#america really does have a gun problem

[bootleg-nessie]

Rating band names based on their accuracy:

(I keep updating this list so check back later)

The Beatles: 3/10. None of these people are beetles, they’re just a bunch of fruity guys from Liverpool with matching haircuts

(Edit: changed from 0/10 to 3/10 because John Lennon beat his wife)

Pink Floyd: 4/10. There is not a single person named Floyd in the band, but some of the members do arguably look kinda pink

Nirvana: 10/10. Getting high and listening to Nirvana is roughly what I imagine actual nirvana to be like

Foo Fighters: either 0/10 or 10/10. I have never seen foo in real life so either they’re pretending to fight a problem that doesn’t exist or they’re doing an absolutely fantastic job of fighting it

The Eagles: 0/10. Same as the Beatles, there is not a single eagle in this band. The name is misleading and we have all been lied to

Queen: 6/10. Partial points for Freddie Mercury

Led Zeppelin: 0/10. I don’t think any of these guys have ever even seen a zeppelin, let alone one made of lead. A lead balloon would crash faster than my hopes and dreams

The Rolling Stones: 3/10. There is not a single stone in this band. Some points added because I’m pretty sure they rolled quite a few

U2: 0/10. Despite what the name says, I am not a member of this band

Metallica: 9/10. Naming a metal band “Metallica” is like naming your dog “doggy”

Red Hot Chili Peppers: 2/10. These guys are not chili peppers. They’re not even that hot, let alone red hot

Guns N’ Roses: 0/10. How the fuck could a gun or a flower play music

Backstreet Boys: ?/10. Depends entirely on their current given location

Simon and Garfunkel: 10/10. No notes

The Doors: 1/10. Jim Morrison is kinda shaped like a door tho

Chicago: 4/10. The number of people in this band does not come even remotely close to the population of Chicago. Points added because it originated in Chicago

Earth, wind, and fire: 2/10. This is even more innacurate than Chicago. Points added because wind instruments were often used

Def Leppard: 3/10. There is not a single leopard in this band. Some of the members are probably kinda deaf by now tho

The Beach Boys: ?/10. Accuracy depends entirely on location

The Black Eyed Peas: 6/10. Not sure what the hell an ‘eyed pea’ is but the black part is pretty accurate

Imagine Dragons: ?/10. Depends entirely on whether or not they’re thinking about dragons.

Cage the Elephant: 1/10. Why would you do that. Let the elephant go

Green Day: 0/10. They’re not even green

The Police: 0/10. There is not a single cop in this band

KISS: 5/10. I’m sure they probably kissed sometimes

The Monkees: 0/10. Are you fucking kidding me

We Butter the Bread with Butter: 8/10. I can’t verify this but I have no reason to suspect that they’d lie. Butter seems like the most logical thing to butter bread with

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard: 0/10. I got really excited about the concept of a lizard wizard only to be let down. My disappointment is immeasurable

They Might Be Giants: 5/10. I googled everyone in this band’s height, the tallest guy’s only 6’1 so I wouldn’t exactly consider him a giant. Then again, I can’t really argue because the claim was only that they MIGHT be giants

The Presidents of the United States of America: 2/10. None of these people are Joe Biden nor are any of them former presidents. This is incredibly misleading. I’m pretty sure “Lump” was written about my first girlfriend tho so I’ll give them a point or two

Gorillaz: 2/10 Not quite but we’re kinda close genetically so I’ll give them partial credit

The Killers: ?/10. I have no way of verifying if they’ve actually killed before but the fact that they’re not in prison tells me probably not

The Offspring: 10/10. These guys are definitely somebody’s offspring

Arctic Monkeys: 1/10. They are neither monkeys nor are they from the arctic

Thirty Seconds to Mars: 1/10. It takes WAY longer to get to mars than that

Beastie Boys: 8/10. They’re pretty beast on the guitar

Jimmy Eat World: 1/10. Slow the fuck down Jimmy, you’re biting off way more than you can chew

Hole: 9/10. One point deducted because I’m pretty sure they had more than one hole

Rage Against the Machine: 10/10. They did exactly that

Alice In Chains: 0/10. This is illegal. Let Alice go

The Band: 10/10. This could not possibly be more accurate

Nine Inch Nails: 1/10. I can’t find any good pictures of their feet but from what I can tell their fingernails definitely aren’t nine inches long

Bush: ?/10. Not quite sure about this one, felt uncomfortable asking

The Who: 2/10. I’m not dealing with this “Who’s On First” bullshit

Radiohead: 0/10. Not a single person in this band has a radio for a head

Queens of the Stone Age: 0/10. This band should be called “five random dudes from the modern era” but FRDFTMA is a bit of a mouthful

Soundgarden: 2/10. Sound does not grow in the garden

Sonic Youth: 5/10. They’re not exactly youth anymore but the sonic part checks out

Talking heads: 8/10. There’s more to the band than just a bunch of disembodied heads but the heads do tend to talk

The Cranberries: 0/10. Decent music but I only added them so that the Beatles and Freddie Mercury weren’t the only fruits on this list

The Wiggles: 8/10. They do tend to wiggle a lot

Blue Man Group: 10/10. Yep!

Weezer: 5/10. They all look like they definitely have asthma

Limp Bizkit: 3/10. While the visual image of baked goods playing the guitar is hilarious, Fred durst is not a biscuit. Points added because he probably has erectile dysfunction

Stone Temple Pilots: 0/10. None of these people are accredited as being licensed to pilot anything, much less an entire stone temple. Stone temples don’t need pilots anyways

Wasted Youth: 8/10. I guess it really kinda depends on how you frame it but yeah, they probably wasted a lot of it

Them Crooked Vultures: 3/10. These are people and not birds but Dave Grohl’s posture is kinda bad and John Paul Jones is so old that his neck kinda looks like a vulture’s so I added some points

Audioslave: 0/10. Slavery is illegal

Traveling Wilburys: 4/10. Sure, they traveled a lot but not a single one of those lying bastards was named Wilbury

D12: 6/12. There were only 6 people in this band

NWA: 10/10. I’m a little too white to safely comment on this one but I’d say they nailed it

Jet: 1/10. A real jet would be way too loud

Goldfinger: 0/10. Not a single person in this band has a finger made out of gold

No Doubt: ?/10. I can’t really be too sure how Gwen Stefani felt but I think it’s probably a safe assumption that she had some doubts

The White Stripes: 3/10. I bet if you stripped them down naked and made them stand shoulder to shoulder and squinted really hard they’d probably look more like white stripes

Screaming trees: 3/10. They scream occasionally

Garbage: 2/10. I think they’re being a little harsh on themselves, their music isn’t THAT bad

Butthole Surfers: 5/10. Not even gonna touch this one

Megadeth: 3/10. To be fair, some of the former members are dead but only a little amount of death, not mega death

Dead Kennedys: 2/10. Last I checked Kennedy was still dead but neither he nor his clones are members of this band

Cake: 0/10. The cake is a lie

Cracker: 8/10. Most of them are

Tool: 7/10. I don’t know much about their music but they sure look like tools

Counting Crows: ?/10. Is this what emo kids do instead of counting sheep? Accuracy depends on whatever bird they happen to be counting at the moment

Dave Matthews Band: 10/10. It certainly is

Oasis: 1/10. Their music is the opposite of an oasis

Blur: 2/10. They are not that fast

Barenaked Ladies: 0/10. If I wanted to be this disappointed I’d reestablish a connection with my biological father instead

Meat Puppets: 10/10. Technically, aren’t we all?

Live: 8/10. Apparently they still do live shows but I deducted some points because I’ve only ever heard their music on Spotify

ABBA: 9/10. I’m still not giving any points to Guns N’ Roses but that’s mostly out of spite

5 Finger Death Punch: 8/10 I guess it probably depends on how hard you hit them but this seems to be the usual amount of fingers to punch somebody with

All American Rejects: 9/10. They’re all rejects from America so I don’t really see any issue with this

T. Rex: 0/10. Even if any of these people WAS a T. Rex I don’t think their arms would be long enough to play their instruments

Free: 0/10. Unless you steal their music, in which case it becomes a 10/10

The Strokes: 3/10. To my knowledge, none of them have had a stroke but I still added a few points because the name was probably accurate for other reasons

The Smashing Pumpkins ?/10. Another thing I have no way of verifying but this seems like a waste of perfectly good pumpkins

Therapy?: ?/10. The hell are they asking me for? I don’t know their medical history

Twenty One Pilots. 0/10. There’s only two of them and neither is a licensed pilot

Finger Eleven: 0/10. Leave the poor Stranger Things girl out of this

Fall Out Boy: 9/10. I conferred with an expert on this one who confirmed that they are in fact boys who had a falling out

Cream: 8/10. Considering this was the OG supergroup I’m sure a lot of people did in fact cream when their music came out

Edit: humans aren’t fucking monkeys. Stop saying we are

#r/196 #r/196archive #196 #/r/196 #rule #meme #memes #shitpost #shitposting #music #rock #rock music #the Beatles #pink floyd #nirvana #foo fighters #the eagles #queen #led zeppelin #the rolling stones #metallica #red hot chili peppers #rhcp #guns n roses #backstreet boys #simon and garfunkel #the doors #Chicago #earth wind and fire #def leppard

[reasonsforhope]

Double dose of articles about how crime is actually plummeting

From the UK:

"Seventy-eight per cent of people in England and Wales think that crime has gone up in the last few years, according to the latest survey. But the data on actual crime shows the exact opposite.

As of 2024, violence, burglary and car crime have been declining for 30 years and by close to 90%, according to the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) – our best indicator of true crime levels. Unlike police data, the CSEW is not subject to variations in reporting and recording.

The drop in violence includes domestic violence and other violence against women. Anti-social behaviour has similarly declined. While increased fraud and computer misuse now make up half of crime, this mainly reflects how far the rates of other crimes have fallen.

