#explain this to me in a heterosexual manner

[queerfables]

Taking away the glass?

Oh gosh I'm actually so keen to talk about this so thank you for the opening!

Context: Responding to akaitsukicat's artwork of Crowley and Aziraphale separated by a glass wall, I said that the reason we're all such wrecks over their kiss is because after 6000 years in canon and 33 years in real life, that kiss was "taking away the glass".

The glass is a metaphor that media scholar Henry Jenkins uses to explain the appeal of slash, originally published in 1993. Here, "slash" refers to queer re-interpretation of heterosexual media, including transformative works exploring those readings.

This is what Jenkins says about the glass:

When I try to explain slash to non-fans, I often reference that moment in Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan where Spock is dying and Kirk stands there, a wall of glass separating the two longtime buddies. Both of them are reaching out towards each other, their hands pressed hard against the glass, trying to establish physical contact. They both have so much they want to say and so little time to say it. Spock calls Kirk his friend, the fullest expression of their feelings anywhere in the series. Almost everyone who watches the scene feels the passion the two men share, the hunger for something more than what they are allowed. And, I tell my nonfan listeners, slash is what happens when you take away the glass. The glass, for me, is often more social than physical; the glass represents those aspects of traditional masculinity which prevent emotional expressiveness or physical intimacy between men, which block the possibility of true male friendship. Slash is what happens when you take away those barriers and imagine what a new kind of male friendship might look like. One of the most exciting things about slash is that it teaches us how to recognize the signs of emotional caring beneath all the masks by which traditional male culture seeks to repress or hide those feelings.

The vid I refer to, inspired by Jenkin's comments, is The Glass by thingswithwings. It's a beautiful vid, sad and hopeful and empowering, with a very moving commentary on fandom history. It was originally published in 2008, which is relevant to understanding the position it takes in the dialogue around queer relationships in media.

Here's thingswithwings' summary of the vid, as it appears on YouTube:

Henry Jenkins, speaking of the Spock death scene from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, said, "slash is what happens when you take away the glass." It has been said, in response, that death also happens when you take away the glass. ie, if you took away the glass Kirk would die of radiation poisoning too; the barrier between desiring men cannot be removed on pain of death. Homosexuality, or just loving touch between two people of the same gender, is equivalent to death in this media narrative. One of the interesting things about slash is the way it takes away the glass, then puts it back, then takes it away, then puts it back, often pleasurably. I think this is both problematic and powerful. It is problematic because it reasserts the impossibility of the touch (it fetishizes oppression in a negative manner); it is powerful - and good - because it dwells on and thinks about and removes the glass (it fetishizes oppression in a transformative manner). One of the interesting things about mainstream media is that it continues to put the glass back up, no matter how hard we try to tear it down. Queer desiring touches have been, and remain, imaginable but impossible. TL;DR ALTERNATE SUMMARY: THERE SEEMS TO BE SOME KIND OF INVISIBLE BARRIER IDK WHAT IT MIGHT BE

In regards to Good Omens, it's relevant that this entire conversation about homosocial relationships in media takes place within the 29 year period between the publication of Good Omens the book and the adaptation of the story to screen. The vid was created 15 years ago - which is to say 18 years after the book was published and 11 years before season 1 was released - and it talks about realised queer desire in mainstream media as being so impossible that it is equivalent to death. That is the kind of resistance that queer representation in pop culture has been up against, these last three decades.

Crowley/Aziraphale, as depicted in the book, is such a classic example of slash. I've seen some people who read the book in a contemporary context saying they didn't necessarily pick up on any subtext between the characters, and I suspect this is a mark of cultural expectations. Firstly, because the cultural references that the intentional subtext relies on have become obscured over time - see Neil Gaiman's explanation of the "consenting cycle repairmen" line. But more importantly because the audience's frame of reference for unintentional subtext has shifted, too. What is unsayable and which silences are emotionally loaded has changed over time. Even if you are intentionally using a queer lens in your reading, you might not see subtext in the same places that someone would even 10 years ago.

For example, take this passage from the book:

On the whole, neither [Aziraphale] nor Crowley would have chosen each other's company, but they were both men, or at least men-shaped creatures, of the world, and the Arrangement had worked to their advantage all this time. Besides, you grew accustomed to the only other face that had been around more or less consistently for six millennia.

On it's face, this line suggests that the relationship between the two of them is a matter of convenience more than desire. Maybe that's the intended reading and maybe that's how it started or how they justify their association to themselves, but taken together with how deeply they know each other and how they are always each other's first thought in a crisis, suddenly "neither would have chosen the other's company" sounds like an extremely British way to say they care about each other far more than they were supposed to. Plus, this is Aziraphale's take on their relationship, and it plays rather beautifully against Crowley's much simpler expression of the exact same sentiment:

Aziraphale. The Enemy, of course. But an enemy for six thousand years now, which made him a sort of friend.

To go back to Henry Jenkin's wise words, what we're seeing here is Aziraphale thinking about Crowley through the glass - through the "aspects of traditional masculinity which prevent emotional expressiveness or physical intimacy between men". If you came up in slash fandom at a time when seeing queer relationships in canon was unthinkable, you probably find it easier to identify the gap between how Aziraphale thinks about his relationship with Crowley and how their relationship actually functions. That gap was where a lot of slash lived.

You might say that the book shows Crowley and Aziraphale watching each other through the glass, and season 1 is them pressing up against it. They're still prevented from showing the full depth of feeling between them, they still hunger for more than they're allowed, but they are reaching for it. We see the history of their relationship developing through the ages. The unsayable is still left unsaid, but we feel the weight of it in everything they do. They come so very close but they still can't cross that threshold.

And then there's season 2. Within the text, Crowley and Aziraphale are not just pressing against the glass, they're actively trying to dismantle it. They're searching for a door to the other side. They're inspecting for weak points where they could cut their way through. And then suddenly they're out of time and out of options and the glass is still between them, and there's nothing they can do.

As the audience, you feel that desperation. You feel that grief. And if you're someone who's been watching the glass go back up on every relationship you thought might stand a chance of tearing it down, it hits hard. You're longing vicariously with the characters, but you're longing for yourself too, to see queer desire made possible. To see queer touch made not just imaginable but real.

And then, with all hope lost, Crowley throws himself through the glass. It doesn't matter that it doesn't save them. They kiss and it changes everything. Queer desire is no longer up for debate. Queer touch is no longer impossible. They kiss and the glass shatters, entirely and irrevocably.

This is why it matters so much that they did kiss, even though the love between them was already undeniable. For thirty years, Crowley and Aziraphale were part of a media landscape that relentlessly reinforced the glass at every turn and flooded fatal radiation through any crack they couldn't fix. In a different context, that kiss would be less vital to affirming their relationship. But in the world we live in, with the specific history that this story has, I don't think anything else could have done what it did. The glass between these characters had been reinforced over decades, in a culture that made the barriers to open intimacy between men inescapable. Their kiss was what it took to break it.

And by shattering the glass, this story has fundamentally rewritten what is possible. It proves the rules preventing true affection between people of the same gender can be defied. Queer people are already becoming more visible in pop culture; we're no longer reliant on slash reimagining queer longing between heterosexual leads. But Crowley and Aziraphale's kiss is cathartic and vindicating in an entirely different way. It turns slash into intentional queerness. It takes a fetishisation of oppression vacillating between problematic and transformative, and finally stands up on the side of powerful, empowering transformation. It confronts the barriers that once rendered this desiring touch impossible, and breaks through them once and for all.

That's what taking away the glass means. That's what Good Omens did.

