#the forbidden imperialism debate

[rawliverandgoronspice]

not to. Return There. but. I am compelled to burn my wings against the bright light until the end of times, so.

I think that if Totk Ganondorf was ever meant to be a criticism of imperialism, it's a pretty incomplete one without Rauru taken into account.

While Ganon is very representative of the "conquest" aspect as a Strongman Fascist who reveres strength and the violent part of the initial domination, he has no concrete plans of enforcement and structure down the line, no way to preserve his flimsy grip on power (the game makes a point to tell us he doesn't care for survivors and he doesn't ever seem eager to preserve any kind of infrastructure). Rauru --who somehow couldn't "come to the aid" of Hyrule without crowning himself king about it-- isn't about the conquest or the violence, but Hyrule is nothing if not an extremely well oiled system with a centralized religion, coin, language, history, legends and social class self-replicating since the literal beginning of times.

The *very long sigh* imperialism thing isn't about making one of these two egotistical weirdos more righteous than the other: it's about acknowledging the parallels, even if the game itself throws hissy fits at the mere suggestion Ganondorf and Rauru are two characters who are begging to be compared (and even make vague strides that they should be during cutscenes, though they are not super specific and immediatey dissolve into a little puddle of nothing, I'll give you that willingly), because if Ganondorf represents stage 1: the conquest... then Rauru should represent stage 2: the consolidation.

And the fact that the game is desperate to refute that these two kingly idiots adhere to the same fundamental system of governance (and the one who's deeply into the concept of centralization and automation and leveling of culture and repression of literal identity through the liberal use of masks not being the chaotic dramaqueen on his edgy unicorn giggling to himself about awkward murder scenes) feels like pretty offputting denial --because, truly, what is so scary about noticing the similarities? Wouldn't it be enriching and worth the conversation?

What are we so afraid of?

#thoughts #totk #totk critical #ganondorf #rauru #when will my brain return from the imprisoning war... #the forbidden imperialism debate #I KNOW I said I wouldn't speak of it anymore!!! ;_; #I'm weak of the resolve u_u #+ very stressed out #so I guess that??? makes me want to pour boiling hot discourse oil all over my body??? #I should be doing literally anything else than writing this but #yeah that's a good recap of what bothers me about totk #it's the Denial #it just seeps through everything and makes the world contrived and actively fighting itself

[athingofvikings]

A Thing Of Vikings Chapter 90: Ties Of Blood And Seed

Chapter 90: Ties Of Blood And Seed

One particularly thorny problem that faced the Imperial Assembly Of Law was the question of legal definitions of marriage.  At the time of the Assembly, there were no less than twelve legally and culturally distinct practiced forms of marriage within the bounds of the Empire, and the general legal chaos this caused was part of the impetus for the Assembly in the first place.  The jurists thus assembled faced a significant problem in trying to reconcile the various forms.  Consider the difference between Latin Catholic marriage, which did not allow for divorce, and every other form, which did allow for divorce (and several forms were, in fact, explicitly temporary unless renewed). 

Divorce was just one area of consideration, albeit a contentious one.  The necessity of witnesses (needed in Christian forms, not needed in Judaic forms), multiple spouses (allowed in Norse, Islamic, and Gaelic forms, recently outlawed in some Judaic forms, and strictly forbidden by Christian forms), the necessity of clergy or ceremony, the obligations of the spouses to each other, the allowance of same-gender marriages, and, most contentious of them all, mixed marriages between members of different groups… all of these and more were potential problems that needed to be overcome. 

The solution which was eventually adopted was, in the general vein of the Assembly's solutions, a broad secular code that stepped back from the religious arena and concerned itself strictly with recognition by the state.  Under that code, any consenting group of adults (barring certain degrees of consanguinity, itself a topic of debate) could choose to register as "married" in the eyes of the state, so long as the group—ranging from the typical two to a record nine—had an agreement arranged beforehand on the particulars of their nuptials in regards to divorce, inheritance, descent, and marital obligations (there were a number of rules instituted there as well, to avoid cases of marital slavery and other abuses). 

A number of standardized formulations were likewise hammered out to suit the needs of particular forms of marriage, but these were not required by the law, and it was completely within the realm of acceptability to submit more esoteric arrangements (and often needed in the cases of the larger marriages).  In effect, it was the official legal position of the Empire that the relationships between the marriage participants and their religious and social home groups were not a concern by the Imperial state, at least not beyond how those relationships informed their marriage contract.

While this was strongly opposed by social conservatives, the fact was that bickering between the conservative groups sabotaged their efforts to stop it.  No one group of them could get the rest to agree on which implementation of marriage they desired to be backed by law, even as all of them agreed that they did not approve of the more broadly defined version.  This strife among those who wished to have marriage be more narrowly defined according to their own desires allowed for the passing and implementation of the law in the Grand Thing.  And while this did not bring an end to strife regarding marriage within the Empire, it at least allowed for a legal unity in terms of recognition of what a marriage was and wasn't.

