#› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

anyways on the topic of wholesome but sad that we didn't talk about can i please, PLEASE, for a second cry about the fact that richters entire concept of love is "i care about everybody so i must love everybody. it does not matter if they love me back because i have so much love to give that i don't need to receive any" and that he is the definition of "self-sacrificial idiot willing to die for a stranger".

#you thought vincent was bad? you thought leighton was bad? NONE of my muses come close to him in the self-sacrificial department and it HURT #HURTS* #like. yes my muses would die for others. but richter? richter would go through thousands of years of eternal damnation and suffering if it #meant that someone else was safe #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc #› the line between naivéte and hopefulness is almost invisible. richter

[mortalityplays]

This is a very good illustration of the increasing susceptibility to conspiratorial thought patterns I've been seeing on the left lately. Just because you don't believe there are space marines on Mars doesn't mean you're immune to building imaginary connections between aesthetic or emotional data points and mistaking them for evidence. A lot of well meaning people in my circles have been sharing this story, buying uncritically into the first narrative they encountered. I want to break down why:

Jones' twitter thread was extremely emotional and extremely urgent. The idea of a child being ripped away from his frantic mother and a ticking clock to decide his fate both helped the story to bypass analytical scrutiny. It sends the message 'act now, before it's too late, it's the only compassionate thing to do'.

Her connection to an existing conspiracy (a concerted effort by the state to cover up Covid statistics) creates a strengthening association with the idea that this is also a conspiracy. The thread offers no positive evidence that her son's arrest was a conspiracy, and no positive evidence that his arrest has any connection to her prior experiences.

Jones' allegation that the arrest was retribution for her actions as a whistleblower implicitly identifies her in the reader's mind. A lot could be unpacked about her dispute with the DOH but it doesn't really matter because I don't think most people who circulated this story knew much about it either way. The point is that it anchors her identity in a few key concepts: 'whistleblower', 'covid scientist', 'concerned citizen'. None of these qualities are relevant to the events detailed in the thread (or evidenced in the thread, if we're being really rigorous), but they unconsciously prejudice the reader's assessment of whether to trust or side with her. Simply put, if you are concerned about how covid was handled and/or inclined to support whistleblowers, you are more likely to assume she's credible.

If you dislike and distrust cops, you are primed to accept a narrative in which they are doing something straightforwardly evil. Don't get me wrong, fuck 12, but I say that armed with an enormous preponderance of cases in which we have positive evidence of police acting out of self interest, cruelty, corruption, racism, misogyny, etc. Allowing ourselves to be seduced by the fantasy that they are always always without fail breaking rules and fashing it up in broad daylight only makes us easier to delude and manipulate.

She repeatedly made the point that her son is autistic. Again, if you are autistic or sympathetic to autistic people, you are more likely to be 'warmed up' by this detail and inclined to take her side. I'm not going to say it's irrelevant to the idea that he was being unfairly targeted, but it is overwhelmingly emotionally weighted. And again, it is not evidence that he was unfairly targeted. It's another weight on the scale that tips you to judge the truth value of her story without reality checking.

The example of a meme that she shared is characteristic of a type of online humour that is at least familiar to most of us. If you or your friends make edgy jokes and share tasteless irony memes, or if you've been online for more than like a week, you understand that they're mostly harmless. The idea that this meme could be used as evidence by law enforcement to detain you is ideologically threatening in an immediately relatable way. It evokes a reflex defensive impulse — that's not fair, the cops are wrong, the kid is innocent — bypassing the process of verification. Is this meme the reason he was arrested? Is it the only one he posted? Is it the only reason he was arrested?

All of these factors create a gut-led constellation of information that quickly forms a picture. Because it is being pieced together from multiple subconscious feelings and prejudices, it feels as if it has been evidenced. Because the thread was highly emotional and highly urgent, readers were pressured to jump to rapid conclusions and ask "what can I do to help?" (and the answer, as it almost always is, was 'donate money, quick').

I want to be really clear that I am not saying Jones manufactured any of these effects on purpose. It would be completely within reason that having a young child arrested would send anyone into an emotional tailspin, grasping for reasons this might have happened, leaping to his defense, rallying resources to fight on his behalf. I am not in any way ascribing malice to her actions.

What I'm interested in is the effect that this emotive kneejerk appeal had on people who were unknowingly predisposed to believe that the state of Florida would kidnap a child to punish a scientist for disagreeing with the department of health about covid statistics. That is a baseless conspiracy theory, and a huge number of people in my immediate circles reflexively amplified it.

