mattress was so his friends had some where to sleep when they came over.

13. When he gets high, he either has questions that could get him on a watchlist or he's climbing the walls

14. He enjoys scaring children

15. Is very picky about keeping things a specific way. He can sense when someone is trying to reorganize his spice cabinet

16. LOVES spicy food. If he's not crying by the end, then it wasn't hot enough

17. His notes app is so fucking random like he has his grocery list, a hit list, the Geneva conventions, the bee movie script, the fucking Bible (he's not even Christian)

18. Once, he fist fought a gang leader and won.

19. He has had to disappear on multiple occasions because the FBI tried to revoke his life subscription

20. The only reason he got taken by Templars was because he was about to skip town again, but then Abstergo walked in and he was like "sweet I won't have to run across the country again thanks guys!"

21. Back at the farm, Bill had smacked one of his friends, and desmond had to be held back by 5 people (3 of which were seriously injured after)

22. He doesn't typically get angry, but when he does, everyone scatters bc he is punching concrete, and- *how tf did he just crack the concrete with a single punch?*

23. Never sleep (he might be batman)

24. "Do it, you won't" has been said to him too many times, and each time, he proves that he will, in fact, do it

25. If you gave that man a full 8 hour sleep along with a proper meal, he would be able to take over a country

#I LOVE FERAL DESMOND #hes so silly #let that man be feral #as a treat #desmond miles #silly desmond #desmond #assassin's creed #head canons

[unhetalia]

soft usuk headcanon where america just hugs england after having a bad day or even nightmare.

This is a holdover from childhood. Arthur wasn't there a lot, but when he was, Alfred asked for hugs all the time. One time Alfred fell out of a tree and was just about to brush it off when he saw Arthur was beside himself. He quickly realised that it was not normal to fall out of trees and feel nothing, so he quickly turned on the waterworks so Arthur would hold him. Free hug!

(It fucks up his relationship with affection, this belief that there needs to be a Legitimate Reason in order to receive gentleness or love, but that's not what this is about!)

Nowadays, it's more complicated than that for Alfred. Americans aren't a high contact culture, and while I don't believe in Nations always being the embodiment of their countries' ideologies, when you're living amongst people who have a certain way of interacting, it absolutely has an impact, same as for any human.

As a result, Alfred is someone who is a little bit touch-starved. I think he wants more contact than he's able to get from the people around him. His best friend is an alien, his other best friend is fucking KIKU. The only one of his close friends who is affectionate is the Philippines (who in my head is named 'Liwanag Dalisay', and called Ning Ning by her friends), and unfortunately, because they're both unattached - for now - and opposite gender friends, it's not something they can linger on.

Arthur, on the other hand, isn't lacking in physical contact, if you know what I mean. He's traced every curve of a woman's body; held a man down and fucked them until they begged. He's been clung to, held tight, clawed in passion.

But Arthur rarely touches people when he's not fucking them - hasn't been touched by someone who wants affection, or is offering it to him.

The first time Alfred hugged Arthur to seek out comfort post-independence was in 1950. Alfred had come out of World War II incredibly jaded - it was only the third time he'd ever revealed himself to and worked with his government, and they'd gone behind his back and dropped two atom bombs. Alfred left after, though President Truman had tried his best to get him to stay, promising him that because of what they'd done, there would be no more wars.

Five year later, the U.S enters the Korean War. Alfred is with Arthur when he hears the news, and to say he's gutted would be an understatement. He must've looked devastated, because Arthur moves to stand in front of him and makes to put a hand on his shoulder. Instead, Alfred just... falls into him, face in his chest, holding him tightly and crying his heart out. Arthur is stumped for a minute before he wraps his arms around Alfred, starts shushing him like he's a child again. Telling him it's going to be okay.

Alfred would lie awake that night thinking about how different Arthur felt from when he was a child; how, in fact, being held by Arthur in that moment hadn't felt like his childhood at all. Alfred doesn't quite realise it's because he's in love with Arthur, but he learns - or re-learns - the power of physical affection.

This lesson impacts Arthur because not only does Alfred begin seeking him out for comfort (which stops him in his tracks every time), he offers that same comfort without prompting.

Arthur is seething during a meeting after receiving several ridiculous reports, and yes, he's shouting and terrifying everyone, especially Antonio, who is very aware Arthur still carries a sword around, when suddenly Alfred stands up, marches towards him, and pulls him into a hug and says "chill out, dude, everything's gonna be fine!"

The world watches Arthur almost physically deflate. When Alfred pulls away and walks back to his seat, Arthur will finally take a deep breath. "Well... it's not the end of the world, I guess. We'll need to rearrange a few things, but it's fixable."

Witnessing this, everyone decides that it doesn't matter that their relationships don't reflect the geopolitical climate: Alfred truly is a superpower.

[Note: All my headcanons unless states otherwise exist in a universe where Hetalia characters are independent of their government. Their roles are to protect the land and the people, and often this requires them to work against their governments. Despite Nations being a representative of a country, their work to protect the land and people goes beyond boarders, and while Nations have personal relationships that involve liking and disliking others, this does not impede on their work and is not tied to their country's politics.]

#ukus #usuk #axis powers hetalia #hetalia #hetalia world series #aph america #aph england #hws america #hws england #i need to edit this its 3am wtf #but this really got my brain doing SOMERSAULTS #my headcanon that england FUCKS is very strong idk if youve all noticed that #m: hetalia #s: england/america #c: england #c: america #.txt