—Origins Of The Grand Thing, Edinburgh Press, 1631

AO3 Chapter Link

~~~

My Original Fiction | Original Fiction Patreon

#a thing of vikings #httyd #how to train your dragon #alternate history #historical fiction

[legendscon]

Photo by Bekah Marie Photo

When Subtext Is Text, Musings On Ferus Olin

It's the end of Pride month, and Legends Con Executive Director Katherine is taking the opportunity to talk about one of her favorite characters (and most recent cosplays), Ferus Olin. Ferus is one of the canonically queer characters in the Star Wars Legends timeline; and is, in her humble opinion, one of the most interesting representations of a queer character within the Star Wars universe.

Ferus comes from the Jude Watson books, first appearing in her Jedi Quest series and later leading the series Last of the Jedi. He also appeared in the Rebel Force series as a supporting character. All three of these series are Scholastic chapter books, published between the years of 2001 and 2010. They are progressive for their time in many ways, but are ultimately also a product of their time in how Ferus as a queer character is defined on the page. The line between subtext and text can be debated, but we have author confirmation via Twitter that Ferus is gay and married to Roan Lands. Roan was referred to as Ferus's "partner" throughout the Last of the Jedi and Rebel Force series. With these books being written throughout the 2000s, that was the current terminology used for gay couples at the time- and marriage was not even a legal option within the United States.  

The term partner is really only the beginning of the signs we see in-text that Ferus and Roan are a couple. The most interesting of those to me is this passage from the first book in the Last of the Jedi series. Obi-Wan has just rescued Roan from Imperial prison after both Ferus and Roan were arrested for leading rebel activities and separated within the prison. As part of the misadventures that occurred with Obi-Wan and Ferus after that, they are forced to temporarily leave behind the planet Bellassa where Ferus had been living with Roan. While in space Ferus and Obi-Wan talk about how Ferus resigned from the Jedi Order (that’s another story entirely, I don’t want to get too off track here)

“It doesn’t matter,” Ferus said. “I walked away. It was the most difficult thing I ever had to do, but in a way I’m glad it happened.”

“You’re still a Jedi, Ferus.”

“No,” Ferus said slowly. “I’m not. I can never really be a Jedi again. Not just because I left the Order.” He looked back in the direction of Bellassa. “I have attachments.”

“Once there was something I wanted, something forbidden by the Jedi code,” Obi-Wan said. “Qui-Gon said something to me then. He said, maybe in a different galaxy things will change. The Jedi will change. Here is the change Ferus. And I think… in the new order, attachments will be a strength. Maybe this is how the galaxy will be saved. So yes, you are still a Jedi.”

Obi-Wan is referring to events of the Jedi Apprentice books, also by Jude Watson, where he entered a brief romance with one of his fellow Padawans, Siri Tachi. Obi-Wan and Siri decided to end their relationship due to the Jedi code, which led to that conversation with Qui-Gon. In the text this is Ferus saying that his relationship with Roan is outside the bounds of the Jedi code, and Obi-Wan draws a parallel to a romantic relationship of his own. I personally would call this plain text rather than subtext based on both the context in-universe and the context that this was written in 2005.

Throughout the story there are more signs that while subtle, Ferus and Roan’s relationship is romantic. It's the way they tease each other, care for each other, and little snippets about their life together-

Read more on our Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/post/When-Subtext-Is-Text-Musings-On-Ferus-Olin-K3K8MRUH1

#Ferus Olin #Jedi Quest #Last of the Jedi #Roan Lands #Jude Watson #Judy Blundell #Star Wars Pride #Expanded Universe #Star Wars Expanded Universe #Star Wars Legends #SWEU #Star Wars EU #SW Expanded Universe #LegendsCon #Star Wars Books

[vaspider]

I've already sent you a few asks like this so i apologize if I'm getting on your nerves but I've just been thinking about your educational posts about Judaism and some things crossed my mind. I kinda wanted your thoughts on it because sometimes your answers are more insightful than running to a search engine can be.

First, i remember you saying you don't refer to Yeshua of Nazareth as "Jesus Christ" because you don't believe he's the Messiah. Should i, as someone with no expressed religious affiliation, also stop using that kind of language to talk about the guy out of respect for Judaism and to distance myself from Christianity* or is it really inconsequential and something i shouldn't worry about?

*same question applies to the popular English language name for that family of religions

Second: from you and other places i see Jews talking online, it seems like Judaism has debate and curiosity built in. It seems like most of xtianity is built on adherence and conformity to dogma and rules. Jews research the history of Judaism and question and study it; xtians are sometimes literally forbidden from questioning the history and nature of their religion. So in the process of the Roman imperial state religion and other cultures adopting xtianity and thereby appropriating large portions of Jewish culture, they still missed a lot of the central tenets of Jewish culture. Is this a fair read or do i need to read more history? Or is it more nuanced than that?

Sorry again if I'm saying anything insensitive or getting on your nerves.

1. That is entirely up to you and your decisions, using or not using the word is no more or less respectful to Jews. You do you.

2. It's wayyyyy more nuanced than that. It has to be. People are made of context and history is just piles of people smashing their context into each other over and over again.

[tigerlyla-of-metinna]

Fic Update

Tags:/Relationship: Emhyr var Emreis/Sarah (OC), Mererid, Morvran Voorhis, Condwiramurs Tilly, Nimue, forbidden love, court intrigue, AU, eventual romance.

Summary:

Sarah's wisdom is put to the test by those above her station. The audience proved to be both enlightening, and disconcerting as Sarah inadvertently revealed more of herself that is worth looking into.

“What is your take on the oppositions ultimate goal, milady?”

A barely perceptible wrinkle appeared on Emhyrs’ brow. The spymaster’s eyes narrowed. Sarah was unaware of the internal conflict within the room, kept her expression serene.

She spoke up.

“Their last attempt at regicide borders on desperation. If one wishes to unseat the emperor, resorting to drastic measures should never be used as a resort- first or last. Foolishness like that ends up as examples to be displayed in the Millennium Square.”

Vattier and Morvran chuckled. Carmilo and Sven looked stunned. Emhyr remained silent, observing. Impressed. Puzzled.

Sarah found slipping into her old arrogant self as easy as slipping into her favorite shoes, and equally comfortable. She didn’t like it. All the more reason to leave Nilfgaard before she gets too used to the way of life she left behind.

It was Carmilo’s turn to ask

“There are two factions within the opposition. One wishes to return to the old ways which successors to the imperial throne must be of pure noble stock. The other wants power to be granted-and transferred- to the people. They call it “democracy”, where people choose who they want to govern them. Which do you think is more preferable?”

Morvran glanced at Vattier with a knowing yet troubled look: that was Skellens’ old cause! He may have been executed, but someone else picked up his goals.

Vattier briefly glanced at the emperor who observed the development with mild interest, but the way he gripped the armrest conveyed his displeasure. Why are they asking the new candidate these volatile questions in the presence of His Imperial Majesty?

Just another oral debate.

Sarah leaned forward with her elbows propped up, hands on top of each other: a thinker’s mannerism. After a brief moment of thought, she answered.

“Neither”

“Enlighten us then, milady” said the baron in a mocking tone.

I’ll show you my mettle, you arrogant prick!

#witcher fanfic #witcher fanfiction #emhyr var emreis #emhyr x oc #ao3 fic update #ao3

[anchanted-one]

Legend of Lightning 38: The Monster Beneath

https://archiveofourown.org/works/43208574/chapters/111096178

Master Nomen Karr’s home, Nar Shaddaa

Jaesa was waiting for them when they arrived. “Master Vajra!” she gushed. “Kira!”

“Hey there!” Kira waved.

“Hope you don’t mind us dropping in to say goodbye,” Master Vajra smiled.

The Alderaanian shook her head furiously. “Oh, it’s no trouble at all! I’m glad you took the time. Do you want to have some tea? I had fritters on the menu today, but Master Karr and the others had to leave on urgent work.”

“That sounds tempting!” Kira looked pleadingly at her Master, who nodded.

“We do need a break. It’s been hard lately.”

Jaesa blinked. “The kitchen’s this way,” she said. “We can talk as I work.”

She kept an eye on Master Vajra as she led them inside. His eyes… there was something different about them, though she had some difficulty in figuring out what.

“Will you be returning to Tython now?” she asked.

The boy considered, and shrugged his shoulders. “We need a vacation,” he replied. “But not on Tython. Somewhere away, somewhere quiet.”

The tremor in her voice solidified her certainty; something was wrong.

“So, what’s Master Karr up to?” Kira asked. “Or, is that a secret?”

“Not anymore, I guess,” Jaesa wrinkled her nose. “We found the trail of an Imperial spy, here on Nar Shaddaa. Pretty high-ranking one at that. But the enemy realized that we were closing in. The spy was killed before we could get to him. Master Karr wasn’t pleased.”

“Spy games always seem so thrilling to me,” Vajra commented. “Like all those cloaks and daggers, all the intrigue and lies, the probes, the jabs; everything without any of us being the wiser.”

“What we’re doing might count as spy biz,” Kira said. “Especially back on Taris.”

“Taris?” Jaesa blurted. “You were on Taris, of all places? Why?”

“Well—”

“We were trying to locate a Republic scientist who’d gone dark,” Kira explained. “Someone who can understand and counter weapons like the Planet Prison. Or worse.”

“Hard to believe the Empire could just sneak in a Sith Lord into something even the Jedi Council knew nothing about,” Vajra said in a low voice. “And the son of Darth Angral, no less! The Butcher himself! How did they find out about them? How—” He sighed and shook his head. “I’m sorry. This has been a rough assignment. One I’m not ready for.” He bit his lip, clearly not wanting to say more.