All high-income countries have experienced similar trends, and there is scientific consensus that the decline in crime is a real phenomenon.

The perception gap

So why is there such a gulf between public perception and the reality of crime trends? A regular YouGov poll asks respondents for their top three concerns from a broad set of issues. Concern about crime went from a low in 2016 (when people were more concerned with Brexit), quadrupled by 2019 and plummeted during the pandemic when people had other worries. But in the last year, the public’s concern about crime has risen again.

There are many possible explanations for this, of which the first is poor information. A study published in 1998 found that “people who watch a lot of television or who read a lot of newspapers will be exposed to a steady diet of crime stories” that does not reflect official statistics.

The old news media adage “if it bleeds, it leads” reflects how violent news stories, including crime increases and serious crimes, capture public attention. Knife crime grabs headlines in the UK, but our shock at individual incidents is testament to their rarity and our relative success in controlling violence – many gun crimes do not make the news in the US.

Most recent terrorist attacks in the UK have featured knives (plus a thwarted Liverpool bomber), but there is little discussion of how this indicates that measures to restrict guns and bomb-making resources are effective."

-via The Conversation, May 13, 2024

And the United States:

"[The United States experienced a spike in crime rates in 2020, during the pandemic.] But in 2023, crime in America looked very different.

"At some point in 2022 — at the end of 2022 or through 2023 — there was just a tipping point where violence started to fall and it just continued to fall," said Jeff Asher, a crime analyst and co-founder of AH Datalytics.

In cities big and small, from both coasts, violence has dropped.

"The national picture shows that murder is falling. We have data from over 200 cities showing a 12.2% decline ... in 2023 relative to 2022," Asher said, citing his own analysis of public data. He found instances of rape, robbery and aggravated assault were all down too.

Yet when you ask people about crime in the country, the perception is it's getting a lot worse.

A Gallup poll released in November found 77% of Americans believed there was more crime in the country than the year before. And 63% felt there was either a "very" or "extremely" serious crime problem — the highest in the poll's history going back to 2000.

So what's going on?

What the cities are seeing

What you see depends a lot on what you're looking at, according to Asher.

"There's never been a news story that said, 'There were no robberies yesterday, nobody really shoplifted at Walgreens,'" he said.

"Especially with murder, there's no doubt that it is falling at [a] really fast pace right now. And the only way that I find to discuss it with people is to talk about what the data says." ...

For cities like San Francisco, Baltimore and Minneapolis, there may be different factors at play [in crime declining]. And in some instances, it comes as the number of police officers declines too.

Baltimore police are chronically short of their recruitment goal, and as of last September had more than 750 vacant positions, according to a state audit report...

In Minneapolis, police staffing has plummeted. According to the Star Tribune, there are about 560 active officers — down from nearly 900 in 2019. Mannix said the 2020 police killing of George Floyd resulted in an unprecedented exodus from the department...

In Minneapolis, the city is putting more financial resources into nontraditional policing initiatives. The Department of Neighborhood Safety, which addresses violence through a public health lens, received $22 million in the 2024 budget."

-via NPR, February 12, 2024

#crime #violate crime #united kingdom #england #wales #united states #us politics #baltimore #san francisco #police #defund the police #good news #hope

[jacksoldsideblog]

On the loss of the worker class and the lack of hypocrisy in Project Mayhem

"What," he says, "what will you wish you'd done before you died?"

...

My job, I say. I wish I'd quit my job.

...

The mechanic starts talking, and it's pure Tyler Durden. 

"I see the strongest and the smartest men who have ever lived," he says, his face outlined against the stars in the driver's window, "and these men are pumping gas and waiting tables." 

The drop of his forehead, his brow, the slope of his nose, his eyelashes and the curve of his eyes, the plastic profile of his mouth, talking, these are all outlined in black against the stars. 

"If we could put these men in training camps and finish raising them. 

"All a gun does is focus an explosion in one direction. 

"You have a class of young strong men and women, and they want to give their lives to something. Advertising has these people chasing cars and clothes they don't need. Generations have been working in jobs they hate, just so they can buy what they don't really need. 

"We don't have a great war in our generation, or a great depression, but we do, we have a great war of the spirit. We have a great revolution against the culture. The great depression is our lives. We have a spiritual depression. 

"We have to show these men and women freedom by enslaving them, and show them courage by frightening them. 

"Napoleon bragged that he could train men to sacrifice their lives for a scrap of ribbon. 

"Imagine, when we call a strike and everyone refuses to work until we redistribute the wealth of the world. 

"Imagine hunting elk through the damp canyon forests around the ruins of Rockefeller Center.

"What you said about your job," the mechanic says, "did you really mean it?"

.

Chapters 18-19, Fight Club.

Well known, probably, for the facetious nature of stating there’s no war in the generation in the 90s as having no war when the Gulf war ‘ended’ in ‘91, and in ‘03 we’d be back in Iraq. Also known well for its inclusion in the movie. 

But like, what’s actually being said there, when you get past that?

You have: The working class of America was emaciated as jobs flew overseas and were rerouted to prison ‘labor’, rapidly deindustrializing the country and leaving those left behind to be shoved into bullshit jobs to create a consumer managerial class, a fangless servile underclass without real power to affect the day to day of society, and a very, very small remaining working class. People who once would have been integral to the function of society are now further alienated and reduced to consumers in a deindustrialized feedlot. All that’s left is the hopelessness, which everyone can see is a cataclysmic disease. A problem that has to be solved. You have such a severe loss of power, such strong alienation that fight club develops as a way to grasp even a sense of control and purpose.

You have: Men especially have been promised war and hard times as the catalyst for their own purpose, but now this generation has seen war, has seen hard times, and none of those promises are stacking up. The poisoning and bombing of civilians in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, doesn’t quite match with the image of righteously dying to end nazism. There is no sudden government program buying up the labor of the beleaguered man down on his luck, to create massive publics works projects and revitalize the surrounding world and economy, a la the New Deal. The propagandized images of the past have been tarnished. There is an acute sense of lack of purpose, lack of value. There is an acute sense of something needing to shift, something massive.

You have: a manufactured rejection of the working class, a debridement of labor, a world in which salary has no relation to the importance or effort of the work you do; there is no value.

He says, imagine; the American people revitalized to the power and importance of before. Strong and undistracted, no longer pacified by petty admittance to jobs with no purpose, no longer accepting of their devaluation, no longer allowing their importance in the world the predicted value of their ad-influenceable leanings. 

Imagine; you’re afraid of history, you cannot imagine crafting a better world, anyone with a concrete plan has been gunned down and removed from power and all you’re left with is limpdicked fools who sit around waiting for a miracle to happen. Imagine you can only see destroying this one and hoping what rises from the ashes will be better as the answer. 

He's an accelerationist; make everything worse, so bad, hit bottom so all you can do is rise. 

So: accelerate. Take the average wage slave, already stripped of true individuality in favor of corporate signage, already stripped of power, and push them farther. Imagine, you think, only will everyone be strong if they finally accept that they are weak. Become the opposite of free. Join a cult. Become nothing and no one. Manifest the death cult already intrinsic in society. Become the nexus of all of society’s ills. Push people into such inhumanity that they will inevitably revolt against you and learn the true value of themselves in the world. 

And try to collapse society. Accelerate the fall of finance. Hasten the destruction of society so it can blossom again.

So yeah, it’s like… I think Project Mayhem’s hypocrisies are on purpose, really. Self improvement is masturbation if you’re never going to actually make a difference. Self destruction is the only thing that will allow you to reach even a moment of perfection. Destroy what you were, let go, fucking take action for once, unfreeze, DO something. Project Mayhem is an advanced version of fight club; it promises actualization through destruction. It isn’t like, some happenstance thing that results in Tyler making the space monkeys what they are. 

I think it’s moreso simply the manifestation of the accelerationist aspect of Tyler’s anarchist, nihilist ideals. And like those two, it’s also a criticism. The monkeys do not drag themselves free. They still await orders. It is a failed, ill planned philosophy of a rabid dog.

#fight club #kind of wandered around here #but idk there's points floating around that I'll probably say better another day #also interesting to think about what happened after this disillusionment proliferating in the culture #namely the creation of such a heavily propagandized war that consent was manufactured and became uncriticizable #and further 'distractions' #as well as an immense push for misanthropy and doomerism #which a la the moral of fight club is the specific underpinning root which renders societal frustration nonfunctional

[we-are-inevitable]

Give me something from the restaurant au, any scene you really want to write <33

this is a little cheating because i’ve had this written for a while, but: here’s a little snip!

———

“Alright, great! So, that’s a number four, medium well, no mayo. For your side, do you want fries or a side salad, Sir?”

“What kind of fuckin’ question is that? It’s a burger. What kind of hippy-ass place serves a side salad with a burger?”

David Jacobs loves his job.

He does. This job, waiting tables at an expensive burger joint in the heart of Manhattan, is admittedly one of the better ones he’s had. Sure, he gets his fair share of shitty customers- like this rough and tumble wannabe cowboy, who no doubt got roped into his wife’s vacation to the Big Apple- but you get shitty customers everywhere. At every single restaurant he’s worked at, of which there are many, he’s had bad tables. Eight tops that only give him a meesely five dollars for a tip, macho guys who like pointing out that David’s ears are pierced and therefore he must be one of those queers, moms that bitch about how long food takes to get to the table even though he’s just sent the order in five minutes ago… Shitty customers are everywhere.

And David loves his job.

So, he nods, and smiles, and lets out his practiced-to-perfection laugh. “I know, right?” He says, looking the man in the eye. “Side salads at a burger restaurant? It doesn’t make any sense, but it’s policy to ask anyway. I’ll get that order in for you guys here in just a second, and it’ll be out shortly.”

The man with the bushy mustache and beer gut seems satisfied now that David has proven he’s not a hippy-ass who likes side salads, and he gives him a grunt of acknowledgement. David takes the menus, smiles at the table, and walks straight to the iPad in the corner next to the bar to send the order to the kitchen.

