#And that’s just simply unethical in the long term | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

msbarrybeeson · 1 month

Text

Before You Go - P.6 | Future Donatello & April O’Neil Insight

(Reader Included)

A/N: Any constructive criticism is appreciated. Reader comments and feedback are also welcomed a lot.

I have been gone for a long time. Just occupied with my studies! No fan fiction author curse or anything (yet).

Summary: You’re both adopting-parents of Casey. The story follows the perspective of Donatello and April O’Neil during the Kraang apocalypse. You and Leonardo decided to ask them to watch over thirteen-year-old Casey.

In other words, familial interactions between April, Donnie, and Casey Jr.

Reader: Gender-neutral pronouns are used, except the terms “(Mom / Dad)” are also used. Second POV.

Pairing: Rise! Future! Leonardo X Reader

Warnings: Bittersweet.

Word Count: ~3490

Parts: One / Two / Three / Four / Five / Six / ...

Donnie knew how much of a genius he was.

It was no surprise after all. In his late teens, he improved NASA’s satellites to communicate with planets light centuries away. He cured breast cancer through the use of protons in radiation therapy to target specific cells, rather than affecting the harmless. Hell, he even managed to discover a new type of radioactive particles: mutons. By that point, he—.

“—should have been given a Nobel Prize in Medicine and in Chemistry.” Donnie cursed under his breath. He strolled over to his lab bench, equipping his goggles.

Squeeeak.

April– who was found seated on Donnie’s roughed-up, spinning gaming chair– raised an eyebrow. Her hair had grown out and was left unbounded. Faint wrinkles and eye bags on her features displayed maturity, in contrast to a couple of years ago. However, everyone was well aware that time was not the only factor.

“Whatcha going on about now, Donnie?”

The softshell huffed. “Recall when I wrote a report about my experimental findings with an invention meant to revive a deceased human being?”

“...You mean the one where you thought it was a good idea to open up Curie’s tomb? Even gone as far as to ask for my help?” April grimaced. “Who’d ever forget that.”

She proceeded to massage her temples.

“God. You were in all kinds of messed up for that, Don.”

Lightning-like yellow sparks flickered as Donnie had his robotic hands occupied with a butane torch. His goggles were sealed tight around his eyes as he built a oval-looking device on his lab bench. Titanium outer-layer over a seriously complex circuit-board; appearing as if Samsung marketed grenades.

He scoffed. “Oh please. It wasn’t as if I’d taken long to understand how Marie Curie deserves her rest for her great contributions to radiation. Thus is why–.”

“–You decided to take a poor random husband of an old wife,” April interjected.

“Ahem.” Donnie pronounced. “The poor woman was begging me for her husband to be alive again. I was simply gracious and generous enough to not charge her for the process.” He set aside the butane torch. “At least it progressed well; he stayed alive for an additional two years. It gave his wife psychological comfort, and I was able to submit my paper to the N.S.F..”

He picked up a screwdriver. “Except....”

April could tell her friend’s eye was twitching.

“They rejected my findings, nearly had me detained, and claimed it was far too ‘unethical.’” Donnie raised his volume. “Scoff! As if those researchers weren’t committing the crime themselves! Taking bodies away from families and claiming them as scientific property without permission.

If I could go back in time and shove my documents in their jaws, you bet I would.”

April smirked. “Well, I have my regrets too, Donnie.”

“You sound rather amused, April. Is that so surprising? And here I never thought you would regret your part-time job at Albearto’s. Or the fact you wasted money to switch to journalism in university.”

WHACK!

April threw her bat at Donnie’s head, flying back to her hand like a boomerang.

“Watch your mouth, mister. I may have regretted Albearto’s, but not a single moment in my life did I ever regret my journalism passion.” She stood up.

“Ouch.” The softshell vocalized, squinting his eyes toward her. His robotic clampers paused, setting aside the torch and taking off his goggles.

“Mind yourself, April. Horse-playing is forbidden in the laboratory. I am not consenting to having yet another silver-titanium apparatus get scratched because of you.” Donnie gritted his teeth. “Can you hear the negative connotation?”

“Seriously, Donnie? Where’d that come from? Not only was that years ago but it ain’t anything except a simple accident.”

“‘Simple accident?’” the softshell repeated with dramatic offense. “An accident, like many others in science labs, which could have caused severe damage! Remember the incident when your teacher dumped bleach and vinegar into the trash bin?

You know, if you had paid any attention in your chemistry class, those two would make mustard gas?” Donnie side-eyed his friend. “Simple accidents can have serious consequences, O’Neil.”

A hand crept up the lab bench.

“Uh-huh, and I’m supposed to believe an instance of me knocking over your phone and books would kill somebody?” April crossed her arms. “If anything, the blame’s yours for not organizing your desk when you got drunk on coffee.”

The hand took ahold of the butane torch.

“Donatello? Disorganized? Sounds cheap coming from you, a student majoring in Journalism.”

April pulled up her coat’s sleeves. “Oh boy, you’re about to get it—.”

Squeeeak!

Heads spun and found a 13-year old boy, replacing April’s spot on Donnie’s chair. Casey eyed the torch with a great yet concerning amount of curiosity.

“Yo, what’s this for, Uncle Don?”

At lightning speed, while April ran to move the gaming chair away further from the workbench, Donnie snatched the tool from his hands. “Child. Casey. Young man.” The softshell heaved loudly. “I must inform you this is NOT meant to be handled with such casual ease. How in Hawking did you even—.”

“Don’t your lab have a passcode or something?”

“–Is what I am wondering myself, O’Neil. I refuse to believe this child remembers the beginning thirty numbers of π–.”

“Nope, only us.” April and Donnie lifted their gazes to his lab entrance. You leaned on the frame while a dear red-eared slider stood just behind. A couple of steps inside, and the metallic lab door shut close.

Donnie– strangely– was quick to hide his device-in-progress off to the side.

“You’re back!” April grinned. “Hell, you would not believe the convo Donnie and I were having a minute ago.” She hurried to hug you.

“Figures,” Leo remarked. “We could practically hear you yards off.”

“Sounds like things never get old.” You smiled.

There was a side-eye between Donnie and April, before the Commander proceeded to inquire, coughing: “Anyhow.. care to explain the occasion? You two don’t seem to be in a hurry.”

“The only times you ever visit my laboratory are to prepare for immediate combat engagement, and you look awfully collected.” The softshell furrowed his brows.

“No, no.” You waved your hands, shaking your head. “Thank God no. We came here to ask if you two could take care of our Casey here while we head out.” The other turtle scrunched his in-quote eyebrows. “You— You came here to request us to... babysit him?”

April jabbed him in his plastron.

“You see? Just like I said.” Leo turned to you. “I know my brother, love. Don’s not the kind of guy to take responsibility for a kid. Or anyone, really.”

“Hold on.” Donnie narrowed his eyes. “I never said I refused, Leo.”

“Don’t know, it sounds like it to me.”

“Well, my misinformed brother, contrary to your belief, I am perfectly capable of handling a child.”

You huffed with amusement. Your husband only winked back.

“If you say so, Don.”

“Where are you two heading off for if you needed us to watch over him?” April inquired. “Wondering, ‘cause this never happened even when you two leave for patrol.”

“Just finding some time for ourselves.”

April exclaimed, “As in a honeymoon? Why not just say so? We’ll leave you two alone–.”

“–In this economy and climate?” Donnie interjected. “Has it also not been six years since your yet-to-be-legal marriage?”

“Alright, alright,” Leonardo chuckled. “Cut us some slack, bro. Finding time wasn’t easy when there’s Kraang above our necks.”

“Right, and you’re going on a honeymoon, how?” The softshell crossed his arms. “Simply because you’re the leader does not equate to you making wise decisions, Leo.”