“To be fair, you watched that footage under your own steam,” Kira said sympathetically. “You should have quit after the first five minutes.”

“I’m guessing this isn’t a secret I want to be let in on?”

“I’d rather not. But it was brutal, not just what Lord Sadic did, but our own people.” There it was again, that look of someone hiding something.

Master Karr had forbidden her from using her Gift without his supervision, but she had to do it. She had to look.

She began frying the fritters as Kira began to talk of inconsequential things, paying her only half her attention. She nodded and chuckled in response to her idle chitchat, her conversation on autopilot.

Master Vajra said something every now and then as well, but she was almost too busy wondering what it was he was hiding to hear him.

She watched impatiently for her opportunity, as they laughed about something Master Kaedan had said, or debated which upgrade was most pressing for their ship, engines or shields, or which toppings worked on pastas.

Nearly forty minutes went by before she got her chance. They were helping her clean up—Kira was cleaning the table, Master Vajra the dishes. They both had their backs to her for at least the next sixty seconds. With a quick inhale, she began activating her special Sight. It was still a lengthy process that required crucial seconds to activate, and seconds longer to see things clearly. But she saw it, a fleeting peek behind a fragile veil. He had a monster inside him, a strange beast like a snake with countless heads. It writhed and hissed, spewing a foul red venom while coiling around his heart. And those heads… those evil, nightmarish heads! One of the heads seemed to notice her presence and snapped at her, making Jaesa screech and stumble.

“Hey! What’s wrong!?” Kira rushed over.

“I-i-it’s nothing!” Jaesa lied. “I just see things sometimes. Happens randomly. I blinked and there was this… this monster—” well, that was part of the truth. Too close to it. “It looked so evil! So hungry!”

“What kind of vision do you think it was?” Master Vajra asked. How had he gotten to her side without her noticing? And she was laser focused on him, too! It was all she could do to not scream again. She mentally thanked Lady Geselle a thousand times for insisting that all her handmaidens were trained in masking their reactions. How could she be normal around him again, now that she knew what lurked behind his kind, young eyes?! “Are you in any danger? Is something coming?”

“I don’t know,” she said as she fought down the rising nausea.

How had she not noticed before? How was it that no one had?! Was the Council blind?

“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked. His concern looked genuine enough, but she had seen through his façade. He filled a glass with water for her. She accepted it as gracefully as she could. “Let’s get you to bed. We’ll wait till your Master returns.”

“You don’t have to do that!” Jaesa was happy with how steady her voice was now. “I promise, I’ll be fine! It’s just a Vision. I have them a lot. Even my Master doesn’t get too excited over this. It’s for that reason I have to meditate so much, so that I get some control over them.”

Vajra shared a glance with Kira before sighing. “As you wish.”

“You know yourself best,” Kira shrugged. “We’ll stay just a little longer.”

Jaesa nodded mutely. It was better to go along with this than protest. She didn’t want to set off that monster by being too suspicious. She fought down the sob that threatened to make its way out of her lips.

I have to tell Master Karr, she thought to herself. She allowed Kira to pick her up and carry her to her bed. The two Jedi stayed for another ten minutes or so before leaving.

Jaesa promptly leapt out of bed, dashing for the fresher.

*

“What do you think she saw?” Vajra asked Kira immediately after they’d left the apartment. “I mean… what do you think it meant?”

“That was gonna be my question, boss! You’re the master here, after all.”

“Master Karr might have a better idea,” Vajra said after some thought. “Perhaps I should ask him?”

“That’s a good idea.”

Vajra pressed a few buttons on his comm, then shook his head. “Not accepting my calls.”

“I wonder if he thinks you’re a spam caller, or something” Kira snorted. “Here, I’ll type out a message for you. ‘Hey, Master Karr. This is Kira Carsen, Master Vajra’s apprentice. We dropped in on Jaesa to say our goodbyes, since we were leaving. She offered us tea, and as we were getting ready to leave, she screamed and fell. She looked like she’d had her own ghost killed in front of her. She wouldn’t tell us anything, except that she saw a vision with a monster in it. She’s pretty shaken up; I think she needs your help.’ There!” she said.

“Hopefully, he sees it soon.”

“And hopefully, someone’s willing to clue us into what just happened. I hate mysteries that don’t ever get solved.”

*

Aboard the Garuda

T7 vigorously welcomed both Jedi back. <Welcome! Report: all systems = operational and running! Ship: Garuda = ready for takeoff!>

“Thanks, T7!” Vajra patted the top of his head.

“Oh, welcome back, Masters!” C2 came out to greet them. “Major Var Suthra called earlier. It sounded urgent.”

“I see. I’ll call him back at once. Anything else? Anything from the Council?”

“Nothing else that requires your attention, Master.”

“Alright then. T7, Kira, let’s see what the Major wants.”

Their call was answered at once. “Ah, there you are!” the Major exclaimed. “I was considering calling you on your personal comms. We have a new development that you need to address right away.”

“A new development?”

“A major tactical advantage just opened up. Admiral Hacklin, one of Angral’s most trusted friends—a term I use loosely—wants to defect.”

“Huh?” Kira’s shock was evident. “Hacklin? Borund Hacklin? No way! That man and Angral go way back! I saw them on Ord Mantell, and they were way too chummy for such a sudden development!”

“Well, according to our resources, Angral was unhinged by his son’s death. Any and all failures related to Jedi Vajra are punished by torture unto death. Apparently, Hacklin failed to secure Sadic’s resources before he went rogue, and he’s now worried for his life.”

“That sounds like a stretch to me,” Kira whispered.

“Still, it’s an opportunity we can’t ignore. He wants to be brought in.”

“What does this have to do with us?” Vajra wanted to know. “I’d have thought anyone running from Angral wouldn’t want to be a hundred parsecs close to me.”

“Not you; Kira. She made an impression on him when they met. He wants her to be the one to bring him in. No more debate, please. Time’s running out. I have every confidence that you’ll be fine with Vajra on your side.”

“Where are we supposed to rendezvous with him?”

“Peragus. It’s an ancient asteroid mining facility. It was destroyed by Darth Scion’s ship years ago, but its atmosphere is still breathable, and its particle fields and landing pads are serviceable.” He closed his eyes for a moment. “I shouldn’t have to tell you this, but getting the Admiral on our side can help us immensely. He might prove instrumental in finding Darth Angral. Even if he doesn’t know where Angral is, he’s certain to have intel on what resources he has at his disposal, and where. If we can cut him off from those, it will deal him a severe blow. The Dark Council isn’t going to help him overtly. If he runs out of resources, he’s dead in the water. Get to Hacklin and bring him to me.”

He saluted, and the holo faded. Vajra asked C2 to get them underway, then turned to Kira.

“You do know this is a trap, don’t you?” she asked him. “I mean, who in their right minds would request a Padawan to bring him in when a rabid kath hound is snapping at his heels? He’s either a deviant, or a fool.” She looked at Vajra, clearly wanting to say more, but unsure of how to say it.

“It’s okay, Kira. You can tell me.”

“I will. Just… give me some time. I’m not mentally prepared yet.”

“Alright.” He stretched his limbs, then looked at a message from the cockpit. “‘Eta: 2 hours?’ That’s just enough time to get some training in.”

Kira followed for a second. “Master… how are you doing?”

“Not too bad,” he lied. “Better than yesterday.” In truth, he was still reliving what he’d seen before. He could hear choked shrieks every now and then, and every beeping piece of equipment nearly made him flinch. He was certain he’d done the right thing, but the cost was almost more than he could bear.

“Good. You need anything, you holler. Got it?”

“Sure thing.”

*

#star wars #swtor #the old republic #star wars the old republic #fanfic #fanfiction #jedi knight #hero of tython

[wardencommanderrodimiss]

Terrible FE 3H thought. So Serios (Rhea) founded the empire with first one Wilhem. Are there in universe debates over whenever they fucked. Were they married. Who the one who brings it up? its Claude isn't. (God just imagine it)

Claude: "--and we're admittedly assuming that Seiros carried the Crest of Seiros, but that doesn't seem like a leap to make, does it? The Crest is named after her, after all--"

Edelgard has a book over her head like a tent and is resting her head in her arms. Why she doesn't just leave, we don't know.

Claude: "--but it's passed down through your Imperial bloodline, Princess. So, got any secret family stories about the love child that your ancestor the first Emperor had with Saint Seiros?"

Dimitri: "Claude--"

Claude: "Believe it or not, I'm not pulling this theory out of thin air. There's actually scholarship about this. I mean, definitely not in this library, but--"

Byleth: "Was this something in one of the titles you asked me to search for in the Abyss library?"

Dimitri: "He got you in on this too, Professor?!"

Byleth: "I like getting to learn the Church's forbidden gossip."

Edelgard: "That is...certainly one way that you could refer to this."

[redstarnotebooks]