#good omens #good omens meta #taking away the glass #fandom history #ineffable husbands #aziracrow #fable talks good omens

[tiktaalic]

tortured poets review. by song

fortnight: fine. sounds like a song. one of the lana drag ones. the actual lyrical content is nothing special. i would not have made this track one. 6/10

tortured poets department: kind of exactly what you would expect from a taylor swift album called tortured poets department. it's silly. it's got references. it makes you go. girl? already less distinct musically. 3/10

my boy only breaks his favorite toys: the consequence of doing lana drag is that you listen to songs and go this would be a lot better if lana got her chords on it. fundamentally not a song that i can enjoy from taylor allison swift. a song i would respect in lana of video games fame catalogue once she strips it down. not like head turningly strange like tpd just plain and simple middle of the road. 4/10

down bad: this one is unlistenable for me. cant explain why. probably the chorus of down bad. i think it's tooooooo silly too silly by far when taylor swift does how do you do fellow teens vocabulary. 2/10

so long london: i can see the place that this takes on my spotify wrapped. lyrics are fine. good even. this + backing + doing something even the littlest bit different from soft monotone talk singing makes it one of the most memorable on this album by miles. probably not near the top of most memorable in her hundreds deep bench though. can't think of anything to dock it for but it's no belter. 8/10.

but daddy i love him: yeah okay. i love when she does a silly one. i think the instrumentals are nice. i'm having his baby. no i'm not! but you should see your face. easily i would listen to an album that was full of songs to this theme / musicality. points docked because i dont think she knows it's as silly as it is. 7/10.

fresh out the slammer: bored. i just looked at the lyrics and they're passable but they're performed in the most boring possible manner. stupidest name imaginable. i actually might bump it a point or two if the name was different. 4/10

florida: makes me go yaaaaaay florence every time i hear it. taylor's part halsey 2014 core. could have been worse! if i was in charge of cutting tracks i would keep this one. 6/10

guilty as sin: started it went oh i'm docking this one for boring. read the first quarter of lyrics and went oh this is fine? got to second half and went oh i don't care for this. can imagine a world where it's a better song with different backing and emphasis. 5/10

whose afraid of little old me: i dont think it's good necessarily but i love every song where shes like im craaaazy im insane. i think for the concept it's going for it could have been put together differently. 6/10

i can fix him: i like the way it sounds. but could use more oomph. it's so nice to hear guitars though. don't care for the subject matter. 5/10

loml: snooze. boring lyrics. boring performance. 4/10

i can do it with a broken heart: BAFFLING. easily the me / karma of the album. the tonal mismatch is the point but . well. it is what it is. i would like this more if it WAS a barbie soundtrack release i think. then it would have an extra layer of silly. i think this might make my wrapped. unfortunately. 5/10.

smallest man who ever lived: who gives a shit about matty healy. 4/10

the alchemy: head in my hands. head in my hands. football song. it's so over. and we are never going to be so back. 3/10

clara bow: i like the intro. i can't see myself ever doing more than half humming this. lyrics are whatever. fine, passable. 6/10

the black dog: yeah it's fine. no complaints. guitar 👍. 6/10

getyouback: why would you EVER tee yourself up perfectly to be compared to a better song. 3/10

albatross: oh i liked this one on first listen. 7/10.

chloe sam sophia marcus: outing song ‼️‼️‼️divorce music‼️‼️‼️. nothing too exciting or groundbreaking musically. 5.5?

how did it end: um. it gets points for being #real but not much else. 5/10.

so high school: i think i would like it if it was even a TOUCH less heterosexual. i would cut 3 lines that would turn it into a 6. i can see this song in someone else's hands dominating the radio and me loving that. in taylor's hands i'm giving it a 5/10.

i hate it here: not interesting. next. 4/10

thank you aimee: out of respect for taylor swift's struggles i will withhold comment and rating. -_-

look in people's windows: lyrics aren't bad but it's another one that's not really. doing anything. 4/10

the prophecy: yeah i'll give this one a 7/10. i would have one (1) greige complaint if this was on folkevermore but that's pretty damn solid.

cassandra: passing it and moving on. that's as much as it deserves. 5/10

peter: lyrics get a thumbs up. another 5.5? i could be talked into a six.

the bolter: yes girl commitment issues. 6/10. actually. 7/10.

robin: jesus god this album is too long. i have listened to too much taylor swift tpd to give this any kind of rating.

the manuscript: 5/10. like if woulda coulda shoulda had no beat

thank you for sharing this journey. with me and also taylor swift

#etxt #t swift

[beardedmrbean]

A controversial Seattle teacher allegedly told students that identifying as “straight” is offensive. He even scolded some of his male students for being a “product of the patriarchy that teaches young boys not to care.” It resulted in a parent filing a complaint with Chief Sealth High School. In defending the teacher, Seattle Public Schools (SPS) offered what appears to be a verifiably false statement to the media.

Tenth-grade Ethnic Studies World History teacher and self-identified communist Ian Golash asked students to complete a “Social Identity Wheel” worksheet, according to the parent, who asked for anonymity. It asks students to explain their various identities, including racial, ethnic, gender, socio-economic status, physical, emotional, or developmental disabilities, and sexual orientation. The worksheet is intended to tell students that their identities determine whether they receive unearned privilege or oppression.

The parent’s 15-year-old son labeled himself “straight.” Golash took issue with that word “because it implies that to not be straight is to be ‘crooked’ which could have a negative connotation.”

‘Straight’ is offensive to Ian Golash

The student’s mother shared an email thread with The Jason Rantz Show on KTTH. In it, she complains about the comment to Golash and the school’s principal, Ray Garcia-Morales.

“When filling out a Social Identity Wheel, he (her son) was told that if he identifies as straight that he needed to pick a term that was less offensive. It is completely inappropriate to dictate what terms a student can and cannot use to identify themselves with,” the mom wrote in the September 24, 2023 email.

Golash said he did not target her son with his comment. He did, however, admit to saying something similar to the entire classroom.

In the email response to the mother, Golash allegedly told the parent that he “stated explicitly that I was not going to tell them how they should identify except to explain the difference between race, ethnicity and nationality.” But he did cast aspersions on identifying as “straight.”

“Because I think language has power and that it shapes the culture that we live in, I did say to the class, in response to a student, that I do not use the term ‘straight’ because it implies that to not be straight is to be ‘crooked’ which could have a negative connotation,” Golash wrote. “But, again stated that I am not interested in telling them how they should identify and that the wheel they are completing is for their own reflection, not for me to assess.”

A very contrived position

Golash taking offense to the term “straight” in this way may be the only such example in the country. It’s a common and accepted term.

Chief Sealth High School has a Gay-Straight Alliance Club. Even GLAAD (formerly the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) uses “straight” as an alternative descriptor for heterosexuals. The term “straight-ally” is still used by LGBT groups.

The contrived issue came up in a 2015 Washington Post column about etiquette. The readers (not Golash) asked if the term “straight” is offensive. Steven Petrow (the author of “Steven Petrow’s Complete Gay & Lesbian Manners”) responded by saying he’s never been asked that before. He concluded it was neither offensive nor a slur.

“I’ve never heard of a gay person saying they were offended by the use of straight. Do some straight folks find it problematic? I think you are saying that you are and, if so, I’d like to know why,” he wrote.

‘Product of the patriarchy that teaches young boys not to care’

The parent also claimed in the email that Golash shamed her son during a conversation about Florida banning left-wing classes with critical race theory indoctrination. Her son had missed the day the class watched a video about the topic, and told Golash he didn’t know why the state legislature forwarded the ban, according to the mom.

“I’m told that rather than converse about the topic and provide him with information and an actual answer, he was told that he was a ‘product of the patriarchy that teaches young boys not to care,'” the mom wrote in the email. “You missed an opportunity here to teach your student about current events and instead shamed him for being a male. To assume that he’s being raised in a patriarchal household is a very mistaken one.”

Again, Golash disputes some specifics but admits to bringing up the issue.

“My response about patriarchy was not directed at one student, it was connected to discussions of systems of power that we had been having in the previous few days and the behavior of several boys in the class,” he wrote, according to the email. He did not dispute saying the quote the mother provided.

The Jason Rantz Show on KTTH asked Golash if the emails properly depict what he sent to the parent and if he wanted to offer additional context. He did not respond.

It’s part of a political agenda

Golash focuses a portion of his curriculum on issues around gender identity. The same parent previously complained that Golash failed her son on a quiz for correctly saying men cannot get pregnant and that women do not have penises. The mom eventually pulled her son from his class.