“His ōdachi can teleport anyone to anyplace, we have some hope we can easily teleport to a remote area,” you answered. “One without Kraang infestation. It’ll be hard, but we may as well try.”

“Bonus points if we find clear skies and an ocean.” The red-eared turtle grinned, wrapping his arm over your shoulders.

“What’s a honeymoon, (Mom / Dad)?”

Your hand went to caress Casey’s cheek. “Parent quality time. It just means you get to handle yourself like the responsible grown-up you’ll become one day. Just promise me you’ll be on your best behavior around Uncle Don and Auntie April?”

“I promise, (Mom / Dad)!”

“Good boy,” Leo laughed, ruffling the kid’s hair.

“You didn’t ask Mikey and Raph to help out too, or?”

“Between you and me, I think you guys are better of making sure Casey doesn’t get into any chaos,” you whispered to April. “Don’t tell them that, though.”

She laughed. “Okay, I see how it is. You both have fun.”

Donnie bit his lip. Right as Leonardo and (Name) turn to exit the laboratory, he extended his arm out to them.

“Leo, (Name).”

You two faced back to him once more.

“Don’t kill yourselves out there.”

Everyone’s eyes widened– April, you, and Leonardo himself. But the brother in blue snickered, holding a smile that reached his eyes. “So you do also care for me, Don. And all this time I thought you were plotting to put me in my grave or something.”

“We won’t.” Leo placed a hand on your shoulder. “You got my word.”

“Bye (Mom / Dad)! Bye Papa!”

“We’ll be back soon, Casey!”

Donnie stood in silence as you finally left, leaving himself with none other than his best friend and his nephew. “I refuse to believe this is the future we have to deal with.”

“Times changed all of us, didn’t they?” April spoke. “One day we wish each other a good one, and the next, we hope we just don’t die. I could’ve been a famous news anchor by now, make my mother happy, fight crime without worrying about dying the next second.

..I wonder if there’s anyone else out there besides the small number of us down here.”

“..I doubt it.”

Donnie pulled himself together and walked back to his workbench, operating his clampers to work once again. He put on his goggles. Casey, being a young teenager of enthusiasm, peeked over.

“Watch yourself, boy,” April warned.

“Don’t worry about me, Auntie. I’m only standing over here.” Casey narrowed his eyes upon the glowing and metal-like ball his uncle had his tools on. “What are you working on, Uncle Don?”

“A sphere.”

“A sphere?”

“You heard correctly.”

“That sounds kind of boring.”

Donnie had to hold himself back from remarking with: ‘That is exactly what every child whose intellect is doomed would say.’

“I’m sure your mother would find it rather moving.”

“(Mom / Dad)? I don’t understand what’s emotional about a ball, though.”

“Hey Casey.” April coughed. “Why not tell us about your mask here? Haven’t taken a good look at it before. Maybe Uncle Don would like to hear it too.”

“You actually want me to talk about my mask?”

“Ain’t a problem, is it?”

“No.” He fidgeted with his fingers a bit. “You don’t have anything else to do?”

“We were just told to watch over you, kid.”

“Yeah, but everyone I know is always busy with the Kraang or supplying weapons. I never really get chances to hang out.”

There was a brief pause in the butane torch’s flame.

April’s expression softened. Her hand came up to brush his black hair. “Things have gotten calmer up there. So you’ve got plenty of time with us now.”

Casey smiled.

“So your mask?”

The boy alternated between covering his face and removing it. “(Mom / Dad) gave it to me. She told me it is based on the one worn by my biological mother. (Mom / Dad) also said that my birth mother was kind of crazy-funny and likes to be loud. She would have a stick to play– what was it– hockey?

I don’t know what kind of game hockey is supposed to be, but I guess it’s nice to know how life was like before all the Kraang.”

A sad smile crept on April’s lips.

“Anyways, I thought the mask looked kind of plain, so I decided to draw red marks on it. See?” Casey showed his mask off, fingers tapping the surface. “Guess who it looks like!”

There were two bold and thick streaks of red. Each one ran through one eye, truly a defining characteristic. The Commander chuckled, already imagining how much pride her friend in blue would feel from the fact a kid– let alone one he had been parenting– looked up to him so much.

“You know, I am seeing someone familiar here.” April hummed as she put on a thoughtful facade. Fingers holding her chin and everything. “Got to be Uncle Don.”

Named turtle paused for a moment and raised a brow.

“Seriously, Auntie April?” On the other hand, Casey gave her an incredulous look and shook his head. “You probably want to get your eyes checked out, ‘cause Uncle Don doesn’t have any red stripes.” Off to the side. “And even if he did, he won’t look as cool as Dad.”

April snickered behind her palm as Donnie eyed the boy from behind his goggles.

“You’re right, you’re right. Just messing with you, kid.” Her hand ruffled his hair once more. “Sounds like you really admire your Papa, don’t you?”

“Why wouldn’t I? Dad has an awesome sword that opens up portals. He always moves so quickly whenever he’s fighting. Bam! And the Kraang’s gone!” The teenager stretched his arm for emphasis. “Even as the leader, Papa knows when to get serious and when to make people laugh. He also cares a lot about me, (Mom / Dad), you guys, and everyone!”

It made even Donnie himself smile.

However, the way Casey’s enthusiasm died down had not gone unnoticed. “I’ve always wanted to help out though.” He sighed, shoulders slumping. “I want to fight the Kraang right by his and (Mom / Dad)’s side. Except I barely get the chance to, because they keep telling me to stay close to base and hide behind a giant rock.”

April crossed her arms and went quiet. His feelings were nothing new. In fact, she experienced the same thing herself, seeing she had always been a human. It was like that until–.

“Have no hard feelings,” Donnie spoke up, his hands and eyes remained on his spheric gadget. The sparks were flying. “Your parents are merely worried about your well-being.”

“I know, I know. They won’t have to though, if I can have enough training or something.” Casey sighed. “Then again, I also know I’m only a normal sensitive human.

...Why can’t I be a mutant instead?”

“Ahem. You are classified as a human. That is a true statement and one you cannot change.” Donnie hummed. “However, that does not mean you cannot be strong and capable in other ways.”

“Why does it sound like you’ve been in my place before?”

“Perhaps I did. Did you truly think being a soft-shell turtle is easy? I happened to be born as one of the only Testudines species whose outer shell cannot protect.” Donnie remarked. “Casey, your mask.” His hand signaled.

“What about my mask?”

“I merely want to add something.”

Confused, he hopped off the chair and handed the mask over. “Hmm. As long as you don’t mess with the stripes, Uncle Don.”

“Who says I won’t?”

Casey kicked Donnie’s leg.

“‘Ow,’ I say sarcastically without feeling physical pain.”

“Hmph.” He crossed his arms. “Why do you keep saying things like that?”

“Such as?”

“You say those action verbs, even when you’re already doing them.”

April snorted. “Just his thing, kid. Uncle Don’s got his special quirks.”

“Do you have a quirk?”

“Picking unnecessary fights for one,” Donnie commented.

“You only call them ‘unnecessary,’ because you never want to fix the problem.”

He rolled his eyes. “My solution would’ve been ten times more efficient if you had allowed my technology and I to do the work.”

Casey wondered. “Does your tech ever go haywire, Uncle Don?”

“No.”

“Oh man,” April began, “you should’ve been there for this one time. Your Uncle Don was building some kind of overprotective bed to keep your late Gramps from waking up from his beauty sleep.”

“Gramps likes to sleep?”

“You’d be surprised to hear that he sure does.”

“Then what happened?”

“Uncle Don asked your Dad, Uncle Mikey, and Uncle Raph to try punching, slicing, throwing whatever they could on the bed. They were attacking it like crazy!”