"The Collapse of the New Polish Left." Damian Winczewski, Monthly Review. "This outline of the political situation in Poland, which, after its neoliberal transformation has been ruled alternately by liberals and nationalists, constitutes a context for the reflections of contemporary politically active left-wing intellectuals. Having largely abandoned the Marxist apparatus as obsolete, they attempt to resort to or create new, fashionable concepts that intend to re-empower the left. In fact, however, these turn out to be ideological justifications for increasing opportunism... "...In recent years, following the full-scale Russian military intervention in Ukraine and the outbreak of a massive international-scale crisis in which the Polish authorities have played a major role, the reconstruction of the intellectual and political identity of the Polish left has become even more difficult. At present, the majority of its representatives speak with one voice with the government camp, supporting the militarization of the country and even competing with the government for bizarre, militaristic ideas. At the ideological level, the dissociation of the Polish left from its Western anti-imperialistic counterpart has been justified by the concept of “Westplaining,” which was introduced into the public debate by Jan Smoleński and Jan Dutkiewicz, both columnists for Political Critique. According to them, “Westplaining” is basically any criticism of the United States and NATO. It allegedly treats the peoples of Eastern Europe as objects and ignores their belief that the United States and NATO are agents of rescue from and an alternative to centuries-old Russian colonialism.

"In other words, according to columnists associated with the Polish left, criticism of Western imperialism in a period of war is forbidden because support for it is the democratic will of the East European peoples. This is how Polish leftist activists compensate for decades of failures and missed opportunities: by lecturing their Western colleagues from a position of moral superiority and making themselves spokespeople for an abstract populace, while the real Polish working class, after years of being left alone in class struggle, is already completely indifferent to such leftist messages. The Polish left is now deluding itself into believing that it will win the favor of the people by affirming a conservative ideology allied with Western imperialism... "...Overall, the New Left received the smallest working-class support of all parties (only 5 percent of the vote) [in the October 2023 elections], with their biggest supporters appearing to be the metropolitan middle class. Despite this, they have announced great success, as they could become an important part of the new government under the leadership of the neoliberals of the Citizen Platform (which won 30.7 percent of the vote). These politicians, in turn, are already announcing cuts in social spending and the need to “balance the budget.” To paraphrase the ancient king of Epirus, Pyrrhus: A few more such successes of the left, and there will be no left at all."

https://monthlyreview.org/2023/12/01/the-collapse-of-the-new-polish-left/

#poland #razem #monthly review

[pamelalovenyc]

Travel Through Time: Historical Places to Immerse Yourself In

History is not just about the tales of rulers and wars; it's the collective memory of humanity. Every corner of our world holds pieces of the past, waiting to be explored. For those with a penchant for the bygone eras, travel provides a portal through which time’s tapestry can be closely examined. This guide will take you on a voyage to historical places where the pages of history come alive.

1. The Pyramids of Giza, Egypt

Stoic witnesses to millennia gone by, these ancient wonders invite travelers to ponder the mysteries of their construction.

Highlight: The Sphinx, a monumental limestone statue with the body of a lion and the head of a pharaoh.

2. The Roman Colosseum, Italy

This iconic amphitheater, where gladiators once battled, echoes with tales of bravery, artistry, and Roman grandeur.

Highlight: The underground chambers, once used to house gladiators and beasts, revealing the Colosseum's behind-the-scenes workings.

3. Machu Picchu, Peru

Perched atop the Andes, this Lost City of the Incas offers a glimpse into an ancient civilization's brilliance.

Highlight: The Intihuatana stone, believed to be an astronomic clock or calendar by the Incas.

4. The Acropolis, Greece

Overlooking Athens, the Acropolis, with its majestic ruins, stands as a testament to the glory of ancient Greece.

Highlight: The Parthenon, a temple dedicated to the goddess Athena, revered for its Doric architectural brilliance.

5. Angkor Wat, Cambodia

This sprawling temple complex, set against the backdrop of thick jungles, encapsulates the majesty of the Khmer empire.

Highlight: The intricate bas-reliefs and stone carvings depicting Hindu and Buddhist mythological stories.

6. Petra, Jordan

Carved into rose-red cliffs, the archaeological city of Petra showcases the innovative spirit of the Nabatean kingdom.

Highlight: Al-Khazneh, also known as The Treasury, an ornate temple with Hellenistic-influenced architecture.

7. Agra Fort, India

In the heart of Agra, this red sandstone fort is an exquisite example of Mughal architecture, housing palaces, mosques, and audience halls.

Highlight: The Sheesh Mahal or the Mirror Palace, adorned with thousands of tiny mirrors.

8. Stonehenge, England

This prehistoric monument, with its massive stone circles, has intrigued travelers and historians alike, with its purpose still a topic of debate.

Highlight: The summer solstice, when the stones align perfectly with the sunrise.

9. Historic Center of Vienna, Austria

A journey through Vienna's historic center is like flipping through the pages of Europe's architectural evolution.

Highlight: The Gothic St. Stephen's Cathedral and the Baroque Schönbrunn Palace, showcasing Vienna's rich artistic heritage.

10. Forbidden City, China

In the heart of Beijing, this palatial complex, with its golden roofs and red walls, was the imperial residence for 24 emperors.

Highlight: The Hall of Supreme Harmony, the largest hall, used for ceremonial occasions.

Conclusion

History is alive, breathing in the ruins, echoing in the corridors, and whispering tales of yesteryears through the walls of these timeless landmarks. As travelers, as we traverse these historical sites, we don't just witness stone and mortar; we engage in a dialogue with the epochs gone by, understanding our roots and humanity's shared journey.

In the words of Michael Crichton, "If you don’t know history, then you don’t know anything. You are a leaf that doesn’t know it is part of a tree." As you embark on your next adventure, let it be a journey through time, connecting the dots of our shared legacy, and immersing yourself in the profound stories etched in these historical places. Happy time traveling!

#travel #travel guide #traveling

[gamecrag]

The Warhammer 40,000 universe is a vast and complex setting, filled with numerous mysteries and unknowns. These mysteries range from the origins of powerful beings to the true motivations of secretive organizations. Here are the top ten mysteries in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, along with a more detailed explanation of each one. 10) The Black cells In the Warhammer 40,000 universe, the Black Cells are a secret organization of the Inquisition that operates outside the normal channels of Imperial authority. The Black Cells are responsible for carrying out the most extreme and dangerous missions, often involving the use of forbidden technology, psychic powers, or even the sacrifice of innocent lives. The Black Cells are made up of a small group of highly trained and skilled individuals, each of whom has been handpicked for their abilities and loyalty to the Imperium. They operate independently of the other branches of the Inquisition and answer only to the highest levels of Imperial command. 9) The Dark Angles The Dark Angels are one of the oldest and most powerful Space Marine chapters, but their true allegiance is a matter of debate. Some believe that they are loyal to the Emperor and the Imperium, while others suspect that they have their own secret agenda. The Dark Angels are known for their secrecy and their willingness to go to any lengths to protect their secrets. Now with the return of their primarch leader and gene father Lion El'Jonson, only time will tell where their loyalties to still lie....with The imperium or themselves and their own agenda. 8) The Old ones The Old Ones were an ancient and highly advanced race that played a key role in the formation of the galaxy as it is known today. According to the lore, the Old Ones were responsible for creating the Warp, the Immaterium, and the very fabric of reality itself. The Old Ones were a highly intelligent and powerful race that possessed advanced technology and psychic abilities. They were able to create entire ecosystems and even sentient life forms with their advanced biotechnology, and are credited with having created many of the intelligent races that populate the galaxy today, including the Eldar, Orks, and Necrons. 7) The Black Library The Black Library is a repository of forbidden knowledge located in the Warp. It is guarded by the enigmatic Harlequins, and its secrets are known only to a select few. Some believe that it contains information on the origins of the universe, while others think that it holds the key to unlocking ultimate power. 6) The C'tan The C'tan are a race of powerful and malevolent star-gods that were created by the ancient and highly advanced race known as the Old Ones. The C'tan are beings of pure energy that feed on the life force of other beings, and are capable of manipulating reality itself. The C'tan were originally created by the Old Ones as weapons against their enemies, and were imbued with incredible power and intelligence. However, the C'tan eventually turned on their creators and began to consume their life force, leading to the downfall of the Old Ones. After the fall of the Old Ones, the C'tan were left to roam the galaxy freely, consuming the life force of other beings and growing in power. They were eventually imprisoned by the Necrons, a race of robotic beings who were created by the C'tan to serve as their slaves. 5) The missing Primarchs The Primarchs were the twenty genetically-engineered sons of the Emperor, but two of them were mysteriously lost during the Great Crusade. The circumstances surrounding their disappearance remain unknown, and their fates have become the subject of much speculation and rumor. Some believe that they were killed in battle, while others think that they turned against the Imperium and joined forces with the forces of Chaos. 4)The Origins of the Emperor The Emperor