“Mr. Golash has introduced many controversial topics into the classroom and instead of inviting open, constructive and truthful conversations, he provides biased resources that only aid in pushing his own ideological agendas,” the mom told The Jason Rantz Show on KTTH. “In this particular instance, he tried to persuade the language the students used in an attempt to censor them. Mr. Golash instructs his students what to think and not how to think. This in no way provides identity-safe classrooms that allow students to feel visible and valued.”

She says her son started to “self-censor … due to Mr. Golash’s intolerant teaching tactics.” Only after this incident, she said Golash accused her son of being disruptive and disengaged. She called it “retaliatory in nature.”

In the email thread, Golash did accuse her son and other classmates of unruly behavior. He said his frustration with their alleged behavior, “resulted in words I said that day that I might not phrase in the same way today.”

Seattle Public Schools is mostly silent

According to a screenshot of an email shared with The Jason Rantz Show on KTTH, the district is investigating the two separate complaints against Ian Golash.

First, the school is reviewing the quiz that the student failed for taking objectively true positions: Men can’t get pregnant and women do not have penises. Second, according to an email, Chief Sealth principal Garcia-Morales told parents there was an investigation into a separate incident where antisemitic curriculum was taught to students.

Seattle Public Schools (SPS) won’t say much about Golash, including how far the investigation has progressed. They also would not comment for this story, neither confirming nor denying Golash’s purported communication with the parent. Even if they did comment, they’ve previously misled the media with a statement.

More from Jason Rantz: Democrats reject child marriage, but accept their gender reassignment

Misleading the media and public

When The Jason Rantz Show on KTTH exclusively reported the “men can get pregnant” quiz, the story ignited a firestorm of criticism and ridicule towards Golash and the district. SPS appeared to give out the same statement to multiple outlets, but added an extra detail to Fox News.

In the original report, the mother complained that Golash and another teacher engaged in name-calling. One teacher allegedly called her son “f****d and racist,” and Golash allegedly made the comment about being a “product of the patriarchy that teaches young boys not to care about anything.” SPS denied the claims when asked by Fox News.

“Claims that the student was called names have not been reported to SPS. We have confirmed with the school’s principal that this is the first reference to any name-calling,” a spokesperson told Fox News.

The statement appears to be false.

In a February 2, 2023 email, the mother’s husband emailed a teacher and principal Garcia Morales. In it, he complained of conduct against his son. He wrote that his son told him the teacher explained to the classroom, “If you’re white, that’s f****d up and racist.” The principal was also on the email over Golash’s comments about the patriarchy.

SPS would not say why they told Fox News that my report was the first reference to any name-calling.

#nunyas news #this guy's exaggerating some it looks like #but teacher is still a douche

[butchbarbieagainstterfs]

What do you think gay men are attracted to in men that they can’t be attracted to in women?

It can’t be anything about femininity or masculinity obviously. That’s both sexist, and cultural so can’t be what drives men-only attraction.

It can’t be anything about stated identity because someone could lie just as easily as they could tell the truth in such a statement, and it makes no sense because homosexuality and heterosexuality exists in other species with no stated identities. It’s not like other animals without gender are all pan.

Saying idk it’s the vibes or some indescribable trait men have that women can’t but “I can’t explain” is a nonanswer.

Soooooooo what is it? Or do you think any sexuality but bi/pan is just cultural performance or an identity rather than an inborn orientation?

- [ ]

I don’t know why you’re asking me about gay men when I am…not a gay man tbqh, and there are plenty of gay men out there who aren’t transphobic and, I am sure, have spoken about this.

I’m a lesbian. I like women. One of my first crushes as a kid was on Nicole Kidman in the Golden Compass. When I was looking at her and being attracted to her though, I wasn’t thinking about vulvas. I wasn’t thinking about what she had going on downstairs. I just thought she was very pretty. That…hasn’t really changed much, as an adult. And I don’t get that with men and never have. I’ve never been attracted to them at all and wouldn’t regardless of what they had going on downstairs.

Now if that makes me bi or pan to you, quite frankly I don’t care and I also just want to put it out there: if you in your sexuality need your partner to have a certain genitalia set, that’s perfectly fine. Don’t date trans people. Have this conversation with your partner to make sure they aren’t trans. That’s your business and quite frankly your responsibility.

I also think this kind of question in a failed attempt at a gotcha is just reiterating the idea that being gay is an adult thing, because you never bring up straight people in this same manner. You are implying that the only thing that makes people gay is wanting sex with a certain type of genitals, which is the same exact sexualisation homophobes do to us all the fucking time. Being a lesbian isn’t just about wanting to touch vulvas.

Now I will be pinning this so I do not have to answer this kind of shit again, and you will never be darkening my page again because I will not be answering any further messages from you or anyone else that sends me this bad faith, poor attempt at trying to claim a lesbian is homophobic simply because he disagrees with you about trans people. Have the day you deserve. Now fuck off 😘

#anti terf #personal

[ckret2]

hey ^^ I love your bill goldilocks cipher, and I was wondering why he possesses a female-presenting body. I am a huge fan of your art btw so don’t take this the wrong way, I just would love to know how you designed him!

The short answer: because he's canonically referred to with he/him pronouns.

The long answer: if you meet somebody who, at a first glance, appears to be anatomically female, and everyone refers to this person with he/him pronouns, you don't immediately know what's going on.

Maybe he's a trans man who's comfortable with his body the way it is as long as everyone around him still treats him as a man. Maybe she's a trans woman with really transphobic acquaintances. Maybe he's nonbinary, maybe he's genderfluid, maybe he's a drag queen who's dressed up for an event but not currently in character, maybe he's a he/him lesbian—you don't know, and it likely isn't your business.

There's only one thing you do know: whatever's going on here, it probably ain't cishet. This person has something going on that does not fit the gender binary. All you can say about him is that he's queer.

Bill's gender is triangle. This simply does not fit within humanity's popular ideas about the male-female binary. Whatever his sexual orientation is, it is not restricted to "only females/only males (as humanity defines femaleness/maleness)"—and so he can't possibly be heterosexual in a manner readily recognizable to human beings. Amongst Bill's own species, maybe he was the most cishet guy you've ever met, I haven't decided; but if you stick Bill amongst humans, regardless of how he sees himself, he'll look queer to us.

On top of that: stick Bill in a human body, and there's a disconnect between his self-identity and the shape he's wearing. Strangers will see him as something he's not: human. He feels trapped in a wrong-shaped form amongst people who think this is normal and what he feels he should be is strange—and if he ever explains that psychological weight of feeling wrong-shaped, the humans most likely to go "I think I get it" are the trans folks who know what dysphoria feels like.

I don't think Bill cares what pronouns humans give him; I think he's called "he/him" either because his human victims decided he sounds male-ish, or else because he consciously decided to take advantage of sexism by presenting himself as male to seem more authoritative. And I don't think Bill cares about the anatomy of the human body he's in; he could have been given any variety of genitalia, secondary sex characteristics, hormone balances, body fat distributions, etc., and he would have been equally uncomfortable in any because they're not a triangle. It makes no difference to him.

But it does something to you (you, The Readers In General): it makes you wonder about his relationship with his body.

Because we're speaking English on the Internet in the 21st century, you and I are participating in a culture that sees having both a vagina and he/him pronouns as Not The Default. It makes Bill look genderqueer-in-a-human-way, and that makes it easier to slide readers over to seeing him as genderqueer-in-a-nonhuman-way. It makes you think about queerness, about dysphoria, about nonbinary folks who defy the expected correlations between pronouns and anatomy without changing their bodies to make them "match."

This is the second or third time somebody's asked me why I put Bill in a female-presenting body. If I'd done the opposite, nobody would have ever asked me why I put Bill in a male-presenting body. Because that's "normal." And I want you to ask questions! I want you to think about Bill's self-image, his internal landscape, the gulf between who he is mentally and what he is physically.

Before I ever directly draw attention to queer topics, I can get folks primed to think about them and to understand that his body doesn't accurately represent his identity just by slapping a pair of boobs on him.