“And then?”

“And the bed was even more insane, ‘cause there were actual missiles shooting out! They went straight for his brothers. At some point, it got overboard, so Uncle Don tried to command it to stop.”

“I’m hearing a ‘but’ coming.”

“But it malfunctioned and thought Uncle Don was the enemy!”

“However!” Donnie pointed his finger up, interrupting the story-telling. “It did not take long for my creation to recognize his master.”

“Still went haywire in my book,” April remarked.

“Ignoring that.” His robotic hand tapped the edge of his workbench, grabbing Casey’s attention. “Come here, young man.” He slid back the mask, except in his hands, it felt as if the frame had thicken.

“It looks the same, but it doesn’t feel the same?”

“Try wearing it over your face.”

The boy did as told. All of a sudden, a bunch of green rectangles and words appeared in his vision. He gasped in awe. He spun around slowly, watching the rectangle focus on a figure through the wall.

“Yes yes, I know. I am well aware of how amazing I am.” Donnie huffed in pride. “I have opted to construct an interface with your mask. I cannot see why you shouldn’t have something to defend yourself with,” he reasoned. “I have other updates in mind later on. As of now, however, your mask will help you detect life forms across other rooms or through other objects.”

“That’s so cool!” The boy hesitated though. “But I don’t want to break it or anything.”

“Hey.” April rested her hand on Casey’s shoulder, giving a firm squeeze. “Our resources are already scarce. Using then losing them is better than nothing. You better make the most of our tech. Understood, soldier?”

Casey grinned underneath his mask. He fixed his posture up and saluted. “Gotcha–! Understood, Commander!”

He faced the inventor, whose hands were already back to being occupied with the “sphere.” “Thanks so much, Uncle Don!” Casey exclaimed, leaping towards the turtle to give a tight hug. “You’re the best!”

Upon contact, Donnie stiffened up, but his lack of experience with physical touch did not prevent a smile forming on his face. He extended a robotic arm, patting Casey’s back.

The boy then scanned around curiously with his mask. “Hey! Think I spot Uncle Mikey and Uncle Raph two floors down! They’re holding hands over a table or something. Why are so many people circling around them?”

April rolled her eyes. “Sounds like another arm-wrestling match between the our youngest and oldest brother.”

Just like that, Casey booked it out of the laboratory so quickly, it reminded her of a certain red-eared slider. “What the–! Casey!” April groaned. “And here I thought we don’t have to deal with runaway kids. I better catch up to him.”

“Would not worry about him too much,” Donnie commented.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Considering we will not always be alive to protect him... the sooner we leave him to himself, the easier it will be for him to survive alone.”

“Hey. Come on now.” April walked to her best friend’s side. “Don’t you say things like that. We’re all going to survive this together–.”

“April.” Slight pain wavered in his voice. “You know as well as I do how our current reality is. It is only a matter of time before the Kraang finds everyone.”

“Yet you’re still here trying.”

No response.

“It’s all because of the kid, isn’t it?” April affirmed. “He ain’t any genius prodigy you were expecting long ago. But he gave you a reason to try– he became someone worth fighting for.”

“I would not put it as simply as that.”

She shrugged. “That’s how I’d say it. You know you’re not the only one whose life changed because of Casey.”

Donnie paused his work, turning off the butane torch and finally pulling his goggles off his eyes again. “...Casey reminds me of when we were young, being rash and immature teenagers like any other. I hate admitting to such thing, but I was one too. And I hate admitting much more how much I missed those times.

The child has known nothing of the trouble we’ve experienced outside, April: when Cassandra was killed, when Draxum was torn apart, when Dad decided to sacrifice himself despite the slim odds.” His hands clenched into fists.

“Do not expect me to have any false hope for our future, but do not assume I would want Casey to feel the same way. For as long as he can, I want him to hold onto that false hope.”

“...” April had her arms crossed. Her eyes slowly came to linger on the workbench. “Is that ‘sphere’ his false hope?”

“..No. Not his.” Donnie traced his thumb over his contraption. “It’s for (Name).”

#rottmnt donnie #rise donnie #rottmnt leo #rottmnt april #rise april #rottmnt casey jones #rottmnt casey jr #rottmnt #rise of the tmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #rottmnt movie #rottmnt leo x reader #reader insert #tmnt #rottmnt x reader

57 notes · View notes

melonteee · 5 months

Note

See, I disagree with you saying that "we KNOW the Marines are unfixable from the inside" because I'm like 90% sure that the series will end with the Marines having been fixed from the inside. With like, Fujitora as the Fleet Admiral and Koby and Smoker as Admirals.

I would be honestly shocked if Oda would have Koby say something like "I want to become an Admiral" at Enies Lobby and then not follow through on it. That's Koby's dream. That's as important to Koby as the Straw Hat's dreams are to them. The Marines are obviously still going to exist as an organization after the Final War, even if the World Government doesn't.

My personal theory is that Akainu learns about Imu and snaps, ordering the entirety of the Marines to defect from the World Government in a coup. Then the Marines fight the Straw Hats, the World Government fights the Revolutionaries, and the Blackbeard Pirates fight the Red-Haired Pirates. Blackbeard kills Shanks and steals Imu's Mythical Zoan, and the ultimate final battle is Luffy vs 3-Devil Fruit Blackbeard.

Nah I truly believe the marines will be taken apart and rebuilt. When it comes to these world government workers, or anything connected to the world government, we can see just how broken everything is.

I see no possible way the marines can be fixed from the inside at this point, nor do I think Oda would head in that direction. At this point, One Piece is RAPIDLY heading towards the direction of tearing down the world government entirely, and the marines ARE part of this system due to working for them.

What I CAN see is Koby deconstructing the marines and building them back up anew, but the marines are ROOTED in unethical means and power hungry domination they label 'justice'. That 'justice' term, especially, needs to be radically destroyed and changed. The fact remains that so long as Koby is blind - wilfully or not - to how the marines operate, he CANNOT fix it from the inside. Right now, Koby is part of a power hungry system he's become susceptible to. The marines are now being hunted by the common person due to the Cross Guild, and they're complaining "Well now we have to look out for ourselves!! These people don't appreciate us at all!"

When, of course, the citizens we've SEEN hunting down marines are simply innocent people who have no other choice. These are people the marines COULD'VE and CAN help, but being lap dogs to the world government means they're not going to.

Koby, as ONE person, cannot fix this system. He cannot take what has already been establish, and re-establish it without completely tearing it down. The marines need a complete reform and a COMPLETE overhaul, and while I believe Koby CAN be part of that, he NEEDS to break away from thinking the marines are "just" or "good" as a whole right now.

This is why when Fujitora immediately turned around and went AGAINST the marines after seeing the horrors of the celestial dragons, I cheered! Fujitora understands this is NOT a just system, this is NOT something to work under, and he'd rather turn and fight it than continue being part of it. I'm hoping, at some point, Koby has this realisation, and it's why I'm PRAYING something similar also happens to Smoker who ALREADY has one foot out the door.

I would also be shocked - MORE than shocked - if Akainu EVER turned against the world government. This man is BUILT as a man who absolutely hates pirates, he's BUILT as a man who sees HIS justice, the MARINES justice, as correct. I think it would be totally out of character and completely insane if Oda just turned Akainu on his head and made the marines fight against the world government. After all, the revolutionary army is why that exists.

The marines are fundamentally broken and we KNOW they are, they've helped weave history into what the world government wants it to be upon their command, and they've participated in the genocide of numerous islands and peoples. This is NOT fixable.

They need a complete breaking down before they can even BEGIN to be changed. The world must be restarted anew in One Piece for there to be complete freedom, the systems that be must be shattered, and the marines are part of this. Koby can help, but as he currently is and with the beliefs he has of the marines, he's yet another solider propaganda piece for the marines to use.