of Mankind is one of the most powerful beings in the galaxy, but his origins remain shrouded in mystery. Some believe that he is a genetically-engineered superhuman, while others speculate that he is a reincarnation of a powerful psyker. The Emperor was instrumental in the creation of the Imperium and the Great Crusade, but his true motivations and ultimate goals remain unknown. 5) The Watchers The Watchers in the Dark are a mysterious, humanoid race of small stature that reside within the mobile fortress-monastery of the Dark Angels Space Marine Chapter known as The Rock. They are often utilized by the chapter and its Unforgiven Successor Chapters as favored servants. Despite their usual silence and small stature, Watchers are intelligent creatures who psychically communicate with one another. They have been seeking to guide the Dark Angels against Chaos since before the Horus Heresy, and are acquainted with the likes of Eldrad Ulthran. It is still a mystery what exactly they are, but some believe that they are some sort of higher-dimensional being. 4) The Cabal The Cabal is a secretive organization that operates behind the scenes, and they have been known to manipulate events and individuals to achieve their goals. They have been shown to have advanced technology and psychic abilities, and are capable of influencing the outcomes of battles and wars. The true nature and motives of the Cabal are not fully understood, and they remain a mysterious and enigmatic faction within the Warhammer 40k universe. Some fans have speculated that they may have ties to the Old Ones, an ancient and powerful race that created the Eldar and other intelligent species in the galaxy. Others believe that the Cabal may be working towards their own self-interests, and that their claims of fighting for humanity's survival may be a ruse. 3) The House Delaque The origins of House Delaque are muddled in rumor and hearsay. Some tales speculate they are xenos wearing human skin, while others argue they are the result of genetic experimentation. Perhaps strangest of all is the tale of the Drowned Empire, which claims they came to Necromunda in ages past when the world still possessed oceans. Living amongst the seas and aquatic gods for many years, these "fishy" men eventually found that the oceans were beginning to dry up. Being cleverer than most, Delaque built a new sea for themselves and their gods close to the center of the world. Another story goes on to say that hundreds of years ago there was a great plague across Necromunda that infected people's dreams. The afflicted came from all houses and standing of Necromunda society, and they all gathered in the Underhive for some unknown reason. 2) The Emperors Map "I can not feel fear, but if I ever knew the time to feel it, it was then " - A Space Marine of the lunar wolves The Lunar Wolves, accompanied by the Emperor himself, were tasked with searching a dead world they came across thousands of light years from Terra. One that once supported life of a dead civilization, leaving behind a catacomb of sub-terrain habitats and the lunar wolves were tasked with searching them. Only finding one thing of note....10km deep inside a stone vault, there was a giant map, 20 meters across....a map of a world the space marines didn't recognize, only recognizable to The Emperor himself and giving even him chills. It was a map of Holy Terra itself, with the oceans, mountains, and shorelines that existed long ago all in perfect detail, before the rise of the Hive cities and the destruction of war, many mysteries were left inside that vault. 1) The Watcher in the Rain The Watcher in the Rain is a mysterious and insidious warp entity. It appears as an ever-present, shadowy figure at the edges of one's vision, haunting those guilty of evil deeds, known to whisper in its victim's ear........" will you see me, I

am right here " His first known appearance is on the Imperium Administratum world of K4, when a nearby warpstorm appeared and threatened to engulf the planet. With the storm's approach came intense and unending rainstorms threatening to drown the planet's cities. Over the course of a year, it stalked a data scribe named Greta Vern, as well as Imperial interrogator Stefan Crucius. It also made itself known to a cult of mad asylum-dwellers who revered it as their deity. Despite the scribe and interrogator's escape from the planet, the Watcher followed them aboard their shuttle and set its eye on the crew of an approaching Imperial Navy vessel.

[lovelessdagger]

Prologue: Before

Pairing: Din Djarin x OC, Din Djarin x OFC

Rating: Mature

Enemies to Lovers, Slow Burn, Canon Divergence, Eventual Smut

Warnings: Graphic Blood and Violence, Explicit Language

Words: 2K

Summary: The Galactic Civil War is over. The New Republic is in shambles. Imperial Remnants emerge across the galaxy. Refugees on both sides are forgotten and left for dead.

In the middle of a desert, an Assassin and Mandalorian unknowingly walk to another for the first, but certainly not the last, time.

Masterlist | Starlight Masterlist | AO3  | Next

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…

The Galactic Civil War is over. The New Republic is in shambles. Imperial remnants emerge across the galaxy. Refugees on both sides are forgotten and left for dead.

In the middle of a desert, an Assassin and Mandalorian unknowingly walk to another for the first, but certainly not the last, time.

Sunlight faded long ago, stolen and corrupted. Stars are all that guide.

This is the effect of a lifetime of misery under the Galactic Empire. The result of the broken and betrayed, of lost history and manipulated promises. It is the creation of forbidden fruit.

The productions of Sith and Machine have all led to this moment.

This is the legacy of Anakin Skywalker...

Tatooine is the galaxy’s own personal hell. Mustafar at least has the pleasure of fauna. Demonic nightmarish fauna that’s more than likely poisonous, but fauna nonetheless. Tatooine is a barren wasteland that had gone to the dogs, and even the dogs decided they want no part in its misfortune. At least on Mustafar she could go inside and be relieved of the heat. At least Mustafar could be considered home. 

Or, it used to be, before.

“Maker,” an assassin mutters. Crossing over a sand dune, the evidence of her leather boots quickly disappear. A red tracking fob in her gloved hand sounds. Its steady beep is the only noise to be heard for miles.

Beep… Beep… Beep…

Her hand extends east in the direction of the rising binary suns. She has no time to admire the growing lavender in the sky. No time to deconstruct the death of monochromatic stars in favor of light and color. Shadows and the cool breeze of the night are her comfort. True fear lies in the day and masquerades as distaste.

Dawn is an irrelevant concept she never allowed herself to know.

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

Closer now, she sighs. The sooner to the target, the sooner she can leave and never set foot on sand again. 

The assassin can count the total number of visits to Tatooine in her lifetime on one hand. This being the fifth. For her introduction to hell, she was only a child. Meek and hidden behind who she walked with. The second had been at an older age to meet with the Hutts. Then, nine years ago, her father—or the monster she has long regarded as such, and will unfortunately continue to call by— sent her on a reconnaissance mission to some abandoned moisture farm. It was been terribly boring, full of memories of family dinners and old beaten up droids.

The irony that that very mission essentially caused her to lose everything isn’t lost.

Five years ago, in the midst of war she sat in the very cantina she walks to, warned to run away. A mere twenty-one years old—give or take. Her birthday after all was a random day chosen by her, the waking sun—and debatably— the will of the Force. 

Before the war, when days were still gray before the darkness made a permanent settlement, she decided on being seventeen.

“Why seventeen?” He had asked her, a friend of a sort. A father perhaps if the title hadn’t been occupied by the aforementioned monster. He’d been the only meaningful relationship she’s ever held. Entering hyperspace she sat behind him, tracing passing stars on the window.

“Because,” she began matter-of-factly, “Seventeen is a completely insignificant year to be alive. Sixteen is old enough that I won’t be questioned for traveling alone, but still too young to be taken seriously. I’m not quite ready to be an adult yet, but next cycle I will be. I’m seventeen now, so that I may be prepared to be eighteen later.”

That very night the first Death Star exploded.

Nothing has been the same since.

The events which followed guided her on a fragile string of stars throughout the galaxy, the culmination of which lead her back to hell. Or Tatooine, as the New Republic liked to call it.

Maybe if she listened things would be different.

Or maybe they would be worse.

Either way she’d be here. The designer of her cruel fate and dictator of her misery have decided this long ago. Forever would she be trapped in hell with her memories.

And everyone else’s.

Condemned to relive the worst of what humanity had to offer, over, and over, and over again. 

It’s not so bad, not anymore. Pain, whether in physical or mental manifestation, is simpler to block out when one’s entire existence has known nothing else. Still, out of all the places in the galaxy, why did it have to be Tatooine?

She understood the appeal for those on the run. Away from the New Republic’s oversight, moisture farms as the only viable landmark, everyone being too overworked to give a damn. Theoretically, it should be easy to hide. The only issue is, every criminal in the Outer Rim has the same idea. Originality be damned.

A detached hood and mask with a hidden vocoder shield her identity, not that she believed anything with a penchant of life would be anywhere near. All that surrounds her is sand, rocks, and sand. Still, she can never be overly cautious. 

Walking up to a cantina, her eyes roll. They want to make her job difficult, she cannot live without difficulty. She can only assume the bar would be crawling with other criminals. Defected Imperials, thieves, murderers.

It could be a family reunion.

Given she have family to begin with.

Eyes fall on her entrance while the suns backlight her into a silhouette. Her eyes scan the room, foregoing a greeting. Ten men sit with liquor and rotten soup. They’re not deserving of her words. She counts the passing of eleven seconds before one approaches her. Her mind remarks on the state of the bar, essentially unchanged. Same busted chairs, same creaking floors, same hideous decorations. Imperial flags are gone, but she suspects they’re hidden in a storage closet.

If only she were to be so fortunate as to be untouched by time.

“What’s someone like you doing here?” A man grunts, stalking up to her. The most she does to acknowledge him is an eye roll. Men are fools and she has no time for their useless flirtations. He grabs her arm, holding her in place. “Does your daddy know you’re out here?” he asks, leaning down to her ear.

Her eyes meet his in a glare. “Does yours?”