So I slapped a pair of boobs on him.

#anonymous #ask #about my writing #bill goldilocks cipher

[barbi2709]

Internal jokes with my friends I wanna explain to TXT

Disclaimer: This and each of my stories are only fiction and are not intended to offend or make anyone uncomfortable, if this type of content makes you uncomfortable, feel free to leave without resentment :]

Genre: Crack (?)

a/n: Lol, I just thought about this a few minutes ago and it's so silly, sadly our internal jokes are in Spanish bc we're Mexicans but I did my best trying to explain it, sorry if it's not funny but if you're Hispanic it'd make sense I guess

[🌱] Choi Yeonjun

"Al power point"

So this is an evolution

In Mexico we have our own way of saying "Fr" which is "al chile"

So my friends and I made it evolution.

It passed from "al chile" to "al chili dog"

And then it passed to "al power point"

Let's be real, Yeonjun LIKES the dad's jokes

And even if this is not one of them, the fact that he's saying it while make it sound like a dad's joke.

Like imagine the members faces if they're gossiping about something and Yeonjun just says "al power point" out of nowhere

I can see Soobin's nasty look already

(rest of the members under the cut)

[🌱] Choi Soobin

"Que risa cepillin"

Now this HAS context

Like, a lot

So it all started with this video (sfw link ig)

Translation of the video: Uhhhhh, It reminds me of my childhood, when I was in kindergarten and we did a play. Haaaaaaaa! What a laugh cepillin, you're a fool and stupid

Now, Cepillin is an icon in Mexico, he was a kids comedian who used to do TV variety shows and stuff

So the video is a meme of a hater of cepillin calling him stupid and "naco" (It doesn't have a literal translation, but it's used to refer to someone of very low class and without manners)

So my friends and I use it ALL the THE TIME when someone makes a bad joke

We just say like "Que risa cepillin, con tus payasadas" With The most sarcastic grin and then we drop the smile inmediatly

Believe me, it's hilarious

I'd explain it to Soobin bc mf is sassy as hell

"Beomgyu is too bratty to know that he's an introvert and Soobin is too introverted to know he's bratty too"

So I see him making fun of the members with this

Like, someone made the worst joke ever (Yeonjun saying "al power point" lmao)

And he'll just go "Que risa cepillin 😀😐"

[🌱] Choi Beomgyu

"Cállate la bola"

Okay it literally means "shut the ball up"

Here comes the context:

So I had a sociology teacher that wasn't from Mexico (He was from Ecuador or Perú, idk & idc)

And whenever the class got too loud he shouted "Chicos, parenme bola!"

The literal translation is "Stop my ball"

But it's used as a way to say "Guys, pay attention"

But here in Mexico it sounds really bad lmao

Bc you're literally saying "stop my ball"

That kind of ball

So we make fun of it

So now my friends and I say "Cállate la bola" even if we're not talking at all lol

I would explain this to Beomgyu bc he's so loud and literally teases someone every time he breaths

So I think he'd say it to the members every 3 seconds even if they're not talking 💀

[🌱] Kang Taehyun

"Totn"

Okay so, this started for a friend that texts like shit

Like, she wrote once that she was heterogeneous instead of heterosexual (straight)

So that happened, instead of writing "tonta/tonto" (silly or stupid), she wrote "totn" which can be pronounced like "toten"

And we started saying it all the time like, "Fucking totn" or "Que totn" (what a totn)

I see Taehyun using this one because I don't see him as someone who swears a lot.

So this "insult" is perfect for him

Like, I can see him making fun of one of the members mistake, like, chuckling with a shit eating smirk and saying "Ha, totn" or even "Fucking totn"

[🌱] Kai Kamal Huening

Any Spanish word with the termination "eta/ete"

Example:

Cocina (kitchen) = cocineta

Lápiz (pencil) = lapicete

So, idk if Kai swears

Like, ik I'm babying him but let's say he doesn't

So my friends are ALWAYS adding and "eta/ete" to EVERYTHING

With the most annoying tone ever I swear

So I see Kai doing the same to tease his members

Especially with fake aegyo

Something like "Can I have the manzaneta?" (manzana = apple) while doing aegyo

His members are so tired of him by now

Like he'll call them "miembretes" as "miembros" (members) when he wants to taste the patience

I also see him saying "ojete" as "ojo" which means eye, but "ojete" means anus LMAO

#txt imagine #txt imagines #txt fic #txt post #txt angst #txt fanfic #txt fanfiction #txt fluff #txt headcanons #txt reactions #txt scenarios #txt soobin #txt taehyun #txt beomgyu #txt yeonjun #txt kai #txt texts #txt x reader #txt x you

[fleurdelily]

# MY DIABOLIK LOVERS HEADCANONS ! lgbtq+ edition

⊹ characters : shu, reiji, ayato, laito, kanato, subaru, yui

⊹ warnings : suggestive content

⊹ note : these are my headcanons and my way of looking at things, if you don't agree that's totally ok !! feel free to put your opinions in comments

⊹ ˖ ﾟ. SHU SAKAMAKI

you can’t tell me that this man isn’t bisexual. he clearly has a bisexual energy, everyone can agree.

i feel that he’s more into big girls and big guys ( yes i’m talking about yuuma ). he just loves it.

we all know that he likes to look at the girls who pass in front of him, but once he looked at a man and he was like "damn."

i don't think he has a particular preference between men and women. he loves both equally, romantically and sexually.

for his gender i think he's cisgender man, but he doesn't care what you call him or what you use for his pronouns. he, she, they, xem, use whatever you want, just don't disturb him while he listens to his music.

⊹ ˖ ﾟ. REIJI SAKAMAKI

the first time i saw reiji, i said to myself " this man is a homosexual " and was i wrong ? i don’t think so.

i couldn't really explain why, it's just an energy that comes out of him.

because of his father, he has always imagined himself ending his life with a woman that his father chose for him to continue the lineage, even if he is not attracted to her. ( denial is a river in egypt, your husband is gay ! )

i don't have the impression that he is really attracted to women ? of course he finds women attractive, beautiful especially in corsets, but it’s a purely aesthetic attraction.

i think reiji’s type would be a person like Ruki. He has good manners, intelligent, strategic, sadistic, a handsome and charming man with a bratty temperament.

for his gender i would say cisgender or demiboy.

he/they pronouns for sure.

⊹ ˖ ﾟ. AYATO SAKAMAKI

i like to say that ayato is the definition of a cisgender heterosexual male, but actually i think he is bisexual.

he has a preference for women, but he can't stop looking at men.

every time he finds himself looking at a man's tits for a second too long, he turns his head sharply and acts as if nothing had happened. ( *cough* yuuma *cough* )

to come back to his gender, i think he is cisgender man. but i had seen once the headcanon of someone who said he was a trans man ( ftm ) and i really like this headcanon !

⊹ ˖ ﾟ. KANATO SAKAMAKI

for me he’s unlabeled ,kanato is attracted by pretty people, feminine, with delicate features, who look like dolls ,preferably smaller than him ( he’s insecure by their height do not judge them )

gender doesn't really matter to them.

for his gender, they’re non-binary ( or maybe genderfluid ) kanato has never really fit into the male gender stereotypes, either by his personal interests or by his physique. ( they uses he/they pronouns )

compared to his brothers, they’re short, slim, feminine face with big eyes, not very "masculine" looking. he doesn't give a damn, he wears what he likes and identifies himself as he wants, if people don't agree with him, then die.

⊹ ˖ ﾟ. LAITO SAKAMAKI

pansexual man. i will not say more. ( jk )

the gender or sex of the person does not matter to him, he sleeps with everyone, kisses everyone and flirts with everyone.

but i like to think that laito is asexual.

cisgender man, but he likes to see himself more like a concept or a disaster ( twins 🤞🏻)

uses any pronouns.