#ask #melonask #op spoilers

28 notes · View notes

max1461 · 1 year

Text

gonna have to write a longpost soon containing what I've dubbed (very pretentiously) "the dismal thesis". it ties together so many of my ideas about the human condition and it IMO elucidates many of the subtler disagreements people express in the discourse on here. the gist is that ethics (under many common conceptions) is basically antithetical to beauty (under many common conceptions). more generally, reducing suffering often comes at the cost of those things that make life worth living in the first place—art, adventure, love, etc. in almost everything that the average person (myself included) considers to be worthwhile in life is the capacity for pain, and thereby in the widespread existence of worthwhile things is, inherently, the existence of widespread pain. furthermore, in all the little joys of life are resources not being spent on alleviating the massive suffering that exists in the world.

there is a very sensible conception of justice, which many people subscribed to (not necessarily wrongly), which says "making art is always immoral; that time and money could go to feeding the hungry instead" and furthermore "the very existence of complex human society, of human social relations, is unethical, because relatively free human social relations contain within them the capacity for suffering, which will certainly exist as a reality if such social relations are widely practiced". there are a million other things like this. many of us enjoy a nice walk through the forest or on the beach, in fact we count this kind of thing as one of life's deeper pleasures. but the existence of a beach or a forest requires the mass suffering of a billion insects and other animals eating one another, killing one another, suffering under the worst conditions imaginable.

and the point is that there is something inherent about this conflict between beauty and ethics. beauty requires both 1) a certain level of complexity, and 2) some tether to human aesthetic intuitions. and the fact of the matter is that anything complex enough and "close to home" enough to be beautiful to us is going to involve, or at least make room for, pain and suffering.

the above is merely an articulation of thesis, not a defense of it (that's for the longpost). but I really do think this is true. I really do think there is a sense in which

the state of the world is unacceptable; there are such vast amounts of pain and suffering that to truly comprehend it should totally overwhelm you.

humans want more than simply "to not suffer"; in particular, among the things we consider life to be worth living for are art, human relationships, discovery, adventure, and so on—sensu lato beauty. "the good things".

necessary in the existence of beauty is pain—pain for oneself and pain for others. maybe in the far future, when we can e.g. simulate the entire biosphere on a supercomputer, this won't be true anymore (of course, for a lot of reasons, maybe it still will). but that's not gonna be any time soon, if ever. in the present world, the trade-off between beauty and ethics is real and unavoidable.

and the utilitarians say "(1) is more important than (2); tile the universe with wireheaded brains-in-vats and don't worry about what gets lost on the way there", and fascists say "(2) is more important than (1); build a society of nietzschean übermenschen doing Great Deeds". and of course you don't have to take either of these positions, but it's hard to see how to make an intermediate position philosophically coherent.

I admit that, at least in the current world, I think (1) is more important the (2) in most cases. but I am decidedly not ok with the long- or even middle-term consequences of prioritizing (1) exclusively.

and thus, the dismal thesis. the only possible just world is a dismal world, a world devoid of those things which make life worth living to begin with.

I am very very open to being proven wrong.

#navel gazing #society

116 notes · View notes

hchollym · 1 year

Note

How would the Weasleys react if Fleur and Percy were exes? They broke up because long distance but they're still on friendly terms. I don't think Percy and Fleur interact after she's reintroduced as Bill's girlfriend until after the battle at hogwarts? In canon, Percy has shown willingness to hide his relationships from his family (Penelope) so I could see him never mentioning Fleur to them and Fleur never mentioning Percy because she thought Bill already knew?

Ooh, anon, I love the way you think. 🥰

I've actually considered this idea before, but in a slightly different way. I personally pictured them dating during Book 4 because they started talking after Percy was a judge for the Second Task (but it wasn't unethical because Percy wouldn't be judging the Third Task). I imagine that they broke up because even though they cared about each other and enjoyed being together, they simply weren't right for one another in the long run, but they parted on good terms.

I'll admit, I find Percy x Fleur less problematic than Bill x Fleur. At least they're almost the same age, and I definitely think Percy would have stood up to his family for her, so I'm a little biased. 😉

You're right that Percy has shown his willingness (and desire) to keep his dating life private from his family (for good reason), so I don't think that your idea is unrealistic. Plus, I can imagine that Fleur wouldn't bring it up, because either 1. She assumed Bill knew, or 2. They agreed not to talk about their past relationships (since a lot of couples prefer to leave the past behind and not dwell on it, and I can picture Bill & Fleur being like that).

So how would the Weasleys react to this? With shock and disbelief.

Let's be honest, most of the family has a very negative view on Percy, and a lot of them would wonder how the hell Percy managed to date someone like Fleur (which is also messed up, because they basically equate her worth to her looks, but that's another topic entirely). I wouldn't be surprised if some of them wondered whether Percy used a love potion or enchanted her (because that's how badly they think of him).

I think Bill would secretly think this too (though he'd likely never say it out loud), and he'd be super bothered by the fact that Percy once dated his wife. It's almost embarrassing to him. He'd probably console himself with the idea that Fleur ended up with him because he's "better." However, I do also think that a small part of Bill would wonder if that's the real reason why Percy didn't come to his wedding.

I think Molly would be furious. This just gives her more ammunition to hate Fleur, because - in her mind - Fleur is a liar who broke Percy's heart (because I'm sure that's what even Molly would assume happened) before moving onto another one of her children and using him. Ginny would likely accuse Fleur of using Percy because of his potential career at the Ministry.

Basically, they're mostly all jerks.

Ironically enough, in this one situation, I think Arthur is one of the only family members to not react terribly. I don't think he would be overly shocked that Fleur dated Percy (aside from the fact that he didn't know), because despite his frustrations with Percy, he knows that Percy would make a worthy partner, and I actually don't think he would assume anything malicious happened on Fleur's part. He's just sort of there and trying to avoid the conversations, and Charlie probably does the same. Charlie might reassure Bill a little bit, but he's not a fan of drama, so he removes himself as much as possible.

Fleur is just offended by all of their reactions and thinks they're being gits (which is true). It would likely lead to some ugly arguments with Bill before they finally work through it (or not, if you're like me and think they end up divorced).

What do you guys think? I'd love to hear other people's thoughts on this!

Thanks for the ask! 😊

#ask me #anon ask #percy weasley #percy weasley defense squad #anti bill x fleur #weasley family critical #weasley family dynamic #hp #percy x fleur #fleur delacour x percy weasley #my thoughts #my headcanons

59 notes · View notes

horizon-verizon · 10 months

Note

Green stans who treat anti bastardy like a relic of the past are either utterly naive and living in a bubble, or genuinely conservative, and they should rectify their ignorance/bigotry immediately.

In Ireland, they are still coming to terms with the horrifying legacy of how the Catholic Church abused unmarried mothers and their babies. The latest victims were from the 1950s.

https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/9-000-children-died-in-irelands-catholic-homes-for-illegitimate-infants-report-finds/9ocn5ja9u

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/11/17/ireland-mother-baby-homes-compensation-scheme/

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/03/mass-grave-of-babies-and-children-found-at-tuam-orphanage-in-ireland

I agree, and I think that it is mostly the second scenario. That they will ignore much only to prop up the greens'misogyny to properly up their own.

Of course I have seen and witnessed team black/black stans (not the characters) be racist, misogynist, etc themselves AND I acknowledge that many of the characters in the black faction have misogynist, blood purist, etc. principles. Or just made unethical, amoral decisions.