The man spits at her boots. “Bitch,” he sneers, walking away. His spit slowly rolls off her toe, leaving a glimmering streak along the leather in its wake. She pulls out her blaster. Pointing the gun behind her, she shoots the man in the back of the head. He drops, body heavy with a thud. 

The cantina falls to silence. Nine bodies are now watching her. No one makes a move, even the bartender stops his clinking glasses. She’s inviting them to try her next, they know this. They know her the stark absence of glimmer in her eyes.

She is a killer.

Nothing more.

Holstering her blaster, gloved fingers dancing on it’s handle. She walks up to body number seven, he sits in the same spot she had all those years ago. She places her soiled boot on his seat, grabbing his attention. Motioning for him to stand, she avoids his eyes.

It’s easier when humanity is disregarded.

Her fingers run across the tables’ wood, rubbing over permanent stains and rotting cracks.

“I have a bad feeling about this,” he said. He always worried too much about her. Looking back on it, she sees the action as nothing less than pathetic. “Whatever he’s planning, you won’t come out of it.”

“I’m not a little girl anymore,” she replied, spoon full of broth in her hand. “I can take care of myself now.”

She couldn’t.

“I know.” He knew her lies better than she. He’d always known her better than she could dream to know herself. “That’s what scares me. You’re not safe anymore.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever been safe.”

Seven stares at her incredulously, slurping his liquor.

“Come with me,” his voice echos around her. If she closes her eyes it’s like he’s still sitting in front of her. Pleading.

He never begged before that day. Always prideful and strong.

She’s learned from his flaws.

“I don’t like making messes inside, it’s bad manners,” she says to the target. “Get up.” 

“Am I supposed to be scared, girl?” Seven asks. He scans her appearance and truth be told she’s no Rancor, certainly no Hutt. While her build was athletic, her height physically left her the smallest in the room.

“You owe a lot of credits—” Seven stands “—That’s better.” She drops her foot. “Now—“

“Step aside,” a modulated voice speaks behind her. She catches a reflection of the intruder in the glass of the framed artwork above Seven’s head. A Mandalorian. Covered in pure beskar, he stands a whole head above her. Of course a fucking Mandalorian would show up right now, this has to be his doing. Even in the grave he has to fuck with her.

“Mando,” Seven laughs. He wipes sweaty palms on his trousers. “I was uh, I was just talking to the missus here,” he grabs the girls shoulder, squeezing muscle. “Say, now’s not really a good time so how about we—“ 

“I don’t have time for this,” the Mandalorian says. He drops a puck on the table, in blue holograms Seven’s profile appears.

WANTED: EDI MOURI

Names are useless to her, this changes nothing.

“Let’s go,” Mando says.

The girl shakes herself from Seven. “Listen Shiny, I was here first so move along.” The Mandalorian’s head tilts.

“Are you with the guild?” he asks.

She picks up the puck, examining the emblem of the bounty hunting guild. “Not yours.”

Mando’s head turns to One’s fallen body on the ground, a growing pool of blood by his head. 

“Your work?”

“You could say that.”

Seven clears his throat. Whispers of bets trail within the crowd. “In fairness. She did find me first.”

The pair are incredulous in their stare. “You want to go with the assassin?” Mando asks. A slight twinge of amusement escapes past his modulator.

Seven’s face turns to ice, his deep emerald skin becoming pastel. “On second thought. I always loved the Mandalorian stories I heard as a kid, I’m a big fan. Let’s go big guy.” He takes a step towards Mando. The assassin pulls out her blaster, pointing it to his head. At the same moment Mando pulls out his own, pointing it to her.

“Drop it,” he says. “I need him alive.”

Her head cocks to the side. Pressing her forehead against the barrel of the gun, the smallest laugh comes from behind her lips. “Do it.”

He’s motionless.

She grabs the Mandalorian’s wrist with one hand, striking the bend in his arm with the other. A blaster shot fires. Three falls to the ground with a hole in his head. 

Mando lifts her by the neck and slams her into the table where Seven sits. Her vision flashes white and she groans on impact. Her hands fumble across the wood in frantic search of anything to defend herself with.

She smashes Seven’s plate against the table, shattering it. With a jagged edge of porcelain she slashes the Mandalorian’s arm, staining the edge red with his blood. In his stumble back she rolls off the table.

Harsh stabs swing to the openings between pieces of armor. He easily blocks, but her movements are quick in succession. He ignites the flamethrower on his arm and she flips out of range.

Six isn’t so lucky.

She lands on his table, he’s charred and slumped over. She grabs a baton resting against his chair, cringing at its touch. Jumping off the table she strikes his helmet. The tune of impact horrifically melodic. 

Brought to his knees, Mando grabs her leg sweeping her onto her back. The baton falls out of her grasp. They tumble on the ground, scathing for any advantage they could find on the other. She slaps a taser disk on his armor, the shocks malfunction his electronics.

The Mandalorian lays on the ground, emitting heavy gasps for air. Sounds of passing credits come from a back table. She straddles him, pulling out the knife kept in the vambrace on her arm. It’s metal presses against his capes fabric gathered around his neck.

A smile mocks under her mask. “Not bad, but not good,” she pants, leaning down over him.

The cantina doors automate open, in perfect eye-line, a little green creature. It waddles in, cooing with bright eyes at the patrons, greeting them all in it’s joy. It locks eyes with her, head tilted. The veil of her mask conceals her dropped jaw.

The Mandalorian takes the chance of her distraction; flipping their bodies over, he straddles her waist, pinning her hands above her head with one hand, the other wrapped around her throat. The assassin’s chest rises and falls, heavy from under him. “I told you to wait outside,” he grunts. The green thing coos, waddling to the pair. It reaches out for her. “No,” he says next, raising a scolding finger to it. It whines, plopping on its rear. 

Past the visor, his eyes lock onto hers, he clears his throat. Suggestive positioning aside, he has claim to victory. Though, had it not been for the Child he’d be a dead man, throat slit under her knife. 

He could still kill her, his blaster is in reach, so is her knife. 

He should kill her.

But he doesn’t.

She’ll never understand why.

“Hey Mandalorian,” she breathes. “Where’s your bounty?” Seven’s seat is empty, table broken, shattered porcelain fallen on the floor.

“Fuck,” he swears. He stands, pocketing the knife she held. He picks up the creature, sparing her one last glance. “Stay out of my way,” he warns. Exiting the building she’s left on the floor. 

The surviving witnesses avoid her glare. There are holes in the flooring, broken furniture, blood stains splattered on every surface.

So much for not making a mess indoors.

She scoffs, picking herself up. Her muscles ache, bruises are forming under her clothing, her head pounds.

Carelessly, she shoots Five on her way out.

It’s a redemption of sorts.

Officially, Tatooine is worse than hell.

Next: Eyes of Tragedy

Taglist: @lexloon @jay-bel @xsadderdazeforeverx @spideysimpossiblegirl @sarahjkl82-blog @annoyinglythoughtfuldestiny

#Din Djarin #din djarin x original character #Din Djarin x Original Female Character #the mandalorian #Mandalorian #din djarin x ofc #din djarin x female oc #mando x original character #mando x ofc #Mando x oc #mandalorian fanfiction #Starlight

[grandhotelabyss]

Always late to the hype, I just watched Villeneuve’s Dune. I take the above image from Marino’s thread noting the tremor of forbidden desire that ripples across the surface once or twice in what is otherwise a work of affectless monumentalism. Because it parades bodies before us, film is an inherently erotic art form, as literature is not. When a novel lacks eros, we hardly notice; when a film does, we work to invent it. 

Herbert’s novel has high spirits of its own: it is lively with dialogue, rapid in pace, textually rich, filled with every kind of language. Villeneuve makes a film less dramatic than the source novel. Prostrate beneath Zimmer’s characteristically punishing score, I found the film too slow, too solemn. I don’t mean there should have been jokes and quips—epic decorum applies—just that the story might have played in quicker time, as it does in the book. 

Many have debated the film’s politics. The novel’s intended politics, as I understand them: an ironic right-libertarian critique of a fascist-indigenist rebellion against a feudal-commercial empire, a three-way quarrel among conservatisms. Cinema handles irony poorly—think of Truffaut’s famous line about how you can’t make an anti-war film because film glamorizes everything—so even Paul’s frightening premonition of jihad (delicately revised to “holy war” in the movie dialogue) looked appealing in the way of a daydream, triumph over your enemies with a beautiful woman at your side.

But Villeneuve’s politics, intended or not, are closer to current hegemonic left-liberalism as much because of as despite the prevailing non- and anti-democratic thrust of the narrative. (I refer to “Villeneuve” as author of the collectively-authored cinematic text only for convenience’s sake.) He opens the movie with a feint in a left-wing “decolonial” direction. The novel is framed by the imperial history of Princess Irulan, Paul’s dynastic wife, while the film opens with a voiceover complaining of colonial exploitation and violence from Chani, Paul’s indigenous concubine. In other words, Villeneuve grounds his film in history-from-below, this presumably to seed the eventual critique of Paul as imperial master rather than anti-colonial rebel. 

But the film hints at a potential reconciliation of above-and-below not through masculine mystical charisma but through female-mastered expert knowledge. For the filmmakers also race-and-gender-swap the one character in the narrative Herbert overtly intended to stand for the white man’s arrogance, the imperial ecologist Liet-Kynes. I quote Daniel Immerwahr: 