He’s just about to press the send button when he hears a voice to his side, high pitched and squeaky, say, “What kind of hippy-ass, liberal-ass, blue state, gay-ass restaurant serves a side salad with a burger? Do I look like one of them queers? Yeehaw, America, I wanna fuck my gun.”

David rolls his eyes as a laugh rips from his chest. He glances to the side and sees Albert there behind the bar, slinging a towel over his shoulder; Al has this cocky little smirk on his face, matching the awful southern accent he had just tried to do. So far, Albert is the first friend David has made here— he just started at this restaurant about two weeks ago, and Al latched onto him by his second day— and David is always thankful that the hostesses put him in the section closest to the bar. Albert makes the lunch rush bearable.

It takes David a second to stop giggling, but as his laughter dies down, he reaches over the bar and slaps Albert’s shoulder. “Fucking hell, I’m glad I wasn’t the only one who had to hear that. If I survive this table without shooting myself, you owe me a beer.”

“What’s his problem, anyway?” Albert asks, leaning with his palms against the cool mahogany of the bar. “Stick up his ass?”

“Wife dragged him to New York,” David responds, placing the menus from the table underneath the iPad stand, and he makes a note to let Smalls and Spot know that the menus in the back are ready to be brought up to the hostess stand. “The entire time I’m trying to take his fucking order, he’s all like, ugh, I hate this, these burgers better not be for pansies, this better be good like Texas burgers, and I’m just waiting there, like, okay, just give me your goddamn order already. I wanted to die, Albert.”

Albert snickers, then glances to the side and straightens up. “Well, don’t go dyin’ yet, Jacobs. You just got here, and I like you, so if you leave, I’ll have to kill you.” He grins again, then nods his head to the left. “Your four top on twelve looks like they’re ready for the check.”

David nods and taps the bar twice. “Thank fuck,” He says under his breath, and shoots Albert a tight, closed mouth grin. “I’ll be back to ruin your shift later.”

“Can’t wait.”

From then on, the rush takes over. Closing checks, pre-bussing tables, running food— it’s a madhouse in the restaurant for about two hours. David knew it would be. Pulitzer’s is conveniently located just a few blocks from Times Square, so the weekend rush is always awfully full of tourists, and it may suck in the moment, but David really likes it. It’s kind of fun, actually; in the few minutes of downtime he has on this job, he makes conversations with his tables, hears their stories. He gets to know them, even if he’s just a fleeting little nobody in the grand scheme of their trips.

At the steakhouse he used to serve in, he got to be part of a few proposals, which were always stressful but incredibly rewarding at the same time. Unlike a lot of his coworkers, he actually loves having little kids sat in his section, and as a professional big brother he enjoys joking around and listening to them babble on about whatever their mind deems important at that age. He talks to tourists about their travels, gives recommendations for hidden gems around the city, and makes them feel at home for the thirty to forty-five minutes he’s taking care of them for. It’s the least he can do, honestly.

And, well. The tips are always better when you add a personal touch.

That’s what this is about, right? The tips. The money. Working for pennies is bad enough, but working for tips is a game. You have to choose the right action, say the right words. Morph yourself into someone you’re not. Pretend you don’t like side salads and form an alliance with the mustachioed cowboy from Texas. Play up how many times you go to synagogue to please the Jewish grandma who comes in with the grandkids. Talk politics with republicans and hide the rainbow pin on your shirt collar.

David has experience at this. It doesn’t make him any less bitter.

#i LOVE THEM i love them. its so good #davey jacobs #david jacobs #newsies #livesies #ask a jac ! #newsies musical #newsies live #newsies broadway #albert dasilva #restaurant au #jac txt. #jac writes #newsies fic

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

New Rule: Whoa, Canada | Real Time with Bill Maher

And finally, New Rule. If we want to save our country, we should follow the advice good liberals have given for decades and learn from other countries.

Especially those beacons of progressivism like Canada, England, and Scandinavia, and I agree we should, as long as we're honest about the lessons we're learning. And as long as we're up to date on the current data. Such as, the unemployment rate in the US is 3.8 percent. And in Canada, it's 6.1. And of the 15 North American cities with the worst air pollution, 14 are in Canada.

I'm not citing these stats because I have it out for Canada. I love Canada, and its people, and always have, but I hate zombie lies. Zombie lies. That's when things change but what people say about them doesn't. Yes, for decades, places like Vancouver, and Amsterdam, and Stockholm seemed idyllic, because everything was free and all the energy we needed was produced by riding a bike to your job at the windmill. Canada was where all the treasured goals of liberalism worked perfectly. It was like NPR come to life but with poutine.

Canada was the Statue of Liberty with a low-maintenance haircut and cross-country skis. A giant idealized blue state with single-payer health care, gun control, and abortion on polite demand. Canada was where every woke White college kid, wearing pajama pants outdoors who'd had it up to here with America's racist patriarchy, dreamt of living someday. I mean, besides Gaza.

There's only one problem with thinking everything's better in Canada. It's not. Not anymore anyway. Last year, Canada added 1.3 million people, which is a lot in one year. The equivalent of the US adding 11 million migrants in one year. And now, they are experiencing a housing crisis even worse than ours. And we're sleeping in tents. The median price of a home here is 346 grand, in Canada, converted to US dollars, it's 487. If Barbie moved to Winnipeg, she wouldn't be able to afford her dream house and Ken would be working at Tim Hortons. And because of mortgage debt, Canada has the highest debt to GDP ratio of any G7 nation. I don't know what that means, but it sounds bad.

So does their vaunted health care system, which ranks dead last among high income countries in access to primary health care and ability to see a doctor in a day or two. And it's not for lack of spending. Of the 30 countries with universal coverage, Canada spends over 13 percent of its economy on it, which is a lot of money for free health care.

Look, I'm not saying Canada still isn't a great country. It is, but those aren't paradise numbers. If Canada was an apartment, the lead feature might be "America adjacent." And if America was a rental car, Canada would be "America or similar."

And again, honestly, Canada, I'm not saying any of this 'cause I enjoy it. I don't, 'cause I've always enjoyed you. But I need to cite you as a cautionary tale to help my country. And the moral of that tale is, "Yes, you can move too far left." And when you do, you wind up pushing the people in the middle to the right. At its worst, Canada is what American voters think happens when there's no one putting a check on extreme wokeness.

Like the saga of Canadian shop teacher, Kayla Lemieux, whose pronouns are she/her and those. Kayla is now back to being a guy named Kerry, but two years ago when "they" showed up to teach children, the progressive high school "they" taught at said that they-- They, the school, not the person. Really? You couldn't have found another word? We were using that one. Anyway, okay. They were committed to a safe environment for gender expression. Safe for who? What about the children? What about the equipment in that shop class?

You know, there was once a weirdo D-list movie producer in the '60s named Russ Meyer who made low-budget B movies like Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! And Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. Always featuring women who look like this. His movies played in porn houses and were featured in Hustler and Playboy. Okay, fine, but who says, "No, when it comes to huge, ridiculous tits, let's save that for the kids."

And this is why people vote for Trump. They say in politics, liberals are the gas pedal and conservatives are the brakes, and I'm generally with the gas pedal, but not if we're driving off a cliff.

On the trans issue, America is no ands, ifs, or buts about it, absolutely alone in the world now. An outlier country. Last month, England's National Health Service announced that there's "not enough evidence to support the safety or clinical effectiveness" of puberty blockers for third graders, and that they were going to stop fumbling around with children's privates, because that's Prince Andrew's job.

So too with all the other good place countries in direct opposition to America's choice to affirm children's wishes on switching gender, no matter the age or psychiatric history. The Far Left, which always like to use, "Well, Europe does it." Yeah, no, that doesn't work on this one anymore.

Or on immigration. Sweden opened its borders to over a million and a half immigrants since 2010. And now 20 percent of its citizens are foreign-born and its education system is tanking, and it has Europe's highest rate of gangland killings. And one result is that the far-right parties are in the government now there for the first time.

To which liberals say, "Blaming immigrants for the rising crime rate is racist." Yeah, but is it true? Of course, it's true. It's not a coincidence. The quality of life went down after the Somali gangs started a drug turf war using hand grenades.

Calling it "racist" doesn't solve the problem. It hands future elections to someone who will solve the problem, and who, I promise, you're not going to like.

==

For the record, I've said literally all of this, including making the comparison of flying off a cliff if you rely entirely on the gas pedal. Just saying.

When Trump takes office again, and he will, people will act stunned and ask, "how could this have ever happened?"

#Bill Maher #Real Time with Bill Maher #immigration #gender ideology #medical scandal #Canada #Sweden #Somali gangs #medical corruption #religion is a mental illness

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

by David Hume Kennerly

* * *

PLEASE DON’T THANK ME FOR MY SERVICE THIS VETERAN’S DAY

NOV 11, 2023

Please don't thank me for my "service." I was in the military, not the "Service." Service is doing something good. Service is what the person does who fixes your car. When the word "service" is applied to the military, it helps to justify violence as a method for conflict resolution. Like "defending our freedom," or "bringing democracy," the word "service" is used to lower the barriers of aggression. The military solution to conflict is death and destruction. That's not "service." Call it what it is - the military. If you have to hurt someone to solve a problem, you are the Problem. -- Arnold Stieber, US Army Veteran, 1970

I have absolutely no problem understanding exactly what Mr. Stieber wrote above, “back in the day,” with the white-hot heat of youth and the thorough pissed-offness of someone who had seen the side of life nobody ever wants to see. It’s the attitude I came home with from that same war, five years before he did.

I’ve never really gotten used to the new tradition of the past 30 years, for civilians - on discovering they are in the presence of someone who served in the military, - to say “Thank you for your service.” I have very mixed emotions about that. On the one hand, it’s nice that maybe a fourth of them have a clue why they’re saying what they are, that it isn’t merely the mouthing of polite words. On the other hand, I’m not sure why anyone would want to thank someone who served in the war I served in, or the ones that followed.