Daemon. Yeah he was a good dad who raised self confident girls, yes he supported Rhaenyra until the very end and was maligned by a former female lover. That doesn't negate that he was also pretty misogynist to the end as well, when he used Mysaria's sexual past in his villainizing of her, how he chose to frame and define her villainy. Even though he was forced to marry Rhea Royce almost similarly to how young teen girls are forced to marry their respective husbands, Daemon doesn't abuse her, it's clear that he never considered her worthy enough of his consideration and referred to her as a bitch simply for being the person he was forced to marry to (and she did nothing against him either, btw). He himself is still able to remove himself from that space with battle and having that male-privileged mobility not granted to nearly all noble ladies (child or grown).

Rhaenyra herself (even though she had much grief for her sons' deaths and Mysaria lied to her, as I've written multiple posts about) still shows that Targ-Andal blood purist in her treatment of Nettles. The blood purity was always there from the beginning of the Andal history into the beginning of the Targ dynasty and STILL exists in the current Westerosi environment. Grief and paranoia from misogyny and the greens usurping her do not negate the presence and significance of blood purity that she adopted from her ancestors (from Jaehaerys I's time at least). And her decision to do w/the Stokeworth and Rosby girls as she did, while under pressures simultaneously worked against her short term and long term. Again, I wrote several posts as to why I do not hurl her (metaphorically) across the room or renounce her totally for this action. I acknowledge the lifetime of misogyny and her then needs to have the lords at their side and maintain "trust" WHILE also noting how this decision was a mark on her trajectory narratively and politically. Two things can be true at once. That's the, and excuse the overused term, tragedy of her situation. Not exactly the moral tragedy, the ironic tragedy that makes me feel closer to Oedipus.

Both Daemon and Rhaenyra decided to sleep with each other not long after both their spouses died. Maybe even before. Do I love the ship anyway, hell yes, this is hardly a dealbreaker for me the way killing Laenor (of the show) would be if Rhaenyra had been responsible for that.

Corlys Velaryon is one of the most misogynist persons of the black faction. He is the one who suggested and pressed Rhaenyra to not let the Stokeworth and Rosby girls inherit their traitor father's seats on account that it is untraditional for girls to inherit like that and that Rhaenyra's case was special "fluke". He was the one to blame Rhaenyra for Rhaenys' death and demand why it wasn't her who went to Rook Rest to answer that call, or at least join Rhaenys. Meanwhile Rhaenyra was still recovering from birthing a dead infant AND (as we see both from real history and what happens to Aegon the Elder in that SAME battle) leaders of the cause or faction/rulers are too valuable to be the one endangering themselves in a war specifically fought for their rights, claims, etc. Meanwhile, he's also the guy who did not appreciate his wife enough to cheat and not only have one child, but TWO with the SAME woman young enough to be his daughter, the age gap larger than the one between Rhaenyra and Daemon. These boys may be TWO years apart.

Nonetheless, the reason why no one should be a green stan if you were to Stan or prefer a side is because the greens lean in on the misogynist, classist, blood purist, etc. principles of Andal-Targ feudalism. They go HARD. While Alicent is commendable for searching for her own power through her son, she herself is still very much a conservative woman excusing the misogyny. Rhaenyra is a woman who goes out and practices her sexual autonomy for her own happiness both in book and show, so she was always going to be better to me. Alicent (of book and show) as a very devout follower of the woman-hating Faith, on the other hand, wants to suppress that not even for just power for herself but because she genuinely believed that a child out of wedlock form a "slut"/"whore" woman is not equal in worth to her own "trueborn" children. Aemond is cartoonish (as in the level of excessiveness) in his misogyny towards Rhaenyra, Aegon raped a 12 year old and groped/raped several female servants and watched his own kids battle others with sharpened nails and filed teeth and (in the show, but also very likely in the book too) rapes Helaena. And Daeron allows rape, murder, etc to go one in not one, but TWO sackings of towns. In the show, Otto pimps his own daughter out in her mother's clothes so he can have royal grandson/political power. And in the book, only suggests Rhaenyra be heir so he can win over Daemon.

Anyway, back to bastards of real life.

I now have an archive of links others shared with me to proof that children born out of wedlock are politically and socially considered as more expendable, less worthy of governmental assistance than those born in wedlock. Keep em coming.

#bastards #asoiaf asks to me #asoiaf #a song of ice and fire #fiction vs reality #house of the dragon #hotd #bastardphobia

13 notes · View notes

omg-snakes · 2 years

Note

Sooo my 3 year old cornsnake laid a clutch of fertile eggs all by herself a few weeks ago. My girlfriend and I have had her since she was 1.5 years old, and have never bred her, so we're pretty positive these eggs were produced parthenogenically. The 9 fertile eggs from the clutch are in incubation and appear to be developing normally, but I'm not entirely sure what to expect from parthenogenic babies, particularly in terms of general health. I've heard they can be more likely to have defects and such, but I don't know how common an occurrence that is. Any advice or tips? And would it be unethical to sell the healthy ones after they hatch if I'm upfront about the fact that they're partho babies? I'd love to keep them all, but I simply don't have the resources to do so long term.

Hello and corn-gratulations on your unexpected additions! Parthenogenesis is certainly quite rare, but it's probably a bit more common than we think.

There's a reduced chance of eggs successfully hatching, and possibly an increased risk of defects like kinking, but any successful hatchlings should have the same health outcomes as babies who are the result of sexual reproduction. I'd imagine you'd want to care for the clutch just as you would any other.

So long as hatchlings are healthy, eating reliably, and showing a solid growth trajectory I don't see any reason why it wouldn't be ethical to sell them. Just be very honest about their prodigious origins. If anything, they might be more desirable to buyers because they're the result of parthenogenesis.

My number one piece of advice is to stay relaxed. Try not to stress about it. You got this!

#text post #answers to questions #snake #snakes #reptile #reptiles #reptiblr #parthenogenesis #corn snake #corn snakes

84 notes · View notes

askcharaandfriends · 1 year

Note

I'm not sure the analogy fully holds up. Not killing someone doesn't mean there are no consequences. If a trial is so important, you can't forget that those end with punishments. AFAC has a history of characters getting off free. Gaster tortured inmates and children and was not punished. Asriel killed people and wasn't punished. Chara did the stuff they did and were not punished. Asgore turned himself in and his allies got the punishment removed. Unless things changed, it should be the same here

Goldy: Ahh, I love philosophical quandaries within Undertale! Brings me back to when I used them to make Grade-A research papers! Mia's given me the honor of responding to these.

WARNING: TEXT WALL AND SPOILERS FOR AFAC/POTENTIALLY FOR ACAF BELOW!

I'm really glad you've brought up the issue of consequences, because that's actually the answer to the questions you're raising about mercy here. Instead of "Why are they not punished," let's ask "Why CAN'T they be punished?"

Let's start with Gaster. Humoring what would happen if he were punished for his crimes, the fact that some of the kids were tortured would be an angle that wasn't brought up when the world's attention was on Asgore over the kids' fate in the Underground. That, on top of the fact that Gaster was Asgore's employee, would've led to people and officials to believe that Asgore knew about it and withheld information. Asgore would be tried for perjury, there'd be no plea deal this time, and the sovereign status of Monster Town would be imperiled, along with Monsters' legal status. Frisk would suffer the most; at the very least, they'd never see their found family again, and at worst, they'd fall back into Susan's clutches.

And I'm glad you brought up the kids too. It IS worth noting that in AFAC, we haven't seen any resolution YET. Which was honestly, IMO, a mistake on TQ's part in regards to proceeding with the story. We really should've focused immediately on the emotional fallout with the kids coming back and the fact that did so many bad things, instead of... proceeding to a wrestling match over a petty conflict that seems insignificant by comparison.