⊹ ˖ ﾟ. SUBARU SAKAMAKI

at first i would have said cisgender heterosexual man

he is mainly attracted to women, but sometimes he can't help but wonder about men.

when he sees a pretty boy, he starts to question his sexuality ( *cough* kou *cough* )

for his gender i would say a classic cisgender man with he/him pronouns

but subaru is the biggest ally ever. he will never tell his brothers but he will always defend their sexuality and gender.

⊹ ˖ ﾟ. YUI KOMORI

and the best for last !

she gives me mainly bisexual cis girl vibes.

for me, she’s the kind of person who finds women more easily pretty than boys, or just says to herself when a pretty girl passes by " oh ! she is very pretty"

i think she doesn't realize her attraction to women. for her, it's not a romantic or sexual attraction. she’s in denial because of the environment she grew up in.

she’s like " do i want to be like her or do i want to be with her ? "

sometimes she wonders why her heart was beating so fast when her classmate gave her such a soft smile. but she tries not to wonder too much.

but i like to think that she’s a lesbian 😞 ( i just want her to go away from the diaboys and get married to a woman please )

#belle’s works ౨ৎ #diabolik lovers ౨ৎ #diabolik boys #diahell #diabolik lovers #laito sakamaki #kanato sakamaki #ayato sakamaki #subaru sakamaki #yui komori #sakamaki shu #reiji sakamaki #dl #diabolik lovers headcanons #diabolik brothers

[whitehotharlots]

Claudine Gay and academe's three body problem

First off, it must be acknowledged that the airtight plagiarism case against Claudine Gay made it much less likely that she would be forced out of her position. Contemporary academe is built on intellectual dishonesty. If you disallow scholars from stealing the work of others and/or outright fabricating their findings, a solid 75% of the humanities and social sciences would disappear immediately, as would every single Identity Studies sub-discipline. Fraud is the only thing holding this mess together, and we cannot afford to begin pretending to police it.

This realization is going unstated because it's not very sexy, more of an "inside baseball" sort of thing. People who care about this stuff are already well aware of the replication crisis, and the mainstream media is already well aware that 99% of the country doesn't care about that kind of nerd bullshit.

No, no. The populist angle here is the manner in which Intersectionality just mutated and became even more hideous.

As I've explain multiple times, our current identity obsession cannot be understood as a coherent ideology or set of politics. It is, instead, an adjudication mechanism: a means of determining the moral and factual righteousness of a person's beliefs or actions regardless of their actual moral implications or connection to actual facts.

Intersectionalists posited a sort of Victimhood Totem Poll, in which a neatly ordered and agreed upon set of overlapping conditions would always be the single mechanism used to determine whether or not it's problematic if a person uses chop sticks or publishes a piece about how Social Security is bad because it perpetuates whiteness. For a long while, this appeared to work. A white heterosexual man is always more wrong and evil than a black heterosexual man, who is always more wrong and evil than a black homosexual woman, etc etc into infinity.

But, sadly, the world has changed. Those damn muslims blew up the totem poll as surely as they blew up them towers in New York. It turns out, separate victimhood groups can hold competing interests, and when one of those groups wields outsize influence upon media and financ---

Oh, wow. That's strange. Just got a popup on my browser reminding me that my thoughts are being recorded. It also offered me a chance to refinance my mortgage at double my current interest rate. Probably harmless.

Uhh... where was I going with this? Oh, right, the Three Body Problem. This is an overwrought but very enjoyable sci fi conceit about how hard it is to make predictive observations in regards to the momenta exerted upon three separate masses, instead of just focusing on how one mass influences the movement of another. A guy with glasses explained it to me once, and my takeaway was that it was basically like Rock Paper Scissors but for physics.

In today's academe, the Rock, Paper, and Scissors have been replaced by a Confederate Flag, a Dreidel, and a Gun. The confederate flag always loses no matter what, and so white women will often attempt to replace it with a taco or a feather. This leaves us with the two trump symbols. First up, the Dreidel...

Oh... hold on, hold up the police are knocking at my door. Probably want to congratulate me for being such a good citi

#claudine gay #harvard

[fluorescentbrains]

God I feel like they’re trying so hard to “fix” chapel in snw and doing a horrible job of it. Like not saying tos wasn’t outrageously misogynistic in many ways but I’m not sure turning the relatively mild mannered nurse in unrequited love with Spock into this (kind of generic) action hero baddie who is Spock’s sexual awakening that he cheated on his fiancée with was really the move. I know one of her major story points was losing her fiancé/teacher which explains in part why she’s so much more subdued in tos but it still feels like she had a seismic personality shift between snw and tos that she never really recovered from? And every development between Spock and Chapel just makes things that happened in tos/tas so much worse. People are allowed to change their mind about commitment and stuff but the idea that Spock at his absolute worst is what gets her to want to settle with one guy is kind of horrifying.

I feel like they did a mich better job developing Uhura in a way that felt organic to her tos counterpart? I’d much rather she and Spock have a romance that resolves on good terms and they stay friends (hypothetically I’m not sure it’d work with Uhura as a cadet).

Or have SNW chapel be a completely new character for the show so she can ditch Spock eventually? I feel like it would have worked out so much better if she was like, TOS chapel’s sister. She and Spock still have a thing but eventually she moves on and leaves, Spock’s kind of torn up about it when tos chapel joins the crew and starts developing a crush on him; Spock can’t return her feelings even if he wanted to because romance in general isn’t something he’ll ever excel at and he has no idea how to balance his lingering feelings with professionalism and hers that he doesn’t return—but presumably they get better and become real equal friends by tmp

that’s the thing that gets me like everything they’re doing with t’pring and chapel is making the already dubious stuff that happens in tos WORSE… the implication that chapel is going to be hung up on spock for like 10 years while the fire slowly goes out of her just sucks so bad.

and it really does reduce her storyline to constant spock drama. they could’ve written her as having a crush on spock without turning it into a love triangle. it could’ve even been genuinely sad and poignant that she knows and the audience knows her feelings will never go anywhere, just as we know what happens to pike… alas. the gods of heterosexuality demand a sacrifice

#anonymous #asks #i agree tho i like seeing cadet uhura

[megane-sama]

I want my last tumblr post for the year to be a kind of recap of my year in media. Sort of.

Noone asked but here are my top 3 books and top 3 mangas of 2023.

1. Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao.

This one honestly rewired my brain chemistry in the best ways possible because on God, bloodthirsty, traumatized, polyamourous bisexual revolutionaries is something that can be so personal to me. I can talk from now till tomorrow but I doubt I'll ever be able to fully explain how much I love this book so I won't bother, just know it's amazing. The sequel Heavenly Tyrant will be released in 2024 and y'all know I will be sat. Heavily recommend, read it if you haven't already or I will chew through your walls and devour your immortal soul :>

2. NOS4A2 by Joe Hill.

AHHHSHDHHNSN THIS BOOK...Had me practically enthralled actually, I didn't even notice the length because of how badly I was hooked, lined and sinkered. I loved how human the characters felt, they felt real so I felt a lot for them in return, also the "you get cool powers for the low low price of your own mindscape being stripped away" was fun. There is so much in here I loved, especially the running theme of love in itself, a flawed family that only keeps standing because it's filled with nothing but love, the love between Vic and Lou and Vic herself as a character too. Its filled with an array of amazing characters (except Charlie Manx and the Gasmask man, fuck them) and it flows so satisfyingly. So yeah I also recommend.

3. Confessions by Kanae Minato

Now I love a good revenge plot, especially when it chooses not to go down either the "I've done this so now what more do I have to live for" pipeline or even worse for me the "if I go through with this I become just as bad as you" one. Confessions really scratched that itch for me and it's presented in such a simplistic yet really well written manner, watching the web that slowly being spun and revealed as the plot progresses and when it finally comes together at the end and catches the fly, ohhh it's so satisfying. Also even tho the perpetrators in question were teenagers Yuko Moriguchi said fuck them kids and fuck you too and I think she's an icon for that. Also heavily recommend.

Honourable mention to The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky because it came really close to being in my top 3. It took me 8 months to finish and I'm pretty sure I didn't get most of it but I enjoyed it. There's so much in it to be enjoyed no matter what angle you're reading it from. Its not an easy read but honestly if you think you're up for it, go for it.