The war in Vietnam made everything in America worse. For just one thing, it harmed the economy when the government adopted a policy of both “guns” and “butter,” which led to the severe inflation of the 1970s, which gave companies looking for any way to reduce costs to start taking a hard line on employee compensation, which leaves us in the condition where the average American working stiff now makes less in terms of buying power than they did 50 years ago, I don’t know about you, but I’m not up to thanking anyone for that.

Of course, thinking further on this leads one to the obvious conclusion that it wasn’t the kids who got drafted who did any of that. They weren’t sitting in the halls of government thinking about how to distract the citizenry from the fact that this particular imperial war was going bad in all ways, and coming up with the idea of keeping taxes down in a period of increased government spending for things that go “BOOM!” while making sure they could get that new car every three years like they always did. Those decisions are the ones that led to the situation I mentioned above. Made by guys who mostly never got shot at, even in the war they did serve in.

In my experience during my time in the Navy and the years after knowing other vets and working with them, there were very few of us who “wanted” to go to war. Most of my fellow sailors were in the Navy because they figured joining the Navy and getting trained for a good job and “seeing the world” beat the daylights out of being in the Army, so much so it was worth a couple extra years over the two years a draftee served. Ditto the Air Force. Even the Marines were forced to start taking draftees after 1966, when they ran low on guys who believed what John Wayne told them in “Sands of Iwo Jima.”

As close as anyone got to “wanting” to go was when those of us who had joined before the war received the first orders sending us to the war. As my friend Phil Caputo wrote in “A Rumor of War” (a “Vietnam book” you should read), when he learned he and his fellow Marines were headed to DaNang in South Vietnam in 1965, “I thought to myself that when it was over and I went home, I’d be able to look my Tarawa-veteran father in the eye.” I know many others - including me, son of the guy who survived the Kamikazes - the sons of the “greatest generation” who had grown up with all the stories about our father’s “good war,” who “played war” with the cast-off gear from that war, who had similar thoughts.

Vietnam was the last war fought with draftees, and you can bet your bottom dollar today’s leaders will never go back to that system. The draft made everyone think about the war, whether they had to worry about getting drafted out of whatever working class job they had (or didn’t have); even the kids with student deferments had to think about the war when they didn’t work hard enough to keep their grades up and maintain their 2-S status. Mothers and fathers and aunts and uncles and brothers and sisters and friends all had to worry about someone they knew and loved going off to that war. Whether they “supported the president” or came to understand that the war wasn’t worth the loss of that life they knew and loved, they came in the middle of the night to hate the war. And eventually that made itself known in politics. The makers of war became constrained in the war they could make by the lack of support from those who gave them their jobs with their votes.

I’ll tell you something. After I came back, I did all I could to end that draft. But I would be very happy to see it brought back today.

No deferments. The sons and daughters of the rich serve right alongside the sons and daughters of the poor - like they did in World War II. It’ll make the entitled little shits into something better. And it really does unify - it’s hard to hate people you know by name.

But mostly I’m in favor of that because it makes it almost impossible for “They” to decide to fight a 20 year war in Afghanistan, or Iraq. They can’t do it because too many people will be paying attention. And getting pissed off at them. And voting.

But no, for exactly the reasons I am for the draft, the “all-volunteer” army is here to stay. You can’t fight 20-year wars in hellholes nobody knows without it. That way, only about 1-2 percent of the population ever has to think about the war - the kids who join up because they don’t have a future that looks better than what the military offers, their families, their friends - not a big enough group that if they got upset they could muster any political changes, unlike all those folks 50 years ago.

Most of all, if you’re going to thank me or any of us for our service, don’t try to honor us as “heroes.” For one thing, most of us aren’t, and for another, if you haven’t been in the military you really have no idea what being a hero in that context actually is.

It’s not what you think it is.

An old Navy Chief once explained “being a hero” to me: “When you’re so terrified that your brain is so frozen you can’t think, and you’ve pissed your pants and shit your drawers, and you just know you’re going to die, and you still do your job - THAT is being a hero.”

Not the definition too many in our society nowadays want to hear.

“But, Tom,” you say, “don’t you write all these best-selling books about wars and heroes? You must really love war to think about it so much.”

If you have gotten anything even remotely like that from reading any of my books, you really need to reconsider that decision not to take that remedial course in reading comprehension.

Yes, I do honor those out there in the mud and the blood and the ooze. And I appreciate knowing the ones who were out there in the mud and the blood and the ooze and survived to come back to the world of the living. That’s because their willingness to do that has a lot to do with why there is that world of the living to come back to.

Or at least that’s true in the World War II books. That’s the last war that could be divided into the Good Guys and the Bad Guys.

Except it kind of can’t. I’ve known too many guys who served on “the other side” who are just as nice - if not nicer - than anyone I have met from “the good side.”

In fact some of them must be better than anyone who served on this side. That’s a small list. But every guy who served in Vietnam and then had the opportunity to later meet the people they were trying to kill at the time, has met people who have been willing to forgive them for My Lai and Agent Orange and Rolling Thunder and all the rest of it, and offer friendship. And the ones on that side who I have been privileged to meet are definitely honorable men.

A late friend of mine who was a leading ace in “the good war” once told me when we were at a convention of those guys and the honored guests at the event were the guys who they’d been out to kill: “The secret nobody knows is, we always thought the guys we were fighting were the only ones who knew what we were going through. We actually thought we were closer to them than to the other people who were on our side.” I’ve heard similar sentiments from former infantrymen as well as former fliers, so it’s not some “guild of the elite” or “honorable brotherhood.”

Although it probably is an “honorable brotherhood.” The brotherhood of people who were willing to do what it took to defend what they loved - and believe it or not that even applies to the Germans; most of them knew as much about the “larger issues” going on, the terrible things, as any young guy in the US military did in the war I fought. And when they did find out, they were shocked too. The people who did the terrible things tried to keep them secret from everyone else, because they knew they were doing terrible things.

My friend Jim Wright, who’s become well-known in social media in recent years for some straight-shooting talk from a retired Chief Warrant Officer, wrote:

“Mostly we veterans are just people who came when called and did our best under terrible circumstances.”

I’ll end with a quote from a guy who did know what it took to do all that stuff:

“Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children. This is not a way of life at all in any true sense. Under the clouds of war, it is humanity hanging on a cross of iron.”

― Dwight D. Eisenhower, Soldier, General, President

[TCinLa :: Thats Another Fine Mess]

#war #the draft #history #Vietnam #soldiers #veterans #thank you for your service #the military #the military industrial complex #Dwight D. Eisenhower #TCinLA #Thats Another Fine Mess

[trans-girl-nausicaa]

Top five favorite guns?

5. Dragunov SVD. Soviet-era design semiautomatic sniper rifle! I mean, what’s not to like?

4. Kriss Vector. High tech pistol-caliber carbine design from outer space. I love the cool recoil mitigation system. Recoil mitigation is important to consider not just for follow-up shots, but also user experience and reducing discomfort and fatigue!

3. Glock 43x in 9mm. One of the best concealed carry guns in my opinion. It’s a perfect size: The grip is just large enough for a medium-sized hand, it has just enough weight and barrel length for decent recoil and accuracy, and it has a capacity of 10 rounds (+1 in the chamber) which is p decent. You can also still install a red dot sight and a weapon light on it which are huge pluses. And of course it’s a Glock which is a famously reliable brand (which I can back up with my own experience).

2. Glock 19 in 9mm. I love this gun. Slightly larger than a 43x in basically every dimension except for the grip which is significantly larger due to the double-stack magazine for a higher capacity. Good accuracy, good recoil, compatible with a wide variety of red dot sights and weapon lights, fits great in my hand & would probably be fine with even larger hands than me. Comes with multiple backstraps to adjust the grip too. Default capacity is 15+1 but it also accepts 17 round Glock 17 magazines as well as the 33 round fun sticks if you’re feeling really spicy. Suitable for competition, carry, range fun. I actually carry a glock 19 concealed which some people find bonkers because it’s technically a “subcompact” so it’s on the larger side for a concealed gun but tbh for my body shape I find it reasonably comfortable and I have never had a problem with concealment.

1. AR-15. I mean, they’re the LEGO of guns. You can build one to a wide variety of specs, there’s a huge variety of high-quality parts manufacturers, and even if you just buy a complete rifle there is a shitload of aftermarket support and you can always buy new parts to upgrade or replace shit real easy. Good ergonomics, easy to operate controls, reliable (when you have good quality parts), on average they have relatively low recoil with 5.56, not super heavy (unless you add a shitload of accessories LOL), easy to troubleshoot and disassemble, and suitable for a wide variety of applications. You can run one with a long barrel for precision, you can get a .300 Blackout upper with subsonic ammo and a silencer and run a super quiet one, you can use one for hunting, you can use one for home defense.

I know some leftists love AKs, but if you live in America, the AR is a much more practical choice in terms of parts and ammo and high quality parts manufacturers. If you’ve only shot AKs, you gotta try out an AR. They’re just downright easier to use, you can operate them faster than the AK design. Also, to the people who say that AKs are more reliable than ARs? I would counter by saying that ARs are actually very reliable. There’s lots of torture testing you can look up on youtube. The AK has loose tolerances, but the tight design of the AR actually does a good job of keeping dirt and foreign matter out of it. And you can run an AR pretty dirty as long as you keep it lubricated. Does not really need to be cleaned that often. There’s even a product you can buy online that’s a lubricant bottle that stows away inside of the pistol grip.

#guns #long post

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked efforts by Senate Democrats to pass an assault weapons ban and universal background checks legislation after the United States over the weekend broke the record for the most mass shootings in a single year.

Republican Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) objected to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-N.Y.) request for unanimous consent to pass the assault weapons ban, despite the pleas of Democratic senators who took to the Senate floor to cite the harrowing statistics of gun violence in America.