...Plus, there's no real way to punish the kids that doesn't seem too cruel, or doesn't match the magnitude of their crimes. What would work? Disowning them and leaving them out in the cold to die? How would that sit with Frisk, given what they've been through? Or... Imagine Chara and Azzy going up to everyone they hurt and going like "Hi, I murdered you ala-Saw, I'm sorry." At best, it would be treated as crazy BS, and at worst, it could cause them to recall it all like you've pointed out. It's just better to reform them and help them come to terms, trust issues be damned. After all... "restorative justice," right?

Finally, it's worth noting that practically NO ONE in Undertale is completely innocent. Papyrus threatening Frisk with death traps. Toriel doing literally nothing when she could've done SO MUCH to stop the war effort, or even just destroy the Door to Snowdin long before the second kid fell down. Sans doing absolutely nothing to honor his promise to Toriel. MTT exploiting his workers and abandoning his family. Alphys committing fraud and unethical experiments of her own; come to think of it, we forgave Alphys, so why not Gaster?

And finally, the fact is, every single Monster is more than happy to live on the Surface, enjoying a freedom that was bought with six counts of infanticide. Undertale is a metafiction that makes the player question our justice, and when we imagine the aftermath, we realize that not only is it not perfect, but that pursuing it can even lead to unjust ends.

Imagine that for a moment. Justice being a bad thing. Something that would necessitate an "escape clause" to knowingly subvert, pervert, or even avert its course. The ends do not justify the means, they simply outweigh them. Which is why I am inclined to say "So what?" to the myriad crimes we see before us in the story, callous as it may seem.

And that's why I love this game so much. I live for this. In the end, there is no justice. Only endings, and the resolutions we seek.

Hope this answers your question. TLDR: Justice itself would've been the biggest antagonist of all if we hadn't stepped in and swept it all under the rug.

#goldy says #text wall #undertale #AFAC #ACAF #Asgore #Chara #Asriel #Gaster #pretty much everybody #philosophy #justice #mercy #crimes

17 notes · View notes

redwineconversation · 9 months

Text

Kadidiatou Diani Signing to Olympique Lyonnais

First of all I cannot wait to see how many fake football blogs get Diani's full first name wrong. (You're not her pal!! Don't use the nickname!)

Anyway, let's just grab a cup of tea and have a good and proper chat about things. Semi-annoyed at having to do this, but apparently there are a lot of so-called football experts who suddenly have deep insights about a team I'm not fully convinced they even knew existed prior to 2021.

Right, first thing I want to nip in the bud is the belief that Diani signing somehow telegraphs a Hegerberg exit. Again, shouldn't have to explain this, but critical thinking seems to be a bit too much to ask for some football fans, so alas. Here we are. Diani is a right winger. This means she plays on the right. Hegerberg is a center forward. This means she plays in the middle of the attack. If you are on the right, you are not in the middle; if you are in the middle, you are not on the right. Two separate positions. Right is different from middle. Cannot believe I have to spell it out in such simple terms.

"Diani played as a center forward this season!" you argue, not without cause. Yep, she sure did! Now, since you didn't realize that football actually existed prior to 2021 or 2022, you probably haven't heard of this player called Marie-Antoinette Katoto. She played center forward for PSG, got injured right before the Euros, had to sit out the entire season. That is why she found herself as center forward. It's not her natural position.

So if anything, it puts Cascarino's future at Lyon at play, not Hegerberg's. And even if then I think it's too early to try reading tea leaves - there has been zero movement on the bigger 2024 contracts (Hegerberg, M'Bock, Cascarino, Endler) and I don't think that it means that much. I don't expect a ton of movement on those ones until both the World Cup is over and Kang has officially taken over.

But going back to Cascarino. The plus side is that it was a partial ACL tear, so I don't think she will be sidelined as long as if it were a full tear. But this is still her second ACL injury, we don't know what her form will look like once she is back, she's talented enough that it's not worth rushing her back from injury. It's nice to have reliable cover until that happens.

The down side is realistically those players are too good to have one of them sitting on the bench, so that's why I think it telegraphs more a Cascarino possible departure than it does a Hegerberg one. That being said, the last time Cascarino tore her ACL, everyone and their mother wrote Cascarino off, and it was Aulas who gave her a second chance. TBD if Kang shows the same faith, and whether it is enough for Cascarino.

With that in mind, let's discuss how to get away with murder how to survive a scandal the Hamraoui affair, because obviously everyone else is going to be talking about it.

Hamraoui was the victim and it's shocking, absolutely shocking, at how badly PSG mismanaged the situation. Their casual disregard towards her is unethical bordering on criminal. I can't blame her for wanting to burn the world down. Scorch the earth, everyone finds a blow torch therapeutic on some level.

Now, you can argue that Diani wasn't directly involved, and that may be true, but it's also a hell of an argument to make in good faith. Diani's husband was directly involved, to the point that he was even questioned by police. Diallo's closest friends were/are Katoto and Diani. To pretend neither of them had any knowledge nor any involvement in the scandal requires a hell of a leap of faith.

So why did Lyon, who for all its faults usually does manage to keep the locker room under control, end up signing arguably one of the most controversial players?

Part of it, if we're honest, is simply Lyon flexing. Every time Lyon loses, the popular narrative becomes we are witnessing the team's downfall and they will never recover. This is Lyon simply reminding other teams that they don't have a statute of limitation on resurrections.

It's also Kang displaying a message of intent to the Lyon players, and I think that's actually something people are failing to grasp. Kang is showing the money is there, that they can attract top players and pay them accordingly. This is, realistically, something that will come into play for the bigger 2024 contracts whom I named earlier. Kang has to win them over. In a weird way, this is a financial gesture of good faith. I put the money down, your turn to deliver.

But money doesn't necessarily translate to control over the locker room. I said privately that I would be shocked if there weren't very, very tight clauses in that contract to ensure that what happened at PSG won't happen at Lyon. While it is true that PSG isn't run the same way Lyon is - both Kang and Aulas actually care about women's football, for example - the reality is that Kang is not Aulas, and so the ability to make the locker room fall in line has yet to be tested.

So what will happen with Diani at Lyon? From a footballing perspective, Lyon strengthened their right side, crippled their biggest rival, and sent a warning shot to UWCL contenders that they aren't quite yet willing to concede their throne.

But from a personnel perspective, a lot remains to be seen. Diani probably won't be able to pull the same shit with Lyon as she did with PSG, simply because the two clubs are run differently, and even with the paycheck, she won't be catapulted to the top of the hierarchy.

The question is will she try to change that, and how will Lyon react if she does. We don't know. And I'm not exactly thrilled that we may have to find out.

#all good love stories start in the rain #kadidiatou diani

2 notes · View notes

nervouswreckhere · 1 year

Note

My interpretation of the timeline is that Wanda did have Clay within the recent time frame, and then shortly after went evil. (does the story specifically state that Wanda became Ruina at the time Monstrox was defeated?) Ofc, this still presents the question as to why Ruina looks so young in comparison to Merlock, but 1) Merlock seems to have always had that old man white hair going on and 2) She is his younger sister; But whatever younger means within the context of how magicians physically age within the nexo lore (never thought I’d use that as a term) in relation to their centuries-spanning life span is uncertain. Like, is she only a few years younger, or like, decades? Do magic-possessing people simply age at a significantly slower rate? That would make sense until we see Clay, who is very clearly growing like a normal person. So, do magic-possessing people age normally up until a certain point, and from then-on age significantly slower than the rest? Or is Clay just a special case? It’s all horribly confusing, and I am 100% over analyzing.

oh yeah. confusing is putting it lightly. i think they age as a normal people should - their magic and the world's magic that uses them as conducts just rejuvenates their cell lifespan. cool, innit?