Personally, I think arrest is a godawful way to respond to a child having a mental health crisis, even if they are seen to pose a violent threat. That still doesn't mean the cops did it at the bidding of a mad dictator in waiting. In the hypothetical parallel universe where it turns out Jones was right and this was all a conspiracy to punish her, it still would not have served the situation to jump to that conclusion on a gut feeling.

Pausing to identify relevant, verifiable facts before sharing a story like this is always warranted, even if you think the person telling it is 'on your side'. The more you worry that questioning the narrative wastes precious time or makes you a bad person, the more you should scrutinise why you are being made to feel that way. Accepting unfounded conspiracies into your worldview is not benign, even if you think the 'targets' deserve it. It erodes your critical perspective and turns you into a vector for the people around you.

tl;dr: you are not immune to baseless conspiratorial thought

#long post #might turn off reblogs on this one I can sense the anons already

[msftsn]

ships that are incredibly wholesome but then one muse is influenced/corrupted/brainwashed and becomes hostile towards their lover. like full blown "i have to kill you" hostile.

but then they snap out of it in the very last but crucial moment

#i promise i retired from angst- #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

something about the fact that lukas loves loves loves the original spyro and crash bandicoot games and has old consoles for them but would 100% get the remakes & new consoles so people he cares about can enjoy his fav games with "prettier" graphics is just so incredibly soft and sweet

#he likes the ugly 3 pixel polygons cause its childhood nostalgia for him #tbd. #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

i am once again asking someone to stop me from rambling before i go back to writing an entire book of lore for that dang fantasy world i already deleted most of it from my brain so i could focus on richter, iason and aris---

#what if..... i........... were to...... talk about the conflict.... and the roles........ of the gods........ in it........ #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

on a much more wholesome note, vincent keeps a list of people he's high - fived. like he just does it for funsies.

whenever someone leaves him hanging he ends up high-fiving himself, though.

#he's just a silly little guy i love him #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

okay but we have demon descendant who despises violence, decided to put an end to his clans old rules even if it means hating himself for the rest of his life who now seeks peace somewhere far away from stress. (filipos)

wolf clan member who has come close to being one of three "pure bloods" in the history of his clan who refused ascension and his heir title because he likes his human form too much to become a wolf for the rest of his life (vuk)

we have human descendant who has unawakened blood if both sides in his veins so he's stronger than most in his clan so he's sent as "clean up detaill" whenever a feral wolf clan member or demon clan member gets out of hand. his life dream was to be a florist but okay, thanks guys. (tristan)

another wolf clan member who was supposed to be the other ones right hand but is so loyal he followed him into leaving the clan behind and now he just. was told to find a purpose for himself free of expectations so he's trying just that. (dimitri)

#i love them all your honor #i have two more cooking but they're... elusive rn #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

okay, i admit i couldn't resist. richters bio is up !

#very nervous to post this but richter has been on my mind these past four years....... #really really love him and what he represents so i hope you guys enjoy him ; u ; #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

"you are the first person i have ever loved, and i think you will be the last person i ever love."

"i need you to be my forever."

"i still can't believe i get to take you home with me every night."

"i am undeniably falling for you."

"on our way to forever, together."

"it's like you're my best friend and i am wildly attracted to you."

"i just can't believe how beautiful you are."

"i have fallen deeply, madly in love with you."

#tag the ship or dynamic you want 🙃 #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

oh no he hath awoken .

#go back to sleep vincent nobody asked you to be feral #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

how do you even evil boop and super boop

#tbd. #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

@tragedicn he's coming for u,,

#ok i have the next two days fully packed with building my kitchen but I WILL find a way to yeet vincent at you #idc #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

*taps mic* anybody on??

#if nobody is here i can reblog some more memes :) #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

ships where one confesses and the other makes them repeat it because they somehow can't believe it. and then they make them repeat it again. and again.

#the vulnerability of admitting they don't believe someone can love them or is in love with them #versus the vulnerability in admitting that you love someone after they broke down your walls #:) #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

idk how i managed to whip out, like, 5 replies but here we go. i'm gonna go take a nap now cause i didnt check the time and now it's past 5 am. talk to you later ( feel free to msg me on discord ! it's "potatuh" )

#› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc

[msftsn]

mortals who are reborn over and over again because they're too stubborn to leave their immortal lover / lover with a prolonged lifespan alone.

#'' again we meet & wish '' :) #› i don't mean to tip your scale but you will fail to rip these memes from me. ooc