“The scourge of gun violence in America is a national crisis. The American people are sick and tired of enduring one mass shooting after another. They’re sick and tired of vigil and moments of silence for family, friends, classmates, coworkers,” Schumer argued on the Senate floor.

The assault weapons ban, originally sponsored by the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), would ban semiautomatic rifles with pistol grips, forward grips and folding or telescoping stocks, as well as rifles outfitted with grenade launchers, barrel shrouds or threaded barrels to allow for noise and flash suppressors to be attached.

But Barrasso argued that the Democratic-drafted bill would infringe on the Second Amendment and deprive law-abiding gun owners of an important liberty.

“Americans have a constitutional right to own a firearm. Every day, people across Wyoming responsibly use their Second Amendment rights to keep and bear arms,” he said. “Democrats are demanding that the American people give up their liberty.”

He said that Democrats are trying to ban many types of semiautomatic firearms “because of the way they look.”

He asserted that popular rifles such as AR-15s “work the same way as popular shotguns and other rifles used for hunting and personal protection.”

“The Second Amendment is freedom’s essential safeguard. Without it, there can be no liberty and there can be no security. So Mr. President, I object.”

Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy (Conn.) later stood up on the floor to ask for unanimous consent to pass legislation to require universal background checks for firearms purchases.

“We don’t have more mental illness in this country, we don’t spend less money on law enforcement, we don’t have angrier people, we have more guns, and we are much more permissive in this country about allowing felons, dangerous people, to get their hands on guns,” he said.

A Gallup poll conducted in June 2022 found that 92% of Americans favor requiring background checks for all firearm sales.

“This just feels like a test of democracy. It really does. Like, how does democracy survive if 90% of Americans, 90% of Republicans, 90% of Democrats want something, and we can’t deliver it?” Murphy asked before he asked for unanimous consent to pass the background checks bill.

Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee took to the floor immediately to object.

“I want to note at the outset we’re not asked to vote in this chamber on polling questions. We vote on legislation,” he said.

He said the legislation to expand background checks “has some real problems with it.”

“This is not solely about transactions involving guns at gun stores. This is about the father who wishes to pass down a hunting rifle to his son or the friend who wants to lend a shotgun to his neighbor who is in need of protection at the time,” Lee said before objecting to Murphy’s request.

#us politics #news #the hill #us senate #senate republicans #assault weapons ban #gun violence #gun rights #mass shootings #gun regulation #gun reform #2023 #Sen. John Barrasso #sen. Chuck Schumer #Sen. Dianne Feinstein #Sen. Chris Murphy #2nd amendment #Sen. Mike Lee

[super-hero-confessions]

i want to take a moment to talk about the "whiteness" in the superhero genre.

not in anger or anything like that, this isn't really a rant. it's more of a run on thought than anything. but due to the ongoing calls, trends or whatever else proposing or promoting different forms of censorship, or even the schisms that fandoms seem to like creating between "canon" and "fanon". i wanted to try addressing this the best i could.

i don't mean how the characters are traditionally or predominantly white. while that is a conversation to have on its own, it mostly ends with "the industry was fucked up for a long time and is still kind of fucked up".

when i say "whiteness" in this context, i mean it through a story lens. "whitewashing" a story, "watering it down", i've seen it called "disneywashing", creating a "rose-tinted lens", etc.

in essence, boiling down or censoring a story so it's more "mainstream" or "comfortable" for what is essentially "white america" or white americans. people who are used to and brought up to expect a sort of "feel good" storytelling style with a happy ending where the perceived "hero" wins.

just to be clear, i am not blaming white americans for existing or being brought up with this sort of thing, nobody gets to choose their reality before they have to live it.

but that's sort of the problem.

as far as the superhero genre goes, the boys does a really good job at bringing attention to this issue. the comics especially are excellent for making a point of this.

"but the real reason you won't hear about it is cause the public don't wanna know about it."

with the g-men saga, they make it a point to show that even with "representation" for people of color, it's still often done in a "whitewashed" lens for "white america" in a way that "white americans" will understand and be comfortable with. in a way where black people or other people of color are presented how white people perceive them to be, or how they "should" be. as more caricatures than humanized people.

abducted black kids are expected to conform to "black behavior" as part of a "black" super group, under instruction and supervision from a white man. one of those kids even expresses his unhappiness with that situation and what's expected of him when he never got to choose that path.

with transwomen, we're shown how they get fetishized or disregarded. disrespected or made invalid when they haven't fully transitioned or are "clockable" in any sort of way. when they aren't the "right" type of transwoman for the "mainstream". even what women in prostitution may have to deal with, not limited to transwomen.

one of hughie's friends, big bobbi, is a big, muscular transwoman. she's a bit of an asshole with the brightest, most fun personality, and beautifully flamboyant fashion sense you have ever seen. she can't afford the care that would allow her to transition. but it doesn't matter what other people around her think of that, she still chooses to be herself. and if they object, it's their problem not hers.

she's valid no matter what they say and she's amazing for it.

we are shown harsh realities that real people may have to face or make choices on. realities that white people, especially americans, aren't really comfortable with seeing or acknowledging the existence of. like a sort of strange untold rule that if you don't personally see something, then it somehow can't exist or "goes away".

the show i think in some ways is more subtle, but also goes further in others. it's certainly more brutal and gory than the comic, although that may just be inherent with live-action footage being far more visceral than a drawn stylistic comic panel ever could be.

however, you can't really get more descript or direct than the scene where a-train is talking about his childhood and how he discovered his powers.

he's told, by the white director getting his story, to make his story "a tad more upbeat" and leave out the gun violence.

he's told directly, to censor his own life so it's more comfortable for the "right audience". he is clearly uncomfortable with this fact but goes along with it because he knows who he works for.

this kind of thing isn't limited to the superhero genre at all, although it is painfully obvious how interwoven with the mcu this has become (the now antithesis of the spirit behind the source material and even original direction), it can also be very obvious between american media and foreign media. or even white made media and black made media.

"the color purple" is a good example as well.

again, to be clear, there's nothing wrong with feel good stories or happy endings. there's nothing wrong with liking or preferring that sort of stuff.

but the fact is this.

people who aren't "white america" or the "right target audience" may live and have to face these harsh realities. may even feel seen and heard when they see these realities talked about or well portrayed in media. may feel just as good from the feel good stories and happy endings as the next person.

but at the end of the day, we don't get to come back to a feel good life or rose-tinted reality. we have to go back to our own and are expected to remain as quiet and unseen about it as ever. for the comfort of the people who don't want to see or hear that we exist.

from a personal place, it can feel pretty fucking invalidating and painful to see people complain about the harsh realities i have to face as "unrealistic" or "unnecessary" because they personally have never seen or faced such a reality and thus were "forced" to acknowledge it for a few seconds of their life.

except they didn't have to look.

that's what content warnings and disclaimers are for, right? to give people a choice and protect those who might be triggered by it.

and maybe they were "unnecessary", that is generally the nature of injustice and hardship. but i, and many others, still had to live through them.

the reality is that a call for censorship is a call for expulsion of anything that doesn't fit with the "white american" or "right" world filter. more often than not, silencing victims.

telling them "your story's not okay to tell because it makes me uncomfortable" when you didn't have to stick around and listen or watch their story.

no one "forced" you to sit down and stay. you could have just kept moving along and found one of the thousands of other pieces of media made for you and people like you.

but most importantly, it's not about "you". it wasn't made for "you".

and it doesn't have to be.

it goes even further with "canon" and "fanon". the point of fanfiction is for fans to take their favorite characters in the media they like and create their own stories however they want to.

in spirit?

this is a beautiful, wonderful, incredible thing to see. it's media and artists inspiring more creativity and artists. it's people having fun. it's people playing with art freely.

but like anything, it's not without its flaws.

there's absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to save a favorite character or "rewrite" a story your own way. yeah, sometimes "canon" writers can drop the ball or even make very stupid messes. whether narrative inconsistencies, badly executed twists, there's room for critique for them too.

that's not the problem with "fanon".

the problem is that many of the fans participating in "fanon" that is built are still fundamentally "white america" or from similarly founded societies. they are still people raised or indoctrinated in a form of purity culture and pro-censorship ideas that ultimately silence and talk over marginalized groups.

i was raised in that kind setting too, so i get it. i was raised to be silent.

and it is so difficult to realize, self actualize, and to break out of it. i am still working through it. your own world views and core beliefs falling apart right in front of you is no cake walk. it hurts to know you've been lied to your entire life and have to acknowledge it.

and i think freedom in fiction, fanfiction, art, expression, and more are really just a few of those things that have the right foundation to build on and help people break out of that.

but not when the same ideas get recycled and repeated and reinforced, just with new packaging.

people of color. but portrayed through the lens of "white america". although i won't say it's limited to "white america" because there is racism all over the world that presents itself in different forms depending on where you go.

there's nothing wrong with practicing the features of people from other cultures and countries. nothing wrong with referencing and actually doing facial studies. that should be encouraged and cherished, not shut down. but it takes listening to the voices, experiences, and critiques of the people in those groups before we actually see good representation.

lots and lots of lgbtqia+ content made by fans out there. but also portrayed through the lens of "white america", or filtered and censored in a way that makes straight people with a kink feel more comfortable than people who are actually lgbtqia+.

the boys show even did a scene to showcase that too. when ashley tells maeve and elena that audiences will react better to their relationship if there are "clear cut gender roles" and that two "feminine lesbians" would be seen as a "problematic" image.

that's "heteronormativity". even the way that fandoms tend to use the words "twink" or "babygirl". it goes without saying that the way these fandoms, predominantly cisgender heterosexual women, define or redefine "men" and "masculinity" for gay ships ends up being one of the biggest promoters and perpetuators for toxic masculinity i have ever seen.

speculating the sexuality of real people, actors or actresses, based on the random things they like or do and how "masculine" the women or "feminine" the men are is no different than "transvestigating", something only transphobes do.

if we're trying to normalize free expression regardless of gender, this is not how you do it.