i recently rewatched season 3 and i caught monstrox (human-esque monstrox, in merlok's memory dream movie) implying that he still has allies on the wizard's council even after being banished or kicked out. and wanda was alive and kicking then otherwise he wouldn't have known about her statue - true, he could have learned that from merlok but he had to have known her beforehand otherwise he wouldn't have sent out scouts to search for someone capable

or i think that's what he said - i mean he knew she was the most evil thing in the entire kingdom? i strongly headcanon monstrox created compulsion and behavior-altering spells to control his monsters or at least make them aggressive as they are. and what better way to test their strength than against a witch of wanda's caliber.

is it somewhere stated that monstrox is responsible for wanda's evilization? no, i just like to think it is

as to why merlock is grey long before wanda is - i headcanon (and wrote a beginning of a fic) that they are almost two decades apart in age and merlock got the short end of the gene pool

continue to overanalyze things! - that's what makes everything more interesting and complex - as you can see i do the same shit and most of my ideas are a bit morbid so *shrugs*

the timeline is weird but that might be some magic spell cast to lull the nation into a sense of security? or is that too unethical? maybe a grief-stricken merlok concocted that plan with the queen and king, they giving their permission for their memories to be altered?... okay this is a bit much even for me

ANYWAY. it's confusing. and i love it

#its a kids show; not anymore! trauma for everyone! burn scars! electrocution; broken ribs! i am horrible #but yeah I headcanon a lot of things especially the backstory of things #wanda and merlock are such interesting characters #his age might have been a joke between them and after he got dementia merlock forgot that he actually wasn't 300yo man but 80 sth #sad shit amirithe?#nexo knights #clay moorington #wanda moorington #ruina stoneheart #monstrox #nexo knights headcanons #merlok #merlok 2.0

5 notes · View notes

sweetmage · 1 year

Text

Just some long-winded thoughts on my inquisitor Kest and his very rocky, bloodstained road to becoming a decent leader (or How I Tried To Do A Templar Run But Failed Instantly Because I Am A Softie)

I just finished his playthrough (barring Trespasser) the other day so I'm just thinking about his character progression.

Putting it under the cut because it's kinda long!

Tried to do a DAI Templar playthrough but chickened out and ended up doing a (now former) templar bootlicker who made some pretty shitty decisions early on like conscripting the mages, taking a very militaristic approach to all conflicts even when it was unethical/unadvised, etc. He was on bad terms with a lot of the companions (for good reason) including Varric who he frequently took alone and Solas who he never reconciled with.

Being human nobility from Starkhaven, a land ruled heavily under the Chantry's influence, he believed faith and the word of the Chantry to be the sole determiner in all matters. He had little direct experience with those who were oppressed and underprivileged and held the dangerous misconception that the Chantry strived to help these people, even when such "help" was truly suppression, conversion, or imprisonment. This served as self-justification for his early missteps and cruelties. "I am a leader, the Maker is on my side, I know what is best for them but if they won't listen then I'll have no choice but to show them."

When he initially received the title of Herald he was reluctant to confirm or deny whether or not Andraste chose him because he didn't feel comfortable speaking on her behalf. However, internally, the ego-driven part of him believed that he truly was, that he was chosen due to his experience and strong faith, and that all that he did was in her name. When he returned from the fade, however, he refused to confirm or deny simply because at that point he was fairly certain that he wasn't and he was forced to reckon with the fact that there was no divine support or purpose behind his actions and, for that reason, he began to see clearly for the first time what he'd done.

After having a major crisis of faith and morality in the fade, he reemerged to a world he'd felt he'd left an ugly stain on. Though it would be impossible to atone for the chaos, fear, and destruction he'd caused he spent the rest of his days trying to understand those around him (the quest where Bull took him to meet some of the men that worked under him was very influential and important to him and his development) and wield his power in a way more responsible and beneficial to those he'd previously overlooked and turned his back to.

He also severed his allyship with Starkhaven (where he once served as a prominent member of the guard, very attached to his title and honor) and would not aid in their attempts to annex Kirkwall. Though he was less than a fan of Starkhaven's current ruler, finding Prince Sebastian to be rather short-sighted and impulsive in a way that made him fear where their city may be headed, he had initially taken great pride in being allied with the place he once called home. It was difficult to put aside, but he could not stand by such a request. Had the request come any sooner, however, he'd shudder to think how he might have responded.

He stands in stark contrast to my other canon Inquisitor, my mage Hawke that romanced and supported Anders and has a much more stable, informed, and liberation-focused gameplan and viewpoint from the beginning.

Additionally, he significantly lessened his reliance on Cullen (who he romanced) at the war table in favor of more careful and less destructive alternatives to problem-solving. Instead, he would normally delegate clean-up, rescue, and safety-related missions to the soldiers both to preserve their numbers and to reduce casualties and destruction. Not to mention their presence and careful efforts could boost public morale and local positive influence.

Even as he began to change his stances and actions, he still fell victim to his inherent ignorance and biases on numerous occasions. This led him to eventually turn to his companions of varied backgrounds as well as build a separate council of advisors to help with issues that he lacked the knowledge/life experience to address or that he simply had no place involving himself in. (<-All headcanon but I wish the game would let you do this. I feel weird playing as a human and/or non-mage protag and rocking up to a Dalish camp or group of apostates and playing white knight for all their problems.😅)

In the end, I'm kind of glad that (because I am a softie even though it's just a fictional game) I didn't play him the way I originally intended. He is a very flawed, messy, and at times hypocritical man with a lot of blood and suffering on his hands who is doing all he can to shed his ego and pride and not repeat mistakes. He is one of my canon inquisitors and for better or worse I love the little bastard even though I at times wish to viciously shake him for his actions.

One day I will do the templar playthrough, perhaps. It sounds very interesting, I just keep making mage characters or characters who are very chill with mages and this is the closest I've gotten so far. 😅

#oc: kest #dragon age inquisition #inquisitor trevelyan #except not really because his surname is summerhayes and he's from starkhaven and i threw out the whole canon story but w/e #I sometimes get nervous posting about kest and my other ocs with questionable morals and actions because I don't want my #“this fictional viewpoint is interesting to explore” to be mistaken for “i support this viewpoint”#but anyway there he is! there's my questionable little man!

2 notes · View notes

omicrontheyta · 2 years

Text

some background info on a cardassian book ("in the heart of the devil") i made up, for garak & bashir to discuss in a fic i wrote, available on archiveofourown and on tumblr. when i came up with the idea for my fic i wanted to fully flesh out the book they were discussing so that i wouldn't have to just bullshit my way through their conversation. i thought it would be more involved in that story than it ended up being, but, here is what i wrote.

CW: kafkaesque shit, and state-and-military-loving plot and themes typical of cardassian culture as depicted in the actual show. also use of it/its pronouns to dehumanize. christianity mentioned as a comparison.