My worst book of the year however was The Stand by Stephen King. And for a book titled the Stand I really couldn't stand it, which kinda sucked because I'm a Stephen King fan but my God did I dislike a lot about the Stand. I won't say much but maybe I'm not white or Heterosexual enough to enjoy it idk and honestly if someone tells me it's their favourite SK book I'm going to assume they're either white, painfully straight or a liar.

Now for Manga.

1. Jigokuraku by Yuji Kaku.

Honestly this should come as a surprise to no-one. If you know me, you know I have a terrible case of Jigokuraku brain, like that shit is chronic, literally my fave shounen right next to Haikyuu and JoJo. But yeah I was Jgkrk obsessed yesterday, am Jgkrk obsessed today and I will be Jgkrk obsessed tomorrow.

2. Rosen Blood by Kachiru Ishizue.

Honestly it was everything I thought Diabolik Lovers would be (don't get me wrong I like DiaL but in a very messy, that's the kinda shit you watch from a distance reality TV way). I would lay down my life for Rosen Blood and all its Characters, especially Gilbert (beloved). It also made me want to read more Shoujo so we'll see how that goes in 2024.

3. MADK by Ryo Suzuri.

Honestly I have nothing to say about this except I'm sorry, the voices in my head won with this one. If you know, you know.

Honourable mention to Boys Run the Riot by Gaku Keito tho. Gotta be one of my favourite genders.

#i didn't consume a lot of media this year #mostly because i kept bouncing from one high stress situation to another #hopefully 2024 won't be like that #hopefully #anyways heres me wishing everyone a happy new year #i hope 2024 treats us all well #D Speaks #books #manga

[birdwonder]

Sorry if this is a sore topic, but do you have any more information on the Konig drama? I want to know the situation better. (also, he's 100% bi lmao)

No problem, I’m happy to share as much as I know ! I’ll avoid using his name because I don’t really want to make this a big thing.

I wouldn’t so much as call it a drama as I would say it’s just an unsettling discovery the fandom has recently made.

To explain it in short bullet points, the fans found König’s VA’s [ Voice Actor ] instagram and :

- His bio contains the term ‘# sigma male ’ which isn’t necessarily an act against humanity, but understandably leaves people a little weary as the term is usually used by those in toxic communities. I have also heard from others he has said things that stem from toxic masculinity on posts, but I have yet to check that for myself.

- His bio also contains ‘# crypto’ which refers to crypto currency. I won’t go into the details of crypto and why it’s bad but again, it leaves people unsettled.

- The main thing, and what caused my silly email, was that on his instagram story he responded to a cosplayer. The cosplayer was discussing MW2 cosplays and how people assign characters sexuality headcanons, to which the VA said “I can assure you König is straight a f.”

And while it is alright to say when a character is a heterosexual, the tone and manner of how this was said appears homphobic and comes from a place of hate. Besides, is it really up to the VA to decide these things ? And why is it so bad that people headcanon characters as queer ? While I’m sure he doesn’t understand that these are headcanons, this still heavily suggests to fans a hateful nature. There is no harm in fans putting bits of themselves into characters to make them more relatable and fun.

It’s incredibly heartbreaking for fans to see this sort of attitude from someone who was so admired and hopefully a change happens. If it is reveal König is straight, that’s totally alright ! But it’s nearly 2023, there’s little reason why the news couldn’t have been delivered in a more appropriate manner. I personally love König a lot and the VA sounds amazing so it’s a shame this all happened.

There are screenshots floating around but if you would like me to personally find them for you, please feel free to DM me. Otherwise check the VA’s instagram for yourself if you can.

#konig call of duty #konig mw2 #könig #könig modern warfare #könig call of duty #konig va #modern warfare 2 #call of duty #i hope this helps ! i am not used to making posts lik these

[southieparkie]

So, Southieparkie, What’s the Deal with you loving GNC Butters but having no real opinion towards GNC Kenny? (AKA the post in which I ramble about masc x fem relationships and how they’re valid)

Let me explain! First off, I wanna make it perfectly clear that I appreciate gender nonconforming butters and gender nonconforming kenny! They are both very valid headcanons in the long run! That being said, I see it more so in one than another. Here’s why:

There’s no doubt at all that BOTH OF THESE CHARACTERS (not just kenny, just butters, BOTH) are feminine/have had feminine moments in their own seperate rights. I would categorize Kenny’s femininity as more performative rather than emotional and lifestyle-related. Case in point: Princess Kenny.

Nevermind the fact that this character is quite literally a performance, her mannerisms and characteristics exude “typical princess” to me, so much so to the point where it’s evident that this is simply a performance and not the way Kenny acts outside of costume. Kenny and Princess Kenny are clearly two very seperate people. He puts on an obvious falsetto when in character and does things only a classic ten year old boy posing as a girl would do. (flashing his “boobs” is the biggest example of this I can think of) (think about drag queens, some of them do drag as a hobby/job, and when out of drag they’re just guys. y’know? idk, that’s the best way i can describe it)

Butters’ femininity in my eyes is moreso habitual and natural. The way he slipped so effortlessly into character and then eventually just gave up the facade and had a genuinely great time as Marjorine is the biggest example for this. Notice how his falsetto fades as the episode progresses? Obviously, he was uncomfortable at first being forced into it, falsetto creaky and unsure. After making it to Heidi’s sleepover and having the girls give him a makeover, the mission he’s on is almost completely forgotten about! Right now, he’s having fun with his girlfriends, no falsetto needed!! This is less so a character and more so him gradually getting comfortable in feminine clothing, having fun, and letting his hair down! (pun absolutely intended)

Flashing forward to high school, I believe Leo would adopt this physical femininity into his everyday life while Kenny would pull the skirts and makeup out on Friday nights both to entertain and to raise a middle finger to the societal expectations put on him. I don’t necessarily see Kenny doing it as much as Leo does, but I’m not discrediting the fact that they’re both very feminine!!!

I guess the biggest reason why I made this post (besides to defend myself lol) is to address the elephant in the room: heteronormativity

While I don’t see my depiction of Bunny as a masc x fem relationship (I more so see them as a feminine boy falling in love with a boy who just so happens to be masculine most of the time), I do understand that the wondering eye may see them as masc4fem, which is fine!! Mostly, they are masc x fem!! But sometimes they’re also fem x fem, or andro x fem!!! And to discredit anyone of their femininity in this ship (yes, Butters counts just as well as Kenny does) and to go as far as to say that either of these characters are not feminine at all is just…incorrect? Some people say this solely just to shut down the popular feminine leo headcanon/slander those who believe that Kenny is also feminine, and either way it’s totally unfair!!!

To reiterate what I’ve already made clear, I don’t see Kenny as someone who would incorporate femininity into his everyday lifestyle, but I do for Butters. However!!! I can do that and acknowledge that they’re both feminine to some extent and not completely a masc x fem relationship.

And, for the love of God I cannot stress this enough, masc x fem relationships! are! valid! Heteronormativity is the mindset that straight relationships and heterosexuality are the norm and that every relationship should have a man and a woman. And when two guys or two girls get together, regardless of masculinity or femininity…well, that’s not a straight relationship, now is it? That’s not an example of heteronormativity, now is it?!?!?!

As someone who is persuing a masc x fem relationship (my ‘friend’ who I am working things out with is masculine and I’m very feminine) I can safely say that I’m still Gay As Fuck™ and I can also confirm that I am NOT conforming to a heteronormative agenda.