Here are Villeneuve’s politics, not Herbert’s, and our time’s, not those of the 1960s. By giving us a redeemed and redemptive Liet-Kynes—now fully Fremen within the narrative and portrayed by a black woman, almost executed by imperial warriors for assisting Paul’s revolt until she summons Shai-Hulud to devour her and them rather than being killed for hubris by the environment itself—the film supplants Herbert’s libertarian mistrust of experts with our managerial admiration for them, and moreover our credulous faith that expertise can finally and fully be reconciled with “marginalized” identities and knowledges. Hence Villeneuve’s expert cinema can be launched without contradiction from Chani’s subjection and subjectivity—because this will be subsumed without remainder into a revised form of imperial power.

And Villeneuve’s loyalty to expertise, embodied in form itself, explains why the film is unequal to the novel’s actual appeal, which is not in its nerdy imperial and counter-imperial science or politics but in its arty psychedelia, its immemorial order of witches, its burning hallucinations, its phallic-vulvic worm god metabolizing the substance of visionary experience, its Nietzschean-matriarchal earth religion overrunning any gridded knowledge merely mundane. The more the film let itself drift toward disorienting montage and surreal image, the more I liked it. Even the novel doesn’t always live up to this aspect of the material, which lends itself to visual media. 

In the end, though, Villeneuve raises a smooth monument to contemporary power. It leaves us rightly watchful for the slightest flicker of an eye that might intimate energies from outside.

#denis villeneuve #frank herbert #science fiction #cinema #film

[exigencelost]

I've finished Animorphs #37. In a shocking development, a ghostwritten scholastic series has some poorly written installments. Such is life. Some highlights:

1) I love the law against continuity that these books seem to be under. "Is Visser 3 the better opponent to be facing than our available alternatives" the team debates, in #37, two books after Visser, in which they immolated Marco's life based on the premise that yes, he is. (Edit: wrote completely the wrong thing here. They decide in Visser that V3 is not the opponent they want; this argument in #37 woulda been a great opportunity to rehash that choice, make some guesses about what happened at the trial of V1 after they went home because somehow V3 is still running the show but Earth isn't on fire, which doesn't match Eva's predictions. But no! We can't discuss that because continuity is forbidden.)

2) Just gonna say this the once but Rachel's not stupid and this book does her a disservice and it's very gender.

3) You want me to believe Marco apologizes for scaring a child? Marco?

4) Love how much Cassie hated ripping up a bookstore.

5) This book does go on my list of times the Animorphs completely blow their cover and the plot just scurries merrily on like it didn't happen. They hit a sequence of known controllers publicly and there are zero human casualties? They have conversations with controllers where they clearly position themselves as defenders of earth and humanity in particular? Not gonna get too worried about this tho because it's clear the ghost writer just hasn't read most of the books.

6) So, Tobias woulda voted for Marco. Would Cassie? Inquiring minds (me) want to know.

7) Marco as a snake getting carried in the talons of a bird of prey to save the day—is this me? Am i the weird one? Or is this the Mexican flag?

8) i know i said this book wasn't good but it is good actually because they hijack a plane which is exactly the kind of behavior i want from the Animorphs.

9) In my imagined version of Animorphs where the story engages seriously with the politics of captivity and imperialism, and also there's emotional continuity and all the characters get richer treatment, this book gets merged with the hamburger book, it's an Ax POV, the question of whether to follow Marco or Rachel fails to be cleanly resolved in the meeting and Ax has to make difficult decisions about whose orders to follow in the absence of a clear commander, and also the Animorphs hit a prison in their sequence of random local attacks and Ax (an Andalite! a species that values physical freedom and open space! to the point of putting open fields inside their spaceships!) faces the question of "how can humans do this to fellow sentient beings" from the hamburger book but it's about prisons instead. And also Marco meets a guy in the prison who talks about his kid at home and there's an explicit parallel; and Marco, recognizing the parallel, insists on not killing the bystander and it's remarkable to everyone and a character moment. This opinion brought to you by the Animorphs in this book considering and dismissing an attack on a police station because they don't want innocent cops to get hurt. Cowardice.

10) the whole thing with the old guy having a heart attack just fell completely flat for me. This late in the game? One innocent bystander? In such a clearly accidental death, not even a real act of violence? I don't believe anyone but Ax and Cassie would even really care. I don't even believe Tobias would have announced what he saw to the group. He'd have sat on that info.

11) Marco telling Rachel they have an hour and ten minutes to save Cassie from the Yeerk Pool and he can't do that because he's not buckwild enough was good and the book really went uphill from there. I have notes on his wording but they're minor.

12) this book's obsession with a specific version of leadership, and the uncontested necessity of having a maximum leader, was weird and out of place. Do not believe this writer read #31. They do seem to have read #29, though, so i guess that's something.

13) this whole book might be worth it, actually, for the fact that Rachel and Jake have this conversation, in which, this close to the finish line, this close to the ending that i now know is coming, I get to hear Jake express his criteria for good leadership in these terms, to Rachel:

He walked in silence beside me in silence for a while. “How many Animorphs were there when you started?”

“Six.”

“And now?”

“Still six.”

#animorphs #animorphs spoilers #Rachel animorphs #Animorphs 37 #Animorphs endgame #Visser #long post

[bubblesandgutz]

Every Record I Own - Day 744: Spectral Wound A Diabolic Thirst

Continuing on with my favorite LPs of 2021...

One of the things I love about black metal---and one of the things that likely makes it so unappealing to outsiders---is the shitty production of so many classic albums in the genre. Whether these raw recordings were a matter of circumstances or aesthetics is debatable. I think it’s safe to say that Bathory, Hellhammer, and Venom were dealing with handicaps in both resources and skill. But certain key players in the Norwegian second wave insist that the treble-bleached, scuzz-soaked recordings were a part of their initial vision, perhaps in homage to the gnarly sounds of their predecessors. In today’s current black metal scene, there’s undoubtedly a mix of factors determining the fidelity of modern recordings: professional studios are expensive and protracted sections of blast-beats are tough to pull off. But a lot of black metal artists also realize there’s something beguiling about a trashy recording.

When everything is crystal clear and perfect, there’s not a lot of mystery. It’s sort of like watching a horror movie where there’s too much light in every scene. The best horror movies involve a lot of darkness, where the mind inserts things into the shadows. A good, shitty black metal recording makes you wonder what you’re hearing, what you’re missing, what’s going on in that grimy, dark basement where the songs were recorded. 

This might be difficult for some people to fathom, so let’s take a look at last year’s album by Quebec’s Spectral Wound. Now, A Diabolic Thirst is certainly a better sounding record than Transylvanian Hunger or Vampires of Black Imperial Blood, but there are still sonic attributes to it that deviate from traditionally “good” sounding metal records. The drums are buried in the mix. The guitars are loud but murky. The bass is non-existent. The vocals sound distant. If you’re looking for an Andy Wallace-level sonics, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. But in my opinion, A Diabolic Thirst is a perfect recording. The guitars sound monolithic, like they’re drowning out everything else and reverberating off the walls into an indistinct gloom. The drummer sounds like he’s struggling to be heard, but that also makes it sound like he’s hitting HARD. There might as well not be bass guitar on the album at all, but that’s okay because the overall sound is such a torrent of distortion that you still feel bulldozed. It sounds intimidating, forbidden, and alive. 

But most importantly, the songs on A Diabolic Thirst are just straight up incredible. Fast, ferocious, but steeped in morose melody. The whole record is an onslaught tinged with beauty. You can listen to it for the adrenaline rush of it’s speed and brutality, but you can also bask in the dueling harmonic riffs and the gold-star hooks in the high guitar leads. It’s a record that I would put at the top of my list if someone who didn’t like black metal asked me to help them garner an appreciation for the genre. 

#spectral wound #everyrecordiown

[fideidefenswhore]

As to the third point, it would be necessary to hear also the complaints of our merchants, if they have any to make."

Our answer was, "We hope they have none; and the truth of the matter is, that English merchants are better and more favourably treated in the Low Countries than our own are in England."

"I do not wonder at it," retorted the King, "for your countrymen cannot do without English goods." "Sire," I observed, "I am unwilling to dispute or debate with you, but had one of my equals made such an assertion in my presence I could easily shew him that the contrary is the case."

but was he wrong...

This notwithstanding, the Queen [dowager] of Hungary, regent and governess for the said Imperial Majesty in these Low Countries, has been informed through some merchants of the said countries that the said King has lately forbidden his subjects, the merchants of the Staple of Calais the distribution, sale, and exportation of wools out of his kingdom among and to the said merchants of the Low Countries and others, against the ancient established custom.

The said Queen cannot persuade herself that the above prohibition can proceed from the King himself, inasmuch as up to the present time there has been no disturbance nor change of the old customs, no impediment nor other causes on the part of these Low Counties to necessitate the above measure; but, on the contrary, English merchants have been allowed to take away from the Low Countries all goods and merchandize, as in former times, without the least molestation.