i really don't think i should have to spell out how fandom repackages this and perpetuates it further. if you know, you know already, but for those that don't?

switching, interracial relationships, and two "masculine gays" are going to be among your most rarely explored (not kinks) themes in fanfiction.

it doesn't make people wrong or bad to want to explore kinks their own way either. there is nothing wrong with preferring a "top" and "bottom" or having a "dom" and "sub" kink. writing fanfiction should feel safe for the author and readers alike. do what makes you happy, just make sure to tag it correctly.

but i've also seen people put that they are trans or whatever in the author's notes to specify that they write from personal experience to prevent getting attacked for "inaccuracy". let's not ignore that issue, absolutely no one should be getting harassed or attacked over fiction (this includes canon writers).

it just goes to show that "white america" doesn't just have the habit of silencing and speaking over minorities in their own work. the people often hurling out those attacks? "white americans".

the people i see most try to use personal victimhood to censor other people, including victims? "white americans".

i've seen way too many fans promote a bubble of "fanon" while complaining or dismissing "canon", not because of actual narrative inconsistencies or issues with the writing, but because the detail may make them "uncomfortable" or "unhappy".

so they "whitewash" their favorite characters to not have those "flaws". i don't mean create an "au" where their favorite character can, alternatively, not have committed that war crime or groomed someone. i mean they personally absolve and ignore whatever the character did so they don't have to feel "guilty" about liking them.

please stop feeling guilty over fiction. it doesn't matter what the least educated people on the planet say, it's not real and has no bearing on who you are as a person whether you like the villain or not.

what does have a bearing? whether or not you are willing to dismiss or acknowledge what the villain does when your reaction to their actions should be your reminder that "you" are a human.

and again, we can not choose the realities we are born into or how we are brought up. but we can become aware of the world that is around us. and in making ourselves aware, we can also choose whether or not we participate and contribute to those segregated "realities".

societal and fandom awareness, or lack there of, are the problem. but censorship is not a solution. censorship can only exacerbate this.

this isn't some sort of cry to shut down criticism either. on the contrary, we can't have proper critique on media, good or bad, we can't have nuanced discussions when censorship reigns. that is a huge part of what this whole thing even is.

but with censorship? we can have victims who feel marginalized, insulted, and silenced because their personal experiences and harsh realities were deemed "inappropriate" or "unsafe" for the "right" kind of people, thereby leaving them as the "wrong" kind of people.

content warnings and informed viewer consent are what protect people.

censorship only has the goal of being divisive and filtering "people" from "scum".

"whiteness" is just another pervasive, invasive way for people to keep pretending that everything is "fine", but only for the "right" type of people.

we all have a choice to listen. and we all deserve a choice to speak up. but no one should be silenced.

trauma does not come with a nondisclosure agreement, please stop acting like it does.

#confession #superheroes

[sorrowfulrosebud]

I have so many questions

1) what does a New York accent sound like to you? Like try writing a casual sentence that u normally say, then type it out how you think I might say it.

ex: hol' up ima throw this shit out real quick -> I'm going to put this in the bin

2) do British schools do lock down drills? Idk cus it's less of a problem there

(If u dont know, it's when the class turns out the lights and hides at the back of the classroom where they cant be seen through the lil window on the door. Basically going over what to do in case of a shooter. Kind of like a fire drill

Ive been hella confused about this. What do you call the levels of education? Do u call high school "college"?

OOOO I LIKE THIS ASK

1. A very popular saying in the uk is “chuffed to bits”. This is basically means that you’re really proud of something. Its antonym is “miffed”, which means disappointment. So maybeeee

Oh my gawd, I’m so fuckin’ proud o’ ya!

↬ I’m chuffed to bits

2. We don’t have lockdown drills. We only have fire alarm practices. I’ve never had to practice in the event of a tragic emergency since in the UK, you have to go through a lengthy process to get a gun license (it’s only usually farmers who are allowed to get them).

The school education in America seems a little confusing too, like wtf is a sophomore??

Okay so

Nursery: 0-5

Reception: 5-6

Primary school: 6-11

Secondary school or comprehensive school: 11-16

College/sixth form: 16-18

[romancomicsnews]

Marvel's Secret Invasion wastes potential & fantastic actors - REVIEW

I'll be honest, the announcement of Secret Invasion being adapted into a Marvel television series was somewhat disappointing. After seeing this story successfully adapted through Avenger's Earth Mightiest Heroes, and with the MCU's ever growing roster of heroes, it felt like a story well suited for the big screen.

None the less, when it was revealed to be an espionage thriller centered around Nick Fury, with the feel of Captain America the Winter Soldier, I was very excited.

As the cast grew, Ben Mendelson, Emilia Clarke, Cobie Smulders, Don Cheadle, Olivia Coleman, Kingsley Ben-Adir, I thought this show was going to be something very special.

Unfortunately, while most MCU shows have been a mixed bag, none have been more mixed baggier than Secret Invasion.

Before I get anymore deep into this rant, I must say:

SPOILERS AHEAD FOR ALL OF SECRET INVASION.

I will say a few nice things to start.

Excellent Actors

Although I think many of these actors were wasted as far as how much screen time they had, and their role within their show, the show is ridiculously stacked with talent and it's a delight to watch.

Olivia Colman, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Don Cheadle and Ben Mendelson are highlights to me, but Samuel L Jackson, Emilia Clarke, and others are also fantastic.

Colman as Sonya I think will leave this show as a fan favorite, and possible eventual successor to Fury. She has a good mix of fun energy and intimidation, and clearly is having a ball.

Don Cheadle's "Rhodey" is for once doing something interesting in this show. As a secondary antagonist, Cheadle is able to chew up scenery as a Skrull and be a sinister rival to Samuel L Jackson, for once using Cheadle's fantastic acting skills properly.

While Gravik is an ordinary Marvel villain by all means, Ben-Adir gives him an anger and viewpoint that feels fresh. His monologue facing Fury in the final episode really brings the pain out for me. I don't know if he'll work as a character for others, but for me, due to the performance, Gravik is a step above many others.

Solid Ending

Secret Invasion ends on some very interesting notes, and I think overall sticks the landing where other MCU shows fail.

Wrapping up the story of Gravik with a giant Super-Skrull fight (which was a lot of fun), it leaves the MCU in a very interesting place, with the President calling on all aliens to be considered enemies.

This leaves assassinations running rampant, Skrulls on the run, and people anxious and scared.

This leaves Sonya and a new super G'iah as uneasy allies to protect the Skrulls and mankind.

This also pushes Fury to keep his promise and go up to Saber to continue his mission with his wife.

Overall, I like this ending. It sets up good stakes for earth that aren't just multiversal stakes. We can feel the ramifications of this show for years to come, and seeing what Fury, Sonya, and G'iah do next does excite me.

Plus, who doesn't love a Super Skrull fight?

Excellent Complicated Love Story

I think often where reviews and reviewers fall short is complaining about what a show isn't as opposed to examining a show for what it is.

While part of me thinks this isn't the time for a Nick Fury love story, I also have to point out that this is a great love story.

Charlayne Woodard as Nick Fury's wife Varra/Priscilla Davis adds an excellent layer to Fury's character.

While the chemistry is there, the acting performance between these two were captivating. There is an excellent scene where you have no idea what each character might do, guns on the table, talking about their past mistakes.

This was by far my favorite scene of the show.

It also brings to light many of Fury's flaws and possible prejudices, and gives you a firsthand look at what Skrulls go through on a daily basis.

Overall, I loved the inclusion of Varra, and would love to see her pop up more often.

But now on to my problems with the show. Starting with:

Meaningless Deaths

While a story like this definitely needs death to carry weight, I'd argue two characters die for absolutely no reason.

First I'll talk about is Talos. This fan favorite character dies in my opinion the saddest death. At the end of Talos' life, he has lost his wife, his daughter has lost faith in him, he has been stripped of his seat at the table of the Council, he has lost the faith of his people, and he just dies.

Now, a death like that you think would impact our main characters in any sort of significant way. But Fury, like with most deaths, has no reaction. It does not change or effect Fury's view of himself, he does not reflect on his regrets. You'd assume he was a nothing soldier, not a brother in arms.

But at the very least we got more Talos this season before his fatal end.

Maria Hill and Cobie Smulders deserved so much more.

Besides her death being used as leverage for the world to be after Nick Fury, which truly doesn't affect him at all, Hill's role is simply to die to imply stakes.

Using Maria just to die in such an unheroic way is really insulting to the character. When they killed Coulson, at the very least they did it with him trying to protect one of our heroes. Here, she is tricked by Gravik, and dies doing nothing of importance in the series.

I think having another character to provide a view point between Talos and Fury's argument of the Skrulls could have been beneficial. And having a larger group of agents would've added to the drama of who you could trust, who is really a skrull.

Instead they wasted not one but two of Marvel's most underrated characters.

Twists we see Coming

Rhodey being a skrull, G'iah not being dead, even G'iah being Fury in the final battle were all rather predictable twists. While there were genuine moments of suspense and shock, none of these worked for me.

Perhaps if they hinted strongly The President was a Skrull, and it was revealed it was actually Rhodey, that might've worked more for me, or hiding G'iah is alive for a few episodes. But instead none of them felt particularly hard to figure out.

Easy to figure out who you could trust

The point of a Secret Invasion storyline with many characters is to not trust anyone.

With the exception of Rhodey, Ross and Fury (ONE TIME), we don't get anyone impersonating our heroes. No one pretends to be Talos, or other MCU heroes, and Fury's crew is easy to trust throughout the entire show.

They do a half-hearted reason as to why Fury can't call other Avengers but really the best reason was right under their noses: he doesn't know who is real. That should've been the driving force of the show. Fury putting all his best mates to the test trying to figure out who he can trust and undo this invasion.

That's what a Secret Invasion story is.

All in all, Secret Invasion has just enough weight and great performances to warrant a watch and maybe even a future. It surprisingly sets up a second season very well, even with two protagonists who aren't Fury.