Soooo hey! If you wanna draw Butters in a wedding dress and Kenny in a suit (PLEASE DO! SEND IT TO ME WHEN YOU FINISH) feel free to do so!! Or, If you want to draw the inverse, that’s fine too! Even drawing them both in dresses/both in suits is valid!!!! How you view any mlm/wlw ship is entirely up to you! This is just, y’know, how I feel about it. :)

#south park #sp #my lord this is messy #uhhh if you guys wanna see feminine butters i drew him today #should be on d00dlecj #but yea :) #me talking

[catoptro-pho-bia]

i do see plenty of people complaining at tryst six venom (p. douglas) being homophobic and fetishizing lesbians, that the women seem "written by a man" and how it is an overall disgusting book, and after reading and analysing it a couple times (because i did enjoy it for... various reasons) i want to have my take on it:

• from what i know, penelope is popular for her bullying romance/s, which (exception tsv) are pretty much heterosexual. i don't say it is a healthy manner to approach romance, i say it is a pattern of her writing that didn't show up when she published a wlw book

• regarding homophobia (because Clay used slurs), i want to ask a question before my argument: how do you see homophobic people act? or talk about queer people? Clay, as a characther, for 70% percent of the book, she's fighting with self homophobia, which i am sorry is this a new word for you? how many queer people fight with this on a daily basis? there are plenty issues with the book, if i like it doesn't mean i can't approach the actual issues, but homophobia because there are slurs in the book? CLAY IS HOMOPHOBIC? RAISED IN A HOMOPHOBIC SOCIETY? how do you expect her to think/talk? don't get me started with the enviroment that allowed/pushed her to grow this way in her teenagehood. they were pretty much explained if you actually TAKE YOUR TIME and read through the lines :D

• another thing is fetishising wlw which i do have some words to add. in olivia's pov, the way she process some events/ interactions, tell the story how she feels being fetishised, realising people can take advantage of your sexuality, besides the bullying, and how pretty much it reflects the real world. you think it's disgusting? it happens daily to queer people. is it toxic for a straight (i dont think she is too straight based on how she wrote some scenes but lets not assume peoples sexuality😭) woman to write about it? yes, IF the character would be made to normalise it. liv didn't. 60% of her development is based on her fighting it, being tired of it, running from it, teasing with it, etc. all the stages, call it what you want. it happens daily. it happens irl.

• the "women that seem written by men" argument pissed me off the most, because in media, from which i've seen, often the lesbian couples are made from one girly/femme girl and the other is kinda masculine/butch or stem which feeds more into the stereotype of "who is the man in relationship?" and that a wlw couple has to contain one feminine and one masculine side. i don't have any issues with these couples. but the fact that both were pretty feminine as style and personality, doesn't mean they were made for the male gaze/ by a male gaze. femmes can fall for other femmes too, you know.

• i think penelope showed through clay how it is to battle inner homophobia (especially as a queer person) and the fear of rejection from the loved ones, and how this can turn into hate and make you do disgusting things. make it make sense how it's homophobic 😭😭😭

there are, as well, lots of problematic parts: from the marker scene (that made me give an instant -1 without discussion, unnecessary scene), from liv accepting a bit TOO MUCH in the name of love -but it's a common thing in these kind of books-, livs brothers that piSSED ME OFF they are annoying, to the almost r*pe scene, i mean i got the idea of it but she could send the message a bit more.. differently, aaaand etc.

are liv and clay one my confort characthers? yes. is the book problematic to some extent? yes. is the book homophobic/fetishising wlw? i'm sorry but it doesn't make sense to me HOW.

you don't like a book, that's cool, but from that to shitting on an author (which i somehow get bc she isn't my favourite as well but you do you) for the opposite she tried to show in a book? :)))) cmon

#tryst six venom

[ingravinoveritas]

I’m slowly reading through your blog and while I love a lot of your ‘analysis’ posts, your tag ‘there is no heterosexual explanation for this’ often gives me pause and a bit of cringe, because most of the time it refers to looks/mannerisms which are conventionally considered ‘fruity’. This sort of stereotyping looks old-fashioned not in a good way, it’s misleading and can be actually harmful. At least every queer person I know cringes hard at this kind of discourse.

Hello, Anon. Well, first let me say thank you for the kind words about my blog, which I greatly appreciate. I also appreciate your feedback about the #there is no heterosexual explanation for this tag, as I've had a lot of followers of my blog who are queer message me privately saying that they feel my blog is a safe space for them. Obviously, each person's experience is different, and I would never tell someone not to be offended, nor would I want to inadvertently be doing something that makes my blog seem unsafe in such a way.

With the Internet being what it is--and that lack of vocal tone/context making things far more confusing than they need to be--what I think might have gotten lost is why/how I use that tag, so I'd like to take a moment to explain. For me, the purpose of that tag is not so much to refer to "fruity" looks or mannerisms in general, but to refer specifically to David himself (well, mostly David, though I sometimes use it on posts for Michael as well). I use it when I see David doing or wearing things that go against what most of society would consider stereotypically "heterosexual," and it is coming from a place of sheer admiration, rather than judgment.

I absolutely love that David is unapologetically unafraid to be himself. And I love that what "himself" is is something that doesn't necessarily fit into one framework or another. That David doing or wearing these things isn't queer because they fit into a stereotyped idea of what "queer" is, but because they reflect who he is. It's that, time and again, people will want to overlook any possibility of him being anything other than 100% straight, but he's still telling us who he is in his own way, and having the grace to give people time to figure it out for themselves.

The unfortunate reality as well is that being as flamboyant as David is is not an easy or safe thing to do these days, something I feel like he knows all too well having a child who identifies as enby. But David is putting himself out there regardless, not necessarily in a "specifically labeling his identity" way, but just being authentic and loud and so confident in his skin in a way I don't think I've ever seen him be before. And I truly love that, and believe it's worth celebrating.

I hope this helps to explain where I'm coming from and clears things up. Again, I appreciate your thoughts on this discourse so much, and I'm happy to have other folks weigh in on this subject as well. Thanks for writing in! x

#anonymous #reply post #david tennant #soft scottish hipster gigolo #david is lowkey bi and michael is highkey bi #i love how they both say a big 'fuck you' to society's expectations #i know you can't tell a person's sexuality from how they stand/talk/etc. #but I think David is definitely telling us who he is #and i'm so glad to see him so happy and open about it #i love how he effortlessly moves between dark and light; dom and sub; masculine and feminine #that fluidity is what i see in his energy #and is what i think is worth discussing #sexuality #discourse

[sapphos-catpanions]

another one from shape shifter. it takes a lot to share these difficult truths. some choice quotes:

“I grew up in predominantly Muslim country in Eastern Europe. From the youngest years of my life, I was ‘gender non-conforming,’ and even before I hit puberty I knew I wasn’t like the other boys. But as I got older, I realized that my sexuality and desire to present myself the way I felt most comfortable was not accepted by the society I had been born into. I was rejected both at school and in the home. Bullied by peers, and treated as a burden by my family for my femininity.”

“Slowly but surely, I began to hate everything about myself. My “feminine” body and mannerisms were a burden, as was my sexuality. Still, all I could focus on was improving my English with the dream I could leave my country and move to the West.

“When I was 20-years-old, that dream became a reality. I moved to the United States to begin graduate school, and for a moment breathed the fresh air of a liberation I’d never before known. I was finally able to grow out my hair and dress in the manner I preferred, and I could be openly gay without fear of persecution.

“But that moment was tragically brief. 

“A question from a well-meaning classmate would put the breaks to the freedom I was enjoying.

“What are your pronouns?” 

“I was confused, uninitiated. I’d never been exposed to the concepts present in contemporary gender ideology before, and began to research into it like any curious person would. Little did I know at the time, every page I scrolled through and concept I learned was tugging me farther and farther away from the liberation I had just barely begun to enjoy.

“Faced with an avalanche of testaments to affirmationand validation, I began to convince myself I was a “straight woman” trapped in a man’s body. After the life I had lived, wrought with such repression and condemnation, it almost made sense.

“It explained everything, in fact. The reasons why I never fit in or felt comfortable with my body suddenly became crystal clear. The logic behind it also promised an escape, something I had been desperately searching for my whole life. 

“I could be free from the homosexuality that I had been shamed for since my earliest years. I could be free from being a “feminine” man. I could be a heterosexual woman. Then I could be accepted, find love, and live a normal life.”

after estrogen, FFS, and breast implants:

“While my dating pool initially increased, I was told by members of my transgender community that men who were comfortable with my penis were “tranny chasers” who didn’t see me as a real woman. This, coupled with the fact these men often didn’t want anything to do with me out of the bedroom, made me feel like I would never find true love until I had completed all of the surgeries associated with transitioning. My mental health began to deteriorate, and I decided that I needed bottom surgery in order to feel happy.