The merchants of the Low Countries, therefore, have requested the said Queen and Governess to take the necessary steps for the removal of the said prohibitions and impediments, so that they may buy English wools, and carry on their trade as before, without being obliged to procure them elsewhere.

For the above causes the aforesaid Queen requests the king of England to be pleased to order the said prohibition to be removed, so that the mutual barter of merchandize may have its course, and the amity and good understanding of the merchants and subjects of both countries subsist and continue as in old times; and to let the said Queen know his pleasure in this respect. Done, concluded, and advised by the said Majesty on the 12th day of July 1533.

#a lot is made of henry's fears that flemish trade was going to be halted due to his 2nd marriage #yet i find that it was actually henry that restricted trade and mary of hungary that begged for it to be reopened? #as chapuys is claiming that the english are 'scandalized' that imperial powers haven't closed it #um... lol #primary sources

[svynakee]

Mulan (2020)’s idiotic cultural appropriation of chi is really stupid

Qi is a real thing. Not in the way that oxygen, or electromagnetic waves, are real. You cannot find an atom of qi. You cannot measure qi with a device. Qi is real the way romance, or luck, are real. And in the same way that the romance most people experience isn’t the same romance that is depicted in movies of passionate, melodramatic, wild love, the qi in wuxia and other genres is not the qi experienced in real life.

Now, when it comes to romance movies, the concept of love at first sight does not need to be established. It is accepted that there can exist, in the setting of the story, an unseen powerful force that drives strangers together on the whims of fate. There doesn’t need to be a professor pointing at a blackboard explaining the mechanics of destiny, and the evolution of true love, for an audience to willingly accept that love at first sight can be real for the sake of the story. In this way, it is unnecessary for there to be a martial arts master in every story that uses qi to explain what qi is, why it exists and how humans have learned to harness it.

However, the individual story’s take on qi should be established. If there are organised, respected, powerful sects teaching students to use qi, then assumptions can be made about how society views qi, how developed the study of qi is, the place of qi users in this world. If qi users are almost mythical and tend to hide in seclusion, assumptions can be made. If the emperor’s strongest generals proudly use qi in battle, assumptions can be made. If a teacher cautions against improper usage of qi because it can result in both physical and mental harm to the practitioner, assumptions can be made. And even if nobody bats an eye at the fact that the duke’s eldest son and the third imperial prince are doing flying leaps across rooftops on market day, then assumptions can be made about qi, such as ‘using qi is so common that the price of cabbage is more interesting than watching someone doing magic parkour’.

Simply saying ‘qi exists and is for warriors’ does a poor job of worldbuilding. Worldbuilding is important because it sets the stage, gives context to the stakes, lends weight to the protagonist’s struggles. What does Mulan (2020) tell us about…’chi’? One important thing to note is that in Disney’s Mulan (2020), chi is referred to as a skill; ‘he has strong chi’, ‘he has a talent for soccer’. In Chinese works, qi is the energy, the skill is qigong, which is qi (air) + gong (effort). A martial artist therefore has strong qi, or skill in qigong. They are not skilled in qi. In the following points, I will be discussing Disney’s idea of chi, so I will use their terminology.

Only men can use chi, but chi is also available to women.

Not being true to yourself poisons your chi.

Chi is for warriors, implying that women cannot be warriors (this is actually uncommon in Chinese wuxia stories, more common in historical ones where QIGONG AND WITCHES DO NOT EXIST).

The existence of a woman with chi powers is unusual and a cause for alarm, but not unusual enough that the Emperor dismisses the idea after hearing ONE REPORT FROM A RANDOM SOLDIER.

Those in the Imperial army are trained, briefly, to use chi – this is shaky because I think the commander talks about how chi can be used, and Honghui’s compliment to Mulan implies that her usage of chi is what makes them equals, meaning Honghui can also use it.

People recognise that chi allows humans to do super gymnastics and have enhanced reflexes, enough that when the villagers see a young Mulan doing these things, they are freaked out. Or the ancient Chinese really hated backflips.

Despite women using chi being so taboo, Mulan’s father decided to teach his daughter chi just because she was born with a high midichlorian count- I mean, high chi. When she displays chi abilities in front of other villagers, her mother gets angry and tells him to stop teaching her. Yet Mulan still retains her chi proficiency into adulthood, meaning either her father continued to teach her, or chi mastery lasts for a lifetime. In that way, using chi is a bit like riding a bicycle.

Rourans can use chi to run up walls, but Mulan’s friends are only shown to do this very briefly near the end of the movie, with normal Imperial soldiers failing to use this ability.

The Emperor of China is a proficient chi user. His chi lets him use drapery as weapons (actually a common technique in wuxia, the idea being that qi is personal energy and a skilled practitioner can channel their energy into any object, giving them sharp edges or huge kinetic force).

When a woman can use chi, she is a witch. And this is where this becomes HILARIOUS. Because there IS a witch in Mulan (2020).

Xian Lang is a witch.

In her introductory scene, Xian Lang is shown POSSESSING A MAN, her physical form completely disappearing as she does this. She then nails two long range kills using throwing stars and engages in melee combat, easily defeating Imperial guards despite being outnumbered. She is later shown to turn into a bird, or a large swarm of bats. She never turns into multiple birds or a single bat.

Xian Lang was an outcast as a young girl because of her chi. This is why she joined the Rourans, despite being Chinese (as evidenced by her name). She believes that Bori Khan will make a world where girls like her, born with strong chi, will not be outcasts.

Bori Khan treats Xian Lang horribly, being prejudiced against her gender and dismissing her strength. The Rourans in general also hate her for being a witch.

Xian Lang saw through Mulan’s disguise easily and also identifies that she has strong chi.

Oh and Chinese stories rarely have witches, Xian Lang should’ve been an nugui, kind of like an evil spirit or demoness but from Chinese folklore.

Here’s the thing that I find the funniest about the world Mulan (2020) has created.

Women should not be allowed to use chi. It has given all the proof for this rule to exist, and none to dissuade me from agreeing with it. Because the movie gives us two women with strong chi. Mulan, who actively suppresses her chi, and presumably only learns to use it during her training with the army. So, she is a chi beginner. The other woman is Xian Lang, who is immensely strong despite not looking much older than Mulan. She is probably the strongest character in the story, and definitely a chi master. The only other contenders for the title of strongest chi – not gender restricted – are the Emperor and the Commander. I believe the Emperor is stronger because Bori Khan lures him into a trap and still loses men trying to capture him. He restrains the Emperor with a ton of thick ropes. This guy is terrified of the Emperor and from the few times we see the Emperor fight? I don’t blame Bori Khan at all.

And yet the Emperor never possesses people. He doesn’t turn into a bird, or a swarm of bats, even when these would have FREED HIM AND SAVED HIS COUNTRY. Notably, none of this is ever stated as being against chi law. None of these abilities are stated to be the result of evil experimentation, forbidden techniques or any other taboo method. In the worldbuilding of Mulan (2020), Xian Lang’s chi is only evil because she is evil. And she is only evil because she is a woman with strong chi.

Mulan is a woman with strong chi.

The implication, the weird mess that Mulan (2020) has made, is that All Women With Strong Chi Become Witches. And men CANNOT become witches. Men cannot possess others. Men cannot shapeshift. Men can possibly learn to use throwing stars, but this is debatable. Women can not only do all these things, women are FATED to do so. If a woman is born with strong chi she becomes a witch.

And I don’t blame the ancient Chinese for wanting to suppress witchcraft! It looks hecking dangerous! They can possess anyone. They can break into secure spaces by shapeshifting. Sure, it’s not ethical to deny women access to chi because they could potentially become supervillains, but I can see why they went to that conclusion. The movie does nothing to address this. Mulan doesn’t vow to teach girls to use chi for good. But that’s FINE, because Xian Lang only became evil because of sexism, which is solved now, so cue the happy ending.

Even disregarding how the message of the movie is “girls get bullied for being born weird unless they prove themselves worthy of basic respect”, what is this WORLDBUILDING. Is Mulan in danger of poisoning her chi again and becoming a witch? If chi is for warriors, does that mean civilians can’t use chi? What if a farmer is born with strong chi, do we exile him until he becomes a warlock for the Rourans? How often are girls born with chi and how many of them suppress it correctly? Are they killed if they fail? Do they just join a circus and masquerade as acrobats?

Disney, chi is not a magic you can just throw around! It’s not bibbidi-bobbidi-boo! If you have a magical world, you need to teach the audience about the magical world. INSTEAD OF JUST POINTING. AT ANOTHER CULTURE. AND SAYING “THIS IS REPRESENTATION AND IF YOU HAVE PROBLEMS TAKE IT UP WITH THEM”. Yes, qi is part of my culture! CHI. IS. NOT. Its your abomination, stop using OUR STORIES and OUR TRADITIONS as a shield for YOUR SHODDY, LAZY, IDIOTIC WRITING.

Anyway all they had to do was not add ‘chi’ and have Mulan doing normal martial arts for fun or something. Just make her a normal tomboy. Sometimes girls like sport it doesn’t have to be because they were born with baseball magic.

#disney #mulan #mulan 2020 #mulan live action #disney mulan