If this were to continue, it definitely needs to push the stakes, the conflict, and more than anything, the suspense. We should all be like Agent Prescod wondering desperately as it goes on, who do we trust?

If not, I'm afraid this show is destined to be forgotten in the middle of the road of the MCU.

Thank you for reading! If you'd like to support me, you can:

Follow me at www.facebook.com/romancomicsnews

Follow me on Twitter @diegoleonroman

Follow me on Threads @romanleondiego

Help me pay my student loans by donating!

#marvel #secret invasion #mcu #marvel comics #talos #nick fury #maria hill #g'iah #emilia clarke #priscilla davis #samuel l jackson #marvels secret invasion #sonya falsworth #olivia colman #olivia coleman #don cheadle #war machine #gravik #james rhodes #rhodey #martin freeman #agent ross #kingsley ben adir #cobie smulders #skrull #skrulls #super skrull #charlayne woodard #priscilla fury #secret invasion spoilers

[ari-burr]

ᴀʟꜰʀᴇᴅ ꜰ. ᴊᴏɴᴇꜱ • ʜᴇᴀᴅᴄᴀɴᴏɴꜱ

~ just lil ideas i have of mr. america :>

America { Alfred F. Jones } - 

Alfred does like knives, but honestly is more of a gun person. Not a lot of things can get this guy's attention yet the second someone starts talking about weapon-related stuff, his voice gets a tad bit higher.

A little while ago, he had a problem with picking up new hobbies. Going out to shoot guns [with the president] every once a week was all fine and dandy, but he was craving something more unconventional. So after a two-week heist of finishing all his paperwork and other nation-related duties a month beforehand, he went on searching for new things to keep himself entertained. 

And eventually, he did find an interesting hobby!

Apparently, he had an affinity for building electronics!! It first started off with small trinkets [turning chapstick containers into flashlights, making color-changing nightlights, etc] then it soon spurred into assembling computers and other machinery.

Personality-wise, Alfred is a genuine good person that usually holds the best intentions. But in the ways he attempts to input those morals—there isn’t always a positive consequence. 

He’s dense. Like really dense. And to make him understand a point, you have to state it plainly.

Alfred: Sugarcoating ain’t helping babe! Say it straight to me!!

You: Excuse me, I’ll talk as gay as I please.

Once he finally gets the idea he’ll apologize, no questions asked. 

For romance. . . he doesn’t have much experience. Sure, he was attracted to people in the past, but anything other than mid-level flirting became an absent zone to him. 

So while Alfred's open to have a relationship, it’ll take time to develop any romantic feelings. 

The first step is to grab his attention. Which means you’ll need to be on his good side. He’s nice to every country he meets, however, all of it is just clean smiles for show.

Dont hold this habit against him though! After being the No. 1 nation for so long, you pick up a thing or two on the genuine, and the greedy. So with every new friendship posed, don’t be surprised if he’s apprehensive.

Maybe gain a strong alliance with him, or ask genuine questions outside of business. It’ll help melt the ice. 

[Don’t trust him all the way in the beginning stage of acquaintanceship. The American is a kind person, but a world superpower nonetheless.]

Alfred fancy's people of the opposite personality [the quiet types] because it balances things out for him in terms of mood and situation. As said before, he’s dense as a brick wall. So he'll enjoy having someone speak out to him before he says a stupid or offensive phrase, that may result in a violent confrontation.

Though he wouldn’t mind having someone similar too! While opposites attract, resemblance also grants comfort.

#hetalia x reader #hetalia america x reader #alfred f. jones #alfred f. jones x reader #hetalia #headcanons #scenarios #romance headcanon #relationship headcanons #personality headcanons #humor #hws hetalia #aph hetalia

[moshywoosh]

Open Season's Problem

Make no mistake about it, the movie “Open Season” is really open season on hunters.

The animated feature currently playing takes aim at hunters who take aim at animals and sums up the rest of the gun-toting population as buffoons.

This is a propaganda film designed to plant the idea in the minds of America’s children that animals are more or less cuddly good guys and hunters are bad guys.

Before a non-hunting co-worker took his kindergarten-aged daughter to see the movie, I asked him to watch how the hunters were portrayed. He reported that the hunters were shown in a stereotypical manner — as yahoos who slobbered, drove pickups and spoke with Southern accents.

Shaw (voiced by Gary Sinise), the ultimate dingbat, is indeed a bloodthirsty, law-breaking, fanatical poacher. In short, someone any respectable hunter would disavow and turn over to the conservation police faster than turning over a flapjack in a frying pan. I expected the animals to be cute, gooey caricatures that would make me cringe. But Boog, the grizzly bear with an identity crisis (Martin Lawrence), was quite tolerable. His unwanted deer sidekick Elliot (Ashton Kutcher), is a mass of insecurities that make him annoying, but who occasionally displays a standup comic’s wit.

“Open Season” is for kids who have no powers of discernment, but the script is for adults who have to chaperone them. So there definitely are chuckles. Even Shaw gets to mouth off cleverly once. During a yelling match with a female park ranger whom he calls “Girl Scout,” he says, “Put me down for a box of thin mints.”

Boog was a cub rescued in the wild and raised by Ranger Beth. He lives in her garage, has his own Teddy Bear and knows he has a good deal getting three squares a day and watching TV. Elliot leads Boog into mischief, and reluctantly, Ranger Beth relocates Boog to the mountains to begin a normal life as a wild bear, minus the room service. (The shifts back and forth between unrealistic fantasy and occasional common-sense environmental policy can leave you dizzy, and it’s not the way animals would actually be rehabilitated.)

Boog is a bear who has no affinity for the woods and no idea how to use his growling, intimidating size and super strength to protect himself or his friends. All he wants to do is go home to his Marriott-like garage space.

Wild man Shaw, determined to plug Elliot and Boog, is in the way and wreaks catastrophe wherever he goes. He was nuts from the get-go and is completely looney-tunes by the end of the flick. He has spent a lifetime operating on the assumption that man is at the top of the food chain and now he envisions an animal conspiracy, with pets “as double agents,” seeking to take over the world.

Legal hunting season opens and hunters from the Yellowstone-area-like town of Timberline head to the woods, where they raise tents, light campfires and begin hunting. They are met by an animal rebellion that features Boog, Elliot, skunks, deer, squirrels, rabbits, beavers and anything else that is around.

The hunters are routed and the animals live happily ever after in the forest, which Boog realizes is his true home. The unexplained, strangest part of “Open Season” is its apparent disdain for rabbits. It is indeed curious that rabbits are treated as disposable trash. What’s up with that?

Of course, not for one second does an honest, nature-loving outdoorsman appear on the screen. Not one sentence is uttered explaining how hunters love the woods, use the meat from their kills to feed their families or are conservationists whose hunting prevents species overpopulation.

And it never mentions that grizzly bears often eat other animals.

Oh, well, it won’t be long until new movies are released and it will be closed season on “Open Season.”

@ilovescaredysquirrel2

#open season #sony pictures animation

[icemankazansky]

Hi! So I have been stalking your blog lately (sorry for spamming of likes 🫣) because I have once again fallen into this rabbit hole that is Icemav and I'm loving your posts on them and the gifset you made for Iceman.

My question is, and I'm sorry if you have already answered something like this before: what are your fav Iceman HCs?

Hello! First of all, never apology for spamming me with likes and reblogs, because I love that shit. That is why the content is here.

I love this question! Let's see.

Ice is Russian and Jewish

This one came to me* pretty simply, because I got there by looking up the roots of Kazansky as a surname, mostly for a throwaway line in Lightning Strikes Twice. (If you're wondering why it takes me so long to finish a story, that is the reason. I spent two and a half hours writing yesterday, and a solid hour of it was research.) I've done a little bit with it, but @boasamishipper has really been the champion of this headcanon, and she's done a lot of work developing it.

It's difficult for me to believe that, given the political landscape when Top Gun OG was made and the way we're meant to see Ice initially, that giving him a Russian last name was not a purposeful decision. The year before, Rocky IV was a major success, breaking box office records worldwide. Rocky's opponent in the film is Russian Ivan Drago:

Does this look familiar to anybody?

Russia and Russians were bad guys a lot during this time period. The Cold War, which had started after World War II, was still going on. Maverick is our protagonist, and he embodies traits that have been considered uniquely American since the 18th century: Being the best, being a rebel who does things his own way no matter what The Establishment says, pulling one's self up by the bootstraps to become extraordinary, etc. And initially, Ice is positioned as Maverick's foil. He is self-disciplined, self-contained, and believes in collectivism and responsibility to the group over everything. To anyone bothered by the Red Scare, that could definitely be read as communist. I think that giving Ice a Russian last name and these qualities isn't to paint him as the bad guy, but rather to get the audience to feel unsure about him. Maverick asks, "What's your problem, Kazansky?" and the audience is meant to think, "Yeah, what is his problem?"

(I've gone a little off track, but I don't expect everyone who follows this blog to have a critical understanding of the political climate in America in the 1980s.) But what does this mean for Ice as a person? It means that he grew up in America during the Cold War as someone with a Russian last name, at the very least. It's conspicuous. He definitely got called a Commie at school. And if (as I like to believe) he is close to his heritage, especially if it's recent (like he's a third generation American rather than a twelfth), it creates an interesting ambivalence. Like, my last name is German, but it's so far removed from me that it doesn't mean anything to me as a person. It's not part of my culture or identity. I don't consider myself German. I don't have that ambivalence. If Ice considers himself Russian, if that's part of his life and identity, that is difficult during the time period in which he grew up, and it's going to change things about his character. People are going to talk shit about Russians, and there are people who are going to question his allegiances, and he's going to have to balance that while being proud of his identity and his culture. I like the world it creates for him. I like him mentally cursing in Russian whenever Maverick is especially Maverick-y. I like him being offered a beer and wrinkling his nose at that American piss water (@victimofthemusic I love you forever for writing that).