"in the heart of the devil" is a cardassian judicial romance novel. it follows "the conservator", who falls in love with her client, "the accused", over the course of a criminal trial (which only truly lasts a few hours - a very long story that takes place in a very condensed time, like that one part in hxh chimera ant arc). it's an extremely long book, notorious among non cardassians (and cardassians who aren't that into literature) for its tediousness and long-winded tangential nature that spares no detail. the conservator is established as a paragon of cardassian morals, never having commited even a minor crime in her entire life. her love and passion for the accused reflects her love for not just the accused itself, but the cardassian state as well. at multiple points she's brought to tears just by thinking of her deep dedication towards the state.

the narrative portraying a criminal as worthy of love would normally be very very risky in a cardassian book, it would simply not be publishable. but the saving grace here is that the accused admits guilt entirely and had experienced mitigating factors that contributed to them turning to a life of crime, the accused is portrayed very negatively during the time in which he is asserting his "rights" (described with terms one would use to describe trash or a diseased animal, referred to as "it"), and the two of them do not end up together. when normally admitting guilt would be a shortcut to skip the trial entirely, at this trial it is not an option, because the conservator has only very recently been appointed her title and new conservators are required to fully represent their clients (in order to build the skill). she falls for the accused due to his evil criminal wiles.

at the start of the story, the accused admits fully that he has committed the crime, but contends that he was right to do so, and that prosecuting him would be unethical. throughout the trial, to the conservator's neverending delight (and only serving to deepen her love for him), the accused comes to "see the light", that his prosecution is not only necessary but good, beautiful even. he proclaims his guilt and accepts his sentence with gratitude (at this point he's shown still in a negative light, as an inferior thing in comparison to law-abiding citizens, but making an attempt to repent at least, and thus deserving of pity. the kind of concept i'm thinking of here is one i'm not sure you'll be familiar with or well versed in: how the sinful man is described in comparison to god in much of christianity, a despicable and cruel and ugly thing doing its best to uphold holiness)

further details on the ending are not revealed because garak doesn't want to spoil it for bashir. also, at no point in the book are the details of the crime or the sentence discussed. garak had implied to bashir that the conservator was Not the main character - she is though. he was trolling.

3 notes · View notes

adequatelyllama · 2 years

Text

If humanity is going to survive, we have to face the fact that we cannot engage with our regressive factions at face value. We cannot hope that reason and good faith arguments will win the day. Conservative/Regressive/Fascist ideologies and their followers do not adhere to the same rules of reality. Their reality is whatever they wish it to be, whatever aligns with their egocentric paradigm, and no one can alter it for them. It doesn't matter what is true, because they only have to convince others of the lie long enough for it to be useful, and then they can discard it, and by forcing you to disprove it, you waste your time in a futile effort that will fall on deaf ears. It doesn't matter what the science says, because their entire worldview relies on fallacy and magical thinking. Facts that don't fit are simply irrelevant, or better yet they're 'lies and propoganda' of the enemy. It doesn't matter if they're seen as immoral, evil, or unethical; all terms they can redefine as needed. They see hypocrisy as a virtue, because it forced you to engage to call it out, and they can point at your efforts to discredit them as proof of "cancel culture". It doesn't matter whose lives are at stake or who ends up suffering. They will inflict suffering on themselves just to see the ones they hate suffer also.

We have been playing the game thinking that if we just stuck to the rules and played fair, that it would eventually win out. Our pretentious magnanimity is costing us our future.

One cannot be tolerant of the intolerant, or they win. And everyone else loses.

4 notes · View notes

coughlinknudsen24 · 2 years

Text

The Reality About 'Greenwashing': Sneaky Businesses That Make Us Think There's A Green Thumb Behind Every Corporate Tree

greenwashing is a phrase that means to give the impression of an organization being environmentally pleasant, but it has turn into synonymous with companies who are trying to deceive the general public about their true practices. Here, we check out some firms which have not too long ago been accused of greenwashing.

Introduction

environmentalists and shoppers alike have develop into increasingly conscious of the phrase “greenwashing” – a deceptive marketing technique that claims to be environmentally pleasant but is definitely just a means for businesses to generate profits. There are all types of sneaky inexperienced businesses on the market, from cosmetics corporations that swap out toxic ingredients for eco-pleasant ones, to furniture makers that fabricate “sustainable” wooden products using dangerous chemicals. The reality is, there’s no such factor as a really inexperienced enterprise. Even the most environmentally pleasant firms depend on dangerous chemicals and processes to produce their merchandise. Actually, many “green” products actually find yourself inflicting extra environmental damage than traditional alternate options. So if you’re trying for an organization that genuinely cares concerning the atmosphere, don’t be fooled by greenwashing – look for one that uses eco-pleasant practices with out compromising the standard or safety of its merchandise.

What is Greenwashing?

Greenwashing is the apply of promoting services or products as environmentally pleasant when, in actual fact, they will not be. It might probably take many types, from falsely claiming to make use of recycled materials in manufacturing to using green advertising slogans with out actually doing anything to reduce environmental influence. Greenwashing can be deceptive and harmful to the environment, as a result of it usually leads consumers to consider that companies care about the setting and are performing responsibly once they might not be. In some circumstances, greenwashing can even lead companies to keep away from investing in additional sustainable practices, which might have unfavourable penalties for the setting and the general public. The reality About 'Greenwashing': Sneaky Businesses That Make Us Think There is a Green Thumb Behind Every Corporate Tree

The effects of Greenwash on Our Environment

When we think of an organization that is environmentally pleasant, we sometimes think about a company with a inexperienced brand and/or a sustainable enterprise model. But what occurs when the corporate is actually just trying to cover up its dirty secrets? Greenwashing is an business follow that may have unfavorable results on our environment. Here are five ways greenwashing harms our planet: 1. It creates false perceptions about environmental accountability. When consumers see an organization that's environmentally pleasant, they may assume this means the corporate takes environmentalism severely. However, if the company is simply making an attempt to cowl up its true environmental file, it is going to create a misleading perception about how environmentally accountable that firm really is. 2. It harms the surroundings by promoting unethical practices. When corporations use greenwashing as a advertising tactic, they could also be promoting practices which might be dangerous to the atmosphere. For instance, firms may promote renewable energy sources without making an allowance for the affect these sources have on native wildlife populations. 3. It destroys natural habitats and disrupts wildlife populations. When companies select to greenwash their picture as an alternative of taking genuine measures to guard the surroundings, they may cause irreparable harm to natural habitats and disrupt wildlife populations. For instance, some firms have used

Definition of Terms:

Greenwashing is a term used to explain the follow of firms using environmentally pleasant advertising practices to deceive customers into considering they are doing something good when in actuality they are just trying to make a profit. There are a number of completely different ways that greenwashing can happen, however the most typical one is companies claiming to be environmentally friendly without actually doing anything to prove it. They might use green promoting materials or make vague references to sustainability, however when you dig a little deeper you may find that their actual practices do not align with these beliefs. Another common way greenwashing occurs is when corporations get involved in environmental causes but then use their affect to advertise their very own interests instead of working together with other organizations. They may give speeches or write articles advocating for inexperienced policies, however as soon as they're accomplished they start lobbying for things that may help them extra straight. The final type of greenwashing occurs when companies fully change their picture overnight and declare to be environmentally pleasant when they really aren't. This may be finished by altering their advertising or packaging, making minor adjustments to their operations, and even refraining from any enterprise activities that could hurt the environment. Whatever kind it takes, greenwashing is

Examples of Companies and Products Therein

The time period "greenwashing" has been in use for a number of years now and refers back to the follow of corporations using environmentally pleasant marketing techniques to make themselves look good. The problem with that is that not all companies are really environmentally friendly, and a few are literally simply trying to make a revenue. Listed below are just a few examples of firms and products which have been accused of greenwashing: 1. Nike has been accused of greenwashing previously through the use of environmentalfriendly slogans like "Just Do It!" while making their merchandise in factories that produce toxic waste. 2. Coca Cola has been criticized for its promoting campaign that focuses on how Coke helps battle international warming, when in reality their production processes contribute to climate change. 3. Adidas has been accused of greenwashing after it was revealed that they were shopping for illegal timber from Indonesia, a country that is notorious for deforestation and wildlife trafficking.

Conclusion

In today’s world, it may be difficult to tell the difference between a trustworthy company and one that is simply attempting to benefit from our good nature. That’s why it’s so necessary to concentrate on the ‘greenwashing’ phenomenon – companies that use eco-pleasant advertising and marketing ways without really doing something to enhance their environmental affect. These sneaky businesses would possibly make us really feel like they care concerning the surroundings, but in actuality, they're solely out for themselves. Be careful if you see these indicators – don’t fall for his or her tricks!

#greenwashing

2 notes · View notes