“I ended up getting two letters from mental health professionals at Fenway Health stating that I had gender identity disorder and that I was a good candidate for sex reassignment surgery. At no point was I asked about my childhood trauma, the repression of my sexuality in my home country, or even whether I had any co-morbid mental health concerns. They assumed that my depression and anxiety issues were due to gender identity disorder, and that radical medical intervention would be the solution.

“I had my surgery in 2015, and my life has been a living hell since then.”

he describes his four surgeries, his inability to maintain “depth” of his neo vagina despite following the dilation instructions, the recto-“vaginal” fistula, the painful urination, the shaving down of his pelvic bone to try to make enough space for a pouch, the same abuse from healthcare providers we are used to seeing, who have been following developments in trans healthcare.

“It was then that I realized no one had known what they were doing. Everything was experimental. All of it was being made up as they went along — and I was nothing more than a guinea pig.

“I later discovered the surgeon, Dr. Salgado, who had done my last three revisions was let go from the University of Miami for taking pictures of his patients while they were under anesthesia and posting them to Instagram.”

this would be the same Dr. Salgado from I Am Jazz.

“I realize now that in my search for freedom… I have mutilated myself.

“I lost my perfectly healthy genitals. I lost my 20s. I lost family and friends. I lost my chance at a comfortable, fulfilling sex life. 

“My insurance, however, has paid out over $250,000 to surgeons and hospitals for the various hack-jobs that had been performed on my body. Everyone made out like a bandit, yet I had nothing to show for it. Not one of the surgeons who lined their pockets off of my trauma has ever called to check up on me, ask about my quality of life, or see if I was still alive.”

“I realized hormone treatments were not even FDA approved for treatment of gender dysphoria. That there were no studies proving that hormone replacement therapy was safe in the long run. And, just as I had thought, all of the surgeries were experimental.

“But more than anything else, I realized I was not a “woman.” I was a gay man who had been sold a lie.

“After everything I have been through. I realize medical transition destroyed my mental and physical health, and lowered my quality of life substantially. 

“At 31-years-old, I have osteoporosis and scoliosis from the impact of hormone replacement therapy. In fact, my testosterone was so low that in January I began taking it to improve my bone density. My T-levels increasing resulted in a slew of extreme emotions towards my transition. It was as though a part of my brain that had been dormant was activated, and I was suddenly wrought with the full depth of the realization that I had made a mistake I could never take back.

“I was at my breaking point, and experienced suicidal ideations. Entering therapy helped me realize I had heavy childhood trauma that should have been addressed prior to ever allowing me to proceed with an irreversible medical intervention. I discovered I had borderline personality disorder as well as body dysmorphia, and no matter how far I took my surgical modifications, I would have never felt “at home” in my body.

“Since I have come out as a detransitioner, I have spoken to so many people like me whose stories are important and deserve to be heard. In fact, I believe the detransitioner community will be growing exponentially in the coming years. It is tragic to think about the parents who will one day realize they ruined their child’s body by jumping to “affirm” how they perceived themselves at one moment in time — kids who may have just been gay or gender-nonconforming like myself.

“I have also met criticism from those who still subscribe to gender ideology who claim that me speaking on my experiences will take away “life saving” care from trans people. 

“But I got that care. And where is my life?

“Sometimes I feel like I am in a nightmare I will wake up from. My eyes will open and I will have my original body and have my whole life ahead of me to make decisions. Since beginning testosterone, I also sometimes get ‘phantom penis’ symptoms which are extremely traumatic. 

“Medical detransitioning is even more experimental than medical transitioning, but I am not rushing into anything anymore. One thing for sure, I will never again identify as transgender woman — a label that not only endorses questionable medical experimentation, but also has a negative impact on the rights and dignity of females.

“My idea of freedom is different now than it was those years ago, but the challenges are, ironically, the same.

“In addition to the criticism from those who champion gender ideology, I also get flak for having long hair and nails but identifying as a man. Yet again I am being criticized for not fitting certain rigid definitions of masculinity — the very thing that set me down this path in the first place. 

“But I am done trying to ‘correct’ myself to please others. 

“I am done shifting shapes.”

#trans #nonbinary #trans women #gender dysphoria #transmasc #gender critical

[orangerosebush]

Obligatory pride month HC post for a few of my belovèd AF faves.

Putting this below the cut as it will be a smidge long. If your headcanons differ, please know that this is only intended to be my very own, self-indulgent reading of some of the characters -- I love to hear how people's readings differ from my own, and I truly do think of the series as being inherently conducive to a multiplicity of interpretations.

Artemis Fowl II: I have a whole post on the fact I love to read (and write) Artemis as being a trans man, and all my takes from that piece apply here. I see him as being bisexual and only coming to terms with this during his late-teens. I don't think he reflected much on his sexuality when he was younger, assuming he was heterosexual due to the fact he is attracted to women *and* the fact mainstream masculinity is also tied to straightness, thus making it common for transmasculine people to remain closeted (to themselves and/or to society) so as to avoid "risking" what little access to validated manhood in the eyes of the peers that they had managed to procure. However, I think he always was drawn to depictions of queer masculinity in art -- Oscar Wilde's writing, etc -- even though he didn't fully understand why he was so profoundly emotionally affected by it.

Juliet Butler: I read her as being a lesbian. Her character arc is so deeply tied to her negotiating what is expected of her as opposed to what she loves, and her finally gathering to courage to leave for America to begin living the life she was meant to live was so important to me when I read it the first time. I see her as having a non-traditional romantic relationship with Samsonetta, in that it's a somewhat open relationship and neither of them is interested in settling down and legally marrying. However, they both deeply love one another, and the relationship has been very healing for them both.

Butler: I see him as always having been supportive of the fact Juliet is gay (i.e. I see him reassuring her that she is meant to live her life as Juliet, not just a Butler, as him subtextually saying, "I know you've never told me, but I know you are gay, and I love you"). However, I think that in terms of him being comfortable with his own sexuality, he'd have a lot of internalized stuff to work through :(. Let me explain.

Canonically, one of Butler's favorite movies is Some like it hot (1959) with Marilyn Monroe -- and this movie was (arguably) the death knell of the Hays Code due to scenes like the following in which gayness was alluded to in a very progressive manner for the time:

Here's how Butler talks about something as innocuous as his taste in genre.

So much about what makes his dynamic with Juliet fascinating is that he is so unequivocally supportive of her, that he is adamant that the Blue Diamond life would kill her spirit, and so on -- yet he likewise spends most of the series refusing to allow himself to be emotionally vulnerable with others, just as he struggles to allow himself to be more than just "a Butler".

I could see Juliet finding out from Justin Barre (Butler's friend from Scotland yard) that years in the past, he had sensed a mutual -- though they never discussed this -- romantic frisson between Butler and himself, and that he always wondered whether something could have happened between them had Butler not been called back to Ireland at Artemis' birth. Juliet has a moment where she's like, "Wait. Hold up".

Suddenly, a lot of awkwardness about how Butler has tried to articulate how much he loves and supports Juliet's own sexuality is recontextualized as being part of, "Holy shit, my brother is heavily closeted". To me, I see Butler's love for Juliet as likely one of the few things that would impel him to properly go to therapy so as to work through all the shit he'd internalized from stripping away his personhood during his time in Blue Diamond training. Like, Butler *loves* being a bodyguard, and this is how he talks about it nonetheless.

I do think that over time, he learns how to be more vulnerable around other people, and that although he remains a private person until he dies, he does come to terms with his own queerness in a way that brings him peace.

Something that reminds me of how I write Butler is the following (beautiful and heart-breaking) piece of art by illustrator Kenny Park (@/parkkennypark).

#long post #artemis fowl #juliet butler #domovoi butler #homophobia mention #transphobia mention #internalized and within the context of artemis navigating queerness as a trans man