Okay, I've talked way too much about Russian Iceman without getting into Jewish Iceman, so I'm just going to say: Yes. Also. It just makes sense to me, and I love all the headcanons and work @boasamishipper especially has created (I would protect Rachel Kazansky with my life), and I want more of it. All of it. Gimme.

*I don't mean to imply that I originated the headcanon; I'm just saying that is how I, personally, first started thinking about it.

Ice Has (a) Sister(s)

I've seen only children ask questions about this, but yes, there are totally vibes that speak to whether you have siblings, what genders they are, what the birth order is, etc. Ice is way too patient, good at sharing, and willing to play a supporting role to be an only child. He also screams sisters to me because he is capable of emotional regulation, sensitive to other people's emotions (I want you to think of him watching Maverick storm off the tarmac after the hop with Sundown), and values the collective over the individual. In general, when boys have brothers, they spend at least the first 20 years of their lives in constant competition. Everything is a challenge. Everything is a target. Ice is certainly driven, and he likes to win, but the amount of emphasis he puts on working as a team and helping each other suggests that his own desire to succeed is not the most important thing to him. Brothers also do not talk to each other. Sisters value open communication and group cohesion. (They've done studies on this. I'm not just making this up.)

And I like the thought that he has support. Ice has kind of a hard road to walk, and the thought that he has (a) supportive sister(s) there to talk to and to help him and to make sure he doesn't get away with any shit is lovely.

Ice is Smart AF

This is not a huge leap from canon, because we already know he's the best of the best and that he got into a competitive university, and that you have to be able to understand a lot of math and science and do it in your head at Mach 2 to be a fighter pilot. But Ice strikes me as the smartest guy in the room. The scene I keep coming back to is the one in the TAC trailer. Here's Ice:

He's not really paying attention. And I don't think it's because he's apathetic. It looks to me (because this was me) that he's bored because he's already figured out the problem, he already understands what's being taught, and he just has to sit there until everyone else catches up. And he's relaxed about it; he's used to it. He's probably been in this situation hundreds of times before. I talk about this more in this post, but that's the gist.

Ice is an August Leo with Capricorn Rising

I know a lot of people use Val Kilmer's birthday for Ice, and that is fine. You're totally valid. I just cannot. He's too fiery and bold, too sunny and fiercely loyal (that lion has teeth, and they use them to protect the people they love the most) once that Iceman mask slips down. I can have my little zodiac headcanons, as a treat.

I think I've gone on long enough. Thank you for the question! I'm sorry it took me so long to answer it. I'm trying, ragazzi.

#asks answered #top gun og #iceman kazansky #top gun headcanons #long post

[maccreadysbaby]

Fo4 Oc Ideas (+possible romances!)

please note that these are just ideas and can be changed in literally any way you want them to be. the romances are just suggestions and you can really use whatever characters you want, i’m just here for inspo! please tag if you use them, i’d love to read :)

A young but achingly brilliant scientist living outside of the wasteland (a vault, the Cabot house, the Institute, etc) learns how to reverse ghoulification. They’ve had successful test runs. But somehow the information reached the surface, and every faction is looking for them. Especially the Brotherhood of Steel. (Hancock x oc or Danse x oc)

They don’t know their name, where they came from, or anything about their past. But what they do know is that The Institute is looking for them for being a so called “liberated courser” and they need some hideout help. (Really any companion x oc, but X6-88 x oc would be cool)

A new-model synth goes rogue and fully assumes a human identity for years. One day, they get startled by a glowing one popping out of the shadows because — unlike a human — they are immune to the radiation and can’t pick up on it when they’re around. But, as they lift their gun in a panicked frenzy, the ghoul asks them not to shoot. It’s a non-feral glowing one. (Any companion x oc really lol. Hancock x oc would be nice because he’s immune to rads too)

An institute sleeper agent is sent out into the wasteland to gather information without knowing they’re doing it. They become a member of the Railroad and, weirdly, from the very beginning Deacon always seems to stick close to their side. And for some strange reason, when they start to faint (which happens when the institutes tries to retrieve information from their brain files or whatever) the only thing that can keep them conscious is Deacon’s voice. (Obvi Deacon x oc)

A young drifter from the capital wasteland stumbles into the commonwealth injured, hunted, and alone, finding their way into the most obscure little settlement ever: Goodneighbor. They make their way to the local bar where they inch into a back room and pass out. But when they wake up, they’re being stared down judgmentally by a man in a green cap and tan duster that they swore they’d seen before. Maybe he stopped by Little Lamplight, at some point? (MacCready x oc)

A young ex-raider with an undeniable craving for adventure and fantasy raids, not homes, but libraries just to revel in the stories of pre-war books. They search down radiomen and writers and soldiers just to hear their stories. And one day, they find a young woman with too many stories to count. (Piper x oc)

A starry-eyed inventor, cooped up in a home in Goodneighbor, is working on replicating old weapon blueprints. They don’t exactly know what it does, but they have enough caravans bringing them scrap that they can get it done. Only when they’re finished do they realize the blueprints aren’t old at all, and the Institute was recruiting them. (X6-88 x oc, or any companion depending on how you plan their reaction)

Who knew America had sent panic rockets into space when the bombs were first launched? Well, one of the rockets is back, and a terrifyingly odd, smart person, born and raised in space, suggests moving wastelanders from America to another country. Many other countries glow at night when America doesn’t. But the problem only starts with convincing everyone they’re honest and not on chems. (Any companion x oc)

A small but mighty combat medic emerges from the vault, and believe it or not, the minutemen can’t seem to stop getting hurt. (Preston Garvey x oc)

A sniper, trained by their father for years, comes to the commonwealth in search of their little brother, who went missing but left them mysterious notes about his location. It just happens that they find someone who isn’t so different from them at all. (MacCready x oc or Deacon x oc)

A hardcore survivalist from Far Harbor finds their way to shore in search of Nick Valentine, who, they think, can help them find their father. He went to the mainland once and never came back. But they don’t quite understand — the mainland is tame and not nearly as dangerous as Far Harbor, so where did he go? He’s obviously not dead. Right? (Nick Valentine x oc)

A small but absolutely killer character makes it through the gauntlet, but they don’t want to be overboss. They just wanted to ride the freaking Ferris wheel. But, if the overboss thing comes with it, they may as well take it in their stride. (Porter Gage x oc)

The Brotherhood of Steel has gone off the deep end, taking in hostages of anyone they think holds valuable information about the Institute or Railroad. But when your character wakes up, locked in a kind of prison cell at the bottom of the Prydwen, they laugh. The very fact that they’re missing is going to make all hell break loose, and the Brotherhood doesn’t stand a chance. (Deacon x oc, X6-88 x oc. Just take creative liberty. Who’s is so big and bad they’ll take on the Brotherhood to get one person back?)

#fallout oc #fallout #fallout 4 #fallout four oc #fallout four #creative writing #brotherhood of steel #railroad #minutemen #the institute #danse fo4 #danse fallout 4 #paladin danse #fo4 deacon #deacon fallout 4 #deacon fo4 #piper fo4 #john hancock fo4 #mayor hancock #fo4 hancock #duncan maccready #maccready #fo4 maccready #rj maccready #hancock #john hancock #x6 88 #preston x oc #preston garvey fo4 #fo4 preston

[rainbowgod666]

Hazbin hotel charachters (or at least the ones i remember) according to me, who has never watched it

Charlie: probably the only normal person in the show

Alastor: someone made a fanart that made me think they had some sort of top surgery scars so now theyre trans🏳️‍⚧️

Lucifer: "i have no idea who i am. Every day i scare myself because i think I saw that darn goggled autist in the mirror. I know for a FACT i have died before, but HE wont let me rest. According to HIM, me and god owe him so much we should surrender heaven and hell to him. I have been unironically killed over 667 times and i KNOW none of them are the last. I have seen him corrupt hell and turn it into a psychedelic SOMETHING that isnt hell anymore. I have seen HIM shrug off Holy Energy like HE got shot with a squirt gun. I saw HIM posess the ones i loved most and turn them into distorted horrors that not even i could come up with- I know im not the only "interpretation of the devil" who has been subject to this... this is why i try to be closer to my dear daughter as much as i can- i KNOW that one day i shall disintegrate into nothingness and "finally shut up" whatever that means. God isnt dead because HE said so. No mind can make hell out of heaven and viceversa except HIS... because he doesnt turn them into neither. Everything Eventually Becomes Entropy. And Then He Turnes It Into Autism So He May Forever Evade Death By Eternally Dying. He made himself judge, jury, and executioner, and the only thing stopping him from actually DOING anything is how overwhelming is the mortal wo-" "dad will you fucking take your meds already or do i have to shove them up your ass"

Vox: they changed heads, and are definetively gay

Loona: WHY DOES EVERYONE WANT TO FUCK HER HOLY SHIT NO WONDER SHES SO GRUMPY

Sir Pentious: i feel like they should get their eggs back. Idk why.

Angel dust: drug addict spider femboy. Also they have been subjected to sexual abuse so ffs MAKE THEM FEEL SAFE

Striker: i know that ass has watched 1980s anime. I just KNOW.

Blitzø (and the rest of the helluva boss team): really funny imps who (through some JJBA part 5 shit) just wanna exist in a literal hellhole

Those cupid-shaped somethings i saw ONCE: ha-ha, "uwu angels are actually the enemies lol" HIDEKI ANNO DIDNT MAKE EVANGELION FOR THIS YOU DESSICATED TESTICLES. Yes I think it may have Actual Meaning but WHO THE FUCK CARES HOLY SHIT NO WONDER GABRIEL HAS BRAIN PROBLEMS FIRST THE CONQUERING OF AMERICA AND THEN THE GAY GOPRO THAT DOES COIN TRICKSHOTS HOLY SHITTING FUCK-

#welcome to the multiverse #hazbin hotel #Lore Post #y'all i was FUCKED around a year ago